Devotion - Monday, April 30

In the Gospel of John, chapter after chapter is given over to Jesus' good-bye comments.  The process of saying good-bye involves remembering what has been said before, calling attention to what must be remembered, and expressing a hope for what the future will bring.  It is a process, not a moment in time.

Yesterday, we began the process of saying good-bye to departing students.  Over lunch, stories were shared.  Among these departing students are the last who remember our meals in the LCM Lounge.  They shared how much things have changed in the span of five years.

But regardless of where we take our meals, and no matter who was there to share them, the same Christ has been our host and the same Spirit has been among us.  This message was well received by the incoming Leadership Team who met last night to shore up plans for the fall semester.

There were tears shared yesterday.  But also a great deal of pride.  Those departing are heading off to teach high school math, to guide youth at camp (Church camp and Scout camp,) to design new products, and to build great buildings.  The planet we all share will be a better place as a result of the departing class of 2012.

I offer this morning's reflection in order to give us all permission to continue the process of saying good-bye.  We need to learn to mimic Jesus' style, from the Gospel of John.  Saying good-bye involves remembering, highlighting, and expressing a hope for the future.  That future will be directed by God, as was our past.  That future will bring other opportunities to experience community founded in God's goodness.

Say good-bye well.  Do not shy away from the sadness associated with it, but neither should you allow your sadness to overshadow the hope which permeates the relationships which are now coming to an end.  That hope remains our hope for what God will do in our lives, next.

Sermon - April 29, 2012

Easter 4 - Year B                                                                                                     

John 10:11-18

Shepherding – Good Shepherding 

With all that is going on in today’s worship service, it might be easy to forget that today is the Fourth Sunday of Easter.  There are only a precious few of these Sundays during which we make front and center THE event which defines us as followers of the Risen Christ. 

Christ is Risen!  Christ is Risen, Indeed! Alleluia! 

On this the Fourth Sunday of Easter, we diverge for the first time from the post-resurrection appearances of Jesus.  Easter 2 was the story of “Doubting Thomas,” the Easter 3 gospel involved Jesus proving he wasn’t a ghost.  Even with last week’s reading, it was a bit tough to remember that we were still reading of events which happen on the same day as the empty tomb is discovered.   

Then we come to Easter 4 – and on Easter 4 we don’t read about the post-resurrected Jesus; we read about the teacher Jesus.  We begin to look back and to examine what it was that Jesus said to us while he was still with us.  We turn back there in order to understand what it is that the Resurrected Jesus wants us to do.  And where we turn to – first – is to his comments about good shepherds.

“I am the Good Shepherd.”  Jesus says.  And he proves this.  He cares for the sheep – the remainder of the Gospel story is all about his care.  The end of the Gospels is his final act – his laying down his life for us – the sheep who are gathered into his pasture.

The Resurrected Jesus – the Good Shepherd – calls upon his followers to be good shepherds, too.

In all honesty, Jesus does not speak of “good shepherds” and “bad shepherds.”  It is almost as if he refuses to even think of those who fail the sheep as “shepherds.”  Instead he refers to them as “hired hands.”  Jesus notes that the difference between a good shepherd and the hireling is that the latter don’t “love” the sheep – they love what they are going to get as a result of caring for the sheep.  They love their pay.  Or maybe they love some perceived “heavenly reward.”  Whatever it is that drives them, it is not love for the sheep.  When given the choice between finding another job and risking their own safety, they abandon the sheep and move on.   

Jesus is the Good Shepherd.  Jesus sets us an example of what it means to be shepherds.  And the post-resurrection Jesus sends us forth to tend the lambs and to feed the sheep.  We are to become the “Good Shepherds” who look out after the flock. 

Today’s busy worship service(s) provides us an opportunity to critique ourselves – as shepherds or hirelings.  We have the chance to evaluate our adherence to Jesus’ hope for us.   

Let’s start with Ethan, and the Rite of Confirmation.  Ethan was baptized in this congregation.  That service, that liturgy, is important for all of us, not just for Ethan.  The promises made that day began with God’s promise to Ethan; next were promises on the part of his sponsors and parents; and finally there were promises made by us, the gathered people of God.  We took on a shared responsibility that day to care for him, to teach him, and to guide him.   

