Sermons

First Christian Church

“The Wells of Salvation”

Isaiah 12:2-6

The county requires us to periodically test the water quality in our well. That was done when we moved into the trailer and a little while ago I took our own sample into the courthouse. For some reason we've received only partial results from the test and only the part that analyses the nitrates. We're still waiting for the other test results (since I wrote this we have acquired the remaining test results which were satisfactory). The level of nitrates is at the highest acceptable level, so a filter may be necessary. There is no filter necessary for God's wells of Salvation which run pure and plentiful meeting the deepest needs of parched souls.

Looking at chapter 12 as a whole we see it provides a transition between what has been a recount of Judah's history made up of both obedience and disobedience to God's covenant. It also points to the day of God's salvation and judgment which is a day of joy when the peace of God will permeate the earth because God's salvation has been acknowledged: “Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the Lord God is my strength and my song, and has become my salvation.” (Isaiah 12:2)

God's salvation is given credibility and the people are being encouraged to spread the good news! It is the people who will finally establish the kingdom of God on earth, and it's affirmed that the “holy one of Israel” is now in the midst of them.

To return to the motif of water God often provides it for desperate people, and it's a commonly used metaphor for salvation. There is a passage much later in the book of Isaiah that encapsulates this notion of water as a refuge for the people:

When the poor and needy seek water and there is none,

and their tongue is parched with thirst, the Lord will answer them,

I the God of Israel will not forsake them.

I will open rivers on the bare heights, and fountains in the midst of valleys;

I will make the wilderness a pool of water...so that all will see and know,

all may consider and understand, that the hand of the Lord has done this. (Isaiah 41:17-20)

Jesus is now providing the waters of salvation to all who seek wholeness and tells the Samaritan woman at the well what we all long to hear: “Anyone who drinks the water I give will never thirst – not ever. The water I give will be an artesian spring within, gushing fountains of endless life.”

Since salvation is clearly the theme for the text we need to start with a precise definition of the concept and to do that we'll begin with the common understanding within the church. For most Christians salvation means to be saved from sin and Jesus accomplished this by his sacrifice upon the cross. The theological concept for this is called: “substitutionary atonement.”

But for some this understanding of salvation lacks depth as so much of the practice of our religion does. This lack of depth explains, in some part, a corresponding lack of interest in Christianity within the culture. So, lets unpack the concept of salvation by using one of the two central stories of the Hebrew people. The first story is the exodus from Egypt where salvation is characterized by a liberation from bondage eventually leading them to the Promised Land.

But what we'll focus on is the second central story which is about exile in Babylon that eventually results in their return home to Jerusalem through the wilderness. Here salvation is about a return journey that is enabled by God where the people reconnect to that in which they live and move and have their being. We do this all the time whenever we enter into a medical or relational or cultural wilderness. We find our way back home by reconnecting to God, don't we?

Something important to note in regard to both of these stories is they're not about individuals finding salvation. They're about a large group of people reconnecting to God while journeying through a wilderness. The substitutionary atonement mostly practiced by modern day Christians is always about an individual receiving salvation. This is more representative of the individualistic culture we live in than the stories of the Bible.

I've already cited the Hebrew peoples two central stories about salvation, and to give you an example from the New Testament consider that the Apostle Paul is almost always writing to groups of people and rarely to individuals. In the following he's referencing salvation:

What I'm getting at, friends, is that you should simply keep on doing what you've done from the beginning. When I was living among you, you lived in responsive obedience. Now that I'm separated from you, keep it up. Better yet, redouble your efforts. Be energetic in your life of salvation, reverent and sensitive to God. (Philippians 2:12; The Message Bible) Now lets listen to a story about being lost and found:

There once was a young couple with three children who would visit their friends from high school every Christmas. Their friends lived in Eugene, Oregon which was about an hour drive from their home and one of these visits was particularly memorable. Not because it involved a special Christmas occurrence, but because of something scary happening with one of the children.

It happened to the youngest one, Randy, who was four years old at the time. Their friends also had two children and the grown-ups were playing Monopoly in the kitchen while the children played games out in the living room. For some reason on this evening Randy decided to venture outside even though it was early evening and totally dark out.

He walked down the sidewalk which led from the house onto the sidewalk that paralleled the street and preceded to walk around the corner. Soon, he was completely lost. Thankfully, he didn't try to cross the street but just kept following the sidewalk until he was on the backside of the block.

It was there that he was noticed wandering along the sidewalk by a neighbor who went outside to find out what was going on. He approached Randy and asked him where his parents were, and, of course, he had no idea. The neighbor wasn't sure what to do, and rather than immediately call the police he decided to sit Randy on his front porch steps with an ice cream cone and see what would happen.

Randy was sitting there enjoying the ice cream cone when his father walked by and noticed him on the steps. He thanked the kind neighbor for taking temporary responsibility for his son and quietly with a sense a great relief took Randy back to the friend's home.

Losing a child is a parent's worst nightmare and subsequently finding them a tremendous joy and relief! Randy's story did not end with him being kidnapped or hit by a car or any other tragedy, rather it was a Christmas ending about the gift of being lost and found.

There is one chapter in the Gospel of Luke that is solely devoted to stories about being lost and found. It's chapter 15 and the stories come in succession with the lost sheep, the lost coin, and ending with the lost son or better known as the prodigal son. That you find one entire chapter solely devoted to being lost and found says something about the importance of such stories. They can also be thought of as stories about salvation and each of them convey a crucial spiritual truth. We are all lost until God finds us!

When the shepherd finds the lost sheep, he throws a party, and Jesus makes sure we understand the party reflects what's happening in heaven. The same happens when the woman finds her lost coin, but now Jesus ties it into a sinner repenting and the angels rejoicing! In the last story about the prodigal a really big party is thrown but no mention of heaven or sin.

The last story ends with the prodigal's big brother debating whether to go to the party at all. He's jealous about little brother's good fortune and unconditional acceptance by their father. Big brother is symbolic of our own sinful nature that keeps us alienated from God's embrace and lost in a world of ego dominated decisions and desires. Big brother is on the outside looking in as are all of us until we fully receive the gift of salvation.

We don't find God. God finds us, but we have to do everything we can to make that possible. Advent is taking us to the full recognition of the gift that's already been given, and this gift was foretold long before that Holy Night in Bethlehem actually occurred. From the prophet Micah:

But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah (F-raw-thaw), who are little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose origin is from of old, from ancient days. Therefore he shall give them up until the time when she who is in travail has brought forth; then the rest of his brethren shall return to the people of Israel. And he shall stand and feed his flock in the strength of the Lord, in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God. And they shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great to the ends of the earth. (Micah 5:2-4)

Micah is prophesying seven centuries before Christ and indicating that Christ's origin is far earlier or as he says from “ancient days.” Also, in this text is the reference to the exiles in Babylon and is what's meant by: “...then the rest of his brethren shall return to the people of Israel.” So, there it is again, the lost to be found by The Christ.

