Easter Sermon- Three Dimensional Resurrection

Three Dimensional Resurrection

Matt 28:1-10; Luke 24:1-11; John 20:1-16

Three stories about One resurrection of Jesus the Christ.
For some, the three perspectives are confusing-
Was there one women or two or three at the tomb?
Were there men in dazzling clothes or angels who greeted the
women at the tomb with the story of the resurrection?
Did the disciples respond to the women’s testimony
with amazement, or disbelief or action?

For others it is encouraging to know how much these stories
Agree with each other even though they were written by
different authors at different time from different perspectives,
they were inspired by One Spirit and testimony to one Christ.
Each tells the story of the empty tomb,
Each tells the story of women who went to the tomb early,
Each tells the story of witnessing at the tomb,
And how difficult it was for people to believe the Gospel
That the women shared with other believers.
There is a truth that runs through each of these stories
And it is the truth of the resurrection of Christ.

For me, the power and common purpose of these different accounts
Of the one resurrection of Jesus Christ is to give us
A Three dimensional perspective on the resurrection.
It is not a flat two dimensional picture that looks the same
From every angle but rather it has texture, depth and substance.

For example the resurrection speaks to us when we feel God is absent
As the body of Christ was absent from the empty tomb and
Yet the beloved disciple “saw and believed.”

But the story is equally poignant when we encounter the Risen Christ
In our daily lives. We might mistake him for the gardener but
When he speaks our name “Mary” we know it is “The Teacher”.

The three different sources help us to see three dimensionally.
Of course three dimensional movies are the rage right now.

It seems that every movie we see today has a 3-D option.
And the way three dimensional movies work is that they
Trick the eye and the mind into thinking there are
At least two different angles to every shot.
They shoot the movie from a 45 degree and 135 degree angle.
Each eye sees a different angle to give the illusion of 3-D.

And yet in today’s scripture we have not just 2 perspectives
But we have three perspective (and we could have four)
and within the stories themselves we also have
a variety of perspectives on the story so that
we are not just tricking our eye and mind
into thinking three dimensionally
but we are helping believers to know the multiple dimensions
of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ that is real and personal,
Inclusive and yet beyond even our wildest imagination.

You see the story of Jesus resurrection is not a story that seems
To reach out to us and take place right in front of our eyes.
But it is the story of God who came down into this world
That God created to actually touch us, talk with us, live in us.
It is not the story that takes place in virtual reality but rather
As story that takes us into hyper-reality. And by that I mean-
A reality that recognizes the paradoxes of life, the purpose
and problems of life and the presence of God
Who is willing to be present in all that reality.

So I call the three versions of the resurrection of Jesus Christ
A three dimension understanding of the resurrection.
And unlike the 3-D movies we see with special glasses
This is not an illusion, or a trick.

It is the continuation of the incarnation story where God came down,

Not longer was God simply spoken of by the prophets but now
God spoke to us directly as Jesus said to the crowd in Luke
“Today the scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”

No longer did God exercise God’s sovereign control from afar
But God walked with us in Jesus and ate with us
And entered into our lives as he did with Cleopas
And his companion on the road to Emmaus:
“Their eyes were opened and they recognized him.”

No longer did God promise healing from heaven above,
But God entered into our pain in Jesus on the cross,
healed us with his spittle as he healed the blind man,
Allowed us with Thomas to touch his wounds,
Even as he touched and healed our woundedness.
“Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe”

No longer does God simply promise us life after death,
But Jesus cries with us as he did in the death of Lazarus
and dies with us on the cross at Calvary so that
we might be raised with Christ to life eternal.

So the real question we must ask on this Easter morning
As we consider the three dimensional resurrection of Jesus
Is who will we be in this story…

Will we be the disciples who thought that this was just an idle tale
And did not believe?

Will we be Peter who went home amazed at what happened?

Will we be the beloved disciple, John, who looked into the tomb
Saw the empty tomb…and believed.

Will we be the women in Matthew who took hold of Jesus’ feet
And worshipped him?

Or will we be Mary who went to the other disciples and told them,
“I have seen the Lord”?

The beauty of this three dimensional understanding
of the Resurrection is that the depth and dynamic experience
of the resurrection does not illicit just one response-
there are as many responses to the Resurrected Christ
as there are disciples- the “Bible tells us so.”
There are days in which we hear God call upon our lives
As personally as Mary heard Jesus call her name.

There are other days when we leap into mission
with the boldness of Peter only to go home
amazed but exhausted and spent
Still other days when we experience what other people
Might consider to be the absence of God in life
As John experienced the empty tomb and
We remember something he told us
And we believe.

