8 Epiphany, Year A

Isaiah 49: 8 – 16a
Psalm 131
I Corinthians 4: 1 – 5
Matthew 6: 24 – 34

A homily by: Fr. Gene Tucker, given at: Trinity Church, Mt. Vernon, Illinois; Sunday, February 27, 2011.

“GIVE US THIS DAY….”

(Homily text: Matthew 6: 24 – 34)

“Give us this day our daily bread….”

This familiar line from the Lord’s Prayer seems to sum up Jesus’ teaching, which we hear this morning. Just as the Lord asks us to pray for our daily needs in this line from the prayer which He gave us to pray, so today does He remind us to focus on our daily concerns, and to trust our heavenly Father to provide for our daily needs.

Jesus knows all about the human condition. He knows that we spend a lot of time worrying! He knows we spend a lot of time projecting what might happen in the future.

The Lord seems to be mirroring the urgency with which we human beings can often address our needs, paraphrasing our questions by saying, “What shall we eat?” or “What shall we drink?” or “What shall we wear?”

If we would take a moment to reflect on how much time during a given day that we might ask just those sorts of questions, or some other ones that are similar, it might be that we will come to the conclusion that we spend an enormous amount of time worrying about just these sorts of basic needs.

After all, the Lord is drawing our focus toward the everyday “stuff” of life: food, drink and clothing.

The wonderful qualities that God has given to us often work against us.

Consider, for example, the human ability to foresee the possible outcomes that might result from events that are happening today. We humans can plan ahead, knowing from past experience what the likely sequence of events might be.

That’s an admirable quality to possess, and one that is absolutely necessary for living life in an unpredictable and often chaotic world. For example, we make plans to deal with natural disasters like storms.

But that same ability to plot out possible courses of events can also lead us into a frenzy of worry and concern over what might come to pass.

Consider, for example, the high levels of concern over the possible ramifications of the popular uprisings which have spread through the Middle East. Our gasoline prices reflect the impact of these events, which are taking place nearly half a world away. (We do, indeed, live in a world in which our lives are closely intertwined with others, events in one place affecting lives in another to a degree never seen before.)

So, many worry, saying, “What will be the impact of rising energy prices?” “Will we have a two-staged recession, caused by rising prices for energy, and for everything related to energy?”

Against such projections and such worry, our Lord says this, “Therefore, do not be anxious, saying, “What
shall we eat?” or “What shall we drink?” or “What shall we wear?”

Why?

Here’s the reason: Our Lord reminds us that our heavenly Father knows that we need all these things, adding that, if we will seek God’s kingdom, first of all, then all these other needs will be taken care of, as well.
Now all of this might sound good in theory. But our common sense tells us that, in practice, it might not work out so well. Sounds like “pie-in-the-sky”, we might be tempted to say.

But reflect with me, if you will. Is it really “pie-in-the-sky”, wishful thinking that works well in theory, but not in practice?

Let’s embark on a journey of self-reflection. We are armed with our own practical, life experience. Reflect with me on your own life’s journey to this point.

It’s appropriate that we ask ourselves a series of questions:

1. How has God taken care of me?
2. When hope seemed to be gone, how did God’s presence and God’s care make themselves known?
3. How did God use other Christians to help provide the things that I needed for life (physical needs, financial support, emotional support, prayer support, e.g.)?
4. In retrospect, what good did the worry do that I engaged in, as I focused on my problems?

Over this past week, I’ve been reflecting on my own life’s journey. What occurred to me was that God has consistently “been there” for me, through good times and through bad times, through very blessed times and through times of hardship and loss.

What an awesome God!

I can say truthfully that God has been my support, my foundation, and all the flood waters of life have never been able to wash away that foundation.

But to come to that realization, I had to admit two things:

1. My own natural abilities to reason, to project the future and to see possible outcomes of current events was often more of a hindrance than a help, for those qualities led me to think that I had to find a solution to the problems I faced. God sometimes got forgotten in the midst of all that worry.

2. Once I’d come to the realization that I wasn’t alone in my problems, then I could see God at work (often through the presence of others in my life). Just as the Lord says today, “Your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.”

And so, with John Newton, the writer of the text to the wonderful hymn Amazing Grace, I can say this:

“Through many dangers, toils and snares
I have already come.
“Tis grace that brought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home.”

I know that I would not have made it this far in my life without God’s presence and support.

May each of us be able to come to the same conclusion!

AMEN.

7 Epiphany, Year A

Leviticus 19: 1 – 2, 9 – 18; Psalm 119: 33 – 40; I Corinthians 3: 10 – 23; Matthew 5: 36 – 48
This is a homily by Fr. Gene Tucker, given at Trinity Church, Mt. Vernon, Illinois on Sunday, February 20, 2011.

