“Who can come in?”  (1Kings 8:22-30, 41-43)

Intro:  In our reading this morning, we are present at the dedication and ribbon cutting of the Temple built by Solomon.  It is a grand and glorious occasion.  Filled with all the requisite pomp and circumstance of blessing a new building.  Then, as now, there have to be speeches and prayers on such occasions.  Almost all of this reading is an excerpt from a dedication prayer offered by Solomon.     (New Zealand, home of 25 million sheep? it is recorded that 120,000 sheep were offered up as part of this celebration)

I’d like to start with a story, about a kingdom in Europe, a long time ago.  When a king would die they would take his coffin and they would process through the streets and all the people would follow, and they would process to the church and going up the steps of the church they would come the very doors of the church and they would knock upon the doors, and the voice of the priest would say “who is there?”  And those who were there would call out, “it is the exulted king of all the land, the first born of the imperial house, the one who wore the royal crown”.  And the priest would answer “we know him not, go away.” 

And they would knock again, and again the priest would answer “who is there?”  And this answer would come, “it is the ruler of the people, the giver of justice, the defender of faith”.  The voice in the church would say “we know him not, go away.” 

A third time the knock came, and the question “who is there?”, and then would come the simple answer “a child of God who has come home” and the doors would be flung open wide and trumpets began to play and amidst all the fanfare and celebration and rejoicing the shout was heard “welcome, you are welcome in this place.”  

As we look about this sanctuary, how would we answer the question of who is welcome in this place?  Perhaps that is a startling question for people of faith, we have an instinctive answer, of course, everyone is welcome here!   Almost every church would say, we are a friendly, welcoming place. And yet, as Martin Luther King observed over 50 years ago, 10 am Sunday morning is the most segregated hour of the week. 

As St. Martins Presbyterian, we are striving, and we are finding ways of extending an authentic welcome to the community.   It has been a pleasure for me to learn about the many groups that call this place, their “home”.   I’m impressed with how St Martins has listened to expressed needs in our neighborhood and worked to make MenzSheed, and Eldercare, and Foot Clinic possible.  Going from a “good idea” to making it a reality,  takes a vision and then a lot of conversation.    

It is, perhaps, stating the obvious to offer the reminder that vibrant relationships are dependent on conversation and dialogue.  We know honest conversations involve speaking and listening.  Sometimes we want to only do the speaking part, or maybe just the listening part?  Isn’t it true that real-time two-way conversations can be scary? 

I mean, how many of us would rather have an answering machine pick up when we are calling someone, than actually speak to the person we’re calling? (Or, how many of us screen all our calls, thinking if it is important they’ll leave a message.)  I know I sometimes find myself dialing and hoping to just leave a message.  Especially, when it comes to talking with my sister, I want to get credit for calling, but I don’t have to spend the time in an actual conversation.  In this age of instant messaging, e-mail, and answering machines we have become accustomed to one-way conversations, often preferring to just say our peace, and be done. 

And, how often do we engage in conversations with God like that?  Taking only the time to say what we want, or to ask for what we think we need?  Without taking time to listen to what God may be saying in response?  In a way, Solomon is doing that.  He is in the middle of this long and great prayer to God, I don’t think God could get a word in edgewise on this day.  (The only way God could get in on this was to send that large cloud into the sanctuary, that got the priests to move, but didn’t stop Solomon.) 

In his prayer, Solomon is speaking of the promises God made to David and Israel.  He talks about the special relationship between God and God’s people.  Solomon is reminding God of what was promised David, that if the Israelites walked with God, they would always have a king on the throne of Israel. Solomon also asks that God watch over this special place, and to hear the prayers of all of those who call on God’s name. He is thrilled to be seeing the completion of the temple promised to David.  No longer would God dwell in tents, wandering about.  The Ark of the covenant, the symbol of God’s presence had a new and permanent home.  Something new have been created, the temple was finished, this was a time of celebration.

