2nd Sunday of Lent - Genesis 12:1-4a
Well I must admit when I first read over the lessons for today, I said to myself, Richard knew what he was doing being away this Sunday. What more could I possibly say about Abrams walk of faith with God? What could I say about “being born again” that has been preached on many times and still is for the most part misunderstood? But then I remembered that our readings in Lent are a journey through the building of Israel and the redemption of mankind through Jesus Christ.
One of the things I try to teach people is to always look and see how the old testament is pointing towards Jesus and how both testaments are one unified book. Last week we read about Adam and Eve and the fall. We will remember that in the middle of the Garden of Eden there were two trees—the tree of knowledge of good and evil which which ultimately led to the fall, and the tree of life. In the bible the word tree is often used to mean “cross”. We know from the opening of the Gospel of John that Jesus—the Word—existed from the very beginning. We also know that Jesus is the tree of life. From today’s gospel reading vs 16 says “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” There are many other examples in the Gospel of John where Jesus makes reference to “those who believe in him will have eternal life.”
Two things struck me about today’s old testament reading—1st not only Abram’s immediate faith in going as God told him, but where he left from; and 2nd the use of the words bless and blessing. In four short verses these words are used 5 times.
1st lets get some background.
“So Abram went, as the Lord had told him.” This is how we are introduced to the patriarch of three faith traditions: “so Abram went.” In chapters 10 and 11 of Genesis we are given a long genealogy from Noah’s son Shem, to Terah the father of Abram. In the 5 verses immediately before our reading, we discover that Abram has two brothers, one of whom dies in Ur of the Chaldeans, leaving a surviving son named Lot. Abram “takes a wife,” Sarai, who is barren, “for she has no child.” Finally, Abram’s father, Terah, dies in Haran and is buried there.
We then read that God tells Abram to go to a place he has never been before — go from your country, go from your kin, go from your father’s house — go, and I will show you where. So Abram goes. We know so little about this man. We know nothing of his pedigree, his credentials or qualifications. Was Abram a righteous man as was Noah? We are not told. Why would God call him? The text is silent on these matters, so we do not know — yet we do.
We know the ways of God through our experience of God today. In our churches, in our congregations, in our own callings as ministers, and in the callings of others to both lay and ordained service, we can see God’s method at work. We see that God does not always call those with the best credentials or the shining pedigrees. We see, again and again, that a faithful response to God's leading results in a blessing of gifts and talents, of learned and acquired skill sets sufficient for the task of which an individual is called. God calls and Abram responds faithfully and receives the power of procreation and the skill set to become a great nation.
The city of Haran, from which Abram is called, means “crossroads.” God’s call to Abram at this crossroads and Abram’s faithful response is the starting point of Israel’s history. Again we have that word “cross”, and when I think of crossroads or two highways intersecting each other, I envision a large cross, and I see God leading his people back to that tree of life—back to Jesus.
But what about us? You and me? All of us are, or have been or will be at a cross roads in our life. How will we hear God’s call to us? How will we respond? I hope as Christians we will pray and ask God’s guidance and help; that he would give us the courage to step out in faith as Abram was called to do; that we would put our reliance on God for the necessary skill sets; that we would see God’s hand at work. About 15 years ago I was at a crossroads in my life—not knowing where or what I was to do, but knowing that something was changing within me; and when that call began to make itself known, I was filled with the inevitable questions: Do I have the time? Do I have the gifts and talents, the skill set for this task? Am I a “good enough” person to fill this role? And of course the answer was no to all of the above. But my experience and the witness of Scripture concur that the one who calls is the one who equips. Therefore if the call is of God, the answer to all the above questions is yes. A faithful response is the embrace of what God has already called into being—a newness of being—and the release from what is known for what is promised. A faithful response is neither forced nor coerced, but a step freely taken toward our true selves.