The best approach we can take during Advent is to assume that we're lost and in need of being found. We naturally resist this kind of spiritual awakening, but until the truth of being lost is fully embraced there isn't much hope for salvation. It begins with the self-effacing admission of being lost in sin with sin defined aptly as selfishness. The Christ child will lead us all home if and when we're willing to be led.

Rev. Mitch Becker

December 15, 2024

Port Angeles

First Christian Church

“Platforms for Paradox”

Luke 21:25-36

Our text this morning is a portion of a longer apocalyptic (having to do with the end times) text where Jesus is warning the faithful about upcoming persecutions and the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem. These verses are full of imagery and symbolism and because of that I'm going to read our text to you from The Message that puts it into contemporary language which is easier for us to understand:

It will seem like all hell has broken loose – sun, moon, stars, earth, sea, in an uproar and everyone all over the world in a panic, the wind knocked out of them by the threat of doom, the powers-that-be quaking. And then – then! – they'll see the son of man welcomed in style – a glorious welcome! When all this starts to happen, up on your feet. Stand tall with your heads high. Help is on the way!

He told them a story: Look at a fig tree. Any tree for that matter. When the leaves begin to show, one look tells you that summer is right around the corner. The same here – when you see these things happen, you know God's kingdom is about here. Don't brush this off. I'm not just saying this for some future generation, but for this one, too – these things will happen.

Sky and earth will wear out; my words won't wear out. But be on your guard. Don't let the sharp edge of your expectation get dulled by parties and drinking and shopping. Otherwise, that Day is going to take you by complete surprise, spring on you suddenly like a trap, for it's going to come on everyone, at once. So, whatever you do, don't go to sleep at the switch. Pray constantly that you will have enough strength and wits to make it through everything that's coming and end up on your feet before the Son of Man.

This may seem like an odd way to begin the season of Advent which is all about God coming to humanity as a baby. It's supposed to be a time of joyful anticipation with armies of angels singing, but instead we have armies of soldiers surrounding the holy city bringing chaos and destruction.

Try to think of Advent not as either/or situations but rather as a platform for paradox. For example: The “signs” suggest the risen Christ, but at the same time there is the infant Jesus. You have power and glory on the one hand and humility and helplessness on the other. You have nations in distress resulting in anxiousness and fear then again there is the good news of great joy for all the earth!

The spiritual potential in these apocalyptic texts is immense where we can move from either/or thinking to both/and thinking. Paradox can be understood as when things seem to be contradictory on the surface, but on closer examination truth is revealed. But in order for that to happen we have to be patient and provide space for it to occur. This can be especially difficult to achieve in a culture that is as polarized as ours. Following are a few examples of paradox in literature:

If I know one thing, it's that I know nothing.

This is the beginning of the end.

Deep down, you're really shallow.

What you're looking for is what's looking. (My personal favorite)

Some of Jesus' paradoxes are:

You have to lose yourself to find yourself.

The humble will be exalted.

Be as wise as serpents and innocent as doves.

Being patient and providing space for truth to emerge from paradox is what's meant by “staying awake at all times” and “keeping watch,” because God is overseeing reality, not us. We must learn to be patient and not give into either/or thinking, nor get so myopic about Christmas and its preparations that we neglect prayer and contemplation. Truth comes to us as a gift from God and as disciples of Christ we're called to stay awake and watch for it, especially during the Advent season.

Now, here's a paradox: In order to stay awake and watch you must put your mind to sleep, and that is the primary purpose for paradox. So, lets use the most important of Jesus' paradoxes which is losing yourself to find yourself. Another way of saying that is you must die in order to live. How do we know this is the most important paradox, because he went to the cross to demonstrate it and it has become the central symbol of our faith.

One could say this is the only way to Life with a capitol “L” but that wouldn't be quite true. There is another way that's been pioneered by Eckhart Tolle (Toll) and particularly in his groundbreaking book, “The Power of Now.” It is possible for one to learn how to stay in the present moment where time ceases, and all your problems disappear.

Just to quickly summarize: The more you're able to stay in the present moment, which is the only place God is, the more you can be free of pain. Your mind resists being in the Now because that puts it outside of time. The mind needs time to be in control, therefore, it perceives the Now as a threat. The most powerful way I know to learn to embrace the Now is a daily practice of contemplation.

Okay, that's enough of an alternative way to Life for now, and don't get me wrong here by thinking I'm telling you not to think. Quite to the contrary. We must think a great deal before we arrive at this deeper understanding of Christ's teaching. But, at some point, we have to stop thinking because Truth with a capitol “T” can't come forth if we're trying too hard, and here again, contemplation plays an important role.

For example: We need to think about dying in order to live in terms of the ego dying so the True self can come forward. That needs to happen, and we need the teachings, stories and parables to guide us down the path. But the ultimate Truth we seek doesn't come because of our mental efforts. It comes by grace when we have quieted our minds. Of course, quieting our minds during a time of social upheaval can be a tall order.

To this end, Richard Rohr recently sent out a special letter about how to cope with the avalanche of news that's flooding the culture. He wrote: “I also recommend a serious fast from cable and internet news. The amygdala (ah-mig-duh-la) cannot process this much negativity, misinformation, opinion, and paranoia. It gets hooked.” The “amygdala” is a small almond shaped part of the brain that plays a key role in processing emotions, motivation, and memory. In other words, discipline your news intake.

To return to apocalyptic literature we need to understand that it was popular in Jesus day and apocalyptic elements can be found throughout the Bible. They're found in Joel and Zechariah and Isaiah and Daniel and The Revelation and in all of the gospels. It was a literary vehicle biblical authors used to convey a sense of urgency about God's coming to us.

Allow me to make a suggestion here which is an educated one earned through prayer and study and religious experience. When Jesus talks about coming in the clouds it sounds immediate or at least in the very near future, but that didn't happen. What has happened and is happening at this very moment is Jesus is coming to us not from the outside but from within his faithful followers which is each one of us.

This process of emerging from within is accomplished by thinking about paradox like what it means to die in order to live. That sets the stage, so to speak. But the ultimate purpose for paradox is to quiet the synapse (sin-naps) of our brains so Jesus can come forth from within. In this sense, Jesus isn't a person. Jesus is the manifestation of the love of God within us, and it's already there. We just have to let it out.

Maybe this story can help: One of the most important books in my life has been “Walden” written by Henry David Thoreau. The book came to me at a critical time in my life where I was in-between my first love of Jesus and taking my first serious steps of faith in joining First Christian Church in Albany.