This was a fantastic day in the life of Israel, everyone had gathered to see this new house of the Lord.   While Solomon took a great deal of pride in the house “he” built, he also realized that no way would this house “contain” the Lord.  All the faithful were there, listening to this firehose full of words, then there is something most interesting prayed by Solomon as he says  “when a foreigner comes and prays toward this house, then hear in heaven your dwelling place, and do according to all that the foreigner calls to you, so that all the peoples of the earth may know your name” 

Solomon prays that God will listen to the prayers of everybody!  Welcome everyone’s prayers, listen to everyone’s prayers.  There are no favorites.  God’s word, God’s love, is no longer just for the Jews.  Dear God, listen to the prayer of the people who voted for so and so?  All are welcome in this place.  Listen to the prayers of people who … fill in the blank.  And All are welcome in this place.   This perhaps is the most amazing thing Solomon is asking for in his prayer. 

And if God is to listen to the prayers of all, so too, should we?   

That can be a difficult thing, for to truly listen, to truly hear someone else, is to be vulnerable. We put ourselves at risk, of learning something, or being challenged and stretched in some way. We run the risk of being changed, and never being the same again.

So many of us continue to put out a steady stream of one-way words in order to keep us from engaging in a dangerous kind of dialogue.  Let me tell you what I think….

What if sometimes God speaks to us, to our sisters and brothers in faith, maybe sometimes through complete strangers.  By entering into dialogue with surprising people and in unexpected places, might we be listening to God?   When we are inclined mostly to listen to ourselves, or people like ourselves talking, could we miss how God is doing a new thing.   We may need to listen to people of other persuasions and convictions.  We may need to listen to those who read their bible differently, we need to listen to those other faiths and seek to learn how God is active in their lives.  To see what wonderful thing God may be doing there, and not just focus on what is happening within ourselves or our particular tradition. 

Psalm 84 was sung as pilgrims approached the temple in Jerusalem.  The Psalmist sings of “how lovely is God’s dwelling place.”  It is more than, saying “you’ve got a lovely home.  Like we might do when we are invited to someone’s house for supper.  The psalm on one level, a tribute to the physical beauty of the building Solomon built.   For we know that “God’s house” is bigger than Solomon’s temple.  God’s house is a whole of the earth and all of creation.

God’s dwelling place is lovely because it is to a place for all people to find welcome and refuge.  And in this moment, here the grand vision is that no one, nothing is excluded, or can be excluded, from God’s presence. The smallest sparrow can find a home in God’s home. That’s the central truth not to be missed.  God’s house is open to all. Any place trying, to be a house of God must extend God’s inclusive love and grace.  And be a reflection of God’s love for the whole world.  Anytime a heart-felt prayer is lifted up, God will hear.  Anytime, any child of God comes by (KNOCKS) and wonders am I welcome?  Can I come in?  May we say, “welcome home, you are welcome here!”  Amen. 

“Fishing Together”  (Mark 1:14-20)
Intro:  In our New Testament lesson today we hear of Jesus by the lakeshore calling the first disciples.  Simon, Andrew, James and John will become Jesus’ closest friends and disciples.  Their ministry is about to begin.  Let us listen for God’s calling word to us.  //

(Hang pole over pulpit….wait) Someone once said about fishing:  “There’s a fine line between fishing and standing on the shore looking like a fool.”  I must admit I’ve never been much of a fisherman.  I feel some guilt about that. There are great movies like “A River Runs Through It” where fishing, faith and life all seem to go together in some incredible way and yet for all my efforts, fish don’t fear me.  I’ve sat on the ice staring down a hole; I’ve cast off a dock or two.  Never much to show – when I want fish -I’m told Huntsbury Seafood is the best? .  (Put pole away)

However, I love fish stories and I can’t resist sharing one.  (If you know how this story ends, I’ll ask you to share it.)  Once upon a time Young Eddie came several minutes late to Sunday school, and the teacher asked him why he was late.  Eddie said, “I wanted to go fishing, but my dad wouldn’t let me, so we argued, and that’s why I’m late.” The teacher said, “Good for your father!  Eddie, did he explain to you WHY you needed to come to church instead of going fishing on Sunday morning?”  “Yes ma’am,” replied the boy.  (Anyone know it?)  —“He said there weren’t enough worms for both of us.”

Eddie’s father would fish alone.  As some fishermen describe it, there is a real appeal in the solitary nature of fishing.  One pole, one person, one fish. 

