Genesis 15:1-12,17-18; Psalm 27; Philippians 3:17-4:1; Luke 13:20-35

O Lord, we pray, speak in this place, in the calming of our minds and the longing of our hearts, by the words of my lips and in the thoughts we form. Speak, O Lord, for your servants listen. Amen.

Years ago a researcher for a publishing company was interviewing a number of people to determine what kind of books they liked to read. The Bible, Shakespeare, and the classics were high on nearly everyone's list.

In return for their cooperation, the researcher offered each person a choice of a free book from a list of titles published by the company. The most popular choice of this high-minded group was "Murder of a Burlesque Queen."

As I look at the culture of the Western world today it seems clear that we prize comfort more than commitment, self-indulgence more than self-sacrifice, possessions more than people.

And the sad thing is that many of us do not even realize that our values are askew. And this includes - though it ought not - people within the church of Christ Jesus.

In today's epistle reading St. Paul says there are two kinds of people: those who have their eyes set on worldly pleasures, whose God is their belly - and those who citizenship is in heaven and who await a Saviour from there - our Lord Jesus Christ.

And he calls us - as we wait - to stand firm in the Lord.

So where are you at?

Are you a person whose life is oriented toward this world, or is your life oriented beyond this world to eternity?

What is that you actually focus on?
What do you seek out for yourself and your family?
What do you value?

I've said before that people don't talk much about heaven anymore, even people who claim to be followers of Christ.

C.S. Lewis in his book, THE PROBLEM OF PAIN, written years ago - puts it this way:

"We are very shy nowadays, of even mentioning heaven. We are afraid of the jeer about pie in the sky' and of being told that we are trying to escape from the duty of making a happy world here-and-now into dreams of a happy world elsewhere."

"But", Lewis continues, "either there is 'pie in the sky' or there is not. If there is not, then Christianity is false, for this doctrine is woven into its whole fabric. If there is, then this truth, like any other, must be faced... whether it makes us popular or not"

Lewis is right.

Either our primary focus is on this world and its pleasures or it is on heaven and the Saviour that we await - the one who does not simply labour to make earth more like heaven, but whose mission is, instead, to have us become citizens of heaven - a people who are ready for the new heaven and the new earth that will come when the old heaven and earth pass away - a people who live - and live forever - because they depend more upon the bread of heaven than they do upon that bread made from grain and other things of this earth.

As I said before in speaking about the temptations that we experience, there is a choice that must be made and that choice primarily consists of what we focus upon.

Are we concerned to discover what it is God wants us to do with our lives?

- Who it is that God wants us to touch with his love?
- What it is that God wants us to say to our friends when they are in distress?
- Where it is that God wants us to go so that we might be a blessing to others - and perhaps receive a blessing ourselves?

Or do we seek instead to determine how we will get a bigger home or a newer car or take that vacation we have long wanted.

Do our values reflect a higher order of things - a divine order - a heavenly order? Or do they focus more on what Paul calls the things of the belly?

Are you able to enjoy the simple pleasures of life, those things that God has made and placed in your path, or must you surround yourself with the things that humankind make and then sell at price that only the wealthy can afford?

I remember reading a story:

Two of the characters were brothers - David and Michael. They were complete opposites. Michael was a successful businessman, while David took seasonal jobs at ranches, parks and resorts.

Concerned for David's welfare, businessman Michael tried to entice David with the so-called "good life." He would send David photos labelled "My new sound system" or "My new car." The campaign ended, though, when Michael received a poster from David showing a breathtaking view of Wyoming's Grand Teton National Park.

On the back David had written: "My back yard."

Whether it is the latest stereo equipment, a new car, the latest computer system, a massage at the neighbourhood spa, or a membership in the local health club, there are some people who are desperately seeking happiness and length of life through those things that money can buy.

It's sad, but our world is wrapped up in the pursuit of power, pleasure and possessions.

Some can only enjoy a sunset if it is in Thailand. Exercise has no lure for others unless they are in the right club or at least have on the right attire. Even the food we eat must be served with the proper ambience.

I'm not saying that all the things of this earth are sinful in and of themselves.

I am saying if you have to have these things to be happy, you are in trouble - and you are most especially in trouble when you consider that well over ninety percent of this world's population do not and cannot experience even ten percent of the physical abundance that is ours... and yet seem fully able to live and to love and to know joy and peace.

Dr. Eugene Brice once read an account written by a woman born near the turn of the 20th century. She wrote of raising a family on a farm during hard, hard times. She told about one terrible winter when their 18-month-old daughter came down with a cold, then flu, then pneumonia, then diphtheria. Living 18 miles from town, they resorted to home remedies and the help of neighbours. The baby's condition, though, went downhill rapidly and they grew more desperate. The worst night, the woman wrote, was when snow fell, making any more travel to town extremely difficult. That night the baby lay virtually lifeless. The baby's father wrote in his journal, "Heavy snow. How can we bury our baby in this? The blackest day of my life thus far."

The next day the doctor came out from town, making the last 8 miles of the trip on horseback over terrible roads. He said that the infection seemed to be lessened, but that the child was still very near death. If they could just get some nourishment of some kind down her, with a bit of strength and a lot of luck, she might make it. Maybe, he said, an egg would help.