“Walden” gave me something to believe in and I wrapped my intellect around it and also found spiritual encouragement. I was so impressed by it that I packed up my Volkswagen van and moved to a park somewhere between Albany and Corvallis. I lived in the park with my dog Omar until the police came one night and told me I couldn't make camp there.

It was the year 1977 and about 25 years later Karen and I drove from our home in Ohio to Walden Pond which was about an11 hour drive. There is a trail that encircles the pond and we had just begun the walk when suddenly I felt we were walking on holy ground! It was a powerful religious experience. But it didn't occur without a great deal of prior thought about the book and the way it affirmed the sacredness of the creation.

Karen was walking maybe 20 feet in front of me when it hit me, and I'll never forget the holiness of that moment. This is the way Jesus comes to us. Holiness surrounds us every minute of every day, its just that we don't always see it. Perhaps, the most important spiritual goal we have as faithful people is to create scenarios where religious experiences can happen more often. Until one day, our life simply becomes one long extended religious experience.

Once I attended a lecture series at Englewwod Christian Church in Yakima and the lecturer was the author Phillip Gulley and he was talking about religious experience. A question came forth from a person in the group and they said they used to have frequent religious experiences but that they had ceased.

Mr. Gulley responded to that by saying some people reach such a state of spiritual maturity that they don't have individual religious experiences any longer simply because there whole life has become one long, extended religious experience. This is what's meant by the term “enlightenment” and a frequent term used in the Bible for this is “Salvation.”

Jesus is our Salvation and by that, I mean in following him and living our lives out in the way he did means to be dying to our egos on a daily basis. We die to be born again, over and over again, or as Jesus puts it: “I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of.” (John 10:10b; The Message Bible)

Rev. Mitch Becker

December 1, 2024

Port Angeles 

First Christian Church

“Little Red Flags”

Revelation 1:4b-8

Our text designates Christ the King Sunday and represents the end of the church year, whereas the new church year will begin on the first Sunday of Advent. We've been in the season of Pentecost, which feels like forever, and indicates a long period consisting of mortal or ordinary time. The first Sunday of Advent is the beginning of divine time.

With that brief introduction, and in terms of the One we follow, the beginning of divine time is also the beginning of Jesus' return or as the text puts it: “...who is and who was and who is to come...”

The Book of Revelation is not about how fulfillment of human history is brought about through kingly power. The text, as well as the book itself, are God's way of telling us about his presence among us. Beyond that they are about what God has in store for humanity which is far beyond our furthest imaginings. Time doesn't exist for God and that's what is meant by God being the Alpha and Omega – the past, present and future.

Also, we need to be careful about the way we hear this text because it sounds authoritarian, as many of the biblical readings can this time of year. This is all amplified by the surrounding culture and its authoritarian nuances which is nothing new. The scriptures often convey notions about Christ being in control of things with his kingly power, and who of us doesn't long to have a king that is in support of our wants and needs.

Into this mix comes the proclamation of Christ's kingdom that is suggested by Jesus coming in the clouds, and is best described in the Sermon on the Mount. This is supposed to be an alternative to worldly power, but so often we just end up promoting the power of the culture, and this in turn creeps into the workings of the church itself.

Even though the text declares: “Riding in the clouds, he'll be seen by every eye, those who mocked and killed him will see him, people from all nations and all times will tear their clothes in lament. Oh, Yes.” (Revelation 1:7; The Message Bible) This clearly has a triumphal sound to it, but we're also given the opportunity to consider the text, as well as the entire book, in terms of a more comprehensive understanding.

That being, God is not just the beginning and the end but is present with us at all times and in all places and is entirely outside of time as we know it. God transcends worldly power, and attempts at control, and gives us an alternative to rest our hopes in. Christ's kingdom is upon us as Jesus tells us in the Sermon on the Mount: “In a word, what I'm saying is, grow up. You're kingdom subjects. Now live like it. Live out your God created identity. Live generously and graciously toward others, the way God lives toward you.” (Matthew 5:48; The Message Bible)

This brings us to a need for little red flags to pop up in the back of our minds whenever our ego brings us into opposition with God's Spirit. The little red flags are not a given but come to us after many years of prayer, study and religious experiences. Over time, we become increasingly alert to these early warning flags and come to trust that they're there to guide us deeper into a devotional life.

The spiritually immature culture that surrounds us is constantly pulling on our ego strings, and without some type of early warning system we'll fall prey to those urges and impulses. In the following meditation Rev. Wes Granberg–Michaelson talks about how we often begin with the ego's inclinations and then use religion to justify our behavior. He has a better idea which is to use the inward journey as our starting point and then work outward. He affirms this is how Jesus did it. He continues:

This was revealed most fully in Jesus, as God's Son. His love for enemies, his non-violent response to evil, his embrace of the marginalized, his condemnation of self-serving religious hypocrites, his compassion for the poor, his disregard for boundaries of social exclusion....and his certainty that God's reign was breaking into the world all flowed from his complete, mutual participation in his Father's love. Jesus didn't merely show the way; he lived completely in the presence and power of God's redeeming, transforming life.

He finishes the meditation with these thoughts: ….But the person of faith, whose inward journey opens (their) life to the explosive love of God, knows that this vision is the most real of all. It is a glimpse of creations purpose and a glimmering of the Spirit's movement amid the world's present pain, brokenness and despair.

When the inward transformation, with the liberation from the ego that it brings, becomes our starting point we now know what is most “real of all.” We are unmistakably grounded in a way that exceeds any type of delusional grounding the ego leaves us with.

As we grow in faith eventually, we're able to go to this place of solid grounding, which Jesus refers to as building your house on rock (Matthew 7:25), without any need for prayer or repetition of a sacred mantra. In time, it's possible to simply drop down into that God space at will. When you're capable of that you know that you're a good way down the road of spiritual transformation!

Let's return to the Book of Revelation and the way people tend to shy away from it all together because they feel it's about the end of the world with its scary images which are less than inspiring. Added to this, there are Christian preachers and cult leaders who've approached the book from a fear-based perspective inflating the text and rendering it foreboding and grim. That was never God's intent because as already stated God is using The Revelation as one more way to proclaim his presence among us.

In my own study of the book I came to the conclusion that the reason the Church father's left The Revelation in the Bible is because it contains at least one central message. That being: No matter what is happening in the world around us we need to hold onto our faith in Christ. It is our faith in the enduring presence of Jesus Christ that will carry us through any hardship we may encounter.

