ST. PAUL'S EPISCOPAL CHURCH

The Reverend Vernon L. Suter

August 17, 2003

The Tenth Sunday After Pentecost

Kings 2:10-12; 3:3-14

Ephesians 5:15-20

John 6:51-58

I'd like to begin today by sharing with you a funny little piece that originated at St. John's Church in Hyde Park, London. It's made the round of churches, so you may have heard it somewhere before, but I like it well enough to share it again today. It's called, The Building's on Fire.

"During a recent ecumenical gathering, someone rushed in shouting, 'The building's on fire!'

* The Methodists gathered in the corner and prayed.

* The Baptists cried, `Where's the water?'

* The Quakers quietly praised God for the blessings that fire brings.

* The Lutherans posted a notice on the door declaring the fire was evil.

* The Jews posted symbols on the door hoping that the fire would pass.

* The Congregationalists shouted, `Every man for himself...'

* The fundamentalists proclaimed, `It's the vengeance of God!'

* The Christian Scientists agreed among themselves that there was not a fire.

* The Presbyterians appointed a chairperson who was to appoint a committee to look into the matter and make a written report to the Session.

* The Episcopalians got out the incense."

I'm sure most of you can remember your last driving vacation. Remember those little towns of a few hundred to a few thousand population? Have you ever noticed the various churches and wondered which church is which as far as denomination is concerned?

The big neo-Victorian brick building with twin towers is obviously the Roman Catholic Church. The neon cross in red on the short broad bell tower and the mammoth colored glass windows identify the Baptist Church. The Lutheran Church also has a bell tower. It's cornerstone bears an inscription in German. Of course you can't miss the Episcopal Church. Big or small it's dignified.

All this is to introduce my point for this morning, and one of the ways in which we can view our Gospel reading. I don't usually title my sermons, but I'm going to call this one, The Church and it's Architecture.

In the beginning, when a Church building program is started, all considerations are usually centered on the architect. Choosing the architect is probably the single most important step taken in the building of a Church. I think everyone would agree that to embark on the building of a new Church without serious consideration of who the architect is going to be is pure folly.

Now, so far, we are talking about the building of just that, - - a building; a building of brick, wood and steel. But if we move on to the point of our Gospel and of my sermon, we are not referring to the building of a church made of brick, wood and steel. The Church I'm talking about is built of the people of God by the Father-Creator, the Son-Redeemer, and The Holy Spirit. So, the architect in this project should be obvious. The architect is God. To elaborate further, the architect is God and the Church is people.

With God as the architect and Jesus as a member of the architectural staff, the Church was under construction. As a member of the architectural staff, Jesus designed the Church for expansion outwardly, in numbers and mission, and inwardly in grace and truth. This is the rock of foundation upon which wise builders build.

In any good building program the people build in harmony with the architect's intentions. These wise people are avid students of the architect's counsel and plans. They also stay in touch by living in a personal relationship with the architect. They go back and forth with each other. They dialogue with one another. Without such a relationship a building program can very easily and quickly crumble into nothingness. The greatest vision turns to dust, without this living relationship. Even enthusiasm, commitment, community concern, common sense, plus abundant financial resources cannot take the place of a living relationship with the original architect. So, in the building of the Church of God, new ideas are necessary and a strong organization ranks high in priority, but they cannot substitute for the presence of Jesus Christ. The true food and drink of the Body and Blood of Christ is unmistakably experienced in the daily living and working together, in harmony with God's intention for the Church.

The stuff of the building of the Church is Jesus Christ. He is the body; we are his members. - - - He is the vine; we are the branches. - - - He is the Good Shepherd; we are the sheep. His flesh and blood are the brick and mortar, the framing and plaster, of the one, holy catholic and apostolic Church. When Jesus says such things as, "I am the bread from heaven," it is as though he is saying, "I am the brick and mortar, the steel and the plaster of your life." T

he building of the Church, then, not only consists of the faith, hope and charity of those involved in the mission of Church building, but it also consists of the flesh and blood of Jesus Christ. As he said, "Very truly, I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day; . . ."