An egg! Simple suggestion, but it was the dead of winter and the hens were not laying and there was no way to get to town. Someone went to the recently installed rural party line and rang the neighbours. The word went out quickly. Did anyone have an egg? The baby's life depended on it. Fortunately, one distant neighbour did! One egg was found, and the neighbour rode over with it. Into the house he came as they rejoiced. The baby was given an eggnog of sorts, and continued her improvement. The crisis was over, and the baby was soon well again.

The woman who wrote that was Eugene Brice's mother; the baby was his twin sister. Brice says he thinks of this occasionally when he opens the refrigerator door and sees eggs stacked there in every season of the year. He often compares his life, all that he has, with theirs in those far more difficult days when, in comparison to us, they had so little. And yet, he occasionally wonders if in his entire life he has ever felt the depth of joy they felt when that one egg was brought carefully into the house on that snowy December day of 1932.

"A person's life," Jesus said, "does not consist of the abundance of his possessions."

Indeed not. Our possessions are but a temporary illusion, a package of materials that can not and will not accompany us to heaven, and whose weight, in fact, might help hold us back from taking that trip.

It is all a question of focus - a question of faith, of what we seek.

Are you seeking, by the grace of God, to live a Christ-like life?

There's no use, you see, of talking about the eternal joy of life on the other side of the tomb if we don't really enjoy living for Christ on this side of the tomb.

Are you and I seek to live as followers of Jesus here and now?

You might quickly say - YES - OF COURSE - Why else would I be here today? But think about it for a minute.

Think of the parable found in today's gospel - the parable of the narrow door.

Think of how Jesus says to those who are locked outside the door, how he says those who are knocking on it - "I do not know where you come from."

And think too of how they reply to him - "but we ate and drank with you and you taught in our streets". And of how Jesus again replies: "I do not know where you come from."

A religious pedigree means nothing - Knowing Jesus' name - and saying the odd prayer - especially when you are in trouble - means even less.

Even doing things in the name of Christ - good things - is no guarantee of heaven - no guarantee that your values are right - that your focus is correct - that you really trying to live as Christ calls you to live.

Hear these word's of Jesus. Word's found in the gospel according to Matthew.

"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in Heaven. On that day many will say to me, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many deeds of power in your name?'. And I will declare to them: 'I never knew you; go away from me, you evil-doers."

And hear these words again from today's Gospel reading - hear them as if you were there with Jesus as he laments what might have been:

"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing."

Are you willing to do the work of God as Christ did it

- even when it will lead you to some loss in this world
- even when it might mean that there are some pleasures you may have to avoid, or some people whom you will never be popular with?

Are you willing to follow Christ even though it may mean that you may have to give up certain business practices - or confront your boss or your neighbour or even your husband about their unacceptable behaviour? Are you willing to imitate the example of our Lord - even though it may demand of you that you forgive those who have hurt you badly and give all of yourself for those who don't even care for you?

Are you willing to follow Jesus - even when it might lead you to a cross???
Are you ready to stand firm in the Lord?? Or is there another God to whom you sacrifice?

These are the questions of our Lenten Season as we watch Christ himself struggle to focus on what God has called him to and to resist doing what his mortal flesh suggests to him he should be about.

it is all a matter of basic orientation. A matter of focus.

Stand firm by looking at Jesus and trusting in Him rather than pursuing the things of this world.

Remember that God promises that he will not turn away those who turn to him in faith and trust and obedience. And that He promises eternal life to those who seek day by day to walk in the way that leads to eternity.

"Jerusalem, Jerusalem, How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings... but you would not"

This morning, once again, Jesus Christ calls you and me. He calls us to the shelter of God's protecting wings. He calls you and me to the loving embrace of his arms - the arms that he stretched out on the cross - for you - and for me. May His Name be praised day by day. Amen!

Deuteronomy 26:1-11; Luke 4:1-13

O Lord, we pray, speak in this place, in the calming of our minds and the longing of our hearts, by the words of my lips and in the meditations of our hearts. Speak, O Lord, for your servants listen. Amen.

A young man was sent to Spain by his company to work in a new office. He accepted because it would enable him to earn enough to marry his long-time girlfriend. Their plan was to pool their resources and put a down payment on a house when he returned.

As the lonely weeks went by, she began expressing doubts that he was being true to her. After all, Spain is populated by beautiful women. The young man declared that he was paying absolutely no attention to the local girls. "I admit," he wrote, "that sometimes I'm tempted. But I fight it. I'm keeping myself for you."

Soon afterwards, the young man received a package. It contained a note and a harmonica. "I'm sending this to you," his girlfriend wrote, "so you can have something to take your mind off those girls." The young man sent her a email telling her that he was practising on the harmonica every night and thinking only of her.

When the young man returned home his girl was waiting at the airport. As he rushed forward to embrace her, she held up a restraining hand and said sternly, "Hold on there. First I want to hear you play that harmonica!"

Every year the season of Lent starts with the story of how Jesus was tempted in the wilderness by the devil.

