This sermon may be considered a “part two” to my September sermon, “Let go and Let God”.  In that, I wrote of living in faith and trusting in God no matter what the circumstance. As quoted then, “For we live by faith, not by sight.” [2 Corinthians 5:7]. This “part two” came about by having been asked a question on my original position and again, being inspired by the Lectionary for today.

Today being the twenty-first Sunday after Pentacost the Lectionary reading suggests; “Then he [Jesus] said to him, ‘Rise and go; your faith has made you well.’” [Luke 17:19].  But for a woman I spiritually counsel, whose husband suffers terminal illness, the question is askd, “What if I have no faith?”

Many of us feel, and some of us even taught- that to doubt God or question our faith and trust in God, is biggest offense possible. It can frighten us.  A sign of weakness or sinful spirit; vulnerable to temptation and rebellion.  People facing critical circumstances, terminal illness and unexpected loss, often wrestle with these emotions.  And they need not be life altering, but sometimes even the slightest “bump in the road” can cause any of us to question. And for those of us who are clergy or religious, this can seem hypocritical and even downright treasonous.  Throughout scripture there are those who questioned God-  Jeremiah felt deceived and Job angrily challenged God.  Even Thomas doubted God, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hand and put my finger into where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” [John 20:25]

Nevertheless, we should take heart. Believe it or not, we are closest and most receptive to God,  in our doubt. Thomas Merton, a Cistercian Trappist monk [much like our beloved Saint Aelred], wrote that “Faith means doubt, not the suppression of doubt.  The only way to truly overcome doubt is to live through it. Someone who has never experience doubt, is not a person of faith.”  Mother Teresa wrote extensively of her “dark long periods of spiritual desolation; questioning whether God cared, loved or even existed at all.”  Even centuries ago, St. Augustine agreed- “Doubt is but an element of faith.”

St. Vincent de Paul wrote;  “We belong to God. We must give ourselves to God everyday. Repeatedly and consistently, with all our doubts and cares, so that God can give to us His charity, so that we may be blessed to give it to others.”

In his book, Crossing the Threshold of Hope, Pope John Paul II reflects that, as St. Thomas Aquinas wrote we must be allowed to have doubt, to search for God and truth on our own terms.  To do this- to have doubt, is “a manifestation of the grace of the Holy Spirit at work”, wrote Pope John Paul, “questioning God reveals your faith in him.”

But Pope John Paul takes us another step further. He reflects on our recitation of the Apostles Creed, where we declare our faith in the Church. “We are the Church,” the pontiff writes- “so we are to have faith in each other- a reliance on each other, to do God’s will and be God’s love.”  John Paul charges us, “to pray and be as the father of the possessed boy,  “I do believe; help me to overcome my unbelief.” [Mark 9:24].”

Inasmuch as we pray and portray to have faith, we must understand and accept that doubt is part of that faith. When we are frightened, exhausted, angry or suffering, it is then that we are most open to God. It is in these moments that we know in our hearts we believe in God, we just need God’s help in overcoming our unbelief. To let go and let God.

There is an old anecdote- when it comes to faith, for those who do not believe- no explanation is possible and for those who do believe, no explanation is necessary.  Thank God, I do believe!

Let us pray. 

Almighty God, you are my God. You know all things and have made all things. Make within us true and certain hearts. We give to you our doubts and uncertainties. Give to us the peace and strength of your presence. Send upon us your Holy Spirit to renew, restore and refresh us. Let the light of Your truth cast away all shadows from within us. In silent prayer let our cares and concerns be calm. Let us be still, and know that Thou art God. Amen.

Galatians 5:1, 13-25

1: “We have freedom now, because Christ made us free. So stand strong.
Do not change and go back into the slavery of the law.”

13: “My brothers and sisters, God called you to be free, but do not use your freedom as an excuse to do what pleases your sinful self.
Serve each other with love.”