One of the most powerful visions of all in the Bible that denote the outcome of Christ's return to earth and the establishment of his kingdom is found in The Revelation:

Then the Angel showed me Water-of-Life-River, crystal bright. It flowed from the Throne of God and the Lamb, right down the middle of the street. The Tree of Life was planted on each side of the River, producing twelve kinds of fruit, a ripe fruit each month. The leaves of the Tree are for healing the nations. Never again will anything be cursed.

The Throne of God and of the Lamb is at the center. His servants will offer God service – worshiping, they'll look on his face, their foreheads mirroring God. Never again will there be night. No one will need lamplight or sunlight. The shinning of God, the Master, is all the light anyone needs. And they will rule with him age after age after age. (Revelation 22:1-5; The Message Bible)

This text provides a perfect illustration for the need of a little red flag to pop up during the coming Advent season. That last verse connotes Christ's kingship and points to his followers as ruling with him forever. Yet, that's in direct opposition to Christ's teaching where he says, “So the last will be first, and the first last.” (Matthew 20:16) which is the verse at the end of “The Laborers in the Vineyard” parable.

This brings to the fore the question: Why is there triumphal and authoritarian language during the season of Advent when Christ's message is all about the poor, and condemning egotistical leaders, and all the while breaking through restrictive social boundaries? The quick and easy answer to this question is though we refer to the Bible as God's word it is not the words of God.

The Bible was written by men with a limited understanding of who God is and how God works in the world. That understanding has broadened and deepened over the centuries, but it still remains subject to our narrow, ego dominated comprehension. Just to cite a one quick example:

The Book of Job actually ends at his religious experience at chapter 42 verse 6 where he sees God with his heart, yet in the eleven verses that follow Job's siblings comfort him with solace (saul-less) and money, his livestock is restored, and his children replaced (as if children could be replaced!) by several son's and daughters, and he lives happily ever after. Obviously, someone didn't like the mystical ending at verse six and created an epilogue that was more satisfying where Job gets rewarded for his persistent faith.

This is only one example of many examples I could cite of various people who have authored the Bible over the span of numerous centuries. Further, it would not be a stretch to say that all of those authors are men each having accomplished a certain degree of spiritual maturity.

The triumphalism and authoritarian expressions such as: “And they will rule with him age after age after age,” will be visiting us throughout the Advent season. It provides us an opportunity to work on and develop an acute sense of the genuine gospel message. Critical thinking, and a great deal of it, is essential to discovering the truth, and the truth is what we're seeking if we want to be closer to God.

With that said I'll close with something you've already heard, but somethings are important enough to repeat. The following quote comes from the philosopher George Gurdjieff (Gurd-jeff) who said:

Awakening is possible only for those who seek it and want it, for those who are ready to struggle with themselves for a very long time and very persistently in order to attain it.

Rev. Mitch Becker

November 24, 2024

Port Angeles

First Christian Church

“The Smell of Smoke”

1 Samuel 1:4-20

Our text this morning is an especially important story in the Bible because it is the prelude to Israel's transition from a less than well-defined system of judges to a unified monarchy. This transition was complicated and hard-won taking all of three centuries to complete. Hannah's story is an attempt by the biblical authors to give us a sense of how difficult it was to accomplish the transition.

The first thing that alerts us to the importance of the story is the unusual detail given to Hannah's personal struggle. It's uncommon in the Bible for a woman's story to receive this degree of attention, so we're put on notice that this is not business as usual.

The extent of suffering Hannah is experiencing could be put on par with that of Job or Jonah at the end of the book. The reason for this is it's multi-dimensional beginning with the taunting of her co-wife Peninnah (Pen-neen-nah). This tortuous taunting goes on for “year after year” and undoubtedly had a cumulative effect. Secondly, babies assured a future for the family line into subsequent generations. And finally, in Hannah's day women needed the support of a male to survive and in that regard a male baby guaranteed a future.

One of the commentaries written by Alphonetta Wines summed up Hannah's pain in this manner:

An unsettled ache lingers no matter what one does. Possibility thinking, positive psychology, words of affirmation, wishing, hoping, even praying doesn't make the hurt go away. Like the smell of smoke after a cigarette has been extinguished, this type of pain relentlessly meanders in one's thoughts. It is an unwelcome guest that wore out its welcome long ago. Unlike hurts that are at least manageable, this type of hurt affects one's entire life, leaving heart wounded and spirit broken.

To add insult to injury, Hannah was also largely misunderstood by the men around her. Her own husband, Elkanah (El-con-nah), just doesn't have a clue. He attempts to comfort her by suggesting her relationship with him is better than ten sons. What would have been more considerate for him to say would have been to tell her she is worth more to him than ten sons. And at first Eli the priest acts insensitively by accusing her of drunkenness, though in his defense, he does finally acknowledge her heartfelt prayer.

Hannah fares better than some of the other barren women in the Bible because not only does she refuse to hold Peninnah, Elkanah or Eli responsible for her pain, she instead takes her dilemma to God. God's compassionate response is to open her womb resulting in the birth of Samuel. Samuel is the last of the judges and Israel's first prophet who, in time, will anoint both Saul and David the first two kings of the fledgling monarchy.

Since the title of the sermon hints at Hannah's prolonged experience of emotional pain, let's begin there by considering a common source of pain for human beings with a meditation from Richard Rohr that also speaks to our present cultural situation:

I'm convinced that beneath the ugly manifestations of our present evils –...ecological devastation, warring against one another, hating each other based on race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, or nationality – the greatest dis-ease facing us right now is our profound and painful sense of disconnection. We feel disconnected from God certainly, but also from ourselves (especially our bodies), from each other, and from our world. Our sense of this fourfold isolation is plunging humanity into increasingly destructive behavior and much mental distress...

God is not a being among other beings, but rather the Ground of Being itself which flows through all beings. As Paul says to the intellectuals in Athens, this God “is not far from us, but is the one in whom we live and move and have our being.” (Acts 17:27-28)

Nothing can stop the flow of divine love; we cannot undo the eternal pattern even by our worst sin. God is always winning, and God's love will finally win in the end. Nothing humans do will stop the relentless outpouring that is the divine dance. Love does not lose, nor does God lose. That's what it means to be God!

The Apostle Paul reinforces this view of being connected to God in a way that cannot be broken even by the worst of sins:

Do you think anyone is going to be able to drive a wedge between us and Christ's love for us? There is no way! Not trouble, not hard times, not hatred, not hunger, not homelessness, not bullying threats, not back stabbing, not even the worst sins listed in scripture.They kill us in cold blood because they hate you. We're sitting ducks; they pick us off one by one. None of this fazes us because Jesus loves us. I'm absolutely convinced that nothing – nothing living or dead, angelic or demonic, today or tomorrow, high or low, thinkable or unthinkable – absolutely nothing can get between us and God's love because of the way that Jesus our Master has embraced us. (Romans 8:35-39; The Message Bible)

Father Rohr explains that the pervasive pain we all feel comes from a sense of being disconnected from God, each other and our very selves. He reassures us that the resulting isolation we feel is delusional, at least in regard to God, since in reality God is everywhere and flowing through everyone.