The stuff of the Church is the very living reality of the architect's being. The Church is study, prophetic concern, worship, faith, hope and love, - - - - and there is more. The Church is thanksgiving. Eucharist means giving thanks. As Paul puts it, this architect's building, the Church, evokes from all of us ". . . singing and making melody to the Lord . . ., giving thanks to God the Father at all times and for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ."

The Church is so much more than meets the eye. The Church is more than committees, vestries and conventions. The Church is more than buildings. The Church is even more than the people. The Church is the living reality of him who gave himself for the Church. The Church is Jesus' flesh and blood, and through his design we are sacramentally integrated into that reality, now and forever. To see the Church present and at work in our world is to have the gift of insight, - - but for us to be that Church, present and at work in our world, is the original architect's plan. We are called to always work together as one body, united in the Body of Christ, regardless of what we might hastily think of doing when someone rushes in and shouts: "The Building's on Fire."

THE CHURCH OF ST. PAUL IN THE DESERT

The Nativity of our Lord, December 25, 2003

The Reverend Vernon L. Suter

--Heaven is never very far from our earth and eternity is always present in time.--

Today, we have heard the marvelous and unforgettable account of Jesus' birth. No matter how many times I hear or read the story, I always find it amazing. I'm sure most of you would share my amazement, especially when we take the time to consider what the birth of Jesus really means.

For me, at first anyway, Christmas seems like the beginning of a new era. It's as if we can start all over; a new beginning. For some reason, at Christmas, it feels like things just might change; that all things, personal and public, will get better; that there will be universal peace and all people will be reconciled in a joy shared by all. After all, it is the season to be jolly.

Then, reality rears it's ugly head. Reality clearly announces that all of this is just an illusion. Suddenly, the realization that the idea that we'll finally get it together in mutual joy and happiness won't really come to pass until the end of history; until all human beings have had an inner conversion and resurrection into the purity of the Risen Christ. Until then, there will be problems. There will be personal problems, family problems, work problems, national problems and world problems, over and over again.

As I was writing this sermon, we had just captured Saddam Hussein. At that very same time, there was violence, tragedy and death, - terrorism, - taking place all over the world. It is disturbingly clear that rather than a new beginning, this Christmas season we will still see military uniforms, mutual exploitation, the quest for revenge, and individuals trying to gain domination over other individuals. Indeed, the birth of Jesus in a stable near Bethlehem almost 2000 years ago will not change our present day living situations. There is no question that we will still live in a world of baseness, rivalry, hatred, and suffering. It is equally obvious that the Lord Jesus won't fight for change, like some kind of a reformer with a political program. The hope he offers us is not of that sort.

Jesus also refuses to play the role of a magician, making things simple for us, as though we weren't capable of organizing our life for ourselves. - - No! Our Lord Jesus Christ will not fix things for us. Rather, Jesus' method of countering the world of today is to show us that we are capable of loving in spite of it all; - - perhaps even because of it all. In the final analysis, the birth of Jesus suggests that each and every one of us needs to stand in contemplation before his crib in order to get the personal message that his presence among us brings. We must see Jesus as the provider of the strength for us to carry out our role in all this. However, before we can even begin to see our role in a life with Jesus, we must know who he really is.

With an eye toward better knowing Jesus and understanding where we fit in, let's take a moment to visualize his birth as Scripture describes it:

"In David's city a savior has been born to you, the Messiah and Lord....In a manger you will find an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes."

If we visualize this, it doesn't even make sense. A savior in a manger? - - a savior wrapped in rags? - - a savior born into poverty? - - Let's take a closer look at the bigger picture. This is a story loaded with contrast and contradiction. - - - - First, there is an imperial decree that all should enroll and be counted. In compliance to this order a simple man from Nazareth with a pregnant fiance' comes to Jerusalem to comply with that decree. Even though they are of the house of David, they can find no room available to them in the City of David.

There are lowly shepherds keeping their lonely watch in the fields, yet these lowly nobodies are the ones to whom angels bring the first announcement of the birth of a savior. Here is a proclamation of the Savior of the world, and what is the sign? A baby, wrapped in cloth bands, cradled in a manger. There is an angel chorus and a pilgrimage to this stable. There are shepherds observing a baby who is the son of God. There is a mother pondering a great future for her son in the crummy surroundings of a stable. And then, looking at the even bigger picture, we see wise men following a star and ending up at a stable.

