Third Sunday before Lent Luke 6:17-26 1 Corinthians 15:12-20‘Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say there is no resurrection of the dead? If there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, then our proclamation has been in vain and your faith has been in vain. […] If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. Then also those who have died in Christ have perished. If for this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.’ Paul, in the first letter to the Corinthians, is focussing on the reality of the resurrection of the dead in a logical argument: if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ could not have been raised. And as this is the basis of salvation, so the faith of the believers would be in vain. An important assessment of the doctrine of salvation that sums it up in a nutshell. This is what it is about. And this is what can be a stumbling block for those who cannot see what Christ has done. In Luke’s Gospel, chapter 6, we find Jesus himself speaking, as in a similar account in Matthew 5; what we call the Beatitudes. Luke too, records Jesus’ upside-down teaching: ‘Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the Kingdom of God. Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you will be filled. Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh.’ It has been said before, that God’s Kingdom is upside-down. The rich are poor, the poor are rich; the hungry are filled, the filled are empty. When it comes to an assessment of the economic state of people today, we can say that that doesn’t make sense. Or, at best it would be a glib way of speaking about the plight of those who are suffering. But in view of the resurrection it does make sense! It is not a way to dismiss other people’s despair. Rather, it is offering the hope of salvation through faith. Some people are still arguing about the resurrection, just as they were in Paul’s day. A bit like: if I haven’t seen it with my own eyes it can’t be true. Or if science can’t work it out, I won’t believe it. Yet, there is nothing that is so well-documented by witnesses as the resurrection! All the in-depth studies of many scholars throughout the centuries have come to that conclusion. But sometimes it takes a willingness to see. We say that we can miss the things that are right under our noses! And so we need faith to remind us of the truth. Or perhaps we need to hear the truth to remind us of our faith. In Paul’s argument for the resurrection, it is the truth that has been witnessed that makes the difference to faith, and, therefore, to our future. Jesus said: ‘Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you, revile you, and defame you on account of the Son of Man. Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, for surely your reward is great in heaven;’ Your reward is great in heaven. Faith puts it within your reach. God’s Kingdom is upside-down. Christ won the victory over sin and death by dying on our behalf and rising from the dead. Eternal life can be ours by accepting his work of salvation through faith. Then, as we shall see, those who hunger for righteousness, will be filled, and those who weep now, will be comforted. The offer is there, totally free, for all who want it. May we not lose it through ignorance or pride, but take it and rejoice in our reward! Amen.
Fourth Sunday before Lent Luke 5:1-11 1 Corinthians 15:1-11How do you ‘catch people’? It’s a bit of a strange phrase, yet we find Jesus saying it to the fishermen among his disciples. Of course, we do understand it here, in the context of the great catch of fish that the fishermen caught after Jesus had told them what to do. Luke records that they had not caught anything after a long night of hard work, but they did as Jesus asked and then had trouble getting all the fish into the boat! Simon Peter, when he saw it, fell down at Jesus’ feet, saying: ‘Go away from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man!’ Now where did that come from, we may wonder.In the accompanying passage from the first letter to the Corinthians, we find Paul speaking along similar lines, saying he is the least of the Apostles, unfit even to be called an apostle, because he first persecuted the Church of God. Only later, by God’s grace, did he become a follower of Christ, when Jesus appeared to him ‘as to one untimely born’, he calls it. On the road to Damascus, Paul was ‘caught’. His conversion is a remarkable story, in that Paul, formerly known as Saul, changed so dramatically, by God’s grace. And Jesus, when he tells the disciple fishermen to cast out their net in the way he suggests, also changes Simon Peter, who then confesses his sinfulness. It is not simply because of the great catch of fish that this happens; it is because of the way it happens, and because of the way Jesus activates it. It is by contrast with Jesus, that Peter sees himself in a new light. No longer is he the one who is in charge, and the one who knows it all. Until then, Peter, and his companions, had still been working as fishermen, for that was their job. This is the moment, though, when they left their boats and committed themselves to following Jesus. The readings for today, both from Luke’s Gospel and 1 Corinthians, are sharing this particular notion: that you can’t follow Jesus if your loyalty is divided. You can’t be a part-time Christian; you either are or you are not. When we see the light of Christ shine on us, we cannot but see how we need him! And we need him 24/7, not just on Sunday or every now and then, when we feel like allowing God a look in. And this may lead us to the question: how easy do we find it to commit to Christ in our lives? Are we happy to do the things that are easy, when we have some time to spare? Or are we willing to serve also when it’s difficult or demanding? It may be a question that we dodge anyway, not really wanting to engage. But if that is the case, we may miss out on the opportunity to live our lives to the full, as God has intended. For when Jesus said to the fishermen: ‘Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching people’, what he gave them was the fulfilment of their lives, according to their talents, so that they could shine as true people. Yes, following Christ may not be easy; it may be hard and even dangerous sometimes. But the alternative is an even greater loss: the loss of truth, of real peace, of destiny. When you have been ‘caught’ by Christ, you don’t lose your say about your life altogether; rather, you gain a better understanding of where your life is going. Your journey becomes more intentional, especially when you realise that you have to adjust your direction. In the long run, it is more joyful and rewarding, and safer. What’s more, when we live as people ‘caught’ by Jesus, we find that we can in turn help ‘catch’ them for Jesus too. Our faith can become infectious, inspiring others to follow Jesus. It can be as overwhelming as the unexpected catch of fish. Who knows what it can lead to? Amen.