Since he doesn't explain God's winning nature any more than this let me take a stab at a more comprehensive explanation as to why God wins. By equating God with love its not too much to say that love is all that exists. This is further reinforced by the scripture Paul already used with the “one” being a reference to God: “...is the one in whom we live and move and have our being.”

If the only thing that exists is love than what is fear or hatred for that matter? Fear and hatred is what you have left when the flow of love is blocked. And you can only block it temporarily since its all there is to begin with. To use a quick metaphor: You can stop the flow of water in a hose by putting a kink in it, but as soon as the kink is taken out the flow returns.

So, it is with the flow of love within us. Certain things can temporarily block it like addictions or severe medical events, but as soon as the addict stops using or the medical problem is resolved the flow begins to start up again. Sometimes there are things deep within our inner selves that stop or impede the flow like childhood trauma. If we witnessed a violent act or are subjected to sexual abuse or if our parents constantly fought during our formative years, we may be traumatized by it. The psychological term is post-traumatic stress disorder or PTSD and is also something many military veterans struggle with.

At some point the child or the veteran has to face the resulting trauma by bringing it up into the conscious self. In other words, it has to be relived and not just in terms of remembering, but also with the feelings of fear, anger and ultimately despair. This psychological/spiritual healing allows the flow of love to resume. This process takes a lot of work because the trauma is invisible buried deep within the psyche. Psyche is simply the Greek word for the soul.

It may take a lifetime of therapy, journal work, prayer, and a kind of fearless self-disclosure to eventually reach the trauma and bring it to the surface into conscious awareness. It also takes a great deal of courage because facing the trauma which resides within the inner self is like looking into a deep, dark well and sensing a monster at the bottom of it. The monster feels life threatening, and for healing to take place it has to be confronted. That means going down into the well to face it.

This is where a lifetime of prayerful devotion coupled with biblical knowledge comes into play. Because it can increase the likelihood that you'll go into the well to face the monster if you feel God will go with you. That's what I mean when I say faith is another word for courage. It is faith that enables you to take the plunge into the life threatening unknown.

Now, the Apostle Paul was a man of remarkable faith/courage. It's because of him, more than anyone else, that we're Christians because he nearly single-highhandedly took the gospel to the Gentile world. When I was Called to the church in Ohio I drove from Tacoma in about six days and never faced one robber or threatening animal. In his day, to travel the distances he did was extremely dangerous with robbers, dangerous animals, and perilous weather conditions, along with a considerable degree of persecution.

And when he talks about nothing being able to separate us from the love of Christ, being the extrovert that he is, he's referring to threats that come from the outside like angry Jews or oppressive Romans. He's not talking about psychological trauma, so if we want to be healed sometimes, we've got to venture beyond scripture.

We are all wounded. None of our parents were perfect and they visited whatever trauma or painful wounds they incurred as children onto us. It was not intentional, at least I hope not, and as Johnny Cash sings, “I don't like it but I guess things happen that way.” It's up to each one of us to take responsibility, which means we have an ability to respond, to our own wounds and allow the love of God to heal us.

When enough people are healed, and the wounds are no longer being passed on to the next generation, then the flow of love will spread across the world. That love will in turn manifest more healing until one day as scripture tells us:

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband; and I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling of God is with men (and women). He will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself will be with them; he will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning or crying nor pain any more, for the former things have passed away.” (Revelation 21:1-4).

Rev. Mitch Becker

November 17, 2024

Port Angeles

First Christian Church

“Double Feature”

Mark 12:38-44

 If we think of our text in terms of the movies, it's a double feature replete with some unexpected scenes. In the opening scenes Jesus is in Jerusalem and in the temple no less. He's warning the audience about the religious rulers describing them as pompous and self-serving demonstrating a lack of compassion specifically to widows. He tells them that in the end they'll get what they deserve.

In the second feature Jesus is describing the humble act of a widow who gives all she has to the treasury. Initially, what strikes us about this is her generosity, but in a larger context we have to consider Jesus' comment about the religious rulers devouring widow's houses, in other words, confiscating their homes. That's a clear condemnation not only of the ruling body but of the system that promotes the devouring.

It seems the widow is able to look beyond the corruption of the system to the God that transcends it. Her humility allows her to see through the darkness to the promise of salvation for the faithful. As far as she's concerned, she's not giving in support of any system or institution, rather she's giving all that she has to her God. This is healthy both in terms of her own spirituality as well as an appropriate response to God's grace.

The text proves challenging to all of us since we'd like to identify with the humble widow, but a more apt identification is with the religious leaders. We align with them because we all enjoy the benefits of a system that largely devours the lives of the poor in the world. From a spiritual point of view its crucially important to be honest about what we invest our lives in.

This sort of revealing discernment may be upsetting, but by the same token, remember salvation is even possible for those who are well-off. Jesus taught:

“I'd say it's easier for a camel to go through a needle's eye than for the rich to get into God's kingdom.” That set the disciples back on their heels. “Then who has any chance at all?” they asked. Jesus was blunt: “No chance at all if you think you can pull it off yourself. Every chance in the world if you let God do it.” (Mark 10:25-27; The Message Bible)

The key then is to let God do it, and each of us must discover how we go about allowing God to be in charge of our lives. There are some common practices involved including prayer, study of the word, ceaseless acts of compassion, and maintaining Christian community. The manner these practices manifest in our lives is what differs from person to person. 

Using an excerpt from one of the commentaries lets delve a bit deeper into the opening scene of this double feature by considering another movie you may have seen. The title of it was “The Godfather” and toward the end of the movie Michael Corleone (Core-lee-own) who is now in charge of the family is at his infant niece's baptism. The scene is only four minutes long and while the audio track remains with the baptism the video goes back and forth between the baptism in the church and the hit men under Corleone's command.

The hit men are going to murder several rivals of the family and as the murders are taking place Corleone is renouncing Satan and his works in the world. Melodramatic for certain, but it correlates well with Jesus' denunciation of the religious rulers when he says: “They devour widows houses and for the sake of appearance say long prayers.”

It's common practice to point out the hypocrisy of others and especially people in authority like politicians or the police or your parents. But the uncomfortable truth of the matter is we all do this until we're freed of the confines of the ego. Yet even after we breakout of those confines, we still have to wrestle with the ego from time to time, though now it's far easier to identify and transcend.

