October 6, 2024 JESUS AND INDIVIDUALS 3. "Jesus and the Scribes" (Communion)

 Readings: Psalm 26, Job:1:1;2:1-10, Hebrews 1:1-4, Mark 3:20-35

Preached at Bridgehampton Presbyterian Church, NY, October 6, 2024

I'm preaching a series titled “Jesus and Individuals.” Two weeks ago we were thinking about an encounter Jesus had at the home of Simon the Pharisee with a sinful woman of Galilee. Last week we were considering a personal 40 year journey since ordination.

This time I want to take a look at an encounter from Mark's gospel where we find Jesus encountering a whole group of folk known as “The Scribes” or “The Teachers of the Law.” They have come down from Jerusalem with a whole host of questions in mind. We also see an encounter in this passage that Jesus has with His own family, and some words of Jesus about forgiveness... or rather the lack of it!

As we each personally encounter the gospel message in our lives, it does indeed raise for us many, many, questions. If we choose to embrace the gospel message, then it creates new dynamics in our relationships with others, including our own families.

There are some scriptures we find difficult to understand. Each of us is on our own spiritual path. Our journey is not the same journey as another person’s. We walk in our own shoes. We are all unique. We are all individuals and that's what this sermon series is all about, Jesus and Individuals.

In Colossians chapter 3:20 Paul writes  “Children, obey your parents in everything, for this is your acceptable duty in the Lord.” Apart from being the kind of advice that parents really like to hear, it is clear that in the early church there were whole families who had felt the embrace of the gospel. And though it is sadly an increasingly less common feature of our society, in the past there have been many who fortunate to have grown up in a Christian home.

I have had several people over the years tell me that they just don't remember a time when they didn't believe in God. God was just... always a part of our conversations, our mealtimes, our bedtimes. We went to church because that's what we did.

Of course, they can identify some significant moments when particular insights came their way, but they can't say,  when their discipleship journey began, because they can't remember a time when they were not on it. More importantly they can point to a present experience of God to which their journey has led them.

For others their Christianity is more of a Damascus Road experience, rather like St. Paul. Paul could point to the hour, the day and the moment when he met Jesus and felt God's call on his life, the crisis encounter that changed everything in an instant.

In between the two are a vast number of options. There are those like Peter, who though they follow, can hardly put a foot right. Who have learned just as much from their mistakes as from their breakthroughs. There are those like Thomas, who struggle to believe because their doubts overwhelm them. Who just have that mindset that says, “I hear what everybody else is saying. That's great for them! But I need to touch it and feel it for myself.” And Jesus came through... eventually... for Thomas.

There's an encounter Jesus has with a man called Nicodemus. In John 3:7, Jesus tells Nicodemus that he must be  or “Born from Above” or “Born Again” if he was ever to experience the Kingdom of God. Some sections of the church have taken that phrase and used it as a source of division. So that there are average Christians... who don't really get it... and then there are the true faithful, the “born again” Christians.

I recall an encounter I had with a lady in a Christian bookshop in the U.K. In conversation I explained that I had recently felt the call of God on my life and was now a Presbyterian minister. I was looking for some good theological books to help me feed my congregation. She shook her head in disgust, as though knowledge were a terrible thing to pursue and said, “That's all very well... but are you born again?”

It is scary how certain phrases can be taken completely out of context and overlaid with meaning they were never intended to have... and become not a source of unity, but a source of division within the Christian Church. Some folk use certain scriptures like sledgehammers to destroy those who feel different to them! Kind of like the Scribes who came down from Jerusalem to meet with Jesus. They weren't seeking enlightenment. They were on a mission to discredit. Let's dig deeper.

THE TIME It's a busy day. The disciples haven't even had time to eat because of the crowds around them. Jesus is on a second tour of ministry and there have been remarkable healings and exorcisms taking place. His ministry is causing quite a stir.

THE PLACE Capernaum. The hometown of Jesus.

THE CIRCUMSTANCES As Jesus is in His hometown, His family are around. And they are expressing their concern! They think He's lost it... going too far... a touch of madness has got to Him. Believe me, when you tell your family you are giving up everything and going to be a minister of gospel for the rest of your life... some people are not slow in telling you that, in their opinion, you have totally lost your marbles.

Been there. Experienced that! I think there may even be some who still think that this whole Christianity thing is just a phase I'm going through. Who shake their heads and say, “He always did take things to extremes. He couldn't just go to church, he had to go and be a pastor!”

But with the family of Jesus, it's more than that. They are also concerned about the trouble that He's stirring up. Although in favor with many, because of His ministry, others, notably the Scribes and Teachers of the Law, are offended by Him and they just want Him to stop. So, they arrive from Jerusalem.

THE SCRIBES ARGUMENT The Scribes argument is altogether more sinister than that of His family. They don't think He's mad. They accuse Him of being evil. They suggest that the only spirit driving His mission is a demonic spirit of Beelzebul, the God of dung and flies.

It's an argument that the great Christian apologist C.S. Lewis had encountered. In his own spiritual journey, he came to the conclusion that Jesus must have been mad or He was bad. Either that, or He was exactly the person He claimed to be. The Scribes from Jerusalem are sticking with the second option. He was bad .In fact He was evil. Mark 3:22 tells us plainly; “The scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, "He has Beelzebul, and by the ruler of the demons he casts out demons."

In reply to such an accusation Jesus gives them some pictures... short parables.

Firstly, a country fighting itself and tearing itself apart. Secondly, a family dividing into groups, and falling apart. Thirdly, the picture of a thief breaking into the home of a strong man and needing to tie him up before taking his possessions.

The Scribes who came down from Jerusalem never question the power Jesus had to cast out demons. They question the source of His power. One commentator describes them as saying “It is by the great demon he casts out little demons.”

Jesus completely explodes their argument. William Barclay, in his commentary, writes, “Jesus says, 'Just think! If there is an internal dissension in a kingdom, that kingdom cannot last. If there are quarrels in a house, that house will fall! If Satan is actually making war on his own demons, then he is finished as an effective power, because civil war has begun in his kingdom.'”

We may wish to go further and say that the power of love was being shown as overcoming the power of hate. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that.

Jesus refuses to be drawn into a debate about the nature or the source of evil. He does not try and explain it, or quantify it,  He just deals with it. He brings healing into the situation. He dealt with it and gave others the power of His Spirit that they may engage in the same struggle to bring God's Kingdom to be revealed among the kingdoms of this world.

Having reasoned with them, then Jesus starts to warn them that they were making accusations that put their souls in peril and led them beyond the grace of God. That if they took such a flippant and careless attitude towards the things of God, they were in deep trouble.  They only had to look around them. To see that person restored to a right mind. To talk with that person who had now received healing.  These good works were the work of God's Holy Spirit.

They knew how absurd it was that the Devil would cast himself out and they knew that the Spirit which gave Jesus power was a very different spirit than that which gave the devil any power. They were not just people with stupid theories, they were placing themselves in a dangerous position in relation to God.

