Reflections on “Now What” Acts 5: 27-32

We had a live sermon illustration after the sermon when the confirmands professed their faith in Jesus Christ and joined the church.  That event brings with it lots of energy, particularly this year when many of the confirmands had been baptized as infants in the same congregation.  

I try to personalize the sermon to the confirmands each year.  In a technical way, I personalize it by calling them by name in the sermon.  Thematically, I do different things depending on the year.  This sermon grew out of some of the questions and challenges the confirmands had throughout the year.   

I had originally intended to connect the Revelation passage's mention of Jesus as a witness with Peter saying they were witnesses, but that did not make it to the sermon.  If I preached the sermon again, I would probably make note of the Holy Spirit reference in the Acts passage.  Either of those changes might have strengthened the sermon yesterday.

“Now What”  Revelation 1: 4-8; Acts 5: 27-32 April 28, 2019; Confirmation Sunday; St. Andrew Presbyterian Church, Richard B. Culp, 

Acts 5: 27-32  When they had brought them, they had them stand before the council. The high priest questioned them, 28 saying, “We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name,[a] yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and you are determined to bring this man’s blood on us.” 29 But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than any human authority. 30 The God of our ancestors raised up Jesus, whom you had killed by hanging him on a tree. 31 God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior that he might give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. 32 And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey him.”

Introduction:  

Greta, Claudia, Charlie, Jacob, Macy, Audrey, Hanna, Caroline, Annie

this sermon is for you as you finish your confirmation experience, and you do not even have to outline it!

Today completes your confirmation experience with you standing before the congregation and professing your faith in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior and making a commitment to serve as his disciples in the world.

After standing up here, looking out at the congregation, and professing your faith in Christ, when you leave church today, you might ask yourself, “now what?”

No more sermon outlines; no more daily Bible readings; no more meetings with your mentor; no more reflection questions; so “now what?"

A question that has both concrete implications,  as in now what are you going to do with the little bit of extra time each week; but also in more of a theological implication, as in “now what does it mean about God and God’s claim on my life?”

In fact, “now what?” is the question the early followers of Christ faced as they tried to figure out how to respond to the resurrection.

“Now what?” for them also had concrete and theological implications as well for them. 

“Now what?” were they supposed to do in response to the Christ no longer being dead, but resurrected.

And “now what?” did it say about God and what God was doing in their lives. 

The book of Acts, which is formally titled, “the Acts of the Apostles” reveals how those early followers answered the question “now what?”

So let’s look at for a few minutes at the passage we read this morning from Acts to get a couple of clues of you might answer the question “now what?’  maybe soon we’ll be writing the next book entitled, “the acts of the confirmands!”

Move 2:  “We must obey God rather than any human authority.”

a. That’s what Peter and the apostles tell the council when they are brought before them and questioned as to why they are acting as they are.

1.  they had been told not to teach in the name of Jesus Christ and for sure not to be teaching about resurrection.

2.  I suppose they could have told fun stories about Jesus — remember that day we were walking to Jerusalem;  or remember eating with all the people that day — but no teaching in the name of Jesus or talking about resurrection.

3.  Those thoughts got people excited, got them riled up as they began to wonder about what God was doing in their lives; how they could be new creations with lots of possibilities; made them wonder what else God could do since God could even overcome death.

3.  the religious authorities want to put to a stop to that kind of thinking, so they had told the followers of Christ not to teach in his name or talk about resurrection.

4.  But Peter and the apostles had kept on teaching in the name of Jesus.

5.  When challenged again, Peter is not particularly belligerent in his response.  He is not trying to prove a point or seize power from the council.

4.   He simply notes that their obligation is to follow God, not follow the orders of the council.

c.  You profess your faith in Jesus Christ today.

1. Not in some generic way - but in his name.  

3.  You link your life with him.

4.  As you profess your faith today and lay claim to your calling as a disciple of Christ, you are declaring that your ultimate obedience is to God, whom you have come to know through Jesus Christ.

c.  that does not mean you no longer have to obey your parents.