I think that many of us are alarmed by the fact of temptation, by the fact that when we pause and look into our hearts we notice that there within them are desires that we know are wrong, wants that we know if indulged will lead to evil.

We are alarmed because we think of ourselves as good people - basically honest, hardworking, upright people - yet there - lurking inside some of us is anger, jealousy, envy, racism, hatred, lust or bitterness...inside still others of us, there are cravings of every sort - from the desire to own ever more material things than we now own, to the desire to possess other people - to control other people - to be able to use their bodies for our own pleasure - their time to meet our own needs - their talent to earn praise and profit for our own selves.

The fact of temptation, the fact of evil desire, insofar as it exists in us, as it exists in me, is distressing.

For some people, the more vivid the sense of temptation - the more disturbed they become. They begin to question their spirituality, their faithfulness, their ability to do good, they begin to feel inferior - weak - uncertain - and insecure.

I think that at the heart of this uneasiness, at the heart of this distress, lies the thought that if we are really doing what we should be doing then we would not experience the temptations that we do experience, that our impulses would all be for the good, that our habits would keep us from even considering doing something we ought not to do.

To this feeling the Gospel today replies - No! That is not how it works.

Temptation is a part of the human condition - indeed it is so much a part of our humanity - that when we are most connected to God then we are most tempted.

Look at Jesus for a minute - He is raised in righteousness by Mary and Joseph, he studies, he works, he observes the Sabbath, and sits with the teachers of the law, and finally - when the time is right he is baptised by John in the Jordan and the voice of God approves him and the spirit of God settles upon him and then wham - he is tempted in the wilderness...not once - not twice - but three times and we are told that when the devil finally leaves Jesus - he does so only to wait for another time - for an opportune time says my translation...

The good news of today's gospel reading lies in the fact that Jesus himself was tempted.

You are not spiritually or morally inferior because there lies within you desires that are unworthy, you are not less than faithful simply because you consider cutting a corner or two here or there. In fact the opposite might well be the case - you might be experiencing temptation because you are worthy of being tempted.

My friends - if you are already travelling toward's a particular destination as fast as your feet can take you - and that destination happens to be the one that the devil wants you to arrive at - he is hardly going to stick out his leg and try to trip you - he's not going to suggest that you turn around and go the other way is he?

You are not spiritually or morally inferior simply because you experience temptation. Nor are you a sinner because you feel sinful desires. Sin only comes in when you succumb to temptation, when you indulge the impulses that you should not indulge.

Some people break down temptation into three categories - categories that roughly match the experience that Jesus went through while wandering in the wilderness in the days immediately after his baptism.

First there are physical temptations - the urges we have to satisfy our physical wants regardless of how we go about it.

Then there are emotional temptations - temptations to indulge one's feelings - one's ego - to make oneself the centre of all things - to receive all glory and all praise and all power - all the attention that you want - that you should have...

And then their are spiritual temptations - the temptation to test God - to dare God to prove his love - to manipulate God - to get God to use his magic powers on your behalf that you may impress others with them - that you may show to others your favoured status in the eyes of the Lord.

Personally I am not convinced by this threefold division of the nature of temptation - though we are tempted in all three ways.

I not convinced - because when all is said and done temptation is always a spiritual matter and because temptation rarely comes to us as a clear cut decision between good and evil.

Temptation always comes to us shrouded in goodness - in plausibility - in attractiveness. It comes as an outgrowth of the circumstances that we are in - circumstances that have their own logic and their own appeal.

Do we put on our sweats and walk or run this morning? No. It's raining and we don't want to get sick.

Should we talk about the issue that we have been avoiding with our spouse?
No - the kids will be home soon and we'll be interrupted.
No - she is not in a good mood.
No - it won't do any good anyway...

Should I go to the doctor about the pain in my chest?
No - it's probably just gas.
No - if it is serious then it won't make any difference anyway.
No - other people are sicker than I am and I don't want to abuse the health system like others do.

We face situation after situation everyday, some of them relatively trivial, and some of major consequence, in which the choice is not between good and evil, but between what is hard and what is easy.

To be tempted is to accept what comes naturally - food when hungry - water when thirsty - sex when lonely - power when an authority - condescension when working with inferiors - impatience when dealing with the slow, the old or the feeble - rudeness when dealing with those who are paid to serve - intolerance when dealing with those who don't fish or cut bait - hatefulness when dealing with those who contradict you - smugness when considering one's own performance... pride when thinking of ones' own humility, one's own generosity, one's own political astuteness, social grace, tolerance, or faithfulness.

All these things are natural - all these things are easy - and - as you know - all these things are common. They are the fruit of temptations that are hard to refuse.

You're hungry Jesus - if you are the Son of God - do what comes naturally to you - turn these rocks into bread. Use your advantage to your advantage - it won't hurt anyone.

You want to change the world - to make a difference - to see justice done - to help the poor - to set your people free - all you have to do is simply bow down right now and worship me...

Jesus - you know God loves you. Your plan will sell a lot easier if people see that you are special to Him. Let God save you from certain disaster - let his angels carry you up from the ground in the presence of the priests and the teachers and everyone in Jerusalem. You won't have to go around from home to home then - preaching and healing people. You won't have to work to convince people to follow your way - they'll line up for miles and miles just for a chance to see you...

