The Pastor’s Words

Easter2010
Text:  Luke 24:1-12
4 April 2010
Topic:  Hope Based on the Resurrection
 
Christ is risen.  He is risen, indeed.  Alleluia! 
We say these words because we believe them.  We believe that Jesus did not stay dead.  We believe that Jesus rose from the dead.  We believe Jesus, the Christ, forever gave the world a reason to hope, if not for this life, certainly for the life that is yet to come.  Hope and Easter go together.
Every Lent I visit each of our shut-in members.  At present we have 35 homebound members who would love to be here this morning but physical and other health concerns keep them at home.  So, we have 9 visiting shepherds, members of Good Shepherd, who, along with me, go out to those who cannot come here.  We go with the intention of having a pleasant visit, impart some hope, and share in communion. 
Sometimes, when we visit those who are shut-in, we come away with a blessing we didn’t expect.
That happened to me a few weeks ago when I was visiting Gene Timm who lives up on South Hill in Coatesville.  It has been a long winter for a lot of us and the springtime we are experiencing is so very welcome.  But on the day I was visiting Mrs. Timm, I wasn’t feeling the joy of spring.
We engaged in our conversation, as we always do, and somehow we got onto the subject of HOPE.  Gene said to me, “You know, we need to speak of hope more.  I love that verse from Hebrews where it says, ‘Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen’.”  (Hebrews 11:1 NRSV)  She went on to say, “People need hope to live.  Hope is what keeps us going sometimes.” 
And knowing Gene as well as I do, I know that her hope is not centered on herself.  She is physically unable to get around on her own.  She has to depend on others.  But, she still has hope.  Hope is what keeps her going.  She has a hope that is solidly rooted in a belief in our crucified and risen Lord Jesus Christ.  And from her inspiration, I left her home blessed – yes, with hope.
It HAS been a long winter.  The recession has hit hard.  Money is tight.  People have lost jobs – people right here in our own congregation.  People have looked for jobs and not found them.  And hope is not a plentiful commodity.
Our nation is still at war – in two countries.  The president is trying to wind down the one in Iraq, but the one in Afghanistan looks like it’s going to take a lot longer for our troops to get done what they’re trying to do.  Whenever we speak of war, hope is an elusive wish.
After Jesus died and was laid to rest in the tomb on Friday, the disciples went into hiding.  To state the obvious, they had no hope.  In fact, one of the reasons they went into hiding was because they now feared the religious and political authorities would be looking for them and do to them what had been done to Jesus.
But then, a ray of hope suddenly appeared.  On Sunday morning, the third day after Jesus had died, a number of women had gone to the tomb and discovered it was empty.  They went back to the place where the other disciples were hiding and told them what they had discovered.
Luke says, “The apostles thought their news was nonsense.”  (Luke 24:11 CEV)  But, for Peter, it sparked some hope.  Peter ran to the tomb.  He didn’t wait around to debate with his fellow disciples the message they’d received from the women.  He took their words of hope and ran.
Hope is not something we can generate from within.  Hope is not something we can manufacture.  Hope, by its nature, comes from outside of our selves. 
Hope intrudes.  Hope happens.  Hope is seen or heard from another and is then received.  When I visited Gene Timm, I was given hope.  When the women told Peter the tomb was empty, he was suddenly overwhelmed with hope and he ran to the tomb to see for himself.
Hope happened when Jesus rose from that tomb.  At least that’s what we believe.  And because it was an event that happened, not to us, but to Jesus, it offers us hope that even in the worst of circumstances, there is the possibility and the potential of a new day, there is the possibility and the potential for a different outcome, there is the possibility and the potential of renewal in our lives.
Easter is hope.  And as believers in the resurrection, we can reach out and touch the hope that is all around us.
There are lots of people here this morning.  Some of you have come looking for some hope in an otherwise dreary time.  Others of us have been touched with the hope of the resurrection and are eager to share it with those of you who have come looking. 
Hope happens when we open ourselves to those around us.  Hope happened to Peter when he opened himself to the women’s message.  Hope happened to me when I let the smile and the sparkle in Gene Timm’s eyes touch me.  Hope can happen if you look at the belief in the eyes of your neighbor in the pew this morning.
Hope comes from the outside in.  The empty tomb of Easter comes from the outside and breaks into our sad and lonely lives and says, “Hey, death did not win.  Death is not the end.  Light is here.  He rose from the tomb.  Hope has arrived.  And hope can heal.  Believe it.  And while you’re at it, tell someone else.  Hope and belief can be contagious – if we let them.”
So, join me once again in our Easter proclamation.  Believe the words you are saying.  And let the hope they contain change you and fill you with joy and peace this day.
So, again, Christ is risen.  He is risen, indeed.  Alleluia!   AMEN
 