We then have one of those biblical verses that has caused a lot of head scratching and heartache. Mark 3:28 and 29 “Truly I tell you; people will be forgiven for their sins and whatever blasphemies they utter; but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit can never have forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin.” This passage, and others like them, have led folks to speculate if there are some sins that are unforgivable.

The “So-Called” unforgiving sin has been put forward as being everything from suicide to sexual orientation, from paganism to folks simply belonging to a different religious tradition. Thankfully this passage offers the actual context. Verse 30 “For they (that is the Scribes) had said, "He has an unclean spirit."

The original meaning of the word blasphemy was that it described “the act of insulting or showing contempt  for God.”  In their heart of hearts, the Scribes know they are wrong. 'The Message Bible' offers us a perspective that gets to the heart of the matter.

Jesus tells the Scribes:  "Listen to this carefully. I'm warning you. There's nothing done or said that can't be forgiven. But if you persist in your slanders against God's Holy Spirit, you are repudiating the very One who forgives, sawing off the branch on which you're sitting, severing by your own perversity all connection with the One who forgives." Jesus, as did John before Him, is calling them to repentance. They choose not to respond.  They therefore remained outside of God's grace. That was where their inability to be forgiven kicked in.

A whole lot of lessons in this encounter Jesus had with the Scribes. Here are some of the things we can learn.

From the family of Jesus who thought He had lost His mind we learn that, at times following the call to discipleship can be misunderstood be even those who are closest to us. Yet God chose to redeem the world through what Paul describes as “Fools Wisdom.” People encounter and are embraced by such wisdom, in as many different ways as we are different people.

From the Scribes we learn a sobering lesson that the heart can be so deceptive as to lead us beyond the reach of God's grace and cause us to knowingly attribute the work of God to the work of evil. If we are in that position, we should fear for our personal salvation. Forgiveness is always available to those who repent.

From the passage as a whole we learn that we are not called to explain evil, but in the power of the Holy Spirit, we are called to oppose it and work against it. This we do through acts of healing and love, though acts of deliverance and justice, both individually and corporately as communities of faith.  

While we cannot explain every evil in this world, we can consistently stand against all that cheapens and destroys. We can continue to pray that God's will may be done, and kingdom may come on earth as it is in heaven. We can seek to be part of the solution, rather than part of the problem We can always seek for God's transforming grace to lead us and guide us. 

Around a table laid with bread and wine is a wonderful place to do just that. Amen!

The Reverend Adrian J. Pratt B.D.

September 29, 2024 JESUS AND INDIVIDUALS 2 “More Than Enough!” (Ordination Reflections)

Readings: Psalm 19:7-14 , Numbers 11:4-6, 10-16, James 5:13-20, Mark 9:38-42, 49-50
Preached at Bridgehampton Presbyterian Church, NY, September 29, 2024

On September 26th, 1984, in Pembroke, United Kingdom, I was ordained as a minister of Word and Sacrament by the Presbyterian Church of Wales. I had taken on my first churches three  months earlier, but because the denomination only held one ordination service a year, I had to wait before I could administer communion or baptism. Thankfully a previous minister was still around and was able to take care of the sacramental duties.

This means that I’ve been a minister within the Presbyterian Church for a little over 40 years. 40 is a significant number in scripture. David reigned on the throne for 40 years. After Noah built his big boat, it rained 40 days and 40 nights. Following His baptism Jesus was sent into the wilderness to be tempted for 40 days and nights. The Israelite's wandered in the desert under Moses leadership for 40 years before ever reaching their promised land.

Have 40 years of ministry felt like 40 years in the wilderness? Do I feel ministry has been like 40 days and 40 nights when the rain has never stopped? For sure there have probably been at least 40 days or nights when the temptation to and pursue a different occupation has seemed a most attractive proposition!

Scripture expects a lot from everybody who seeks to be in ministry. Our reading from Mark tells us we will be ‘salted with fire.’ That, like John, who gets fired up when he saw things he did not agree with, and came to Jesus saying “Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he was not following us,"  we will encounter people who are doing stuff that just seems wrong to us.

Even with the best of intentions we will sometimes get it wrong, and our actions can cause harm rather than good. There’s a chilling warning, in Mark 9:42,  "If any of you put a stumbling block before one of these little ones who believe in me, it would be better for you if a great millstone were hung around your neck and you were thrown into the sea.”

Then there are the expectations! In the Book of James, Elijah is described as “a human being like us” yet was such a powerful prayer warrior that he could stop the rain coming and decide when it was going to fall. And though in this passage he talks about prayers that will be answered, every person of faith I have ever met is aware that they have made many prayers that don’t seem to have been so fruitfully and positively answered! Expectations. Can we ever do enough? Is all that we do ever enough? Can we ever be enough?

Today, as I recognize 40 years since my ordination, there are more than enough things I could say, but I want to reflect on just three things, that relate to expectation. The first is this.

Throughout my ministry I have never been enough.

I don’t mean that in any self-depreciating way. In our society we are encouraged to “Be all we can be” and it can sound like an admission of defeat or weakness to talk about not being enough. I make that as a statement about the nature of Christian service, and in particular, ministry.  

We were given the advice in seminary to never try and please everybody. There are days when you start to question if you can please anybody! Your theology is always too far to the left or to the right. If you speak out about something, there is somebody to tell you, you should have kept quiet. If you don’t speak out there is somebody to tell you should have said something. Whatever you do, there is somebody who has the opinion that you should be doing it differently. Folk can be quick to point out your failings, but slow to recognize your achievements. It can be mentally, spiritually, and physically exhausting.

Part of the problem is that in ministry there are no measurable results. You are constantly sowing seeds and rarely get to see the harvest. A pastor colleague shared with me how his favorite thing to do was mow the grass. It was so quantifiable. There is grass that needs cutting. You cut it. A job well done with recognizable satisfactory results. Like many other similar professions, ministry does not offer that instant sense of gratification.

One of the things that has kept me going is acknowledging, from my earliest days of seeking to serve the church, that whatever I did in ministry, it would never be enough. That I, for many people, would never and could never and will never be enough.

I hope that doesn’t sound like I am being defeatist or complaining, about what really has been an amazing four decades of unexpected blessings and encounters. It is simply this. You need to know, that if you are thinking about being active in kingdom life that you are placing yourself in a situation where, to some of those you work alongside and share your life with, it will never be enough. Why do I put it that way? Think for a moment, what the bottom line of being a Christian is. A Christian is somebody who follows the teaching and example of Jesus Christ. And one thing about the ministry of Jesus, that it is crystal clear…

 Throughout His ministry, Jesus was never enough.

Jesus was so ‘not enough’ for the people of His day, that the political and religious authorities demanded His execution, one of His closest followers handed Him over to their hands to do with Him whatever they wished, the crowds cried out “Crucify Him, Crucify Him,” and His closest friends and disciples denied Him and abandoned Him. For them, He wasn’t enough.

