Being disciples of the living God
Can be listened to here
Gate
Pa – Year B 3rd Sunday in Lent,
Readings:
Psalm
Psalm 19
First Reading:
Exodus
20:1-17
Second Reading:
1 Cor
1:18-25
Gospel: John
2:13-22
What I want to
say:
I
want to use the reading from exodus and John’s story of Jesus clearing the
temple to explore what it means to be disciples of the living God.
What
I want to happen:
reflect on what motivates their life in God
The Sermon
1. Introduction:
first, thank you
to all who made last Sunday such a special day
if you have to
have one of these birthdays, you helped me bring it in in style.
what questions or
comments do you have about today’s readings – talk to neighbour
2. The big things
some really big questions
come out of today’s readings
Decalogue – 10 commandments
-
as
said before
-
not
rules to obey to gain God’s favour – get into heaven for example
-
offered
in story at time when people God lived in presence of Living God
o pillar of cloud during the day
o pillar flame at night
Ø once in promised land
o shekinah/glory/presence God resided in temple
these are rules
about how to life is such a presence
wonder how often
we read these as guidelines for living in presence of God
do we even see
ourselves as living in presence of God
or is God far off
somewhere?
3. Raruraru
with the
establishment of temple
growth of sacrificial
system
debate began grow
within Judaism over time
between two
traditions
one – prophetic said
that to live in presence of God meant to obey laws –
Micah 6:8 offers
this summary
He has told
you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do
justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God? (NRSV)
But
he’s already made it plain how to live, what to do, what God is looking for in men and women. It’s quite simple:
Do what is fair and just to your neighbour, be compassionate and loyal in your
love, And don’t take yourself too seriously— take God seriously. (Msg)
-
temple
cult said that to live in presence God meant obeying cultic laws
-
ensure
right sacrifices performed at the right time
o if all was well with rites of temple
o then all well with God
Christians long
had same debate
-
those
said that to love God and be a disciple of Jesus beloved is to live justly and
to be engaged in social justice
-
those
that said that praying and worshipping God is heart of what it means to be a
Christian
o might do other stuff when we have time
o Anglicans often seen to be in this camp
§ most important thing is that we do our liturgy
properly
see that same Raruraru
or debate in story in Gospel
Jesus clearing
the temple
4. Jesus clearing the temple
Gospel reading is
John’s version of Jesus clearing temple
are some significant
differences between this version and that found in the synoptic gospels
-
this
story is at the beginning of Jesus ministry – not end as in Matthew, Mark and
Luke
o not reason ruling elite decide he must die
-
some
reasons for tension are different
o Jesus seems way less aggrieved about the corruption
within these necessary support systems around the temple cult
instead John is
saying Jesus is doing 2 things
a. seems to be aligning himself with prophetic
tradition
-> way live as people God was not about
temple cult and all sacrifices and ritual
-> doing
justice, and to love kindness, and to walking humbly with God.
b. John clearly understands that Jesus is new
temple
Shekinah/glory/presence of God is found in
Jesus, the Word made flesh
not in temple
huge claim
5. New Temple
These stories are
all about discipleship
about being
followers of One God
John’s claim is
that we meet this God in Jesus
new temple
where
Shekinah/glory of presence of God resides.
As bode Christ –
we become the new temple
where
Shekinah/glory of presence of God resides.
This Lent invite
you to reflect on how we are that temple
how we reveal Shekinah/glory
of presence of God in Tauranga today
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