A Great Multitude

"I looked up, and behold, I saw a great multitude of people from every nation, tribe, people and language, around the throne and with the lamb."  Revelation 7

Although famous for scary images, the book of revelation contains beautiful and inspiring image of heaven.  Today we reflect on just how amazing heaven is.

At the same time, the book of Revelation acknowledges the great ordeal that life on earth often becomes. 

The Saints then are the people in our lives who help us through the ordeal of life.  They do this as they draw our attention away from the frustrations and toil of earthly life back towards heaven and the lamb upon the throne.

Justice and Mercy: The Reformation

 

If Luther nailed the 95 theses to the castle door 50 years earlier, nobody would have known.  But a revolution in information technology -- the printing press -- ensured that people far and wide heard his critique of indulgences.  This would give oxygen to the movement we call today "The Protestant Reformation."

Today, we are going through another revolution in information technology -- social media.  Given this reality, how can we live as disciples of Jesus, seeking to do justice and love mercy, walking humbly with our God?

Turns out there are some lessons we can learn from the first reformation!

(And yes, this picture is from the Sistine chapel, which is located in Rome, precisely where Luther's main opponent in the Reformation lived. Why include it? Listen and find out -- hint -- God's mercy gets the last word!)

Justice and Mercy, Part 5: Rendering unto Caesar

 

"Render unto Caesar the things that belong to Caesar; Render unto God the things that belong to God!"  Jesus, Gospel of Matthew 

When Jesus says this, is he justifying separating our faith from our public life?  Is he arguing that in "real life" we follow certain rules, but in churchy spaces, and only in churchy spaces, we actually seek out lives of justice and mercy?

Rather than teaching a fundamental separation of faith and real life, Pastor Rob offers that Jesus puts forward a fundamental challenge of doing justice and loving mercy in a world that doesn't necessarily value them.

Justice and Mercy, part 4: The Righteousness of Anger

Anger is a normal, even necessary response to the injustice in our lives and in the world. As we continue to contemplate justice and mercy this fall, we must wrestle with anger, a holy but potentially toxic emotion.

Anger seems to drive the parable that Jesus shares about a king who throws a banquet (Matthew 22:1-14). What complicates this parable is that the king likely represents God. 

Pastor Rob reflects on the righteousness of anger - both human and divine - and where mercy might be hiding in this parable. 

It wraps up with some counsel on how we might move ahead when anger over injustice emerges within us.

Justice and Mercy Part 3: Not 3% better!

 

We've all had those speeches, where someone tells us that "You can do better!"

We can often assume that somehow this is what our life in Jesus is about -- a weekly motivational speech, a challenge to be 3% more holy than the last week.

Reflecting on Jesus' parable of the vineyard and the killed servants (Matthew 21) as well as Paul word's the Philippians, Pastor Rob offers that the gap between the world of justice and mercy that we long for and the world of justice and mercy we inhabit is not going to be crossed by each of us simply doing 5% more.

Instead, Paul talks about how our life will become conformed to Jesus as we experience the cross and empty tomb in our lives.

Moving Ahead Amid the Chaos

 

We've all been there -- the media headlines, the texts from family members, the emails from the doctors office -- we simply feel like we are pulled in a million directions in a never-ending storm.

Jesus often found himself surrounded by people's agendas, emotions and even hatred towards him. Every day he was pulled in a million directions. In spite of this, he found a way to maintain connection with others without being reactive; he found a way to "Do Justice and Love Mercy" amid the chaos.

As we ponder our theme of "Justice and Mercy" this fall, we reflect on how Jesus is arguably history's most "differentiated" person. This means he was able to differentiate his feelings, his identity and his purpose from those around him, but do so in a way that he was still present, courageous and empathetic for others. The events of Matthew 21 provide a master class in what differentiation looks like.

A reflection on what differentiation looks like in Jesus and what it might look like in us.

God Isn't Always Fair

 "That's not fair!" 

These are words that easily come out of all our mouths.  In fact, they likely come out of our mouth when hear the parable that Jesus offers today (Matthew 20:1-16) about a landowner that pays everyone the same even though they have worked different amounts of time.

As we continue our fall series on justice and mercy, Pastor Rob acknowledges that the Kingdom of God is not fair.  Any time there is forgiveness, someone didn't get what they deserve.  So let us rejoice that God isn't fair with us, but instead chooses mercy.

Yet, there is justice in this parable, justice about what life together looks like each person contributes so that all have what they need. 

Pastor Rob concludes by offering that the unique stained glass in our sanctuary points towards a beautiful juxtaposition of justice and mercy.  In the windows at St. Paul, the individual pieces are broken, yet they come together to form an inspiring whole.  May our congregation be a living stained glass, a community through which God's justice and mercy shine through.