 
 

Easter 2009
Text:  Mark 16:1-8
12 April 2009
Topic:  Christ Raises Us Up!
 
Christ is risen.  He is risen, indeed.  Alleluia!
I wonder how many of us got up this morning and said, “Thank you, Lord!”? 
I wonder how many of us went to bed last night and said, “Thank you, Lord!”?
I wonder how many of us really and truly give thanks for what we have this day:  our life, our family, our home, our faith? 
Many of us have jobs and for that, hopefully, we are giving thanks to God.  Some of you, however, are without a job and you are praying God is going to help you.  Well, because of the resurrection, we can count on God being with us in that search.  Thank you, Lord.
Most of us this morning are healthy and are able to get around.  But some of you are in pain.  Some are suffering from one kind of illness or another, and you are praying to God that you will be given a reprieve, some kind of help, some kind of release from the distress you are in.  Well, because of the resurrection, God is with us in our time of need.  Thank you, Lord.
When life is tough and we are struggling to just keep up, we may be tempted to think that God is far off, that the resurrection of Jesus has no personal meaning or effect on us today.  But that’s not the case.  Because of the resurrection, God is right here beside us, walking with us, talking with us, and helping us get through it all.
At least, that was true for Anne Marie Hochhalter.  She was one of the victims of the shootings that took place at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado ten years ago.  Yes, it’s been ten years since that day in April when the whole world was shocked to hear of the senseless and brutal killings of twelve students and one teacher by two other students.  Sadly, today, these kinds of shootings are almost commonplace, but back then, it was new and scary.
Anne Marie had stepped outside her school that day and got shot.  It left her paralyzed.  Her mom, who always made Anne Marie go to church each week (it happened to be a Lutheran church) was also a very depressed person and six months after the shooting, Anne Marie’s mom took her own life, leaving Anne Marie to figure out her faith for herself.
And so, for several years, Anne Marie didn’t go to church.  She struggled to understand God.  She was angry at God.  She moved away, went to college, got a job and tried to get into life.  But all of it was a real struggle.
After a few years, a friend invited her to come to church with her.  She went.  At her new church, she discovered the love of God and the compassion of Jesus.  She came to understand that God didn’t cause the shootings to happen.  In fact, she came to realize, (and these are her words) “God doesn’t cause suffering. He suffers with us.”  She went on to say, “I’m certain God cried over Columbine. [And] I’m certain he cried along with me when mom died.”    
You see, because of the resurrection, Christ raised her up.  And because of the resurrection, Christ can raise us up too.
Last night, at the Easter Vigil, Sento Bangura, an adult, was baptized.  Thirty-three other adults affirmed their baptism.  Last night they embraced the resurrection of Christ in a brand new way.  They affirmed their belief that God is real, that God is alive, that God walks with them and talks with them, and shows them the way.  For them, the resurrection has become personal, it is a new lease on life, a new lease on faith, and a new way of going forward into the world in which they live.
For you see, we do not believe in a dead God.  We believe in a God who is alive.
The angel in the tomb told Mary Magdalene, Salome, and Mary the mother of James, “Jesus is not here.  God has raised him.  Now, go and tell all the others.”
However, according to Mark’s gospel, the women were too afraid to tell anyone.  Shaking and confused, they became tongue-tied, and simply ran from the tomb.  Who can blame them?  They were scared speechless.   
And who would have blamed Anne Marie Hochhalter, when after she was shot and her mother died, she stopped going to church.  She was literally and figuratively paralyzed.
But the resurrection was more powerful than the silence of the women.  And, the resurrection was more powerful than Anne Marie’s paralysis. 
Somehow, 2000 years ago, the news of the resurrection of Jesus became known, and people began believing that God in Christ was alive, that the Spirit of God was right beside them, and within them. 
And somehow, that same Spirit of God worked in the life of Anne Marie as she, too, began to see and experience the love of God and the compassion of Jesus in brand new ways.  Because of the resurrection, Anne Marie is gainfully employed and living in her own wheelchair accessible home and going to church as regularly as she can.
When we say, Christ is risen, it’s not just a story in the Bible.  It’s not just for Easter.  It’s a reality to believe with all our hearts, with all our being.
And so, now, I wonder how many of us will go to bed tonight and say, “Thank you, Lord!”?
Now, I wonder how many of us will get up tomorrow morning and say, “Thank you, Lord!”? 
If we believe in the resurrection, then there’s a whole lot for which to be thankful. 
Because of the resurrection, Christ raises us up so we can say, “Christ is risen.  He is risen indeed.  Alleluia.   AMEN
 