There is a powerful King who reigns over all the land, trembling in fear at the news of a helpless baby that was born in a manger; - - and finally, we have a very ordinary young mother giving a name to her first born. She called him Jesus, - - Savior. What a story; - - and what a preposterous faith it seems to proclaim. Could anything be more unlikely? On the other hand, if we really think about it, "How else could it be?" If Jesus had come as one might expect a king or savior to arrive on the scene, could we relate to him? How many here today could really relate to a King on a throne; a king, a person totally out of touch with our kind of world? For me, the answers to these questions brings a lot of clarity to my thinking. The Lord of salvation appears in humble, earthly form. The Lord of salvation comes at the lowest point in history, not at the apex of things.

Now, there is a big problem that goes along with the appearance of our savior at the lowest point in our lives, coming to us in humble, earthly form. It's the problem of recognition. Can we see it for what it is? If salvation hit me over the head with the great grandiosity of a king, I might pay attention.

The problem comes when Jesus' appearance is so humble and simple that it's easy to miss. Since one of my major problems is the age old need to see in order to believe, I could miss the whole thing when God's grand design is to wrap salvation in swaddling clothes. After all, don't the world's wise men look for the King at the palace? Yet as I contemplate the crib, I am forced to the realization that the word has become flesh; that God is made man.

- - Heaven has come down to earth, and eternity has invaded time.- -

Understanding the coming of our Lord in this way can help us to bring our lives in touch with him and see God's fulfillment take shape in the midst of desolation. We need to see justification take hold in the context of human twistedness, and salvation reveal itself among the humble of the earth. At Christmas time we look to God and see a baby in a manger. That's what enables us to look to the earth's little ones and see God. We can see God in a simple and very personal way. We can look at the small things or the great things, and see Jesus in children opening the presents that Santa left. We can see Jesus in the homeless being fed at a shelter. Yes, if we look hard enough, we can even see Jesus somewhere in the midst of our own personal chaos, whatever it may be. This dialectic of simplicity and glory, humility and grandness, isn't simply a 2000 year ago thing. It is the perspective by which we live as Christians in the here and now. The incarnation of the word is an on-going thing. God constantly encounters us in the form of men and women. God does his work in and through each of us.

Yes - - - -

- -Heaven is never very far from our earth and eternity is always present in time.- -

To celebrate Christmas is only partly to look back and reflect on a baby in a manger. It is also to understand that event in such a way that we recognize what God does now, in our world today. So, as we continue our contemplation, hopefully beyond the scope of this church service this morning, let us remember that God is at work in spite of how it may look. He is at work in us, so we must look for the part we are to play in the lives of others. He is at work in others, so we must be ever alert to the part others play in our lives. As Christians, we need to be ever aware of the birth of Jesus 2000 years ago and equally aware of the re-birth of Jesus today, and every day. We must not allow the chaos of the moment to dull our senses. The event of the birth of Jesus takes place over and over again in the most unexpected places and at the most unexpected times. That, indeed, is the way of the Lord.

- -Heaven is never very far from our earth and eternity is always present in time.- -

ST. PAUL'S EPISCOPAL CHURCH

2/1/04, The Fourth Sunday After The Epiphany

Jeremiah 1:4-10

Psalm 71:1-6

1 Corinthians 13:1-13

Luke 4:21-30

The Reverend Vernon L. Suter

Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, . . .

. . .before you were born I consecrated you; . . .

I appointed you a prophet to the nations.

These were the words God said to Jeremiah in our first reading. I'd like us all to think very seriously about these words, because they were said by God to each and every one of us, as well as Jeremiah.

Now, you might say, "Whoa! Hold the phone. Are you telling us that we are all supposed to be prophets, expounding God's wisdom to everyone and predicting that which is to come if everyone doesn't get their act together?" Of course, my answer is no to that question, but I still stand by the fact that God gave us the same gifts he gave Jeremiah. He knew us before we were formed in the womb, he consecrated us before we were born, and he expects us to spread the Good News of Jesus Christ wherever we go.

Before I go any further with this huge order, I'd like to digress a minute and talk about personalities. More specifically, I'd like to talk about Jeremiah's personality and encourage each of us to see if, in some way, we can relate.

