Grace to you

We know the times that we ourselves have been caught up in the self-centered process of “what I want” becoming “what I need”, and slithering into “what I must have”

without much thought about anyone else,

or about God, the maker and owner of all that is.

Each of us is just worrying our own worries, and forgetting that we are ones for whom Christ died.

He has taken all of the ultimate worries on himself, trading his promises, his gifts, his grace for them.

In a recent article, a man tells of visiting a refugee camp in Africa, a terrible scene that could take place in dozens of places around the world.

The food was arriving too late to save a particular child,

but at least he could comfort the mother with a touch of blessing for the starving child, adding his tears to those of the mother,

as a reminder that God would hold onto and value that child,

even though the horrible circumstances of hate and war called the child value-less.

His was a touch of grace,

a word of a different future, in spite of the traumatic time at present.

Grace to you from our Lord Jesus.

What is it that is weighing down each of us today?

They are the things of willful disobedience, breaking the relationships between us and God. (the shorthand for that is “sin”.)

Sin has rewards...but they come to and end.

Sin has its consequences...and they go on and on.

“Lord, have mercy,” we cry in confidence, ...and he does!,

with a good-word, a “benediction,”

a blessing,

a word of grace and promise.

By willful disobedience, the Hebrews had gotten themselves in a terrible mess with deadly consequences.

When the Hebrews finally stopped wailing and looked to the pole bearing the snake,

that is, when they finally looked past themselves and listened to the word from God,

it became for them God's Word in saving action.

By willful disobedience, Jesus' own people, the Romans, and we right along with them, have gotten ourselves into a terrible mess, with deadly consequences.

We reject the Lord Jesus,

go our own way,

condemn him to death on a cross.

Whenever we are able to listen to the word from God, we too will discover God's grace in action,

reaching out to us despite our rejection of him.

The problem is of course that much of the time we are not ready to name sin for what it really is.

We make up lies about how wonderful we are, and try to convince ourselves that it is true.

We point fingers at the greedy executive bonuses these days, without admitting that our outrage is as much jealousy as anything else;

that we would be just as prone to grab as much as we could, given the opportunity.

We're wrapped up and steeped in sin, separation from God and from each other.

If one considers the situation seriously, there are several choices:

--one could say that there is no God, as so do whatever one wants.

--one could say that God started things but doesn't care now, so why should we?

--one could despair over ever doing anything right when confronted with the judgment of God.

--one could ponder the mystery of the cross of Christ, as a demonstration of God's determination to tell us the truth about ourselves and still love us and begin the process to transform us.

It seems that we view our lives through a set of self-told lies, and that it is through the “lens” of Jesus' story we are finally able to see ourselves in focus, and to name things for what they are.

Sin is sin.

Sin is separation from God and one another in self-centered and hateful ways. And we are so inventive.

Only through the story of Jesus and the cross do we see the utter depth and seriousness of our sin.

And, only through this story that combines both cross and resurrection do we see the utter resourcefulness and love of God who is determined to save sinners.

Grace to you.

God's gift and promise is to you.

Whoever hears this gladly

will not perish but have eternal life.

On these three Sundays in the middle of Lent, we give scrolls to the members of The Way:

--one bears the baptismal Creed, tying us to the faith of all times and places.

--one bears the Lord's Prayer, tying us to each other in a circle of continuing prayer.

--one bears the Benediction, the visible reminder of the Good news of this day as comes from outside of ourselves by way of the pastor.

In spite of who we are

and what we have said or done in the past,

here are new words, fresh words,

words of blessing, of gift, of promise.

We've made this news permanently visible here in the nave, with what we call the House of Grace.

This glass-fronted cabinet on the north side of the chancel is our place for visibly storing and displaying the Means of Grace.

Here is the large Bible kept open to the Gospel of the prior Sunday during the week until it is moved to the pulpit during the first service.

That is grace in continuing action.

Here are the oil of anointing and the large white shell that we use in Holy Baptism.

That is grace in initial action in us.

Here are kept any of the wafer bread and wine that we have not used up in the meal, the Body and Blood of Christ by his promise and command.

That is grace in regular action for us.

And above them is the candle that burns all the time, the reminder of the Light of Christ, illuminating the darkness of what might otherwise be our despair with promise and hope and commissioning grace.

I am the light of the world, Jesus says, and he sends us out with that gift of grace:

Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good works and glorify the Father in heaven.

Grace is to you and me from the Lord Jesus, today, now, here,

in word and bath and meal.

What wondrous love is this? [LBW#385]

Grace.

Amen.

Please note: The preceding sermon is provided as a resource for the thought, prayer, and meditation of the members and friends of St. Mark's. It is the residue of a verbal event, and thus it does not have academic footnotes and other details that would be expected in a written document. The writer gladly acknowledges the prior thought and work of many Christians before him.