But if we believe a three dimension resurrection
As God who enters into the reality of our lives,
And opens us up to a reality beyond the bounds of our vision
Then we know, that God will use us to proclaim God’s kingdom.
And that is the mystery, the wonder and meaning of Easter. Amen

Lesson Plan for Chapters 9-14 of "Geography of God"

“Geography of God” Lesson Plan for Chapters 9- 14

Life on the Road

Chapter Nine: Geography of God

Symbols of the Trinity
Triquetra Knot ; Celtic Cross ; Shamrock ; Trinity Shield ; Presbyterian Symbol ; Catholic Sign of the Trinity ; Rublev’s Trinity- Genesis 18

Trinitarian Affirmation
• II Corinthians 13:13 “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Love of God and the communion of the Holy Spirit”
• The Words of Jesus in John “I am the way, the truth and the life”
• God doesn’t just show us the way, the Triune God is the way (Lindvall, pg. 52)
• “The most transforming affirmation embedded in the Trinity…an understanding of a God who is love, a God who is relationship, a God who is communion.” (pg. 52, Lindvall)

Three Forms of Devotions- Chap 10

• Worship
• Bible reading
• Prayer
Devotion is not either/or - It is both/and
– Corporate and Individual
– Discipline and discipleship are related
– Humans crave BOTH tradition and innovation

Chapter 11: Worship- Turning to the Center

• Worship is neither entertainment, therapy or education. These are all directed to the worshipper. So what is it?...
• It is God directed. God is the audience and the whole congregation are the actors, singers, readers, dancers performing for God’s good pleasure.
• Question “What did you get out of the service?” should be replaced with “What did you lose, give, or offer.”
• The opportunity we are met with on Sunday is to give ourselves again to God, to lose ourselves in the Absolute, to turn away from self and re-center on God

Packing a Bible- Chap 12

• “The way to defend the Bible is the same way that you defend a Lion. You let it lose.” Charles Spurgeon
• Three-fold word of God.
– Living word in Jesus Christ
– The written word of scripture
– The proclaimed word of the church

“Imagine the Bible as a great conversation of people who have witnessed what God has done history.”
• Three Things you bring to Bible study
• Identity- who are you in the story of the prodigal son…the good Samaritan…
• Recognition- what is the truth that comes to you; the “A-ha” moment. What do you discover about yourself in your relationship to God in the stories of scripture.
• Imagination- dare to enter into the world of scripture. Karl Barth calls it the “Strange new world of the Bible”

What best describes you sense of Scripture?
• Road map
• Lens through which we see Christ (Calvin)
• Love letter between God and God’s people.
• Cradle in which the Christ child is held
• Rule book
• The revelation of God’s love
• Other_________________________

On Your Knees- Chapter 13

• “Prayer is none other than expanding our heart in the presence of God” Calvin

• “To pray is to edge into relationship with God…in prayer the vector of your purpose comes to be more and more curved to God.” Lindvall, pg. 82

• “Prayer is not merely about changing the course of events…prayer is also about changing me in my relationship with God” Lindvall, pg. 81

List with the class the ways you pray
• ACTS of Prayer
• Prayers of Adoration
• Prayers of Thanksgiving
• Prayer of Confession
• Prayers of Supplication (for self and world)

Reflections on the Lord’s Prayer: Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name; Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom, the power and glory, forever and ever. Amen (Matt. 6:9-13)

Ways to pray
• Praying Scripture: Lectio Divina
• Praying the Psalms (check out Psalm 22/23)
• Prayer Phrases: Psalm 103 “Bless the Lord O my soul and all that is within me bless His holy name. Bless the Lord O my soul and forget not all His benefits.”
• Prayer Books: Presbyterian Book of Common Prayer
• Prayer woven into life- Brother Lawrence “Practicing the Presence of God”

Traveling Companions, Chapter 14

• “We are built for relationship” pg. 87
• “If the deepest truth about God is that God is relationship, love, communion, the implications for those who would be in relationship with God are stunning.”
• “We who name a Trinitarian God are called to live in relationships of deep communion that are nothing less than an earthly reflection of the life of God.” pg. 88

Where do we find, live, build up Community?

• Church- ecclesia- “The gathered”(Matt 16:18; Acts 14: 27 and 15:3- The Church gathered and sent); “The Body of Christ”; I Corinthians 12:12-27

• Marriage and Family- Genesis 1 “It is not good that man should be alone. I will make a helpmate for him”; Eph 5:21 “Be subject to one another out of reverence for Christ…husband love your wives as Christ loved the church.” koinos- “household” is the Greek word for community, partnership.

• Friendship: phileos; “I no longer call you servants but friends” John 15:15)

Lesson 6 "All or Nothing"

Lesson Six “A Geography of God: Exploring the Christian Journey”
Chapters 18-20 “All or Nothing”

Chapter 18 “Stuff and Work”

Michael Lindvall challenges us to find a balance point in Stuff and Work. When either our work or stuff becomes central to our life we risk idolatry.

What do you think of Lindvall’s claim that consumerism and careerism become idolatry when “what we have” or “what we do” defines us.

