Pentecost+3 Sermon

1 Kings 17:8-16
Psalm 146
Galatians 1:11-24

Luke 7:11-17

There's a commonality in the readings today that's really earthy, practical, applies to us all.

            DEATH. People have died. Their loved ones aren't happy about it. They try to overcome death, by whatever means possible. They're crying out against reality, saying "Wake up! I need you! Come back to life!"

            Have you ever tried that? Has it ever worked?

Death, unfortunately, is something that we all understand; because we've all seen it. It's the cessation of life. Following that logic, spiritual death, is merely the cessation of spiritual life.

            But what does that MEAN? To be spiritually DEAD is to be completely disconnected from God - who, of course, is the source of all life.

            By disconnecting with God, we are intentionally and actively rejecting the Spirit - who gives us the gifts we need to be well and whole - and to minister. By refusing to engage in ministry, to live out our callings, we are denying the essence of being the church of God. We are choosing to be spiritually dead.

            Yet - it is the same Spirit who engages us - the church - into action; it is the same Spirit who wills us - the church - into life.

            Church (it's a verb, by the way) is not a place on a map, or a time to gather, or even the worship itself. Church is what we do as a result of that worship at that time in that place. It's what happens when we are changed by the time, place, people, the worship. And so we ARE changed, and inspired (remember from Pentecost that 'Inspired' means in the Spirit) and invited to be alive in the Spirit, and to take that life into the world around us.  The church, then, uses a place, and time, and gathering of people - to foster life.

            Brother Geoffrey Tristram, of the Society of St John the Evangelist down in Boston, puts it this way: "In apparently dead wilderness are countless seeds, lying in the ground, dormant, watching, just waiting for water so that they can burst into life."

            So there are seeds, just waiting for water. And here's the good news - Jesus promises us life. He promises - and exemplifies in today's readings - that he is the living water. He promises us the spiritual wellspring that will give us exactly what we need - and he knows that we will all need it.    

            We have seeds within us - waiting for that water, to encourage and support growth. Also, we are seeds, within our community - a place of opportunity to go and grow, to blossom where we are planted.

            So we have people who love us, and see our spiritual struggles, and in their own way they call out to us - WAKE UP! I need you! Come back to life! And the beautiful thing is that they are not crying alone - they are echoing the words of love coming from love itself, as God calls us to do just that.

            Our challenge then, as we take stock of our spiritual life, is to discern areas of our lives in which we have died. How we have disconnected from God so much so that we have denied the Spirit moving in our lives. We have to ask ourselves "What is happening in my life that has disconnected me from God?"

            Obviously, the answer is unique to each of us. There's sin, fear, apathy, anger, the list could go on. And the list, once we start to look deep within our own hearts, may reflect something we don't want to see. This is not the ideal that we strive for.

            So then, we are challenged to change this narrative, into what we DO want. We are challenged to change our stories so that we might truly and fully LIVE. I'm going to suggest we first consider what it means to fully live.

            Life - like death, we understand the basic concept of life. A physical life, at least - because we all have one of those. It's a good thing, we like this.

            Within our earthly lives, there are various aspects that we can spend some time thinking about. We have romantic lives. (Ah, yes, some of you were just casting glances at your sweethearts, how lovely!). We have social lives, friends and families who make our lives better. We have our work lives, being fulfilled by using our gifts to try and make the world a better place. We have our academic lives - we're all learning new things all the time, some of us just get more excited about classrooms and old books. (I had a GREAT week at school!)

            These are all parts of the picture - but not the whole thing. They're what we do, and with whom we do it. These are all aspects of our life that are fed by the various things we do, and these things feed us - the true us - in a variety of ways.

            But then there's the true self that we have, that includes and is influenced by these aspects. I think that's the SPIRITUAL LIFE. Full life. Life in the presence of the Holy One of God.

            That full life is where we find ourselves with one foot in the comfort zone, and one out. It's a place of constant challenge, which of course means constant growth. It's a place where we find an overall sense of peace, compassion, fulfillment, love. It's where we have a general sense that it's all where it needs to be, and is ready for the next opportunity. It's where we might say to ourselves, "I've got this" and recognise that's by the grace of God.

            Teresa of Ávila puts in prayerfully:

“May today there be peace within.

May you trust God that you are exactly where you are meant to be.

May you not forget the infinite possibilities that are born of faith.

May you use those gifts that you have received, & pass on the love that has been given to you.

May you be content knowing you are a child of God.

Let this presence settle into your bones, & allow your soul the freedom to sing, dance, praise & love. It is there for each and every one of us.”

            Teresa gives this definition of the full life, not as a destination, but as the journey. Each day we take another step along the way, practice another ministry in that direction. Each day we're invited to find that peace, delight in that peace, and share that peace with another.

            When we do that, we come to celebrate the full life in this world, which prepares us for the full life of the next. It's the life of faith. It's the opposite of death.

            It's what happens when we hear and respond to the cry that jolts us from our spiritual complacence and demands our attention and our action. It's what happens when we hear God saying to us: "WAKE UP! I need you. Come back to life."