Nobody had the authority and understanding and insight and discernment of Jesus. Nobody else offered such a radical transformation of ideas regarding who God was, who we are and how the world can be changed. Nobody did the miracles Jesus did. Nobody delivered people like Jesus delivered people. Nobody healed people like Jesus healed people. Nobody told stories like Jesus told stories. Nobody preached like Jesus preached. Nobody loved people like Jesus loved people. Not just His own people. Loved all people. And it wasn’t enough.

Throughout His ministry, Jesus was never enough for the world He walked through. Nor for this world we travel through. “Love your enemies.” “No thank You Jesus, we prefer hate.” “Forgive those who trespass against you. “No thank You Jesus, we need to pay them back”. “Serve one another as I have served You.” “No thank You Jesus, we are way too important for that!” “Seek ye first the Kingdom of God,” “No thank You Jesus, we have a kingdom of our own making to put first.”

As I follow a “Never enough” Jesus, I am content to say that throughout my ministry, I have never been enough. If He was never enough, after all He did and said, then it would be both arrogant and foolish to believe I could do better.

Hold on. I am looking at expectations from the human side of things. As a person of faith there is another perspective to consider. We go through our lives often overly concerned about how we look in each other’s eyes. The real question should be, “How do we seem in God’s eyes?”

If we accept what Jesus taught us, then there will be a time, when all the things we hold onto so tightly, even life itself, will be snatched from us and we will stand before God. Where is the good news, where is the gospel message that Jesus died to deliver to us, in all of this? I would state it quite simply.

In God’s eyes, we are more than enough!

The great reformation understanding is that we are saved, by grace through faith. That we can never do anything worthy of redeeming ourselves. That our only hope in this life and the next is to throw ourselves upon the mercy and forgiveness of God. We can do that with great assurance because God believes we are more than enough.

We are important enough in God’s eyes for God to send God’s only Son, to die upon a Cross, to break down the barrier of sin that we create between ourselves and God. We are forgiven. We are set free. We are blessed with eternal hope. We, who are never enough for each other, are more than enough to God!

The resurrection of Jesus assures that God’s love is a force even death cannot destroy. As we invite the Holy Spirit to transform our lives, we participate in the life of God, in the dance of the Trinity, and in the abundant life that God desires us to experience.

It is within this framework that we are freed from the worry of being enough. The little things we do become the big things. In our reading today we heard Jesus telling us “For truly I tell you, whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you bear the name of Christ will by no means lose the reward.”

That is what I am celebrating as I look back over the 40 years of ministry since I was ordained. I have been able to do the little things. Little things that have never and will never be enough for some people but are precious and beautiful … and enough… in God’s eyes

Never be discouraged. In God’s eyes we are more than enough for the tasks God will lead us to accomplish. Some we will do well. Others, maybe not so well. But that’s OK. We are learning how to be disciples; we are not training to be masters of the universe.

Do not be dissuaded by those who will insist that what you have to offer is not enough. Remember how in His life, after all that He did and said, Jesus was not enough for those who were blind to the light of God’s revelation. When He declared on the Cross, “It is finished” it was not a statement of defeat but a declaration that everything God had sought to accomplish through His earthly ministry had been completed.

In God’s eyes we are more than enough. We are loved. We are loved so much that God sent Jesus to die upon a cross for our salvation, that we may enjoy the abundant life of God’s Kingdom. So just keep doing the little things that remind those around you that they are also children of God that God longs to embrace.

I am so very thankful for every person who has been part of my 40-year journey since ordination. It has not been 40 years in a wilderness. Even though the rains have fallen, they have never fallen for 40 days and 40 nights. I have been tempted to pursue other paths, as Jesus was during His 40 days in the wilderness, but God has been faithful, and to prove it, 40 years after ordination, here I am Lord!

40 years that have flown by so much quicker than I could ever have anticipated. 40 years when God has provided everything I needed. 40 years that feel like they are not enough, but in fact have been spent in the loving presence of the God who wants us all to know, we are more than enough!

To God’s name be all the Glory, Honor and Praise.
To Jesus, my Lord, my Savior, my hope, my provider, be all the Glory, Honor and Praise.
To the Spirit who guides us, leads us, teaches us and feeds us, I give thanks.
To the Trinity that invites us to dance in the love of God; “I am the Lord of the dance says He, dance on, dance on till eternity.”
Amen and Amen.
To God be the Glory!

The Reverend Adrian J Pratt B.D.

September 22, 2024 JESUS AND INDIVIDUALS 1. "Simon And the Sinful Woman"

Readings: Psalm 1, Proverbs 31:10-31, James 3:13-4:3, Luke 7:36-50
Preached at Bridgehampton Presbyterian Church, September 22, 2024

I'm stepping away from the usual Lectionary readings and I'm preaching a series titled “Jesus and Individuals.” When Jesus came to this earth in the flesh, He spent His time dealing with individuals, not with systems or policies, but directly with people.

I want to therefore set off on a journey to look at some of the people He met, how He dealt with them and ask what we can learn from such encounters. I hope you will find it as rewarding hearing about these interactions, as I have researching them.

Today I'd like to take a look at Jesus in the home of Simon the Pharisee, and His encounter there with a woman, whose name we are never given, and is described only as “A sinful woman of Galilee.”

Every church community desires to do well and see their congregations full of a balance of younger and older people. But one of the problems of a church full of people is that they may not be people that others consider “Their sort of people.”

Church growth never takes place in a vacuum. It's concerned with individuals encountering Jesus Christ. He died for all, regardless of what they may be like. Rich, poor, moral, immoral, black, white, religious, irreligious, democrat, republican, straight, gay, young, old and those you just can't stick a label on.

Accommodating people who differ from ourselves is never easy. We don't like change. Growing up can be a painful process at times... and one of the biblical pictures of the church is that of a “Body.” And what happens to our bodies from the moment we are born on earth to the moment that we leave this earth is that they are constantly changing and growing.

And often, if a church wants to grow, the first people that need to change and grow are not those outside of the church, but those inside the church. All of us, sitting here. And that's another reason why I felt like taking this theme of Jesus and individuals, because as you have got to know me and I have got to know you, one thing is for sure. We are all individuals!

So, today, Simon and the sinful woman of Galilee. There are times when being religious can prevent us from faithfully following Jesus. That's one of the insights that comes out of this passage about Jesus visiting the home of a very religious man. The passage teaches us that Jesus would not allow anything, not even religion, to get in the way of His mission to the lost.

Let's dig deeper.

THE TIME. During a meal, sometime in the second half of Jesus ministry in Galilee. It could be noon or it could be evening.

THE PLACE.  A Home, probably in Capernaum.

THE CIRCUMSTANCES.

Jesus is a guest in the house of Simon the Pharisee, who apparently feels he has done Jesus a great honor by allowing Him to be a guest in his house. Simon seems curious about Jesus. Yet he appears to have neglected to do some customary things that hosts normally did for their guests.

Normally there would be an offering of foot washing, particularly to somebody who travelled as much as Jesus did.  Another common custom was to greet an honored guest with a kiss of peace. Neither courtesy is extended to Jesus.

Now into this situation, somehow, arrives this woman. An outcast, apparently due to her immoral behavior. Some commentators suggest she may have been a prostitute, or the daughter of somebody involved in some less than respectable business. We are not given the specifics.