15: “If you go on hurting each other and tearing each other apart, be careful, or you will completely destroy each other.”

17: “Our sinful selves want what is against the Spirit, and the Spirit wants what is against our sinful selves.”

19-21: “The wrong things the sinful self does are clear: being sexually unfaithful, not being pure, taking part in sexual sins, 20worshiping gods, doing witchcraft, hating, making trouble, being jealous, being angry, being selfish, making people angry with each other, causing divisions among people, 21feeling envy, being drunk, have wild and wasteful parties, and doing other things like these. I warn you now as I warned you before: Those who do these things will not inherit God’s kingdom.”

22-23: “But the Spirit produces the fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness, self-control.”

25: “We get our new life from the Spirit, so we should follow the Spirit.”

Please consider the questions I have proposed and their effect on your spiritual journey.

Are you making excuses? Are you stepping on toes as you push through your agenda in the name of Jesus? Has your passion for His kingdom created a bull-in-the-china-closet approach in your ministry? Have you enjoyed being righteous? Are all of your actions acceptable simply because you feel you are responding to God’s vision and plan for your life? Is your ministry so important that the end justify the means?

What was your latest battle? Who did you fight? Could there have been a different approach? Did blood have to flow or fur fly? How do you balance the importance of a ministry program that God has instilled in your heart with a loving spirit towards those who seemingly are standing in the way? How do you overcome barriers of resistance without injuring those in your path? How can you accomplish what God has called you to do if you are humbly stepping aside to avoid conflict?

Are you causing divisions among people? Are your actions tearing down the kingdom while your words attempt to build it up? Are you doing more harm than good? Do you realize that one harmful act can undo years of ministry efforts?

Is the Spirit producing good in your life? Can others see evidence of Him working in you? If the leaders of your church were putting together a list of people whose lives exhibited goodness from being Spirit-led, would your name appear? After this reflection, what steps should you take to allow Christ’s transforming love into your heart?
Should you find new ways to be sensitive to His Spirit to insure you are following Him every step of the way? Should you constantly pray for God to reveal your faults and mend your spirit?

I am often asked by friends,  as if I am a theological scholar,  which day is more important… which day is to be celebrated with more vigor, Easter or Christmas?  I do not know if this is a legitimate question to ask,  or one that may be just appropriate for the “everyday” Christians- who tend to view the church calendar in that way- Easter time or Christmas time. But if we reflect on the question, we can find an answer.  Indeed a profound answer, that may even summarize what can become- a great theological statement.

We all know that, “in the beginning… God said, ‘Let there be light.’ and there was light. God saw the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. God called the light ‘day’ and the darkness he called ‘night’. And there was an evening and there was a morning- the first day.” [Genesis 1:2-5]

Since that very first day, our lives revolve around day and night.  Light and darkness.  As children, we always feared the darkness.  We would ask our mothers to leave a night light on.  We enjoyed playing with our friends and even going to school, but we learned that when the street lights came on- night and its accompanying darkness were coming.

Night and darkness have always seemed unsettling to most of us, if not down right evil.  Things become dark and uncertain. We do not see as clearly as we do “by the light of day”.  The Bible even supports this theory. Genesis refers to “dreadful darkness” and a “plague of darkness”.  Job warns us of  “gloom and utter darkness”-  a “darkness that cannot be escaped.”  Indeed there are nearly thirty references to “darkness” alone in the Book of Job.

And when the world was filled with it’s great despair- in it’s darkest night, the Christ child is born.  Christmas Day!  The beginning of  the story. 

Then we have the Easter story, which is actually an end to the story– but yet a beginning.  Christ suffers his passion. Unlike Christmas with it’s Advent- Eastertide come to us through Lent. A time of fasting and vigils. A time, that unlike Christmas, is somber.  In Easter,  Christ gives to us the gift of his Last Supper and goes with his disciples to pray- at night, in a place called Gethsemane.  So late and dark was the hour that his disciples could not even stay awake.  Christ is arrested and led to trial.  Peter waits through a dark night, but fearfully denies knowing Jesus.  Crucified, though day “a great darkness came across the land”. The world waits in darkness.  Easter morning, by the glow of the predawn light, Mary Magdalene makes her way through the garden to discover the tomb empty.  The glory of Easter morning-  and the Resurrection of the Risen Christ!

