Beginnings and Endings

The Rev. J. Seth Olson © 2019 

When you just know Jesus was here!

January 20, 2019—Second Sunday after the Epiphany

Isaiah 62:1-5

Psalm 36:5-10

1 Corinthians 12:1-11

John 2:1-11

2,026 days ago I stood right where I am standing now. It was our first Sunday together sharing ministry. At the start of that sermon I held up some old ratty cross-country spikes. There’s little reason why you would remember this, but during that sermon I recalled my senior season of running in college. Back at university, I had written several motivational phrases inside those shoes. One was the first half of an African proverb: “If you want to go fast, go alone.” I left off the second half of that piece of wisdom back in school—I thought I was cool. But on that Sunday five and a half years ago what I hoped for us in our shared ministry was the second half of that expression: “If you want to go far, go together.” Friends, it feels like we have gone far.

Of course, at this moment it does not feel like it—I am standing exactly where I stood back then. And, you might be sitting exactly where you sat back then—we do love our assigned pews, right? But, still a lot has happened in the interceding seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, and years.

Our lives look different. Our campus looks different. We’ve started new ministries, increased our budget, and taken part in the building up of God’s Kingdom. We’ve had 15 baptismal services and 4 Confirmation services with dozens welcomed into the Body of Christ. We have also seen many beloved friends die. 39 services of burial to be exact. Others have dealt with loss, illness, and grief. Still, there have been so many high points: 14 weddings, countless Christian Formation classes, 100s of TonT questions, and 100s of pet blessings each year at our St. Francis’ service. We’ve shared 6 Lessons and Carols, 6 Christmases, and 5 Holy Weeks. We’ve been nourished by the Body and Blood of Christ 1,241 times since the summer of 2013. Right over there I was ordained a priest by Bishop Santosh. Up there I celebrated at my first Eucharist. Over there was where my own child was baptized. And, there have been so many other holy moments.

I got to thinking about all this time since the beginning of our shared ministry, and it started to hurt my head. Y’all may know I don’t particularly like doing math problems. And yet, here goes. It has been 2,032 days since I began working at St. John’s Church. And, that is 5.56 years together. But, each of us in that time has lived 5.56 years of our own. And, there are 646 members of St. John’s. So, if we multiply 5.56 years times 646 members we have lived way more than five and a half years together. We have lived approximately 3,592 human years during our shared time of ministry. That’s a lot of time! We have spent so many moments together studying, praying, singing, worshipping, talking, eating, drinking, living, breathing, and loving. That is so much time that if we could string it together into one human life, it would take us all the way back to before the start of Jesus’ own earthly ministry. Hey, isn’t that what today’s Gospel lesson is about—the beginning of Jesus’ ministry? See what I did there?

Somehow it feels just right that on this day when we celebrate the ending of our shared ministry together, we also celebrate the beginning of Jesus’ ministry. Endings and beginnings are always tied together. And, as important as our ministry together has been, what truly matters is why we have shared in this ministry in the first place. Why have we done all this? Because everything we do is about taking part in Christ’s ministry. Everything we do is about the transforming love of God that we most clearly see in the life, the death, and the Resurrection of Christ Jesus. Everything we do in our individual and corporate ministries is about taking part in the ministry of the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. And, today in John’s words we see revealed what Christ Jesus’ ministry was all about! So, let’s look closer at this beginning even here at this ending.

This lesson begins on the third day, what third day? Is this foreshadowing of the Resurrection on the third day? Most likely, but it was also the third day of Jesus’ public ministry. On the first, Jesus called his first disciple Andrew who in turn called his brother Simon (we know him as Peter). On the second, Jesus traveled to Galilee and called Philip who then called his friend Nathanael. On this third day this new ragtag group of a teacher and his disciples traveled to Cana for a wedding. How did they get invited to a wedding on such short notice? That’s the real miracle here! Okay not really, but the first real sign that Jesus was not just some teacher came here at the wedding feast.

In the midst of a party so fun that they ran out of wine, Jesus, reluctantly at first, pointed in the direction of what he came to earth to do, who he came to be. On this day that is fraught with emotion and grieving, it is crucial to see where Jesus was headed. It’s paramount to know what our shared ministry together with Him is to look like. And one of the best ways we can see this is by looking at the setting. This was not a slow dirge, nor a quiet shindig. No, life in Christ was, is, and will be a raucous throw down. So, what exactly happened when the party looked like it would stop?