This ought to make Ethan feel special, but no more special than all the others to whom we have made this promise.  Occasionally baptisms happen with only a few family members present, but we try really hard to avoid those.  Baptism is not a private affair – it is a promise of the whole people of God to pass on what it is that we have first received. 

When Ethan was baptized, we stepped into the role of shepherd.  We agreed that we would love him, care for him, and watch over him.  Today, at his confirmation, he steps more fully into his baptismal promise, and promises that he too will assist in caring for others.  But every baptism, every confirmation, is an opportunity to evaluate whether we have proven to be shepherds or hirelings.  And every interaction with a fellow member of the congregation is a chance to hone our skills. 

Jesus calls us to be shepherds; not hirelings. 

Today is also LCM Farewell and Godspeed.  No, these “children” were not baptized here.  They chose to come here, as adults.  They presented themselves, seeking a home (a spiritual home) in this new place where they live and study and continue their maturation into adult life.   

I am not only employed by Lutheran Campus Ministry, I am a product of Lutheran Campus Ministry.  When I went to college, I thought I knew what I wanted to do and how I would get there.  But it was a patient and loving campus pastor and a host congregation who allowed me to struggle with my questions and made it safe for me to experiment with new thoughts.  I feared that if my parents knew I was questioning the things I thought I had been taught in Sunday School they would disown me.  But the congregation of Holy Trinity held me all the more tightly and encouraged me to come to a faith of my own. 

“Shepherding” these students is not accomplished when their only contact is with a campus pastor.  (Remember – I am a hireling.)  “Shepherding” is accomplished when they hear Herm & Carol Spitzer speak to them about marriage and intimacy.  “Shepherding” occurs when George and Martha Harris sit with them at a Wednesday dinner and speak of how they see in each student attending UniLu a glimmer of the son they lost way too early in life.  “Shepherding” occurs when they see their math teacher, Chris Cox, stand before the congregation and speak of a mission greater than academia. 

Students – do not allow yourselves to hear this message as one going above you or beyond you.  It is aimed directly at you.  Good Shepherds are trained, not in some classroom but in the working fields.  If you have any appreciation for the years you have been in Clemson and at UniLu, this appreciation ought to be seen in the way you live your life after you have left this place.  You have had a unique experience which uniquely qualifies you to assist in shepherding those little lambs who are maturing into adults. 

We are called to be shepherds – not hirelings. 

We have one more opportunity to understand ourselves as shepherds, and move away from acting like hirelings.  It involves the “Growing in God’s Mission” campaign.  I was interviewed by the consulting firm who aided the SC Synod in putting together the campaign.  I encouraged them to proceed and here is why:  without a wider understanding of the Church, University Lutheran and Lutheran Campus Ministry – Clemson would quickly whither on the vine. 

Smith and Chris are the only two names on the list of graduating students who have been with us longer than the years they were in college.  And even both of them were baptized in a differing congregation.  Tommy Bridges’ death was a terrible loss to us all.  But as the family thought of funeral plans they thought first of all about a service at the church where he spent most of his life; then they decided to have a service here, too.  This is to be expected, of most of us.  Most of us have “homes” somewhere other than here.  When I die, I won’t be buried here – I will go back to Cedar Grove Lutheran, in Vale, NC. 

“God’s Mission” is a terribly limited thing if it only applies to what we do here, in this one building, in this single congregation, in this little-bitty town.  Of course we are a part of a large mission.  We benefit from that mission every day.  And so it is very important that we support that mission.   

This summer, Maglin Halsey has plans to travel to Tanzania.  She would be placed in the Lutheran Hospital in Mybea.  This is the city where our group traveled during our first mission trip to the SW Dioceses of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania.  Daniel Locke is heading to Lincolnton, NC, where he will participate in an immersion experience funded by Project Connect – an effort on the part of our ELCA Seminaries to expose young adults to a call to public ministry.  Josh Kestner will move to Jerusalem this August.  As a staff member with Global Mission, he will be about the work of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Jordan.  I think there are seven or so LCM students who will spend the summer working as counselors at Lutheridge Church Camp?  And, absolutely most important of all, are the dozens of young adults who will show up in congregations across the southeast, enthused and eager to say, “The church does have something to say to twenty-year olds.” 