Vigil of Easter 2009
Text:  John 20:1-18
11 April 2009
Topic:  Growing In Faith Together – GIFT
 
Christ is risen!  He is risen indeed!  Alleluia!
Mary Magdalene went to the tomb of Jesus while it was still dark, presumably to wail and to lament, as was the custom of that day, since the body had been fully anointed the day of his crucifixion. As she approached the tomb, she saw that the stone to the tomb had been rolled away.  So, she looked in.  To her surprise, she saw that the body of Jesus was not there.  Startled, and not sure of what this meant, she ran and told Peter and John of what she’d just NOT seen.
Peter and John ran to the tomb.  John got there first, but didn’t go in.  As soon as Peter caught up to John, he raced past John into the tomb and together they saw the burials clothes off to the side.  It was obvious Mary Magdalene was telling the truth and so they went back to tell the other disciples what they’d just NOT seen.

Mary Magdalene, weeping, still in shock, and filled with grief, stayed at the tomb. 
Suddenly, two angels appear and ask her why she is crying.  She tells them, “They’ve taken away my Lord’s body and I don’t know where they’ve put him.”
Jesus then appears to Mary, but she doesn’t recognize him.  She thinks he’s the gardener and so she asks him, “Do you know where they’ve taken my Lord’s body?”
Jesus then speaks directly to her and calls her by name and says simply, “Mary.” 
Immediately, Mary recognizes Jesus.  Overcome with joy, she is now able to go and tell all the others what she HAD JUST SEEN, that Christ is risen!  He is risen indeed!  Alleluia!
Peter and John were only able to tell what they had NOT seen.  But Mary, who stayed at the tomb, who lingered there, who allowed herself to feel the loss of Jesus, who allowed herself to relive the hurt and the pain of those last two days, was rewarded with an appearance from Jesus. 
It wasn’t by design, and she certainly didn’t plan it this way.  She had no idea Jesus would show up in the garden.  But, Mary did something all of us can learn from.  She allowed herself to feel.  She allowed herself time to reflect.  She allowed herself to just BE in that moment.   She allowed some space in her life – for what she did not know.
And wonderfully, surprisingly, miraculously, into that space, came Jesus. 
Because Mary lingered, because Mary hung around, because Mary allowed some space for herself, Jesus appeared to her.
What Mary didn’t know is that God’s Spirit works best in our lives when we allow ourselves some time to feel, some time to just BE in the moment.  The Holy Spirit comes to us mostly when we have allowed space in our lives for a revelation to occur. 
We have just completed the first phase of our second year of the catechumenate process.  We call our process, Growing In Faith Together, or GIFT.  It is an intentional time set aside for us to listen to God’s Word, really listen to God’s Word, and to listen once again, and then pray for one another.
Like Mary, in the GIFT process, we allow ourselves time to feel, time to reflect, and time to let the Spirit of God show us things we never thought possible before.  In the GIFT process, we knowingly and willingly open ourselves to God’s revealing presence.  We linger, we hang around, we allow space for God, and then we wait…
After six weeks of the GIFT process, after worshipping here for quite some time, after we have allowed ourselves some space, some time to feel, some time to reflect, finally, tonight, we celebrate the baptism of Sento and the affirmation of baptism of 35 others.  Tonight we are Growing In Faith Together.  
Tonight, we have looked into the emptiness of this tomb, we have looked into this room, and we, too, have noticed that the dead body of Jesus is not here.  We have taken the time, we have allowed ourselves the time, to see that he has risen. 
The floral fragrance of the burial spices fill the air.  The burial clothes have been remanufactured into white paraments.  And we are celebrating what Mary discovered, that Christ is risen!  He is risen indeed!  Alleluia!
The first witnesses to the resurrection went and told others.  May we do the same.  May we learn to know God’s Word.  May we seek to live God’s Word.  And may we willingly and enthusiastically share God’s Word with any and all whom we meet, because Christ is risen!  He is risen indeed!  Alleluia!
AMEN
 
