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The Twenty-Third Sunday after Pentecost November 8, 2020 at 10 a.m.Scripture Reading 1 Thessalonians 4:13 - 18Rev. Scott Paul-Bonham First Presbyterian Church of Benton Harbor“The Heart of the Matter”Before the reading of this scripture:The Apostle Paul’s First Letter to the Thessalonians, as I have mentioned, is the first written book of the New Testament.I do not believe I have mentioned the important question of WHY it was written.Now, as usual with a letter almost 2,000 years old,scholars can only make educated guesses at the purpose for Paul’s letters.Yet, generally, Paul writes to churches he has helped establish.Paul wants to maintain bonds of Christian love and fellowship.He also wants to answer questions or issues or problems that arose,after his departure which he has heard about or been asked about.So the heart of his letters to such a congregation like the Thessaloniansis to answer their question or questions,to give a reasoned explanation to their issues,or to address their problems.Specifically, the Thessalonians have questions about Jesus’ return,and particularly about those Christians who have fallen asleep, that is, who have died,before Christ’s return.What will their status be? Are they lost, or is their hope for them too!So, let us listen carefully Paul’s answer in 1 Thessalonians 4:13 - 18.The Word of God for the People of God! Thanks be to God!Many of the philosophical schools during the Roman Empire, like the Stoics,counseled men, in particular, not to grieve, even the death of a child.They callously claimed that everyone dies, so just don’t worry about it.The Apostle Paul will have none of that nonsense.Of course we grieve when someone dies, or “falls asleep” to use the euphemism.Life is precious. When a loved one, or anyone, loses that life,it does and it should make a mental and emotional impact on us.Yet, Christians grieve with a special hope.This Christian hope is based upon something very real and true.Jesus’ death and resurrection, and what Jesus’ death and resurrection means for us,is the very core of our hope!“For since we believe that Jesus dies and rose again, even so, through Jesus,God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep/died.” (v. 14)When I was young we used to sing an Avery and Marsh song:“Every morning is Easter morning, from now on.” Every day is Resurrection Day, the past is over and gone.” It is so true.This amazing, marvelous, game-changing claim is not just Paul’s personal opinion!This claim comes from the word of the Lord, and is as trustworthy and true as Jesus is.Paul does not speak of “the word of the Lord” very often, only when the issue at stake is criticalin the life and faith of Christian believers.“For this we declare to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive,who are left until the coming of the Lord, will by no means precede those who have died.” (v. 15)Now, we do not have in any of the four Gospels this exact statement of Jesus,Although in Matthew 24:43-44 and Mark13:26-27 we hear Jesus speak about similar matters.We must remember that Jesus said and did many things that the Gospels do not record.The Gospels are just a sampling of what those writers thought was most important for their readers to know.First Thessalonians was written sometime around 49 to 50 AD, less than 20 years after Jesus ministry, his sacrificial death, and his resurrection to new life!Paul knew and talked to many people who were with Jesus when he walked the earth.Or, maybe the resurrected Jesus told Paul directly, like when he spoke to him on the road to Damascus at his conversion.In short, this promise, that Jesus never loses any of his own, either living or dead,is as sure a promise as we have in the Christian faith.Indeed, it is absolutely central to the Christian faith.As Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 15:19“If for this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.”Yet, of course the human mind immediately wonders, “How?”How will Jesus raise those who have died?Paul answers this anticipated question with three verses.That might not be as much detail as the Thessalonians, or we, would like,but when we understand the background of what Paul says.WOW, it is amazing.The imagery Paul uses to explain what is going to happen comes from two sources.One is Jewish apocalyptic literature, similar to that of the Book of Revelation I described last Sunday morning.(e.g. Daniel 7:13, 10:6; 1 Enoch 14:8, 20:1-8)For example, the Prophet Joel 2:15 – 16 are part of this vision of Jesus’ return.“Blow the trumpet in Zion; sanctify as fast;Call a solemn assembly; gather the people.Sanctify the congregation; assemble the aged; gather the children, even infants at the breast.Let the bridegroom leave his room and the bride her canopy.” Paul uses some of the exact words from this passage, from the Greek translation of Joel 2.More importantly, there is a very important practice of greeting a Roman dignitary,when he makes an official visit to your city.Thessalonica was a very important city in the Roman Empire.It was the capital of the Roman province of Macedonia.It was a crossroads of both land and sea travel.When any Very Important Person from Roman was scheduled to visit Thessalonica,a delegation would be formed for the First Citizens of that city.This delegation would go out a half a mile or a mile outside the city gates,and await the arrival of the VIP.They would come in their finest clothes, with servants carrying flags and banners.There would be gifts and music and food.Think of the grandeur and glamour of one of America’s great parades,like Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City or Pasadena’s Rose Parade.When the Roman VIP finally arrived on horse or carriage, this entourage would greet him with exuberance and fanfare, like trumpets.Then they would escort this special guest into the city, to a royal residence and banquet.Knowing about this history and this way of receiving Roman royalty into Thessalonica,Listen to this reception of Jesus in 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18!