A sermon preached at Kowloon
Union Church on Sunday 25 January 2015, Third Sunday after the Epiphany, by
the Rev. Dr. John LeMond. The
scripture readings that day were Jonah
3:1-5, 1 Corinthians 7:29-31, Mark 1:14-20.
Repent, and believe in the good news.
These words of Jesus shape the Christian identity
Repent…believe…good news
In fact, we usually think of it this way:
Repent, believe in the good news, and…be saved!
Or even simply: repent and be saved
The words themselves do not contain a warning,
But a warning seems to be implied.
In fact, an implied threat accompanies these words of Jesus.
Repent, for…the end of the world is coming.
Repent, for…God is coming to judge you
Repent, or…die an eternal death.
I once participated in a dialogue with a Muslim scholar
And the subject that we both addressed was “salvation”.
We each spoke on the understanding of salvation
Within our own religious tradition.
I talked about the various ways that Christians understand
salvation
About the different theological understandings of the life,
death and resurrection of Jesus.
As part of my talk, I briefly mentioned the idea of life
after death:
“What’s going to happen to us when we die?”
And even though this was a very small part of my
presentation
And I could tell from the faces of those in the audience,
Both Christian and Muslim,
That when discussing the topic of salvation,
This was really
what people were interested in.
This was really
what they wanted an answer to:
Am I going to heaven or hell when I die?
Later, during the question and answer time
Someone raised this question specifically
The person wanted to know
From a Muslim perspective…and from a Christian perspective:
What is going to happen to me when I die.
When we hear the word Repent!
Our minds and hearts go immediately to this ultimate
question.
It is a command that elicits fear
Repent or perish!
We could gain the same perspective
From the readings from Jonah
And from Paul’s letter to the church at Corinth
Jonah walks through the streets of the great city of Nineveh
Calling the people to repentance
He shouts out to them, “Forty days more, and Nineveh shall
be overthrown.”
Of course, in this story, Jonah wants Nineveh to be overthrown
Even to be completely destroyed.
But he’s afraid that God might not be vengeful enough to
carry out this destruction.
And Paul, speaking to his brothers and sisters in the faith
Encourages them to be strong
In the time of testing that is going to come upon them
Marriage, possessions, the regular activities of life
Are all going to change.
Everything that we know and are familiar with
Everything that makes our lives normal
All of this is passing away…to destruction.
Repent…Jesus says…repent!
_______________________
How easily we assume that there is an implied threat is what
Jesus says.
How easily we reduce a message of blessing…
Into a black and white choice…
An either/or…of heaven or hell.
How easily we turn good
news into bad news.
Let’s read again verses 14 and 15 of Mark 1:
Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee,
Proclaiming the good
news of God,
And saying, "The time is fulfilled,
And the kingdom of God has come near;
Repent, and believe in the good news."
Surprisingly, there is no mention here of heaven or hell
There is no mention here of the end of time
There is no threat…implied or otherwise.
Unless we take the word “repent” to have threatening
connotations
We've surrounded "repentance" with all kinds of
ideas about the next life.
But it turns out that the word repent means something very
simple and ordinary.
It means to change one’s mind.
To change one’s way of thinking about something.
To repent means to turn around and go in a different
direction.
Jesus came, proclaiming the good news of God
What good news?
The good news that the world is coming to an end?
No.
The good news that…
The time is fulfilled,
the time is here, the time is now
That the kingdom of God has come near to us.
The kingdom of God is here.
Look and see!
In fact, look and see the world in a new way.
Everything has changed.
This is good news.
How will we choose to interpret the words of
Jesus in Scripture?
Jonah provides us with one example
For Jonah, repent meant: prepare to die
Because God is going to judge you harshly
God will find you guilty
And will destroy you.
Repent…for you are immoral and shameless and bad.
At least, that is the way Jonah would have interpreted
repentance…
If Jonah had been God.
Jonah was not God
But he wanted desperately to be God
Or at least to force his own will upon God.
Remember, God said to Jonah
Go to Nineveh and tell them to change
But Jonah fled from this mission
Because he was afraid that the people would change
He was afraid that God really did love them
And would have mercy on them.
He was afraid that God would be God
That God’s love would prevail,
And that Jonah’s condemnation
would fail.
Jonah shouted:
Repent…for in 40 days you’re all going to die.
God shouted:
Repent… and welcome the love and mercy of God.
Repent…and see the world in a new way.
The Apostle Paul understood this new way of seeing the world
He realized just how life changing it can be to change one’s
mind,
To turn around and to see the world in a completely new way.
