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24th
February 2013 - Morning - Revd. Preb Maureen Hobbs |
Sermon
for Lent 2, 2013
Genesis 15.1-12,17-18
Luke 13.31-35
The gift of procreation is one of the most precious that God
has given to his world - human beings included. "Go forth
and multiply and subdue the world" is one biblical commandment
that we seem to have no trouble obeying... (unlike many others!)
And yet there are those couples - 1 in 7 I believe is the latest
statistic, for whom this seemingly most basic of tasks is difficult
if not impossible.
To what extent, I wonder, do you consider the ability to conceive
and bear children a right or a gift and a privilege? It is one
of the questions that I occasionally put to couples who come
to me preparing for marriage. I admit to being a bit bothered
that increasingly the ability to give birth to children that
share a genetic inheritance to oneself is seen as a 'right' -
rather than as a God-given gift.
If it happens, then wonderful and let us hope that every child
is a wanted child.... but if - for whatever reason, it does not?
Then I am not at all sure that scarce resources in our NHS should
be devoted to helping childless couples to conceive. That may
seem very harsh to some - and goes against the announcement this
week that new guidelines are to be issued to enable fertility
treatment to be extended to women over 40 and that the time constraint
on how long a couple should try to conceive a child before resorting
to fertility treatment is to be cut from 3 to 2 years. That is
not to deny that human beings thrive best when part of a family
- but (and maybe I am influenced here by the ownership of two
rescue dogs!) does it always have to be a question of giving
birth?
We are increasingly being made to understand that families come
in all shapes and sizes and genders and variations. Mum, Dad
and 2.4 offspring might be the nuclear ideal that we still hold
in our minds - but the reality is often rather different. Surely
it is the quality of the love and the stability of relationships
within the family that determine whether that unit is life-affirming
or totally dysfunctional? I only ask ...
This week I will have the unenviable job on Thursday of burying
little Brody Rollings - and with him no doubt, many of the hopes
and dreams of his parents Sarah and Michael. Although Brody has
2 sisters, this will never lessen the grief they feel for the
loss of a child - with all the unrealised potential that all
new parents invest in their little one. And yet I believe deeply
that Brody has his place in this world - if only through the
memories and prayers of his parents and family. His little life,
so brief, has nevertheless touched the lives of his parents,
grandparents, aunts and uncles and probably many in this community
who know the family and cherish them.
So being a parent - while it is still probably the aspiration
and expectation of most young people, is not guaranteed - is
not a right, it is a privilege and a gift that God grants to
some.... not all.
Abram finds it difficult to believe that God intends to keep
his promise about him being the Father of a great nation....
Sarai's inability to bear him a child has gone on for so long.
True there is Ishmael, but the illegitimate son of a slavewoman,
a concubine, is not really supposed to be the main heir. And
by this time Abram is a man of some substance - in our terms
he would be a millionaire - and he is pushing on a bit! But like
many since, he finds that all the material wealth in the world
is no consolation for the lack of a legitimate child to whom
he can pass it on.
But the Lord is adamant - what seems impossible for human beings,
will be achieved by God, but in God's good time.... Wait and
see!
More images of parenthood occur in our Gospel reading today.
Jesus as a mother hen, carefully gathering and protecting her
silly chicks, while the wily old fox - Herod, is an ever present
threat. Those of you with experience of keeping chickens will
know how important it is to shut them up at night. One slip up,
one moment of forgetfulness is all that it takes. The fox is
persistent and dangerous - killing not only for hunger or to
feed his own brood of cubs, but for the sheer joy of killing
- or so it seems.
Herod too had a reputation - well-deserved, - for being a vicious
and merciless killer. Even his own children were not spared.
Not much parental affection in that family it seems! But Herod
is curious about this rabble-rousing rabbi from Nazareth. Herod
has already put paid to John and his preaching, but it seems
there is something different, something less predictable and
more disturbing about Jesus.
"I must keep going - today, tomorrow and the next day."
Such is the path Jesus took at his baptism. The path is much
the same for us who stumble after him on this journey through
Lent. Somehow we have to keep going, taking what guidance and
comfort we can from our fellowship with God and with each other.
God, give us grace to persevere.
The image of the protective hen may be less familiar to us when
we think of Jesus than that of the lamb or even the lion. I wonder
why? Is it because we don't think much of chickens as role models?
And yet a mother hen will indeed defend her chicks to the last
against danger - even sacrificing her own life to protect them
from either predator or danger - such as fire. And Jesus implies
we can learn from them - so that really should be good enough
for us! Or is it I wonder, because deep down, we still have gender
issues where God is concerned, which make us shy of thinking
of God as a mother as well as a father? I only ask....