Temptation is a natural thing. It appeals to our natural impulses - both for good and for bad. Temptation is also an easy thing - that is a major part of it's attraction.

And there is only one cure for it - That cure is focus - or faith.

Christ showed us the way - by rebuffing the things that tempted him with his focus on what God revealed to Israel through Moses and the prophets.

When tempted with the easy way - he drew from his heart to his mind the word of God that he had been taught: One does not live by bread alone - Worship the Lord your God and serve only him. Do not put the Lord your God to the test..

Christ resisted the easy way, the natural way - by recalling God's way - by speaking it out in the midst of his vision, his dream, his temptation.

And so can we - and even more so. More so - because Christ is in us, he who won the victory over the evil one, he who resisted successfully - dwells within us.

He knows how hard it is to walk the walk and talk the talk - he knows how easy it is to close your eyes to the troubles around you, your ears to the cries of need and despair and your hearts to the hearts of those who live with you or near to you. He knows the attraction of the quick fix and the struggle to keep on the difficult road. And he stands ready to help when we call upon him.

When we touch the Christ who is in us. When we reach inside ourselves and ask of ourselves - What would Jesus do here and now -then we are on the road we should be on.

At the end of our days God will not ask us if we did wrong - nor will he ask us if we have been tempted - but he will ask us if we have learned to play the tunes of love on the spiritual harmonica he has given us. He will ask if we have walked the road that Christ was on in the direction that Christ walked it.

And if we have - and in doing so we happened to stumble and fall once in a while - God will bandage the wounds and wipe the tears from our eyes - and give us a hug - for we will have done all that he expects of us.

Praise be to his name. Amen.

Joel 2:12-18; Psalm 51; II Corinthians 5:20-6:2; Matthew 6:1-6,16-18

May God, creator of heaven and earth, and Father of our Lord Jesus, bless the words of my lips and the meditations of our hearts. Amen.

The Jewish Hasidic tradition teaches that everyone should have two pockets in their coats with two slips of paper. One slip says: "I am only dust and ashes." The other "For me the whole universe was created."

Sometimes we need to remember that first slip of paper, as we have done and will do tonight as we come to be marked with the ashes of repentance, and sometimes we also need to remember the second - to remember that we have been adopted by God in Christ - that through him God forgives us - and makes us joint heirs with Christ of all that has been made. This also we will do tonight as we receive the sacrament of God's love for us in Christ Jesus.

Sorrow and joy. Repentance and forgiveness. Humility and joyful confidence. Fasting and Feasting. These are the poles around which our life in Christ revolve, these are the things that need to speak to one another in our hearts and our minds and our souls, the things that the Holy Spirit seeks to animate within us as she fulfills her role of both convicting and comforting us, and leading us in holiness and righteousness to the springs of living water prepared for us from the beginning of time.

And never more so in Lent - the season in which we are especially called to remember the sacrifice Jesus made for us on the cross, the season in which we are specially called to prepare ourselves for both his death - and his resurrection, knowing as we do so that as we die with him - so also we will rise with him.

Tonight is the beginning of the season of Lent, the beginning of the season in which we are called to a holy fast and to a contemplation of the mystery of our faith - that mystery summed up in the words

Christ has died,
Christ has risen
Christ will come again.

And in the words:

"I am only dust and ashes."
"For me the whole universe was created."

As we embrace both these statements tonight,

- as we have both sorrow over our sins and joy over our salvation,
- as we are marked with the ashes of mortality and repentance and eat the bread of forgiveness and drink the wine of eternal life
- as we humble ourselves to live as lowly servants and hear in joy we are the beloved children of God,

I call you to a holy fast - and a holy feast in each of the days of this season, a fast in which we rend our hearts and not our garments, one in which we act as ambassadors for Christ, and allow God to make his appeal through us to the world.

Fast from worry, and feast on divine order by trusting in God.
Fast from complaining, and feast on appreciation.
Fast from negatives, and feast on affirmatives.

Fast from unrelenting pressures, and feast on unceasing prayer.
Fast from hostility, and feast on tenderness.
Fast from bitterness, and feast on forgiveness.
Fast from self-concern, and feast on compassion for others.

Fast from the shadows of sorrow, and feast on the sunlight of serenity.
Fast from idle gossip, and feast on purposeful silence.
Fast from judging others, and feast on the Christ within them.

Fast from emphasis on differences, and feast on the unity of life.
Fast from apparent darkness, and feast on the reality of light.

Fast from thoughts of illness, and feast on the healing power of God.
Fast from words that pollute, and feast on the phrases that purify.
Fast from discontent, and feast on gratitude.

Fast from anger, and feast on optimism.
Fast from personal anxiety, and feast on eternal truth.
Fast from discouragement, and feast on hope.

Fast from facts that depress, and feast on verities that uplift.
Fast from lethargy, and feast on enthusiasm.
Fast from suspicion, and feast on truth.

Fast from thoughts that weaken, and feast on promises that inspire.
Fast from problems that overwhelm, and feast on prayer that undergirds.

