Loading...Sermon September 3, 2017
The Rev. Rebecca S. Myers, LSW
The Church of the Nativity and St. Stephen, Newport, PA
Thirteenth Sunday After Pentecost, Track 1 Year A, Proper 17
//lectionarypage.net/YearA_RCL/Pentecost/AProp17_RCL.html
Love one another with mutual affection…. Romans 12:10
Please be seated.
I was delighted to see this passage from Romans this week. Back in 2001, a meditation booklet I read had this passage listed for September 12. Yes, right after the scary and horrible events of September 11, this was the passage I read the very next day. I felt it gave me powerful guidance for reacting to 9/11 as we call it. I memorized the passage and said it every day for years. Part of it was used for the ordination to the priesthood service. There is so much to think about with each sentence.
Chapter 12 occurs in the last quarter of Paul’s Letter to the Romans. Throughout his letter, Paul is letting the readers know they are greatly loved by God. He’s letting them know that love is the key to a relationship with God through Jesus Christ. Paul has personal experience of the love of Christ, because Paul persecuted the early Christians and even witnessed the stoning of our church’s namesake, Stephen.
Yet, on the road to Damascus, Paul heard the voice of Jesus Christ questioning Paul’s persecution of the followers of Christ. What Paul thought was absolutely right and correct in having a relationship with God, was turned upside down by Paul’s experience. Paul realized what he had been doing was all wrong, and rather than feeling bad or ashamed, he also learned that he was loved. That deep love prompted a deep response from Paul who changed his life completely and was killed for his absolute commitment to following the ways of Jesus Christ. He knew these ways to be about a life that gives life to others and a life that is connected to God.
In this section, Paul gives us concrete examples of how we are supposed to live our lives. They seem simple and we all know they are difficult. I mean, after the events on 9/11, to hear that we should never avenge ourselves and that we should feed our enemies or give them something to drink! That gives one pause. Paul asks quite a bit of us, doesn’t he?
And living peaceably with all…all people…all creatures…our world. That’s certainly a tall order. Yet, when we learn that we are all God’s creation….all of us…we are called to treat God’s creation with care.
So, how are we doing here at Nativity and St. Stephen? This is our place where we can practice these attitudes and attributes that Paul lists here. This is our chance to live the Christian life with others who are trying to do the same. And yes, we’ll make mistakes and we’ll cause harm to each other. Hopefully we can be flexible and apologize and mend our relationships with each other. Hopefully we can learn how to create stronger and better and more loving relationships and honor what God has created.
In this past week, we’ve heard nonstop stories about love in action from the people in the path of hurricane/tropical storm Harvey. People who might otherwise not get along or be totally judgmental, band together to help in any way they can. I loved one story I heard about El Bolillo Bakery in Houston. They have a number of stores throughout the area and of course as Harvey approached, the shelves emptied quickly. They baked and baked around the clock, but finally closed on Friday evening just before Harvey made landfall.
On Saturday, some workers called and asked if they could try to re-open the bakery on Sunday morning. They knew people would need to be fed. The owner said it was okay, but Harvey wasn’t done yet and the area around the bakery flooded with 10 inches of water. Four employees were trapped in the building. So, what did they do? They baked bread! Over two days, they baked 4,000 pounds of flour into bread! By the time the owner could get to them in his jeep, they’d filled every display case with hundreds of loaves of bread.
The bread was loaded into the jeep and taken to first responders and nursing homes and shelters. The workers still couldn’t make it home, so stayed with the owner and went back to work baking bread the next day. The bakery has now opened and workers have agreed to work in shifts 24 hours a day, 7 days a week until the emergency is over. There are long lines outside the bakery each day.
Bread baked in love. Bread baked for enemies, for friends, for all of God’s creation. Bread baked in the time of need.
Soon, we’ll share our own bread of love at this Eucharistic table…bread that binds us together in love and bread that send us out into the world to love God’s creation.
Amen
