ALL SAINTS 2008
Today is All Saints day, a day that the church remembers all Christians who have gone before us. The word saint comes from a word that means holy, or set apart for a holy use. Our baptism is an outward sign that we have joined up, or been initiated into a new community of people. Through baptism, we become saints, or those who have been set aside for a holy use.
Now most of us don’t think of ourselves as saints, largely because in Sunday school we read about the great heroes of the Bible.. like Moses and David. But when we get older and read more closely we discover that these “saints” were not so saintly at all. Both Moses and David committed murder.. Paul led a mob to kill Stephen… most of the Apostles were clueless most of the time to what Jesus was telling them, and then most of them fled when their friend needed them the most. So being a saint is not about being perfect. It is more about whose side we are on.
When people are baptized.. there are six questions that are asked that express this truth. The first three declare whose side we are against.
Do you renounce Satan and all the spiritual forces of wickedness that rebel against God…
Do you renounce the evil powers of this world which corrupt and destroy the creatures of God
Do you renounce all sinful desires that draw you from the love of God.
Christians, or saints,
are called to wage war against an evil – comic evil, institutional evil in human society, and evil that resides in our own hearts. This
is no small task. It is all consuming. When we realize that this is what we are
called to do, life changes. Our view of the world changes. For us in
But if we open up our eyes and our heart, even just a little, and we step out to do battle against evil, we then find how ferocious and brutal this struggle really is. I think that one of the good things that comes out of traveling to a third world country, or into the heart of many of our great cities, or to an orphanage, is that it can open our eyes to the human suffering that exists. The pain and the suffering and the struggle of our fellow human beings is overwhelming.
One of the ways that we deal with it in our country is to ignore it. Then it is not our problem. Besides, what can I do? I am just one person.
But we can also, even if just a little, begin to open up our hearts to the reality of the world around us. We do this because we have promised to do it. We do this because we are on the side of Jesus, and our side fights against all the evil which corrupts and destroys the creatures of God.
And when we do this, to different degrees, we begin to understand the sayings of Jesus that we call the beatitudes. These sayings are so counter intuitive, or counter cultural, that when we hear them we often just simply ignore them, or in our hearts say that Jesus really didn’t know what he was talking about.
Blessed are the poor.. Blessed are those who mourn.. Blessed are the meek… Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness.. Blessed are the merciful… the pure in heart.. the peacemakers… and those who are persecuted for doing right.
Something happens in the hearts of
those Saints who begin to wage war against evil that helps them understand
these sayings of Jesus. As I thought about the people in the Bible, and Christians down through the ages, I realized that none of them were happy in
the sense that we think of happiness – good health and pleasure and no
problems. The truth is, they all struggled emotionally. Moses asked God to take his life.. the great
Elijah hid in a cave and wanted to die..
and all we need do is to read the Psalms to see this deep, spiritual struggle. In our time, Mother Teresa of
Though this is not a great recruiting message for the Christian faith, the truth is, those who take the first three vows of fighting against evil seriously will find their hearts and souls forever changed. There comes a poverty of spirit, a sense of mourning for others, a brokenness and humility, and a strong desire for mercy and peace and God’s justice to prevail.
The blessedness or happiness that Jesus it talking about comes not because we have good health and financial security and we live in safe neighborhoods. It comes because, when we enter the war against all that is unjust and evil in the world, and in our hearts, we have to seriously embrace the leader of our side, Jesus the Christ. And so the other three questions are:
Do you turn to Jesus Christ and accept him as your Savior?
Do you put your whole trust in his grace and love?
Do you promise to follow and obey him as your Lord?
The more we are in the midst of the battle, the more we flee to, and rely on, and need, and trust, our leader. And as we draw closer to Him, we discover the truth of the promises of Jesus. We do begin to see the Kingdom of heaven, we are comforted.. we are filled, we receive mercy, and see God more clearly, and embrace the truth that we are Children of God, and we discover rewards in life that we never knew existed.
As we draw closer to Jesus as Christians, we begin to learn that peace and happiness are not found in simply trying to stay healthy and provide for ourselves and our family and avoid the struggles of our fellow human beings. There is a deeper peace and blessedness, and this is what Jesus is talking about in the beatitudes.
A local church, like ours, is a gathering of saints, or Christians. In saying this, we are saying that we our on the side of Jesus, and in a real sense, we are in a war. This war plays out in different ways in different cultures and times. In some parts of the world, Christians are persecuted outright. In our part of the world, the enemy uses apathy to keep us from doing any real damage to his side.
Over the next few weeks we will be asking our members to make a pledge of money to the work of this community in 2009. I believe that this church deserves your support. Though we don’t think of it this way, all that we do here is an effort to bring light into a dark world. We exist to stand with Jesus against darkness which strives to destroy us and the world around us. I know that this might sound a little apocalyptic, but when we see the real world, not just our own we realize how true this is. Our light here, joined with the light of Christians down through the ages, and living now, allows the love of God to drive back the forces of evil.
By and large, as a whole, we are a very wealthy people. If we don’t give, who will? Giving is one very powerful way that we fulfill our baptismal covenant. As we give to sustain this community, more Josh Jollys will be nurtured and sent out into the world. Who knows how many saints will be born and nurtured in this church? Those being baptized today: Alissa, Rebecca, Dylan, Logan, Samantha, Carson, Elliana, and Colby are being brought into this community. Through our common life together, they will grow and learn what it means to be a saint, a follower of Jesus.
So in closing I challenge you to be generous, and give with hearts full of faith to the life of this church. Even though I know we have many weaknesses as a church, I also know that this is a great community of faith. What we are going to do for the Lord is only just beginning. AMEN!