Today’s Gospel text is about fishing and so much more.  Jesus begins his ministry along the shores of the Sea of Galilee, where he calls out to the fishermen: “Follow me, and I will make you fish for people!”  For most of my life whenever I heard this account of Jesus calling Simon and Andrew, James and John, I thought of worms and hooks and bamboo poles and waiting in quiet solitude.  If I thought about it too literally, “Fishing for people” had a certain strange sound to it, and I have shied away from the image.   Who knows what the first disciples thought Jesus was asking of them?

In the Hebrew Scriptures, the Old Testament, fishing with hooks is a negative image used by Israel’s prophets, to talk about trapping and destroying.  (Don’t get “hooked” by something.)  Yet Jesus calls the disciples to a ministry of preaching and healing.  Theirs is not a word of judgment for the world; rather it is of the fulfillment of ancient hope.  Jesus is speaking of another kind of fishing.  From the biblical perspective, hooks destroy, but nets save.  (Put up long net with help)  Fishing with a hook is a one-person job; nets take many hands.  Fishing together is a different kind of fishing.   Those who would follow Jesus are to fish together, using nets. 

The invitation by Jesus to the disciples on the shore of the Sea of Galilee is not to abandon fishing altogether, or to start fishing alone, but to use the Good News as they would a fishing net, to draw people together, into discipleship.   They will help to create a community of individuals whose lives are committed to Christ and to living the love of God in concrete fashion, but not in a private way.  What Jesus is proposing here is a different kind of fishing entirely.  When you fish with a net, you get what you get, whatever’s out there, and sometimes a whole lot of it.  Jesus says follow me and “I will make you fishers of people.”  As we see in Jesus’ ministry all kinds of people found a place along side him. 

The use and interpretation of this text points to a clash of ecclesiologies found among Christians today. Ecclesiology has to do with the doctrine of the church, how we think about this collection of people called the “body of Christ.”  Ecclesiology is a fancy word for what we are demonstrating every time we gather for worship, when we go out to serve in the community, when we sit down to work in committees or enjoy the fellowship of others in the church, or when we invite people to join us.  Whenever we live out what it means to us to “be” the body of Christ. 

Some today would say the primary role of the church is to ensure the salvation of individuals.  Go catch ‘em one at a time for Jesus.  Others of us would argue that the church is fundamentally about forming communities of believers wanting to worship and serve God.

The Presbyterian Church has historically chosen the latter: saying that the church, is primarily charged with building up the body of Christ, in order to worship and serve God together, and in so doing, find hope and salvation.  As John Calvin put it five hundred years ago church members “are gathered into the society of God on the principle that whatever benefits God confers upon them, they should in turn share with one another.”  Our faith may be personal, but it is not a private matter.  We seek the common good in our life together.  It is in community that we discover how to be the people of God. 

In another biblical fish story, Jonah is sent into the city.  Nineveh was a vast urban center of ancient times.  Jonah was sent by God to go to the city and call it to repentance.  The story of Jonah is not merely a big fish tale.  It is the account of God’s desire to redeem the city.   After riding around inside the big one he wished had gotten away, Jonah arrives in Nineveh, delivers the call to repentance, and to his surprise the people hear, they change their ways, and to his dismay, God spares them.  God’s primary interest in the story is not in the one man Jonah, but in the redemption of the city itself.  In fact, at the end of the story, it is Jonah’s fate that seems the most uncertain.  Nineveh is on a new path and Jonah has a long walk home.  He feels alone.

In many parts of America there is a growing sense that we are losing our sense of community.  And we are hearing about strange enclaves that are supposed to be desirable places called “gated communities”. Feelings of isolation are on the increase.  People can feel separated by race, economics, religious beliefs or anything else that people use to draw lines. 

If the church is committed to the kind of “new fishing” Jesus calls his disciples to undertake, then we must be about the business of creating community among strangers, extending care and concern for our community as mission statement says.  St Martins is an inclusive Christian Congregation, sharing in the love of Christ, building one another up in joyful faith, reaching out in love to people around and beyond us and encouraging care for God’s creation.