2. Or that the rules at school no longer apply.

3.  or that the laws that govern us no longer have authority over you.

4.  Peter and the apostles were not trying to get around rules and obligations but were trying to explain how everything they did now grows out of their belief in the God who resurrects. 

5.  you will soon publicly declare your commitment to following Christ.

6.  A commitment that when you make decisions about how you will act, or what you will for or not do, or what you want to do with your life, you also will see it as a response to the God who resurrects.

d.    When we baptize infants in this congregation, we often note that the parents have all sorts of hopes and dreams for the baby, but in that moment they do not know what the future will hold for their child. 

1.  we do know that one desire of the parents and the community of faith is for the baby to grow up to profess Jesus Christ as his or her Lord and Savior.

2. Today you have grown up to that point.

3. YOu confirm the vows your parents made at your baptism.

4.  Your parents may have a little bit better idea of how you are as a person (or maybe you have them more confused now than when you were a baby being baptized).  Either way, your future is still uncertain.

4.  There is still no telling what you might do or who you might become.  Your future is full of endless possibilities.

5.  But, today you announce to the world that you have decided whatever you do or become, God will be a part of it, and you will look to God for guidance and live your life as a follower of Christ.

Move 3:  We also hear Peter tell the council, “we are witnesses to these things.”

a.  Trying to figure out the “now what” question when it comes to “I professed my faith in Jesus Christ, now what?” can be rather intimidating.

1.  That’s fair.

2.  Choosing to follow Jesus Christ is a big deal.

3.  That’s fair.  Bring to figure out exactly what it means to believe in God or follow Jesus may be overwhelming to us.

4. It will certainly shift over time, so we continually have to rethink what we believe and how we see God at work in our lives and the world.

b.  I think Peter gives us a great way of thinking about how we respond — we act as witnesses.

1.  You do not have to have it figured out perfectly.  

2.  You do not have to have the one correct answer.

3.  You do not have to convince anyone about who Jesus Christ is.

3.  You can act like a witness who has seen something worth telling.

4. Like when you see some weird thing happen in the hallway at school and you tell your friends about it when you get to class.  You may not know exactly what took place.  But you know what you saw.

5.  You may not know everything there is to know about God or following Jesus Christ, but you know how you have seen God at work; you know what it means for you that Christ is resurrected - so you tell others what you have experienced.

c.  Witnessing, of course, is more than telling - it is how you live your life.

1.  There is a story told about a Civil War chaplain (you all, of course, know that St. Andrew first started during the time fo the Civil War) who encountered a wounded man in the battlefield.  “Would you like to hear a few verses of Scripture?” he asked.  “No sir, but I am thirsty.  Could I please have some water?”  After giving him some water, the chaplain again asked about reading a few verses of Scripture.  “No sir, not now, but could you put something under my head.”   The chaplain did so and then asked again about reading Scripture.  “No sir, but I’m cold.  Could you cover me up?”   the chaplain took off his overcoat and placed it over the wounded man.  This time he did not ask about reading scripture and started to walk away.  But the soldier called after him, “Look, chaplain, if there’s anything in that book of your that makes a person do for another what you’ve done for me, then I want to hear it.”  Carlos Wilton, “A Witness for the Defense,”  Theological Web Publishing, LLC, 

2.  Witnessing through action.

3.  As I listened to you share your faith statements Wednesday night with the Session, I was struck how you each connected your belief in God with your own life - whether it be dancing, or your family’s history, or the stars in the skies, or camp experience, or your conversations with parents, or youth group, or mission opportunities, you showed how your beliefs showed up in the particularity of your lives.  

4.  how you live your lives, both your actions and your words,  you do and say at school, on the soccer or football fields, at dance, in band,  wherever you find yourself each day - will be your witness to what you believe God has done and is doing in the world.