 

Easter Sunday 2008   
Text:  Matthew 28:1-10

23 March 2008
Topic:  We are resurrected!
 
Christ is risen.  He is risen, indeed, alleluia! 
We have come here today to celebrate the anniversary of God’s Son being raised from the dead 2000 years ago.  We have come here today to celebrate God’s Son conquering death and assuring each of us a place in his kingdom.  We have come here today to honor and praise our God for delivering us from an eternal death and promising us life eternal.  Of this, we are absolutely certain, and grateful.  That’s why we are here.
But let us also be clear about one more thing.   Let us celebrate one more monumentally important facet of our faith.  In addition to celebrating the resurrection of Christ, we are also here this morning celebrating OUR resurrection from the dead.  Yes, we are also here this morning celebrating OUR resurrection from the dead.
In the gospel for today, when the angel appeared at the tomb, “The guards,” it says, “shook with fear and fell down, as though they were dead.”  (Matthew 28:4 CEV)    You and I, my friends, before faith entered our lives, were like those guards.  We were like dead men and dead women.   At some time in our lives, we have been living, breathing dead men and women, anticipating and dreading our final breath, worrying that when we died, we would join the ranks of the forever dead. 
But glory be to God, because of Christ’s resurrection, WE, TOO, ARE RESURRECTED.   Because of Christ and his resurrection, you and I have something absolutely personal to celebrate, namely, OUR resurrection.  
Let no one leave this room today without believing there is nothing to fear about death for, in Christ, we are alive for all eternity.   Let no one leave this room today without believing that the future is open, that hope springs eternal, and that not even the sky is the limit.  Because of Christ’s resurrection, we are alive forever.
Mickie Pagliarone, one of our elderly members, is dying.  Her liver is failing.  In various visits with her over the last several months, and specifically in the last week, she and I have spoken about death, her death, and what it was going to mean to her, to her family and to all those who know her. 
On the one hand, she says, “I want to live.  I really do.  I don’t want to die.  I’m going to really miss my family.  I’m really going to miss my church family.” 
And then, on the other hand, she would also say, “I am ready.  I don’t want to live this way anymore.  I can’t do anything.  I don’t want to be a burden to anyone.  It’s time.  I look forward to seeing God and telling him how much I really enjoy being a Lutheran.”
In the end, medically speaking, Mickie doesn’t have any control over her living or her dying.  But, faithfully speaking, of one thing she is absolutely certain, she has a place in God’s kingdom.   She knows God has reserved a place for her at the banquet table in heaven.  She knows, without a doubt, by the grace of God, she is one of the resurrected ones who will live forever in the loving embrace of God.
In a few minutes we will be affirming our baptism into Christ.  We will be celebrating that gift of God’s embrace.  We will be celebrating the gift of faith, and the gift of grace.  For in and through our baptism into Christ, we believe we are resurrected for all eternity. 
Affirming her baptism is what Mickie was doing when she said, “I want to live and yet it’s time.”  Affirming OUR baptism affirms our life as we know it now, and yet also anticipates life with God in eternity.  Affirming our baptism allows us to say, “I’m excited about all the ministries God is allowing me to participate in in this life.  But, I’m also excited for the day when I will be feasting with the communion of saints in heaven.”
So, come, renew your baptismal vows.  Along with the six people who last night were baptized and joined the ranks of Christendom, and the thirty others who affirmed their baptism and became members of this congregation, declare your allegiance, tell us whose side you’re on, proclaim your faith and celebrate your resurrection in Christ.
Christ is risen!  He is risen, indeed, alleluia.    AMEN

