January 28, 2024 "Listen To Him!"

Readings: Psalm 111, 1 Corinthians 8:1-13, Mark:1:21-28, Deuteronomy 18: 15-20
Preached at Bridgehampton Presbyterian Church, NY, January 28, 2024

Tom Hanks, alongside Catherine Zeta Jones, star together in a movie called ‘The Terminal.’ Hank’s plays the part of Viktor Navorski, a resident of an Eastern European land who arrives at New York Airport only to be refused admittance because just after he left his own land war broke out.

He is therefore a man without a country to call his own. Immigration cannot send him home to a home that no longer exists, and he has to set up home in the airport until they can figure out what to do with him.

His situation is further complicated by the fact that he speaks very little English. As the weeks go by, he starts making friends with many of the airport staff, including the aforementioned Miss Zeta-Jones who provides an element of romantic interest to the movie.

How does it all end up?  Well, I’m not going to tell you that. It’s no fun when people ruin the endings. You’ll have to download the movie or wait for it to appear on your favorite streaming service.

As Christian people we pray each week, ‘Thy Kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven.’ Such a prayer suggests that we, like Viktor Navorski, are people living in a terminal space between two lands, the one we encounter every day, and that which Jesus speaks of as “The Kingdom of God.”

That’s just how it was for the people of God that Moses addresses in Deuteronomy Chapter 18. They were in the wilderness. They had left the oppression of Egypt, but had not yet entered the Promised Land.

Naturally they are a more than a little concerned as to what the future may bring their way. Just the same as we are today. It doesn’t matter what stage of life we are at. We’re all in the same boat.

Kids in Nursery School get anxious about what elementary school may hold. High School Youth agonize over which college to attend. People spend a whole lot of time pondering who they should live their lives with, when they should marry, and then kids come along and grandkids and every new experience has us thinking, Well here’s a place we haven’t been before. Where do we turn to get help to guide us through these situations?

There’s one place we are warned not to turn to. Moses counsels the people not to turn to the bogus religious practices that were prevailing in the land. Deuteronomy 18 :10-11 "There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, one who uses divination, one who practices witchcraft, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, or one who casts a spell, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead."

Strange practices continue to attract the attention of some seeking a word of guidance from beyond. Just dial 1 900 PSYKIC and all your problems will be solved. Hold a séance and speak with Elvis. Read your tea leaves, glance in your crystal ball and don't forget to check your horoscope before picking your lottery numbers.

Deuteronomy doesn’t mince words. It describes such practices as "detestable." When something is described in scripture as being something that God says is "detestable" I think it is fair to say we don’t need to be going there.

And if we are turning to things like that to direct our path... then it won’t be long before we are heading in precisely the opposite way from that God would like us to take. But, returning to Viktor Navorski trapped at the airport terminal; I'm sure you have also noticed that airport terminals are confusing places.

Everybody at an airport is on a mission. Everybody is either going somewhere or hanging around waiting to go somewhere. There are endless boards with flight information on them, turning back and forwards. There are customs and immigration to navigate, and you carry baggage that needs to be dealt with.

When you are at a busy airport you can read all the horoscopes and consult all the mediums you want, but it won’t help you find your plane. You usually have to ask some other human being here on this planet, to figure out exactly where you are meant to be.

As the Israelite s traveled through the desert, they were fortunate. They had a flesh and blood character who knew where they were going and how they would get there. His name was Moses. Moses was one of the great prophets of God’s people. The Old Testament bristles with examples of prophets who addressed and lead the people in a similar fashion to Moses.

Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Elijah, Daniel, even reluctant prophets like Jonah... the list goes on and on of people, flesh, and blood people, who through words or actions communicated the reality of God to those they spoke to.  When the people listened, they were reassured that God was with them. When they followed, they prospered and grew!

In our reading today we heard Moses say: "The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your countrymen, you shall listen to him." (Deuteronomy 18:5). A prophet like me? Who was Moses speaking about?

Many commentators believe Moses was speaking prophetically about the coming of the Messiah, an event that would happen a long time after he spoke. This is an idea taken up by the New Testament authors.

