<font color='black' size='4' face='Times New Roman, Times, serif'>Forwarded: <br>
<br>
<br>
<div style="font-family:arial,helvetica;font-size:10pt;color:black">-----Original Message-----<br>
From: Judy <judy_boli@ecunet.org><br>
To: Propertalk <propertalk.topic@ecunet.org><br>
Sent: Sat, Aug 13, 2016 9:59 pm<br>
Subject: [propertalk.topic] Sermon for Proper 15C<br>
<br>
<div id="AOLMsgPart_1.2_ddda77f9-ab58-4262-938f-2488b22d25cb">
<div class="aolReplacedBody">
<div dir="ltr"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font>
<div style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal; mso-mirror-indents: yes;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman">Dear Friends,</font></span></div>
<font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font>
<div style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal; mso-mirror-indents: yes;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman"> </font></span></div>
<font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font>
<div style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal; mso-mirror-indents: yes;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman">This Sunday’s sermon is entitled ““Fire- Use It!” or “PeaceKEEPER
or PeaceMAKER?” or “May my heart be broken by the things that break the heart
of God!” (Bob Pierce) and deals with the gosple (Luke 12: 49-56).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here it is: </font></span></div>
<font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font>
<div style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal; mso-mirror-indents: yes;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman"> </font></span></div>
<font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font>
<div style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman">What a strange Gospel
reading!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Remember the old song that
goes, “I don’t want to set the world on fire.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I just want to start a flame in your heart.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well in the Gospel we hear Jesus say that he
HAS come to set fire to the earth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He
then goes on to talk about divisions between people who love each other.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He finally says we act like experts, but we
really don’t know what’s going on right now in terms of the really important
stuff.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What in the world is he talking
about?</font></span></div>
<font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font>
<div style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman"> </font></span></div>
<font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 6pt; line-height: normal;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">Let’s first look at his
statement about having come to set fire to the earth and wishing it were
already on fire.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We can tease out his
meanings by looking at three functions of fire.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Do you know anyone who works or worked at a foundry? What’s the basic
job at a foundry?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Molten steel is heated
to an extremely high temperature.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why do
they heat the metal to such a high temperature?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Sure, to burn out the impurities.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Fire is frequently used in scripture as a cleansing agent.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So when Jesus says he wishes the world were
already on fire, he is saying how he wishes his precious children (and we are
all his precious children) would be purified of our sins and those things that
hold us back from real life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So when you
come to the altar to receive your Holy Communion, and then every night this
week- examine your life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What sins, what
negative attitudes, what fatalistic beliefs, what bad habits, what
self-defeating behaviors are you still holding on to (or perhaps they are
holding on to you- like a burr).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Get rid
of them (like the book of Hebrews says).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It’s much easier if we do it ourselves, instead of waiting for life to
torture us with them and for God to finally have compassion and burn them
away.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In pioneer times, occasionally the
entire camp would be threatened by a prairie fire- burning grass advancing- no
place to hide, couldn’t outrun the flames, what could they do?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After the loss of many lives, pioneers finally
discovered that if they purposely burned a fairly large area of grass, when the
fire advanced, they could stand in the middle of the burned-out area.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because the fire had no fuel in this area
since the fuel was already burned up, the fire skipped those terrified people
and jumped on to another area.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We can be
like those resourceful pioneers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We can
burn out our own imperfections so neither life nor God’s consuming fire has to
do it for us.</font></div>
<font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font>
<div style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman"> </font></span></div>
<font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font>
<div style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman">Another use of fire and the
heat that comes from it is to melt metals so they can be molded into the
likeness chosen by the artist.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Remember
how the children of Israel
got tired of waiting for Moses to come down from Mount
Sinai with the Ten Commandments, so they decided to make their own
god?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Remember how they heated the gold
from their earrings and other jewelry to make the golden calf?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our Artist, our heavenly Father-Artist calls
us to get rid of all those idols of ours and throw them in the purifying fire
of his love, then be molded into the likeness of Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You can’t be like Him if you don’t know
Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Read his word.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sing His songs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Receive his Body and Blood.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mean it when you sing, “Lord, I want to be
like Jesus in my heart.”</font></span></div>
<font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font>
<div style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman"> </font></span></div>
<font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font>
<div style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman">The final use of fire in
scripture that I’d like us to meditate on this morning is easier understood if
we transpose Jesus’ words a bit so they say, “I came to set the world on
fire.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The best example I could think of
was when Jesus drove the money-changers off the porch of the temple.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As you recall, they got rich two ways.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They charged exorbitant prices for their
animals so pilgrims (many of them poor) could offer the required sacrifice when
they finally made it to the Jerusalem
temple.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They also charged ridiculous
