EPIPHANY 2A - Isaiah 49:1-7; Psalm 40:1-12; 1 Corinthians 1:1-9; John 1:29-42 -

20 January 2008 - A sermon preached by The Rev. Peter A. Munson for St. Ambrose Episcopal Church, Boulder, Colorado

 

Strength from the Fire

 

INTRODUCTION - Reminders

 

Sometimes you and I needed to be reminded of what we already know. This is true for spiritual reminders, also, and is another one of the reasons why being together - in a faith community - is so important. We remind each other of what we are called to be and what we need to be about, which is very helpful, because you and I have a tendency to miss the mark and get off track now and then.

 

A few days ago I was meeting with one of the wise ones from our parish, an elder of mine by about fifteen years, but someone who is still quite young and alive and growing in her faith, after many years of following Christ. She told me that she had read my recent article in the Ambrosia, our parish newsletter. My ears perked up a little. Oh, someone read what I wrote! I must confess, in this busy world of ours, sometimes I wonder how many people take the time to read what I write. I was anticipating what this woman would say. And it just so happens that the night before I met with this woman, one of the Vestry members had mentioned my article, and said that his wife read it, too, and he felt it was basically “right on.” I was about to get even more feedback. This is a good thing. I’m listening!

 

If you read my article, you know it has to do with the Annual Meeting on January 27, and the four goals the Vestry has identified for 2008, and what it’s going to take for us to accomplish them. I said that for these goals to be realized, we must first have all of us - or almost all of us - behind this vision, and believing, with all of our hearts, that this is the right way forward for us at St. Ambrose. I also said that it is going to take a larger investment of time and money than we are making right now - by all of us - for these goals to be realized. There was one paragraph where I dove into how much more each family would need to give, to make this vision a reality. And there was a summarizing paragraph where I wrote, “All that is required is our common faith in God, our common commitment to each other and to this vision, and the giving of a little bit more of our time, energy, talent, and money to make it happen.” I stand by what I have written. I believe - with all my heart - that this is what is needed, on our part.

 

The wise parishioner had a different take on my article. She said words to this effect. “We can play with the numbers all we want to, but getting where we need to go is not just about numbers. We need to be in prayer about all of this! We’re not going to get there without God’s help.” I listened, and I totally agreed. Who is right - Julie Overland or myself? We’re both right. And yet, I desperately needed Julie’s reminder.

 

Have I been praying enough about all this? Well, I’ve been praying, but I don’t know if I’ve had prayer in its proper place. I have a little sign in my office that says, “Prayer should be our first resource, not our last resort.”

 

That sign happened to catch my eye, as I listened to Julie, and looked over her shoulder for a moment. There it was. Another reminder. And a very good one.

 

I’ve been analyzing our situation upside-down and sideways, crunching the numbers, asking a lot of questions that I’m not sure any of us on the Vestry know the answers to, all because I am concerned about the future of St. Ambrose, and because I am concerned about how we - the leaders of this parish - can light a fire under this church in a way that moves us forward and upward and outward - for our own good, for the good of others, and for the good of God’s kingdom (and not necessarily in that order). That’s not a bad thing.

 

But Julie’s words to me made me stop, and reflect, and recognize this truth: all my analyzing and all the Vestry’s analyzing hasn’t been balanced with enough reliance on God. Our talking and our thinking and the sharing of our dreams, frustrations, and anxieties have not been balanced with enough prayer, enough getting on our knees and coming to the Source of our life, and saying, as honestly as we can, what Julie basically said to me. “Lord, we need your help!”

 

You know what? I need to be the best leader I can be. The Wardens and the other members of the Vestry need to be the best leaders they can be. But I’m not going to light the fire under you. The Vestry isn’t going to light the fire under you. Only God can do that. Matthew and Luke both report John the Baptist as saying that he baptized with water, but that Jesus would baptize with the Holy Spirit and with fire. (Matthew 3:11; Luke 3:16) The tongues of fire fell on the disciples at Pentecost. The Holy Spirit, given to us, is a burning fire that descends on us, too, and makes us on fire for our Lord, on fire for building the kingdom of God. That fire comes from God, and from God alone. And to be set on fire, we must come into the presence of the on-fire God, and let Him take some of His fire, and put it in us - as much of it as we can handle. Or perhaps we should be praying for a little more of it than we think we can handle.

