Sixth Sunday After Pentecost - Br Simeon

Andre-Rublev's Saviour

Homily preached by Br. Simeon at Winmalee on   Sunday 20th July 2014:

SIXTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST.

Gospel:  Mt 13:24-43.

"The righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father"

Lord, Take me where you want me to go, Let me meet who you want me to meet,
Tell me what you want me to say, And keep me out of your way. Amen.

Friends, I must confess that this particular Gospel passage is not one of my favourite passages at all, but then the Gospels as a whole were never meant to be cosy and easy at all.

What can malicious weed-sowing tell us about the kingdom of God (Matthew 13:25)? The image Jesus uses in this parable is a common everyday example of planting, harvesting, and sorting the good fruit from the bad. Weeds can spoil and even kill a good harvest if they are not separated and destroyed at the proper time. Uprooting them too early, though, can destroy the good plants in the process.

Just as nature teaches us patience, so God's patience also teaches us to guard the seed of his "word" which he has planted in our hearts and to beware of the destructive force of sin and evil which can destroy it. God's word brings life, but Satan seeks to destroy the good seed which has been planted in the hearts of those who have heard God's word. God's judgement is not hasty, but it does come. And in the end, God will reward each according to what they have sown and reaped in this life. In that day God will separate the evil from the good.

What can mustard seeds and leaven teach us about the kingdom of God? The tiny mustard seed literally grew to be a tree which attracted numerous birds because they loved the little black mustard seed it produced. God's kingdom works in a similar fashion. It starts from the smallest beginnings in the hearts of men and women who are receptive to God's word. And it works unseen and causes a transformation from within.

Leaven is another powerful agent of change. A lump of dough left to itself remains just what it is, a lump of dough. But when the leaven is added to it a transformation takes place which produces rich and wholesome bread when heated - the staple of life for humans. The kingdom of God produces a transformation in those who receive the new life which Jesus Christ offers. When we yield to Jesus Christ, our lives are transformed by the power of the Holy Spirit who dwells in us.

Good and evil are sown in our hearts like tiny seeds which germinate, and in due time yield a harvest of good or bad fruit. Charles Read said: "Sow an act and you reap a habit. Sow a habit and you reap a character. Sow a character and you reap a destiny."

In the day of judgement each will reap what he or she has sown in this life. Those who sow good will shine in the kingdom of their Father. They will radiate with the beauty, joy, and fullness of God's love.

It is not very often that I leave challenges for us at the end of my sermons, but today I leave this with you as we leave this place; Do you allow God's word to take deep root in your heart?,  and in your actions?

Amen.

7th Sunday After Epiphany - Br Simeon EFO

St- Andre-Rublev's Saviour

Holy Redeemer

In the care of the Ecumenical Franciscan Order

Homily preached at Winmalee:

 by Brother Simeon  Sunday 23^rd February 2014

Gospel:  Mt 5:38-48

“You, therefore, must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is Perfect”

“O Lord, open our eyes To behold your presence. O Lord, open our ears to hear your voice. O Lord, open our hearts to receive your love.
O Lord, help us to behold, to hear and to receive you in Word and Sacrament
That our mouths may proclaim your praise.” Amen.

 “You be perfect, even as your heavenly Father is perfect”. This sounds like an impossible command but should we understand it as a command at all? Would it not be more helpful to consider it as an invitation to share in the life of God? Jesus is not ordering us to be perfect like some policeman ordering us to cross the road. He is sharing with us the secret of His life.

Jesus declared the highest possible standard for His followers: they must be “perfect.” “You be perfect, even as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matthew 5:48). The righteousness that Jesus demanded is nothing less than complete conformity to God’s perfect law in everything a person is and does. Jesus is concerned, not only with our behaviour, but with the righteousness of the heart, also. The scribes and Pharisees considered only the outward compliance. With Jesus’ standard who would ever claim to have reached it?

The very nature of the kingdom of God as taught by Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount drives us to despair of ourselves in living this kind of life so that we will turn in faith to Jesus Christ and find new life in Him to live as He lived.

The Holy Spirit produces this kind of life in the believer as we make ourselves available to His indwelling presence. God produces in us by His power what we cannot do ourselves. It is the product of the new life of Christ in us (Eph. 2:10; Phil. 2:13). This way only God can possibly get the glory because we can live it only by His power.

This righteousness is God given. But Jesus also went a step further and declared; “You are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matt. 5:48). The statement is in the form of a command; “You shall therefore be perfect, even as your heavenly Father is perfect.”

You may be asking, “Then why even try to become perfect?”

The main reason is because that is what God commands of us, “You are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”

To be perfect is to reach the goal for which a person was designed. Jesus calls His disciples to become mature, reaching the high standard God has for them. We are to be constantly pressing on toward attaining that goal.