Conclusion:  Now what?  Now you live into the incredible possibilities God puts before you - before you Annie, and you Greta, and you Charlie, and you Jacob, and you Hanna, and you Audrey, and you Macy, and you Claudia, and before you Caroline -  as you all witness in the name of Jesus Christ.

Reflections on "He is risen, indeed" Easter Sunday, I Corinthians 15: 19-26; Luke 24:1-12

Easter Sunday was the last sermon on rituals.  We reflected on the ritual of greeting one another wiht "Chirst is risen."  "he is risen, indeed."  I instructed the congregation to say, "He is rsien, indeed," any time they heard "Christ is risen" in the sermon.  Not sure how well it worked (it might ahve gotten old), but they kept doing it thorughout the sermon.  the poin, of course, is to have that phrase etched in their minds by the end of the sermon.

For the seventeen years prior to coming to St. Andrew, I preached two services every Sunday.  In the last 2.5 years here, I have only preached on service.  It took me awhile to adjust to only preaching one serivce.  Yesterday, was back to two services, and I realized I have fully adjusted to one service, since preaching a sermon twice seemed odd.

I did have two different endings to the two sermons.  The first one is the full text below.  At the second service, I stopped the sermon before teh conclusion.  I had not decided that when I began the seond sermon, but the mood felt right to finish the sermon before the written conclusion.  I think it did work better, and it saved a minute or two in a very full service!

“He is risen, indeed” Easter, 2019; St. Andrew; Richard B. Culp; I Corinthians 15: 19-26; Luke 24; Lenten series on rituals, 2019

If for this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied. But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have died.[a] 21 For since death came through a human being, the resurrection of the dead has also come through a human being; 22 for as all die in Adam, so all will be made alive in Christ. 23 But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ. 24 Then comes the end,[b] when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father, after he has destroyed every ruler and every authority and power. 25 For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. 26 The last enemy to be destroyed is death.

Introduction:  Rituals during Lent, holy week, now we finish on Easter morning with the Ritual of greeting one another that goes back to the earliest days of the Christian church.

 Christ is Risen!  He is Risen, indeed!

We will not only reflect on the ritual, but use it to see who is still awake during the sermon.  Anytime you hear me say, Christ is risen - you reply with He is risen, indeed!

Christ is risen - he is risen indeed.

Ok, let’s get started with the sermon.

Move 1:  Christ is Risen - He is risen indeed!  is a ritual that gives us permission to believe in the resurrection without fully understanding the resurrection.

a.  this ritual goes back to the early church.

1.  In fact, the early church traces the origin of this ritual to a story that takes place just a few days after they had discovered the empty tomb.  

2.  Read a little farther in the gospel of Luke and you will read the story of a some of the followers of Christ on the road to Emmaus.  They are accompanied by a stranger who asks them “What’s been happening in Jerusalem?”

They tell him the exciting, hard to believe news, “the Lord has risen, indeed!”

3.  With those words, we discover they had settled on their story -  the tomb was empty, so Christ must be raised from the dead.  God had transformed death into life.

4. So they come up with a short way of describing what has happened.  think the brevity of a  Tweet — “the Lord has risen, indeed.”

4.  they clearly did not understand fully what they said.  After all the stranger walking with them to whom they were sharing the news was indeed the resurrected  Christ.

5.  but they were forming the basis of their Christian belief.  even if they cannot fully explain the empty tomb, they can step out in faith and lay claim to the resurrection — “Christ is risen.  he is risen, indeed.

b.  We arrive here for Easter worship for a myriad of reasons.

1.  You know why you are here.

2. But I think all of us at some level looking for something more, hoping to discover anew God’s transforming power.

3. That’s what Paul is getting at in his letter to the Corinthians. 

4.  Christ being raised from the dead brings a new power to bear.

5.  the power to turn death into life.

4.  The power to give hope in the face of what seems hopeless.

5. the power to change our lives.