How to do it?  We express concern for homelessness by getting involved with Waltham cottage.  We are concerned with feeding the hungry, so we collect food week.  We care about conditions around the world and we support the efforts of the Christian World Service and Your Sisters Mission..  That is some of how it looks today.   And here is one more idea

Someone once defined community as “people who sing together regularly.”  I think of that definition often in worship.  Where else today do we get together each week with people of differing ages, races, educational backgrounds, and sing?  We sing in worship to express our shared desire to praise God.  When we sing, the bonds that hold us together are strengthened.   Singing in a congregation is like fishing with a net.  Everybody can join in—monotones, and trained voices, young and old alike.  As we sing together in the rest of worship, think about what a wonderfully diverse community we are, then think of how we can add more voices.  

God is stirring us up once again, not that we might repeat some golden past, but to reinvent our future, as each succeeding generation must do.  And it begins with an invitation to come and follow the One who lives and dies and lives again, that we might have life abundant, in community with one another and with the risen Christ.  Amen

“So, Then”    (Ephesians 4:25-5:2)

You may know the story about the old Native American who was sharing wisdom with his grandson. The story goes, one evening the Cherokee man told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people. He said, “My child, the battle is between two wolves inside us all.

One wolf is Evil. It is anger, hostility, arrogance, resentment, inferiority, sorrow, regret, self-pity, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.

The other wolf is Good. It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith.”
The grandson listened closely and thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather: “Which wolf wins?”  (do you know it?)  The grandfather simply replied, “The one you feed.”

This morning we hear the words “Be angry but do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and do not make room for the devil.”  As we consider the power and the place of anger, it is good to be reminded of part of the Palm Sunday story, when Jesus has just ridden a donkey into Jerusalem. Making his way to the Temple, he is for a moment, furious, and he drives out the buyers and the sellers. He knocks over the tables of the moneychangers, and throws around the seats of those selling doves. He quotes the scriptures, of how God’s house is a house of prayer, not a den of thieves. Then he settles down to cure the blind and the lame.

We need to talk about anger, because anger can be a holy trait, when we see that things are not just, and not right, and rather than look the other way it can motivate real change, it is a trait that God gives us.

Technically speaking, anger is an emotion. It comes to all of us. Anger is sparked by conflict. Something unwanted happens. We get angry because we care about something or someone, or because we want something to go our way.

There is righteous anger, as with Jesus who cares deeply about the things of God, and discovers that the business in God’s house is not as God intends it to be. And there is deadly anger, with the power to consume us and harm others. The line between “righteous” and “deadly” anger is a dotted line, we need the spot difference in ourselves and others.

The writer of Ephesians gives three pieces of advice. First, “Be angry but do not sin.” Anger comes naturally, as we live in a world that we do not run. Sin is the behavior that destroys, and it is at the door when we let anger determine our motives – for example, when we strike back in revenge, or escalate a situation. When anger comes, let it wash over come and go like every emotion. We can’t pretend that anger doesn’t hit us from time to time, but it doesn’t need to let it have power over us. 

Second, “Do not let the sun go down on your anger.” Comedian Phyllis Diller once gave this advice to couples, “don’t go to bed mad, stay up and fight.”   Give it a time limit. Don’t keep carrying it. Don’t let it build over time or accumulate. Start each morning new. This is particularly true for those of us who live with other people who wake up beside us.  Hit the reset button first thing in the morning. The advice in the rest of the paragraph applies: “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you.” It’s hard work, but regular practice makes better people of us.

Third, “Do not make room for the devil.” That’s good advice generally, and especially for anger. Whatever anger you feel is yours alone. It doesn’t need to be swallowed, but it doesn’t need to be shared either. There’s something increasingly destructive about taking the anger we feel and stirring it up. Our hurts and grudges are real, but we do not need to feed them. And if we talk out of anger with somebody else, in order to gain their sympathy or drag them in, pretty soon we may find ourselves dragged under. This is the warning for all of us.

I think we do have a tendency to avoid conflict in our workplaces and our personal lives to a great extent in an effort to preserve a sense of peace.  At times, we go away mad rather than risk saying what we feel.  I am not advocating that we need to go out and look for things to disagree on, but there is something lost, when complete and constant harmony in our relationships is the utmost goal. 