Or in the words concerning fasting by St. John Chrysostom, words concerning holy living and the fasts that we observe to help make us more holy:

"Do you fast? Give me proof of it by your works. If you see a poor man, take pity on him. If you see a friend being honoured, do not envy him.

Do not let only your mouth fast, but also the eye and the ear and the feet and the hands and all the members of our bodies.

Let the hands fast, by being free of avarice. Let the feet fast, by ceasing to run after sin. Let the eyes fast, by disciplining them not to glare at that which is sinful. Let the ear fast, by not listening to evil talk and gossip. Let the mouth fast from foul words and unjust criticism.

For what good is it if we abstain from birds and fishes, but bite and devour our brothers?

May He who came to the world to save sinners, strengthen us to complete the fast with humility, have mercy on us and save us." Amen.

Jeremiah 17:5-10; Psalm 1; Luke 6:17-26

Lead us, O God, to streams of living water. Speak to us in the calming of our minds and the longing of our hearts, by the words of my lips and in the meditations of our hearts. Bring us freshness, new growth and vitality, that we may be fruitful for thee, our rock and our redeemer.

Rabbi Levi Yitzhak of Berdichev in the Ukraine, used to say that he had discovered the meaning of love from a drunken peasant.

The rabbi was visiting the owner of a tavern in the Polish countryside. As he walked in, he saw two peasants at a table. Both were gloriously in their cups. Arms around each other, they were protesting how much each loved the other.

Suddenly Ivan said to Peter; "Peter, tell me, what hurts me?'

Bleary-eyed, Peter looked at Ivan: "How do I know what hurts you?"

Ivan's answer was swift: "If you don't know what hurts me, how can you say you love me?"

In today's Gospel reading , we hear Luke's version of the beatitudes. It is a version that is strikingly different from that found in the Gospel according to Matthew.

Instead of Matthew's eight statements concerning those whom God will bless Luke gives four beatitudes - four statements concerning those who are blessed.

The four blessings at first glance seem familiar enough:

Blessed are you who are poor.
Blessed are you who are hungry.
Blessed are you who weep.
Blessed are you when people hate you and revile and defame you on account of the Son of Man.

But then Luke goes on and instead of listing four more beatitudes - he lists four woes - four disturbing statements concerning those whom God will afflict.

Woe to you who are rich now.
Woe to you are full now.
Woe to you who are laughing now.
Woe to you when all speak well of you.

That my brothers and sisters-in-Christ is incredible stuff, upsetting stuff, stuff that the rich and the full and the happy and the well thought of do, not want to believe - and can you blame them?

Think about what the average person in our society works for. Think about what you work for....And then consider the scripture you have just heard.

I think most of us are prepared to accept that the God will bless the poor and the hungry. There is a part of us that is, in fact, relieved by this idea. It kind of takes some of the pressure off us doesn't it?

We like too the idea that God will comfort those who mourn - and the idea that those who do right and are hated for it will receive a reward from God is not unpleasant to our ears. We can imagine, after all, ourselves in the position of needing some of that comfort - and we know that doing right isn't always rewarded by those around us - so it is good to know that God will set the record straight.

But the idea that the riches we have - may lead to our being cursed by God and that the food we have - may be taken from us, and the joy we have - may be replaced by sorrow and the good name we enjoy - may be considered to be an evil well that is a different kettle of fish isn't it?.

And so it is meant to be.

You know I can't count the number of times I have heard people, when discussing the beatitudes, say things like:

"well, you know, the poor - in some ways they are better off than the rich. They have to work together. They know just how good a meal tastes. They are more connected to God, because God is all they have."

You ever hear stuff like that?

There is, I suppose, a certain truth to it. But it all too quickly can sound like being poor is a good thing. And if that is so - why then don't those people who say those things sell what they have and give it to the poor, and follow Jesus - as Jesus told the rich young ruler to do?

No my friends - poverty - thirst - weeping - and persecution are not good things, and those who are poor and thirsty and mourning and persecuted are not told by Jesus that they are blessed because poverty and thirst and sorrow and persecution are, in some fashion a blessing; rather Jesus tells them and us today that they are blessed because God loves them and because it is God's will that they have a full place in his Kingdom.

You must remember my brothers and sisters-in-Christ that in the popular understanding of things those who have wealth and health have it for one of two reasons

- they have it because they have worked hard for it
- or they have it because they are "blessed by God".

Often we think it is a combination of these two things. We are blessed by God because we do things that are pleasing to God.

Equally we normally think of misery as being self induced - or as being God's punishment on those who are not following in his way.

- the poor are poor because they are lazy or their parents were lazy
- and the poor nations - well they are poor because they have the wrong kind of values, because they fight with each other, or squander their resources, or whatever.

Indeed - when you read Psalm One, or the Prophet Jeremiah as we did today, it is easy to get into that frame of mind. The Bible often speaks of prosperity as coming on the heels of obedience to God - and of unhappiness and misery as coming about as the result of disobedience.

And common sense tells us that this is the case as well.

God, after all, is not mocked. And his word is not void.