“YOUR INSIDES MUST MATCH YOUR OUTSIDES”
(Homily text: Matthew 5: 36 – 48)

We find ourselves in the midst of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. In past weeks, we’ve heard a succession of Jesus’ sayings, delivered as part of that sermon, many of which begin with the formula:

• “You have heard it said…” 
• “But I say to you…”

This formula is quite characteristic of Jewish thought (think with me for a moment of the structure we find in the Psalms, or in Proverbs…there, it is quite common). The formula often employs two phrases, the first of which is amplified by the second. However – and as in the case before us with Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount – the second phrase seems to go against the first.

And oftentimes in the Lord’s sermon, when he says “You have heard it said…”, which is followed by “But I say to you…”, often, the Lord then offers a short discourse which explains and applies the reasons for Jesus’ statement.

In each case, Jesus is driving toward a deeper reality. That reality can be summed up in the title phrase of this homily: “Your insides must match your outsides”.

In each case, Jesus goes from the proscriptions contained in an aspect of the Law of Moses (examples: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself”, “You shall not commit adultery”, “You shall not murder”, etc.) and then turns our attention from the outward, observable physical act to the matter of our intentions.

Put another way, Jesus asks us to consider not only the proscriptions cited (which remain in force…recall that our Lord said that He “had not come to abolish the Law, but to fulfill it.” ), but the internal, often unnoticed matter of the condition of our hearts and minds. Essentially, the Lord asks us to consider our motivations and intentions. “Look at your insides,” we might imagine He is saying to us.

For example, let’s take one of Jesus’ sayings, heard in our Gospel reading from last week: “You have heard it said, ‘You shall not commit adultery. But I say to you, anyone who looks on a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.’”

This part of last week’s Gospel text caused a large amount of discussion during coffee hour. Some said, “How can we avoid that? After all, attractions between a man and a woman are a matter of nature.” Others questioned what Jesus’ saying might mean.

Now, lest you think I deliberately dodged the difficult matter of this particular proscription by focusing my homily last week on our Epistle reading from I Corinthians, and away from the difficult issue of adultery and lust, I will attempt to address it here.

Notice that Jesus tells us we are to examine our hearts. Notice that He says that, if we look at a woman with “lust”, we have already committed adultery with her in our hearts. (OK, I think we need to admit that the issue of lustful attraction can work both ways: men to women, and women to men.)

It’s important here to see that Jesus begins with the normal beginning point for such a progression, which, in outline form looks like this: look – lust – adultery. In other words, Jesus seems to differentiate between looking and looking with lustful intent.

Well, just what is “lustful intent”? I’ll hazard a guess, which isn’t at all original. It comes from a biblical scholar, who says that an intent to look with lust is to make the person who is the object of the glance or glare just that, an object to be used for sexual satisfaction and pleasure.

So, put another way, our intentions toward every other human being must be those that honor that person as having been made in the image and likeness of God. This being so, then the other person is of infinite value to God, and is not to be treated as an object.

(I hope this helps your understanding!)

Now, let’s move into one aspect of another of Jesus’ proscriptions, which we pick up at mid-stream today.

Last week, we heard Jesus say, “Again, you have heard that is was said to those of ancient times, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but carry out the vows you have made to the Lord.’ But I say to you, Do not swear at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King.” Now, this week, He continues, “And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this comes from evil.”

What is Jesus getting at here?

Perhaps we could sum it up this way: “Be so truthful in what you say and do, that there will never be a question about your honesty and the plain-ness of your speech and your actions.”

If we have that sort of reputation, then there will be no need for swearing by anything at all, not even the proverbial “stack of Bibles”.

Our insides must match our outsides, always, in every circumstance, and in every time and place.

The matter of external behavior vs. internal intentions was a serious matter in Jesus’ day. 2,000 years ago, the Scribes, Pharisees and priestly caste were quite interested in the outward, physical, observable actions of God’s Chosen People, making sure that everything they did fit perfectly into the requirements of the Law of Moses. But Jesus said that, though they did these things quite rigorously, their hearts were far from God.

The matter of external behavior and internal intentions remains a serious matter for us, as Christian believers, today.

(To be continued next week…..)

6 Epiphany, Year A

Deuteronomy 30: 15 – 20
Psalm 119: 1 – 8
I Corinthians 3: 1 – 9
Matthew 5: 21 – 27

A homily by: Fr. Gene Tucker
Given at: Trinity Church, Mt. Vernon, Illinois; Sunday, February 13, 2011

“MINISTERS AND MINISTRIES”

Let’s talk a little bit this morning about ministers and ministries….

After all, as we hear St. Paul admonish the Corinthian church’s members, saying that they are “babes in Christ,” not ready for solid food, Paul is getting after those early Corinthian believers. The reason? They have misplaced their attentions, forgetting about the ministry that was done on their behalf. Instead, they have begun to identify with the ministers who did that ministry among them.