In the Book of Acts, both Peter in his sermon at Solomon’s Portico, and Stephen, during the testimony he gives at the time of his martyrdom speak about the prophet Moses said would come as being Jesus. (Acts 3:22 & 7:37)

In the first chapter of the gospel of John, people approach John the Baptist, and ask John, "Who are you? Are you the Messiah? Are you Elijah? Or are you... the prophet?" (meaning the one prophesied by Moses.) John says, No, not me but I came baptizing with water, that He might be revealed! (John 1:21 & 1:31). "He" meaning the one Moses prophesied. John is saying; That's who Jesus is!

A few days later Jesus has called Philip to be His disciple. Philip travels to tell Nathanial about the call he has received and Philip greets Nathanial with these words, "We have found him about whom Moses in the law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus, son of Joseph from Nazareth."

It is on the basis of such texts that theologians suggest that the disciples clearly believed that Jesus fitted the bill for being "The One" that Moses spoke about when he said, "God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you". But that's not the whole verse.

They were equally clear about the second part of Moses proclamation; "Listen to Him!" If Jesus was the One Moses said would come, then we better listen to Him!

At Christmastime we celebrated that in the flesh and blood of Jesus Christ God revealed God’s self in a unique, incomparable, unrepeatable way.  "The Word became flesh and lived among us and we have seen the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth." (John 1:14)

Part of the Good News of the gospel is that there is somebody that we can turn to and find where we are meant to be going and that somebody is Jesus Christ. The living resurrected Jesus Christ whom we encounter through the Holy Spirit when we seek to live our lives for God.That if we need direction, we need to listen to Him.

The New Testament contains the words that He spoke and the things that He did. Under the touch of God’s Spirit those words come alive to us and guide us and lead us. Through the disciplines of prayer and faithful worship we can attune ourselves to listen for God's word. Of all the voices you can tune into, all the things around us trying to get our attention, the one we often miss is the most important of them all. The Word of God.

That’s why developing regular worship habits and Sunday School and private time for prayer and Bible reading is so important for a vibrant walk with God. That’s why stewardship and service and utilizing our talents in ways that God calls us is important.

Neglect such things, or never even try and fit them into your schedule, and you may feel like you've been left wandering around like a lost soul in an airport terminal.

“But you know pastor there’s a lot in the bible, there’s some pretty hard stuff to understand". I can tell you this. The more you learn the more you’ll discover you have to learn! God’s Word is something we are to feed upon on a daily basis for all of our life.

If when you were three years old, I had taken you to a room full of all the food you would eat until the day you die, and told you to eat it, you would look at me like I had lost my mind! Me? Eat all that? Right now? The very idea of consuming all the food we eat in a lifetime at one meal is ludicrous.

It’s the same with the bible and Christian life. It’s a non-microwaveable Word. It’s not a quick fix. It’s food. Real Meat. Something to get your teeth into and consume and digest.

In the movie ‘The Terminal' Viktor Navorski is stuck in the airport because the kingdom from which he came no longer existed, and he could not yet enter the one he wanted to call home. Like Vicktor, we are people living in a terminal space between two lands, the one we encounter every day, and that which Jesus speaks of as The Kingdom of God.

Every day we live we are faced with choices and decisions. The complexity of modern life may have us looking for answers in all the wrong places. God has provided for us a way to find true direction. God offers to us the community of His Church to help us find our way. And God has provided for us a savior, our Lord Jesus Christ.

Listen to Him requires nurturing an active faith, tuning in to the Scriptures, opening ourselves to God in worship and service, being sensitive to the leading of God’s Holy Spirit and seeking to abandon those things that get in the way of being a disciple.

I spoke to the children about the way God helps us tidy up our lives. How Jesus helped the man consumed by demons. We can be scattered. We can be broken. We can feel lost and forsaken. And there are other around us who need our help because they feel the same way!

 So may God help us all to listen!

"Listen to Him"

 And more than that, to put into practice what we hear from the Holy Spirit!
To God’s name be all the Glory.
Amen

The Reverend Adrian J. Pratt B.D.

