Scripture Readings: Acts 5:27–32 | Psalm 118 | Revelation 1:4–8 | ​John 20:19–31

“Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.” (John 20:30-31).

Anyone excited for the election tomorrow? 

I know many of us are probably sick of discussing… or worse yet, hearing other people discuss politics these days, especially since things have gotten so divisive and outright nasty in recent years. 

But whether or not we are excited about tomorrow’s election… and regardless of which party ends up in power this time around… the fact remains that whatever happens will have some big implications for our whole country moving forward. For better or worse, what happens tomorrow will play a part in shaping not only our own lives as Canadian citizens, but also shaping our communities, our shared values and way of life, and our nation’s relationships with the wider world. 

But as big as tomorrow’s election day may seem, we celebrated something far more significant last Sunday: the resurrection of the Son of God, Jesus Christ our Lord. 

That marvelous event of the first Easter marks the most radical turning point of all time… the incredible intervention of the Living God on behalf of His beloved but broken Creation… Christ’s great victory over the powers of sin, and death, and all the forces of spiritual darkness… by giving up His life at the cross, and rising again from the grave.

That moment marks not just the end of the old ways of the world… a dramatic break with the past, but it also marks a brand new beginning… a new way of life that we who believe in this Good News are now called to take part in.  

After all, the resurrection of Jesus Christ is not just something wonderful that happened to Him. It is God’s new Creation… God’s new beginning breaking into and transforming the story of our world, and the new starting point for how you and I are to orient our lives.

In short, the resurrection of Jesus challenges us all to rearrange our whole lives… our hearts, our minds, our actions, and our interactions with others around the beautiful truth that: Christ has died. Christ is risen. And Christ will come again. To become an Easter People… not just once a year, but always. 

And that means more that simple saying ‘yes’ to these words, and then moving on. It means spending a lifetime exploring and working through the real implications of this beautiful truth. It means seeking to better understand what it looks like for us to live as Easter People today.

And while that’s not something that we can fully accomplish this morning, we can at least begin to reflect on what it means to become Easter People by turning to our Scripture readings this morning, beginning with the Gospel of John. 

St. John Chapter 20 gives us a wonderful account of the risen Jesus appearing suddenly to His closest disciples, who had been hiding themselves away in fear. But the risen Jesus comes to meet them in their time of fright and confusion, and shatters their old way of seeing the world… inviting them into the brand new thing that God was doing. He reveals Himself to them. He offers them His peace, along with the message and ministry of forgiveness. And then He shares the Holy Spirit with them, and commissions them to be His witnesses in the world… sharing the Good News of His resurrection with everyone. 

But then we find out that Thomas missed out. Alone out of the disciples, Thomas wasn’t there that first Easter to witness the risen Christ first hand. And so he refuses to believe, until he can see for himself that it really is true. He says unless he sees Christ’s hands and feet, and His pierced side… until Thomas can be assured that the same Jesus that he had faithfully followed, and knew and loved… the same Jesus that He saw die… was now alive again, as the others had said. 

And that’s because Thomas wanted to believe in the truth! Not just to accept a hopeful story… but reality. He wanted assurance that he wasn’t just going along with what he wanted to be true… Thomas wanted to be sure that Jesus really had been raised again.

Because, if it hadn’t really happened… if it was just a good story, and nothing more… then nothing’s really changed. Then the world is still the same. And all our sins, and death, and the powers of darkness in our world are still holding us captive.

And so, Thomas refuses to believe that Jesus had risen again unless he can be convinced by the same evidence that had convinced his fellow disciples. In other words, he’s not some radical skeptic… after all, everyone knew that dead people stay dead… Thomas just wanted the same life-changing experience that the others had had. And thankfully, he’s not disappointed.

The risen Jesus visits His disciples again the next Sunday, and He then invites Thomas to believe… to be a witness to the Good News that, even though Jesus had died, He really is alive! That everything really has changed! That God really has dealt with our sins, once and for all. That death has been defeated, and that the dark spiritual forces at work in our world have been overthrown by the power of God’s saving love, who has raised up His Son forever. 

In John 20:27-29, Jesus turns specifically to Thomas, his beloved disciple and says to him: “‘Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe.’ Thomas answered him, ‘My Lord and my God!’ Jesus said to him, ‘Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.’” 

Thomas sees and he believes, and he is given a new beginning. And Jesus says that those of us who have not yet seen, and yet believe… that means you and me… are blessed. 
  
And for St. John, this is the point: that we might come to believe… and be blessed by the new life that He has received, and offers to us. John 20:30-31, “Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.”

Being Easter People begins by believing in the resurrection of Jesus. Even though we will still have all sorts of questions, we can choose to trust that this Good News is true. It will take a lifetime of seeking to grow in our understanding of what this all means, for us and our world, but it all begins when we, with St. Thomas and all the other Apostles, turn to Jesus and acclaim Him as our Lord and our God as well. 

And although this invitation to believe in Christ’s resurrection is personal, thankfully, it’s not something that we’re meant to have to try and figure out all alone. And that’s because being an Easter People is not simply about our individual faith… it’s also an invitation to belong to God’s redeemed community: the Church.   

And here is where we turn to our second reading today from the book of Revelation… a powerful, but often misunderstood vision offered to Christ’s people throughout the ages to help reframe how we understand all of creation and human history… past, future, and especially the present… so we can better understand how to live faithfully here and now for Jesus the Risen Lord, even when everything else seems to be falling apart all around us.

And here, in the very first verses of the Revelation, we are reminded of what actually makes us an Easter People, the Good News of Jesus Christ the Risen Lord: 

In Revelation 1:4-6, we hear John begin the book with these words: “Grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne, and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth.
 
To him who loves us and freed us from our sins by his blood, and made us to be a kingdom, priests serving his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.”

There’s a lot packed into these opening words, but I’d like to draw our attention to what John says about Jesus Christ, and also what John says about his fellow believers. 

