Preaching

Society today really does not like been reminded of when they are doing evil, like shipping off jobs to third world countries so that they can exploit them unseen to maximise profits, killing babies or old people. They say Christians, or the Church when they criticise these evil deeds and the evil people that do them are being judgemental. But it is the duty of the leadership of our Church to do so and our task as well in the exercise of our ministry even as laity and we share in the work entrusted to the ministerial priesthood and those entrusted to their care. Perhaps one of the the best models of this ministry that I have seen is in Psalm 50. I runs around 10 paragraphs and 8 of those lays out the necessary ongoing conversion and correct order of the Christian sinner's ministry and then in 2 paragraphs demonstrates that although this process is always ongoing, our own sinfulness as ministers should not paralyse us to confront the evil and evil doers in the world. This is because we are not presenting ourselves as the model for the way our world should be, but God. This imago Dei is fundamental to both the Old and New Testaments: We are called to love because we have been loved first. I think it is a beautiful and rich model for the priesthood, diaconate and even lay ministries. I have not included the whole psalm here, but the core verses to give the gist:

Have mercy on me, God in your kindness.
In your compassion blot out my offence.
O wash me more and more from my guilt
and cleanse me from my sin.

My offences truly I know them;
my sin is always before me.
Against you, you alone have I sinned;
what is evil in your sight I have done.

Indeed you love truth in the heart;
then in the secret of my heart teach me wisdom.
O purify me then I shall be clean;
O wash me I shall be whiter then snow.

A pure heart create for me, O God,
put a steadfast spirit within me.
Do not cast me away from your presence,
nor deprive me of your holy spirit.

Give me again the joy of your help;
with a spirit of fervour sustain me,
that I may teach transgressors your ways
and sinners may return to you.

O rescue me, God my helper,
and my tongue shall ring out your goodness.
O lord, open my lips
and my mouth shall declare your praise.

The Christian paradox

In my other blog, I wrote about how on the loss of Kirstin, we stood in raw grief before the God who had given her life and then claimed her back and it occurred to me that to an unbeliever, that must really come across as odd. It is a paradox, no getting away from it, but it is not a contradiction. Many writers have spoken about pride been at the source of all sin and our response, as human as it is, in the face of death is no different. We ask why? Assuming for a minute that there was an answer we could fully understand, what does that do? Does it comfort us? Does it undo the tragedy? Does it restore anything at all? No. But it gives us a sense of control. Most human events of significance prompt the questions: How did this happen? and then: Why did this happen? And often a host of people saying: We will get to the bottom of this! We will ensure it will not happen again! And this is a good thing - safety measures are put into place and prevent unnecessary future tragedies. But at its most basic, it is an attempt to control the future. So when death comes and we, as humans are faced with an event we cannot control or prevent, we flounder around and get angry. Perhaps we even think: 'if I was God, I would've done this or that.' We almost cannot stand knowing our own impotency. And yet it is not only useful, it is a necessary element of our Christian humility that we know this part of ourselves - our utter dependency. Yes we are Spirit-filled, etc. but all of this power comes from God within, not from within our own selves. And so surrender becomes a prayer of letting God be God. The prophet Habakkuk in that well known canticle really put it starkly and challenges us by his example:

For even though the fig does not blossom,
nor fruit grow on the vine,
even though the olive crop fail,
and fields produce no harvest,
even though flocks vanish from the folds
and stalls stand empty of cattle,
Yet I will rejoice in the Lord
and exult in God my Saviour.
The Lord my God is my strength.
(Habakkuk 3)