It can, and often does, take more effort to avoid conflict than it does to face a divisive issue squarely, name the pain, say what is wrong, decide what comes next and move on.   Many times through a good process of voicing differing ideas, or fighting fair, creative ideas with new and unexpected results come forth.  Falsehoods can be discovered and discarded.  By discussing, debating, letting our passions show about issues, we can be changed ourselves and we can give others a sense of what is significant and central to us. 

What is important enough in our own lives, or our community lives, that we are willing to speak our truth about it and seek truth in community?  For many today as we talk about hot button we find ourselves facing others with strongly held beliefs that differ from our own.  What do we do then?  And there are issues closer to home as well, how to spend the household money, how to raise the children.  These are just some of the things which we feel strongly about.   

The church at Ephesus was not in the midst of complete harmony, they were in the middle of a civil war within the church.  Some issue, or issues had begun pulling apart the threads that held them together, and they were lining up behind “their” leader  and their issues as they each felt they were standing in the corner of truth and righteousness.

As admirable and important as each of these viewpoints might have been, the underlying assumption of each had a debilitating effect on the life of the church.  It meant that the unity they shared in Christ was being dissolved in favor of human loyalties.  What was holding them together, their common life in Christ, was evaporating before their very eyes. 

We need each other’s perspectives and experiences to fill in the gaps of our own understanding.  I will never see the world an African priest does.  I don’t see things through the eyes of an Evangelical Southern Baptist, but as people of faith, bring their ideas to light, share their experience and perspectives then the greeter good is served.  We see the fantastic variety of ways God’s presence is felt in the world. 

Paul’s style would usually be described as blunt rather than nice.  Paul’s call for unity, may be heard as a threat to diversity of viewpoints and opinions, but that is because we confuse unity with uniformity.  Later in this letter Paul will defend the different judgments that Christians may have on the same issue, and call for care in practice of all so that unity of the church and the faith of its members are not damaged.  In a similar way Paul discusses the gifts of the spirit and their place in worship.  We have a variety of gifts but they each come from the one Lord.  Unity in faith does not mean unity in thought and practice. 

It has been an exciting time in American politics, the other day Kamala Harris offered a terrific observation when she said  “If you know what you stand for, you know what to fight for”

By speaking out for what we believe, we come to realize what we truly hold dear, what is important to us.  There are many issues, climate change, income inequality, homelessness; which need ongoing effort and thought full dialogue.  And people can become passionate about them.  That is fine, but Paul letter warns us, not to let our feelings about one issue, or one person allow us to miss the greater mark, striving to make God’s love real to all.  When we put all our energy into one issue, we can lose the greater good; the greatest good -which is our lives in Christ. 

He hopes that by speaking out a change and refocus will happen.  It is an expression of his care and commitment to keep the focus on Christ.  Disagreements, fights can be good when they clarify what is really important; the church was missing what meant the most.  Remaining committed to one another through the unified body of Christ will take continuing effort, each generation will need to struggle with the call to keep the focus on Christ.  It means saying what we believe and listening to others.  Not listening to the loudest voice but listening for the voice of the Spirit.  Let us do so with Love and conviction.  Amen.

“Signs and Wonders”  (John 6:24-35)

I wonder if this experience is a common one?  (it is, at least in my house.)  It’s about 9 o’clock in the evening. The news has ended long ago, dinner is finished.  But still, I sometimes will get up from whatever I am doing and wander into the kitchen.  Then I will open the refrigerator, look inside, and stand there for a few moments.

My wife, Monica will look up from her book and she’ll say, “Are you hungry for something?” I don’t know. “Didn’t you eat enough at supper?” I did. (at least, the scale tells me so.) “What do you want? she’ll ask.  I’m not sure; maybe it’s in here.  Was I looking for a late-night snack?  Some of Sue’s delicious jam on piece of bread? A late-night ice cream cone? Or would a glass of Milo do the trick?   It’s difficult to say. I think I’m hungry, but it isn’t always for food.

“Well, if you don’t know what you want, don’t stand there with the refrigerator door open.” OK, fair enough. But still, I stand there for another minute or two.  Do you ever do that?  It is a good question, what was I looking for?