We are shepherds.  Not hirelings.  We carefully tend each of the baptized, assisting them in their faith journey.  As they grow into adulthood, we provide models of what it means to love and serve Jesus in the business world, in the academic world, in the various worlds in which God’s people live.  And, in celebration of the wider expression of the Church of Jesus Christ, we join with others in order to provide the resources needed to proclaim the word and equip the saints.

Jesus is the first of the Good Shepherds.  Jesus calls upon you and I to share in the duty and the opportunity to shepherd others.

Amen.

Devotion - Thursday, April 25

The lectionary I follow directed me this morning to Exodus 20:1-21.  Here, we read The Decalogue, or what we more commonly refer to as The Ten  Commandments.

The Ten Commandments are a staple for Protestant Churches.  We see them posted on the walls of Sunday Church School rooms, we find them on leaflets inserted into bibles or hymnals, and there is the constant battles over posting them in public places like schools or courtrooms.

One thing to note is that not all Christians number these the same.  In particular, most Protestants follow a numbering scheme developed in the first century by Josephus.  Lutherans and Roman Catholics prefer the order of Augustine, who lived in the fifth century.  The previous has as commandment two - You shall not make any graven images; which the latter includes as part of You shall have no other gods.  Lutherans gain a tenth by dividing the verse on coveting into two separate commands.

A few years back, our spring GALSM Retreat had as a theme the Seven Deadly Sins.  A student presenter shared with us that as the Reformers were shaking off the trappings of Catholicism, they laid hold of the Ten Commandments as a way to shift attention from the Seven Sins.  In the centuries before, the Ten Commandments had not received as prominent a role in the everyday life of the Church.  Which is helpful to remember.

The Decalogue is an important section in our Bibles.  The giving of the Law sets the people of Israel apart from their neighbors.  Most importantly, it serves as the covenant between God and those whom God claims as his people.  It is this claiming, the establishment of a covenant, which obeying the Law was to symbolize.

This is not to say that God didn't care whether his people did these things.  They are God's commands.  It is to lift the subtle but all important realization that what wants more than our obedience is our devotion.  God seeks a relationship with us.  In that relationship, we change our lives and we alter our behaviors.  The Ten Commandments are the beginning of how our lives are different.  

Lutheran confirmation ministry typically involves learning the Ten Commandments and Martin Luther's explanations in the Small Catechism.  If you find your memory fading on these, I encourage you to return to them.  Luther helps us to realize that they are more than prohibitions, they not only direct as to what we are to avoid, they also instruct us on what is expected of us.  Thus, reminding us, that the Commandments are more than a set of rules; they are a way of living.  A way of life which reflects God's having chosen us; a way of life which makes known to the world our devotion to God.

Devotion - Wednesday, April 25

To a greater or lesser degree, each of the accounts of Jesus' baptism refer to the awkwardness of John being the one who baptizes Jesus.  The baptism over which John officiated is a baptism of repentance.  In what way did Jesus need to "turn his life around"?  What were the sins of which he was guilty?

Today's Gospel text is Matthew 3:13-17.  When John protests, Jesus says to him, "Let it be so now; for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness."

I want to say a few things about sacraments, taking a start from Jesus' comments here.

A belief in a sacrament is an acknowledgement that there are things which God does which we cannot understand.  We don't know how it is that God forgives us of our sins or claims us as children as a result of the water and the Word.  But as we live our lives, remembering our baptism, we come to understand the significance of that unqualified acceptance of us.  Knowing that God has reached out to us, without any merit on our part, affirms in us our understanding of what it means to not only obey God but to love God.

Neither do we understand how a small piece of bread and a sip of wine can fill us so completely; how such a small portion can give us the strength to live our week, grant us the confidence to face whatever may come our way. But this is exactly what happens, as we return time and time again for the weekly Eucharist.

Jesus commands John to proceed with the baptism.  "For this it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness."  Following Jesus' command, John sets in motion the remainder of the story of salvation.