Paul knew that this good news that Jesus had preached
Had brought about a profound change in the world
So profound that everything he had thought was normal had
changed.
So profound that Paul could say with confidence:
“The present form of this world is passing away.” Look! See!
Paul says: Imagine the most stable, unchanging, ageless
elements in life
Birth, death, marriage, work
And they all disappear
Imagine the things,
the possessions, that you most treasure in your life
And imagine all of these disappearing.
Gone. Vanished.
And…that something much more satisfying has come in their
place.
That is the good news of the kingdom of God.
Not that birth, death, marriage and work will cease to be
Not that the material things around us will disappear
But that the way we think about those things will change
completely
Will change to such a degree
That what we knew before…no longer seems to exist
Something much more fulfilling has taken its place.
_____________________
Jonah was afraid of what God had planned for him…
And what God had planned for others
He was satisfied with seeing our world the way he had always
seen it
So, in the end, it was Jonah who would not repent, change
his way of thinking.
It was Jonah who would not see the world in a new way
He became angry, and said finally to God—
The God who loved
the people of Nineveh
As much as he loved Jonah:
Just kill me.
I wish with all my soul to die,
Rather than to repent and think of things differently.
We live in this new reality as well…just as Jonah did.
Jesus comes proclaiming to us,
To you and to me,
The same good news of God.
Saying, "Brother, the time is now,
Sister, the kingdom of God is here
It is not far away
It is in you and with you.
It is not something you have to earn
It is something that already belongs to you
It is not a threat or a warning or intimidation
It is a gift.
Repent, and see…that the kingdom of God surrounds you
Open yourself to it.
Think differently, and see, that the love of God fills you
Share it.
Repentance leads not
to avoiding an eternal death.
Repentance leads seeing and living life in a new way.
In the unconditional love and grace of God
Repent! For the kingdom of God has come near.
Amen.
# posted by Kowloon Union Church : Sunday, January 25, 2015
A sermon preached at Kowloon
Union Church on Sunday 11 January 2015, First
Sunday after the Epiphany, by
the Rev. Dr. John LeMond. The
scripture readings that day were Isaiah 60:1-6; Ephesians
3:1-12; Matthew 2:1-12.
One of the most interesting aspects of this story
Is something that is unstated but is assumed
The scripture says there were three magi
Or kings; or wise men
They were the people of their civilization
Who looked into the mysteries of the universe.
They may have been considered philosophers
But philosophy during this period was not alienated/separated from
religion
In fact, it was very much a part of religion
There was no distinction between religion and philosophy
Seeking after the mysteries of the universe assumed the role of the gods
We don’t know where these people came from
But it is very likely from Persia (what is now Iran)
And that they were priests of the Zoroastrian religion
But it is not especially important that we know exactly who they were
It is important for us to know
that they were religious people
To know that they were neither Jews nor Romans
And that they had traveled a very long way to follow this important star
It was believed by many ancient peoples that a bright new star in the
sky
Was a sign of the birth of a great leader.
And so it was with the birth of Jesus
The one who the wise men indicated was to be king of the Jews
The shepherd of his people.
The thing that is assumed in
this passage is that
The religious leaders from the East had some important information
Some very important information
Information that had not yet been fully recognized
By the people to whom the new king had come.
The people of Palestine had either ignored this information
Or it had been interpreted as a threat to them.
But now, people from a different culture, from a different religion
Were saying to them: God has done something very special among you.
Something amazing.
And we have traveled a great distance, risking life and fortune
To acknowledge this divine work.
Here, in the three magi, we have the first evangelists
They were the first, after the shepherds, to recognize this marvelous
new thing
And they were neither Jews,
And they certainly were not Christians
They were, most likely, Zoroastrians.
And perhaps surprisingly, the writer of Matthew does not question this
possibility
In fact, the writer uses this as an interesting way of proclaiming a new
reality
Look!, he says
This is not only something amazing that has happened for our people
It is something that has happened for the world
For the people of all places and all times
The greatness of God has been revealed to us and among us
Not just a revelation to a small group of people in the eastern
Mediterranean
But a revelation to all of humanity
In fact, not a revelation restricted to one religion
But to the people of all religions
Who is it who has proclaimed this amazing thing to us?
Who is it who has brought this good news of an amazing birth?
Who is it who has announced this epiphany,
this revelation to us?
Foreign priests.
Priests of a foreign god.
That is amazing.
And yet, in the Gospel of Matthew
It is taken for granted that this could be so.
And we take it for granted as well.
