Aiming for “He Iti Kahurangi”
This sermon can be listened to here:
Gate Pa – Lent 5 2015
Readings:
Hebrew Scripture: Jeremiah 31: 31-34
Psalm: 51:1-12
Epistle: Hebrews 5: 5-10
Gospel: John 12:2-=35
What I want to say:
·
I want to
use John to explore how big it all is. I want to suggest that the cross exposes
our smallness of thought – thought about God, and the world, and who we are in
all that. The cross explores our preoccupation with ourselves and our own desires,
dreams, hopes and aspirations. In the cross they are shown to be so petty. We
are invited instead to have our imagination and our focus reoriented back to
God.
What I want to happen:
Do we want to be successful or
significant?
The Sermon
1. Introduction:
Whāia te iti kahurangi
ki te tūohu koe
me he maunga teitei
in our table groups we asked
to explore what it means
our group draw picture about
that
thought meant that should aim
for most precious jewels (which reminded me of Jesus and selling all have for
the field with treasure, or buying pearl of great price)
but if you weren’t able to
aim that high, if you needed to bow
something lower, then may it be the highest Maunga - mountain
what really interested me
about the conversation around that was
didn’t really talk about iti kahurangi / precious jewels
not sure we could see the high ideals
focused instead on he maunga
teitei – mountain
saw metaphor journey life
it was really about how our priorities
might change over life
from
cars, good jobs, house, money
to
whanau, education, marae and wider community.
all of which is good
felt like needed something more
felt like we weren’t aiming
for that iti kahurangi
just
maunga teitei
all had “me” at the centre
like our imagination was
holding us back in conversation
all those good things were as
far as we could go
anything lofty like changing
world – too far
go further we needed different
or bigger frame of reference
2. Jeremiah
If we let it
Bible is all about offering bigger
or different frame of reference
e.g. Jeremiah
Jeremiah – as we learned in
our Lenten studies 3 years ago
one first writers to push
understanding God from tribal God
better
and bigger than all rest
demands
obedience to rules to save
to One God, creator of all
already
acted to bring salvation
invites
people to live in response to love and generosity offered
and
to be a beacon to all other people world
today heard that
despite devastation suffered
are
to be people of hope
driven not so much by obedience
in order to earn a reward
responded to all God already offered
people changed from inside
Now that really is offering different
or bigger frame of reference.
3. John
Like other gospel writers
John saw Jesus as offering much bigger understanding
of God that people had
saw Jesus as the signpost to God
sought broaden hearers imagination include qualities
of
·
generosity
·
love
·
mercy
·
healing
·
compassion
who
·
changing
not just individual lives
·
how
whole communities function
·
shattering
darkness blinds us to who we all are
·
allowing
us to live again as people made in image God
cross is portrayed as THE ultimate sign
acts like battle standard
all those follow The Christ look to it
reorientate themselves by it
understand their place in relation to it.
It was the moment in which our imaginations were
changed,
broadened
we become new people marked by
·
generosity
·
love
·
mercy
·
healing
·
compassion
4. Domesticated
too often
feels like domesticate this message
domesticated God
made God small again
reduced cross to death that appeased God’s anger
allow us back into God’s sight
rather than outrageous act of compassionate love
breaks all that blinds and holds us down
allows this world to be all that God hoped for from
the beginning
5. Church
think - frame of reference
become too small
not only understanding of God
become too small
understanding who we are and what
we are about too small
come think that we are
kingdom of God rather than kingdom being God’s work among all people
come think God can only act
through us
rather than seeing God at work throughout creation
inviting us to join that work
come to think it is all about
me and God and getting into heaven
rather
than God’s passion for all creation
and
in incarnation
God
working to allow this world and all who live in it to be all created to be.
come to think that all about
going to church
rather
than church helping us be people whose imaginations have been stretched
so that we join God in God’s
passion for all creation
we still need different or
bigger frame of reference.
6. 2nd half of life
last week also had
conversation about 2nd half of life
both read Richard Rohr –
American Franciscan, - writes and talks about this a lot
colleague talked about another
author he had read suggested that in first half life we are motivated by need
for success
really all things identified
on our picture at Maori class
·
money
·
car
·
house
·
job
·
quest to
be famous – see in X Factor, cooking shows etc…
2nd half-life we
move to wanting to be significant
much
more about people
less
about me
impression
leave
whether
leave this earth better off for being here
even
if no-one knows.
7. Significant church
A lot of our church thinking is first half of life
thinking
all about building up sense of who we are
being successful
big
congregations
successful
outreach
being
known
so many conversations I hear about church are about
how to be successful
a lot of our angst is became we aren’t very successful
at all
I suggest – that it is all too small
struggling up high mountain, he maunga teitei
rather than aspiring for iti kahurangi
need bigger or different frame of reference
I wonder if changing our focus to being significant
might be just that
Is God inviting us to be significant rather than successful?
as we
prepare for AGM
reflect on past year I wonder what it might look like
to be significant
if we allowed our imaginations to be stretched beyond
breaking point
allowed ourselves meet God made known in Jesus
I wonder if we look for he iti kahurangi rather than
he maunga teitei
what would a significant
church look like
So
what has been most significant
in our life as people God in last year
what does that teach us for
the year ahead
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