Just as when you jump off a cliff you will crash down to the ground, so when you turn your back on the Spiritual principles of life you will end up in misery.

And just as when you sow a crop of corn and corn is produced rather than tomatoes, so when you live by the love of God the love of God will be seen in you and what you do.

So it becomes all too easy for us to look out on the world and blame the poor and the thirsty and the persecuted and the sorrowful for their own plight.

Either way:

- by the route of blaming the poor for their own situation
- or by the route of saying that somehow the situation being poor is better than, or at least as good as the situation of being rich, we can easily let ourselves off the hook of really caring for those around us; of really regarding the less fortunate as people equal to ourselves in every way save that they need a portion of that which we already have.

I would like to share with you something called the Parable of the Pit. Some of you have heard it before - others have not. It goes on a bit - but that is part of it's effect. Perhaps you all can help me fill in the blanks.... It starts like this:

A man fell into a pit and could not get himself out.

A SUBJECTIVE person saw him and said, "I feel for you down there."

An OBJECTIVE person happened along and said, "It's logical that someone would fall, down there."

A CHRISTIAN SCIENTIST came along and said, "You only think that you're in a pit."

A PHARISEE said............... "Only bad people fall into a pit".

A ROCK HOUND asked........ "Are there any rare specimens in the pit?"

A NEWS REPORTER asked...... "Can I have the exclusive story on your pit?"

A FUNDAMENTALIST said....... "You deserve your pit."

CONFUCIOUS said, "If you would have listened to me, you would not be in that pit."

BUDDHA said to him, "Your pit is only a state of mind."

A REALIST happened along and said, "Now THAT'S a pit!"

A SCIENTIST saw him and said....."I'll calculate the pressure necessary(pounds/square inches) to get you out of the pit.

A GEOLOGIST said..... "Just appreciate the rock strata in your pit."

An EVOLUTIONIST happened along and said, "You're a rejected mutant destined to die in that pit, before you product any pit-falling offspring."

A GOVERNMENT OFFICIAL asked........"Are you paying taxes on your pit?"

The LAND USE INSPECTOR asked, "Did you have a permit to dig a pit?"

A PROFESSOR gave him a lecture on "The Elementary Principles of a Pit"."

An EVASIVE PERSON talked to him and avoided the subject of the pit altogether.

A SELF-PITYING PERSON said....."You haven't seen anything until you've see MY pit!"

An ODDS-MAKER noted....."Chances are that anyone could fall into a pit."

An OPTIMIST said, "Things could be worse."

A PESSIMIST said, "Things WILL get worse!"

But JESUS, seeing the man........"took him by the hand and lifted him out of the pit."

My brothers and sisters-in-Christ, when we are confronted by the beatitudes we are confronted with the love of God: a love that - as we sang before this sermon - takes us just as we are, and so also takes the poor, the thirsty, the sorrowful, those who are despised just as they are.

Some weeks ago we read the passage that is often called Jesus' mission statement, that statement from the prophet Isaiah - that goes:

The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, and to proclaim the year of the Lord's favour.

God's love extends to everyone my brothers and sisters-in-Christ - the beatitudes confront us with this fact.

They also confront us with the fact that the rich, the well feed, the joyful and the well thought of persons among us may have forgotten the fundamentals concerning God's love - they may have forgotten just what it is that hurts God

- how God is pained by disease when there is so much medicine close to hand,
- how God suffers when millions starve while enough food to feed them rots in corporate warehouses or corporate kitchens,
- how God is horrified by indifference and by a society that blames victims rather than helping them.

God is not against wealth or those who have full bellies. Nor does God condemn those who experience joyfulness or have good reputations.

But God does reminds us today - through the words of Jesus - and Jeremiah and David that there are two paths in this life, a choice of two roads that we can walk.

One path leads to life - the other leads to death.

The path to death is to rejoice in the blessings rather than in the one who blesses us, it is to seek the goodies that God gives rather than the to seek to do the good that God does.

The path of life - is the path of Jesus - who not counting equality with God a thing to be grasped, emptied himself and taking on human form, humbled himself, and became obedient to point of death even death on a cross.

You who are in need today - rejoice - for God will bless you, God loves you - and counts you as part of his chosen people, your time of suffering will come to an end.

You have abundance today - consider your brothers and sisters and how it is that Jesus gave himself for them - as he gave himself for you, and love them - love them deeply - love them with all you have, for in that love all the law and the prophets is fulfilled.

May His Name be Blessed day by day! Amen!

Jeremiah 1:4-10; Psalm 71; I Corinthians 13:1-13; Luke 4:21-30

Lord, we pray, speak in this place, in the calming of our minds and the longing of our hearts, by the words of my lips and in the thoughts that we form. Speak, O Lord, for your servants listen. Amen.

When I was a kid I remember a time when my aunt decided to make up some chocolate nut fudge or something very tasty like that.

She had all these wonderful ingredients assembled on her kitchen counter and all these lovely smells wafted around the room, and she was busy whipping something up on the stove.