6.  You do not have to name it exactly, nor explain it completely. 

7. But our Easter morning ritual gives voice to our belief that becomes the hope in which we live and die, accompanied by the resurrected one.

Move 2: Christ is Risen -  he is risen, indeed  is a ritual that reminds us of the possibilities the resurrection opens for us.

a.  Paul reminds us that the empty tomb has greater meaning than just the reality of the empty tomb.

1.  As amazing as the empty tomb and the resurrection of Christ are, the implications are even greater.  

2. God has changed the trajectory of the world.

3.  Final death is no longer the end game.

4. Transformation, new life, and eternal life are bigger and scarier than the empty tomb sitting there with the stone rolled back. 

b.  Barbara Brown Taylor suggests why the followers of Christ were scared by the empty tomb.  

1.  They knew what to do with a dead body. 

3.  They knew how to prepare the body for burial with spices and ointment. 

4.  They knew how to grieve the death of someone. 

5.  The dead body might bring tears to their eyes as sadness overwhelmed them, but they knew what to do with a dead body. 

6.  but what strikes fear in them is the discovery that there is no body.

7.  Christ has been raised from the dead. their reality and their world had been changed (Barbara Brown Taylor's Easter sermon preached in April 16,2006, at Cannon Chapel , Emory University, as shared in Journal for Preachers, Easter, 2008, p. 13)  

c.  To believe in the God of resurrection means surrendering yourself to the future possibilities.

1. Eleanor of Aquitaine, wife of King Henry II of England says, “In a  world where carpenters get resurrected, anything can happen.”  “Living the Word, Christian Century, 4/18/12.  The line is from Act I, Scene 4, of James Goldman's play "The Lion in Winter," 

2.   it could mean embracing death with confidence in the promise of eternal life.

3.  It means reading about the bombs exploding in Sri Lankan churches on Easter morning and not just grieving the death of brothers and sisters in Christ, but still hoping in the future God puts before us.

3. Or it could be mean moving through your grief in the assurance that the joy of Christ waits for you.

2.  it could mean making the changes necessary in your life to allow you to grow into the person God is calling you to be.

3.  It could mean seizing the new opportunity that is so scary you cannot even imagine going for it.

4.  It could move breaking away from the brokenness you have known and accepted to remake yourself in the way you hear God calling you to do.

5.  Laying claim to the resurrection means turning yourself over to the God of endless possibilities. 

Christ is risen.  he is risen, indeed.

Move 3:  Christ is risen - He is risen indeed, is a ritual that began, and perhaps is best understood,  one-on-one or in in a small group.

a.   News of the empty tomb was first shared by the women who told the disciples - a few witnesses telling a couple of people.

1.  note the disciples did not believe at first, but then they see the empty tomb.

2. what do they do?  They go tell a few other disciples. 

3.  Perhaps words spoken quietly so no one else around heard.

4.  Perhaps said with a hug or a kiss, joyfully confirming the words spoken.

3.  But shared one-on-one or in a small group like those first followers on the road to Emmaus.

4. As the ritual developed through the early church, it became a greeting shared between believers, not just on Easter morning greeting, but any time.   

5.  a quick way of identifying who you were to another person, with whom you shared this incredible hope.

b.  As we reflect on this ritual, it reminds us that the first Easter gathering was not a public gathering.

1.  Now, of course, Easter is a big event.

2. community Easter egg hunts.

3. . Big crowds at church.

4.   We announce Christ is Risen….he is risen, indeed as a group greeting.

b. But that first Easter Jesus did not go public.

1. there were were no crowds to witness the resurrection.

2. The story could have played out differently.  Think about it - the resurrected Christ could have made a public splash by walking in Pontius Pilate's office and saying: “I am here to see Governor Pilate, please.” “I’m sorry, sir, is the governor expecting you?” “No, I’m pretty sure he’s not expecting me.”

3. or Jesus could have have taken his resurrected self down to the Temple and paraded around, pointing to the chief priests and asking, “what do you think about your arguments against me now.”