We know bad things happen at night, in darkness.  When we are uncertain.  When we are afraid.  Jesus even tells us, “People do not light a lamp and place it under a bowl.  Instead they put it on a stand,  so that it gives light to everyone that is in the house.” [Matthew 5:15]  Indeed Christ knows our fear and comforts us;  “I have come into the world as a light- so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness.” [John 12:46]

So this then is the promise of Easter.  Indeed the promise of Christmas.  That though we fear the darkness, the uncertainty of life- we have the promise of the Resurrection!  “The Lord is my light and salvation, whom shall I fear!” [Psalm 27:1]  Christ has fulfilled his promise of everlasting life and given to us the proof.  His Resurrection on Easter morning is what makes us Christians!  We can happily and boldly face our lives, and the unexpected bumps we will hit along the road- because we know that Christ has conquered death.  He offers to us the same, if we take up his cross and follow him!

And we can do that.  Without stumbling. Without falling. Without fear.  Because unlike those who live in darkness, we have been saved!  For Christ tells us, “Whoever follows me, will never walk in darkness! ” [John 8:12]

So the darkness is behind us. Before is the light of morning. The glorious light of Easter morning!  “For God is light, in him there is no darkness at all! ” [1 John 1:5]  Alleluia! Christ the Lord is risen today!

“Oh God, who for our redemption gave your only-begotten Son to the death of the cross, and by his glorious resurrection delivered us from the power of our enemy: Grant us so to die daily to sin, that we may evermore live with him in the joy of his resurrection; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  Amen.”  [OCACNA Sacramentary (c) 2012 p.179]

While watching the news and reflecting on the election of the new Pope, I cannot help but be struck with curiosity about a picture of the newest Papal leader washing someone’s feet. At  first I thought this was a recent photograph, but it seems this occurred many years ago. So who is this new leader of the Roman Catholic Church? It seems he is a humble man whose promotion has sparked hope among many individuals and groups who did not feel they had a voice within the Catholic Church in years past

Francis, the first Jesuit pope and first non-European since the Middle Ages, decided to call himself Francis after St. Francis of Assisi, the humble friar who dedicated his life to helping the poor.  On his first day on the job, Pope Francis not only returned to the Vatican-owned residence to pick up his luggage and pay the bill himself, he thanked every worker there, each by name. The new pontiff brings a common touch. The son of middle-class Italian immigrants, he denied himself the luxuries that previous cardinals in Buenos Aires enjoyed. He lived in a simple apartment, often rode the bus to work, cooked his own meals and regularly visited the slums that ring Argentina’s capital.

As Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, he showed compassion for the victims of HIV-AIDS and in 2001, visited a hospice to kiss and wash the feet of 12 AIDS patients. In 2008, he also washed the feet of 12 recovering drug addicts at a rehabilitation center in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

It is these vivid images of humility and service which remind me of the Bible reading for today:

John 12:1-8

12:1 Six days before the Passover Jesus came to Bethany, the home of Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. 12:2 There they gave a dinner for him. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those at the table with him. 12:3 Mary took a pound of costly perfume made of pure nard, anointed Jesus’ feet, and wiped them with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. 12:4 But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (the one who was about to betray him), said, 12:5 “Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and the money given to the poor?” 12:6 (He said this not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief; he kept the common purse and used to steal what was put into it.) 12:7 Jesus said, “Leave her alone. She bought it so that she might keep it for the day of my burial. 12:8 You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me.”