What we do know is that she is broken hearted over her sinful state and feels a strange attraction to Jesus. Her deep devotion has led her to ignore whatever obstacles folk may have tried to place in her way. And there she is. Weeping and crying. Pouring precious ointment on Jesus feet. Drying them with her hair.

Simon the Pharisee does not approve! Although he does not vocalize how he is feeling, Jesus reads his thoughts.  Simon is thinking, “Daa. This Jesus isn't all he's made out to be. If he knew what sort of woman that is, fiddling around with his feet, he would tell her to leave Him well alone.”

Jesus looks over at Simon, and starts to question him, by means of a story. The story goes something like this. “Let us say I know a couple of people in financial trouble, and I am fortunate enough to have the means to help them out. To one of them, I give a thousand dollars, to the other only a dollar. A week later I say to them both, “Hey, you know that money I loaned to you. You have no need to pay me back. It's done with. The debts cancelled.”

“Now, tell me Simon, which one of those two people is going to be the more grateful?”

It was a no-brainer. Simon gives the obvious answer. “Well... the one who has had the larger debt cancelled!”

“Right” says Jesus. “But, you know what Simon, you have hardly welcomed me to your house. Didn't even offer me the usual common courtesies. But this woman, through her demonstration of love, is showing that her sins have been forgiven.”

Then Jesus turns to the woman and we read, verse 48, “He said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”

Simon and his Pharisee guests are completely horrified by this action. Who on earth did this Jesus think He was that He can go around forgiving peoples sins? Jesus just looks over at the woman and tells her, “Your faith has saved you. Go in peace.”

It is here that the encounter comes to a close. We don't know if Simon quickly brought the party to an end. We don't know what became of the woman, but we do know in the next chapter of Luke there are a number of women who have been touched by His ministry who are accompanying the disciples as they travel to different cities and villages to spread the news of the Kingdom. Maybe she was among them.

We can learn different lessons from different aspects of this account.

From Simon we can learn that we should never allow our “religion” to become more important than the words and actions of Jesus Himself. If our belief system causes us to look down on others or ignore their needs, then we have ceased hearing the voice of Christ and have substituted some other teaching in His place.

One of Simon's greatest problems was his misplaced pride. It caused him to not show the Son of God even the expected courtesy one would offer a guest. It caused him to reject Christ's teaching, because, well, he was a Pharisee, he knew better. He passed judgment on the Son of God, and it rebounded upon him and left him outside the experience of God's grace and forgiveness. In Matthew 7:1–2 we hear Jesus saying, “Do not judge, so that you will not be judged, since you will be judged in the same judgment that you make, and you will be measured by the same standard you apply.”

From the woman we learn that there are no depths to which we can sink that we are not able to be forgiven and redeemed by Christ’s love when we turn to God in repentance and with faith. We do not know what the woman's situation was. Maybe she was more sinned against than she had committed personal transgressions. Maybe life had dealt her some heavy blows. Maybe she had just messed up. A saying I was bought up with, whenever somebody was seen in bad circumstances, was to say, “There but for the grace of God, go I.”

The acceptance of this woman by Jesus reminds us that though His love, the love He died to show us upon the Cross, the love that shines down in grace upon us through the light of His resurrection, that love... is offered and available to all who seek to live as part of God's Kingdom. We are all invited to know His love, His forgiveness and His peace.

From the situation as a whole we see that if any faith community desires to be a thriving congregation, then their mission must reach out in many different directions and to all sorts of people. God loves everyone. God's Son died that all may come to know Him. We must reach out, without respect of a person’s situation, with the gospel of the Savior.

Looking back over the history of Christianity we see how some of the greatest sinners have turned out to be the greatest saints. There are many autobiographies of people whose lives have been changed and turned around by their encounter with Jesus Christ. From prison to praise, from slave owner to hymn writer, from atheist to believer, from doubter to champion of the gospel.

Scripture itself furnishes the example of Saul, the persecutor and approver of the death of Christianity and of those who claimed Him as Lord, who became Paul the Apostle, the great proclaimer, definer and promoter of the faith.

Each one of us has our own story to tell. We are each one of us, unique individuals. It matters not if we find ourselves more like Simon or more like the sinful woman of Galilee; we still need to experience the love and acceptance of Jesus.

We can, like Simon, block out a true experience of God by our misplaced pride, or we can, like the woman, discover in His love and grace, a new dynamic to our very existence. Such is the picture this story leaves with us.

It also challenges us to consider the notion of mission. If Jesus reached out to all, so must His Church. If Jesus welcomed all, so must His Church. If any congregation wishes to thrive as a spiritual community, then “Welcome” has to be as much a part of its D.N.A. as grace, trust, faith and love.

I am grateful for the welcome I have received in this place. I am confident that whoever has the good fortune to occupy this place in the future, can look forward to a similar blessing falling on their lives.

May God continue to direct you and lead you. To God's name be the glory. Amen.

The Reverend Adrian J. Pratt B.D.

September 8, 2024. "The Stranger in Karabazoo"

Readings: Psalm 125, Isaiah 35:4-7a, Mark 7:31-37, Ephesians 5:15-20
Preached at Bridgehampton Presbyterian Church, NY, September 8, 2024

As today is the day we restart our next Session of Sunday School, I decided it would be fun to share a story rather than preach a sermon. Our reading from Ephesians encouraged us to share words and sing songs that tell of the ways of the Kingdom.

Sometimes the greatest carriers of truths are simple stories, something Jesus witnessed to by the fact that when He wanted to say something really important, He often turned it into an unforgettable parable. The Good Samaritan. The Prodigal Son. We do not easily forget them.

Well I’m going to share a story I originally wrote for a youth retreat in West Virginia when we first came to the U.S.A, but since then it has been used for various other events.

In fact, some folks have taken copies and used it themselves at their events. So... I figured, just in case one of those who have borrowed my story, ever made their way here, it would be better if you hear this story from the original author, while he’s still around.

I don't claim that it is particularly original; in fact, it's a combination of a couple of sound-strips I recall seeing in the UK when I was a young ‘un (produced by Scripture Union) along with a few thoughts of my own.

But for what it is worth (and with the hope that it may carry something of the love of God within it), I present to you...a cowboy classic…

"THE STRANGER IN KARABAZOO"

Once upon a time, in the days of the Wild West, (Or it could have been the Wild East), there was a little town called Karabazoo.  Karabazoo was much like any other town and its people much like any other people.  Every day they got out of bed, ate breakfast, went to work, came home, ate supper, chilled out for a while, then went back to bed.  

Every day that is, except for Sunday, when they went to their pretty little church, with its proud, upstanding bell-tower, in the middle of town.  Every Sunday the sound of its bell would ring out across the town, and most everybody would be there.

And much like any other town, people did not always say what they wanted to say; did not always act the way they felt they should act; did not always do what they thought they should do.

The people used to - well - they wore masks.  In the morning, even though sometimes they got out of bed feeling awful they would wear an "'Oh what a beautiful morning' mask". When they walked down the street about their business, they would greet each other with, "Hello, how nice to see you" masks, even when they were not a bit pleased to see each other.