There was a moment of tension at the very start of Jesus’ public ministry. What would happen? Would the party end? Mary knew. She trusted Jesus. Mary could see what she had seen in her son all along. Jesus’ mother had come to believe that he was not just some teacher or a carpenter’s apprentice. But, Jesus balked. He said his hour had not yet come. This was something he would say throughout John’s Gospel account, until finally on the cross the time did arrive. But, all the way back in Cana Mary had faith. She told the steward to do what her son said. And, the procrastinating Jesus, the one through whom all things had been created out of nothing, created something else out of nothing but water. In the process, Jesus showed us what shared ministry with Him is like.

What does ministry with Christ look like? In one word: Transformation! Transformation is what this ministry is all about! Here are three different ways that Jesus’ first sign pointed in the direction of transformation.

First, Jesus transformed water into wine. Now we say this so often that it needs a bit of unpacking. Jesus got some servants to fill six huge stones jars with water. Imagine the immensity of those containers. They were made out of rock and then they were filled to the brim with 20-30 gallons of water. Heavy (doc)! So, imagine the huge scale of this transformation. 25 gallons times six (here I go again with the math). This equates to 757 750ml bottles of wine. That’s 4,542 glasses of wine. An abundant transformation!

Second, those gigantic stone jars were supposed to be used for purity rites. But, Jesus transformed that too. He repurposed those religious instruments. The old ways of purity codes and having to follow the rules to receive approval from God were metamorphosed into a new way. This way was not about only the few who followed the rules getting into the party. Nope! Instead it was about everyone joining the festivities.

Third, and perhaps most fittingly for today, Jesus transformed the ending of that wedding party. Sound familiar? When we expect death, God hits us with life! Because of His shifting the water into wine, the gathering could keep going, more could be invited, and the celebration could continue on and on and on. Thus, Jesus’ first sign pointed to how life in Christ transforms us.

This miracle didn’t signify having too little, having to follow certain rules to be a part of the party, or cutting something short. No, this first sign pointed to God’s abundance, inclusion, and eternal gifting. This was a jubilee that was just getting started, and it is one that we are part of now, and one that will keep going forever.

We are still celebrating this same feast. When we gather together at God’s Table—wherever we are—we will share in the same fruit from the same divine vine. And, while today is the ending of our shared ministry here at St. John’s, it is not the end of our shared ministry with Christ Jesus. For the ministry that we share together with the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit goes on into eternity. God’s transformation love as seen in the life, the death, and the Resurrection of Christ Jesus is a sign telling us the supplies will never give out, all are invited, and there is no end to the feast. So may we continue to go far together as we celebrate with God and experience transformational love forever.

Who Do You Say That I Am?

January 16, 2019—Transferred Feast of the Confession of St. Peter

Acts 4: 8-13

Psalm 23

1 Peter 5:1-4

Matthew 16:13-19

When I was a kid both of my parents were theater professors. This meant that often I would not go home after school, but up to Samford University where they taught. There I would occasionally do homework, but mostly I would draw or play. My parents’ college students sometimes would chase me around the theater department, and on one occasion one of the students, who was carrying me around on his shoulders, dropped me on my head.

The way my family tells the story, everything stopped. I don’t remember it because it was a long time ago, AND I had just been dropped on my head.  My sister Elin ran to get my parents, they dropped what they were doing, and we rushed off to the hospital. That night I was put into the concussion protocol—not the one you hear about during football games, but the one in which a patient is awoken every hour and asked a battery of simple questions. That night was a tough one. My mom and dad woke me from my sleep and ask me things like, “Where do you live?” and “Where do you go to school?” And, throughout the whole night every hour they asked one particular question.

Every hour my family asked, “Who are you?” During the first few hours, I responded my name is John Seth Olson. But one hour, deep in the night, I was asked, “Who are you?” And my response was “I don’t know…” My mom began to panic. She sat me up and asked again. “I don’t know,” I said again. Then a third time she asked, “Who are you?” Irritated that I was still not resting my head, I replied, “I DON’T KNOW! But, my sister’s name is Elin Keith Olson.” Even if it was not what they were looking for, it was good enough that my parents let me go back to sleep. And, seemingly I have a semi-functional brain to this day. And, on this day when we remember Jesus asking, “Who do you say that I am?” and Peter’s wise response, we are called to recognize not only who we are, but also who Christ is and what our relationship with him is!