Jesus is the faithful witness… the firstborn from the dead… and the ruler of the kings of the earth. Clearly, the Risen Christ, who died, rose again, and reigns at God’s right hand is centre stage. But then John shifts to the Risen Christ’s connection to His people: He loves us. He set us free from our sins by His blood. And He made us to be a kingdom… priests serving His God and Father. 

Now, I don’t know of any strictly personal, one person kingdoms. And the whole idea of priests in isolation from others makes no sense at all. Kingdoms and priests require a community… people bound together around a shared reality. A common location, identity, and allegiance.  

And our reading from Revelation reminds us that the Risen Christ is creating a new community… set free and forgiven so that we can live as Easter People, serving Him and walking in His holy ways… bound together by our belief in the One who is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and true ruler of all creation. 

Easter People start with belief in the resurrection of Jesus, and then find that we now belong to a worldwide community that the Risen Lord has redeemed: the Church.

So far so good. But as the book of Revelation, the whole of story of Holy Scripture, and the history of the Church makes clear, this new beginning as Easter People will be anything but easy. Especially when trying to live in the light of the Good News of the Risen King puts us in conflict with the claims of those who are still resisting His reign. 

Which leads us to our first reading from the book of Acts, where we are reminded that being an Easter People means being willing to be different… and even face suffering.

The story in Acts Chapter 5 takes place in the days after the Risen Lord Jesus returns to the right hand of the Father, and sends the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. The Apostles are then empowered to serve as Christ’s faithful witnesses… no longer hiding in fear, but boldly sharing the Good News of the Risen Lord with all of Jerusalem. 

But soon enough, the people who had crucified Jesus tried to silence His followers too, and the Apostles found themselves facing some serious political pressure from those in power. Just before the passage we read, they were arrested and thrown into jail. 

But that night, God sends an angel to rescue the Apostles from prison… and instead of seizing the moment to run away and save themselves, the angel tells them to keep on sharing the Gospel boldly in the Temple… witnessing to Christ’s resurrection, and that’s what they do. 

In the morning, the religious leaders who had them arrested are shocked to find them preaching in the Temple again, and they have them brought before the council, and warned not to keep preaching about Jesus. 

Acts 5:29-32, “But Peter and the apostles answered, ‘We must obey God rather than any human authority. The God of our ancestors raised up Jesus, whom you had killed by hanging him on a tree. God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior that he might give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey him.”

Rather than back down in the face of serious and powerful opposition, the Apostles stand firm in their faith, and refuse to pretend that Easter morning never happened… to act as though Jesus had not changed everything through His resurrection… even though it would mean enduring the ill will of those who wanted the world to stay the same. 

________________

Our three Scripture readings today have reminded us of some pretty important aspects of being an Easter People:
It begins by believing in the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

We then belong to His new redeemed community, the Church… where we are called together to begin living differently, to make choices every day based on the reality of the resurrection of Jesus… even if it means suffering.

Believe. Belong. Be different.  How do these speak to us today?

How does our belief in the reality of the resurrection of Jesus challenge the kinds of ways that we act, and talk, and think, and treat one another… the decisions we make every day? 

What does it mean for you and I to belong to God’s redeemed community? Not simply to seek after our own interests, but gather with one another so that we can take part in the life of the Church… learning to love one another, to remind each other of God’s forgiveness, and mercy, and grace, and saving love, again and again. To know we are not alone, but are surrounded by sisters and brothers bound together by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

How are we being called to be different today? To stand out in how we exist in our daily lives, whether in private or public? To be willing to say no to the things or the people that pull us further away from our Saviour’s side… even if it means standing up to those who misuse worldly power, and suffering for Christ’s sake? 

These questions are just the beginning. But as Easter People, beginnings are nothing new. Every day as Christians, we get to celebrate the Good News that in Christ Jesus the Risen Lord, the Living God has changed everything for good. That God’s new beginning has already begun. That even though many around us still place their faith in things like politics and power games, we can face the future with hope, whatever may come, because we know that Christ has died… Christ is risen… and Christ will come again. Amen. 

​Our service of Morning Prayer, Bulletin, and Sermon this week can be found here:

And here are some links to the Hymns listed in our service, found on YouTube: ​

Christians and Others 
(Poem by Dietrich Bonhoeffer)

All go to God in their distress,
Seek help and pray for bread and happiness,
Deliverance from pain, guilt, and death.
All do, Christians and others.

All go to God in His distress,
Find Him poor, reviled without shelter or bread,
Watch Him tormented by sin, weakness, and death.
Christians stand by God in His agony.

God goes to all in their distress,
Satisfies body and soul with His bread,
Dies, crucified for all, Christians and others
And both alike forgiving.

Scripture Readings: Exodus 12:1–14 | Psalm 116:1–2, 12–19 | 1 Corinthians 11:23–26 | John 13:1–17, 31b–35

“…Do this in remembrance of me.” (1 Corinthians 11:24).

On this sacred night, we remember and in a real sense re-live the story of the ‘Last Supper’: the turning point in the dramatic story of Holy Week… the last precious moments that Jesus our Lord spends with His closest disciples before His betrayal, arrest, and crucifixion. 

Tonight, we remember the powerful and precious gifts that our Lord has given, not only to those who personally shared in that time in the upper room, but to all who would follow Him.

We remember His new and great commandment: that we are to love one another, just as He has first loved us. 

We remember the shocking way He demonstrated this love… by humbly washing their feet, and commanding us to do the same.

We remember how He invited His disciples to experience a very familiar celebration and story in a whole new way… 
Telling us to take and eat… to receive bread and wine as His own blessed body and blood of the new covenant… and so find ourselves taking part in the Living God’s greatest act of saving love.

That night, Jesus our Lord and His disciples celebrated the Passover… a sacred meal remembering the new beginning God created for His people Israel, many centuries before. Once they had been oppressed slaves in a strange land, with no hope of finding freedom for themselves. But God had compassion on them. God came to their aid. God broke the power of Pharaoh, once and for all, and with a might arm, God set them free to be His people forever.

