2018 02 25 Sara Holland Sermon
Scripture: Romans 4:13-25
Title: Images of Love
Prayer – May the words of my mouth and meditations of our hearts and minds be acceptable to You, oh God, my rock and redeemer. Amen.
Psalm 22: 27 – 29, an adapted version:
All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to God;
And all the families of the nations shall worship God.
For dominion belongs to God, and God rules over the nations.
To God, indeed, shall all who sleep in the earth bow down;
Before God shall bow all who go down to the dust, and I or we shall live for God, for the divine.”
And we shall live for God.
And lest we have forgotten as a people, let’s just briefly turn to the second part of 1st John 4:8, part b – “God is love.”
God is love.
And we shall live for God. Our deductive reasoning can help us here – we shall live for love.
With the week we have had as humans in the United States, surely we can benefit from a few images of love.
Just this week, I walked into the church office and glanced at the south shore section of the Boston Globe. What do I see but our local Hinghamites from the boys hockey team photographed as they cared for creation – sorting trash and ensuring recyclable items were recycled; and sure, they were likely completing service hours, the article did note each sports team takes part in this ‘slash the trash’ competition. Even still, it is an image of love. Not just love for earth, but love for community, love for sustaining what we have. An image of love.
An image of love. A couple, family or individual taking a camping trip or a weekend away at a ski resort to remind themselves of the importance of self-care, the importance of family. The hot chocolate that sits just on the outside of the kid’s mouth. The folks sitting by the fire. For the individual, the time away from work, meeting a new person or two or simply being with themselves for a time. A love for recreation, a love for connecting with just the ski slopes or the trees. An image of love, at the ski slopes or while camping.
An image of love, of just four of our church kids this week, at Holly Hill Farm, reconnecting – running outside, enjoying the mud, giggling together, holding hands, enjoying the earth. Holly Hill farm is a small farm just down the road in Cohasset that invites the public to enjoy their 140-acre space, year-round. As we walked the property this past Thursday, the other adults and I saw the kids connect as they helped each other through mud puddles and supported each other when they would less than gracefully topple over as kiddos often do. They held hands as they walked; an image of love.
An image of love: this Thursday night, I decided to go to a yoga class. Knowing that I’m challenged by yoga as a less-than-flexible person who has struggled with injuries resulting from years of competitive sports, yoga is a good go-to for re-centering and strengthening. It’s hard for me! A good challenge. As I walked into the yoga studio, the woman recognized me and I remembered her though it had been 3-4 months. I suppose she remembered me because I tend to be the silly person who signs up for a class that is actually a bit out of my league. If you don’t know this about me, I can be a bit strong-willed. I’m sure she remembered needing to help me a bit extra than other students last time I was there. . .
Anyway, as we began the class, the yogi, Anna Paiva, opened us all up to the moment, to our time. She reminded us of our power. She was there not just to lead us, but to support. She let us know we should invite in love. As much as it is hard to imagine a particular image for a personified “love” – this idea of providing invitation to love truly touched my being. I sensed it touched others in the class. As we gathered for exercise and meditation, we had our image of love – standing at the door, at the threshold of our lives, ready to come in as soon as we would invite. The image of love, personified. Our guest.
Imagine all the people in different houses of worship this weekend. Naming the love of the divine. On Friday evenings, our Jewish friends inviting our God, the God of Abraham coming into their homes. Our Muslim neighbors praying in community on Fridays. These, our services of connection, are images of love.
Again, Psalm 22: 27:
All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to God;
And all the families of the nations shall worship God.
These families of the nations is a phrase referencing us, today. And in Paul’s letter to the Romans, we hear about how grace will fall to each of us – through faith. We hear about “God’s promise being realized through faith.”[1]
This promise, God’s promise is that which reveals these images of love to us. This promise, God’s promise, is that which helps us invite in the person of love.
These images of love, these invitations we so long to extend are often interrupted.
This is a more complex and frustrating interruption than the moment we struggle to get our holiday pictures made. And that situation, the holiday or vacation picture situation can already be difficult enough. See there is the composition of the photo, the lighting, and then, the people or the subjects themselves. Even if you are photographing a waterfall or a bird, it is hard to capture an image. Our images, our images of love are often interrupted.
Our invitations to the person of love are also often interrupted. And this invitation interruption, again, is more complex than, say, a wedding invitation not making it to a family member or friend. I know that many of us have been on the giving or receiving end of that one . . . Didn’t you get the invitation? Did I send the invitation?
These images of love, these invitations we so long to extend are often interrupted.
The interruptions have been great this week.
Shootings – we all know that the shooting in Parkland was is not the only recent one.
Human trafficking – the horrific presence of slavery.
Abuse, especially committed by those in powerful positions. Complacency of people in positions of power.
The struggle with forgiveness we each have.
Our coping mechanisms that we know are necessary but also sometimes are harmful in our lives.
The interruptions to the global world and in our own personal worlds make it so hard to capture these images of love and even more difficult to invite the person of love into our homes. Into our hearts.
What we know about Paul’s letter to the Romans is that it is one of his most complex pieces, it is theologically mature and extremely challenging to the reader.
I love the reading for today because it helps us see that direct connection to our Jewish kindred.
Paul makes it clear that the divine inheritance is for all people, no matter their past. Chose the Way of Christ, Paul is proclaiming. Choose images of love.
The thing about the litany of interruptions I named – that litany being shootings, trafficking, abuse and the like – that litany should not just be ignored and moved past but taken deep to heart and deep into prayer. In the depths of our hearts and prayers, we will find action. Any number of these interruptions named, we respond to them when they are close to us and so what we have to do is face the interruption. We have to see that those facing these horrific adversities are our kindred as they are God’s beloved.
If we are taking a family photo and our two-year-old interrupts and runs in front of the camera 2, 3, 4, 5 times, we have to see that a hug, a personified love will bring the child back to our image of love. The child needs eye contact – the child needs connection – like we need connection.
See our sanctuary, physical and spiritual, surely does not demand that we come as any sort of perfect, but that we come with all that leaves us suffering and pained. God longs for us to present our deepest fears, our deepest longings. At the threshold of our hearts, our homes, with our suffering, we invite love. We invite the person of love, while we suffer. The text today shows us that no part of humanity is too evil for images of love for the person of love.
So if want to personify interruption – don’t avoid this person of interruption; sit with interruption, sit with suffering AND invite in love.
Listen to this word about God – “God gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist.” Gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist.
Can you hear the voice? Will you invite in love? I believe you can – wherever you are. Invite in love. I see seeds sprouting at home, inside of course, too cold for the outside just yet. I sense that God stands above the seeds, singing them into life. Singing the plant into existence. God calls into existence the things that do not exist.
Invite in love, see God’s action, watch the inexistent come into being. Amen.
Bibliography
Attridge, Harold W., ed. “The Letter of Paul to the Romans” in The Harper Collins Study Bible, Harper One: San Francisco, CA, 2006. New Revised Standard Version Bible, 1989, National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America.
Attridge, Harold W., ed. “The Psalms” in The Harper Collins Study Bible, Harper One: San Francisco, CA, 2006. New Revised Standard Version Bible, 1989, National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America.
[1]Harold W. Attridge, ed. “The Letter of Paul to the Romans” in The Harper Collins Study Bible (Harper One: San Francisco, CA, 2006. New Revised Standard Version Bible, 1989, National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America), 1916.