January 21, 2024 "The Reluctant Preacher"

 Readings: Psalm 126, 1 Thessalonians 5:16-24  Mark 1:14-20, Jonah 3:1-5 & 10
Preached at Bridgehampton Presbyterian Church, NY, January 21 2024

Last week we were thinking about the call of God, and the experience of Samuel, who was tingling as he said; "Speak, Lord, your servant is listening."  Today our readings reflect again on ‘The Call’ of God. The first story was the call of Simon, Andrew, James and John to leave behind the fishing business, and get on with the business of fishing for the Kingdom. In the second story, Jonah comes from out of a fishy situation before going to the Ninevites with a message of judgment.

There seems little hesitation to the call of Jesus in the response of Simon and Andrew. Maybe, Zebedee, the father of James and John, was reluctant to let his sons go, but they themselves seem to have had a tingling that this was the right thing to do.

By contrast, Jonah ends up washed out on the beach. Whilst he had a strong sense of calling, he had an even stronger sense that the last thing he wanted to do was to respond to what God was calling him to do.

As a reluctant prophet, he was in good company.  Moses and Jeremiah both pleaded with God that they were inadequate for their calling. Elijah ran away to a cave because he feared for his life if he spoke against King Ahab. Amos and Isaiah found their message to 'dreadful' to announce.

When all those years ago, I felt a call to the ministry... a tingling sense that to work full time in the church was my vocation... I kicked against it.  It really wasn't something that I had envisioned for my life. Pastors that I knew seemed overworked, underpaid and unappreciated, (except as an easy target for their parishioner’s criticism or a comedian’s satire.) They were old, usually wore black suits and they hated rock music.

I, on the other hand, spent most weekends going to rock concerts and many weeknights playing in a rock band... The only black I wanted to wear (apart from cool sunshades) was leather or denim.  I had a head full of young dreams about fame, fortune and the fantastic experiences that life would bring. I can too easily identify with Jonah and Moses and Jeremiah and Elijah and Amos, who, when they felt a call, said to God, "Great idea, but send somebody else."  

Oh yes, you had that tingling sensation that God was opening a new door before you, or that there was something you needed to do, but then you start thinking about what's through that door, or realize that what you need to do is not quite what you thought it was. You feel then, that, maybe you were wrong, or maybe you don't want to do this after all, or maybe God's not the nice guy the preacher had talked about!

The meat of Jonah's problem had to do with Jonah's understanding of God. Our problem with responding to the needs Christ places before us is often rooted in the same thing. Our image, our understanding, our conception of “Who God is” and “What God is like”, doesn't  resonate with “Who we are” and “What we want” out of life.

Jonah did not like Ninevites. They were the enemy. Jonah was really pleased that God had a grievance with them. Jonah really hoped that God would blast them out of existence just like Sodom and Gomorrah. The last thing Jonah wanted anybody to do was alert the Ninevites to the impending wrath of God that would fall on them if they did not change their ways.

Following his strange encounter with the big fish, reluctantly, Jonah got on with the job God was calling him to do. “Jonah began to go into the city, going a day's walk. And he cried out, "Forty days more, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!" (Jonah 3:4). The impact of this reluctant preacher, an enemy from a foreign land with a distinctly fishy odor, confirmed Jonah’s worst fears.  “The people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast, and everyone, great and small, put on sackcloth.” (3:5)

Jonah had all along cherished a sneaking suspicion that if he went and told the Ninevites to repent, they just might. Now he'd have to live with them for the rest of his life. He was mad at God. “Lord, you’ve made me look a right idiot. I go telling them that they are going to be destroyed… a great idea… and then You go and change Your mind… and forgive?” He heads out of the city where he sits and sulks under a tree - but that’s another story.

Responding to the call of God is an act of submission. It does not make everything in our world rosy. It does not take our “Nineveh’s” away. Following Jesus Christ does not bring instant answers to all our problems.  Life doesn’t flow like that.  We are complex, unique, contradictory beings. We have, in ourselves, places we are reluctant to go, challenges we don’t want to face. We get into patterns and habits and ways of doing and living that we would rather accept than change.