Jesus commands us - go and baptize; take and eat.  As we follow this command, our lives unfold and take on significance and find their meaning.  How?  Who knows.  But we obey.  And our obedience positions us to receive the outpouring of God's grace.

Devotion - Tuesday, April 24

I have but one re-occurring conversation these days:  How many exams/projects do you have left to complete?  The replies expose something of how folks fell about the work yet to be done.

Some move immediately to what it is that they still need to learn.  For them, the exams are a commitment to master a subject or accomplish a task.

For others, it is a looming evaluation - not merely of their knowledge but of their whole person.

In Matthew 3:7-12, Jesus warns the Pharisees and Sadducees of God's judgement.  They had come out to him, to where he is baptizing, and Jesus informs them that they are to bear the fruits the befits repentance.  His words are spoken to a particular sub-set of those who came to the river Jordan; but they are to be heard by all those who still listen for his instructions.

God will judge and does judge.  God sees what we do and what we fail to do.  Through scripture and through the pastoral support of our fellow pilgrims, we discover the places where that judgement has opportunity to establish a finger hold in our lives.  

This is not some divine evaluation of our actions and our person so much as it is God's work to mold us into the persons God would have us to be.  It is God's way of guiding us into that which we still need to learn, master, and integrate into our lives.

These days can be stressful.  They are less so when we remember that end we seek is not the one immediately before us, but one which lies out there in the future.  By setting our eyes on that final destination, the steps which move us from here to there come more naturally.

Devotion - Monday, April 23

I received enough positive responses to last week's attempts to lead us through I Peter, that I thought I would continue today, with the final reading from this short pastoral epistle.

Since we missed Friday and Saturday, let me comment briefly on the material in those appointed readings.

One of the things we missed is Peter's statement of the role of baptism.  Peter likens it to the waters of the flood.  Those waters cleansed God's people for a new beginning.  In the water's of baptism, a new beginning is set before us.  Martin Luther instructed his students to remember their baptism at the start of every day and as often as they were face with temptations.  

Peter also wrote about suffering.  Noting that "The end of all things is near," he encouraged those who suffered for doing the right thing.  Suffering which comes for wrong doing does not purge us - but suffering as a result of our faithful to Christ aligns us with the Messiah whom we follow.

In the fifth and final chapter, Peter begins by encouraging the young to respect their elders.  I like that part; thinking of the years I have on so many of you.  But then I remember how important it is for me to continually hear the advise of my elders, of those who have instructed me, those whose witness continues to guide my thoughts and my words.  

Do you tire of hearing me say, "My professor said...," or "My campus Pastor told us..," or "Martin Luther taught..."?  I do so as a way of acknowledging that practically anything I have to say (and in particular anything good I have to say) is something that a mentor has first taught me.  

I don't want you to leave the conversation thinking "Chris Heavner knew this or that."  Rather, it is my hope, you would depart with the realization that I stand in a long line of those who have passed on to you what has first been given.  And I hope you leave realizing that you are the next link in that chain and it now becomes your task to pass on to the next person.

Peter closes his book by acknowledging the hardships being faced by his readers.  While it would be wrong to assume that none of us suffer for our faith, we tend not to do so at the hands of the authority structures.  Our suffering is a  more a result of social and peer circles.  Never-the-less, it is important that we do remain firm, that we do not keep silent or become silent as a result of what the world expects from us.

Peter wrote to a church that lacked many of the faith statements and traditions which guide our life in the modern church.  Yet, he writes to us, of the way we are to live our lives and follow Christ.  We will not, together, continue into II Peter, but I encourage you to read it yourself.  And, as you do so, feel free to send me questions about interpretations of verses or chapters.  God guide you in your reading.

Sermon - Easter 3 - April 22, 2012

Luke 24:36b-48

  Moving Beyond Knowing the Story to Telling the Story

“While they were still talking about this….” That is how today’s Gospel lesson begins. “While they were still talking about this….” What were they talking about – do you know? Can anyone guess?

