Ask for examples of things that we prepare for. Ask for examples of how we prepare for them.
In our Gospel reading for today Jesus tells this wonderful little parable about the Kingdom of God. He describes the Kingdom as a party, a time of joy, or festivity. It is a celebration. But layered within this text is a not so subtle warning. He comes out and says it. We need to be prepared for the Kingdom. If we’re not prepared, we might miss out on a wonderful opportunity.
Our role as Christians is to prepare for the Kingdom of God. The tough part is discerning how we actually do that. Throughout history the church has offered a number of ideas about how we prepare for the Kingdom. Some of these ideas are for individuals, like certain sacraments or having a strong pious nature. Correct action or correct belief. You need to do this that or the other thing, God will check it off some divine list, and you get your invite. Some of these ideas were more corporate, envisioning preparing the whole world for the Kingdom. This could be disastrous, as in the case of the Crusades, or have a nobility to it, as in the Social Gospel movement of the early 20th century.
How do we prepare ourselves for the Kingdom of Heaven today?
This image that Jesus uses for preparation I think is very helpful in our current world. He envisions being prepared for the Kingdom as having enough fuel to let our own lights shine. Think about that for just a minute, Jesus envisions being prepared for the Kingdom of Heaven, as having enough fuel to let our own lights shine.
One of the greatest struggles in our world is finding time. We all lead such busy lives, running here, running there, doing this and doing that, we have work, hockey, volleyball, curling, events, clubs. Our days, our evenings, our nights are full. And it is exhausting. Many of us have run out of fuel, we just don’t realize it, and so we are not prepared. We cannot truly let our own light shine because our lights are sputtering at best. We go many miles a minute, burning our wicks at both ends.
As we ask questions about the future of the church, as we wonder about what direction we are going in, I think one answer is quite clear. In a world that defines everything in terms of productivity, the church stands alone offering Sabbath. And I don’t mean Sabbath, as in everyone has to come to church on Sundays, though that can be a part of it. But I mean the church can offer Sabbath, the church can offer peace, the church can and should offer above all things, holy rest. In a world that pulls us in so many directions, the church should be a place where people can stop, can pause, can listen to their very souls, can bear witness to their own Inner Light (to steal a Quaker term).
This is how we will help people prepare for the Kingdom. Unfortunately, very often, the church becomes a source of even more work, more being overwhelmed, more business to do and structures to maintain. We are called to break out of that. To pause and ask ourselves as a community, how are we offering a much needed rest to a world that is over worked and over tired? How are we offering communion with the Holy to a world that has become detached from itself?
Our world is exhausted, it is run ragged. Social pressures and systemic demands for productivity often push people to the brink, and we struggle just trying to keep up. These voices are so loud that we are afraid to let go, afraid to reorient ourselves. Now more than ever the world needs a voice of calm, a voice of quiet, a voice of rest that says, Stop! It is time to refuel ourselves. Our tradition is filled with wonderful spiritual practices that invite us to discipline ourselves into rest and relationship with the Holy. I am not a fan of do-it-yourself spirituality. But these are practices that I believe can only truly be shared within a community. Practices like Contemplative Prayer, Lectio Divina, Labyrinth walking and pilgrimage, silence, hospitality, fasting or feasting.
To quote Henry Nouwen, “The challenge is to let go of fear and claim the deeper truth of who I am… When you make space for God in your life and begin to listen to God’s loving voice, you suddenly start to realize perfect love…These spiritual practices and other disciplines remind us that we are the Beloved.”
As we look forward to the future of the church, it is these very questions we need to be asking. How are we refueling ourselves in a world that tries to push us over the edge? How are we offering rest to people in a world that is tapping their energy? How are we prophetically standing against a world that would make so many demands? How are we inviting people to let their own lights shine in a world that could always be brighter?
This sermon was inspired by the Seasons of the Spirit worship resources. It was a sermon I was not too thrilled with when I wrote it, but was reasonably well received. I rushed it.
ReplyDeleteThat all being said, it did put my theology of church into words. The idea that we are to embody sabbath, rest, and peace, in everything we do. As well as invite others to rest with us.