The call of God comes and upsets the apple cart. The Call of God comes and says, “Hey, let’s do something about this!” We say, “Let’s not.” The call of God comes and says, “Let me in!” We say, “Leave it out.” The Call of God comes and says, “You know, there’s something not right, here.” We say, “We know, but that’s the way it has always been. You’re not from round here, are you?”

Guess what? I’m still the reluctant preacher.  I’m still having days when I kick against my calling rather than thank God for it.  Chances are that you feel the same way about your daily lot in life from time to time.  During such times we need to remind ourselves to be Ninevites, not Jonah’s.  Jonah heard the Call and headed out of town.  The Ninevites heard the Call and turned their lives around.

Jonah was afraid to embrace his fears. He would rather God dealt with things without his participation.  The Ninevites embraced the message that Jonah brought to them, and sought God to renew their lives and they prayed and fasted. Jonah eventually, reluctantly and begrudgingly, accepted that God loved people he couldn’t. The Ninevites gratefully and graciously received God’s forgiveness and rejoiced that God’s love was even for people like them.

Just before calling Simon and Andrew to follow Him, Jesus makes a declaration; "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news." (Mark 1:15). The idea of the Kingdom coming near, in such a way as to cause people to repent, to change, to turn their lives in a different direction, lies at the heart of Jonah’s story.

I can give you one good solid reason why we need to change. We need to change because God is not calling us to stay as we are. We need to change because our love for Jesus Christ is but a poor shadow of the love of Jesus for us.  We need to change, because we do not rightly discern the nature of the judgment of God against evil or that the grace of God is greater than sin.

Overcoming our prejudices, our mistaken views of God, our hates and our complaints, our fears and our misplaced pride, is not an easy task. Not for any of us. Not for congregations or pastors or preachers or even prophets ... ask Jonah!

The Good News is that change can happen when we turn our focus away from ourselves and towards Jesus.  That’s how it was for the first disciples.  They knew enough of Jesus on that day when He came walking along the shore, that when He said “Follow me!” they were ready to go.

I don’t know exactly how God’s call is showing itself in your life right now, but I do know God is still calling people like you and me to commit to following Jesus Christ.

•    Maybe God’s called you to a hard place and you don’t know how you’re going to get through.

•    Maybe God’s call to you is just to hang on in there with your doubts and unresolved issues, because now is not the moment for everything to be clear.

•    Maybe you have what we described last week as a ‘tingling’, a sense that there is a particular task or function within the body of Christ that God is guiding you towards.

•    Maybe your lives circumstances mean that unwelcome changes are coming your way and it’s not clear where things go from here.

•    Maybe some us have our own ‘Nineveh.’ A situation we’re trying to avoid, but God keeps bringing it to mind.  An unresolved issue that we’re almost afraid to think about because we have a sneaky suspicion that it may not turn out as we planned if God’s will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

All of us need to hear, one more time, the declaration of Jesus;

“The time is fulfilled,
And the kingdom of God has come near;
Repent, and believe
In the good news”

The Good News that God always calls for a good reason.
The Good News that responding to God’s call leads to unknown treasures.
The Good News that Grace is greater than sin and love is stronger than hate.
The Good News that God in Christ calls people like us,
To be His followers.

“Don’t be a loner and moaner and groaner, like Jonah.
Like Simon and Andrew and James and John
When God calls... go on.
Allow God’s Spirit to guide you through it.
And when Jesus says “Follow...
 Just do it”.

AMEN

The Reverend Adrian J. Pratt B.D

January 14, 2024 "The Call (and the Tingling)"

 Readings: 1 Samuel 3:1–10 (11–20), Psalm 139:1–6, 13–18, 1 Corinthians 6:12–20, John 1:43–51
Preached at Bridgehampton Presbyterian Church, NY, January 14,2024

I think it is a reasonable assumption to make that we have come to church with some vague purpose in mind. Maybe it’s a good habit we have got ourselves into on Sundays. Maybe this place is somewhere special to us because it contains much of our history and hopes. Maybe we are searching, or maybe we are thankful for what we have found.

Whilst we are all here for differing reasons there should be a sense with us all that the religious aspect of life is something that is worth developing and nurturing.