I checked it out - and discovered that it was a pan half full of this lovely chocolate sauce and so I did what all normal children would have done - I asked for a taste. My aunt told me that I could have some when it was ready - but I of course put on a sad little face and said, just a little taste please. She then told me I wouldn't like it but I didn't believe her - I mean what was there not to like - lovely chocolate sauce - just a little spoonful - and so, relenting, she gave me a taste.

It was awful. It was bitter. It wasn't like chocolate at all. Yet it looked like chocolate and my aunt assured me, as she laughed at my puckered up face - that it was all chocolate and nothing but chocolate.

And that was the problem with it, it was nothing but chocolate. It lacked something very essential to make it taste really good - it lacked sugar.

You ever had that happen to you? Have you ever taken a nice big bite out of a chunk of chocolate - and discovered - phhhh it really is nothing but chocolate?

Well - if you have - you know something about the church in the wild and wacky city of Corinth was like over 2000 years ago when Paul wrote the letter to them that we have been reading from over the last couple of weeks.

Most of the believers in Corinth were extremely excited about their faith, there were people with tremendous gifts in the community, there were teachers and healers and those who could speak in tongues, there were those who could lead in worship and there were preachers, and there were those who had the ministry of help, and others who could prophecy and the word of God was proclaimed every day and people prayed, and the Gospel message itself was wonderful - the word that said that Jesus had Risen from the Dead and that all who believed in him would receive forgiveness for their sins and live internally in his heavenly kingdom with him, everything you needed for a vital church was happening in their midst - but for one thing!

The church failed the taste test.
It didn't have enough sugar in it.
It didn't have enough love in it.

The thirteenth chapter of Corinthians is probably the favourite wedding text of all time. I think every wedding couple in the Christian world has it read during the wedding ceremony - and with good reason - it is a wonderful chapter.

But when Paul wrote it - he wasn't thinking a whole lot about weddings nor was he even really trying to describe what love is like - though he does do that - rather he was trying to show the Corinthians that, in the end, nothing matters more than the answer to the question - are you living out the love of Christ?

Love - the kind of love that God has for us - is the yardstick, measure, and norm, of our faith.

And the people in Corinth seemed a little lacking in something in the love department, - despite all the wonderful things that were going in their midst - despite all the spiritual wisdom that seemed to be around the place - despite all the faith that the people claimed to have.

There were some strange things going on - like the man who was sleeping with his step-mother, and the two elders who had dragged each other off to court instead of making peace with one another - and some of the people really didn't behave all that well at the meals that they held in memory of Jesus: some ate too much, some drank too much, and others went hungry - and then too - and this was very troubling - there were public disagreements about which of the apostles and teachers who had come to Corinth were the best - and which were worst - and there were some people who believed that their contribution to the community of faith was more significant than the contributions being made by others - and that their views on things should be considered first because of that - while others felt like they weren't important to God or the church at all because they didn't have the gifts, or the talents, or the wealth to offer that they thought they should have.

In short people in Corinth were, at times rude to one another, impatient, arrogant, greedy, selfish, egotistical, and unkind. This even though they had otherwise displayed some very wonderful spiritual gifts - even though people were healed at their meetings, and the word of God was proclaimed, and people were clothed and fed and prayed for.

It is a hard word to hear at times this word from I Corinthians concerning love.

Think of what it says.

It doesn't matter if you have faith enough to say to a mountain - move - and it moves - if you have not love - you are nothing.

It doesn't matter if you can speak out for God - if you know all mysteries - and can heal all diseases - and do so - if have not love - it avails you not.

You have heard it before my friends - probably from every preacher, pastor, or priest you've ever listened to but hear it again - and hopefully - hear it fresh.

Love is the test of our faith. People will know we are Christians by our love and they know that we are something less than fully Christian - by our lack of it.

What is love besides the being the touchstone of our attitudes and actions?

Well, love involves seeking the highest good for God's creation. God first - neighbour second, and self last. Love is being more interested in the well being of others than our own. It is seeing everyone through the lens of Christ and treating them as Christ has treated us.

Bill Clinton is now a part of History. But I recall how so many people failed the love test over the matter of his alleged affair or affairs.

Even the local media indulged in week after week of extremely tasteless jokes - rejoicing in wrong, and encouraging us to do so as well. But then the media in Hong Kong doesn't pretend to a faith in Christ.

On the Internet however, in those forums where Priests and Pastors and those interested in building up the body of Christ gather, there were numerous notes exchanged that also condemned Bill Clinton for what he may or may not have done - some of those notes focussed on how Bill Clinton had not lived up to his profession of faith - others simply focussed on his alleged immorality and suggested he should not be in politics.

In all those exchanges there was a failure of love - a failure that undermined the value of all the wonderful gifts that those lay persons and priests and pastors most surely bring to their churches and congregations....

Quite simply they were "not rejoicing in the right" but "rejoicing - or at the very least REVELLING in the wrong - a wagging of tongues that did not fulfill any of the Biblical commands to pray for those in authority - or to remove the log in our own eyes before commenting on the speck in someone else's.

That behaviour, no matter how well intended it may have been was not Christ guided - or Christ centred, and brought shame and division to the body of Christ - because it lacked love.

This failure of the love test in this matter was not universal of course, and not even those believers who failed that particular love test, fail the love test in other matters.