prices to trade the unacceptable Roman money for Jewish money so people could
present their gifts to God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m sure
Jesus could no longer stand the cheating, the misuse of travelers who had come
long distances, the injustice toward the poor, so he “lost it” (or looked like
he “lost it”) and drove them out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What injustice
riles you?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Which acts of meanness annoy
you?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What cruelty, teasing,
name-calling, misusing, abuse have you decided you will absolutely no longer
tolerate?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bob Pierce, founder of World
Vision, had a prayer that I wish every one of us could claim as our own.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He said, “May my heart be broken by the
things that break the heart of God!”</font></span></div>
<font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font>
<div style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman"> </font></span></div>
<font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font>
<div style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman">Dr. Tony Evans of Urban
Alternatives says, “Your ability to love faces its hardest test when the ones
you are trying to love throw stones at you.” His statement gives us insight
into how to handle the divisions Jesus talks about.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How is it possible for this Jesus who talks
about divisions in today’s gospel be the same Jesus who says in Matthew,
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called God’s children?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>First of all, Jesus was simply warning his
disciples of the reality they would face if they stuck with him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Remember, those early Christians were killed
by the sword, turned in by family members, torn apart by lions, burned at the
stake.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In fact, probably the only
disciple who did not suffer martyrdom was St.
John, and he was imprisoned for life on an
island.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus was just warning his
beloved disciples of what their life would be like if they stuck with Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, there’s more to it than that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There’s a significant difference between
being a peaceKEEPER and a peaceMAKER.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A
peaceKEEPER simply keeps the peace, covers up injustice, smoothes problems
over, keeps the lid on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We are not
called to be peaceKEEPERS, but peaceMAKERS.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>A peaceMAKER knows there can be no peace without justice, so s/he speaks
tactfully, but honestly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mostly, a
peaceMAKER speaks up- sometimes when it annoys other people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of the best examples of this kind of
speaking reality is the child in the story, “The Emperor’s New Clothes.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Remember, it is finally the child who has the
nerve to point out the reality- that the gorgeous new clothes, positively
commented on by everyone, paraded as the latest style, are not there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The clothes are a hoax, and the emperor is
naked!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do you speak up against
unfairness, racism, injustice, teasing, misuse or abuse?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do you speak up or simply talk about it
later?</font></span></div>
<font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font>
<div style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman"> </font></span></div>
<font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font>
<div style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman">Here is my prayer for you:
May you allow God’s purifying love, like the smoldering steel in the ladle, to
burn away all your impurities.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>May you
allow God to mold you into the likeness of his Son.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>May you share with Jesus in setting the world
on fire with God’s compassion and justice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>May you be a peaceMAKER who speaks up for God and good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And may the things that break the heart of
God break yours and mine also.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just
before we read the gospel, we sang: “Spirit of the living God, fall afresh on
me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Melt me. Mold me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fill me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Use me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Spirit of the living God,
fall fresh on me.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>May we make this our
prayer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Amen.</font></span></div>
<font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font>
<div style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal; mso-mirror-indents: yes; tab-stops: .25in;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman"> </font></span></div>
<font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font>
<div style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal; mso-mirror-indents: yes; tab-stops: .25in;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman">For anyone who is
interested, this sermon and updated African-American wisdom statements are
posted on our parish’s web site under “Sermons & Stuff”. The address is: </font><a target="_blank" href="http://www.stpaulsepisag.org/"><u><font color="#0000ff" face="Times New Roman"></font></u></a><u><font color="#0000ff" face="Times New Roman"><a href="http://www.stpaulsepisag.org" target="_blank">http://www.stpaulsepisag.org</a></font></u><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman"> .</font></span></div>
<font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font>
<div style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal; mso-mirror-indents: yes;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman"> </font></span></div>
<font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font>
<div style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal; mso-mirror-indents: yes;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman">Blessed preaching,</font></span></div>
<font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font>
<div style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal; mso-mirror-indents: yes;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman">Judy Boli</font></span></div>
<font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font>
<div style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal; mso-mirror-indents: yes;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman">St. Paul's Episcopal Church</font></span></div>
<font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font>
<div style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: normal; mso-mirror-indents: yes;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman">Saginaw, Michigan</font></span></div>
<font color="#000000" face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font></div>
<div></div>
-- <br>
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Propertalk" group.<br>
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to <a target="_blank" href="mailto:propertalk.topic+unsubscribe@ecunet.org">propertalk.topic+unsubscribe@ecunet.org</a>.<br>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</font>