Yet, in spite of all our good intentions, we may not be expecting much this morning. Though involved in a spiritual journey, we would probably be more than a little surprised if we were to encounter God in some undeniable and powerful way that threw our expected life’s course into jeopardy.

The Call. The Call of God. That's what I want us to think about. Our bible passages today spoke about God calling Samuel and about Jesus calling Philip and Nathanael to be His disciples. In both instances we are given the distinct impression that those God called were not expecting to encounter God in the way that they did. Nor did they expect that encountering God would turn their lives upside down.

In both accounts, to use the Old Testament words, "The word of the LORD was rare in those days; visions were not widespread". Although the light of God’s revelation had not completely gone out, it was burning pretty dim. There were reasons for that. In Samuel's day it was due to disobedience and sin. At the time that Jesus came, it was because God was about to do a new thing… establish a new covenant and a new relationship with humankind through God’s only begotten Son.

There are reasons why our lights burn dim. There is sin in our lives. There is throughout society a disrespect and disregard for the things of God. This is not a holy nation, and we are not a holy people. We worship around the throne of many different idols. The idolatry of materialism and consumerism. The idolatry that suggests that we are the center of our own self constructed universes. The idolatry of half-truths and divided commitments.

For many of us, we say prayer is important, but when we don’t see the expected answers, we start to doubt. We say God's Word is important to us, but in the daily routine, it can be hard to find room for personal bible study or reflection. We live in a nation that suggests religion and politics and education and so many other things should be kept in separate containers, having different standards to govern them; "one rule for you, one rule for me.”

No wonder that we sometimes feel, to apply Samuel's words to ourselves, that "The word of the Lord is rare in these days."  No wonder that, as we come to the house of the Lord, our expectations do not soar on eagle’s wings.

Young Samuel is in the house of God, at a time when visions and messages of God were at a premium. Then one night, a voice, heard clearly by Samuel, is calling his name. So unexpected is this experience, that Samuel has to run to Eli the priest to work out what is going on. Thankfully, Eli has the spiritual maturity to discern what is happening. "Therefore, Eli said to Samuel, "Go, lie down; and if he calls you, you shall say, "Speak, LORD, for your servant is listening." (1 Samuel 3:9).

Then, and I just love the way this translation puts it, when God addresses Samuel and Samuel decides to listen... "The LORD said to Samuel, "See, I am about to do something in Israel that will make both ears of anyone who hears of it tingle." I've often read about spiritual experiences that are described as a "quickening "or a "moment of deep insight" or a "soul refreshing" - but have you ever heard such moments described as "A tingling"?

I think that "a tingling" was what Philip and Nathanael and all the other disciples felt when they knew Jesus was calling them to be on His team. When Nathanael heard about Jesus, at first there was no tingling. He was positively despondent. So rare were messages from the Lord that his only reaction to Phillip, who told him that he had seen the Messiah, was, "Oh. Yeah. Right. Like anything good is going to come from a town like Nazareth!"

But then, when he encounters Jesus, and Jesus smacks him a few words that hit right between the ears... Nathanael is tingling. "Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!"

Many times, in Scripture - God moves and the result is - a tingling - a goose-bump encounter. Jesus had that sort of effect on people. On the day of Pentecost, when the Spirit came, there was a tingling spreading through all Jerusalem. Ask me to define a tingling? It's when God moves, in the power of God’s Spirit, to bring home in our hearts a purpose that Jesus is calling us to.

The Call, the tingling – it’s important to recognize that this is an act of grace, an action of God. It's not something we can manufacture or fake. It's not just another religious experience. It is something profound and shaking that changes us. In a general way God, is calling us all. The tingling is an indication that God is calling us to a specific purpose.

There's a wonderful story about jazz legend Ella Fitzgerald (in“Sid Collins, The Life and Times of Ella Fitzgerald”.) It was amateur night at the Harlem Opera House (now the Apollo Theatre) in New York.