And this act of saving love transformed Israel’s story. God set them free, not so they could wander about aimlessly through life… but to be His beloved children. He set them free so that they could come to know His grace and His glory up close, and so start to live no longer for Pharaoh, or even for themselves, but for their merciful Creator and Saviour. Putting His holy ways into practice, as a light shining into a darkened world. 
​
But remembering this calling wasn’t always easy. They faced all sorts of distractions, and threats, and temptations that sought to take hold of their attention, and draw them away from their Saviour’s side. 

And so, to help them remember… to keep the story of God’s saving love alive throughout the centuries, God gave them the Passover meal as a perpetual sign… passed down for generations, to remind them not only of what the LORD has done for them… His might acts of salvation… but also to remind them of their new calling as His people in the world. 

This sacred meal became an ongoing invitation for His beloved children, to remember their place in the story of His saving love.

And many centuries after the Israelites were set free from slavery in Egypt, Jesus and His disciples celebrated the Passover meal together… remembering and celebrating what the Living God had done for their ancestors long ago. 

But rather than simply retelling the past, Jesus points His followers forward to the new and surprising act of God’s saving love that was about to happen through Him! God was again about to delivering His people, not just from a deadly plague, or the dominion of Pharaoh… but from the terrible powers of sin and death, and the forces of spiritual darkness at work, around and inside of us. And this victory would not be achieved through the sacrifice and shed blood of a lamb, spread across the doorframes of a house… but through the sacrifice of Christ’s own life… His own body broken, and His own blood shed upon the wooden beams of the cross. 

And so tonight, all these long centuries after the Last Supper, we are reminded that the saving love of the Living God leads us to the cross… to what Jesus Christ our Lord has done there to save us, and our darkened world.

And now every time that we gather around Christ’s table, not only in Holy Week, but Sunday after Sunday, we do so in remembrance of Him. We remember His faithfulness, when all of us had faltered. We remember His compassion and mercy, for sinners, when our own hearts had run cold. We remember that Jesus has given us the gift of Himself, His own life, once and for all… and as unworthy as we are, He still invites us to share in His new life, again and again.

But we must remember all this for a purpose: so that, with His help, we might truly live as Christ’s people today. That we might be set free to allow what He has done for us to actually begin to change us… so that His saving love will be free to do its good work in and through us.

So that we might be set free to live Jesus’ way in the world! When others are fighting over status and power, to lay down our selfishness and pride, and instead begin to practice faithfulness and service. 

To not only receive His gifts of forgiveness and grace, but to start to extend them as well… choosing to share these gifts with those in our own lives… even those who frustrate, and insult, and betray our trust. Not condoning evil, or allowing it to simply run amok and go unchecked… but choosing, as Christ Jesus our Lord did, to stand against it, and even suffer for righteousness, rather than to give in to hatred, cruelty, or the temptation to condemn our neighbours. 

And when those around us are driven by their fears, real or imagined, to fend for themselves, and only look out for their own interests… we are called to remember what Jesus our Lord has done for us all at the cross… so that we can be set free from fear to love one another as Christ Jesus first loved us. 

This is a high calling indeed. And like the Israelites before us, it can be easy for us to get distracted, or led astray, and so forget what this sacred night is all about: to forget what Jesus our Lord came to accomplish… not just for us, but for our world. 

To forget that, despite all the darkness at work… and there’s still a whole lot of darkness at work these days, to be sure… to forget that Jesus Christ gave His life at the cross to share God’s saving love with sinners like us… to set us all free from our slaveries to selfishness, and prejudice, and fear, and sin… to set us all free when we least deserved this precious gift… to set us all free to share in His holy love… to be a worldwide community marked by His life-changing mercy, His generosity, and His grace. 

And the way our darkened world will come to know of God’s saving love is through us. Through you and me. Through those who still believe the Good News of Jesus Christ… who have received His forgiveness and grace offered to all of us at the cross… those who are willing to be drawn into His story year after year, week after week, again and again… to allow our lives to be shaped and transformed by His faithful life, and death, and glorious resurrection. 

In a moment, I will invite anyone who is willing to come forward to have their feet symbolically washed, remembering the tender, merciful and faithful love that God has shared with us in Jesus Christ, and that He now calls us to share with one another. But whether we come forward, or remain seated tonight, may we all always remember what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us, and our world. And by the Holy Spirit’s help, may we faithfully respond to what He has done, by putting His saving love into practice. Amen.

​And our Songs can be found here:

Scripture Readings: Isaiah 43:16–21 | Psalm 126 | Philippians 3:4b–14 | ​John 12:1–8

“Yet whatever gains I had, these I have come to regard as loss because of Christ.” (Philippians 3:7).

Well, it’s been an interesting week, to say the least, hasn’t it? A week of worldwide uncertainty, and fearful predictions, as international trade and markets have been responding to the new round of tariffs imposed by the  administration in the United States. And as with any disruptive and uncertain situation, there’s lots of different ways people and nations are choosing to respond. Some are quickly scrambling to make deals and try to avoid even worse outcomes for themselves. Others are hitting back with increased trade barriers of their own… retaliating against what they see as deeply misguided practices that will hurt many people in the long run, and especially those who are already struggling, and vulnerable.

Lots of peoples’ sense of security is being shaken. Lots of economies and families are going to have to adapt and respond somehow, and honestly, it looks like many will face unnecessary suffering because of choices being made by a handful of people with political power.

On the bright side though, this is not a sermon about global trade, tariffs, and market practices. If you’re interested in that stuff, there’s plenty of other, much more qualified people talking about it these days, for better or for worse.

But I wanted to bring this stuff up in part because it’s on a lot of people’s minds… and also because it’s kind of an interesting example of how we humans can respond to disruptive events and people so differently. When our world gets shaken, for good or evil… when everything we hold dear and thought we understood is suddenly challenged and questioned… when brand new obstacles or opportunities are opened up before us… we have to make some choices about the ways we will respond… which is usually shaped by what we are most devoted to. 