Turning to our story, I can understand why some people went “looking” for Jesus. The day before, he fed them an astonishing  hillside picnic. The menu was simple – barley bread and fresh fish – but it was more than people expected, more food than they had ever seen in one place, more abundance than anybody believed possible that day.  It truly was a God driven miracle, and it started with a little boy willing to unveil his lunchbox and offering to share. Nobody actually knows how everybody got fed, but there was no question about there being leftovers-baskets of leftovers!  And, there was no question that without Jesus that miraculous meal would not have happened.   Jesus was at the center of it all.  

I’d like to take a moment to remember what Jesus did on the hillside because I think it helps answer what people all over may be looking for the day after and to this day.  Remember when he asked, “what have you got to feed all these people”?  and the little boy offers his lunch.

Notice what Jesus does. He took it, blessed it, broke it, gave it.  These are the same verbs from the table at the Last Supper: took, blessed, broke, gave. They define his mission to the world and they still define his mission to the world – through us.

He took the bread. (five little loaves) It is not enough. It’s never enough. Yet it is the community collection, the resources that came together, the gathered offering meant to benefit everybody else. Suddenly – what one person possessed is no longer private, no longer hoarded, no longer kept while others do without. Jesus took it, because it was they offered.

He blessed it. That is, he sanctified what they offered as an offering to God. Jesus probably used the Good Jewish Prayer lifted before every big meal: . “Blessed are you, O Lord our God, ruler of the universe, who brings forth bread from the earth.” It is God who is blessed, blessed and affirmed, as the Source of all our food. We say Grace, we offer gratitude to God at our tables, for food does not originate from us.

Then he broke it. Broke it and offered to God, it cannot stay the way it was. It cannot remain untouched or unchanged.  Like every gift from God, the bread is to be utilized.  The bread is broken to acknowledge that we are broken. We are broken by the world’s pain, the world’s starvation. And we are broken open to do something about it.

Then Jesus gave it away.   Giving is generosity. Generosity is grace in action. It is offered freely, without restriction. What Jesus receives from us is processed through him. What he blesses and breaks is given away.  There are things we have that can be given away with love and trust that they will go further than we can imagine.  We open our hand and give because Jesus gives, because it is the very nature of God to give.

If there is any miracle in this Bible story this morning, it is not that Jesus once did a magic trick in a land faraway. No, the miracle is that God keeps giving. The generosity is all around us, waiting for us to participate. In Jesus Christ, God takes, blesses, breaks, and gives. In the end, there is – and there always shall be – plenty for everyone.

It’s true: there really is enough for everybody. What we must work on is the distribution plan. That’s why Jesus keeps saying to us, “You give them something to eat.” He could have agreed with the twelve and sent everybody back to their towns and scramble for the next meal, but he didn’t do that. He could have could have snapped his fingers and created free food forever for everybody, but he didn’t do that, either. No, instead he gave a glimpse of how God is at work in the world, when bread is collected, blessed, broken, and shared, and all of us take part and there is little distinction between giving and receiving. It is all a part of system of grace.

So on the hillside they had a taste, they caught a glimpse, and the next day they go looking for Jesus.  So we may ask, are they looking for “something to eat” or are they looking for something else? Yes to both! They don’t exactly know what they want, but they are looking for it, looking for something, looking for him. And in this light, they are like just about everybody else in the Gospel of John.

Jesus looked at the hopeful crowds and said, “You chase after me because you ate a lot of bread.” He sees through the surface layer of their seeking. Yesterday’s bread soon goes stale and moldy. The Real Bread, the bread from heaven, is the bread that stays fresh every day.  

The trick, of course, is seeing such heavenly generosity, or at least trusting it if we don’t see it right now. That may be the most elusive pursuit of faith, but once again, it is the essence of what faith is all about. We trust God enough to pursue God. Jesus says, “The work of God is for us to believe.” If I might attempt to translate, that means it is God who desires that we have a life of depth and well-being. It is God who takes responsibility for the miracle to create belief and trust in our hearts. As we chase after God, it is God who ultimately finds us.    