As a prophet, Jeremiah was not some kind of mechanical puppet espousing, literally, every word that he heard God say to him. Jeremiah was a strong individual, and like most of us, his inner life was marked by strong tensions between his natural desires and inclinations on the one hand, and his deep sense of devotion to God and God's calling to him to prophesy on the other. He was very sensitive, and like most of us, wanted the good will of his fellow human beings. He had a strong need for approval and didn't deal well with rejection.

At the same time, Jeremiah's deep devotion to God put him out there prophesying things that people didn't want to hear. The people's reaction to this was, of course, a lot of rejection. Consequently, for Jeremiah, prophesy didn't come easy. Actually, it probably wasn't all that easy for God, either. Jeremiah continually took issue with God, and having to argue every point with Jeremiah had to be tedious at best, even for God. In a nutshell, he gave God a lot of argument about a whole bunch of stuff before he finally went out and did what he knew he had to do. Scripture tells us that at one point, he even accused God of deceiving him, overpowering him and making him a perpetual laughingstock.

The bottom line is that Jeremiah was a pretty typical example of a what you see is what you get person. He said it like he thought it was. However, when Jeremiah decided to go with something, after his inevitable inner struggle and bouts with God, he might be described as a bull in a china shop. He really went with it. What this meant, the way I interpret Jeremiah's personality from the commentaries, is that he had to make things fit with his understanding of his world before he could blindly present what he heard as the literal Word of God, even when it came directly from God. In the end, after all was said and done, Jeremiah never failed in his response to God's call. He simply had to be settled in his own heart and make sense of what he was quoting, and that it was truly prophesy from God. Through all of this, God never set him aside, but was always there for him.

Now, - - What I've said so far is intended as a segue into our role in all this. I said earlier, that I didn't think we were called to go out and prophesy to the world, but that we are supposed to spread the Good News of Jesus Christ wherever we go. But there is more to it than that. If we are honest with ourselves, we are much like Jeremiah. We have our questions, our doubts, and yes, our insecurities to deal with before we can honestly display ourselves as true Christians, - - and it's OK to have those questions, doubts and insecurities. That, by the way, is why I love the Episcopal Church so much. It allows me my doubts and supplies a method of working them out.

The Episcopal Church stands on three things: Scripture, Tradition and Reason. Scripture, the Word of God, is the rock on which we stand with our belief. If we study Scripture, however, we will find conflict within the very Scripture by which we claim to live. As Episcopalians, we then must go to Tradition; the tradition on which the church has stood in the past. However, even some past traditions don't seem to make sense in the church today. We are then given another step to take, and that is to go to Reason. I'm going to quote a couple definitions of reason for you before moving on. Two definitions of reason from The American Standard Dictionary are:

1. An underlying fact or cause that provides logical sense for a premise or an occurrence.

2. The capacity for logical, rational, and analytic thought; intelligence.

So, we in the Episcopal church have the authority of Scripture, the history of church tradition, finally completed by the act of twenty-first century human reason. These are our guidelines to interpret God's Word and will.

To come back to Jeremiah for a moment, if Jeremiah could argue with God and take the heat from his contemporaries when he had a disagreement with them, why, then, can we not challenge Scriptural understanding and tradition using one of the three tools our church gives us, - - human reason, - - as long as we do it with Paul's letter to the Corinthians in mind? Paul says all things must be done with love, because unlike prophesy and knowledge, love never ends, and without love we have nothing. We must be open to growth. By challenging the old and looking toward the new, - - the future - -, we will be open to growth, - - and if we do this lovingly and thoughtfully, we will accomplish that growth.

Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, . . .

. . .before you were born I consecrated you; . . .

I appointed you a prophet to the nations.

Yes, as I said before, these are words from God to us, not simply spoken thousands of years ago to Jeremiah; - - and yes, we are all very much like Jeremiah, in that we are often too insecure or doubting to act openly on our beliefs. - - That's OK. - - If God understood when Jeremiah questioned, he certainly understands when we do the same thing.

Today, I believe God is challenging each and every one of us to become like Jeremiah. Debate with God, debate with one another, debate with ourselves, so that we can, like Jeremiah, reach a conclusion of action that keeps us progressive and moving God's church forward into the future.