Punishment

Ezekiel 34:11-16 Matthew 25:31-46 Each and everyone of us have unresolved issues. Relationships we wish we could return to to redeem. We want, not simply to get it right, to express ourselves better, but we want to avoid the shame we feel, the loss, we want vindication for ourselves but especially for those we feel we could have saved. Part of the human condition is not only guilt and remorse, but shame that we are not in control, and that what we do control, does not come out as we intellectually know we should. For a congregation and Pastor who regularly preach the importance of relationships, grace and caring, the last several weeks the Scripture passages have emphasized the coming of a Judgment Day. When a parishioner moved to Vermont, she pledged that if ever I preached Hellfire and Brimstone she wanted to come back to see it, because that did not seem in my character. But, we have to preach the Bible, and Matthew is the only one of the Gospels with this emphasis. The Son of Man will come riding on a CLOUD, the difficulty is we know not when, so like the 10 Virgins BE PREPARED; like the Master of servants TREAT OTHERS WITH GRACE & KINDNESS because you know not when, like the Servants entrusted with Talents RISK EVERYTHING, DO NOT BE GUARDED or DEFENSIVE. The difficulty is that being human, we do not like to think about our shame, or being Judged, so as a Church we describe emphasis on Christ as King of Kings, while as a Nation we focus instead on Thanksgiving which becomes focus on Parades and a Meal, which becomes focus on a Turkey. This morning in the last of these passages from Jesus' Sermon on the Mount of Olives, he begins by naming that ALL THE NATIONS WILL BE GATHERED. What a powerful claim, that this is not just for Israel, or for Christianity, or for Rome, but all Creation, all the Nations and Kingdoms. Like the Vision of Daniel, or Isaiah, or Revelation of John, there is a fluidity between God, Christ, the Son on Man, who is Shepherd and King and is for us the Lamb Sacrificed as Atonement. This morning is CHRIST THE KING SUNDAY, the Climax and resolution of everything from the Fall of Adam, the Monarchy of David and Solomon, the Exile and Diaspora, the Birth of the Savior, Calling of Disciples, Betrayal, Abandonment, and Resurrection. This Day is Claim that Christ is King of Kings and Lord of Lords, Light of Light, Very God of Very God, Begotten not Created, being of one substance with God! At times we are overwhelmed by the claim that God the Creator entered into God's Creation our world, and Almighty All-Powerful God was born a baby in an overcrowded world. We listen to the stories of Miracles, of Jesus' Baptism and the Last Supper, and we wonder if this is real. We cannot look away at the horror of the Crucifixion, the finality and hopelessness of the death and burial, or the surreal beauty and power of the Resurrection that not even death could keep God in Christ from us. But, compared to all of that, this is more, not simply a LITTLE TOWN OF BETHLEHEM, Or JERUSALEM, or JUDEA or GALILEE or even THE EMPIRES OF EGYPT, GREECE or ROME, but that All Peoples of All Nations would one day turn to God as KING OF KINGS. According to tradition Bishop Hugh Latimer, the Bishop of London in the 16th Century, looked out one morning in worship and saw King Henry VIII sitting in the front row. Realizing the power and responsibility he had in preaching that morning, as he prayed he spoke in an audible whisper “Be careful Latimer, King Henry is Listening!” then with renewed insight spoke even louder “Take care what you preach Latimer the King of Kings is Listening too.” There is a common identity here, that undercuts all the worlds Religions. As much as wars have been fought and continue to be waged between Islam and Christianity and Judaism and Hindu and Buddhist, of the right words, the true Messiah, or the right way of worshipping, all believe in Salvation, in both an ultimate reconciliation of the world as well as our responsibility for one another, especially the weakest. This passage has always been special to me, because the Morning of our College Graduation, I was asked to read the Gospel, this Gospel, this Good News, at the Baccalaureate. After everything of College was done, after the last test and paper were completed. After the Diplomas were printed, and all the bills had been paid. The word that was to be read was a realization that in the end what matters is not what school you attended, or which Fraternity, whether you had a degree in LAW, ARTS or SCIENCES, what truly mattered was not what you believed so much as what you do, and doing not because it is what is expected, or what you are supposed to do or be, but the sacrifices and caring you do for those who cannot help themselves. In the Fourth Century of the Common Era, Emperor Constantine of Rome was preparing for war, when he had a vision of being led into battle by the Cross. After the fighting had ended, Constantine converted to Christianity and was Baptized. When the Emperor of Rome