And in our Gospel passage this morning, from St. John chapter 12, we see two very different responses of two of the earliest followers of Jesus to what He was up to.

Our passage takes place in a particularly tense part of the story of Jesus… as our Lord approaches Jerusalem, and the world-changing events of Holy Week draws near.

Just before this part of the story, Jesus had done something truly amazing, and deeply unsettling to many: in front of many witnesses, Jesus had raised His friend Lazarus, who had been dead for four days, back to life. St. John frames this amazing event as a sign of Christ’s power, and God’s Kingdom at work in Him. And in response to this, many people believed in Him… but many others did not. In fact, the religious leaders of the day, convinced that Jesus was upsetting too many things that they held dear, and undermining their spiritual authority, began to make plans from this point on to have Jesus arrested and executed.

And right after this story, St. John will tell of Christ’s triumphant entry into Jerusalem on what we now call Palm Sunday… eagerly welcomed by crowds waving branches and praising God… a reception fit for a King… but as we know, in the week that follows, this King will end up on a cross. 

And right in the middle of this dramatic moment in Christ’s story… this movement towards the world-changing climax of the Gospel, we find our passage today. And we are given a powerful picture of what the Christian life looks like.

The story holds up side by side two followers of Jesus: Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve chosen disciples, and Mary of Bethany, the youngest sister of Lazarus. 

We’re told that Jesus visits their home in Bethany a week before the Passover, and while He’s there having supper, Mary anointed Jesus’ feet with a very precious perfume, and wiped His feet dry with her own hair. It is an image of incredible humility, offering to Jesus, not simply a pleasant and expensive experience, but a gift intended to both honour Him, and make obvious her sincere devotion.  

And though we’re not told initially why she offered this gift, if we step back and remember the recent story of her beloved brother, the picture becomes a bit more clear. Jesus had just raised Lazarus back to life. He had changed their deepest sorrow to joy, and gave them hope beyond anything they had imagined. And so, moved by gratefulness and trust, she presents Jesus with a wholehearted act of devotion. Nothing was too precious now compared to Him.
And in this beautiful moment, with the fragrance of her precious offering filling the house, Judas speaks up, and we are given a glimpse of a very different way to respond Jesus, and what He is up to. 

John 12:4-6, “But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (the one who was about to betray him), said, ‘Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and the money given to the poor?’ (He said this not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief; he kept the common purse and used to steal what was put into it.)” 

Not a very flattering picture, but in three short verses, St. John gives us quite a character sketch of Judas: 1) Judas is a traitor to Jesus… an unfaithful follower, who ends up betraying God’s chosen One; 2) Judas is a thief… motivated by greed, and self-centeredness, not the compassion and generosity that Christ Jesus calls us to; and 3) Judas new how to present himself as faithful and wholeheartedly devoted to the work of Christ’s Kingdom… He knew the right words to say, but he was a hypocrite… an actor playing a part, and not a devoted servant of God. 

And Judas, this traitor, and thief, and hypocrite, one of the twelve, looks at what Mary does for the One he calls Lord… and he calls it all a waste. He questions her wisdom, and tries to heap shame on her beautiful gift of love.

And from the outside… with a cool and calculated tally of coins and costs, what Mary did does look like a waste. Think of how much good could have been done with the money that perfume cost. Surely Jesus doesn’t need or expect this kind of extravagance, especially when there were so many people near by who were struggling and suffering. What Judas says does makes sense. 

But as St. John tells us straight up: Judas was ultimately selfish. He knew the right things to say, and the arguments that made him sound wise and responsible… but he was only devoted to himself… not to the poor, or those suffering, and as we see soon enough, not to the Lord.  
 
Meanwhile, Mary doesn’t say a word. She lets her actions tell their own story. And even if they are misunderstood, or misinterpreted, or maligned… and if she is accused of being wasteful, or careless… Jesus knows her heart! Jesus knew what she was offering to Him, just as he knew what Judas was holding back. And so Jesus received the gift of wholehearted love that she poured out for Him… honouring her actions as part of the preparations for His coming death. 

For this story is about more than Mary’s gracious gift, and Judas’ hardening heart. It is a story that points us to the events of Holy Week, and the great confrontation between the powers of darkness, and the Lord of Light… the moment when God’s own precious Son freely gave up His body and blood… His life at the cross, in what must have seemed in that moment as an unspeakable waste! 

I mean, think about it. Think of how much good Jesus could have done if He had just stayed away from Jerusalem that Passover week. How many more people who were sick and suffering could have been healed if He had made a few less enemies, and a few more powerful and important friends? How many people who were discouraged and oppressed could have been given freedom and hope had He just been a bit less worried about the Kingdom of God, and a bit more willing to ‘play ball’? 

Jesus could have done so many great things for people, and for Himself, if He had just been a bit more selfish… if He would have refused to offer up His life at the cross in our place. 

But no, Jesus instead let His actions speak for themselves… even if others would misinterpret, or misunderstand, or malign Him and the incredible sacrifice that He made… even if it meant paying a cost far greater than anything we could imagine… even if, to the eyes of the outside world, what Jesus did just looks like a shame, and a waste… God knows exactly what was going on that Good Friday, when Jesus poured out His life for you and me… and for us all. God knows the depths of Christ’s wholehearted devotion to the will of His Father in Heaven… and God received Christ Jesus’ gift of wholehearted love for us… even while we, just like Judas, were still all wrapped up in ourselves, and our self-destructive sins.  

And we know this. We know that Jesus’ gift of love was received, because three days later, God raised His Son again, rescuing Him from the power of death, once and for all, through His resurrection.