4.  or he could have gone to the barracks of the Romans soldiers and asked if those who had gambled for his clothes and won could give them back.
(this thought on Jesus appearing publicly was shared by Tom Are, in his sermon “Resurrection Choices,” preached a Village Presbyterian, Prairie Village, KS, on April 15, 2015)

c. Jesus does not go public with a big splash. 

1.  Instead he turns to his followers and invites them to believer;  he turns to us, and invites us to believe; he turns to you, and you, and you, and invites you to believe.

1. “here I am,” he says. “Back from the dead. Believe it.  let me transform your life.  Join me in my death and my resurrection.

************In the second service, the sermon ended here with me saying, "Christ is risen" and the congregation responding "he is risen, indeed."

2.  Every time we share our Ester morning ritual, we acknowledge the resurrection claim’s on each of us in a  very particular way.  

Conclusion: A final thought.  In Springfield, OH, a town about 25 minutes from where I lived and served a church before coming to St. Andrew, they had one of the most beautiful cemeteries I have ever seen.

Not majestic like Arlington National Cemetery, but a huge cemetery with giant trees and beautiful flowers.  I did several graveside services there through the years, and it always felt like a scene from a movie.  

As you can imagine, it was a popular place for people to come walk.  At one of the graveside services, the daughter-in-law of the deceased told me about living near the cemetery.  She told me how she would walk her young kids through the cemetery and when they were learning to read, would stop and help them red the names and information on the gravestones.  it was one of her kids’ favorite activities.

She told me that one day they were walking along reading gravestones, and they came upon a gravestone where the someone named Lord was buried.

Her daughter read the name.  Lord.  

She immediately looked up at her mother and said, “So that’w where Jesus is buried.”

But we know the truth.  We announce it to the world today.  We live in hope with it everyday.

Christ is risen.  He is risen, indeed.  Amen.

Reflections on “Palms and Passion” Matthew 21: 1-10 and Matthew 27: 11-14; 24-31

This was another collaborative sermon between the Associate Pastor and me.  We have done at least four of these in the 2.5 years I have been here.  They have been well-received by the congregation.  We have developed a pattern where we figure out the talking points, go to our separate corners and write our parts, then come back together and talk through the sermon, which leads to lots of edits and a coming together of certain themes or phrases to ties the sections together.  For me, the work on the sermon does not change much.  In fact, it makes me get it together earlier in the week.  For the Associate Pastor, however, it adds extra work to her week (plus, she has to deal with me more than usual!).

We chose to do a collaborative sermon because the sermon series during Lent has been on rituals, and during the worship, we lifted up two rituals - the waving of palm branches and the stripping of the church.  It seemed to fit well with a collaborative sermon.  

The music was outstanding today, which always makes the sermon and worship better.

I learned that the stripping of the church ritual was also connected to the pattern of "tearing down" the sanctuary after Maundy Thursday to prepare for the Good Friday service.  Somewhere along the way, the act of changing over the sanctuary became ritualized into a formal part of the worship.  I did not use that tidbit of information in this sermon, but will use it at a future date.  

“Palms and Passion”  Sunday, April 14, 2019; Matthew 21: 1-10 and Matthew 27: 11-14; 24-31  Richard Culp and Lisa Patterson; St. Andrew Presbyterian Church

Richard:  Our Scripture readings today are two familiar stories.

Lisa:  First, the story of Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem from the Gospel of Matthew.

Richard:  Then a portion of the passion story also from the Gospel of Matthew.

Lisa:  Listen for God’s Word:  21When they had come near Jerusalem and had reached Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, ²saying to them, ‘Go into the village ahead of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her; untie them and bring them to me. ³If anyone says anything to you, just say this, “The Lord needs them.” And he will send them immediately.’ ⁴This took place to fulfill what had been spoken through the prophet, saying, 
⁵ ‘Tell the daughter of Zion,
Look, your king is coming to you,
   humble, and mounted on a donkey,
     and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’ 

Richard: Now Jesus stood before the governor; and the governor asked him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” Jesus said, “You say so.” ¹² But when he was accused by the chief priests and elders, he did not answer. ¹³ Then Pilate said to him, “Do you not hear how many accusations they make against you?” ¹⁴ But he gave him no answer, not even to a single charge, so that the governor was greatly amazed.