A skinny sixteen-year-old girl timidly walks onto the stage. The M.C. bellows, "And now, ladies and gentlemen, our next contestant is Miss Ella Fitzgerald, who is going to dance for us...Hold it, hold it. Now what's your problem, honey? ...Correction, folks. Miss Fitzgerald's changed her mind. She's not gonna dance; she's gonna sing!" Ella Fitzgerald gave three encores and won first prize. Initially, though, she had truly intended to dance.

There it is. An example of a tingling - a call - a moment of realization that we have a specific task to do. A sense that you just have to take a particular course of action at a particular time or else the tingling will go away. A sense of direction that is - well - especially for that moment.

Some of you have had "tinglings" at conferences, in certain times of worship, when going through particular problems. You've just known that God was calling your name and God was going to get you through and in the end, that if you didn't treasure that moment it would be lost forever.

Some of you have felt that tingling at moments of commitment. When you knelt in prayer in some private moment and turned your life over to Jesus. When you were baptized or confirmed or commissioned or accepted some new insight or some new opportunity that opened up right before your eyes.

There is of course another side to this call, this tingling. God calls for a purpose. Where there is a call, there is also a cost. Put yourself in Samuel's shoes. Imagine, you get a direct message from God. Wow! You are excited. This is something new. These sort of things don't happen every day. At least not to you or anybody you know.

Then the reality of what you are called to do, dawns on you. You are asked to go to - one who is older and wiser than you - the same holy one who has helped you discern the voice of God - and come to him, not with a message of blessing - but a message of judgment and rebuke.

Like the disciples and Samuel, we live in a gray and ambiguous world – not unlike like that of Israel at the time of Eli.  In fact, we would be crazy to respond to such impulses were it not for one thing.

The call comes from God. And those God calls, God also equips and empowers for service. The call is God's initiative. It is not something we conjure up in ourselves, but something outside of us that we respond to. The call is something that helps us realize who we are and what we can do and where we should be focusing our time and energy.

For most of us that call is not going to come in the midst of a restless night. For most of us it will be the voice of a person of flesh and blood that gives the words. It will be a situation or circumstance that we feel we just must respond to or do something about, because it has got us tingling. It will be some bible verse or something else that we have heard or seen that moves us to make a response.

Often times we may not even have recognized that it was a call. It will only be further down the road, when we look back, that we see... well, this happened and that happened... and though I couldn't see it at the time…the hand of God was at work... and I am so glad that I responded.

The Call. It's an essential part of Reformed theology. We believe that we are all here for a reason. That God calls us to particular tasks and duties in the world and the church. That the things that come our way are not random acts of chance, but that there is a purpose and a meaning, even though that purpose and meaning may be shadowed in mystery.

Our response to these things should surely be that of Samuel. "Now the LORD came and stood there, calling as before, "Samuel! Samuel!" And Samuel said, "Speak, for your servant is listening." (Samuel 3:10).

Are we listening? Are we tingling? Are we ready for those tasks God is calling us to? Are we prepared to see it through - whatever it may cost - for we know that we walk with God, in the will of God, responding to the call of God? Samuel said, "Speak, for your servant is listening."

I pray for all of us, that as we learn to discern God's purpose for our life, we will also discover the faith that carries us through.

To God’s name be the glory.

The Reverend Adrian J. Pratt B.D.

January 7, 2024 "Grace Works"

Readings: Psalm 29, Genesis 1:1-5, Mark 1:4-11 Ephesians 1:3-14
Preached at Bridgehampton Presbyterian Church, NY, on January 7, 2024

The start of a New Year … and who knows what it will be bringing our way? I have no intention this morning of contradicting anything that Nostradamus or the ‘Farmers Almanac’ may be suggesting, but I do want to plant in your minds one particular thought.

It’s neither a new thought nor even an original thought, but a thought that appears in different ways throughout much of the New Testament. It’s a thought that crops up in a number of different ways in the bible reading that we had from Ephesians.

Simply stated the thought that I’d like to focus on as we start a New Year is this.
“Grace Works”

To enlarge on that thought .. not only has God’s Grace worked in the past, .. not only is God’s Grace working in the present but God’s Grace will continue to shape our future. God’s Grace has worked, is working and will work. It is the Grace of God that bought us to the beginning of a New Year, it is the Grace of God that sustains as we begin a New Year and it is God’s Grace that will get us through a New Year.