Do you think that the stuff we buy should have a warning on it “Warning: This thing, like all things, could be dangerous to your spiritual health.” Reflect on the parable of the rich man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31) and the rich ruler (Luke 18:18-30), “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven” (Lk. 18: 25) the Beatitude “Woe to you who are rich, for you have received you consolation.” (Luke 6:24)

And yet Lindvall claims that “the incarnation is necessarily an affirmation of the potential goodness of the physical.” (p. 119) How does Jesus redeem the physical part of life for God’s use?

Similarly, Lindvall challenges our “workaholic” nature as idolatrous when our work defines us, or when we seek our salvation through work or it becomes the center of our lives.

Contrast this with the Christian notion of “vocation”. Frederick Buechner once defined Christian vocation as “Our calling is where our deepest gladness and the world's hunger meet.”

Lindvall also contrasts the imagined stories of two great writers Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Karl Barth entering heaven with their life works “Confessions” and “Church Dogmatics”; Rousseau believing this is a great gift to the angels and Barth imagining that they would use his life’s work as waste paper on the floor. What do you think about each of these men’s assessments of their life work?

The ultimate workaholic remedy “Remember the Sabbath Day to keep it holy.”

Chapter 19 “An Expansive Lifestyle”

“The God encountered in Scripture and Christian tradition is a radically expansive deity”. (Lindvall, p. 124)

J. B Phillips wrote a book in the 1952 “Your God is Too Small” in which he claims “that we have not found a God big enough for our modern needs. In varying degrees we suffer from a limited idea of God. Phillips exposes such inadequate conceptions of God as ‘Resident Policeman’, ‘Grand Old Man’, ‘Meek and Mild’, ‘Managing Director” and explores ways that we can find a truly meaningful and constructive Gods for ourselves.”

Can you imagine ways that you might have limited God in your own thinking of God? Read Psalm 8 as a remedy to this little God syndrome. “O Lord our Sovereign, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory about the heavens’…When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and stars that your have established, what are human beings that you are ever mindful of them, mortals that you care for them.”

Lindvall talks about a circle from God to us to others to all humanity (pg. 125) He also talks about the vertical (God to us) and horizontal (us to our neighbor) dimensions of the cross and the commandments “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and soul and might” and “Love your neighbor as yourself”.

Chris Kettler (Professor at Friends University) speaks of the twofold movement of God in Christ. In the incarnation God reaches down to earth to redeem us but we often forget that even as we respond with faith to the God who redeems us that it is only in Christ that we can reach up to God in the worship and mission that God desires. Kettler calls this the “Vicarious humanity of Christ” or the two-fold movement of God in Christ.

Lindvall says that “the expansive love of the church is traditionally divided between evangelism and mission.” (Lindvall, p. 128) Reflect on both Lindvall and Kettler’s understanding of God’s expansive love and our limited response of mission, evangelism and worship.

Read the story of the Ethiopian Eunuch (Acts 8:26-40) in light of Deuteronomy 23:1-8 (Law against foreigners and Eunuchs in the temple), Isaiah 53:1-5 (passage about Jesus sacrifice) and Isaiah 56:1-7 (Passage opening up the Kingdom of God specifically to Eunuchs and foreigners.)

Chapter 20 “All or Nothing”

When you were baptized was there anything that you would have liked to “hold back”? What is the hardest part of your life to offer up to God?

Reflect on the Greek word Metanoia. We often translate this word as “repentance” and sometimes talk about it as change. What are the implications of this idea if we buy into the notion that it means a 180 degree turn in our life?

Reflect on the story of Zacchaeus (Luke 19:1-10), What would you do if Jesus just invited himself into your house? “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down; for I must stay in your house today”.

Lesson 5 "As Good as It Gets"

Lesson # 5 Lenten Study Series “Geography of God”

Chapter 15 “As Good as it Gets”

Why do we do good as people of God?
Obedience
Imitation
Inspiration

What about sin? Can people change? Is repentance really possible?
“In order for people to change, something must die: Old habits of the heart must die, dear and self-centeredness must die, complaining and peevishness must die, anger and hatefulness must die…All that which is sin must be crucified, dead and buried.” Michael Lindvall, pg. 96

Other sources to look at on sin
“Whatever Became of Sin?” by Karl Menninger
“Moral Man and Immoral Society” by Reinhold Niebuhr

A good word for hypocrites: “We are a bunch of hypocrites”

A good word for love
“The core of Christian ethics is a tough and insistent love. This love draws into itself three gifts: obedience, imitation, inspiration…Love is not a feeling but an act of will, a commitment to act.” Lindvall, p. 103

Chapter 16 “Seventy times Seven”

David Freeman’s summary of the message of scripture (Old and New Testament) is: “There is forgiveness”

We struggle to forgive because we “underestimate the forgiveness of God.”
Read Matthew 18:21-35 (1 talent= 15 years wages so 10,000*15*$20K= $3 bill)
“To refuse forgiveness is to refuse God whose very nature is to forgive” (p.105)
Desmond Tutu “There is no future without forgiveness”
“How many lives have I seen eaten away by the acid of unforgiven hurt.” Lindvall, p. 105

Forgiveness is not to diminish the offense. Forgiveness also does not depend on our goodness. Lastly forgiveness does not even depend on the perpetrator asking for forgiveness?!?

