No More Business as Usual

Luke 3:7-18

John the Baptist heralds the mighty one who is coming. John teaches that preparation for God’s reign is not a matter of identity but of bearing fruits of merciful justice, radical generosity, and vocational integrity.

7John said to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8Bear fruits worthy of repentance. Do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our ancestor’; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. 9Even now the ax is lying at the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”
  10And the crowds asked him, “What then should we do?” 11In reply he said to them, “Whoever has two coats must share with anyone who has none; and whoever has food must do likewise.” 12Even tax collectors came to be baptized, and they asked him, “Teacher, what should we do?” 13He said to them, “Collect no more than the amount prescribed for you.” 14Soldiers also asked him, “And we, what should we do?” He said to them, “Do not extort money from anyone by threats or false accusation, and be satisfied with your wages.”
  15As the people were filled with expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Messiah, 16John answered all of them by saying, “I baptize you with water; but one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 17His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his granary; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”
  18So, with many other exhortations, he proclaimed the good news to the people.

No More Business as Usual

Lutherans looking for gospel may hear John the Baptizer’s preaching as primarily law. It can be difficult to reconcile his fire-and-brimstone style with the joy that traditionally belongs to the third Sunday of Advent. Yet despite John’s harsh words for the crowds, the people seem eager for his teaching—”What then should we do?” They keep asking questions fervently, even when the answers call them to higher expectations of moral and selfless living.

 

It’s the kind of teaching that people associate with the Messiah: good news that business as usual is on the way out and something new is on its way in. The status quo of greed, selfishness, scarcity, and complacency no longer has power. A new day of mutual sharing and justice is almost here. Images of the winnowing fork and the ax at the root of the tree suggest clearing out old habits and fears to make room for something new. In calling people to repentance, John invites them to turn away from the old life and turning toward God’s new life.

John has even better news: The Messiah is indeed coming, one who will not only call people to high expectations, but also enable that faithful living. Because the Messiah is coming to baptize “with the Holy Spirit and fire,” life will never be the same. Through baptism business as usual will be replaced by a fruit-bearing, joy-yielding, grace-filled relationship with God. It’s an excellent reason to “rejoice always” (1 Thess. 5:16): The Lord is near!

an excerpt from Sundays and Seasons

Real Strength in Community of Faith

What makes something strong? Is steel strong because of its ability to withstand stress from many directions? Is wood strong because of its ability to absorb impact while remaining intact? Is the material of a spider’s web strong because of its tensile strength-to-weight ratio? Things are strong for many reasons. The temple in Jerusalem was thought to be stronger and more permanent than anything, yet Jesus says in Mark, “Not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down” (Mark 13:2). Jesus shows hearers that true strength is not built upon the oppression of widows (Mark 12:41-44).

 

Many of the world’s most prized structures are built on the shoulders of the poor and oppressed. How many homes in poorer areas of cities have been destroyed by the need for a new or wider highway? How many workers living in poverty died building the Golden Gate or Brooklyn Bridges, the Hoover Dam or the Empire State Building? In order for human beings to build structures of great strength, they must rely on sacrifice and compromise. Can any human standard of strength be achieved without making something else weak?

Real strength, however, is not shown in things built by human hands. Real strength is found in the hands themselves. True strength is shown in workers reporting to work day after day in impossible conditions because it’s the only way to feed their family. It is shown by an entire community of God’s people linking their trembling hands as they share the “confession of our hope without wavering” (Heb. 10:23). The new, true temple, Jesus’ faithful strength, succumbs in weakness to human-made nails. While the nails lie rusting away, the wounded hands and body rise again to break bread with all on the journey down the path of life.

Excerpt from Sundays and Seasons

Remembering... All Saints

“Earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust, in sure and certain hope of the Resurrection.” After I had said these words, buried another member of our community, and bid the family goodbye, Greg, the funeral director asked me if he could take me on a tour of the cemetery. It was a beautiful morning. Why not?

He showed me the graves of his parents and grandparents. Then he showed me the graves of a couple who had run the general store in town until a few weeks before the wife died. The husband followed only a few days later. Here was the grave of the town atheist, back in the days when there was only one. There was the grave of a man who had been gunned down in an armed robbery. We visited several other graves and Greg told me more stories. Then he told me what all these people had in common. They had all died, as the lawyers would say, “without issue.” “Who will remember them when I am gone?” asked Greg. Then he asked, “Who will remember me?”

Remembering the dead is something Protestant churches do on All Saints Day. The day after All Saints on the church calendar is All Souls Day and it has been problematic for Protestants because in the Catholic tradition it involves praying for souls in purgatory. Protestants have brought the two days together and on All Saints Day we affirm that every life bears the image of God. Though that image may be easier to see in the lives of those who we call “real” saints, it is true of all lives. When we cannot find that image in those who have died, we can’t fully proclaim the most important truth of all. It’s the truth Greg was teaching me as we walked through that cemetery.

In remembering those who were forgotten, Greg had become like Christ, who came to seek and to save the lost, and who took his place with all souls, including the atheist, the murdered, and those who die “without issue.” In recalling them for me, Greg was embodying one of the vocations of the church: to remember all saints and all souls, always.

Pastor Tuula

LIFE Newsletter, November 2021

Pieces rethought

"...and you will know the truth and the truth will make you free." John 8:32

I love my bookcase.  It belonged to my late mother and was one of the few things I brought with me from Finland to Canada.  But this beautiful bookcase has one characteristic I don't like: if you wish to move it, it has to be taken to pieces, and putting it back together can be tricky.  In order for the bookcase to be as sturdy as it's supposed to be, the pieces have to be in exactly the right place.  You might be tempted to hide minor scratches by turning some pieces around.  Don't.  So many times I've been almost finished with putting the bookcase back together just to realize the final pieces won't fit.  Starting over is frustrating, but also the only way to make sure this piece of furniture can be what it's supposed to be.

In live, ignoring our shortcomings or holding on to feelings like resentment can feel tempting, because the opposite would mean rethinking our choices, maybe even admitting we're wrong.  But, just like with the bookcase, the truth is the only way to make sure we can be what we are supposed to be.

God, help me to be truthful in everything I do and reorganize the pieces in my life when needed.  Amen

Mira Salmelainen, Montreal
from Eternity for Today

To see with new eyes

Then Jesus said to him, "What do you want me to do for you?"  The blind man said to him, "My teacher, let me see again."  Mark 10:51

Sometimes, I cannot see what is right in front of me: too busy, too preoccupied, too overwhelmed, too unwilling to see important things staring me straight in the face.  Sometimes, I wonder if in the church, we don't experience a similar problem.  We get so focused on our inward ministry, caring for building, for finances, for making sure we have the right programs to attract new members.  These things are a part of our ministry, and yet, what I sometimes fail to see right in front of me is that (with) all those things (I) should also keep my attention focused on outreach ministry as well.  What are the needs in our communities that we need to see again; where are the injustices that we need to see with new eyes; where is God already at work in the world where I can partner to bring peace, hope and acceptance of love to a neighbour?

Creative God, open our eyes to see you in our midst, open our ears to hear your invitation to partner in ministry, open our hearts to new ways of serving, move our hands and feet to bring hope and healing to the world.  Let us see again through your eyes where you call us to serve.  Amen

- Tanya Varner in Eternity for Today, October 24, 2021