Trinity Church
Towson, MD
Year A - All Saints' Sunday - November 5, 2017
Revelation 7:9-17
Psalm 34:1-10, 22
1 John 3:1-3
Matthew 5:1-12
If I told you - that you, as a baptized Christian, a
believer in Jesus Christ, were a saint, would you believe it? Or would you feel
guilty, because for some reason you felt like you have come up short?… For some
reason, you would be embarrassed because you didn’t feel worthy of sainthood.
Being a saint, or being called a saint, it’s not comfortable
for many people and it’s not easy. Saints have been identified throughout
history as ones who are recognized as holy… or having that unique closeness to
God. At this point, I would ask if it’s just not comfortable, or is it not
fashionable?
Society has shown us, by its actions that being a saint is
not important… That being holy is something that religious people do… That It’s
not relevant to our life. Society has hijacked the Sabbath… one of those big 10
that we talked about last week and said work is the ruler and rest is the
enemy…
Society has replaced God with other things of worship… Like
the Dow Jones index or the latest sports superstar… Society has told us that
it’s not cool to love and follow Jesus, to walk in Jesus way, and do those
things that help us develop a closeness to God. To nurture our relationship in
a community of believers… to seek to understand more closely who we are, by
understanding to whom we belong… Not possessed, but empowered by God to make a
difference in the world.
Today is ALL SAINTS’ SUNDAY. And we understand saints to
everyone with a faith and belief in God in Jesus Christ. We believe God is the
creator, redeemer, and sustainer of life, love, and relationship… God is the
source and the radiance of ALL being, yet we are timid and afraid to claim it
for ourselves. God loves each and every one of us… So deeply, it’s
indescribable!
There aren’t words in any vocabulary that brings justice to
the depth of that love… When Jesus walked on this earth, he showed us how much
God loves us… He showed us by what he taught… He showed us by what he did… Up
on the mount, Jesus taught the complete reciprocal of what society taught (and
still teaches)…
Society taught (and still teaches) that if you are strong and
rich and powerful that you must obviously be blessed… Jesus teaches the
opposite when he says, blessed are the poor, and meek, and merciful… Don’t
misunderstand… meekness isn’t weakness, but a bridled strength under control.
Society teaches that if it feels good, regardless of how
vile or corrupt, that you are certainly blessed… Jesus teaches… Blessed are the
pure in heart…
Society teaches that you don’t need a savior, that if you
work hard enough and are a good person, then you can save yourself... Jesus teaches that following him has worldly
consequences, but great rewards… Blessed are you when people revile you and
persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice
and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven.
Society teaches the evils of selfishness my & mine… Jesus
teaches that the hungry and thirsty will be filled. No wonder most of the folks
who say they follow Jesus are scared to admit it in society… Sainthood is
difficult and in 2000 years it hasn’t gotten any easier.
Today, we celebrate the saints… Not just those whose day
shows up on the liturgical calendar… But ALL THE SAINTS… Those past, present,
and yet to come… Those who have a faith and trust in God in Jesus Christ our
Lord.
Today we have a special opportunity to bring, into our
community, into our fellowship Dominic Reagle, Charlotte Burton, and Everly
Bryan. Those little saints, those innocent souls whose parents have said that
they want them to grow up in this world believing in something that this world
does not know or even comprehend…
They want them to have the faith to make sense of their life
when their life doesn’t make sense… They want them to have the strength of
Christ when they are weakened by the trials and tribulations of evils of this
world…
They want them to love others as God loves them completely
and inexhaustibly… seeking to serve justice and respecting the dignity of every
human being…
That’s a tall order… And we know it’s not easy to be a saint.
It’s never been easy to be a saint. That’s why the whole community of faith is
here – gathered together promising with them to help uphold the promises, helping
them uphold the faith… Help them to grow and learn and love and become life giving
and reconciling presence in this world.
That is our purpose as proclaimed followers of Jesus Christ as
part of the Jesus Movement in the world. To nurture and develop a closeness
with God modeled after the teachings of Jesus. Our purpose is to become saints…
Sainthood is not easy brothers and sisters, and I call you
brothers and sisters because even though some of us are grown we are all children…
Children of God and joint heirs with
Christ… Brought to God by adoption in baptism and each loved by God beyond
measure… Loved and given an inheritance that we will not understand until it
comes to fruition and is revealed to us…
So when we finally experience the heavenly kingdom, we can
sing… "Amen! Blessing and glory and
wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and
ever! Amen."
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