 

FAITH

As I thought about Julie’s remarks, what came back to me were some things that I know about faith. It’s not a matter of faith if you and I can do something totally through our own efforts. If we know exactly how something is going to happen, that’s not faith, either. Faith is believing in the power of God to change things, when you don’t know how God is going to bring it to pass. Our great ancestor in the faith is Abraham, who heard God saying to him, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you.” (Genesis 12:1) And Abraham, 75 years old at the time, took Sarai and Lot and everything he owned, and did exactly what the Lord called him to do. He got up, left Haran, never looked back - and never went back. And he did all this, without knowing where he was going, and without God identifying this particular land in which God was going to make of him a great nation. He went - trusting in God, relying on the fact that God would be with him throughout the next steps of the journey - a journey of many miles, many years, many ups and downs. He trusted that God would provide for him and his family, that God would continue to guide him, and that God would be true to his promises.

 

Did Abraham have some resources at his disposal? You bet he did. He had his family, his mind, his servants and all of his wealth, his healthy body - all of these were at his disposal. And all these resources were important, and were to be used as he lived out his life in faithfulness to God. But he could not accomplish what God was calling him to accomplish without God.

 

Again, it’s not a faith issue if we can do it all on our own. Shall I say that again? If we don’t need God’s help, it’s not a faith issue! It’s a both/and life. We need to bring all our resources for the journey, and use them wisely and generously, AND we need to rely on God for doing the part that only God can do.

 

God gives us the strength we need. God takes our offerings and multiplies them, so that many more people are fed than we thought was possible. God brings healing. God showers the people with blessings, and forgives us, and gives us a whole new life.

 

We must do our part, and share our resources. But we can’t do what we’re called to do without God.

 

Will you continue in the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of the bread, and in the prayers? I will, with God’s help.

Will you persevere in resisting evil, and whenever you fall into sin, repent and return to the Lord? I will, with God’s help.

Will you proclaim by word and example the Good News of God in Christ? I will, with God’s help.

Will you seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving your neighbor as yourself? I will, with God’s help.

Will you strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being? I will, with God’s help.

(The Book of Common Prayer, “The Baptismal Covenant”, pp. 304-305, my emphasis)

 

These are the promises we make as Christians. This is what it means to live a life of faith. And notice - NOTICE! - we don’t make even one of these promises without saying what? - “WITH GOD’S HELP.”

 

So we hear in the lessons for today:

 

“... my God has become my strength.” (Isaiah 49:5)

 

“I waited patiently for the Lord; he stooped to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the desolate pit... he set my foot upon a high cliff and made my footing sure. He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God... Happy are they who trust in the Lord.” (Psalm 40:1-4)

 

“... you are not lacking in any spiritual gift as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ. He will also strengthen you to the end, so that you may be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Corinthians 1:7-8)

 

And finally, we hear Jesus say to us the very same words he said to the twelve: “Come and see.” (John 1:39) And also: “Follow me.” (John 1:43)

 

He is our strength. He is our fire. He is our light. He is our very life. And Julie is right. We aren’t going anywhere if our Lord doesn’t want us to go there, because we aren’t going anywhere without his help.

 

CONCLUSION

 

Make no mistake. He calls us to be on the move. He calls us to follow Him, and to be open to his ongoing call upon our lives. He calls us to help Him build the kingdom. And if we’re going to be rightly guided, we need to be constantly praying, constantly listening, and then stepping out - in faith - as Abraham did.

 

I believe we are at a very important crossroads in the life of our community. We have lived our first 40 years with God, and it is time for the next stage in our development. That development includes both our ongoing transformation in Christ as individuals, and our ongoing transformation as a community. The Annual Meeting a week from today is very important. I ask you to be at worship next Sunday at 9:30. I ask you to bring something for the brunch and stay for the brunch. I ask you to stay for the meeting, and to contribute to our discussion and to the decisions we make.

 

But before we do all that, if your schedule permits, I ask you to come to a Prayer Vigil for the Annual Meeting next Saturday, January 26, from 9-10 am. We will gather around the altar, and pray for an hour - for our community, and for the Annual Meeting. We’ll pray that we hear God’s voice. We will draw strength and courage from the fire that is our God. We will renew our trust in God, and we will move forward together - with God’s help. Always with God’s help.