As the first half of Matthew’s Gospel account unfolded, Jesus revealed his true identity, his fully human-fully divine nature to his disciples. Slowly they were beginning to see that Jesus was not simply a teacher. Still it wasn’t until here at the halfway mark that Jesus gave a pop quiz to his disciples. The first question, “Who do people say that I am?” would have been easy enough. They only needed to report what others had said. But then came the tough question, “Who do you say that I am?” In it there was nowhere to hide!

After the question was asked I wonder how long it took Peter to speak. A second? A minute? As long as it took me to respond to my midnight concussion questions? It’s unclear. What is clear though is that Peter gave an audacious response, and its audacity was only outdone by its correctness. “You are the messiah, the Son of the living God.” While this response was all about Jesus’ true nature as the Christ, Peter’s response changed his own identity too.

When I could not recall my own name on that night long ago what I did know was my relationship with my sister. What we remember today all this time after Peter’s martyrdom has everything to do with his relationship with Jesus. Certainly there was some other disciple who recognized some other teacher who asked the same question as Jesus, but we do not remember that disciple—we remember Peter. And, because Peter knew Jesus as his Savior and the Son of God, Peter’s life also changed. His identity changed. His relationship with God and others changed! The way he lived out his life was different as a result.

Peter would quickly rebuke Jesus. Later he would deny Jesus three times. Still, Peter’s life, identity, and relationship with God all changed because God did not call him to be perfect. God called him to be a building surface on which God would build. And, the same is true for us.

God wants to build upon us too! Today we ask ourselves what Jesus asked his disciples long ago, “Who do we say [He] is?” It is not always easy to articulate what we believe about Jesus—of course we can rely upon the Apostles’ Creed and the Nicene Creed. Still we must distill these beliefs passed down to us by the Church, so that each of us can answer this question for ourselves. Who do we say that Jesus is? Who do you say He is?

Jesus is not simply some great teacher who lived long ago, nor is Jesus just some far off deity that now resides on a cloud somewhere. Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of the living God. And, He still lives mystically and truly within us. Through God’s Spirit Christ lives in us more closely than we can ever know or imagine. Jesus’ identity as the Messiah means that He still saves. He saves us from ourselves, from our tendency to put ourselves above God, from our idols, from our sins, from our brokenness, and even from death. Jesus being God means that He is in all that has been created, whether it is seen and unseen, both the quick and the dead, and that means He is in us and with us always. Jesus’ identity, then changes our own identity and who we say that we are.

In Christ we are made a new creation. We become different. Our lives, our identities, our relationships all change! Our old selves die and we are made something new altogether. We recognize this in Baptism, but it is always happening within us. Through God’s love we are being purified and refined and redeemed, and this is the best news.

Life can be a struggle as we try to answer, “Who are you?” Early in life we build up our sense of self. During our midlife we are challenged to live healthy lives in which we are not codependent or boundary-less. Later in life we worry if we will be remembered—and may struggle to remember ourselves. As we wrestle with these concerns may we understand that the question of who we are is less important than who Jesus is. Who do we say that He is? When we allow God to be God, and us to be united in relationship with God through Christ Jesus, then we can live into our true identity as God’s beloved children. Even if you are concussed and cannot answer “Who are you?” may you always be able to respond, “My Messiah’s name is Christ Jesus, and through Him I am God’s child.” Amen.

Onward

My Baptismal Certificate (Thanks be to God that God wasn't finished with me then).

 The Rev. J. Seth Olson © 2019

January 13, 2019—First Sunday after the Epiphany

Isaiah 43:1-7

Psalm 29

Acts 8:14-17

Luke 3:15-17, 21-22

Do you remember your baptism? I don’t. In the Church we sometimes say, “Remember your baptism!” but I don’t. It’s not that I don’t remember that I was baptized, it’s just that I was seven months old. I do however, remember what people told me about that day.

On Saturday, May 4, 1985 in front of just a handful of people Fr. Jim Touhy celebrated a service of Holy Baptism. It is not lost on me as a Star Wars fan that I was baptized on May 4^th—as in, "May the Fourth (sic) be with you." Still there are so many more important details that others have told me about that day worth remembering.