Chapter 17 “Deserts and Wild Beasts”

“If God is good, why do bad things happen?”
Quick answers: “It’s God’s will”….”It’s not partly cloudy- It’s partly sunny”..
What about “I found God in the wilderness?”
St. Thomas of the Cross “Dark Night of the Soul”
Ultimate comfort “God is with me”
23 Psalm “Ye, thou I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil for thou art with me…”

Matthew 1:24 “…and they shall call his name Emmanuel which means “God is with us”

Matthew 28:20 “And remember, I am with you to the close of the age”
Rev. 21:3 “See the home of God is among mortals. He will dwell with them; they will be his peoples and God himself will be with them, he will wipe away every tear from their eyes”.

Class Two of "The Geography of God"

Session Two Study Guide for “Geography of God” by Michael Lindvall
Prepared for First Presbyterian Church by Rev Rob Erickson
Session Two- The Way
Read scripture and look and listen for the Trinity:
Genesis 1:1-5 and John 1:1-5- The Story of Creation
Matthew 3:13-17- The baptism of Jesus
Luke 23:46- The Crucifixion of Christ

Chapter 6 “Beside Yourself: I believe in God”
Think about the world with us at the center of it (pg. 26 in Geography). What does that world look like to you? What happens if we take ourselves out of the center and put God in the center? Read Matthew 16:24-25
When we think of God as Father, “Abba” what attributes of God do we think about?

Chapter 7 “Specifically Spiritual: I believe in Jesus Christ”
What are the influences on “that little voice” within us that helps us identify right from wrong? (See page 30 in Geography “My faith has carried me a long was. It’s Sheilaism. Just my own little voice.)
What does the “incarnation” mean to you? God “in the flesh”. What difference does it make?
Think of the word “Atonement” as “At-one-ment”. Review the atonement theories: 1) Forgiveness or “Substitution Theory of Atonement- Anselm; 2) Inspiration or “Moral Influence Theory”- Abelard; 3) Revelation- “I am the way the truth and the life”

Chapter 8 “Present Tense Divinity: I believe in the Holy Spirit”
The Hebrew word for Spirit, breath and wind is the word “Ruach”. The Greek word for Spirit is “Pneumas”. What do we know about God who is described as spirit, wind and breath? What do we know about God whose name is synonymous with power?
Read John 14: 25-27 (Jesus introduces the Holy Spirit); Acts 2:1-4 (The Holy Spirit comes upon the disciples in Pentecost); Matthew 4:1 (The Spirit drives Jesus into the wilderness after his baptism to be tempted.)
What do you think about Lindvall’s notion that the Holy Spirit is “The Present Tense of God”

Leaving Home

Study Guide for “A Geography of God: Exploring the Christian Journey”
Prepared by Rev. Dr. Rob Erickson for First Presbyterian Church, Jefferson City, Mo.

Class One “Leaving for Home” Chapters 1-5
Genesis 12:1 “Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you.”
In Chapter One Michael Lindvall writes about faith as a journey and entitles the first section “Leaving for Home”.
Share a little bit of your spiritual journey with the person next to you. Share with the group what you hope for in this spiritual journey and what are you a little bit nervous about.

Why get up in the morning? That’s the question Michael introduces in Chapter 2.
Do you know people like Albert Camus who are searching for purpose in their lives? (pg. 8)
What does the question from the Westminster Shorter Catechism have to say about this whole question of purpose?
Q.1. What is the chief end of humanity?
A. 1. Man’s chief end is to glorify God and enjoy God forever.

What’s so irresistible about Grace? That is the sub-question in Chapter 3 “Finding or Found”. C. S. Lewis describes man’s search for God as a mouse searching for a cat (pg. 10). Why might it be scary or inconvenient to seek God? Or is it?
Read Francis Thompson’s poem “Hound of Heaven”. Does it speak to you?
How did God find you or how is God finding you? Have you ever been lost and found by God as the song “Amazing Grace” implies?

Chapter 4 grapples with the “delicate balance between the sovereign power of God on one hand and human freedom on the other.” Why is that balance so important to God…to us?

The Greek word for faith is “pisteuo” which means “to believe or to trust. Explore as a group the difference between trusting someone or something and believing in someone or somethings. Why does Lindvall call this risky?