Yes, the three wise men
How beautiful, how perfect, how natural
How many manger scenes, or crèches, are put up every Christmas?
In home and churches and even in public places
And in nearly every one of them…there in the front row
Are the three wise men
And that is how we think of them
The three wise men of our
religion.
Not three foreign priests
Not the priests of Zoroaster
Not the priests of the religion of fire
But as our three wise men
They are so naturally a part
Of the traditional scene with Mary, Joseph, and the baby Jesus
The shepherds and the animals
Naturally…just the way it should to be
But, in fact, they don’t really belong there naturally
They are not part of culture of Palestine
They are outsiders, strangers
They are the most foreign element that could possibly have been added to
this scene
On the children’s television program Sesame Street
There is a segment in which several pictures are shown to the children
For instance a car, a bicycle, a skateboard and a cat
And the children are asked, “Which one of these is not like the others?”
“Which one of these doesn’t belong?”
(The answer is cat.)
That is what should immediately come to mind
When we see the Christmas scene of the people around the manger with the
baby Jesus.
Which one of these doesn’t belong?
The writer of the Gospel of Matthew knew
The priests from the East
Their presence signals to us that something new has happened
Something unexpected
Something very unexpected
We did not expect foreigners,
Priests of a foreign god
To be the one’s to announce the arrival of the king.
That isn’t the way it was supposed to happen
The insiders, Jesus’ own people, were supposed to recognize the king’s
arrival
But, in fact, the presence of the foreign priests
Is an indication to us that nearly everything
that we expected
Has turned out to be different.
These strangers announce not only the birth of a king
But a new reality for the world.
We didn’t expect to be informed of the Savior's birth by the followers
of a foreign religion
But we also did not expect the Messiah to be born to a simple, ordinary
couple
We did not expect the Christ to be born into such humble beginnings.
And we certainly did not expect this baby to grow up
And to be arrested, beaten and executed.
We expect to meet God in the usual places
We expect our religion to comfort us with the expected answers
But right from the beginning the three wise men tell us
This is not going to happen
God breaks all the rules
The king is humble and poor
The liberator is peaceful and meek
The savior does not save himself…he dies
That is what the three wise men represent
The unexpected, wrong side up, upside down presence of God among us.
They shouldn't be there, but they are.
God shouldn't be a baby in a manger, but God is!
And the wise men stand next to the others in the manger
And in manger scenes in churches and homes around the world
Shouting out: Something new has happened
Something so new and unexpected that it may frighten us
Frighten us as it did Herod.
Or…it may set us on a path of discovery, as it did the wise men.
Today, is the first Sunday after the Epiphany
The star of the Christ child
lights up the sky.
Where will God's star lead us?
Amen.
# posted by Kowloon Union Church : Sunday, January 11, 2015
A sermon preached at Kowloon
Union Church on Sunday 4 January 2015, Second Sunday after Christmas, by the Rev. Phyllis Wong. The scripture
readings that day were Jeremiah 31:7-14; John
1:1-18.
Opening prayer:
God of
light, may your word enlighten us to enter into your grace and to understand
your truth in Christ. Holy spirit,
please come and inspire us. Amen.
In the
last few weeks we have heard gospel stories about baby Jesus, of his birth and
presentation to God as the first born child in his family.
Jesus
has been regarded as the son of God, a savior sent by God to the world in the form
of a baby.
In
Gospel John, the author tried to address Jesus’ divinity and his divine
identity as God’s son who breaks into the world.
Jesus
was regarded as the Word. The Word
became flesh. He is with God and Life of the world. He is the light of all people; shines in the
darkness and enlightens everyone.
John 1:1-18 is a beautiful
hymn which consists of rich theological meanings about God the Father and the
very essence of Jesus Christ.
This prologue has been
widely suggested by commentaries as a later addition to affirm the identity of
Jesus Christ as God’s son and being with God right at the beginning before the
world was formed.
In the Gospel of John, the
authors asserted very clearly Jesus’ divine being and his close connection with
God the Father. Jesus Christ, a full human being and full divine being came to
the world to love and save, and to reveal God’s glory.
I would like to share some insights taken from reading according to the Gospel
of John we heard this morning.
The Word became flesh. God,
holy and divine, became flesh and lived among us through Jesus Christ. It is
very ground breaking and radical move of God. In God’s action, we see the grace
and truth of God’s salvation in Christ. God’s love is very down to earth. God
does not just talk but walk with his people. God does not just speak but act
and participate fully.