But what about us—you and me—corporately as the Church. Our world wide Anglican Communion is at a crossroads as is our Canadian Province—dealing with controversial issues. Our Diocese is at a crossroads—looking ahead to a new Bishop and where God will be leading us as a Diocese. And most importantly and closest to each of us and dear to each of our hearts, our Parish is at a crossroads. We continue to work through our own transition of leadership and in doing so God is challenging us and calling us in new ways and in new directions—some of which we are reluctant to take. But I believe in my heart that God is calling and that He is with us and is leading us, and will provide all that we need to succeed. Our role is to listen; to respond and follow God—just as blindly and immediately as Abram responded; and in our response, in our stepping out in faith we will be blessed. We must seek a new vision for our Parish. Our call to remain faithful to our church’s mandate to mission and evangelism has never been stronger. We need to rebuild all aspects of our Parish, and this will mean a calling of Sunday School Teachers, ushers, lay readers and lay preachers and individuals sensing a call to ordained ministry. And there are some good things happening. God willing this August a third Brother will be clothed as a novice in the Dominican’s. As far as I know we are the only parish with friars of a religious order, and we will have three. I hope soon there will be some sister of our Parish in the order as well. It is not just for ordained clergy—but for lay people, both men and women, married and single. It is a wonderful calling. We spend time together in worship, prayer and bible reading. We explore matters of theology together, and most importantly we are a witness to the community. Just simply wearing our white and black shirts and vests and our cross identifies us as being different– as being dedicated to God, and people do notice and do ask us questions about our faith and order.
I can’t give you many details yet, but there is a parishioner who has received a very wonderful call from God and is making preparations for a major change in his life—and this is good. Good for the Parish, for the community and for him, and will further the work of God’s call on our Parish for mission and evangelism. This is exciting!
These can be the most exciting times for St. Mary Magdalene as God leads us to new beginnings. Just as Abram was born into a new reality that God called into being so we are being re-born into a new reality. Every new birth is a blessing, and every blessing holds the possibility of newness. God promises to make Abram a great nation and to bless him so that through Abram all nations will be blessed. And he promises to make St. Mary Magdalene an even brighter light to our Diocese and to our community.
The second aspect of this reading is blessings. Abram is called by God to serve as a mirror. Instead of images, Abram will reflect blessings and curses on the land where he will sojourn. As the world blesses Abram, so will Abram reflect those blessings back to the world. As the world curses Abram, so will the world’s curses be returned. That is not all. This mirror has two sides. The other side of Abram’s task is to turn his mirror self so that the blessing that God shines on him shines on the nations as well. Again we are faced with a series of questions: How is our life reflected back to us in Abram’s mirror? Are we persons who bless God’s servant or one who curses God’s servant? Do we let people know how their actions are blessings? Are we brave enough to perceive how our words or actions could be a curse? God is calling us to a basic state of honesty: When I look in the mirror, do I see a blessing or a curse? When I allow myself to see my effect on my family, coworkers, and friends, am I proud of myself or ashamed? In Abram, God calls us to see who we are — as blessings, or curses, or both. Looking into Abram’s mirror will not be easy. We may see that we have to challenge our self-perceptions. We may see that we need to challenge the perceptions of others.
In Galatians 6:7, Paul reminds us that as we sow, so shall we reap. Or What goes around comes around. Abram’s mirror gives only as well as it gets.
The mirror still has its other side. The other facet of Abram’s mirror is the side that reflects God to all peoples. From this half of the mirror comes the church’s mandate to mission and evangelism. Abram is a blessing, not because of his own skill, but because he will be used to purely reflect God’s light. The church is called to be a blessing to the people, not because it is faultless, but because it reflects the one who is.
God is alive. God is working in our Parish. He is leading us. He is in charge. He is calling new people to leadership, He is calling us, you and me, the people of St Mary Magdalene to be a mirror to our community, to reflect God’s blessings to the His people. Let us pray.
Heavenly Father, you have given us the example of Abram, who responded to your call in faith and reflected your blessings to all nations; increase our faith Lord, that we too will respond with that same faith of Abram, and through us your light will shine on our Community and that the love of Jesus would reach out to all corners of our world. In Jesus name, Amen.
