Lent 2 year a 2014

1 LENT 2 YEAR A 2014 Words have incredible power, Words can be used cruel manner and cause great hurt; a well-placed word can be of great reassurance; words can also be used to bring great comfort and hope.

St James in his letter recognised the power of words when he spoke about the power of the tongue: i.e. the power of a spoken word: he wrote; “So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great exploits. How great a forest is set ablaze by a small fire! And the tongue is a fire. The tongue is placed among our members as a world of iniquity; it stains the whole body, sets on fire the cycle of nature, and is itself set on fire by hell.”

One of the best known “words” from the Gospels is John 3:16………….but it should always be connected to the next verse, because of its comprehensiveness.

John 3.16-17 ‘For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.

‘Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him”.

Listen again to these words: “that the world might be saved through him”. God in Christ does not just reach out to individuals; he reaches out to all humankind and to the creation itself.

Last week I spoke about “The Fall” and how death and decay entered into the whole created order.

Not only was the relationship between Adam, Eve and God broken, but the relationship between human kind and the creation was damaged.

We see the results of this as we look at the world about us.

Pollution is very real, and yet we seem to just take it for granted. I am not going to get into the Climate Change debate; Climate change has been a continuous feature of our planet’s life; but the polluting of the atmosphere that goes on day by day around the world affects so much - plants and animals, humans: just look at the reports we hear and see of Beijing – some days it is just too injurious to one’s health to go outside. Look at the pollution of our waterways; look how far up the Yarra river you have to go for clear water.

In Australia in our earlier years trees were ripped out to provide pasture for cattle. Somewhat belatedly we now realise that tree bands around paddocks boosts production by 10% and more.

The drilling for the East West link has found soils that are terribly polluted from earlier industrial/gas activity.

Again the words: “that the world might be saved through him”; the Good News is not just addressed to individual humans but the Good News is for the whole creation. A genuine concern for the environment is not an optional extra; it is part of our commitment to the Good News.

One of the heresies of our modern Christian era is the focus on the individual and what is termed “personal salvation”. And whilst the individual and their relationship with God is vital, so too is our common life and our relationship with the whole creation, which all too often is lost in modern western Christian practice.

The all-embracing nature of God’s call is found at the very beginnings of Israel’s life. God called Abram to leave his home and journey to a land which God would give to him. And God’s word to Abram was: “and in you all the families of the earth will be blessed”. Again, God’s intention in calling Abraham is much broader than to establish a nation: Israel, Any true reading of the words show that God’s intention is to restore the whole creation; a vision that many in contemporary Israel have lost sight of, with the resultant conflict with the Palestinian people. But that is a whole other subject.

Again the word: “that the world might be saved through him”. How?

2 What do we have to do? That is an age old question; and in our human pride we like to think that by the virtue of good works, or by our obedience to the law can put ourselves right with God. But as Paul makes very clear in his letter to the Romans the gift of salvation is just that: it is God’s gift to those who put their faith in him and are baptised into Jesus’ death and resurrection.

John 3.14-15 “And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.”

Our restored relationship with God, our salvation, comes through what Jesus has done on the cross; it is GIFT, and like all gifts it has to be accepted and appropriated to oneself.

Dear old Nicodemus, a Pharisee, did not “get it”; over its history Israel, had lost the plot - they became convinced that through the works of the law they could win favour with God. But God was looking for a people who would love God and trust God. Go back and look at David; now, he was a very naughty boy, but just as he sinned greatly, he also repented openly and genuinely, he knew he had nothing to go with other than God’s mercy and forgiveness. He understood what Paul would write almost a thousand years later: “by grace you are saved.”

Do you find it hard living a thorough going Christian life?

I know I do.

But we must try, we must persist, allowing God to nudge us, lead us, gift us; we won’t always get it right – but I love giving the best shot I can.

About 30 years ago my parish started up a young mum’s group in a town in South Gippsland. A young mum came along, very wary of God talk, but liked the socialising. She loved a beer a bit too much as well. Any way something attracted her, slowly, slowly she came to a living faith, a couple of weeks ago she was ordained a Deacon, and she is the rock in her small town Western District Church.

So, to draw it to a conclusion: We are called to live by faith, accepting the Gift of Life which God gives us, We are called to live as disciples and being open to all that God would lead us into.

Here, at HTK, where is God leading you, as you look to the future, you are on the hill, how will your light so shine, will Jesus be high and lifted up, or will people see an interesting pile of bluestone that is of historical interest, but of little else?

It is your call, your choice.