May we remember that. Trust that. If doubts plague us or if other shiny objects distract us, my suggestion is that we pay attention to our own deep spiritual hunger. Listen to the deepest yearnings of your heart.  Look for the Real Bread. Seek after what is life-giving, not merely for you, but for others. Spiritual hunger is a spiritual gift, because it can propel us more deeply into the God who is the Source and Destination of our lives. Be a good steward of your deepest longing.   Today as we gather around the feast table of Christ,  may we find what we are looking for.  Here at the table is a sign of God’s miraculous grace that will find us and feed us.  may it cause us to wonder once more.  Amen. 

Sermon

If you have followed the lectionary readings you will have read the story of David from his initial anointing by Samuel, his conquest of Goliath and his anointing by all the tribes.  That is followed by his bringing the Arc into Jerusalem and his thwarted ambition to build a temple in Jerusalem.  We, the readers, have been assured that he is a king divinely chosen and his future dynasty is assured by God.   

The reader has also been introduced to David’s ruthless political cunning, demonstrated by his willingness to execute one of his loyal soldiers for killing David’s deadly enemy Saul.  That act was calculated to gain favour from Saul’s supporters and was more effective than a snap election. 

Furthermore, according to the US Supreme court, it is now an option for the US President and may well be more effective than just lying.

Today’s reading also focuses on David’s human vulnerability and instinct for self-preservation and there is plenty of that about in the politics of our time.

As we tut-tut over David’s morality, we should also ask questions about Bathsheba’s motives in bathing on the roof in full view of the palace. 

Perhaps the most important message is that God is able to use perfectly normal flawed humans to fulfil the divine purpose.  We are challenged to find God and good outcomes in the normal tangle of self-serving human fallibility. 

Much as we might be concerned over David coveting the beautiful Bathsheba and then using his absolute authority to fulfil his fantasy the ‘me too movement’ tells us that is not unheard of in our world.  Furthermore, in David’s world, he was entitled to have as many wives and concubines as he wanted.  Powerful men in our world tend to behave the same way although the only polygamy we sanction is the serial kind. 

Rich people can of course pay ‘hush money’ but paying it out of campaign funds has proved to be illegal.    

As was conspiring with his general to have Bathsheba’s husband killed in battle.  That was murder by proxy, but it may well have saved Bathsheba’s life.  

In a biblical patriarchal society adultery was a crime one man commits against another and it was the woman who was usually punished.  In many cultures today women are killed to preserve family honour. 

But even in our enlightened world powerful men like to entertain and be seen with beautiful young women.  Certainly, the entertainment industry comes to mind, but it was only recently that a large New Zealand law firm was severely sanctioned for expecting more from its female interns than excellent legal work.

But it works both ways.  I once watched a documentary on the Paparazzi.  At one point a group of photographers, hiding in the rocks above the sea, spotted a young starlet sunbathing on a boat.  ‘She knows we are here!’  Exclaimed one of the photographers.  ‘She is naked enough to demand attention but modestly posed so not to cause offence on a magazine cover next to the supermarket checkout’.  It’s only the successful that get to boost their careers on the Graham Norton show.

Of course, David had absolute authority.  He was the supreme court and there were no other courts to retrospectively award damages for sexual exploitation.  

But if you read through to the end of David’s life you will discover that Bathsheba had well and truly mastered the art of the deadly game of thrones. 

David’s sons fought amongst themselves, and Bathsheba manipulated events so her son Solomon becomes king. 

Reading the whole saga, it is difficult to decide who had the power at any time and I still want to know if Bathsheba bathed on the roof so her son would be king.  

The charm and the power of the saga of King David is that the biblical narrative is totally realistic and aligns with stories of real fallible human beings. 

Like our leaders in politics, agriculture, entertainment, sport and business the biblical characters are not superstars.  The biblical characters are ordinary people, and the stories open our mind to the Spirit’s action amongst the dubious motives of everyday struggles. 

Where David was a warrior king, Solomon strengthened the kingdom through alliances, cementing those alliances through marriage.  His actions greatly improved the economy, and we are continually told that’s a good thing.  Solomon’s reign was probably the high point of the Israelite kingdom.  So, the hindsight of history leads us through all the unsavoury activities to see the divine plan coming together. 

As we reflect on the danger the pregnant Bathsheba could have faced, we are reminded of another unmarried mother called Mary who’s perplexed, but merciful fiancée, and descendant of David, listened to the voice of angels. 