Geography of God Lenten Study

Lesson Plan for “Geography of God: Exploring the Christian Journey” by Rev. Michael Lindvall
This Lent we will be using Michael Lindvall’s book “A Geography of God” for our Lenten Study Groups. Michael uses this curious phrase “The Geography of God” as a title for his book and the title of chapter nine in his book to help move to a place of understanding who God is, what the terrain and the make up of God is as Trinity- Father, Son and Holy Spirit- so that we might walk with this Triune God. Michael is aware that to actually speak of God in Trinitarian language and to imagine that we might move in this Trinitarian language to greater understanding and not great confusion is a stretch for most people. And so he calls the book, “The Geography of God: Exploring the Christian Journey” and he speaks of understanding “this God who is love, a God who is relationship, a God who is communion. That is to say, the ultimate reality of the universe is a relationship of intense love and profound communion. This Way before us leads into participation in the very life of God who is communion The way of faith is not just toward God; it is not simply following God; it is not simply walking with God. The road itself is God.” (pg. 52) So I invite you to join us on the journey which is God.

The lesson plan for the Tuesday, 9:30 class will be:

Part One “Leaving Home”March 15 Lesson #1 Chapters 1 “Spiritual Maps” and Chapter 2 pages 3-9
Chapters 3 “Finding or Found”, 4 and 5 page 10-22

Part Two “The Way”March 22 Lesson #2 Chapters 6 “Beside Yourself” and Chapters 7-8 pages 23-50

Part Three “Life on the Road”March 29 Lesson #3 Chapters 9 “Geography of God” & Chapters 10-11 pages 51-66

April 5 Lesson #4 Chapters 12 “Packing a Bible” and Chap 13-14 pages 67-92

April 12 Lesson #5 Chapters 15 “As Good as You Get” & Chapters 16 -17 pg 93-115

April 19 Lesson #6 Chapters 18-20 “All or Nothing” pages 116-135

Day 38-Three Women at the Tomb

"But on the first day of the week,at early dawn, they (the three women) came to the tomb, taking spices that they had prepared. They found the stone rolled aweay from the tomb, but when they looked inside they did not find the body." (Luke 24:1-2)

If I asked you to think of three women who made a difference
in your life and faith- who would you say?
For me those three women would have to be my mother Carolyn
Who grounded me in the faith that I have today;
My wife Joan who is my partner in ministry and life and inspires me
To be the best pastor, husband, father, brother, I can be;
And last might well be my mother-in-law Almira whose wisdom
Inspires me to strive to be patient, kind, wise and faithful
As I live the second half of my life on earth.
Yes, I believe that these are three women
who made a difference in my life and faith.
And I bet you can think of three influential women in your life as well.

But I would suggest that even though we would each name different
Women in our individual lives, that the three women
Who went to that tomb on that first Easter morning
Were influential in all of our lives:
Mary Magdalene, Joanna and Mary mother of James.

As I reflect on these three women, I am thankful for their faith, hope and love.
Their faith allowed them to go to the tomb even though they didn't know how they would roll away the stone to get to the body- but they went believing that God would open up the possibility. Their love allowed them to go to annoint the body of Jesus even after he had been brutally killed. And their hope allowed them to proclaim the Gospel of Christ's resurrection even when the people didn't at first believe. Only one disciple, Peter was curious enough to check it out for himself. And with that journey, the Christian church and witness in the world began.

Who will you witness to this Easter? If only one person is curious to follow up on your testimony, them God might just change the world through you as well.

Day 37 in the Wilderness with Jesus

Tonight we will act out the story of Jesus Last Supper with his disciples and the washing of feet. I will have the privilege to act out the role of Jesus and Pastor Laura will play the part of Peter, having his feet washed. The contemporary Bible paraphrase "The Word on the Street" (by Rob Lacey) reports it this way:

So Jesus gets up from the table, takes off his jacket, rolls up his sleeves and puts a towel around his waist. He pours water into a bowl and, one by one, washes his team's dirty, sweaty feet and dries them with a towel.
Pete's next in line and he can't quite handle it: "Boss, no way you're washing my feet, surely?" Jesus answers. "You can't take it in right now. But one day you will get it." "No way!" says Pete. "I'm not having you wash my feet." "If I don't, you're not part of it all," says Jesus. "OK, then wash me head to toe. I'm in- totally!" When Jesus finished all twelve (including Judas Iscariot!) he explains: "If I've washed your stinking feet and I'm your boss, your mentor, your coach, then you've got to wash each other's feet. As ever, I'm not asking you to do something that I wouldn't do. I'm your example- so copy me: get washing!" (John 13:3-15)

What do you suppose Jesus was thinking? What is it like to wash another's feet? It is certainly humbling- servants usually had that job. The use of the word "dirty, sweaty" and "stinking" in Rob Lacey's paraphrase really hammers home the fact that it was humbling for both Jesus and the disciples. It is actually an intimate act to wash someones feet. It is what your mother or father does for you after a day at the beach. It's what a nurse does for you when you are bedridden in the hospital. It is the powerful act of hospitality and compassion. And that was, I think, Jesus' message for us- to dare to enter into this intimate community in which he is the center. And it is messy- to be in community with each other, to be vulnerable with each other, to care for each other, and to wash each other's "stinking" feet. Jesus loves us enough to wash our feet. To enter into the grimy parts of our life and help us to clean up our act. And he commands us to do likewise but also to receive the love and care and concern that others offer us in Christ's name and by Christ's example. We are called to be both- the foot washers and the foot washees- that's the Jesus way.

