Pastor's Ponderings
May 27, 2009
The Holy Spirit
Each week we confess that we believe in the Holy Spirit. So, what do we believe about the Holy Spirit? Together Father, Son, and Spirit is how we as Lutherans know God and understand God to be made known to us. We cannot believe in God the Father and God the Son and not God the Holy Spirit. God comes to us in three unique ways.
In the Old Testament the Holy Spirit is present in Genesis 1 in the creation of all that is. It is the work of the Spirit to create the world and sustain life. The Holy Spirit is at work in and through the nation of Israel to make God’s purpose for humankind known. The Holy Spirit was at work in and through the prophets as they spoke preparing people for the coming of Christ.
In the New Testament the Holy Spirit comes to Mary to give birth to Christ. The Holy Spirit is present at Jesus’ baptism and is given to the disciples. The Holy Spirit gives birth to the church at Pentecost and continues the ministry of Jesus through the disciples and brings growth of the church. It is the work of the Spirit to create, sustain, and dwell among the church, as we worship and live together. The Holy Spirit is the giver of gifts to each person for the building up of the church. The Holy Spirit is indeed a gift to us to help us in practical ways to live and to know God. We can recognize the Spirit, who is always the Spirit of Jesus Christ.
It is easier for us as Lutherans to talk about God the Father and Jesus the Son, but I encourage you to ponder how you would define the Holy Spirit and ponder the gifts that the Spirit has given you.
Keep your eyes and ears open to the Spirit of God.
Pastor Joyce
How would you define the church?
What is our purpose or focus?
Dr. Craig Nessan, in his book “Beyond Maintenance to Mission,” uses three words describe what it means to be church.
Proclamation-what is it that we proclaim? We proclaim or announce the life, death, and resurrection of Christ. Proclamation does not just occur in worship on Sunday morning. Whenever we engage in conversation with others throughout the week and care for our neighbors we proclaim Christ’s love. We proclaim Christ’s living presence among us NOW, today. Christ is among us to set us free. How do you see and experience Christ being proclaimed?
Fellowship- This is our life together as a community of believers. Jesus gathered a community of men and women around him. When we gather together on Sunday we experience fellowship with Christ in Holy Communion. Through this sacrament, the words of remembrance, prayers, Jesus lives among us. Does our community reflect the spirit of mutual love and concern shown by Jesus? Are all made welcome in the name of Jesus?
Service-After we have heard the word proclaimed in worship and have experienced fellowship we are then sent forth in service. The service of the early church was healing, bringing people back into relationship with God and one another, and feeding others. What are those ways we reach out in service? During this season of Lent how are you proclaiming Christ, experiencing fellowship, and serving? Remember, we are the church.
I am reading the book in preparation for a continuing education program that I am a part of. “Sacred Practice” is a two-year, program that includes six renewal events each lasting three days. Themes that will be discussed are the Practice of: Visioning, Discernment, Relationship, Prayer, Proclaiming and Interpreting Scripture, and Service. The goal is to help us as a congregation to grow in understanding God’s call and mission. I look forward to our growing together as I share more about the program and invite you in the journey to be the church and live the faith.
Pastor Joyce
How are the lessons chosen for Sunday morning?
In the ELCA the lessons on Sunday morning are from “The Revised Common Lectionary.” What is the lectionary? A lectionary is a list of scriptural texts recommended for use in worship or study on a particular day. Christian lectionaries are usually built around the Church Year. The lectionaries generally include a reading from the Old Testament, a Psalm, a reading from the one of the Epistles or Acts, and a Gospel reading. The RCL offers a three-year cycle. The cycles are simply entitled year A, B, and C. The readings in year A are based on the gospel of Matthew, year B is based on the gospel of Mark and year C on the gospel of Luke. Who compiled the Revised Common Lectionary? The Revised Common Lectionary was produced by The Consultation on Common Texts. This is a partial list of denominations that had representation on the committee: Disciples of Christ, Christian Reformed Church in North America, The Episcopal Church, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, The Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod, Polish National Catholic Church, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), The Presbyterian Church in Canada Reformed Church in America, Roman Catholic Church in the United States, Roman Catholic Church in Canada, The Unitarian Universalist Christian Fellowship, The United Church of Canada, The United Church of Christ, The United Methodist Church. The ELCA Church Council authorized the use of the Revised Common Lectionary in 1995. An advantage to using the Revised Common Lectionary is that it ties worship in a local congregation to the worship of millions of Christians around the world. Drawing from a common set of texts means that Christians will be hearing and reflecting on the same scriptures and themes. The lectionary is not new. From the earliest days of Christianity, churches have followed an order of reading of lessons for worship. By using a lectionary we are connected to the historic Church. Using all four readings develops the discipline of reading and hearing the scriptures that define the Christian faith. Disadvantage is that many text are not used in the three year cycle. Very few texts from the Old Testament are used.
What is Lent?
Why is it important to our lives and church?
Lent began in the early church as a time of preparation for baptism. It was a time of instruction and faith formation. Over the passing of time, Lent became a time for the whole Christian community, to prepare not only for baptism but a time of preparing for Easter. This time grew to include more listening to the Word of God, more time for prayer, and fasting.
The question for each us as we prepare for Easter is, “What needs to be put to death in us so we can experience the power of the Risen Christ in our lives?”
Lent for us begins with Ash Wednesday and the call to, “Create in me a clean heart O God.” Create is an action that only God can do. Lent is about our journey with God to be open to change of heart and actions that God brings about. Perhaps another image that may be helpful to think about Lent is a pilgrimage. A pilgrimage is a journey to a holy place made with devotional intention. Lent is a pilgrimage to the cross and empty tomb that we make in two ways. One is with our hearts and minds. Through prayer, meditation, and worship we are called to leave those places in our lives where we are not living our Christian identity and where we are not at home or peace.
The Lenten pilgrimage is also accomplished as we journey with each other on Wednesday evenings and Sunday morning for worship. This is the time for us as a community to recognize our need for spiritual growth and provide opportunity to deepen our faith and awareness of Christ’s living presence in our lives. This does not just happen. We are called to make choices to pause and look at our lives. Lent is the call away from the demands of the world to journey with Christ so that we become who we were created to be, sons and daughters of God. Let the pilgrimage begin.
Corinth
May 27, 2009
Corinth
When you think of Corinthians perhaps what comes to your mind is, “the love chapter,” from I Corinthians 13. Love is patient, kind, etc. That chapter is read at many weddings. Paul was actually addressing the whole congregation in Corinth about how to live together as the community of faith. Paul had founded the church at Corinth on his second missionary journey in A.D. 50 (Acts 18:18), and now found himself obliged to intervene in the disputes which disturbed the new and disorderly Christian community. The church in Corinth was a cross section of people economically as well as ethnically. At the heart of Paul’s message to the Corinthians is in Chapter 15, which is the death and resurrection of Christ. Christ is to be the focus of the Corinthian church. Paul challenges the people to deal with their differences and affirms the uniqueness of each Christian and the gifts the spirit gives to each person. Paul also affirms a unity that incorporates diversity. One is not to think of him or herself as better than another. This is one of Paul’s longer letters but important for us to read as a community to know what our foundation of the faith is, and how to live together in community.