The Apostle Paul wrote about this all-too-common human activity when he wrote about people who deny God's existence and practice idol worship:

Those people are on a dark spiral downward. But if you think that leaves you on the high ground where you can point your finger at others, think again. Every time you criticize someone, you condemn yourself. It takes one to know one. Judgmental criticism of others is a well-known way of escaping detection in your own crimes and misdemeanors.

But God isn't so easily diverted. He sees right through all such smoke screens and holds you to what you've done. You didn't think, did you, that just by pointing your finger at others you would distract God from seeing all your misdoings and from coming down on you hard? Or did you think because he's such a nice God, he'd let you off the hook? Better think this one through from the beginning. God is kind, but he's not soft. In kindness he takes us firmly by the hand and leads us into a radical life change. (Romans 2:1-4; The Message Bible)

A simple way to define hypocrisy is to say it's what occurs when people do what they tell other people not to do, and it's not limited to religious people, it's everywhere and practiced by everyone throughout the culture. And sometimes things happen that help to wake people up to their hypocritical ways. The following story is about such an awakening:

There was an unchurched couple that had a boy around ten years old whom they always brought to Camp Christian in Ohio during the summer and dropped him off. They'd been doing it since he was six, every year without fail. The boy could participate at camp because he attended Sunday school at a church in Columbus. At the church his parents would do the same thing and just drop him off and pick him up later. They could pull this off because there was an elder in the church who was friends with his parents, and he'd look after the boy.

One day while his father was on his way to work a car ran a stop light and t-boned him. His dad ended up in the hospital with a fractured vertebra (vert-tuh-bruh) and lacerations. His condition required surgery to repair the vertebra, and it took a good nine weeks for that to heal followed by months of rehab. In the second month of rehab his father had a life altering religious experience.

It came in the form of a dream where Jesus visited him and walked him through his life focusing on various moments of pretense and posturing. Jesus showed him other acts of hypocrisy including taking his son to camp and church and leaving him there to be cared for by the elder. When he awoke from the dream, he felt remorseful because there was such a large number of hypocritical acts.

The next Sunday at church the elder was surprised to see the couple and their son, with his dad in a wheelchair, at the beginning of the Sunday school hour. The elder asked the father what had made him decide to come to Sunday school and he told him about the dream. After Sunday school they also came to the worship service and have faithfully attended church ever since.

Undoubtedly, his dad continued to commit hypocritical acts because church alone isn't enough to put an end to them. What's required is a transformation or what scripture referred to earlier as a “radical life change.” We need to become consciously aware of our hypocritical behavior before any change can be introduced, and that's just a first step. That happened in a sudden way, literally overnight, for the father in our story and that's unusual.

Typically, waking up to our own hypocrisy is a gradual process that happens through a combination of things like journal work, therapy, depth prayer, and confession that involves honest, even painful, self-disclosure. It's not too much to say that living in this manner needs to become a lifestyle. Of course, we all fess-up to our clever schemes on occasion but following Christ and the way he lived on a daily basis is a whole different matter. Such a lifestyle requires a great deal of assistance from God.

Following Richard Rohr is going to talk to us about a life of honest self-disclosure:

Growth in the spiritual life takes place not by acquisition of something new. It isn't like the acquisition of new information, which some call “spiritual capitalism.” In reality our growth is “a treasure hidden in a field” (Matthew 13:44). It is only discovered by the release of our current defense postures, by letting go of fear and our attachment to self-image. Then the inner gift lies present and accounted for! Once our defenses are out of the way and we are humble and poor, truth is allowed to show itself.

God could not risk giving truth to proud and power-hungry people; they will always abuse it. Truth shows itself when we are free of ideology, fear, and anger. Being so certain that “I know” won't get you anywhere, spiritually speaking. The truth is, “I don't really know anything!” Our real heroes might be those that know they don't know, like Forrest Gump! Perhaps Gump is a metaphor for what we call “beginners mind.” Only such non-knowing is spacious enough to hold and not distort wisdom.

He's saying the truth is already within us, and we have to give up what we think is true to allow truth, God, the True self, whatever you want to call it, to come forward. This takes a great deal of courage because before you “wake up” all you have are the memories and misconceptions which you believe make up yourself. Letting that go feels like dying when, in truth, you're being born again, as Jesus puts it.

The widow in our text today shows us what humility makes someone capable of. Though she lives in a culture ruled by unscrupulous hypocrites that manage a corrupt system which is draining people of their resources; she gives all she has to the treasury anyway, because her humble stance allows her to see God behind everything that is happening.

In this respect there is nothing new under the sun. God is behind everything or as the song goes, he's got the whole world in his hands. The widow sees this truth and can give to the treasury without restraint. She doesn't love the religious leaders and their hypocrisy or the corrupt system that's taking advantage of her. But neither is she afraid of them or the system, and can, without judgment, accept all that is happening because God loves her and has promised her salvation.

Rev. Mitch Becker

November 10, 2024

Port Angeles

First Christian Church

“Identity Crisis Resolved”

Mark 10:46-52

Since I mentioned blind Bartimaeus (Bar-tuh-may-us) in my sermon last week we can now take a closer look at that story. But first let us consider the Gospel of Mark itself. Reading through it one is constantly challenged because though Jesus is off and running in chapter 1 in the next chapter the Pharisees are questioning his legitimacy as a holy man because they're eating with sinners and tax collectors.

By the time we reach chapter 3 his family has decided he's off his rocker in-spite of the fact he's overcome nature, demons, and disease! In chapter 5 he overcomes death itself by raising the little girl, and in chapter 6 he's momentarily defeated by the unbelief he encounters in his hometown of Nazareth. All of this funnels into the shocking statement that comes just prior to our text: “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone.” It's as though the gospel writer is throwing a gauntlet down in front of us challenging us in regard to Jesus' true identity.

Let's also challenge the word “challenged” a word used when you're being spiritually proper. It has a kind of positive spin to it, whereas we could consider these “challenges” to Jesus' legitimacy as impediments or obstacles. Those words have a more negative connotation to them. The events I've described create impediments to any efforts we make to determine Jesus' true identity.

Further, blind Bartimaeus not only calls Jesus by name, even though he's never met him before; he also tacks on to his name the impressive title of “Son of David!” The crowd seems almost offended by the usage of this particular title and they attempt to shush him.

To quickly put this encounter into context the rich young man wants eternal life, and James and John are looking for glory, but all blind Bartimaeus wants is Jesus' mercy. When Jesus responds to him the crowd quickly changes its tune and encourages him to help the poor man.

Bartimaeus may have been born blind, but obviously he wasn't lame because when he learns Jesus is going to help him he throws off his coat and springs into action, and Jesus gives him his sight. This healing is progressive when considering the whole of the gospel. Because in the first healing of a blind man which occurs in chapter 8 the man is sort of embarrassingly only partially healed. He says: “I see men, but they look like trees walking.” Jesus tries again and he's given back his sight.