converts from one religion to another, all the Empire converted as well. As amazing as the stories of conversion in the Book of Acts of the Apostles, where 6,000 were baptized in a single day, 4,000 a week later, when Rome became a Christian Nation, this meant the Roman Legion, with military power and the support of the Senate and government converted as well. But within a Dozen years, Constantine called for the Council at Nicaea inviting 1800 Bishops to gather to resolve by debate and simple majority, what we believe about the nature of Jesus Christ. Was he co-Eternal with God? Created by God or Begotten? Do we believe in One God, or in Two, or in Three with the Holy Spirit? Or do we, along with Dan Brown affirm the Divinity of Mary as the Mother of God? Of monumental importance in defining what we as Christians share in belief: the Trinity of One God in three persons, the Council of Nicaea ended with division of the Church East and West. But a more defining circumstance for Christianity had happened even before Constantine was Baptized. There were plagues, not unlike Ebola today, where whole Villages and tribes of people died of disease. The epidemics reached such crises, that families would carry their dead, and their sick out into the streets. When the death-toll continued to escalate, neighbors, family, community leaders would flee the city, abandoning the ill to die. But Christians began acts of compassion. Providing a cool clean cloth to a person's forehead. Washing them, keeping flies and mosquitos away. Keeping people hydrated and fed. Surprisingly, those who had been abandoned to die, instead lived. What greater representation of resurrection could there be? Your family, your entire village abandons you as dead, diseased, unable to be saved, and through compassion and care, you are brought back from death to life. The most marvelous part of this passage from Matthew comes from the people in response to being judged. “Lord, When did we see you and care, or when did we see you and not care?” “When you did anything to these others, who are the least in the kingdom of God, you did so to me.” I am certain, that were those who were the members of this church in the 1860s, knew what a defining act it was, they would be embarrassed, but in those years our congregation was torn apart by conflict so extreme there were two First Presbyterian Churches, with separate worship, separate Sessions, separate memberships. The only evidence we have of this, is inscription in the Session's Minutes “We have done harm to God! We have crucified our Savior Jesus Christ, because we as the Church have been divided. So we have purged the Minutes of all record of these five years, and we have begun again.” There is a certain irony conveyed in the prophecy of Ezekiel. We think of Shepherds watching over the flocks, trying to fatten them up, protecting the sheep from wolves and bears. But part of the payment of the Shepherds was that they were able periodically to cull out a sheep to eat. The nature of Shepherding was that the shepherds would kill the fattest, strongest sheep, so as to give a chance to the weaker, smaller sheep to survive and grow. This morning, we would end by trying a Spiritual Discipline. Center yourself, placing both feet on the floor. Close your eyes and take a deep cleansing breath. First, imagine the most beautiful scene of nature you have ever seen... Perhaps it is looking out at the lake as the sun sparkles in the morning... the Grand Canyon which seems to extend for ever... the depths of the woods... the expanse of stars in the Milky Way... Now realize God the Creator formed this, created this as part of the order of the Cosmos. Breathe deeply, and imagine the face of the person you love the most, maybe it was a Mentor, your Mother or Father, Spouse or First-love, or the face of your child when they were born, or on their wedding day. See their eyes, look deeply into their eyes to see who you are to them. Know that God is responsible for creating this relationship for you to be who you are. Breathe deeply, and imagine the face of someone homeless, someone alone in the hospital, someone impoverished, someone in prison waiting to die, now look deeply into their eyes and search deeply for that person you saw in the eyes of your love. Jesus said, when you cared for the least of these, you cared for me. A Franciscan Blessing is a Benediction in the spirit of St. Francis of Assisi who gave up everything he had, in Thanksgiving to God, to care for the poor. May God bless you with discomfort at easy answers, half-truths and superficial relationships, so that you may live deeply within your heart. May God bless you with anger at injustice, oppression, exploitation that you may do something about it. May God bless you with tears for those who suffer pain, rejection, starvation and war, that you might turn their pain into joy. May God bless you with enough foolishness to believe that you can make a difference in this world, that you can try to do what others claim cannot be done.