This is the Day, January 24, 2010

Nehemiah 8:1-10
Luke 4:14-30
THIS IS THE DAY THE LORD HATH MADE, LET US REJOICE AND BE GLAD IN IT!
How different those words, on Easter morning at the Beginning of Spring, or at a wedding or baptism, than when they are spoken at a Funeral or Divorce, or when we have cancer or a child died, for it is hard for us to accept that ALL of life belongs to God.

Two weeks ago, there was a PBS broadcast, that described that after electing a new President, and years of hard work, billions of dollars in International Aid to build a new infrastructure, the Nation of Haiti was rapidly approaching what the rest of the world describes as being THE POVERTY LEVEL. Two days later, the fault lines of plate tectonics shifted, miles beneath the earth's surface, and earthquakes shattered reinforced concrete as if it were glass, stores and schools collapsed on top of people, 1/5th of a Million people were killed. In the aftermath, as seemingly the last of the survivors have been miraculously exhumed after 12 days of having been buried alive beneath their own homes, and countries from around the world have sent aid not to refugees of war, but refugees of Natural Disaster. How hard to declare THIS IS A DAY THE LORD HATH MADE, LET US REJOICE AND BE GLAD IN IT!

Pat Robertson and others have seized on human tragedy, to decry vengeance, that earthquake, fire and flood are instruments of their God, punishing a heathen people. I cannot comprehend these words, for the God we know and worship is not a petty and vengeful bully, like a bitter and angry old man, but is instead a God who loves, who loves so much as to give us God's only Begotten Child; and taking on human life, loves and suffers and dies for that humanity to live life differently, to be saved from ourself. I have never been to Haiti, the closest comparison I can make, is that when traveling to Sudan's Mud huts and drinking water out of a diesel oil drum that had been taken from a stagnant pool, I became deathly ill with high temperature, loss of fluids and dehydration, and that night, lying beneath the stars, a group of men who had absolutely no education, who had been ordained by another laying hands upon them as Anglican and Presbyterian pastors knelt beside my body and prayed, prayed the Lord's Prayer “Thy Kingdom Come, Thy Will Be Done.”

This is a marvelous narrative at the beginning of Luke, that tells the story of Jesus as if a PARABLE. As an adult, after his Baptism, after the Temptation in the Wilderness, as word of Jesus was beginning to spread, he came home to Nazareth of Galilee, the town where he grew up. You can almost hear the voices behind the text, the voices in the Market, and the Temple... Did you hear Mary's boy is coming home? Joseph the Carpenter's Son. I understand he has grown up to be quite respected, a Rabbi, some say he even healed a man at Capernaum, one man at Capernaum I heard it was 3 Lepers on the road to Samaria, those poor people. And the Village gathers for worship at the Temple, as Jesus steps forward to read the scroll and offer the sermon. He reads beautifully and the passage he read is Isaiah Chapter 40, “Comfort, comfort My People says your God.” The crowd waits expectantly to hear him speak of his home and his family and his neighbors and all he will do for them. When instead, he describes having come for all the people of all the world. There is foreshadowing here, of Jesus' arrest and trial. There is challenge to us as the Church, whether what we possess and represent and offer, is for ourselves and for our members, or the church doing for others?

The Ancient text for this day, comes to us from the Prophet Nehemiah. We do not read from Nehemiah very often. What is especially notable here, is that this impoverished people, who returned to the land after terrible devastation and war, as exile refugees, THIS PEOPLE gathered together at the Square. THIS PEOPLE asked EZRA the Scribe to bring the Book of the Law of Moses and to Read for all.
THIS PEOPLE built a pulpit for EZRA the Priest to read from. And when the book was Opened, the People rose to their feet at attention. And as the Word was read, their Elders and Deacons, both current and those ordained long before, interpreted what was read, explaining and applying to each one's life. How often, the Word of the Lord comes to a given Prophet, Jeremiah or Ezekiel or John, and that Prophet then speaks to the People. But here, the PEOPLE GATHERED AS ONE, The people ASKED EZRA TO READ, The People BUILT A PULPIT for the Word, and the People rose up to stand at attention.

There is no description of which part of the Pentateuch was read, for all of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy are referred to as the Law of Moses. But, that as the people listened and heard the love of God, who had created all things, God who had listened to the cries of slaves in Egypt, who had parted the seas and wasted the army of Pharaoh, who led the people through the wilderness for generations, while they complained, and the God who brought the people to this land, the people wept. This however, we do know from the text, that when Ezra read the Law of Moses, the elders and deacons here named encouraged the people to be thankful, to rejoice at their blessings, and use this sermon as inspiration to live differently. Faith is not for bullying, and for vengeance. Faith is to spire, to comfort and to challenge, that we reflect on our lives to disciple us for living as if THIS IS THE DAY THE LORD GOD HAS MADE FOR US TO REJOICE.

This is the point of The Annual Meeting. At times throughout history, the Church has been confused. Some have believed the Annual Meeting was the occasion to vote on the Pastor, or at least on whether to pay the pastor. This year, the economy does not allow us to consider increases, so there is no vote on the Pastor's Terms, they simply continue. Some have believed the Annual Meeting was opportunity to approve the Budget, but that is actually a responsibility of the Session. The point of the Annual Meeting is to stop to reflect upon what has been, and to set plans and leadership for the years to come.

We live in a changing culture, family life, goals and values of the 1980s are different from today, as different as our expectations of the 1950s or 1920s or when this Sanctuary was built in the 1890s, or this church established in 1801. While NEVER voted on, the underlying mission and purpose of this Church today has become: Responding to People's Needs, Extending to Sacraments and Services of the Church to all who desire them; spoken by one: To address what Google Cannot answer.

This is a multi-edged sword. On the one hand, RESPONDING TO PEOPLES' NEEDS WITH THE SACRAMENTS and SERVICES, means that at times our traditional understandings of Membership, and Baptism and Funeral and Sacrament will be challenged and stretched.
This year, we had a Memorial that was a Potluck in the Fellowship Hall, surrounded by the loved one's artwork, and children playing.
We had a couple request to name their child before God, to express their commitments to share their faith with their child, to ask for the prayers and support of family and friends in the raising of this child of God, while they were in the midst of a divorce.
Over the last several years we have extended membership to those who live in the village only a few weeks during the summer and holidays, as this is their church, where they attend and worship and were married and present their children for baptism.
In all probability these same folk, will not be able to serve as Elders and Deacons.
But, in the last term we had an elder who attended and participated Virtually, by connecting computers so we could hear and he could hear, and he had access to all the reports.
This also requires a different discipline for those of us who can to step up differently.
The challenge of the Church in the 21st century is not whether there will be people who believe, or traditional versus new music...The challenge of the Post-Modern Culture is that everyone is different, unique, and how we can each be pinched and discipled to new commitments and faith is real.
Our Nominating Committee and Stewardship and Christian Education have spoken of the difficulty in this economy and times finding volunteers, and have come back describing this a renewed sense of discipleship, that everyone is busy and feeling the pinch, but as each have resources and ideas, there are infinite possibilities.
THIS IS THE DAY THE LORD HATH MADE, LET US REJOICE AND BE GLAD IN IT!