But some of the time is still significant - for them - and for us.

We do fail the test of love some of the time don't we? As individuals - and as a church?

And we should be concerned about that - we shouldn't take our lapses lightly - should we?

Notice I say "our lapses" - because it is about us - that the love test is all about.

It is not for me to judge you - or for you to judge me - rather it is for us to look at ourselves - and ask - am I focussed on Christ our on myself? Am I showing the love of God to others - doing what Jesus would do here - and allowing Jesus to work through me? Or am I allowing my feelings, my frustrations, my needs, my pride, my talent, to dominate my interactions with others?

LOVE IS THE TEST OF OUR FAITH.
IT IS THE TEST OF OUR COMMUNITY.
AND IT IS THE TEST OF EACH ONE OF OUR LIVES.

As I have been saying often enough, saying to you - and to the children - we, each one of us here like the Corinthians are incredibly gifted by God, we have talents and abilities and spiritual gifts that can and do build up this community.

We have those who sing praise to God and lift all our hearts. We have those who create art from fabric that make us consider the truth and beauty of God. We have those who learn the Word of God and share it with others - gifts of teaching and those who are able to administer - and those who bring comfort and create joy with food - and well timed phone calls. We have those with the gifts of healing - and of prayer - and of evangelism - and of service; even those with tongues - and those with the gift of special faith.

We are gifted - and too - I think our love quotient is pretty high - we hug and we bless one another with a smile when we gather together, we pray for one another - both in this place and outside we are concerned - we do care - we do use the gifts we have to build up the body and not simply to bring glory to ourselves - or so I believe.

But are we there yet? Have we really reached the zenith of what our faith says we should be about? Have we managed to fulfill all that Christ asks of us when we follow him? Are we fully made over in the image of Christ and love like he loves?

Let us take the test!

- Do we compare what we do for the church to what others are - or are not doing?
- Do we ever speak out about how some people just seem to take up space - as if somehow the value of what we are doing is greater than what they are doing?
- Do we ever think some people here are better than we are - and some worse?
- Do we call down some of our neighbours and praise up others?
- Do we treat those who are slower than we are with impatience and less reverence?
- and those who are quicker than us or more well connected than us - with more reverence?

There is always more growing to do my friends, more growing in faith and love is the test of just how much growing there is for us to do.

Listen - I want you to put your name into today's passage from I Corinthians where love is described. I want you to think about yourself - and see just how much you agree with it - and just how much more travelling along the road of spiritual growth and understanding you need to do...

Listen - this is about you - close your eyes as I read the passage about what love is like to you.

Love is patient. Love is kind..... I am patient. I am kind.
I am not envious or boastful, arrogant or rude.
I do not insist on my own way.
I am not irritable or resentful.
I do not rejoice in wrongdoing but rejoice in the truth.
I bear all things
I believe all things.
I hope all things.
I endure all things.

That is quite something isn't it? Trying to say all that about yourself once in a while. And in saying it - trying to avoid the words - "most of the time" or "almost always" - as in most of the time I am patient and kind or - almost always I not rude or resentful.

Now consider Jesus -and how he fits into that picture of what love is like.

He can help us be like him.

He abides in us that is what our faith is about - how he is here - in this world- in this church - in us who believe in him - in my heart and in yours.

He abides in us - and calls us to abide in him.

And the way we do that - is to be focussed on him and on his example - to ask ourselves as we open our mouths or move our hands - is this what Jesus would say? Is this what Jesus would do.

Your salvation does not depend on how well you do this - it does not depend on your having become perfect that is the exact opposite of the message of love we proclaim.

But the degree to which we try is critical to the integrity of all that we believe - it is the essential component of being the church, of truly being the people of God , of being a people who show his light to the world and who bring his healing power to the nations.

In the wonderful little book called "Pocketful of Miracles", which is a daily devotional and spiritual growth guide, the author (Joan Borysenko) once wrote:

Shakespeare said, "Pretend a virtue if you have it not". Most of us are still locked up in the petty, self-centred concerns of our egos. Nonetheless we feel the ancient longing of our soul to move beyond ego to union with the divine. It doesn't matter if our motivation for Divine Union falters, or if selfish concerns predominate. If we just pretend the virtue of longing for God and being of service to others, eventually those virtues will arise spontaneously. As a friend puts it, "Fake it till you make it."

Don't feel loving, do the caring thing anyway. Don't Feel like being kind, say something nice about the person who is being rude to us anyway; Don't think that someone else's plan will work and that your idea is better, let them do it regardless. Don't think you can possibly do what God is calling you to do start doing it anyway.

Fake it till you make it; or as Paul puts it: Earnestly strive for the greater gifts - the greatest of which is love.

Strive for it - and live as if you have it - for in truth you do - Christ died to bring it to you and to show you what it is like and he rose from the dead on the third day to show that it's power is greater than the power of sin.

When you confess Christ as your Lord, God comes and abides in you and gives you the ability to abide in Him, to abide in his love - one minute, one hour, one day at time.

Turn to God - ask his help to pass the love test - each minute of each day - ask his help to abide in him as He abides in you. Amen.