 ⁶The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them; ⁷they brought the donkey and the colt, and put their cloaks on them, and he sat on them. ⁸A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. ⁹The crowds that went ahead of him and that followed were shouting,
‘Hosanna to the Son of David!
   Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!
Hosanna in the highest heaven!’ 

Richard: So when Pilate saw that he could do nothing, but rather that a riot was beginning, he took some water and washed his hands before the crowd, saying, “I am innocent of this man’s blood;^[k] see to it yourselves.” ²⁵ Then the people as a whole answered, “His blood be on us and on our children!” ²⁶ So he released Barabbas for them; and after flogging Jesus, he handed him over to be crucified.

¹⁰When he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was in turmoil, asking, ‘Who is this?’¹¹The crowds were saying, ‘This is the prophet Jesus from Nazareth in Galilee.’

Richard: Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the governor’s headquarters,^[l]and they gathered the whole cohort around him. ²⁸ They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, ²⁹ and after twisting some thorns into a crown, they put it on his head. They put a reed in his right hand and knelt before him and mocked him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” ³⁰ They spat on him, and took the reed and struck him on the head. ³¹ After mocking him, they stripped him of the robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him away to crucify him.

 Move 1:

Lisa:   Did you see the parade? I hope you didn’t miss it. The children in the choir lined up in the narthex and led it into the church. You were up here reading about it, but I got to be in the parade!

Palm/Passion Sunday includes one of our favorite rituals. We hold our palms high and wave them to honor Jesus, our king.  Today we get to use our outside voices, inside, and hold a parade right down the middle of the church on the red carpet. The kids are better at all of this than the adults, but we have the opportunity to enjoy the parade just as much as the children do.

AS we read the story about the shouting and the joy, we try to feel that same excitement today when we wave the palms and have the parade. Today, we want to be a part of this parade.

Richard:  Having Palm Sunday’s liturgy split with passion Sunday has been a suggestion for quite a few years.  I always thought it was kind of silly, to tell you the truth.  It seemed redundant to me to have the stripping of the church and a passion theme on Palm Sunday when Good Friday was just a few days away.

But, I have shifted in my thinking for two reasons.  One, not everyone gets back to church for the Good Friday Tenebrae service with its darkness, betrayal, and story of the brutal crucifixion.  If we move from the joyous waving of palm branches and shouts of hosanna directly to the joyous celebration of resurrection, we have lost some sense of how awful, how sorrowful, how hopeless Christ’s death on the cross was, which also means we miss some of the power of God’s life-transforming, world-altering act of resurrection.

Also, the swift transition from waving palms to stripping the church reflects in some ways how quickly the disciples shifted in their allegiance.  One minute they are sharing the Passover supper with Jesus; just a few minutes later they are literally (and figuratively) in the dark at the Garden of Gethsemane; and in just a few hours, Peter is denying Christ three times. 

In our worship today, a litany and hymn abruptly shift our focus from the ritual of waving palm branches and shouting hosanna to darkness and shouts of “Crucify him.”  A reminder of how fleeting our faith can be and how easily we turn from Christ.

Move 2:

Lisa (move to piano side at tip of carpet):  The children started asking Jannette Hindman about waving the palms weeks ago. They were full of anticipation and excitement because they knew all about the ritual of waving palms and having a parade. They knew they would be leaders today in worship waving the palms, leading the parade, and singing.

I love this day because we don’t hold back showing our joy for fear of being too loud or exuberant. (hard pause)

That is hard for me.

Although as good Presbyterians, you weren’t as exuberant as you could have been!

We learned to use our inside voices a long, long time ago.