Another reason is because with the new life of Christ in us we want to become like Christ. We are a new creation, and all things have been made   new. We have received as a gift from God an imputed righteousness that was purchased for us by Jesus on the cross. It is impossible for us to be saved without this righteousness that God alone provides for the believing sinner.

The only way we can be completely conformed to the law this side of eternity is by this imputed righteousness of Jesus Christ. “Abraham believed God and it was reckoned to him for righteousness” (Gen. 15:6). No human being can earn this righteous standing before God. There is nothing we can possibly do that will atone for our sins . There is no human detergent that can cleanse the guilty conscience and make a person right with God. Nothing can wash away our sin but the blood of Jesus. Jesus poured out His blood on our behalf.

Do we become sinlessly perfect so that we never sin again in this life? No. We will sin and God has provided a cleansing that works and restores our fellowship with God. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness”.

Those who “hunger and thirst for righteousness” will be satisfied one day when we enter into glory with Christ Jesus in heaven. It will be realised in us when we see Jesus face to face in glory. It will be perfectly fulfilled when we see Jesus and not before then.

Jesus demanded the sincere devotion of the heart to God. We must love Him with all our mind, heart and personal being. If we truly love Him we will keep His commandments.

In the Christian life we always have before us something for which to strive. No matter how far we have progressed in our spiritual life there is still more to conquer. We must bring every thought, every attitude and every behaviour into subjection to Christ.

Though we will never be perfect in this life, we are to aim and strive at Christ-like character. By God's grace and the power of the Holy Spirit we are to move toward that goal every day of our life.

Our goal in ministry whether we are clergy or laity, or even just the ordinary Christian,  is that “we may present every man complete (perfect) in Christ”.

Amen.

5th Sunday after the Epiphany -Br luke EFO

St- Andre-Rublev's Saviour

Holy Redeemer

In the care of the Ecumenical Franciscan Order

Homily preached at Winmalee: 

9^th February 2014,   by Br Luke efo

 Matthew 5:1-12.

Sometime the lectionary compiler’s linkages between the readings is hard to grasp, but today it is very easy. The common theme is the idea that our actions, understanding and will reveal that which God has graced us with, and how we live.

Isaiah tells the people: ⁷ Isn't it to distribute your bread to the hungry, and that you bring the poor who are cast out to your house? When you see the naked, that you cover him; and that you not hide yourself from your own flesh? ⁸ Then your light will break out as the morning, and your healing will appear quickly; then your righteousness shall go before you; and the LORD’s glory will be your rear guard.”

The psalmist says in verse 4 of today’s Psalm “Light dawns in the darkness for the upright, gracious, merciful, and righteous.”

St Paul perhaps being a little mystical tells the Corinthians: “⁹ But as it is written, “Things which an eye didn't see, and an ear didn't hear, which didn't enter into the heart of man, these God has prepared for those who love him.”

This brings us to Jesus who, Matthew tells said “¹⁴ You are the light of the world. A city located on a hill can’t be hidden. ¹⁵ Neither do you light a lamp, and put it under a measuring basket, but on a stand; and it shines to all who are in the house. ¹⁶ Even so, let your light shine before men; that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.”

I will return to this, but firstly I want to digress for just a minute.

Jesus also talks about salt.  Why salt?  In the ancient times salt was a valuable commodity, it was also used as a weapon and as a preservative for food.  We humans cannot live without salt, but too much salt will kill us.  As Jesus mentions we use it for bringing out the flavor of our meals, but again too much will spoil the meal.  There is a fine balance then between what is good and useful and that which is bad and ruinous.  Why is this important? Because it points us to the reality of the world and life that we live and witness to.

If we are to bring flavor to the world, to add joy and love to the lives of people around us, we need to make sure that the light of God’s kingdom is clearly seen.  How do we do this? By living, witnessing, practicing, the two great commandments.  Which as we all know are, “Love the Lord your God and love your neighbor as yourself”.  These are hard to do, and I don’t know about you, but there are times I have some sympathy with the people complaining to Isaiah. Of course the answer he gives is what we expect, but it still human to gripe – perhaps not much has changed in the past few thousand years.

When we look at our lives, do we see instances of where we have been living in such a way that the glory of God can shine like a light on hill?  Are we willing to do this so the healing will appear?  I suspect the answer is no.

Now I know that we will tell ourselves that there is more we have to do to show the light of the Kingdom.  And while this is probably true, we also need to remember that it is important to keep a balance - a perspective on what we can personally achieve. Like the balance with salt, we need to know how, where and how our light shines.  It’s OK to get others to help us light and show the beacon, to take the basket off the light, rather than trying to do it all by ourselves.  We are a community and it’s through our joint lives, our witness together that we show the light of the Kingdom of God.

So in the next few weeks, give some thought to how you as an individual, and we as community can help others to see the light and grace of God’s kingdom.

Amen.