By devoting their energies to favoring one minister over another, saying “I belong to Paul”, or “I belong to Apol’los”, they are engaging in “party spirit”.

No, I don’t mean the sort of “party spirit” that says “let’s-have-a-party”. I mean that “party spirit” that says “My guy is better than your guy,”, and therefore, “We are better Christians that you are!”

That sort of an attitude seems to sum up the Corinthians’ attitudes.

Notice that this isn’t the first time St. Paul has mentioned this “party spirit” attitude in his first letter to the church in Corinth. No, it is the second time he’s used exactly the same words, talking about the misplaced allegiances that had taken root in the Corinthian church. He mentions this “party spirit” at the beginning of his letter, in chapter one.

“I belong to Paul!”

“I belong to Apol’los!”

Paul responds to this misguided attitude by asking “What then is Apol’los? What then is Paul?”

It doesn’t take Paul very long to straighten these wayward Corinthians out.

He spells out exactly what role a minister has: He says a minister is like a worker in a field, planting and watering the sown seed. We who minister are “servants”, Paul concludes, agents through whom the Corinthians had come to believe. Nothing more than a farm hand, a servant, that’s what a minister is.

But God gives the growth to the sown seed of the Word of God, Paul reminds his readers.

Indeed!

“Party spirit” is alive and well in the body of Christ, which is the Church.

I believe one reason the Holy Spirit prompted the early Church to include the two Corinthian letters in the books of the New Testament is just so that we can be on our guard against the ills into which the Corinthians had fallen,

For in God’s infinite wisdom, it is clear that the Church can fall, again and again over time, into those very same ills that the Corinthians were so prone to embrace.

“Party spirit” is one of the worst of those ills.

One way we can see party spirit at work in the Church is by the adoration that can be directed toward clergy. As a person enters the discernment process, one aspect of the scrutiny which is applied to a person seeking ordination as a priest or a deacon is to ascertain what the response might be to the positive attentions that can be directed toward an ordained person.

Specifically, we ask what the reaction would be to being called “Father”. How would a person react to having the title “Father”, which often carries with it associations of honor and esteem. (OK, I realize that that isn’t always the case!)

For another, how would a person feel about wearing a clerical collar? What is the motivation behind seeking ordination? Is it to receive accolades or the distinction of wearing special clothing?

Jesus had some stern words for those who would seek ordination for the wrong reasons. Luke records those words, which serve as a warning to those who seek ordination. Hear them as we read them from Luke (20: 46): Jesus said, “Beware of the scribes, who like to go about in long robes, and love salutations in the market places and the best seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at feasts….”

Why is misguided motivation for being ordained such a danger? Because it encourages to focus on the minister, at the expense of the ministry.

St. Paul would remind us that the minister is merely a servant. The proper focus, he would most likely tell us, ought to be on the God who gives the growth, and upon those who are the field in which the seed of God’s truth is sown.

If the proper focus is on God, and on those ministered to, then the minister is little more than a person who makes the connection between God and God’s people.

So it’s important, as we work with a person seeking ordination, to make sure that their words, their lives and their actions all point toward the God that they serve, for the benefit of the people they are called to serve.

Another way we can see “party spirit” at work in the Church is in the formation of factions. Often, some issue or another becomes the energizing force which causes fractures within the body of Christ. Some of the causes of such fracturing include: changes to the church’s physical plant, or a dispute over music or liturgical choices. Fractures can grow out of a personal dispute between members, who then seek allies in the matter being disputed.

When these things happen, the focus of the congregation is shifted away from the God we serve, and the people who seek to be served, onto the dispute itself.

A third way we can see “party spirit” at work is in a misguided sense that a minister owns a ministry, treating a work that has been entrusted to them as a ministry as a personal possession. When this happens, a minister begins to treat the responsibilities they carry as their personal “turf”. Trying to take possession of “turf” can happen to anyone engaged in ministry, lay or ordained.

Some final thoughts are in order:

• The Church, and those who make up the Church, are called to show the difference that God makes in a person’s life. Engaging in “party spirit” undercuts that witness to the power of God to change lives.

• Making a connection between God and God’s people is the task of everyone who takes up a ministry (lay and ordained). The focus, therefore, for the minister, is on God, first of all, and then on the people who are being served, second of all.

• It’s God’s ministry, and the people of God are God’s people. These two principles must guide everyone engaged in ministry.

We belong to God!

AMEN.

5 Epiphany, Year A

Isaiah 58: 1 – 12 Psalm 112
I Corinthians 2: 1 – 16
Matthew 5: 13 – 20

A homily by: Fr. Gene Tucker
Given at: Trinity Church, Mt. Vernon, Illinois; Sunday, February 6, 2011

“YOU ARE THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD”

“You are the light of the world,” Jesus says to us today. We read and hear His words, which form part of His Sermon on the Mount.