God has taken
initiative to love, heal and save. It is
this God who approach us and invite us to reconnect with God’s eternality
through Jesus Christ. God has never forsaken us. God never gives up the world
even when his people turn away from him and do not receive the light.
With this unconditional
and unfailing love, we should not give up; rather, we should receive the light
of Christ and renew our life in God.
In coming to the
world sharing our humanity, God had inevitably experienced limitations and
constraints in human life. But God dared to let go of his power.
The text informed
us a harsh reality: “He was in the world, and the world came into being through him, yet
the world did not know him… and his people did not accept him” (1:10-11) We
see then God has taken risk of being rejected. God has put himself in a
vulnerable position. Although God knows that he will be rejected, out of love,
God is willing to do so.
God’s courageous
move has empowered us to take risk in our life for the sake of love.
Treat one another
equally
Jesus, who was
life, was the light of all people (v4). He is the true light that enlightens
everyone (v9). It gives a clear message: God loves everyone, even those who
reject him.
God treats everyone equally. Everyone is
given equal opportunity. We are all loved by God. We
have no reason to discriminate against others. It is wrong to reject people who
are different from us and marginalize the disadvantaged and the weak.
Be Hopeful and
strong
God became flesh
allows us to see the divine in human.
The breaking in of
divinity into humanity has indicated God’s strong desire to make connection
with humans. God has broken the boundary that prevents human beings from being united
with God. The divine in human is a lavish gift and a great promise from God.
God has invited us to receive him and reconnect with the divine God.
God does not force
us to comply, but give us freedom to choose. But are we wise and brave enough
to make the right choice?
Are we ready to let
go of our own ego and receive Jesus Christ as our savior and allow him to live
in us?
If you are full of
questions and worries in receiving Jesus Christ and find it hard to take him to
your heart, remember that for those who determine to accept Jesus Christ, God
will give them power and strength to overcome darkness. As assured by the word
of God, let us hear again these verses from Gospel John
12 But to all who received him, who believed in
his name, he gave power to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of
blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God.
A complicated world we are living
The world we are living is full of uncertainty,
destruction, violence and wars, hatred and division. The missing Malaysian
airplane, the rise of extremist militants, the increasing number of refugees
and migrant workers, the widening gap between the rich and the poor, global
warming and climate change, job insecurity, broken relationships …the list
seems endless. All these world-wide and personal issues offer us not good
future, but worries, anxieties and fears.
It is the incarnated Christ who is the son of God
closely connected to the divine Creator, source of life and light, that gives
us hope. God who breaks into human history will take care of us and never leave
us alone.
The breaking in of Jesus Christ in the form of human
being also gives us new imagination. Nothing is impossible in God. The
transforming power in God and with God give us hope: change is possible.
Jesus’ life and ministries on earth has shown us how
the incarnated God worked in the world. He healed the sick and opened the eyes
of the blind. He received the marginalized and accepted them as part of the
community. He also suffered, died and rose again.
“No one has ever
seen God. It is God the only Son, who is close to the Father’s
heart, who has made him known. ” (1:18) Jesus was witness of God.
For those who have experienced the love of Jesus
Christ are willing to share with others the love of God.
For those who have believed in Jesus Christ and
received him have become God’s children. They follow God’s will and God’s way.
It has been these children of God who continue to share the good news of God’s
incarnation and his loving salvation.
I remembered a friend. His name is David. He had been
a drug addict for over 20 years. Even his family had given up and separated
from him. When he was so sick and desperate struggling in the hospital, a group
of Christians visited him, bought him hot soup, sang hymns for him and shared
with him about God’s love. David was deeply touched by these Christians. He
experienced God’s healing love and forgiving grace through these
Christians. He saw God in them. These
Christians have revealed God’s glory in their loving acts.
Mother Theresa who had tirelessly serving the poor
and the very sick people in Calcutta India had revealed God’s glory in her
compassionate acts.
Before Jesus left the
earth and returned to heaven, he told his disciples to do what he had done and
even greater than what he did.
As Jesus’ followers, the incarnated
Christ today calls us to continue his mission by affirming once again his
unique identity of God’s son who is the light of world dwelling in us full of
grace and truth.
Dear
sisters and brothers, in the beginning of a new year, shall we formulate our
resolution by focusing our life in Jesus Christ and to declare that we are
God’s children who have been given power to be the light of the world and
manifest God’s glory?
This is
an invitation from a loving God who breaks into humanity for our life and for
our world.
May the
light of Christ shine and guide each one of us and our church to make a right
and wise decision. Amen.
# posted by Kowloon Union Church : Sunday, January 04, 2015