I want to be just as excited. I know Holy Week is coming, but I don’t want to lose the joy and energy of this moment, because Jesus is a part of this parade – today’s parade in Denton, Texas. I want us to wave our palms and show Jesus that we are all in – that his people are ready to praise, shout, and join the parade every year. Today, this moment, is the time to memorize and shout the words, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” “Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!” “Hosanna in the highest!”

Richard – In a little while, we will engage in the ritual of stripping the church.  As we sing the final hymn, some of the youth will come forward, tip over the candlestick holders, tilt the baptismal font, and cover the communion Table and font with black.  It symbolizes the darkness of betrayal and death that will soon arrive

The ritual of stripping the church claims its name from the moment when the soldiers humiliated Jesus by stripping him of his clothes and putting a robe on him and a crown of thorns on his head. Later, they strip him of his robe and put his clothes back on him.  In their actions, the point is made – the soldiers can do what they want with Jesus.  He chooses to give up his power in the moment.  The helplessness of Jesus on full display as the soldiers strip him of his clothes and his dignity and lord their earthly power over him. 

When you hear this story, perhaps your recognize in yourself the soldiers who help strip Jesus; or maybe you see yourself more like Peter, who denies he even knows Christ;  or perhaps you imagine yourself more like the other disciples who disappear from sight at this point in the story.  Wherever you find yourself in the story, the darkness prevails and reminds each of us that the whole world turned against Christ that night.

On Good Friday we lay claim to the darkness of the crucifixion, but in stripping the church today we provide a visual symbol of the dark moment when Jesus gave up his power and submitted to the sin and power of the world; the dark moment that moves us toward the cross.

Move 3:

Lisa (move to chancel pulpit side):   

When the people celebrated Christ’s entry into Jerusalem thousands of years ago, they get it right. Jesus sent the disciples on a mission to get when he needed, and they didn’t hesitate. They handed over their fear, their need to control, their hesitancy to act. They went and got the donkey and colt and brought them to Jesus.

The people get it right when, in joy and excitement, they hand over their coats, throwing them on the donkey and then on the ground for Jesus, their king.

The people get it right when they waved branches, spread them on the road and shouted, “Hosanna” “Blessed is the One who comes in the name of the Lord!” “Hosanna in the highest!”

They get it right when they answered who is he by saying, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.”

I think we can get it right, too, when we won’t be silent. We get it right when we stand with Jesus who is standing for those on the margins, with no power, no privilege, and no voice. We get it right when we use our voices to praise Jesus and to speak for the people who can’t shout because of their fear and unwillingness to draw attention to themselves.

The people get it right so many years ago when they let their voices of joy be heard throughout the city witnessing to the one who rode in on a donkey. The parade was loud, the people unrestrained in their joy. The parade was for everyone! Still a reason to shout with exuberance.

Richard:  Jesus gets it right when he submits to the humiliation of the world.  By getting it right, I mean he lives out his calling as God’s way of transforming the world by offering a new way of understanding power – the way of love that responds with vulnerability and peace, instead of reacting with violence and bloodshed.

Jesus gets it right when his actions set the stage for both crucifixion and resurrection.  He knows that to discover the power of resurrection, there first has to be a death. And he accepts that he is the one who must die.

We get it right when we hear the crowds shouting “crucify him, crucify” and recognize our complicity in the sins of the world instead of pointing out all those others who turned away from Jesus.  If we only blame others, we never recognize our need to turn back to God and change our ways. 

We get it right when we look to the darkness of the world and see Christ there with us, calling us to join him in turning darkness into light.  Our world knows the darkness; we know the power of Christ; our calling is to be part of God’s light shining in the darkness.

We get it right when we find ourselves in the midst of the darkness and still hope for what is to come next. 

Conclusion:

Lisa:  Jesus asks us to hand over our hesitancy to follow because we need to follow.

Richard:  When we see the darkness, we seek God’s forgiveness and look for the God who will transform the darkness.