Let’s consider the matter of light, just a little, this morning.

Have you given much thought to the importance of light lately? To aid in a reflection on light, allow me to offer some reflections for your consideration:

Light and darkness: I think, in our modern age, which is so full of light, that we forget just how precious a commodity light can be. For example, look at our church this morning….it is lighted in a number of different ways: Overhead lights, indirect lights, and light coming in through the windows. The lights of the candles on the altar also contribute to the level of light we are used to seeing on Sunday mornings. In pre-modern times however (that is to say, before the late 19th century), our churches would have been quite a bit darker. Much of the light that was present inside would have come through the stained glass windows, coming in from the outside world (provided the weather and the season allowed a brightness outside), while inside, the many candles that would have been used would have shown brightly, attracting our attention as they pierced the darkness of the interior of the church.

Another aspect of light and darkness has to do with how much light intrudes on our lives: Our street lights often obliterate the darkness of the night, causing us to miss seeing all the stars, the brightness of the moon, and other features of the night sky. (I remember vividly looking up at the night sky shortly after we moved to Illinois, for we lived at the edge of town in an area where there weren’t any street lights. I remember thinking that it had been decades since I’d seen the Milky Way with the brilliance and clarity that I had often seen it when I was growing up in Nebraska.) We live in a world which is saturated with light: street lights, neon flashing lights in commercial signs, billboards, snazzy interior lighting, and the like.

But to ancient peoples, light was a precious commodity, a power which could pierce the darkness. Light in those considerably darker times offered hope and protection from the unknown dangers that darkness represented. Consider this prayer from the Evening Prayer service in our Prayer Book. It captures the ancient fear of darkness quite well:

“Lighten our darkness, we beseech thee, O Lord; and by thy great mercy defend us from all perils and dangers of this night; for the love of thy only Son, our Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.”

To people in those days gone by, the darkness brought with it a fear of the unknown, and possibly danger, as well. To some extent, we moderns have not lost that concern and fear which darkness can still bring, though not entirely. One reason our communities are so well lit is because lights at nighttime deter criminal activity. So, we haven’t entirely lost our concern about the things that darkness can bring with it.

Light’s benefits: The presence of light brings with it a number of blessings.

For one thing, light allows us to see things as they are. Things that might be hidden in the darkness, are often plain to see when light shines on them. With regard to the human condition, Jesus illustrates this important point when He said “Men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.”

For another, light allows us to see the way forward. Think about the importance of a car’s headlights, as they illuminate the road ahead when we drive during the hours of darkness. Similarly, God’s holy word illuminates the way of faith, as we travel the road of life with God as our guide.

A light shining at night can guide us home. I remember vividly waiting for my mother to come home after work at night. My sisters and I would stand at the large picture window, hoping to see the peculiar glint of the headlights of our 1950 Buick as they shined on the toothy grill of that old car. (I am showing my age!). This seems to be one of the main reasons why Jesus said that we Christians are the “light of the world”. He attaches importance to the light that we have received from Him, and which can be seen by others. “No one lights a lamp and puts it under a bushel,” He says. No, He says, the reason we are to allow the light of God to shine brightly as we live our lives is precisely so that “others can see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”

Where there is light, there cannot be darkness. Light is more powerful than darkness. Speaking of the light of Christ, John says this: “The light (Christ) shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”

We are the light of the world: Jesus uses two illustrations to tell His disciples something about their role in the world. He uses salt and light.

Each of these: salt and light, possess qualities that are inherent to their usefulness. But neither one can get those qualities on their own….they either have them, or they don’t. In the case of salt, salt is either salty, or not. It can’t make itself be salty.
The same is true of light: A candle, for example, cannot light its own wick. It must receive the fire which creates the light from somewhere else.
This last point brings us to the matter of the source of the light we are to share with the world: The source is Jesus Christ, the very One who said, “I am the Light of the World.”
The challenge we face, then, is to allow ourselves to receive the light of Jesus Christ, allowing Him to set fire to the wick of our lives, which we present for His use.
Then, we are ready to allow ourselves to follow Jesus’ teachings. Following the light of Jesus Christ by learning of His ways, and by studying His words, allows our lives to provide the fuel source which will keep the wick of our witness to Christ burning brightly.

As we do so, we will follow our Lord Jesus Christ in pushing back the darkness of the world which surrounds us. We do so, confident that it was our Lord Jesus Christ whose light overcame the darkness of the world into which He was born. So too will the light of our witness also overcome the darkness which threatens to engulf us.
We close with this prayer:
“Surround us with your light, O Lord, and light fire to the wicks of our lives, that we may burn brightly in witness to your wisdom and your word. Amen.”