Re-visioning Repentance
This sermon can be listed to here.
Gate Pa – Year C 3rd Sunday in Lent, 2019
Readings:
Psalm Psalm:
63:1-8
First Reading:
Isaiah
55:1-9
Second Reading:
1
Corinthians
10:1-13
Gospel:
Luke 13:1-9
What I want to say:
I want to explore repentance
as re-visioning using “The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F**k: A Counterintuitive
Approach to Living a Good Life” by Mark Manson. What values do we use to
ascribe success in our lives and what do we need to let go of? As we approach our
AGM what values do we use to ascribe success in this parish and what do we need
to repent of? What new ways of seeing might we be invite into?
What I want to happen:
What
was one success for our parish last year?
What
makes this a success for you?
Are
we being into seeing ways of measuring success?
What
3 wishes do you have for us in this new year?
The Sermon
1. Introduction:
reading “The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F**k:
A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life” by Mark Manson
in it Manson tells story guitarist
-
1983 sacked by
band just before record first album
-
returns LA
sulking and shocked
-
decides form own
band
-
be bigger than
last
-
wish never fired
him
-
band formed
o
sold over 38
million records worldwide
o
earned platinum
certification in the United States for five of its fifteen studio albums
o
received twelve
Grammy nominations and won 1
o
described as one of the "Big Four" of
American thrash metal, responsible for its development and
popularization
-
but when
interviewed on TV cried and said failure
-
why?
-
Dave Mustaine
-
because band he
formed Megadeth
-
band fired from
Metallica
o
The band has won
nine Grammy Awards from 23 nominations,
o
and its last six
studio albums have consecutively debuted at number one on the Billboard 200.
o
Metallica ranks
as one of the most commercially successful bands of all time, having sold over
125 million albums worldwide as of 2018
-
his measure for
success was being bigger and better than Metaliica
-
blinded him to
all he and Megdeth have achieved
-
cared about wrong
things
-
used wrong values
assess his life
-
aiming for wrong
things
-
not see what
achieved
2. Repentance
few weeks ago
talked about Michelle Obama
set her goals on
being lawyer
-
unlike Dave
Mustaine
she realised
caring about wrong things
might call this
repentance moment
eyes opened to
what really mattered
what she really
did care about
what she really
wanted to give lots of firetrucks to
began look at her
life from different point of view
helped by Barack
made big changes
that’s what repentance
looks like
learning see through
God’s eyes
care about things
God cares about
measure our
success on God’s values
3. Luke’s story
what going on in
reading from Luke 13:1-9
story about
learning to see through God’s eyes
-
not as moral
judge punishes sinful and rewards wicked
o
that is image
that bears no fruit
are these people
Pilate killed more sinful than rest of us?
Jesus answer
simple
no – just as
sinful as all of you
same with those killed
not killed because
any sin
remind us how
fragile life is
reminded not
waste time
instead live in God’s
values
4. Isaiah 55
but God Isaiah 55
-
outrageous generosity
-
offering more
life people possibly need
-
to everyone who
asks
-
no matter how
deserving or not
Isaiah 55 invitation
to live in that divine generosity
-
join in that generosity
same values work
in story of Jesus
people Jesus
talked to lived lives trying be good enough earn God’s reward
instead invites
them to repent of that
learn look life
through eyes of generous and compassionate God
-
that is where
life is
-
don’t – leads to
death
imaging living
lives with generosity and compassion as values measure lives by?
5. Lent
Us in lent
invited to wonder what values shape our lives
what we use to measure
the success or not of our lives
honest
are we like Dave Mustaine
caring about all wrong things
or more like Michele
Obama
on the way
How do we measure
the success of our lives?
6. Parish life and AGM
as listened to
that book going to and from clergy day
made we wonder
what do we care about
as church?
what values shape
us
what measures do
we use to decide whether we are successful
think too often
we care about wrong things
diocese asks for
statistics on numbers coming church
baptisms
weddings
funerals
youth and children’s
programmes
I wonder in the
end how important those things really are
whether are other
things place passion and energy into
If we are to
repent
what need repent
of
what new ways
seeing might invited into
Our AGM so to
warm us up
-
What was one
success for our parish last year?
-
What makes this a
success for you?
-
Are we being into
seeing ways of measuring success?
-
What 3 wishes do
you have for us in this new year?
Comments