Paul begins his letter to the Ephesians with a eulogy regarding the purpose and plans of God, as they are enacted through God; Father, Son and Holy Spirit. He uses such grand words as ‘predestination’ and ‘redemption’, and phrases such as ‘according to His high intention which he purchased in Him’ and.. ‘with a view to an administration suitable to the fullness of the times’

If you think this passage is wordy in English, bear in mind that in the original Greek the whole section from verse 3 through to verse 14 is one single sentence. It’s not the sort of passage that you can read without taking a breath.

If you can spend the time to really to chew on it, it’s a passage full of spiritual meat. We don’t have that time right now, so rather than delving into all the intricacies and theological twists and turns in this rich passage, allow me to just highlight some of the main items on the menu. In true Trinitarian fashion Paul speaks of the Grace of God under three headings.

The Grace of God the Father

It has become politically incorrect within some theological circles to talk of God as Father. Some prefer the term parent, or speak of the feminine aspects of God. Others ignore the concept altogether and speak in terms God as Creator or Redeemer.

Paul makes little sense if you take away from his words his concept of the Fatherhood of God. Had he been writing today he may have phrased things a little differently, but at the time he wrote, ‘Fatherhood’ had particular functions and responsibilities that he relates to the God who creates us and sustains us.

 A primary function of the father’s task was that of making plans. It was through the father’s life that not only his wife, but also his children were blessed. Back then women and children had no status of their own. Who they were was directly related to who their husband or father happened to be and what that husband or father had achieved. The father’s plans were crucial for the well-being of the whole household.

So, Paul speaks of ‘Our Father’s’ of God’s plans. He does so in terms that are warm and nurturing. This is the Father who has already blessed us and continues to try and overwhelm our hard hearts with blessing upon blessing. This is a Father who has chosen us specifically to be His children. Paul uses the term ‘adoption’ to describe how we are drawn to be a part of the family of God, not by our own will, but by God’s gracious desire to nurture our lives.

He speaks of the Father as having chosen us from before the foundation of the world to be His own. Of how this Father desires that we grow and grow in our spiritual lives, so much so that we appear to be holy and blameless before Him. Paul speaks of the “Good Pleasure” of the Father’s will. He speaks of us as “God’s Beloved”, as those to whom He will freely give all that love had to offer. Most of all this Father God is one who plans all things and achieves all things through the ‘riches of His grace’ (v7).

Grace Works. Why? Because that’s the way God works. That like an exemplary father at the time Paul wrote, God wishes us to have lives that are molded and nurtured and formed by that Grace. That’s the Master plan. That’s where God is directing us.

In practical terms, it does not mean that life this year will be hassle free. It will have the usual ups and downs and probably some unanticipated turns that may be awful or wonderful. Yet behind it all and through it all we have an opportunity to discover throughout the coming year that Grace works.

How do we connect with this Grace of God? How do we get it to work for us? Maybe that’s the pressing question. The simplest answer is that we do so through seeking to be disciples of Jesus Christ. Because it is in Him and it is through Him that Grace becomes focused upon our lives.

The Grace of Jesus Christ

It is Jesus who opened the gateway for Grace to flow to our lives. He did so at great cost. He did so through the price He paid at Calvary and the Cross where He suffered for our sins. This is not cheap grace but costly self-sacrifice on the part of God.

It has to be that way because of the enormity of sin. One thing for sure that you are going to have deal with in this coming year is the fact of sin. You will be sinned against and you will sin against others. No matter how lofty your resolutions or high your intentions your are going to mess up. You did last year and you will this year.

Man’s nature is a sinful nature. We are neither basically good nor basically bad, we are basically sinful. Sin is usually underestimated. We think we can classify our actions by filing them in either the “Good” or the “Bad’ cabinet.