The new Pope, in his humble actions as the new leader of an often troubled Church, reminds me of Mary. Though she was considered no one special, and her introduction is far less publicized than the election of Pope Francis, her role in the recognition of Jesus, as Savior, is no less crucial to our salvation.

Hear this, all you peoples;
listen, all who live in this world,
² both low and high,
rich and poor alike:
³ My mouth will speak words of wisdom;
the meditation of my heart will give you understanding.
⁴ I will turn my ear to a proverb;
with the harp I will expound my riddle:

⁵ Why should I fear when evil days come,
when wicked deceivers surround me—
⁶ those who trust in their wealth
and boast of their great riches?
⁷ No one can redeem the life of another
or give to God a ransom for them—
⁸ the ransom for a life is costly,
no payment is ever enough—
⁹ so that they should live on forever
and not see decay.
¹⁰ For all can see that the wise die,
that the foolish and the senseless also perish,
leaving their wealth to others.
¹¹ Their tombs will remain their houses^[b] forever,
their dwellings for endless generations,
though they had^[c] named lands after themselves.

¹² People, despite their wealth, do not endure;
they are like the beasts that perish.

¹³ This is the fate of those who trust in themselves,
and of their followers, who approve their sayings.^[d]
14 They are like sheep and are destined to die;
death will be their shepherd
(but the upright will prevail over them in the morning).
Their forms will decay in the grave,
far from their princely mansions.
¹⁵ But God will redeem me from the realm of the dead;
he will surely take me to himself.
¹⁶ Do not be overawed when others grow rich,
when the splendor of their houses increases;
¹⁷ for they will take nothing with them when they die,
their splendor will not descend with them.
¹⁸ Though while they live they count themselves blessed—
and people praise you when you prosper—
¹⁹ they will join those who have gone before them,
who will never again see the light of life.

²⁰ People who have wealth but lack understanding   are like the beasts that perish.

In reflecting on Psalm 49, We must look within ourselves and realize that wealth won’t last: How should we think about the wealth of the wicked i.e. banks and money lenders of all types?  Should their power and prosperity cause us to worry? Yes absolutely! How should we feel when we have great abundance or lack of resources? Should these circumstances cause us to be either confident or afraid? This psalm answers these questions by reminding us that wealth won’t last. Wisdom teaches us that our financial situations are never an appropriate cause of fear or self-reliance. Let us look at Psalm 49’s clear-headed recognition that wealth won’t last.

Psalm 49:1-4 Explains that the following instructions carry wisdom for absolutely everyone—“both low and high, rich and poor alike”

(Psalm 49:2). The relevance of this psalm’s instruction about wealth is significant. It indicates that everyone needs to be taught how to view wealth wisely. “All who live in this world” (Psalm 49:1) are susceptible to temptation in this area. Money is the leading contender against faith in God!

Psalm 49:5- These passages ask, “What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?”

Wealth may give us a false sense of immortality, but in the end it cannot save us from death. The ultimate futility of worldly wealth is worthless in the day of wrath. Turning our attention from this world to the next, we must realize that as a part of God’s creation, material resources such as money and wealth are good and not evil in themselves. Wealth has a limited capacity to insulate us from many of life’s dangers and difficulties. We should not despise wealth or deny its practical utility, but we must recognize how incredibly limited worldly wealth is from an eternal perspective (Psalm 49:7-9). Wealth is transient. Cars rust. Houses fall apart. Bank accounts dwindle. Sooner or later it all disappears.

For these very reasons, Jesus warns us not to store up treasures on earth, but in heaven.  Please remember “It’s not just because wealth might be lost; it’s because wealth will always be lost” Either it leaves us while we live, or we leave it when we die. No exceptions. Whether we are rich or poor, God can demand our lives of us at any moment. When that happens, the money we have will be of no use, but righteousness expressed by the right use of wealth will endure forever. (Psalm 49:16-20)  In closing when we see how our minds have been reoriented according to this “eternal perspective”, we will find wealth to be far less impressive and important.