Reflexion, A Spiritual Community

 Reading the stories of Jesus,

Have you ever wished you could hear the tone of his voice?
- for instance, I imagine a note of disappointment or sadness when says,
“Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip?”
• Philip was one of the first disciples to follow Jesus
◦ so he’s traveled with him as long or longer than the others
◦ if anyone should know Jesus, it’s Philip
• Jesus has comple...

For some theologians and many believers,

Paul’s letter to the Romans is the heart of the Christian faith
- but what they see as the central message isn’t my favorite part
• chapter 8 and this chapter speak directly to our need
• that is, our connection to God and life in the Spirit
◦ then chapter 14, where we learn what living our faith looks like in practice
- a natural division occurred in churches of the Roman...

Do you have a favorite psalm; for instance, Psalm 23?

Whether one psalm speaks to me and another one doesn’t,
- depends a lot on my mood at the time I read them
• the Psalms are moody, and some of them match my mood perfectly
• whenever a psalm speaks to me, it’s effect is palpable
◦ it not only gives me something to think about,
◦ but also stirs up significant feelings
- the Psalms speak to our frustrations,...

Jesus crossed an international border looking for rest

Matthew says, he “went away” and “withdrew”
- he needed space where he was free from the desperate crowds
• care givers have to be careful to care for themselves
• otherwise burn out can take out a care giver
◦ during this brief respite, Jesus and disciples were off the clock
- last thing they wanted was to hear the cry of a Gentile woman
• Jesus buries h...

My grandchildren have been helping me with social media, by interpreting a slew of new acronyms

Acronyms are abbreviations for phrases, titles, or names, using only the first letters of each word
- for instance, USA, BTW, or RFK
• acronyms look strange, initially
◦ a popular political insult is RINO: Republican In Name Only
• this came to mind when reading a quote by Justin Martyr
◦ a first century philosopher wh...

We’re nearing the end of Jesus’ Sermon

I think we must admit, there have been surprises along the way
- but it has been a journey of wonder, skirting the edges of the kingdom of God
• at the same time, the Lord has exposed us, to truth that is deep and difficult
• so, what does Jesus want to say to us this morning?
- though he’s never one to sugarcoat the hard things, Jesus is being rather blunt, don’t you think?

Before we explore what Jesus is saying in these verses,

There are three issues that need to be addressed
First:
- belonging to a church family can sometimes be devastating
• I’ve met people whose first real family was their church
◦ it became their lifeline, until one day it fractured
◦ an angry and hostile faction split the church
• those on sidelines were so disillusioned, and so hurt,
◦ they never vent...

Every Easter, until COVID, my dad would host a Sunrise Service
(First at the Pacific Amphitheater and later the Verizon Amphitheater)
And most every year he would tell the same story; this one about Mary Magdalene
  - you might expect people to say, “Oh no, not this story again,” 
    ~ but instead it was, “Oh! This is one of my favorite sermons”
    ~ about forty years ago, a Sunrise Service was held at San Cle...

John 12:1-8

INTRO: I know this is Palm Sunday and I read the wrong story

However, this is like an introduction to this big occasion, because 

  Jesus came to stay in the home of his friends the day before his grand entrance

   - by the time he reached Bethany, his ministry was winding down

    ~ when we read to the end of this chapter, 

         We come to the end of Jesus’ service to the crowds (in John’s Gospel)

    ~ they will hear not...

You may hear something today you haven’t heard before

So I’m going to try to make this as clear as possible
- we need to consider the larger context that surrounds and informs verses 12-14
• not only the context of this chapter, but in Jesus’ entire Sermon
- the first big idea is this:
• the key to interpreting these verses is love
• it may not look like it at first, so we jump to other verses to shed light on th...

Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened Matthew 7:7-8

Intro: Before we explore what God has for us in these verses,

We need to address a misconception about what Jesus is promising
- reading these verses closely, something piqued my curiosity
• in verse 7 Jesus encour...

Judge not, that yo be not judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measured you use it will be measured to you. Matthew 7:1-2

Intro: Until recently, whenever I came to this chapter I felt lost

I was able to follow the continuity of Jesus’ Sermon this far,
- but I was not able to see how chapter 7 fit with what came before it
• I assumed that our Lord chose to add these random lessons as an ...

Did you know, many Christians avoid the Sermon On the Mount?

The problem is that they misread the Sermon
- they think Jesus demands a perfection that is beyond us
• what actually happens in the Sermon is that it empowers us
◦ we learn the way of sincerity, integrity, and mercy
• whatever else it might mean to be Christian,
◦ above all, it means to be a “good person”
◦ loving, caring, helping, serving
- I ...

Jesus is explaining and extending what he had said in verse 21
“For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also”

In scripture, the heart can have several meanings
- here, it isn’t the physical organ that pumps blood through our bodies
• nor is it exclusively the seat of our feelings or emotions
• here the heart is the central hub of our entire inner life
◦ our perspectives, perceptions, and assumptions<...

We’re still in the Sermon On the Mount,

But I’m going to begin by reading a of couple verses from Psalm 139
- this is one of the very popular Psalms
• its beautiful and haunting poetry are easy for us to follow
◦ and at the same time, carries us from heights of the heavens
◦ and depths of the ocean, to the abyss of our own souls
• it begins:
“ O LORD, you have searched me and known me!”
◦ but then it ends...

This week I met with Harry Robinson – a few of you may know him

He is a man of God and a visionary, and for awhile we worked together
- he is also someone I love and respect
• during our long, rambling conversation, Harry said something that woke me up
• he said, “I’ve been finding beauty lately–everywhere”
- it seems I need to be awakened to beauty
• friends do this for me – though they don’t always know it
...

Jesus has given the world this incredible prayer

Recited every day and prayed in almost every language,
- it contains the essence of what everyone needs to say to God and ask of him
• and yet, when Jesus taught this prayer to his disciples,
◦ it was in a side comment he felt needed to be included
• up to this point, Jesus theme beginning in verse 1 was, "Don’t advertise your spiritual devotion and service to God...

The next point of Jesus’ sermon has to do with prayer

I don’t think you need me to teach you anything about prayer
- one year in Russia, an orphan tried to teach me the alphabet
• but she gave up on me – there was just one letter, I could not pronounce well enough to please her
◦ I couldn’t even hear the sound she was making when she said the letter
• prayer isn’t like that– prayer is the native language of every chi...