“For the Lord himself, with a cry of command, with the archangel’s calland with the sound of God’s trumpet, will descend from heaven,and the dead in Christ will rise first.Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up in the clouds together with them,to meet the Lord in the air;and so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage one another with these words.”To those first Thessalonian readers and listeners, they could not help but understand this descriptionwithout imagining the Emperor himself coming to town.Paul has made clear that Jesus is the only real King or Emperor, and this world is Jesus Empire.Christians are the first citizens, whether previously dead or still alive, that will greet the one true King/Empire outside their city, in the clouds as it were.But where do they go then? Back to heaven? That would make no sense at all.The Roman Emperor, once arriving at the outskirts of a city, does not turn around and go back to Rome. No, he goes into the city with the people in the parade.Jesus does not take his formally dead and living followers into heaven,but returns to the city, which for Jesus is the entire earth.This vision, by the way, is exactly what is described in the Book of Revelation, chapter 21,“Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away,and the sea was no more.And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God,prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying,“See, the home of God is among mortals.He will dwell with them as their God; they will be his peoples,and God himself will be with them; he will wipe every tear from their eyes.Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more,for the first things have passed away.”Sisters and brothers,This COVID 19 pandemic has forced us to think about death.We are grieving for people we have known and loved,and for hundreds of thousands we have not known.Yet, we are also very concerned about life on earth,about the division in our community, our country, and our world.We have devastating racial divisions amongst us.We have political differences that are dividing families, dividing friends,dividing churches, dividing communities.We have economic divisions in which the wealthy get much wealthier,and the poor get evicted and starve.These division, separately and together, have cause countless pain and death themselves.And our planet, God’s good earth, has a terrible man-made fever.Our collective actions has been killing out home.All the signs are clear.The droughts and fires in the western United States, and in other parts of the world.Tropical storms and hurricanes more and stronger than ever before on the coasts.Drastically changing weather, both hot and cold, in the Midwest.People are anxious, frightened, grieving.And we may be too!But in the midst of this storm, we have that deep and abiding hope that comes for Jesus alone.Jesus’ death and Jesus’ Resurrection, and Jesus’ promise to keep our lives, forever.We do not know when it will come, if we will be dead or still alive on this earth,but let us trust the Good News of God that the Lord will come,and steal us away, to steal us away home.But our ultimate home is not heaven,but a new, renewed, restored earth,that will have none of the tears and none of the troubles of our earth now.Thanks be to God. Amen and Amen.The Twenty-Third Sunday after Pentecost November 8, 2020 at 1 p.m.Scripture Reading Matthew 25:1 - 13Rev. Scott Paul-Bonham First Presbyterian Church of Benton Harbor“Spiritual Preparation”Before the reading of this scripture:I will be very honest, as a child and youth, I did not care for this Parable of Jesus.Five women come prepared with extra lamp oil, like extra batteries for their flashlights,Five women did not come as prepared, and their lights started to go out!What about “sharing?” What I have learned in seminary and in spirituality conferences is that,not all preparation can be sharedLet us listen to the Good News in Matthew 25:1 - 13.The Word of God for the People of God! Thanks be to God!Let us think about athletics, the arts, and professions.These skills and abilities require years of training, preparation, and practice.These things just cannot be given, they have to be earned.I remember basketball player Bill Bradley writing in his book.He stated that to be an elite basketball player whether someone born with a silver spoon in his mouth like he was,OR a player from the mean streets in the inner citymust put in 1,000s of hours of practice and play on the courts.When you want to learn to instrument, a piano or organ, a French horn or guitar, or to sing well,You must take lessons, and practice, practice, practice.No matter how much raw talent you have, raw talent is never enough.The same is true to be an engineer or physician, or a police officer or pastor.Or any professional or any trade’s person.Must have education, and standards, and right practices.Noel Paul Stookey, the Paul of the famous fold trio Peter, Paul, and Mary, is a Christian.He has song called John Henry Bosworth, which has a wonderful line:“Every piece of scripture and every prayer he prayed,Has brought him to this moment of this particular day.”Likewise, Christian preparation takes years of study and practice to be ready for the moment.Prayer,Scripture,Service,WorshipAnd FellowshipThanks be to God! Amen and amen. ................
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