And this is what Jesus now graciously offers to us: the power of His resurrection. He shares with us His own victory over the grave… not so that we will not suffer, or have to go through times of uncertainty, or grief, or pain, but so that we can do so with the confidence that He has already faced death on our behalf, and come out the other side… that He lives now as our Risen King of Kings… that there is now absolutely nothing… not poverty, pain, the grave… or even trade barriers that can keep us from the saving, generous, life-giving love of the Lord, who gave His life to set us free from our sin, our fear, our shame, and to lead us into the New Life of God even now.

So like St. Paul, in our reading from Philippians today, let us not place our confidence and our hope in appearances… or in all the assets and honours we can count up, or try to amass for ourselves. Instead, let us press on towards the goal of the New Life of God’s Kingdom, trusting in the power of Christ’s resurrection… the power of His saving love that not even death or tariffs can stop. 

​And like Mary, may we respond to the incredible grace and love of Jesus Christ our Lord by pouring out our lives in thankfulness and praise to Him in wholehearted devotion… not just in our words, or in our times of worship, but in all of our actions… in everything that we do… holding nothing back from the One who gave everything for us. Amen.

​And our Songs this week can be found here:

Scripture Readings: Joshua 5:9–12 | Psalm 32 | 2 Corinthians 5:16–21 | Luke 15:1–2, 11–32

“Then the father said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. But we had to celebrate and rejoice, because this brother of yours was dead and has come to life; he was lost and has been found.’” (Luke 15:31-32).

Our Gospel reading this morning is one of the most well known and beloved parables of Jesus. A powerful story told to help us understand and respond to His Kingdom work. This story has often been called the Prodigal Son… as prodigal means ‘wasteful’ ‘lavash’, or ‘recklessly extravagant’, in reference to the younger son’s completely careless use of his inheritance.

It's a story that stands out as a profound example of the radical nature of God’s mercy and love, and grace… a story that tells us that no matter how far we have wandered, we really can be welcomed home again. Inviting us to turn around again and return to the Father’s eager embrace.

But this parable is much more than simply a story about the depths of God’s mercy and grace. It’s a story about broken relationships, and reconciliation… about the restoration of the bonds between a father and his sons… but just as importantly, between the sons themselves.

In this parable, we are not simply being reminded of God’s great mercy and saving love offered to us… we are being called to respond to His mercy and love… in how we relate to those in our lives. Perhaps especially those we feel the most estranged and divided from.

And I don’t know about you, but I can think of very few other topics that are more relevant today than reconciliation… the coming together again of those who have been torn apart. Every day it seems, there’s yet more divisiveness and broken bonds in our world… fractured friendships, at the local, national, and international level.

The conflicts we face in life can be incredibly challenging. And it’s not always easy to know how to respond, or what we can do to move forward. But thankfully, in today’s parable we have been given a word from our Lord Jesus Christ not only offering us hope for our own forgiveness and grace, but also an invitation to change how we see and respond to this deeply divided world that we find ourselves in.  

In the first part of the parable, Jesus introduces us to a family of three: a father and his two sons. Right away, we’re told that the younger son demands his share of the inheritance, and then heads off to a distant land, where he wastes everything he had received, and is left with nothing. Now, the scandal here is not just about the younger son being careless with his money… it’s also about the shameful way that he treats his father, and the damage done to their relationship.

In the largely patriarchal and honour-shame cultures of the ancient Near East, fathers were the honoured head of the family. They were expected to be treated with great respect, and deference. And the same would go for the older sons, those who were expected to fill in for their father as head of the household once he dies. So when this youngest son rudely demands his inheritance right away, he isn’t just being impatient, he’s acting disgracefully… it would be like saying to his father: ‘I wish you were dead.’ And it suggests a complete break in their relationship… disregarding all that he had done for him.

But then everything blows up in his face. Disaster strikes, and the younger son finds himself in desperate straits. A famine strikes the land, and the son is left destitute. His new friends abandon him, and he’s forced to do degrading work with no hope of relief. And here at rock bottom, that’s when he comes to his senses, and he remembers that his father’s servants were much better off than he was now. 

Of course he knows that there’s no chance of making amends now and restoring their broken relationship. But maybe his father will have pity on him, and take him back as a hired servant. So he swallows his pride, and rehearses his apology… expecting to have to bear the full weight of his mistakes… and heads back home full of shame, but hoping against hope that maybe… just maybe… his father will be gracious enough to give him a job so that he will not starve. 

But as it turns out, the younger son does not understand the depths of his father’s mercy and love. 

His father sees him from afar… and he runs. He runs to his boy, and embraces him… and covers his mud-caked face with kisses. The son starts to recite his prepared apology, but the father doesn’t even wait to hear it. Instead, he calls for his own best robe, and his ring, marks of familial status and honour, to be given to his long-lost child… and then the father calls for a feast. 

And the youngest son is swept up in an amazing act of grace, and lavish love beyond anything he expected or deserved… or even dreamed of. Where he expected to find condemnation and shame, he is surrounded by compassion and forgiveness instead… a beautiful glimpse of the very heartbeat of the message of the Gospel.  

Can we identify with this son’s experience of being embraced by his father’s gracious love? I hope so!

This parable offers us a powerful image of God’s love, that Christians have looked to from the beginning to understand and express the kind of welcome we have been offered in Christ. This story often hits home when we have moments of conversion… coming to faith for the first time… or of reconnection… returning to the Lord after he have wandered away, and are suddenly made aware that God’s love for us is so much bigger than our brokenness… and so much stronger than all our guilt and shame… It’s like coming to life again: when everything seemed lost, suddenly we’re found and welcomed home.

But this parable is more than a powerful vision of our own forgiveness, and if we stop here, we are actually missing one of the most important parts of this story’s message. 

Because this story is not only about one son. It’s about a family. The parable tells us about another son. The elder brother. The one who was expected to be honoured, like his father. The one who never stepped out of line. Who never shamed his father, or his family, or wasted his inheritance. The son who worked hard and who always did what was expected of him. 