“Today, I gave an extra dollar in collection at church.” GOOD file.
“Today, I could have given two extra dollars at church.” BAD file.
“Today, I slammed my finger in the car door and said some words that I don’t usually say. Put that in the “BAD” (but not as bad as if I’d kicked the cat) file. It was GOOD that I didn’t kick the cat. But..“today I got mad at the cat anyways. “BAD”.. but only because the cat ate the goldfish. “GOOD” for you…offering moral guidance for the cat, “BAD” for the cat for eating the goldfish. VERY BAD all round for the goldfish!

It’s hardly surprising the cat ate the goldfish. Cats like fish. They taste good to cats. It’s in a cat’s nature to eat them. It’s also in a cat’s nature to play with their food. Ever seen a cat with a mouse? Oh, they are mean! They’ll catch them. Let them go a little. Then “ME-OW” got you again, “Just when you thought you were getting away with it.” They can be horrible.  What’s with that?

It’s the way they are. Part of being a cat.  It goes beyond good or bad. It’s their nature. In a similar way, sin is a part of our nature. It may disgust us. It may trouble us. It can be controlled to a lesser and a greater extent. Even Paul realized that often he was a loser when it came to battling with sin.

Elsewhere in Scripture he bemoans his fate in terms of saying how he just couldn’t do the good he wanted to do, but often ended up doing the stuff he didn’t want to, even though he was trying his hardest to do the right thing. “Who can deliver me? From this body of death?” he cries out. “Only Jesus” is the answer that he reassures himself with. Forgiveness is not dependent on us. It’s dependent on God. It is entirely through the Grace of Jesus Christ imparted to our lives through Jesus Christ’s death on the cross for us. Sinners we are and sinners we will always be. But Christ died to free us from sin.

Some people look at that and say, “Well if Jesus died to free me from sin, how come I keep sinning?”  We keep sinning because we are sinners. We shall remain so till the day we depart this life for glory. To be freed from sin, does not mean having a life that is completely free from sin, but rather that we no longer orientate our lives on the basis of sin, but from the basis of grace. Another biblical writer, in I John, Chapter 3, draws a distinction between those who ‘practice sin’ and those who ‘practice righteousness’. As we stand near the beginning of the New Year, it’s important that we get in the game. And to be in the game.. means.. guess what?

If you are selected to play for a team, Football, Basketball, Baseball, Soccer, Cheerleading, Golf, LaCrosse, Tennis, whatever the team…what have you got to do? You have to go to practice! And what happens if you don’t practice? You’re not on the team. Right?

If you are going to be a concert pianist and your teacher tells you to practice this scale and that scale and these exercises and that exercise but you say,  “No. to heck with that, I’m graced by God, I’m gifted, I don’t need to practice… well  no matter how gifted or graced you may be, if you don’t do the practice, then the day you get up on stage, the crowd waiting, the orchestra all tuned up, the conductor waves the baton, and you will flunk out in the first few bars… and the whole world will laugh and say, “Man, what a waster!”

God has gifted us with salvation. Through God’s Grace we are free and forgiven. Don’t waste that Grace. We need to practice our righteousness. Otherwise we fool nobody but ourselves. To enable us to do, God offers:-

The Grace of the Holy Spirit

Paul speaks in verse 13 of “Being sealed in Him (Christ) with the Holy Spirit of Promise.” Wow! There’s another whole sermon in there! But this sermon has come to an end. All that I’ll say about that is that as you allow God’s Grace to work in your life, as you practice those things you believe.. there comes from God a sense of reassurance, a conviction that is hard to frame with words, a boldness and confidence about our Christian walk, that we had never before realized or recognized.

At the same time knowing ourselves sinners, we also know ourselves forgiven. At the same time knowing our limitations, we are discovering that with God the impossible often comes to be. Knowing that all the time we are making choices and coming to decisions and working things through in the dark, yet at the same time, are discovering that we are not alone, that there is a plan and a purpose, and the light is shining in unexpected ways in unexpected places.

In conclusion… my prayer for our churches this year... is that we may each discover... as God leads us... that Grace Works. That grace works wherever we work. That Grace works in our relationships with each other and with others. That grace works in our worship and in our service, and in our giving and receiving.  

Grace Works. Thanks Be to God. AMEN.

The Reverend Adrian J Pratt B.D.