But the Lord is adamant - what seems impossible for human beings,
will be achieved by God, but in God's good time.... Wait and
see! |
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24th
February 2013 - Evening - Revd. Preb Maureen Hobbs |
Sermon
for Lent 2 - Evening 2013
Jeremiah 22.1-9,13-17
Luke 14.27-33
Counting the cost....
Jesus rightly reminds us in Luke's gospel that before we undertake
any major project or work, we really should do our budgeting
properly. That is part of prudent planning. Not to do so renders
us in jeopardy of becoming a laughing stock to the neighbours.
"Fancy starting that major extension before getting the
planning permission and checking that the builders were solvent!"
"What a waste to have to pull it all down, when you haven't
the money to finish!"
It sounds like pretty obvious common sense to me - but Jesus
is not really talking about putting an extension on the house.
No, what he wants us to think about - and do a bit of planning
for - is how best to follow him.... How to live out our lives
as Christians in this world - a world where we are surrounded
by all sorts of distractions and where the rules and regulations
sometimes seem to work against us becoming more Christ-like in
our lives.... even when we want to.
I can remember being rather worried when I first came across
this passage in Luke's gospel. I would not say that my lifestyle
is particularly extravagant - not compared to some. But then
neither can I claim that I always live as simply as possible
either. I try not to become too attached to 'things' as opposed
to people or living beings, but I cannot deny that I like the
finer things in life when I get the opportunity. I like to have
nice and beautiful things about me ... I have a wardrobe (well
several actually) bulging with clothes - largely because I seldom
throw anything away. I love music and films and - as I have admitted
before - I have more books, as well as CDs and Videos than I
can count. I live a materially blessed and rich life.... So do
I now have to flog it all on e-bay and live in one room? There
will be those who would say that I should. There are those who
feel a vocation to the life of a religious and go and enter a
monastery or convent. I admire such individuals - they frequently
inspire me spiritually, but I cannot for the life of me pretend
that such is my calling.
And what about the passage that reads "I am come that they
may have life, and have it abundantly"! Does that not count
for anything? (John 10.10)
So, can I truly be a disciple of Jesus? Well, I like to think
so.
I think that Luke wants us to reflect on the values and the importance
of planning in our Christian life - recognizing that there will
be an inevitable cost to our decision to try and live in God's
way, and that we should plan and budget accordingly.
The prophet Jeremiah was good at addressing the ruling classes
of his day - even when they did not particularly want to hear
him. He emphasised time and again that God cares about the consequences
of our actions and wants us to deal with each other with compassion
and mercy; justice and righteousness. So, in Lent, it is appropriate
to examine our lives and look at the way in which our choices
may affect other people. In what we consume; in what we eat and
drink and the clothes on our back - do we always try to ensure
that those who have produced them have received a fair reward
for their labours? We know that as a nation we have been living
beyond our means - probably for many years. But who are the people
who are having to bear most of the pain of austerity and cutbacks?
Are burdens being shared equally? Fairly? Or is it just much
easier to take from those who have least? Does it make us feel
better to decry 'the undeserving poor' who (we all know!) are
living the life of Riley on benefits, while we struggle on, noses
to the grindstone!
Well yes, I know there are those who abuse the system - there
always have been and always will be no doubt.... But what about
those at the other end of the scale who also abuse the system?
The corporate fat-cats minimising their tax liabilities by totally
legal means... How fair, how just, how righteous is that??? Funny
how, in the main, the authorities do not pursue them with the
same attention that they go after someone caught cheating on
disability or unemployment benefit ... And who (I wonder) can
afford to employ the best lawyers and barristers to argue their
case in court?
Following Jesus will mean counting the cost and being prepared,
at times, to make ourselves unpopular by confronting injustice
and oppression wherever we encounter it. Is it sometimes the
possession of our good name and reputation - of our esteem in
the eyes of employers or colleagues that we will have to be prepared
to sacrifice? As well as - or even instead of - our material
possessions?
It will also mean counting the cost of the blessings we have
been given. Blessings in the form of our wealth and income certainly,
but also blessings in the form of our time and talents given
freely to help others.... whether through church or through an
alternative charity or similar.
I am encouraging us all to think and think hard about our individual
calling in Lent. What is it that Jesus is inviting you to free
yourself from? What is it that you could be doing for him? How
could you make this world, this village, this church a little
more Christ-like?
I don't know the answer - only you can say what it is that you
feel God is urging you to take up or lay down or give. But Lent
is as good a time as any - and better than most - for a serious
bit of soul-searching; a serious attempt to discover what particular
shape your cross should be? Happy Lent! |
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