A son who, just like his younger brother, does not understand the depths of his father’s mercy and love.

His story picks up with the party already started. The older son comes back from a day of working in the fields, and he hears about the feast in honour for his long-lost brother. But unlike his father, the older son is filled with anger and deep resentment. And so, he refuses to join in the celebration. 

So his father leaves the party and goes out to find him.

When he does, he begins to plead with the elder son to join them, and the always obedient, responsible son responds by letting his father have it. Now before we look down on him, let’s think about his position. Let’s listen to his complaint. Luke 15:29-30,

“But he answered his father, ‘Listen! For all these years I have been working like a slave for you, and I have never disobeyed your command; yet you have never given me even a young goat so that I might celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours came back, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fatted calf for him!’”

‘What has this all been for?’ he says. ‘I’ve worked and slaved for you all my life, and for what? You’ve never blessed me like you bless this useless, horrible son of yours!’

Can we identify with this older son sometimes? Do we ever feel weighed down with duty… working hard to do what’s expected, but then seeing nothing to show for it? All the while, seeing other, completely undeserving people being lifted up? If you’ve ever felt this way… if you’re feeling this way today, you’re definitely not alone. And thankfully, this word from Jesus our Lord is for you… to bring you peace and hope as well. But this parable is also a challenge to us… correcting some assumptions that we all make from time to time about the true nature of God’s mercy and love, and how it works in our lives, and in our world.

One way to explain the older son’s point of view is to say that he is relating to his father with a basically 
transactional framework: ‘If I do this for you, you’ll do that for me.’ Of course, there’s a flip side to this too: ‘If I don’t do this for you, you won’t do that for me.’ This is a vision of the world where we all basically get what we deserve… and it deeply shapes how we relate to ourselves… and how we relate to the other people in our lives.

But the Gospel, the Good News of offers us another way to see both ourselves, and others… not based on evaluating what everyone does or does not deserve… but based on what the Living God has done for us, and for them too… through God’s Son, Jesus Christ.

And this parable… this story asks us all: ‘Do we truly understand our Heavenly Father’s mercy & love? How in tune are we with God’s amazing, saving grace for sinners of every sort?’

In the parable, the father seeks to share his life and joy with both his sons… not as a reward, but as a gift. As an outpouring of his own generosity, and willingness to embrace them both as his own. 

With the younger son, we see this clearly, as the father honours and welcomes his child home with unexpected ease, and overflowing joy… seeing his wasteful and wayward boy as one who has been brought back to life from the dead.

And with the older son, we see the father seeking him out, eager for his diligent child to come and share in his joy as well. And we also see the father patiently listening to his elder sons’ angry accusations… against his brother, and also against the father… but then gently challenging the older son’s assumptions… inviting him to adopt a whole different way of seeing himself, his relationship with his father, and with his estranged brother. Luke 15:31-32,

“Then the father said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. But we had to celebrate and rejoice, because this brother of yours was dead and has come to life; he was lost and has been found.’”

The son seems to have thought that his father had forgotten him… that he had been loved less, and neglected. But in the father’s eyes, that’s not the case at all! It’s not an either/or. He loved both his children, and wanted them both to share in his love together. 

But to do that, the elder son had to choose to make room in his heart and his life for his brother again. He would have to start to see that the new life of his brother mattered so much more than money, or honour, or his ideas about what anyone deserved. 

This story is an invitation to live by God’s grace. To receive His grace, and then to extend it.

And the story is left hanging. How would the older son respond? More to the point: how will you and I respond???
 
After all, this parable is not at all a hypothetical scenario. It is a word from our Lord Jesus Christ, challenging our own assumptions, and calling us to a deeper understanding of our Heavenly Father’s great mercy and love… one that will actually begin to alter how we relate to God, and to all those around us.

In other words, it’s pointing us to Jesus Himself… to God’s own beloved Son, our Saviour.

The One who went out to the lost, to the scandalous, the losers, the compromised, and corrupt, and called them turn around and to share in the New Life of God’s Kingdom… embracing them as His beloved sisters and brothers, not because they deserved it at all, but because of God’s own great mercy and love. 

And we know, Jesus was also rejected by those who were self-righteous… those who could not or would not recognize in Him the mercy and love of the Living God at work… and who were angry and scandalized that Jesus would claim to be so close to the Holy One, and yet still hang out with all the wrong kinds of people. 

But Jesus didn’t come to pick sides. He came to seek the lost, and to share God’s great mercy and saving love with everyone and anyone who would receive it. And He did this by taking our place once and for all at the cross.

Jesus gave His life for both the younger and the older brothers… for all of us, no matter which ways we have wandered from the holy ways of our Heavenly Father: through being shameful or self-righteousness… through our anger or our carelessness. Christ Jesus took on all the consequences of our world’s ungodliness… in every form it may take… in order to save and embrace us all… bringing us to Himself forever.

As St. Paul says in second Corinthians 5:21, “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”

But here’s the kicker: what Jesus has done for us, He has also done for everyone else. That includes those who have hurt us, or who deeply frustrate us, or who give us reasons to be afraid. He doesn’t condone what they’ve done, or want it to continue. Far from it! 

But the truth remains that Jesus Christ gave His life for them too. And our Heavenly Father seeks to save them too. As much as we may want to at times, you and I don’t get to draw the lines about who gets embraced by the love of God.

But if we leave it there, we’re actually missing the biggest scandal of this story, and like the older son, we’re still left standing outside, refusing to come in. The real scandal of God’s mercy and saving love is that He wants us to share it with them too. Not to stand off at a distance, grumbling, but to be an integral part of how his love is made known. 

In other words: Jesus embraces us, so that, with the Holy Spirit’s help, we can embrace our estranged siblings too, and help them return to the loving arms of our Father in Heaven.