Like that it was one of the last private baptisms celebrated at Saint Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Birmingham. As you know, we in the Episcopal Church now prefer a raucous celebration in the midst of a big feast day like All Saints’ Day or today. Being baptized in front of a few people who will raise one up right is profound, but when a whole church says, “We will!” make sure this child or person is brought up into the full stature of Christ, it’s so rich for the whole community.

Back to my own baptism, I also have been told that on that spring day in 1985 I cried bloody murder throughout the whole service. Fr. Touhy—an Irishman—said afterward in his thick accent, “Well, I hope it took!” As in, he hoped that he had gotten all the Satan out of me. These shared details and my own other memories about that church weave together this beautiful tapestry that informs me about the importance of being marked as Christ’s own forever. What about you, what do you remember about your own baptism?

What do you remember about what happened after your baptism? I’m not talking about the reception, I mean what occurred in the wake of your baptism? I ask this because today’s Gospel lesson directs us strangely away from Jesus’ baptism at the hands of John and towards another moment entirely. And, truth be told, what happens as we move through our life in Christ, our life-long journey as the beloveds of God, may shine just as brightly as that one shimmering moment in the baptismal waters. So, let’s look more closely at today’s words from Luke, as we are charged to move onward in our relationship with God through Christ.

Unlike in Mark’s account, when Jesus emerged from baptism with the heavens being torn open immediately, or Matthew’s account, when again the dove descended as Jesus rose out of the River Jordan, or John’s account, when we did not receive an elaborate description of the baptism at all, unlike the others, Luke’s story gives us an intentional account of Jesus’ baptism, but in the past tense. Listen again: “Now when all the people were baptized, and when Jesus also had been baptized…” the heavens opened, the Holy Spirit came down, and the Father’s voice boomed. The moment of baptism had already passed.

How long ago was it? Well, in a blog post thisweek, our former rector writing about the Greek word, which we translate as “had been baptized,” lets us know that it’s unclear. However, what is as clear as the flowing baptismal water itself is that Jesus had already been baptized and was currently praying when the Spirit alighted upon Him. That’s right. The way Luke writes it Jesus was not being baptized when the Holy Spirit descended upon him in bodily form like that of a dove instead, it was when Jesus was praying that all of this action took place. This changes some things my friends!

Sometime after Jesus was baptized he was praying. And, as he was, God’s Spirit came upon him and told him the most important truth we will ever hear, “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.” There are two things here I want to dwell upon—first, what this tells us about prayer and second, why we need these words today more than ever.

So first prayer! Oftentimes parents of young children come into a priest’s office panicking. Especially if this child is the first in a family, the parents worry that if they do not hurry up and get their child baptized, then something bad could occur. And, so they ask, “What will happen if my child dies before she is baptized?” Sometimes not wanting to pull the rug out from underneath the parents’ feet too quickly, I will slowly try to unpack the fears surrounding this wayward belief. Most notably I want them to know clearly that Holy Baptism IS NOT eternal fire insurance.

This morning please hear me as I restate this truth. There is nothing you or your child can do that will separate either of you from God’s love. Nothing! Nothing, nothing, nothing, NOTHING! Baptism is not fire insurance. It is a repentance from sin and a turning towards God; however, God never waits on you to do something before God loves you! Got it? Now, not to undercut the profundity of the Holy Sacrament of Holy Baptism, but today’s Holy Scripture tells us that it is in prayer that Jesus received the Spirit and accepted His true identity as the Beloved.

So what does this mean? Is Holy Baptism insignificant? Well, no. But, it does shed some light on the power of prayer. Parents, guardians, grandparents, and the extended church family who may worry about our children’s eternal lives are also called to care about our children’s mortal lives, which are very much part of eternity. How do we care for ourselves and our children? How do we help ourselves and others to turn from evil? How do we lean ever closer towards Christ? How? How? How? Not only through the mysterious waters of Holy Baptism, but also in the rich life of prayer that we share together! Baptism is wonderful and can be profound, but it may very well be in our individual and shared lives of prayer that we hear the most important truth.

That second thing worth dwelling upon is why we need this truth now more than ever. What’s the truth? Through Christ and the Spirit, which came to reside upon and within Jesus, God says also to you, “You are my child, my beloved; with you I am well pleased.” You and you and you and you and you and all of us are God’s most precious child. Like all good parents God does not play favorites, instead God says you are my beloved. Jesus heard that truth, at least according to Luke, not in baptism but in prayer. If you are one of those worried parents who must have your child baptized perhaps these words are challenging because it’s not as simple as one moment. God is too big for just one moment. God wants you forever. God wants you to know that you are God’s beloved forever.