Mary’s boy child, so the Bible says, changed the world though love, inclusion, and shared hospitality.

Jesus’ promotion of what he called ‘the kingdom of God’ is totally different to the power plays we find in the David saga or even in the corruption of contemporary democracy.

As we cross over the Sea of Galilee with Jesus, we find that a large crowd has gathered.  Jesus goes up into the mountains to be with the disciples and there is a reference to the Passover that links us to Moses feeding the people of God in the wilderness.  This is an allusion making the point that, just as Moses formed the people of God in the wilderness, Jesus’ wilderness journey is calling out a new people of God. 

John does not include Jesus’ last Passover meal with the disciples, but he includes this reference to Passover at the feeding of the five thousand.

The concern of the early Christians was the same concern many of us have about our economy.  The economy increased the wealth of the rich and powerful and marginalised the poor. 

Jesus asks Philip ‘where are we to buy bread for these people to eat? (John 6:5) 

Philip gives the same answer that our government gives to so many challenges of our time.  We can’t afford it!  It is the answer our government gives to the challenge of providing healthy school lunches.  Instead, they are going to focus on testing phonics for entrance level students.  That’s in spite of what educational experts say.

Reading is certainly a key to learning, but hungry children don’t learn well.  I also wonder about the writer of the most non-fiction books in Britian.  He is dyslexic so a phonetics test and a single focus method of teaching reading wouldn’t have helped him.  However, he not only writes books about ‘one pan wonders’, but Jamie Oliver is also a tireless campaigner for healthy school lunches.    

I went to a meeting about school lunches that involved students, teachers, principals and those who prepared the food.  What I learned was that there was minimal wastage of food and the students learning improved.  Furthermore, I learned of a group of parents that provided lunches for a number of schools.  That gave them a part time job that not only supplement their income but allowed them to be home when their children were home.

That was a group of parents that took what was available in their neighbourhood, prepared it and distributed to children whose families could not supply a packed lunch.

Sounded a bit like the Galilean fisherman who Jesus asked to feed a crowd in the wilderness. 

On that occasion Jesus was demonstrating that, opting out of the disempowering economy through the power of sharing, welcomes in ‘the Kingdom of God’.  

John focused on potential of the economic challenge and the fact that this was a deliberate action by Jesus.

But the question about cost is also important in contrasting the cash economy with the caring and sharing economy of the Kingdom of God. 

There wasn’t enough money to go and purchase food for all the people but if everyone, starting with the small boy with five barley loves and two fish, were encouraged to share with each other there would be plenty. 

Understanding this story as a miracle of sharing takes away the magic of the miracle. That may be seen as a challenge to our faith.  However, it fits the realism we find in the 2^nd Samuel reading and encourages us to consider and be challenged as the new people of God. We are challenged to both expect and create miracles.  We are called to expect miracles that disregard the market economy and bring people to live within the divine realm. 

But wait there’s more!  In John’s account of the feeding miracle there is more than the miracle of sharing and the allusion to Moses that also appears in the other Gospels.

The last supper, that tradition links to the communion service, is a meal shared with the disciples.  From those gospels that feature that last supper Church tradition has created the Eucharist as a sacrament for the faithful.  However, John replaces the ritual Passover sharing with his disciples with a long farewell speech.  Therefore, John’s Gospel associates the initial communion celebration with the feeding of the five thousand.  In so doing John opens the table of the risen Christ to all who are willing to take part.  John’s Jesus still performs the traditional liturgy.

In John 6 verse 11 we read ‘Then Jesus took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were seated.’

Those are the words that structure the communion ritual. Take, give thanks, break and distribute. 

John does not mention breaking but to distribute loaves you have to break them.  The key point is that it is a sharing to all who are willing to come.  Even to those curious bystanders who just happen to be there. 

In both of today’s episodes the Biblical text is realistic and allows us to find God in the mundane, the violence, and everyday human fallibility.  These readings are a challenge to the way we do Church and a challenge to the way we function in our communities and nations. 

The power of story in these readings challenge us all to bring Christ back into the boat of our life journey.

Challenges us to share our resources so we may find the miracles in everyday activities.