Sermon: “Chosen by God” Easter 6B

Sermon: “Chosen by God”

Easter 6B

Prayer

May the “Words” of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts may acceptable in thy sight, O God, our Rock and Redeemer;  .

          How are we “Chosen by God”? This Sunday passage from Acts shows a selection by God’s Holy Spirit. Our Psalm point to the way God becomes present through song. The lesson from first John speaks of God choosing to claim us through a rebirth. Our morning verses from the Gospel of John make it clear God chooses us before we accept divine guidance.

            Acts says, “The Holy Spirit fell upon all who heard the word”. What a testimonial to first century preaching! But our tradition tells we do not need big numbers to invoke the Holy Spirit. For it is said Jesus said, “When two or three are gathered in my name I am there”

            Our psalm for today points to God’s presence in our songs. For it says. “O sing to the LORD a new song, for he has done marvelous things”. Our Hymn of Praise signals God’s arrival with “Joy to the world, the Lord is come!  Let earth receive its King;”

Our Hymn of Preparation, “Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee, God of glory, Lord of love!” defines the arriving God as one of, “Love”.  The German text “Freude, schöner Götterfunken, Tochter aus Elysium,” says pretty much the same thing. Finally Hymn of Commitment promise a result for,  “They'll Know We Are Christians by our love”

          Our lesson from the first letter of John proclaims,  “Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the parent loves the child.” Let’s break that down: “Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ” promote the question, “How we know we are ‘believers’?” It is by our presence in worship? Or some difference in our daily life need to be manifest?

          Here we note that, The Christ equals the “Messiah” which fulfils “Jewish hopes” in “Christian” terms it is more than the Formula of “The Father’s only begotten ‘Son “

The phrase “has been born of God” invites the queries: What does it mean to be “Reborn”? What does it mean, “Of God”?

          More Complicated are the questions involved in the words;. ”And everyone who loves the parent loves the child.” What does it mean to, “Love the ‘parent’” or the Creator, Father God? What does it mean to, “Love the ‘child” Savior Son Jesus?

In the Gospel portion for today from John we read, “As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love.” and “You did not choose me but I chose you”

Permit to tell you how I felt “Picked by God”

The sound of the phone ringing over the Law Students’ conversations was unwelcome.  My job of managing the school’s bookstore during rush was hard enough without interruptions.  I looked over as Latoya, my assistant, picked up the receiver with one hand while the fingers of her other hand continued to dance over the cash register keys.

It was Larry I expected on the phone.  Thank God for Larry.  Although Mr. Stewart often end-ran his efforts, Larry tried to be a fair arbitrator in company politics.  He was also there for me when I needed him.  Once at the peak of another “Book Rush”, I had to call Larry with the news that my Father had had a heart attack.  Larry dropped everything, took over my store so I could go to Dad’s deathbed.  Larry even did international folk dancing, which I enjoyed.

Latoya caught my eye and called out, “Mr. Stewart’s on the line.”

Great!  What would be the disruption from Stewart?  Leaving my workstation, I marched towards the phone with a sense of dread.  But surely Larry would get him off my back.

A line of impatient future lawyers glared as I edged my way through the mob.  Several wanted information, which I provided as I walked.  (Being in demand during rush was typical.  Once during rush a student followed me into the Men’s Room.  While I sat on my toilet, a voice from outside of my booth suddenly asked which outline was best for Lowenthal’s Con Law.)

I continued answering as I squeezed myself along behind the front counter.  Latoya rang up books as fast as a temp could flash the covers towards her.  She had cranked out receipts before everything was in bags.  Another temp collected signatures on credit card slips.  Stepping over stacks of purchases lined up on the floor, I wedged myself into the corner by the phone.

Mr. Stewart asked, “Are you sitting down?” 

What, are you nuts? Haven’t you ever bothered to come out to our stores during book rush?  Where would I put a chair?  I sighed inwardly, propped myself against the glass enclosed cabinet where we kept the “Class Ring” samples and said, “Yes”.

Mr. Stewart intoned, “Larry has been shot and killed in his home.”

I replaced the receiver.  I walked back in a daze.  I came back to my workstation with my head in my hands.  I said, more to myself, than the student in front of me, “That’s odd, Larry, my friend and boss has been shot and killed.”

The student awkwardly muttered, “I’m sorry.”