Day 36 in the Wilderness with Jesus Christ

Today is Maundy Thursday. It is always confusing for people who ask: "Is it Monday or Thursday?" The name comes from the Latin for command or mandate that Jesus gives in John 13:34 "I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you should also love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."

I preached on this passage on my first Sunday at Covenant and I have spent the last nine years seeing it lived out in the life and faith of the congregation. It was lived out last night as Josh, Lilly, Callie, Christina, Lauren and the children of Covenant served us dinner at Wednesday night fellowship. They were loved and encouraged by the congregation that appreciated them. It was acted out in the Palm Sunday service when several of our deacons left worship for a moment to give food from our food cupboard to a family who was hungry. It was lived out as phone call after phone call came into the office to check how Laura V. was doing after we prayed for her in worship. (She and the baby and Guy are doing fine.) It was lived out as April (or was it Amber) came up to me and motioned for me to pick her up and hold her during Wednesday night supper. It was lived out as the prayer group gathered to lift up their brothers and sisters in prayer on Wedneday evening.

I thank God that in the midst of a busy, impersonal world; that we have the opportunity to live out this command of Jesus and to enjoy the ocmmunity in Christ that results. Thanks be to God!

Day 35 in the wilderness with Jesus Christ

Jesus’ Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem
After he had said this, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem.
When he had come near Bethphage and Bethany, at the place called the Mount of Olives, he sent two of the disciples, saying, ‘Go into the village ahead of you, and as you enter it you will find tied there a colt that has never been ridden. Untie it and bring it here. If anyone asks you, “Why are you untying it?” just say this: “The Lord needs it.” ’ So those who were sent departed and found it as he had told them. As they were untying the colt, its owners asked them, ‘Why are you untying the colt?’ They said, ‘The Lord needs it.’ Then they brought it to Jesus; and after throwing their cloaks on the colt, they set Jesus on it. As he rode along, people kept spreading their cloaks on the road. As he was now approaching the path down from the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to praise God joyfully with a loud voice for all the deeds of power that they had seen, saying,
‘Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!
Peace in heaven,and glory in the highest heaven!’
Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, ‘Teacher, order your disciples to stop.’ He answered, ‘I tell you, if these were silent, the stones would shout out.’ (Luke 19)

When I was growing up in Lincoln, Nebraska we would often have parades in the summer with all the neighborhood kids. So on Palm Sunday this year we gave out tabourines to the kids in worship and we marched around the Sanctuary, beating on the tambourines and collecting money for One Great Hour of Sharing. I expected it to be a good way to enter into the celebration and festivity of the day, but I was overwhelmed by the interaction between the children and the adults. What I had expected to be a little 3 minute parade turned into a 6-7 minute connection and affirmation between the adults and the children as we collected more money that we could have imagined in those little OGHS fish. And the money we collected will go to build up the Kingdom of God as disaster relief efforts around the world. Certainly the children who encouraged us in our giving on Palm Sunday were blessed in the name of the Lord!

Day 34- With Christ in, over, and around us in the wilderness

I thank God today for the devotions of Michael Lindvall "Knowing God's Triune Story". I met Michael at the Association of Presbyterian Christian Educators (APCE) this year and was introduced to his devotional guide as the 2010 Moderator's Lenten Bible Study. And it is every bit as good as the Moderator, Bruce Reyes-Chow had suggested. While I have been writing devotions each morning for my congregations, I have been fed by the devotional insights of Michael Lindvall.

This morning as I was feeling particularly overwhelmed by the demands of life and ministry and relationships, Michael reminded me of the Prayer of St. Patrick of Ireland (translated from Gaelic by Kuno Meyer): "I rise today through God's strength to pilot me...Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me, Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me. Christ on my right, Christ on my left, Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down, Christ when I arise. Christ in the heart of everyone who thinks of me, Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me, Christ in every eye that sees me, Christ in every ear that hears me. I arise today through the mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity, through belief in threeness, through the confession of the oneness of the Creator of Creation" (St. Patrick as quoted in The Presbyterian Outlook, May 13, 1996)

If you are feeling overwhelmed this morning by life, I invite you to pray the Prayer of St. Patrick today as your own prayer for Christ to be with, in, over and under you as you journey through the wilderness with Christ.

The 33rd Day in the Wilderness with Jesus Christ

As Jesus prepared his disciples for his death on the cross and resurrection to new life he said: "I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you. In a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me; because I live you also will live. On that day you will know that I am in the Father, and you in me, and I in you." (John 14:18-20)

As I stood with a friend at his mother's funeral, I was aware that he and I were both orphans- our parents had both died and even though we were fully grown adults, that we were orphans. Then the funeral started and Pastor Laura read this line from John 14, a line that often gets left out in the funeral litany, and I heard Jesus speaking those words to me and my friend for the first time. It is a comfort to know that even when our earthly parents do pass on, that we have the promise from Christ that we are not orphans. We have a heavenly Father to care for us, and protect us and advise us, and keep a room for us in his house.