The men had some masks they hoped would impress the ladies.  Some of the ladies had "Oh, I'm so pretty" masks to hide behind.  Many had a "Look at me, I'm working ever so hard and deserve a pay rise" mask to impress their employers with.  Some of the employers had stern, disapproving masks that seemed to say, "Just remember who's the boss around here!"

Some people had real important masks. The Judge.  The Manager at the Company Store.  The Night Watchman. Some had masks that looked expensive. And some had masks that looked really poor.

They had masks to say, "I really care," when really, they didn't care; masks that showed an interest, when really, they weren't interested; masks to say, "I'm real," when really, they were just pretending, and they even had masks that said, "I love you".

And on Sundays they would put on their Sunday best masks and, listening to the tolling of the bell, from their pretty little church, would march to the center of town to hear the pastor preach his Sunday best Sermon, in his Sunday best suit, through his Sunday best masked face.

Now one day a stranger came riding into town.  The stranger was kind of weird.  He looked like the rest of them.  He dressed like the rest of them.  He spoke like the rest of them. He acted much like the rest of them. Except for one thing. He was not wearing a mask. "Did you see him?" people said, "He wasn't wearing a mask!"

Behind their masks people began to mutter, mumble and whisper. "No mask. It is not right. No mask. He's dangerous. No mask... must be a crazy man... stranger... doesn't he realize everyone in Karabazoo wears a mask?"

A rumor started to spread. Rumor was that one afternoon he had met a lady down by the old water well, on the outskirts of town. (Not the center of town where the pretty white church with its proud bell tower stood, but... you know... the other side of town.) "He met a lady there," they said.

Not just any lady, but a lady, well... let us just say that she spent more time down in the saloon than was ladylike and her husband... well it wasn't really her husband and nor were the last fellows she was living with… and so on and so on and so on.

Rumor had it she had met him down by the well one hot sunny afternoon, and he... he... in broad daylight, he had made her take her mask off! And now she was running all over town telling everyone that it felt good to have your mask removed, felt free and liberating and alive and good.  

Worse still, some other people, (people admittedly from the wrong side of town), had listened and were seriously considering destroying their whole collection of masks!

Sunday came around. Everyone put on their Sunday best masks and marched along to the pretty little church, with its proud, upstanding bell-tower, at the center of the town.   In the study the pastor prepared to preach his Sunday best Sermon, in his Sunday best suit, through his Sunday best masked face.

The service began and the choir put on an admirable performance. Calls to Worship and prayers of confession resonated around the rafters.  Hymns were dutifully sung (but without too much emotion lest it become a distraction).  

People snuggled down in their pews for their customary slumber as the pastor began his address. He was halfway through when, suddenly, yet quietly and respectfully, in walked the stranger.

He went and sat on the back row, as church folk do.  As the preacher talked on, he noticed the stranger whispering something into a little girl’s ear. Next moment the child was taking off her mask... taking off her mask, in all places and at all times, in the sanctuary during a divine service of worship... taking off her mask and handing it to the stranger.

The stranger lifted it to his face, and it just seemed to melt into his features, to be absorbed by his gentle smile. Then the next child took off her mask, and the boy next to her, and each mask was passed to the stranger where it became immersed in his smile.

Now some of the little ones were whispering to those in the back row.  "Take off your masks... be free... it feels good… .it feels right".  And some did and some did not.  Those who did had their masks passed to the stranger and he took them onto himself.

Down at the front of the pretty little church, with its proud, upstanding bell-tower, at the center of the of town, some of the people, the important people, the ones who held the keys of power, the preacher, the elders, all those who wore masks that had "I'm important and you should know about that" written across them, were shifting in their seats uncomfortably.  

They looked around at the stranger. They looked up at the preacher who had reached another incomprehensible milestone in his unintelligible sermon.  One of them went to the front, beckoned to the preacher to stop his flow, and whispered something in his ear.

 There were a few moments of jarring silence as the preacher ruffled his notes uncomfortably. Then, accusingly, he pointed his finger down the aisle, looking directly at the stranger, he said, 'In the name of all that is decent and true... LEAVE US ALONE".

"Stop Him,” shouted the chief elder.  And with that the stranger leaps out of his seat and starts darting among the pews, heading randomly for the front of the church, pulling off people’s masks, left, right and center as he made for the vestry door. "You can never be free as long as you wear your masks" he said, as he purposefully rushed by.

They chased him into the vestry. Out through the vestry door into the hall. Up the schoolroom steps onto the second floor. Along the polished floor scattering the chairs as they went. Heading for the little door that led to the spiral staircase that led to the top of the pretty little churches proud, upstanding bell-tower.

The stranger kicked through the door and headed up the narrow staircase. Hands pulling up on the metal, a missed footing here yet climbing ever higher and higher. The chief elder was in hot pursuit. "Come back here with those masks" he was screaming.

Then out on to the roof they went, the stranger squeezing through the hole that led to the outside. He had his back to the edge as the chief elder reached him. The proud elder did not hesitate. Just pushed him over the edge with a hard smile on his face. "That should stop you" he said.

Down, down, down, down, fell the stranger and hit the ground with a sickening, dull, thud. Not moving. Not breathing.

Back inside the church, a strange mixture of people.  Some with masks, some without.  Some laughing, some crying. Some whispering, "I'm free," some shaking their heads in disbelief. Slowly they made their way outside to where the body of the stranger lay, with masks strewn all around him.

Some recognized their masks, picked them back up, put them on and went home. But others ... well... they never did put their masks back on.

Just a few.

But their number is growing every day.

"Don't need masks" they say, "Need to be Free".

And the stranger?
They left his body lying on the ground and everyone went home.

When the funeral director came for the body, strange thing... he was gone.
Some say he is still in town. Others say, that in other towns, others are taking off their masks, and he has been seen there.

There had been a stranger in Karabazoo.

And one thing is for sure.

Karabazoo
    has never been the same
        since that stranger     
            came riding     
                into town.

The Reverend Adrian J Pratt B.D.

September 1, 2024 "The Servant King" (Communion)

Readings: Psalm 45:1-9, Song of Solomon. 2: 8-13, James 1:19-27, Mark 1:4–13
Preached at Bridgehampton Presbyterian Church, NY, September 1 2024

We sit around a table prepared with bread and wine. The communion table is a place to give ourselves to Christ's service. At Jesus' baptism a voice from heaven declared Him to be the Servant King; "Thou art my beloved son, in thee I am well pleased"

That voice from heaven marked out the peculiar nature that His ministry would possess. The first words, "Thou art my beloved Son", are a direct quote from Psalm 2:7, the coronation formula for a King. The second phrase, "With thee I am well pleased" comes from Isaiah 42:1 and is the ordaining formula of the Servant who is sent forth to establish justice in the earth, even at the cost of suffering.

Right from the start, Jesus' ministry embodied both the authority and power of a world ruler and the atoning power of a word servant, fusing the regal authority of a King with the gentle humility of a slave.