Or better yet, in St. Paul’s words: “From now on, therefore, we regard no one from a human point of view; even though we once knew Christ from a human point of view, we know him no longer in that way. So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting the message of reconciliation to us. So we are ambassadors for Christ, since God is making his appeal through us; we entreat you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” (2 Corinthians 5:16-21).

Of course we know, that we can’t make people respond faithfully to this Good News of God’s reconciling love. And there is no guarantee that those we share it with will want anything we have to offer. And we can never try to force people who are estranged to be reconciled. It has to be a two-way street. In order for broken relationships to truly heal, there’s lots of healing, and listening, and rebuilding of trust that will need to take place. 
 
But as Christians, we have already received God’s reconciling mercy and grace, and are now called to share it with those around us in Jesus’ name… looking at ourselves and everyone around us, not simply from a human point of view, but as beloved sons and daughters that Christ Jesus died to save.

So how will we respond to all those around us today? That all depends on how we see them, and on our understanding of the mercy and saving love of our Heavenly Father. 

So may we see and treat everyone… ourselves, our loved ones, our neighbours, and even our enemies, in the light of the Gospel… the Good News of what Jesus Christ has done to seek out and save us all. Amen.  

Today marks the third Sunday of Lent, a sacred season for Christians to prepare in mind, body, and spirit, to follow our Saviour Jesus Christ to the cross, and the solemn commemoration of His betrayal, death, and resurrection at Holy Week.

Some of the traditional practices of the season of Lent include fasting, the study of Scripture, prayerful reflection, and generous almsgiving. 

To help us grow in our understanding and faith as Christ's disciples today, each week we will be sharing links to two videos from the Bible Project from their series on The Sermon on the Mount.

You can find this week's videos,  'Wisdom Within Laws About Oaths, Retaliation, and Enemy Love', and 'Warnings About Religious Practices' below: 

Scripture Readings: Genesis 15:1–12, 17–18 | Psalm 27 | Philippians 3:17–4:1 | Luke 13:31–35

“Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing!” (Luke 13:34).

How we respond to danger and threats says a lot about what we value… and what we trust in. 

At one level, this response to danger happens completely unconsciously. When threatened, our body’s self-defense mechanisms kick in to help us do what we must to survive… what’s sometimes called the ‘fight, flight, or freeze’ response to stress. Our bodies automatically prepare us to challenge the threats head on, to flee as fast as possible, or to temporarily seize up, in the hopes that the threat will pass us by. 

All of these biological strategies have their place, and are useful in certain circumstances. And all of us have different default reactions… ones we jump to more easily than others. But this physiological response is only part of our overall approach to dealing with dangers in life. Our will also plays an important role in how we react to threats.

When we have more than a second to think about what to do… when we have a chance to actually choose our next steps… and decide between all the pathways before us… that’s when our response to danger really reveals what we care about, and what we think is the best way to protect it.

Our reading today from St. Luke’s Gospel tells of a moment when Christ Jesus our Lord comes under threat: when He receives a warning that powerful people are out to get Him. And in this passage, we get a glimpse of both what our Lord Jesus is truly passionate about… and also a vision of what it means for us all to respond to threats and dangers from the point of view of God’s Kingdom.

Our passage begins with Jesus being warned by some Pharisees that the puppet-king Herod Antipas, the ruler of Galilee, wanted Him dead. Now as you might remember, Herod Antipas’ father, King Herod the ‘Great’, had also sought to kill Jesus, when He was a child, after the visit from the Magi. At that time, Herod the ‘Great’ was threatened by news of a newborn King of the Jews, and ended up killing all the young boys in Bethlehem, but Jesus and His family fled to safety in Egypt. 

And now, like father like son, Herod Antipas sees the adult Jesus as a threat… someone who was causing trouble and upsetting his own vision for Galilee. We don’t have all the details of why Herod Antipas wanted Jesus dead… just that he did. And usually, when powerful people like that want you dead, that’s reason enough to flee.

And so some Pharisees, who have as a group had some confrontations with Jesus at this point, but who were not outright enemies yet, decide to warn Jesus to get out of town, and out of trouble. “Get away from here,” they tell Him, “for Herod wants to kill you.” (Luke 13:31).

What would you do in His place? How would you respond to this kind of warning?

Well, Jesus responds by doing something quite unexpected. He says He has His own work to do, work that Herod’s threats won’t stop Him from doing. And though He soon will be leaving Galilee, it’s not to flee away from danger, but to journey straight into the heart of it! 

Luke 13:32-33, “He said to them, ‘Go and tell that fox for me, ‘Listen, I am casting out demons and performing cures today and tomorrow, and on the third day I finish my work. Yet today, tomorrow, and the next day I must be on my way, because it is impossible for a prophet to be killed outside of Jerusalem.’” 

Right away, Jesus dismisses the ruler of Galilee as ‘that fox’… a cunning predator of small creatures, but not really that much of a threat. Then He lays out His own agenda: to do the works of the Kingdom of God. To drive away the dark spiritual powers holding us humans in bondage and fear… curing the sick, and bringing healing to people in mind, body, and soul. In short, Jesus was far too busy bringing God’s life and light to those who desperately needed it to worry about what Herod Antipas was up to… and more than that, He knew where the real danger lay. 

He knew His mission… and that His path would soon take Him to Jerusalem, whose name means ‘city of shalom’ or ‘city of peace’. 

Jerusalem… the home of the Temple of Yahweh, first built by Solomon, son of King David, and which was the central place of worship for God’s people… before the city was sacked by the Babylonians at the time of the Exile. But the Temple had been rebuilt when the Exiles returned, and this building had recently been refurbished and made great again by Herod ‘the Great’… the same one who also murdered the children of Bethlehem, to protect his own interests. Jesus knew His path would take Him from the largely rural and familiar region of Galilee, to this sacred but politically unsafe city.

Jerusalem was of course, the centre of Judean religious and political life. It was where the Chief Priests offered their spiritual leadership, and ritual practices. It was the headquarters of the Sanhedrin, the Council of elders who took charge of many aspects of the lives of God’s people in that region… and who would eventually form the plot for Christ’s false accusations, arrest, and death. And Jesus knew all this was coming.