The healing of Bartimaeus, on the other hand, is holistic, complete, and to fully appreciate this we need to consider what has happened between the two blind men given their sight. What has happened is there has been no less than three prophecies of the crucifixion revealed.

Those in Jesus' audience, and us, up until this point had only a sort of muddled view of Jesus and the purpose of his ministry. But after the revelations of the upcoming appointment with the cross we get a more distinct vision of him metaphorically represented in the healing of blind Bartimaeus.

Correct vision is crucial to a healthy spirituality. For example: the word “see” occurs around 1000 times in the Bible (it's amazing how you can look this stuff up!) Yet, in the Gospel of Mark it doesn't occur at all. One word that is repetitive in this gospel, occurring 42 times, which means at least once in every chapter, is the word: “immediately.”

“Immediately” suggests a certain time frame in which something happens like at the end of our chapter today it says that he “immediately” received his sight. But often an immediate response implies there's been some kind of clarity in vision. When Bartimaeus realizes Jesus is calling him, because the onlookers tell him so, he throws off his coat and jumps up to go to Jesus.

He “sees” that Jesus is going to help him, and his response is immediate! So, there's often a relationship between seeing and immediacy. The numerous times immediately appears in this gospel and the frequency of the word “see” in the Bible all points to the importance of having clear vision.

Another important aspect of this is recognizing the extent of our blindness which can eventually help us see God right before our eyes. This blindness is pronounced and pervasive throughout the culture. One brief example is last week Oreo and I were beginning our walk down toward the college. As we entered the crosswalk, which is now well defined, to cross Race Street a pickup truck came to a stop at the intersection on Park Avenue.

Oreo and I were already in the crosswalk when the truck engaged its engine and began to make the turn. Startled, I reached around in preparation to yank on the leash and propel Oreo across the street. It turns out I didn't need to because the driver saw us halfway through their turn, but they must have seen us in the crosswalk prior to making the turn because we were in full view.

What happens is the ego can often only see its next goal it's trying to reach. The resulting blindness eclipses everything else including a person and his dog in a crosswalk. Its not unlike an addiction where the addicts behavior is determined by the pursuit involved with getting that next fix. In a real sense, all the addict can see is the object of deepest desire, and so it is for everyone still under the predominant influence of the False self or ego. The driver of the pickup saw us in the crosswalk, but our presence didn't register until they were well on their way making the turn.

We are all burdened by this blindness until we are freed from the confines of the False self. The Buddhist call such freedom “awakening” or simply “waking up.” Jesus calls it being “born again” or “born anew.” (John 3:1-8) The Apostle Paul's favorite metaphor for this spiritual birthing is being “in Christ” (2 Corinthians 5:17). The following meditation from author Judy Cannato (Can-knot-o) describes how we reach this blessed state of being which also involves right seeing:

Contemplation is a long loving look at what is real. How often we are fooled by what mimics the real. Indeed, we live in a culture that flaunts the phony and thrives on glittering fabrication. We are so bombarded by the superficial and the trivial that we can lose our bearings and give ourselves over to a way of living that drains us of our humanity. Seduced by the superficial, we lose the very freedom we think all our acquisitions will provide.

When we are engaged in the experience and practice of radical amazement, we begin to distinguish between the genuine and the junk. Caught up in contemplative awareness and rooted in love, we begin to break free from cultural confines and embrace the truth that lies at the heart of all reality. We are one.

The invitation to be contemplative is nothing new, but it now carries with it an urgency peculiar to our time. This call to live contemplatively is offered to everyone. Often we want to regulate such a practice or lifestyle to the “religious” or the “spiritual” in our midst, but the simple truth is we have all been given eyes to see. We simply need to choose to live with vision. What is becoming more apparent by the day is that we must all become contemplatives, not merely in the way we reflect or pray, but in the way we live – awake, alert, engaged, ready to respond in love to the groanings of the creation.

Now, that last phrase she's taken from the Apostle Paul when he says:

We know that the whole creation has been groaning in travail together until now; and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait for adoption as sons (and daughters), the redemption of our bodies. (Romans 8:22-23).

For the sake of bringing us a clearer vision of God's plan for his world listen to that same text as translated by Eugene Peterson in The Message, and this is presented in context:

The created world itself can hardly wait for what's coming next. Everything in creation is being more or less held back. God reins it in until both creation and all the creatures are ready and can be released at the same moment into the glorious times ahead.

Meanwhile, the joyful anticipation deepens. All around us we observe a pregnant creation. The difficult times of pain throughout the world are simply birth pangs. But it's not only around us, it's within us. The Spirit of God is arousing us within. We're also feeling the birth pangs. These sterile and barren bodies of ours are yearning for full deliverance. (Romans 8:19-23; The Message Bible)

It should be no surprise that a culture which is made up primarily of False selves is as Ms. Cannato describes, “phony and thrives on glittering fabrication.” What else would it be? She goes on to reveal the way to break out of the confines of the culture is through the practice of contemplation or learning how to take a long loving look at the real. She also says this involves more than just quiet centering prayer but must become a way of life where one is “awake, alert, engaged and ready to respond in love....”

In other words, prayer alone won't do it. It also means taking action which is inspired and guided by contemplative prayer. These actions are also a response to what God is doing in the world. God is giving birth to something brand new. Something the world has never seen before or at least not on a grand scale.

There have always been people that have awakened: Jesus, Paul, Buddha, Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Saint Francis and so on. What hasn't been seen is an awakening in mass, which could be preceded by a renewed interest in religion, so that's something to look for.

What many people see now-a-days when they look out onto the culture is animosity and division and this frightens people. That's perfectly understandable, but it's not a faithful response. The faithful response is to trust in God's plan for the world as so aptly described by The Apostle and to do our part to make sure it happens.

Rev. Mitch Becker

November 3, 2024

Port Angeles

First Christian Church

“Healing On Hold”

Jeremiah 31:7-9

Our text puts us smack-dab in the middle of the “Book of Comfort,” as chapters 30 through 33 in the Book of Jeremiah are called. The preceding chapters, not unlike Job, can be hard to read as they're filled with images of destruction and violence in the wake of the leveling of Jerusalem and exile to Babylon. But in the Book of Comfort there is a dramatic shift toward restoration and hopefulness. They are images of homecoming!

But let us not read over these three chapters without considering what has come before and possibly rendering our text less than it can be. We need to keep what we hear today in context with the rest of the story. That will help convey the radical hopefulness the prophet is trying to relay to the people of Israel.