It is fair to take into consideration the information contained in the reading. Jesus shows them his wounds, they think he might be a ghost, so we know that all this is taking place after the Resurrection. Course, we could also infer that by simply noting the chapter - #25. We are getting close to the end of Luke’s account. But still there is this reference to the disciples talking about something – what is it? And does it matter, whatever it is they were talking about, to the story which is our Gospel lesson?

I have been stalling for time. Any of you with a bible had time to look up Luke 25 and find out what it was that “they were talking about”? and “Yes,” I do think it matters to the events which unfold in this encounter between the resurrected Jesus and the disciples. They were talking about the prior visits of the resurrected Jesus. Not merely accounts of Jesus having been seen, but about their having seen Jesus.

Two of the disciples had left Jerusalem on the day that Jesus had emerged from the tomb. As they were walking on the road to Emmaus, Jesus comes and joins them. Only, they don’t recognize him. They, once again, were talking about all that had happened that morning. Pretending not to know about the events of which they spoke, Jesus got them to tell him what had happened. As they came to the end of their story, it is obvious that they can retell the events, but that they are incapable of explaining what all this means. As they continue to walk, Jesus (still unrecognized by them) begins to explain everything to them.

In practically the same language used in today’s reading, Jesus opens their minds to understand the scriptures. He helps them understand, but they still don’t recognize him. It is only when they have convinced him to spend the night with them and they sit down to dinner, and Jesus assumes the role of host, and breaks the bread that the see him for who he is. These two disciples get up and return to Jerusalem. They find the other disciples. The other disciples are eagerly discussing a visit to Peter, from Jesus. These two Emmaus travelers share their story.

This is what they are talking about, when Jesus himself stood among them. And yet, still, they seem not to be prepared to see him for who he is. Luke reports, they were startled and terrified, and thought that they were seeing a ghost. They were frightened and doubts arose in their hearts. The women had reported the empty grave. They told of having seen the two men in dazzling clothes, who told them that Jesus has risen. Jesus came and walked alongside the two disciples on the way to Emmaus. Jesus seems to have appeared to Simon Peter, though Luke has no written record of that encounter. Even still, these disciples, Jesus’ closest followers, are frightened and unsure. They are unprepared to see him for who he is.

At this point, the tone can shift in one of two very differing directions. We can either berate them for their unbelief, or we can acknowledge how difficult it is for any to believe. There is some advantage to taking a few steps down both paths.

It is difficult to believe. God is God, and God can do anything that God chooses to do. But raising someone from the dead? That is a bit much, isn’t it? Even without our modern knowledge of biology and cellular structure it is a lot to accept. How does tissue which has died and begun to decay become re-animated? And it is a resurrected Jesus who returns, not a “ghost.” This story in Luke is insistent that Jesus is not only able to allow persons to touch him and his wounds, he is capable of eating, perhaps still experiencing hunger.

Difficult to believe. Certainly tough to explain. No wonder the disciples (ancient and modern) are inclined to seclude themselves inside the walls of their meeting space rather than venture out into the world, to serve as witnesses of these things.

If we are going to berate those ancient disciples for their unbelief, we need to be prepared to accept the criticism ourselves. Do not we, like them, all too often find ourselves paralyzed by the doubts which arise from within us? It is tough, for any of us, to comprehend what has happened. It is no easy task to digest the information and easily report to others what it is that we have seen and experienced.

But this is precisely where the story ends. It concludes with Jesus reminding his disciples that it is their task (our task) to be the witnesses of these things. If the story is going to be told, it has to be told by us.

While they were still talking about (all that had taken place), Jesus himself came and stood among them.

Something more was needed for these disciples to move from talking among themselves and to begin to talk to others. They had learned the stories and they had repeated them among themselves, now it was time for them to begin to tell others.

You have been in worship enough - you know the story. There has been a sufficient amount of time for you to collect the data. With this great storehouse of knowledge it is now incumbent upon you to tell others. To share not only how magnificently we worshipped on Easter morning but to give witness to whom it was that we gathered to worship.

It is a frightening jump, to move from recipient of the news to one who proclaims the news. But until one tells the story for themselves, it isn’t really their story, it remains someone else’s. Once it has become our story, the fright and the doubts are driven out from within.

Amen.