In just a moment we are going to remember our baptisms. We will do so by reciting the Baptismal Covenant. It will be lovely. And, I hope you take time each year on your baptismal anniversary to think back upon that moment when you were cleansed from sin and marked as Christ’s own forever. Still, what you need now and always is to pray. Not because it’s required of you. Not because God has to hear you worshipping, praising, or groveling. You need to pray because it is in prayer that you will recognize the truth of Holy Baptism. It is in prayer that you will hear God saying, “You are my child, my beloved; with you I am well pleased.” And for that, thanks be to God. Amen!

New Name

January 2, 2019—Transferred Feast of Holy Name

Numbers 6:22-27

Psalm 8

Philippians 2:5-11

Luke 2:15-21

Do you have a good nickname? What about growing up? Did you have a name that only your family or close friends called you? I marvel at how these names sometimes stick. Kim and I call (our son) Teddy by many different, ridiculous names. For example, we started off calling him bubby, but that quickly got shortened to bub, then it got lengthened to bubs, and now I often call him the bub-i-nator! What about you? Do you have a ridiculous name? Do you have nicknames for those closest to you? A What about a profound name?

How about with God? What does God call you? By what name does God call you?

There’s a hymn within the Alleluia III Hymnal entitled “I Will Change Your Name.” It is a favorite within the Cursillo community of Alabama. The lyrics in that song speak powerfully of conversion. Just take a listen:

“I will change your name.

You shall no longer be called

Wounded, outcast, lonely or afraid.

I will change your name.

Your new name shall be

Confidence, Joyfulness, Overcoming One,

Faithfulness, Friend of God, One who seeks My Face.” 

(D.J. Butler, 1987 Mercy/Vineyard Publishing)

Wow! In this song, God is committed to changing our names. Instead of us calling ourselves wounded, outcast, lonely, or afraid; God will change our names. But, why does this matter? Well, it matters because what we call someone matters. And, more importantly what God calls us matters. The Genesis 1 Creation Story tells us that when God speaks God creates. So, what God calls you matters, which is why what God called His Incarnate Son mattered too—and it’s why we celebrate the Feast of the Holy Name (transferred to) today.

In Luke’s sharing of the Good News of the Christ, we discover early on that God, the Father, is going to have an idle role in the proceedings. Via angelic messengers God bends the ear and the heart of Mary. She learns from Gabriel that she will bear God’s Son, and that this child will be the Son of the Most High God. Additionally, she discovers that she shall call him Jesus—and His Kingdom will have no end. But, what’s with this name? Why does it matter? Couldn’t he have been called Billy Joe or Steve?

Often we forget that Jesus’ name was not really Jesus. It was, but it wasn’t. Jesus is a Romanized version of a Hebrew name—the name Joshua. Jesus’ name would have sounded like Joshua in His own day. What’s so important about this? Well, Joshua means “God has saved” or “God will save.” When Mary heard that she was to name her child Joshua she was learning that through this child God would save humanity. I think it’s tough being a parent to Teddy—I can’t imagine what Mary must have felt in that moment, but I digress. Mary and Joseph naming their child Joshua might not seem like a big deal now, but it was.

On the eighth day of his life Jesus/Joshua would have been circumcised, as a marker that he was part of God’s People. Then, he was given his name, which was both a way of giving him his identity, but also for his parents it was a way of taking part in the creative act like God speaking things into being in the creation stories of Genesis. God’s naming Joshua/Jesus such was pointing to what this child from Nazareth came to show us—that God saves. What about our own names? What do they show us?

You may not know what your name means. That’s alright, you can always google it. My name in Hebrew means, “the chosen,” but in Egyptian means, “the devil,” so it could be a mixed bag. Rather than getting caught up in what you are named now, perhaps it’s time to ask God what your new name might be—like what those song lyrics tell us. Through Jesus/Joshua of Nazareth who was the Christ we know that we have been shown the pathway to healing, wholeness, and salvation. God is calling us to walk that pathway of life.

From being wounded, outcast, lonely, or afraid you are called to step into newness of life, as Christ transforms you. God is calling you by a new name. You are Confidence, Joyfulness, Overcoming One, Faithfulness, Friend of God, One who seeks God’s Face. In this New Year, trust in the one who saves and ask God what your new name might be.