As an earthly father and grandfather, I hope all my children and children-in-law and grandchildren and grandchildren-to-be know that there is always a place in my house for them. As a spiritual father at Covenant, I hope and pray that my spiritual children and grandchildren will know that this home, Covenant Presbyterian Church, is their home. They are always welcomed here. They don't need a reservation. They/we are family.

Day 32 in the Wilderness- Joy and Agony together

As we celebrate the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem, we are profoundly aware that this journey into Jerusalem is not triumphal in the way we usually think of triumph. Jesus does not win a contest. In fact, his journey into Jerusalem is his final journey, culminating in his arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane, trial before the Sanhedrin and Pilate and crucifixion at Golgatha. The triumph is that Jesus dies on our behalf so that in his resurrection we are raised with him above our sin into new life. It is a paradox of the Triune God who is willing to participate in the very depths of human existence so that he can redeem us to new life by his death.

When I was thinking about the paradox built into this event, I was struck by the Olympic mantra "The Thrill of Victory and the Agony of Defeat" and the whole idea that the world is made up of one winner and everyone else is a loser. Christ turns this around by his willingness to be THE loser, dying on the cross for the sins of all people, so that all the rest of us can be WINNERS instead of sinners.

It was the Paralymics and not the Olympics where I saw this radical reversal of what we normally think of in Olympic competition. When the Paralympians marched in their Vancouver opening ceremony weeks after the "other Olympics" they were accompanied by their trainers and people who would help them compete. They each had a "disability" that they had to overcome just to compete in the games. And yet there was a joy and a triumphal attitude in these athletes that was contagious. And there were not just one winner and many losers but all winners by virtue of what each had overcome to get there. One athlete in particular grabbed my attention, Lauren Woolstencroft from Canada. She was born without either leg below the knee and without her left arm below the elbow. And she won, not one or two gold medals but 5 gold medals in virtually every downhill skiing event possible. She was truly an Olympic Golden Girl and a testimony to the way that faith can transform hardship and trajedy into joy and triumph.

Day 31 in the Wilderness with Jesus Christ

"Jesus Christ, though he was in the form of God,
did not regard equality with God
as something to be exploited,
but emptied himself,
taking the form of a slave,
being born in human likeness.
And being found in human form,
he humbled himself
and became obedient to the point of death—
even death on a cross." (Phil 2:6-8)

This passage from Paul's letter to the Philippians is humbling and essential to our journey with Christ this Lent. In Christ, God is expressing God's desire to get down on our level and to walk with us in our life journeys. God is even willing to crawl with us if necessary, the way a parent or grandparent gets on the ground with an infant who is learning to roll over or crawl. We had that opportunity in our recent trip to Germany as we got on the ground with Evan. As we got on his level and connected with him, he learned to roll over and had the biggest smile on his face. So it is when we realize that God has come down to us to be with us, to teach us and to live with us in Jesus Christ!

There was a prayer from the Taize worship service that remembers the God who accomodates to us in Christ: "Risen Jesus, you are there close beside each person, you descend to where we are, to the very lowest point of our human condition, and you take upon yourself all that hurts us, both in ourselves and in others. You accompany every human being. Go with us as we leave this place. Remind us daily that we represent you to the world." Amen

Day 30- Walking with Jesus through Holy Week

Isn’t it amazing to imagine that we stand within the same community of disciples who witnessed the risen Christ on that first Easter morning! And like those disciples, Mary Magdalene, Peter, and John; we are also called to go and tell someone. Unlike those disciples, we know enough about what happens on Holy Week to actually invite our friends or our family to come with us and see this whole story unfold. If you have never been to the array of services that happen on Holy Week, I would invite you to make a commitment to walk with Jesus Christ through his last week. On Palm Sunday the children and Choir will lead the way into the sanctuary as we sing Hosanna, Loud Hosanna. The choir will sing and the Rainbow Bells will ring as we remember the Triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem. I will be preaching on the theme “The Joy of Victory and the Agony of Defeat” as we remember that Jesus' entry into Jerusalem was the first step in his journey to the cross. On Maundy Thursday, we will gather in Fellowship Hall, just as Jesus gathered with his disciples in the Upper Room to share a communion meal around tables. Our elders will preside at each of the individual tables as we experience what it would have been like to break bread together and share this special meal in small groups. We will have the music of our Praise Team as background to this gathering and we will witness the washing of the disciples’ feet as we hear the story read from the Gospel of John.