For Jerusalem, the centre of so much of the drama of the Scriptures, was where many of God’s prophets were sent to call God’s people to repent… to turn back to God… but kept on facing rejection, persecution, and death.
Herod Antipas could not concern Jesus less. And so, in heading to Jerusalem, our Lord was not seeking to avoid danger… He knew He was walking straight into the fire! 

But why would He do this? What was His motivation here? 

It was certainly not to start a fight: to go toe to toe with the city’s powerful but corrupt rulers… to try and challenge their authority by overthrowing them with violence. 

And it wasn’t out of some effort to prove that He was impervious to threats or danger… bravely facing the abyss to somehow show off His courage and spiritual prowess.

Why does He say He’s going to Jerusalem? Because He wants to rescue them! He longs to spare them all from the fate that He knows they are in danger of embracing. 

In other words, Jesus goes to Jerusalem, despite all the dangers it holds for Him, because He loves them! Because God the Father loves them! Because He has been entrusted with God’s great rescue mission, and He will not be deterred from it. 

Luke 13:34-35, “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! See, your house is left to you. And I tell you, you will not see me until the time comes when you say, ‘Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.’” 

The image Christ uses of a mother hen gathering her brood is itself a beautiful one, but as the bishop and scholar, N.T. Wright highlights, in the context of coming danger, this image speaks of an incredible act of love. Forgive this long-ish quote, but I think it is worth it:

“Fire is as terrifying to trapped animals as to people, if not more so. When a farmyard catches fire, the animals try to escape; but, if they cannot, some species have developed ways of protecting their young. The picture here is of a hen, gathering her chicks under her wings to protect them. There are stories of exactly this: after a farmyard fire, those cleaning up have found a dead hen, scorched and blackened—with live chicks sheltering under her wings. She has quite literally given her life to save them. It is a vivid and violent image of what Jesus declared he longed to do for Jerusalem and, by implication, for all Israel. But, at the moment, all he could see was chicks scurrying off in the opposite direction, taking no notice of the smoke and flames indicating the approach of danger, nor of the urgent warnings of the one who alone could give them safety.” (N.T Wright, Luke for Everyone (London: Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 2004), 171–172.)

Jesus uses the image of a mother hen putting her own body between her offspring and the dangers that would otherwise completely overwhelm them. It’s a picture of self-sacrifice in order to spare those who are loved even more than life.

And so, Jesus knows He is heading into the fire… straight into danger, in order to save His people. But how would they respond? Would they take shelter beneath His outstretched arms? Or would they scatter, seeking shelter and security somewhere else?

Centuries before Christ, we know Jerusalem fell to the armies of Babylon, and it was destroyed… just as many prophets of God had predicted… all because God’s people had turned away from the LORD, and rejected His holy ways.

And just a few decades after Jesus said these words, the powerful armies of the Roman Empire would again march through the city of Jerusalem, and bring it down… overthrowing a Judaean revolt, spurred on by charismatic, ‘would-be’ messiahs… who rejected the way of peace that Jesus Himself pursued, and calls us to followed.  

Although some of the inhabitants of Jerusalem had listened to Jesus’ call, especially after the Good News of His resurrection was proclaimed by the Apostles, starting in the ‘city of peace’, many of those who did not embraced violence and bloodshed, and thought that the sword was the best way to save their people. But in the end, Jerusalem was again overthrown, and its people scattered or slain. 

Of course, our world is full of threats and dangers. They’re not only found in Jerusalem.

So, when we feel like we’re in the fire… threatened, in danger… frightened… where do we run? What do we turn to? 
Facing the barrage of challenges of our day… many of us can be tempted to respond by looking for some sense of security by following a strong leader who we think will fight for us, and our own interests. Or maybe, we’re more inclined to look for ways to stay out of trouble… to freeze or appease those who threaten us… even if it means consenting to things that we know take us further away from God’s holy ways. 

As St. Paul warned us, in our second reading this morning, there are many at work in our world who really are living “as enemies of the cross of Christ” (Philippians 3:18), even if they claim to be our champions… those whose agendas and influence may seem to offer us hope, but actually lead us straight into the fire. 

But alongside this warning, St. Paul also gives us a word of hope: a reminder that our true citizenship is in heaven… that our real allegiance is not bound to any earthly state, or leader, but to the Kingdom of God… a Kingdom which we are called to serve here and now… while we await the return of our true Saviour, the Risen King Jesus… who alone is our assurance of victory and glory. 

And so, even if for a time we are threatened and must face many dangers, we believe that Jesus will raise us up… and so we can, and must seek always to stand firm in Him.  

And this is what Jesus calls us to do: to seek and find our shelter in Him. 

Not to entrust ourselves to all the foxes out there, who might promise us protection, but are just as likely to turn and devour us. Those who are happy to use us to get what they want, but who do not really care about our fate.

We are called to trust in His saving love… the love that brings the freedom of God’s good Kingdom to light, and forgiveness and healing to our lives in surprising ways… the love that led Him straight into the fire for all our sakes: choosing to endure the cruelty and shame of the cross in order to rescue… not just His friends, but even His enemies!

This is the love that Christ Jesus has for us, and for our world: God’s self-giving love, that sees even those who stand against us as beloved… longing to embrace us all and bring us safely together in His healing arms.

And so, as we continue our journey through Lent, at a time when many of us and our neighbours feel deeply insecure, and under threat, Jesus is calling us to trust in His sincere, self-giving love… and to follow Him. To follow Him to the cross, knowing that we’re not going to be spared our share of the dangers and fires of life… but trusting that whatever we face, Jesus our Risen Saviour is with us… and His saving love will see us through… and that, as we stand firm in our faith in Him, and put His love into practice, those around us can come to know where they too can turn to find true refuge, and come to believe in the rescuing power of His love. Amen.