Candlemas Luke 2:22-40 Hebrews 2:14-endThe Presentation of Christ in the Temple concludes the season of Epiphany. The account in Luke’s Gospel may be familiar to you already: the child Jesus, who has been manifested to the magi at his birth, is now recognised by two people in the Temple: Simeon and Anna. Mary and Joseph have brought him to the Temple according to the Law. As Simeon proclaims, he is both a ‘light to the Gentiles and the glory of God’s people Israel’. It all sounds lovely, but of course, as we know, the redemption that Jesus is to bring, must be worked out through suffering. The joy of the Incarnation is pointing to the Passion; and the words of Simeon directed in particular to Jesus’ mother Mary take us from the celebration of Christmas to the Easter mystery. Traditionally, candles are taken to the local church to be blessed and then used for the rest of the year, to symbolise Jesus Christ as the Light of the world. It’s interesting: we use candles a lot in church and also in many homes, candles are lit. A soft flicker of light in the darkness, as a sign of hope. And it’s true: even one candle flame will make a difference in an otherwise dark environment, so that we can see where we are or where we are going. This is also about the meaning of light and especially the meaning of Jesus, the Light of the world.Simeon says, ‘Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory of your people Israel.’ Now you are dismissing…. Now is the moment when I have truly seen. We talk about a light coming on, when we realise the truth of something. This was a lightbulb moment, as we would say these days. The Holy Spirit must have indicated to Simeon who this baby was. There will have been other babies too, with their parents, to do what the Law required. But this one stood out. Simeon recognised him and so did Anna, the prophet who was also there and began to praise God and speak about this child, and how he would be their Saviour. In the passage from the Letter to the Hebrews, chapter 2, we find this described beautifully: ‘Since, therefore, the children share flesh and blood, he [Jesus] himself likewise shared the same things, so that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, … and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by the fear of death.’ Death and darkness, both destroyed by the work of Jesus, the Light of the world. Candlemas is a symbolic moment when we are reminded of just how important the work of salvation has been for us. Yes, the world is a dark place for many right now. Time and again, we have seen how people have ‘lost it’, through hatred and greed and other selfish behaviour. It has led to war and climate change, and the end may not yet be in sight. The Light of the world has perhaps never been so important to us than right now. Now is the moment, then, for the world to really see, to recognise the infant who came to save us. What can we do to share his light to those who have not yet seen? How can we reflect his light to those in need? Perhaps we first need to absorb the light of Jesus ourselves, so that we can fully shine, by his grace, and dispel the darkness. It only takes one small light to change the situation. May we all, then, shine! Amen.
Third Sunday of Epiphany Luke 4:14-21 1 Corinthians 12:12-31aIn their wisdom, those who compile the lectionary for the church year, put today’s reading from 1 Corinthians 12 together with that from chapter 4 of Luke’s Gospel. It is not an immediately obvious connection, perhaps, but if you look closely, there certainly is one! It is all about the part prophecy plays in our story of faith. Context is important, because we would otherwise miss it! The passage from Luke 4 begins with: ‘Then Jesus, filled with the power of the Spirit, returned to Galilee, and a report about him spread through all the surrounding country. He began to teach in their synagogues and was praised by everyone.’ But how did he get there? At the beginning of chapter 4, Luke records Jesus’ time in the desert, where he was sent by the Holy Spirit, and where he was tempted by the devil. And going a little bit further back, even, we find that this was at the beginning of Jesus’ ministry, after his baptism in the river Jordan, when God the Father spoke his words of affirmation: ‘You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.’ And now we find him in the synagogue in Nazareth, his home town, reading from the prophet Isaiah. After he has read this particular passage, he says those remarkable words: ‘Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.’ At first, the people are amazed and speak well of him, but the tide turns, when Jesus continues to speak, hinting at their unbelief at the words of the prophets. The situation becomes even critical but Jesus walks away unharmed.What are we to make of all that, then? Well, in 1 Corinthians 12, there is the mention of ‘varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit’; ‘varieties of services, but the same Lord’; and ‘varieties of activities, but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone.’ The people of Israel had been used to the prophets in the past; each speaking the word of God to their situation at the time. They would also sometimes speak of a time further on in the future, about the Messiah. Isaiah, one of the so-called Major Prophets, had this particular reference that Jesus read out in the synagogue: ‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.’ With Jesus then saying that this scripture has now been fulfilled, he reminds the people that this is what they have been waiting for all along. Jesus has a special task to perform, inspired by God himself. In other words, Jesus is working ‘in context’ and in line with God’s plan of salvation, set in motion a long time before. It may not be easy to grasp that particular part of it: that Jesus is the fulfilment of God’s will, and, full of the Holy Spirit, is working for the salvation of the world. Yet, that is what he is, because of who he is. At first, Jesus is commended by his hearers. But then, when he holds up a mirror to them, and points out their stubbornness, his life is threatened, and he has to leave even his hometown.So, what is our response, then, to hearing all this? Are we confident that we know how he is relating to us and to our needs? The congregation in the synagogue on that day were looking for Jesus to perform miracles, just like they had heard he did in Capernaum. It’s been so often the case: people saying that they will believe if they see a miracle, or if things turn out for them just as they want. But Jesus is not a performer, let alone an entertainer, although he has a sense of humour! He is much, much more than that. He is certainly a worker of miracles. And the greatest miracle is that he has come to show the depth of God’s love for us by dying for us, and defeating death on the third day at the resurrection. The promise of eternal life through faith in Jesus is the greatest miracle of all! May we not only believe that, but also fully grasp it, and live fully in that deepest joy! Amen.