This fusion of the dual roles of ruler and slave is well pictured in one of my favorite modern hymns, Graham Kendrick's hymn, "The Servant King". He speaks of God entering our world as a vulnerable child with His glory veiled and coming not to be served but to serve. He vividly pictures the King of Creation as the Christ who died for us,

"Come see His hands and His feet,
The scars that speak of sacrifice;
Hands that flung stars into space,
To cruel nails surrendered"

This is our God! This is the Savior who calls us to follow His example. As we come to the table, I wish to share two things He calls us to.

1. He calls us to recognize our inheritance.

As well as growing up with the sound of the Beatles, I also grew up with the humor of Monty Python's Flying Circus. There is a sketch in their film "The Holy Grail" where Sir Launcelot is standing with his son and heir, Prince Herbert, looking out of the castle window and surveying the hills and valleys of the land that stretches before them. Sir Launcelot bids the child look out of the window and says, "One day, lad, all this will be yours!" Prince Herbert glances at the drapes and replies, "What, the curtains?"

Such small mindedness and narrowness of vision is not limited to the Herbert's of this world. Myopic vision is a malaise of many Christians as they fail to discern their inheritance as children of God. Our God is the King of Creation. He has made this world a place full of beauty, extravagant beyond our wildest imaginings. Even St Paul struggled to describe the richness of His blessings.

In Ephesians 1:18 Paul writes; "I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe."

The cartoon character Mr. Magoo is famous for his blundering escapades as he makes his short-sighted journey through life. He can't see any more than what is right in front of him. So shortsighted Christianity defines religion in terms of the church and the church in terms of what happens for an hour or two on a Sunday.

For Jesus to be enthroned in our lives means something far greater. It means that His rule must be the one that affects our thinking when we are in our place of work, guides our decisions as to how we relate to our families and friends, determines the choices we make in regard to our lifestyle. Until our religion encompasses every area of our lives it is nothing more than a lifeless echo of something that could be.

Baptism symbolizes God claims upon us as God’s own. None of us are born daughters and sons of God. Through the blood of Christ, God adopts us. Some are baptized as infants, and some are baptized as adults. Some are dunked in the water, and some are sprinkled on the head. It doesn't matter how, or even exactly when it is done. 

What matters is that baptism represents God's action of accepting us as daughters and sons of the Living God, the inheritors of His promises. God calls us to recognize our inheritance.

2. Called to Service

When Jesus was baptized it was an action of commissioning for service. For thirty years He had stayed in Nazareth and worked as a carpenter. We are never given a glimpse as to what His inner thoughts were during that time, except that we know He had an awareness as early as the age of twelve that His true destiny lay elsewhere.

Maybe the emergence of John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness was the sign He had been looking for. In response to John, Jesus knew it was time to launch out on His own unique mission. Because the bible tells us that Jesus was fully human, I like to think that he wandered down to the Jordan's banks with a few doubts in His mind. Was this really the time and the place? Has my Father really called me to this task?

In every life there comes moments of decision which can be accepted or rejected. The bread and wine present us with a choice. To receive them is to say to God, "Yes I hear your call and yes, I will follow". But there may be a few doubts in our mind. "Lord, what if I let you down?" ''Lord what if I can't see this through to the end?"; "Lord I will go, but will you provide me with what I need?"

It was at His moment of decision that Jesus had affirmation from God that He had made the right choice. "You are my beloved Son". (Matthew 3:17). It was also the place where He was equipped by God for the days that lay ahead. At that moment the Holy Spirit descended upon Him.God at our baptism calls us His beloved daughters and sons. He expects us to respond. If that is what we are, then we should live like children of the most High God.

Through the equipping of His Holy Spirit God tells us; "Go into the world as my representatives, my ambassadors. Go in the name of Jesus, bearing His love and be a model for others as to what being His disciple is all about. Remember as you take bread and wine how He gave His life for yours and so give your life for others. For in doing so you will discover the love that was in His heart will also burn in your own.”

The concluding verse of the hymn "The Servant King" takes the form of a prayer. As we come to the table the words form a fitting prayer of approach.

"So let us learn how to serve,
And in our lives enthrone Him;
Each others needs to prefer,
For it is Christ we are serving"

To be a follower of Jesus Christ is both an awesome privilege and an awesome responsibility. The community of the baptized are called to be servant people, committed to doing the will of the servant king.

May the love of God inspire us for such a joyful task, as we share together in bread and wine!

The Reverend Adrian J Pratt B.D.

August 25th, 2024 "Do It Now"

Readings: Psalm 84, Genesis 12:19-22, Romans 1:16-28, Matthew 6:24-24
Preached at Bridgehampton Presbyterian Church , August 25, 2024

TEXT: "Be not anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow can be anxious for itself. Let the days own trouble be sufficient for the day” (Matthew 6:34)

It has been said that one of the greatest phrases for self-motivation are the three little words “Do It Now.” Never mind what lies ahead, there is enough to do today. Never mind ‘ What could be!” just get on with the task in hand. As Christian people we need to pay attention to the way we use our time. Time is a gift of God, to be used in God’s service.

We do well to recognize how precious time is. We cannot kill time without injuring eternity. The way we use our time impacts the time we have tomorrow and for the rest of our lives. We should snatch it, seize it, use it, and enjoy every minute we can.

Time is short, Every moment we waste, the shorter time becomes. We don’t know how long we’ve got. We don’t know what tomorrow brings. All of our prayers, once time has passed, cannot make a single second return.

One Christian commentator has described the disciples view of time in this way. “Time is that for which we must give an account to our Savior.” When faced with the words of Jesus, that we should indeed live our lives “One day at a time”, there should be with us a realization of just how precious time is.

Life functions within time, it is governed by the boundaries of time. What you make of your life, in this life, is all that it will ever be. God is concerned about us. Not so much with what we have done. We can’t change that … though God can forgive us and renew us if it has not been worthy of God’s call.

God’s concern, at the present moment, is not with what we will do or could do. I believe God has a plan for each of us. But for that plan to be realized, we must do the next thing. God’s concern for us is supremely in the present.  God wants us to know God’s love , in Jesus, in the power of God’s Spirit, here and now, today.

The multi-millionaire, Aristotle Onasis once said, “Don’t sleep to much or you will wake up a failure. If you sleep three hours less a night for a year, you will have an extra month and a half to succeed in.”

If people are willing to deprive themselves of sleep, in order to get on in this world, how much more should those who claim to be ‘children of God’ be concerned to make the most of their time? We are responsible for the way we make use of the gift of time given to us. I’d like to offer a few suggestions as to how to make the most of it!

1.    Begin the Day in an attitude of Thanksgiving

Psalm 118:24 tells us “This is the day that the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it!” Try and make it so that he first thing you do in  your day is a prayer that says “Thank You Lord for this new day!” If you wake up as badly as I do , that is quire an assignment! I do not wake up cheerfully. Of all the things humankind has invented, I think one of the objects I would least like to be is alarm clock. Think about it.