On Good Friday we will hear the story of Jesus trial and crucifixion presented in story, music and pictures. We will imagine what it would have been like to be in the shadows during the trial of Jesus or at the foot of the cross during the crucifixion. We will come face to face with the Wondrous Love of God revealed on the Cross. And then on Sunday morning as the dawn is breaking we will gather outside as Mary and the Women did when they went to the tomb on that first Easter morning. We will hear the songs of faith and share the stories of faith as we become the people of faith. We will be fed by modern day angels (messengers of God) as the Men’s group cooks breakfast for us on Easter morning. Then we will join with the Chancel Choir and the Instrumental Ensemble “Atonement” to raise our voices in celebration of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ at our 8:30 and 11 am worship services. We will celebrate between the services with breakfast and an Easter Egg hunt for the children as we’re reminded of the mystery and new life of that first Easter morning.

Now you know the plan. What none of us knows is how God will use that plan to transform us and build up God’s kingdom.

29th Day in the Wilderness with Christ

I love drama in worship. Part of the reason I like it is that it allows us to enter viscerally into the biblical stories and even start to imagine how the people must have felt or how we would have felt if we had been there. It brings our emotions into the story. Like the times I have run down the aisle during church, to welcome the prodigal home. It is a strange feeling to be running in a Geneva preaching gown but it is helpful to remember how the father would have felt as he ran with his arms open to receieve his lost child.

I love the acting out of the Last Supper that we have done as a congregation: the Men's reenactment to the Women of Easter Play to the youth acting out the Seder Supper Passover. It is always exciting to enter into the role of disciple and start to imagine how one would have felt.

This year for Maundy Thursday we will be having our communion meal around tables with elders presiding at each table in Fellowship Hall. We will all have a chance to use our imagination to remember that first Seder Meal as it was transformed by Jesus into the communion meal we share even today.

Day 28- In the Wilderness with Christ

Yesterady, I had the opportunity to walk the "Stations of the Cross" in the Great Room with the "Unbinding Your Heart" class. I was struck by the words of Christ "My destinity was to die for you but your's is to live for me." It was a poignant reminder that when Jesus tells his disciples "If any want to become my followers, let them take up their cross daily and follow me. For those who would save their life will lose it, but those who lose their life for my sake will save it." (Luke 9:23,23), that he was telling them to live, full robust, daring lives for him.

I was thinking about those people who have taken up their crosses in history- Martin Luther, Martin Luther King Jr., John Calvin, Mother Theresa, Dietrich Bonhoeffer. They each made a difference in the world. I am also struck by those people who are slightly less famous, but who have made a difference in the faith community in which we live- Jim Naylor, Kelly Cox, Bill Brewer, Calvin Ross, Sarah Johnesee. I have been reminded this week of each of these saints and the vitality and life that they shared in Christ. And they are only a few of the saints who have touched my life and yours at Covenant. I invite you to remember some of those who have taken up their crosses and followed Christ in their lives and the impact they have had in our lives.

I am reminded of the Heidelberg Chatechism: "What is my only comfort in life and death? That in life and in death I belong not to myself but to my faithful savior Jesus Christ, who at the cost of his own blood has fully paid for all my sins and has completely freed me from the dominion of the devil; that he protects me so well that without the will of my Father in heaven not a hair can fall from my head; indeed, that everything must fit his purpose for my salvation. Therefore, by his Holy Spirit, he also assures me of eternal life, and makes me wholeheartedly willing and ready from now on to live for him."

In the Wilderness with Christ- Day 27

When Jesus was in the synagogue in Nazareth, he read Isaiah 61 "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor". (Luke 4:18,19)

Sometimes we are tempted to think that Jesus was only speaking those words of healing and hope to people long ago and a place far away. But yesterday, I had the opportunity to see these words of hope come alive in our church, among our people. I had a chance to see one our our folks eat for the first time in three months- it was a miracle. I heard from another of our sisters in faith, that she had started to walk again- another miracle. And a Presbyterian colleague reported that he had just returned from a medical mission to Haiti where they treated 1100 patients in 8 different villages- many miracles. Jesus Christ is still healing and we are still proclaiming that good news today.

Day 27 in the Wilderness- Lions and Tigers and Bears

"The wolf shall live with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the kid, the calf and the lion and the fatling together, and a little child shall lead them." (Isaiah 11:6)

Yesterday, the second to last day of spring break, it was beautiful outside and everyone and his brother went to the zoo. And I also went to the zoo with my future grandkids, Phoenix and Gracie. I love the zoo and I'm always on the lookout for people to go with me to the zoo and Gracie and Phoenix and their mom, Brooke (Adam's fiance) were willing partners, so we went. It was amazing how close we could get to the lions and the gorillas. Only a sheet of plexiglass separated us. And I remembered this summer when I visited the Little Rock Zoo with my already grandkids, Ashton and Ethan, and we were actually in the cage with the parrots and birds. It reminded me of the Isaiah 11 passage and that we are still far from that time Isaiah spoke of and that the painter Edward Hicks painted. We can get close to creation but we are still far from being reconciled with creation. But that is my prayer, that as Ashton, Ethan, Phoenix, Gracie and Evan grow up, that they will grow up into a world that is more peaceful and in harmony between humans, animals and nature.