Easter Vigil 2008
March 22, 2008
GIFT – Growing In Faith Together

Tonight we are celebrating a Gift, the most important Gift of all.  We are celebrating our Baptism, our Baptism into Christ.  Jesus, who came into this world to redeem us, has accomplished our salvation through his life, death and resurrection which is made fully present in the waters of Baptism.  Tonight, the three sad days have passed and we are now rejoicing in our common faith in Christ.  It is Easter.   Christ has risen.  He is risen, indeed, alleluia!
For the past six weeks, we have been gathering people interested in growing closer to Christ and His Church.  Sojourners, people who have come seeking this closer relationship to Christ and His Church, along with their Companions in Faith, have journeyed together, have told stories from their lives, have studied the Bible together, have prayed together, have grown closer to one another, closer in Christ, and closer to the Church.  In a word, for the past six weeks, we have been given the GIFT of growing in faith together.
Now, these same sojourners are making a commitment to affiliate with this specific community of faith by being baptized or by affirming their baptism.  In this action, these thirty-six individuals are proclaiming to themselves, to their families, to this community of faith, and indeed to God, they want to continue to grow in the Christian faith, they want to celebrate their faith, and they want to share their faith.  It is a wondrous occasion, a night for the angels in heaven and the angels on earth to rejoice and to be glad.
From the gospel reading we have just read, the disciples, Peter and John, got to the tomb and found it empty.  They didn’t know what to make of this startling discovery and simply went back to the other disciples who were still hiding.  When they got back to the place of the other disciples, we don’t know what they told them, other than, “His body is gone!”  All we know is that they went back to their hideout and stayed there.
Mary Magdalene, on the other hand, when she had first gone to the tomb, found it empty, ran to tell the other disciples that his body was gone.  Then, she returned again to the tomb.  She persisted.  She was more curious than her male counterparts.  She was more intent on finding out why Christ’s body was gone.  She didn’t necessarily know what she was looking for when she returned to the empty tomb, but, she put herself in the place and in the position to find out.
And lo and behold, Jesus appeared to her.  Jesus shows up and lets her see him.  Mary is rewarded for her persistence.  She is rewarded for her tenacity.  Mary is given a new faith, a new faith by which to live and to love and to serve her Lord.  And once again, she goes back to the other disciples, to the men who were hiding, and told them, “I have seen the Lord.”
May we be as persistent and tenacious as Mary Magdalene.  May we not just look into the empty tomb and, like the men in our gospel, wander away confused.   May we not come to this night, celebrate the night and never return.
Rather, like Mary, may we hang around, look around, linger a bit, do a little search and research and find Jesus in the garden bidding us to come to him and do his work here on earth.  May we truly grow closer to Christ, and grow closer to the Church, in and through our continued participation in the life and ministries of the Church.
May God bless our celebration of the GIFT of faith.  May God grant us grace as we grow in faith together.  May we truly celebrate the resurrection of our Lord and Savior all the days of our lives.  AMEN