You sit there all day and night going “Tick-Tock, Tick-Tock, Tick-Tock, Tick-Tock,”. 24 hours “Tick-Tock, Tick-Tock.” It is getting to morning, and you think, “Oh great, now is my moment, now I can ring my little bell.” Tick-Tock, Tick-Tock, I’m going to ring, I’m going to ring.’ The hands of the clock slip around, and “DRING-DRING” away you go with a smile on your face. Next moment… ‘Boomp’ on your head. ‘Shut up!’ says your master’ Leave me alone, let me get back to sleep.’ What a life it would be to be an alarm clock!

But I discovered when a young parent (and rediscovered as a grandparent) that there’s was a better system for waking up. It was called children. It’s difficult to stay asleep when a happy little bundle of pure energy enters your space. My wife recalls a morning when one of our offspring, in order to wake her, decided that opening her eyelid by hand would do it. It certainly did! It is hard to stay rested if a young one decides to use your head as a trampoline. I guess that’s how the alarm clock feels.

It is interesting to see how children often wake up, smiling. Relishing the fact that it is a new day. Filled with a joy of simply being alive. Did not Jesus say something about faith being discovered when we embrace the attitude of a child?

To begin the day with an attitude of gratitude can set the tone for the whole day. Get up in a foul mood and it may end up a very bad day. Start off with the realization that “This is the day that the Lord has made” and it can make all the difference. A second observation…

2.    Accept every day as an opportunity to help others

After preaching on this text many years ago in my home church of Moreton Presbyterian, a gracious lady, Mrs Bradley, directed me to this poem she had published in their monthly newsletter. It is called ‘Do it Now.”

“If with pleasure you are viewing, any work a man is doing,
If you like him or you love him, tell him now;
Don’t withhold you appellation, till the parson makes oration,
And he lies with lilies on his brow.
No matter then how you shout it, he really won’t care about it!
He won’t know how many teardrops you have shed!
If you think some praise is due him, now is the time to slip it to him,
For he cannot read his tombstone when he’s dead.”

St Paul wrote in his New Testament letters that as Christians, we should encourage one another. That is a great way to help each other through the day, which will, as Jesus reminds us, have enough troubles of its own. We can be cheerful in our conversations, complimentary of those who are doing a good job, and encourage those who are struggling. We can say a whole lot simply with a smile,

Of course, we can only help others to the degree that we help ourselves into a harmonious relationship with God. That’s the next item on my list.

3.    Take time for contemplation

Strengthening our relationship with God, through Jesus Christ, and with the resources of God’s Holy Spirit is vital. Prayer and reading scripture are important disciplines for every Christian believer. Some people find it helpful to spend time alone with God at a particular point in the day. It’s all about time management. If we believe something is important, we’ll find that time and that place.

Make time for meeting with others for worship and fellowship. Attending a weekly worship service is for our benefit! When God commanded “Remember the Sabbath Day, to keep it holy” God was offering that as a tool to stay spiritually alive, not trying to burden us. As Jesus said, “The sabbath was made for humankind, not humankind for the Sabbath!” We need to make time for ourselves and for each other!

If we are a list person, then draw up the list. Number things in order of importance, then get to them one at a time. We can be amazed at what we have accomplished, with God’s help, by the end of the day!

“Be not anxious about tomorrow” invites Jesus, "For tomorrow can be anxious for itself. Let the days own trouble be sufficient for the day” Time is that for which we will one day give an account unto Jesus.

I found the following words, of  an anonymous poem, in a book of sermons on Matthew chapter 6, added the bible text and a tune, and they eventually appeared on my only ever vinyl recording back in 1984. Seemed like a convenient moment to revisit them!

If you would rather watch and listen, follow the link below.

https://youtu.be/kPJVAo7lKDk?si=tD6yCS9JpccIC4nb

“NOW" (Anon/Pratt)

If you have something to do, do it now, Today the skies are clear and blue,
Tomorrow clouds may come into view, And yesterday is not for you, do it now.

If you have a song to sing, sing it now. Let the notes of gladness ring,
Clear as the song of a bird in spring, Let every day some music bring, sing it now.

Be not anxious about tomorrow, Tomorrow can be anxious for itself,
Let the days own trouble, Be sufficient for the day,
Just live one day at a time,  Just live one day at a time

If you have kind words to say, say them now, Tomorrow may not come your way
So give kindness while you may, And loved ones will not always stay,
Tell them of your love now…

Be not anxious about tomorrow, Tomorrow can be anxious for itself,
Let the days own trouble, Be sufficient for the day,
Just live one day at a time,  Just live one day at a time

This is the day that the Lord has made, Let us rejoice and be glad today.

And if you have a smile to show, smile it now, Make hearts happy, let love grow
Let the friends around you know,  The love you have before you go, smile it now

Be not anxious about tomorrow, Tomorrow can be anxious for itself,
Let the days own trouble, Be sufficient for the day,
Just live one day at a time,  Just live one day at a time.”

That is the life Jesus calls us to embrace. Live one day at a time. That’s not to say we are being called to out everything off until tomorrow! No! Do it now! Jesus is Lord of now! God is God of the present. God desires that we open our lives to God’s love, today. God wants to take away our anxiety of the future, to blot out the memories of our sin and wants to do it now.

That’s the simple message we need to hear, today. That God’s love is a present reality which calls us to give our lives into God’s hands. If we have a decision to make about allowing Jesus to be our Lord and savior, now is the time to settle that matter. If we feel spiritually washed out, now is the time to set things right. Now is the hour of salvation. Tomorrow never comes, Today is here. We can allow God’s love to flood our lives today.

"Be not anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow can be anxious for itself. Let the days own trouble be sufficient for the day” (Matthew 6:34)

Prayer: “Lord, help us to live one day at a time. Help us to learn the secret of making the most of the present and open our lives to Your light. This we ask in Jesus name. Amen.

The Reverend Adrian J. Pratt B.D.

August 18, 2024 "Patience"

Readings: Psalm 111, Proverbs 9:1-6, John 6:51-58, Romans 8:18-27
Preached at Bridgehampton Presbyterian Church, August 18, 2024

I was in a shop that was selling T-Shirts with Christian messages upon them. One of them, which I had seen before, caught my eye. It said simply, “Be Patient. God hasn’t finished with me yet”.  Romans 8:25 in the Good News Version of the Bible reads, “But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience”.

The context of the verse is a section in Romans that deals with freedom. Whilst the gospel promises to set those who embrace its message free, that freedom does not come in an instant. Deliverance can be a lifetime process that involves many struggles along the way. Paul urges us to persevere in the knowledge that God’s Holy Spirit is with us and working in our best interests.

Patience is therefore something essential to Christian life. We need patience with ourselves, with the Church and with God.  This text relates patience to faith. It is not putting up with situations that never change, but believing that with God all things are possible, even when they take time!

Allow me then to ask you some rhetorical questions regarding patience. Firstly, let me ask you;

Are you patient with yourself?