We'll also need to consider the phrases: “...from the land of the north” and “...from the farthest part east” because they recall the enemy God used to bring war against his people. But now God will bring them back from the north country and gather them together from all parts of the earth. As they are returning God both encourages and discourages them from weeping.

Perhaps God recognizes that due to the great suffering they've incurred weeping is still necessary. By the same token, God wants them to start looking ahead in hope of a better tomorrow. Examining their weeping more thoroughly reveals they may be tears of joy, but also tears due to the loss of loved ones and treasured possessions. God is committing himself to restoration, but this doesn't come without a great deal of grief and pain.

What the people can hope and rejoice in is the return of community and with-it food, wine, laughter and dance. In this restoration they can enjoy a return to ordinary, everyday life; but the memories of sons and daughters, fathers and mothers who are no longer with them are never far from their hearts and minds. Beyond these memories are those of a God who has punished them severely to the extent of bringing sheer terror into their hearts. Jeremiah is quick to affirm God's need for punitive action against his people, and at the same time he doesn't want to dismiss their suffering.

In this restored community those who are broken, for whatever reasons, will not necessarily be healed of that brokenness, but they will be brought back into community. Jeremiah puts it like this:

“Watch what comes next: I'll bring my people back from the north country and gather them up from the ends of the earth, gather those who have gone blind and those who are lame and limping, gather pregnant women, even the mother's whose birth pangs have started, bring them all back, a huge crowd!” (Jeremiah 31:8; The Message Bible) Note that unlike the gospel text where Jesus heals blind Bartimaeus, God promises no healing but does commit to bringing his people home to enjoy and be nurtured within community again.

Like the ancient Israelite's we too suffer from a variety of ailments, chronic pain, and differing types of physical limitations. We may wonder why our prayers don't result in healing as undoubtedly some of them did. Also, like them, we too were scattered and separated from one another during the pandemic. We had to cope and survive apart from the nurturing community of the church we were used to.

The church community existed within severe limitations where it took me twice as long to get to know you compared to previous churches. And like the Israelite's we've been gathered back together to care for and support each other in our walk with Christ. This is most pronounced when we gather for Soup & Bread Sunday. That is a time we can relax in each other's company outside of the formality of worship.

Perhaps we're prone to take such things for granted and dismiss the influence of the Holy Spirit, but that would be a mistake. We people of faith must constantly guard against the subtle ways we're affected by the culture around us. As the Apostle Paul told us:

Don't become so well adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You'll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings out the best in you, develops well-formed maturity in you.” (Romans 12:2; The Message Bible)

This is one reason it's so important to be reading your Bible on a consistent basis because its stories, more than anything else, keeps us nurtured and guided by God consciousness. The ancients see God in everything that happens to them. In the Book of Jeremiah, and especially those first 29 chapters, it is God that is punishing them for their disobedience, yet in our text today it's God that brings joy...verse 9 reads:

Watch them come! They'll come weeping for joy as I take their hands and lead them, lead them to fresh flowing brooks, lead them along smooth, uncluttered paths.

The ancients-maintained God consciousness by listening to the sacred stories, and one important thread that runs through them are the warnings about idolatry. Idolatry is the first listed of the Ten Commandments: “You shall have no other gods before me.” Yahweh is the alpha and omega of their lives, and if we don't intentionally work at staying within God consciousness, we soon find ourselves wandering in a cultural wilderness where God is hard to find.

The Bible is, more than anything else, a collection of stories about God and it is these stories that effectively promote God consciousness within us. In the following Barbara Holmes, who has often inspired and spiritually informed us, and sadly recently passed away, shares about the strength we can find in collective storytelling:

We are revived by the stories that we tell about reality, our bodies, our spirits, and our God. These stories challenge and unsettle us. They touch us in places that facts seldom reach and often move us to action. Most religions have more stories than anything else. Whenever Jesus is asked a question, he answers with a story, a parable...

We tell our stories because all of us have survived something, because stories are signposts from the past that give us clues about the future. Finally, our stories are a witness to the next generation and an opportunity to understand the universal as well as the particular in tales of trauma, healing, and survival...

There is a future because the stories are not locked up within our individual lives. Instead, they are held as precious elements of communal wisdom. Our stories do not need opportunities for neat resolution; they just need to be told over and over again....heard and pondered before the dancing begins – and the dancing will begin again because when we lose hope and joy as individuals, the community digs deep into its shared resources and starts the beat again. They tap their feet and drum the promises of God.

At the start of this sermon, I spoke of the pandemic which is a current story of survival for us as well as the entire world. We continue to live with remnants of the story because the virus is still with us, though greatly diminished in its potency.

She also speaks of the need to tell the stories over and over so we can ponder them and allow them to shift us into God consciousness. The next story is a familiar one coming from a book that contains some of the most compelling and provocative stories of all time...it is a story about idolatry:

King Solomon was obsessed with women. Pharaoh's daughter was only the first of many foreign women he loved – Moabite, (Mow-uh-bite) Ammonite, (Am-mow-night) Edomite,(Eh-duh-mite) Sidonian, (Si-doan-nian) and Hittite (Hi-tight).

He took them from the surrounding pagan nations of which God had clearly warned Israel, “You must not marry them; they'll seduce you into infatuations with other gods.” Solomon fell in love with them anyway, refusing to give them up. He had seven hundred royal wives and three hundred concubines – a thousand women in all! And they did seduce him away from God.

As Solomon grew older, his wives beguiled him with their alien gods and he became unfaithful – he didn't stay true to his God as his father David had done. Solomon took up with Ashoreth, (Ash-tore-rith) the whore goddess of the Sidonians, and Molech, (Mow-lek) the horrible god of the Ammonites. Solomon openly defied God; he did not follow in his father David's footsteps.

He went on to build a sacred shrine to Chemosh, (Ka-mosh) the horrible god of Moab, and to Molech, the horrible god of the Ammonites, on a hill just east of Jerusalem. He built similar shrines for all his wives, who then polluted the countryside with the smoke and stench of their sacrifices.

God was furious with Solomon for abandoning the God of Israel, the God who had twice appeared to him and had so clearly commanded him not to fool around with other gods. Solomon faithlessly disobeyed God's orders. (1 Kings 11:1-10; The Message Bible)

That's a story demonstrating idolatry with a capital “I” and is yet one example of something that comes in many forms of which the culture is more than happy to accommodate. The story also shows us where the responsibility lies for these examples of flagrant idolatrous behavior. You can't blame the women! God had personally appeared to Solomon twice directing him to not associate with the foreign gods, but he did it anyway.

It is up to us to know the difference between idolatry and what makes for God consciousness and the sacred stories are one of the best ways to discern the holy.

Rev. Mitch Becker

October 27, 2024

Port Angeles