I snapped myself back into the work mode with, “Take this refund slip, fill out the information on the bottom and you can either receive cash at either cash register or make a purchase.”  …

Details came in during the day, bizarre details.  It seemed Larry’s folk-dancing world was quite different than the one I’d known in San Diego.  There Mom and I danced in City parks’ buildings with only water or soft drinks.  Among Larry’s crowd, folk dancing was done in private clubs where liquor was served and drugs were used.

Larry and his dancing friends were involved in other more dangerous activities.  One of these was Russian roulette.  The news I was being forced to accept was that Larry, who I had relied on for good sense, was not only dead but had killed himself.

Larry, my “Rational, reliable” boss, who I ‘d thought I knew as a friend, had gotten high in his home, put a revolver to his head and blew his brains out of his skull.  And this madness happened, in the context of folk dancing, which I’d known as wholesome.

During the rest of that long day, Latoya quietly did her job but also served as my sounding board.  She grew concerned as each new detail of the news bewildered me.  Finally in a lull in the afternoon, she offered to close up so I could leave.  For once, I agreed.

I showed Latoya how I wanted the checks, credit card slips and cash bundled and placed in the safe.  I’d have to come in early the next day.  Hopefully I could get to the bank.  Reconciling receipts and making reports would have to wait.

It was risky.  Management preferred that daily receipts (which in that time of year totaled in the tens of thousands of dollars) be taken each night to the bank’s night drop.  (My predecessor had been fired for delaying deposits.)  And, I couldn’t afford to fall behind during those twelve-hour days.

But I needed to be away.  I prayed in the morning, I could get to the bank.  I prayed no undecipherable problems would prevent me from having my manager’s reports ready for the next day’s noontime courier.  Then I left for church.

I had planned as I always did during “Book Rush” to arrive half way through the Bible study group I co-led at United University Church.  But arriving early would give me time to myself, time to pray, and time to ask God for guidance.

As I approached our sanctuary’s Italian Romanesque façade, I noted the Hebrew figures in the bas-relief.  David stroked his harp.  Abraham held the dagger and flaming cauldron of sacrifice.  Moses grasped the scroll of “Torah”.  Elijah clasped the prophetic mantle.  I walked into the cloister.  Two kneeling angels faced each other where the body of Jesus had lain in his tomb above me as I opened the chapel door

The cool interior was lit only by the glow of pastel stained glass.  Filtered afternoon light reflected off cream-colored textured stucco walls.  I settled into a pale oak pew.  Then I saw it.  On the altar was a single rose in a crystal glass vase.  I hurried towards the office and caught our Church Secretary on her way out.

She explained that the mother of a twenty-year-old student had placed the rose.  Her daughter had been a member of USC’s marching band.  An auto accident had suddenly ended her life.  Her memorial had been held that day.

I returned to my pew.  I turned around and looked through the open doors of the narthex.  There I contemplated one of our few stained glass picture windows.  Santa Barbara, the patron saint of architects and victims of sudden death, stared back at me.

I remembered that the window was dedicated to the architect’s daughter, killed at twenty in an auto accident. She, too, had been a member of USC’s marching band.  She had died over fifty years earlier. Such similar tragedies spanning so many years.

I sat in the sacred space of our sanctuary.  Although still bewildered by the sudden news of Larry’s senseless death, I felt comforted.  I was where others had come in confusion.  I could feel there was a real need for people to feel God’s presence, especially at intense periods in their lives.  I realized that faith communities endure as anchors in the uncertain flow of human life. 

I felt enveloped by the Church and called to serve.  Soon I would become a lay speaker and preach.  Next, I would offer the role of God’s representative to the dying and bereaved.  Then after seminary, I would don the stole of a pastor and offer believers the presence of God in Word and Sacrament.

My “Call” had started with the ring of a telephone across a crowded room. And now it lasted my whole life.  Let it always be so.

The final word from scripture we will examine is “And I appointed you (this Congregation) to go and bear fruit” Note a “Tiny” mustard seed grows a “Huge” mustard Shurub.

How are we “Chosen by God”? Let us review what we have learned This Sunday passage from Acts shows a selection by God’s Holy Spirit. Our Psalm points to the way God becomes present through song. The lesson from first John speaks of God choosing to claim us through a rebirth. Our morning verses from the Gospel of John make it clear God chooses us before we accept divine guidance.