The hardest battle on our hands for many of us is the battle with ourselves. Much of our lack of patience with others is a projection of our own feelings about ourselves. We tend to give ourselves a lift by dragging someone else down. Attempting to be Christian people can make this worse! For part of turning to Christ is being ruthlessly honest about ourselves. And what that can reveal is the slowness of our growth in character.

We find that the same old problems and sins continue to haunt us. We find that attitudes we thought were dead and buried start to show their ugly head again. We discover things about ourselves that we hadn’t realized were there.

All this is part of Christian growth. That’s why the Christian life demands patience. Patience with ourselves. There is no instant-Christianity. We can go to the store and get instant everything from potatoes to thousand dollar loans, but there is nowhere that sells “instant disciple” programs.

You can buy books that say, “Learn to drive in 3 Weeks”, but I guarantee that if all a person does is the read the book and never gets behind the wheel then you are not going to be wanting to go any rides with them.

There are no short cuts to being a disciple. Yet, with a persistent and patient faith, there are also no limits to the heights of character that we could reach. There are no limits on the victories we could achieve if we could only learn to wait patiently and walk humbly before our God.

Patience is a strong and active virtue. It means perseverance when the times get rough, plodding on when we feel the situation is hopeless, pressing forward when others around us are throwing in the towel. It requires fixing our eyes on what is not yet seen, walking by faith that God knows best.

Are you patient with yourself? If not then remember that God hasn’t finished with you yet. A second question.

Are you patient with the Church?

I was going to ask, “Are you patient with others?” in a general way, but I think a more pertinent question in our day, and seeming as the church is the body of Christ, a place where we have a particular calling from God to get along with each other, it seems more focused to ask “Are you patient with the Church?”

It is fashionable today to be impatient with anything institutional. The church is no exception. Impatience with the church is as old as the church itself. Radicals and Reformers have been in evidence in every age. And rightly so.

But unless protest is subjected to the discipline of patient love then it is on shaky foundations. It is easy to pick fault with the church. So easy.  But picking fault is neither radical nor reforming. What is difficult is rolling up your sleeves, throwing yourself wholeheartedly into service of others and working hard to put things right. Such is the demand of love that Christ lays upon us. Love never stands aside and criticizes.

We must be patient with the church’s hypocrisies. I’m not saying we must approve of them, I’m saying we must be patient with them. No church is what it should be, by a long shot. There is a yawning gulf between the actual and the ideal. There is no church in all creation that perfectly embodies the life and teaching of Jesus Christ in all its purity and splendor.

And even if such a church existed, I don’t think I know anybody who would qualify for membership. Fact is that the church is hewn from the rough material of human nature; nature that is being transformed by the touch of God’s Spirit. Jesus welcomes sinful, struggling, weak, slow, ungracious people! As He put it, “It’s not the healthy who need the doctor, but the sick”.

We also need to be patient with the church’s traditions. I’m not just speaking about the things that denominations enshrine into their way of doing things, but also the local churches ‘ways of doing things’. That can be hard because often we have come into those traditions as an outsider and carry our own thoughts and ideas about how things should be done. 

However, we should recognize that the positive side of traditions, particularly those of the different denominations, are often things that were formed in the heat of dispute and conflict, which provided a way through difficult times that has been passed on from generation to generation. Such accumulated wisdom should not be dismissed.

Yet, a new and changing day demands new methods and new ways of doing things. The change from one to the other can be a difficult and painful process and is certainly one that demands patience.

That also means being patient with the church’s decisions. They are not always our personal decisions. They are not always God’s decisions. It is far more difficult for a community to decide what is right in any given situation than for an individual. And the church community, made up as it is of fallible and sinful humanity, has made and will make many more mistakes.

As a pastor I am well aware that I’m as prone to failure as much as any other member of this congregation. Thankfully the church is a whole lot more than a pastor or a session or any group within the church. It’s people. People who are being redeemed by the love of Jesus Christ, but have a way to go before truly being the folk God wants them to be. So be patient with the Church. God hasn’t finished with her yet! Let me ask you, thirdly;

Are you patient with God?

Many of us wrestle with God, baffled by God’s reticence, impatient with God’s slowness. We are in a hurry and God does not seem to share our concern. We bombard heaven with our prayers and complain about God’s absence when instant answers are not what we ordered we ask,.. “Lord, don’t You know what life is like down here?”

We wrestle with God. But we had better hope to lose. The very greatness of God is in God’s long-suffering. The majesty of God is God’s mercy. The power of God is in God’s patience. Where would any of us be were it not for the divine patience that works lovingly and gracefully for our salvation?

Christian patience is rooted in the conviction that God’s time is always the best time, the right time and the only time. You cannot force the hand of a God who chooses to make His approach to us through a Cross on a hillside, who could break us with Divine power, yet rather stoops to win us over by love.

Here is the heart of the matter. Christ died for us whilst we were yet sinners and prayed, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing”. There is the divine patience. Oh, how we need that patient love to combat our impatient striving! How we need to grasp a vision of what God can do for our lives and the Church and for this world!

Be patient! God hasn’t finished with us yet! When they nailed the Son of God to that cruel cross , the words came from His lips, “It is finished”.  That was not a cry of defeat, but of victory. For in that moment, God provided all that we need to be the people God wants us to be.

Living a faithful and patient Christian life depends not on which Church we go to, or who our pastor is, or where we live, or how much we earn. It’s so much more. It’s about the reality of the empty tomb. ‘Christ is Risen”. Through His Holy Spirit He is transforming the most God forsaken lives, the only requirement being preparedness to go forward with Him, listening for His voice and patiently traveling on.

I was preaching one time when I noticed a spider crawling along the pulpit and to the end of the lectern. What was it going to do? Jump off, spin a web, turn back, go in a different direction? That little spider had no idea that it was in a pulpit of a Presbyterian Church. What did it know of elections and wars and debates on ethics and trying to balance the checkbook? How did it perceive its place in time and space?

I sometimes feel that our mental grasp of the love of God is as fractional as a spider’s grasp of the daily world in which we live and move and have our being. If the majesty and love of God is infinite, is it any wonder that from time to time we wonder what on earth is going on?

What is amazing is that Jesus, with all His divine authority, could say, ‘You do not now know, but one day you will understand all things” Paul speaks of how we presently see only ‘thru a glass darkly’, but one day all will be clear.

In the between time, let us exercise patience. Be patient with our self, with our church, with our God. Patience is nurtured through faith. Through having an inner conviction, that no matter what, God will work things out in the end, in God’s time and in God’s way. Patience comes through focusing, not on others, not on ourselves, but on God, on the way God has worked in this world through Jesus Christ and can work in us and through us in the power of the Holy Spirit.

Romans 8:25, “But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience”. Be patient. God hasn’t finished with us yet. All around us may change. People come and go all around our lives. Everything changes. That’s life. Yet with our focus on the love of God, and the possibilities that the ways of God’s love open up to us, we can set our sights high and rejoice that a life lived in the knowledge and love of God is a life well lived.

May God, through the action of the Holy Spirit,
build into our lives a gentle and patient spirit,
that reflects the nature of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 

Amen.

The Reverend Adrian J. Pratt B.D