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November 29, 2009
 
 
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December 20, 2009
 

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December 27, 2009
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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January 3, 2010—Second Sunday After Christmas

Lectionary Texts: Jeremiah 31:7-14; Psalm 147:12-20; Ephesians 1:3-14; John 1:1-18

Sermon Text: Psalm 15

Who Gets In?

Humility is always a difficult lesson. But it is somehow especially difficult when it comes at the hands of your children. Our family had the glad experience of travelling to our hometown for Christmas this year. It was great to spend that time with our families. The return trip, however, was not so great.

I think I told you that the day we were scheduled to travel back to Kansas City was the day a massive storm jammed up airline travel all across the country. Our flight was cancelled so we spent most of the day trying to arrange new flights home. Finally Jonathan and I got on a flight that would return us late Saturday night if everything went well. But when we came back several hours later to check in for the flight, they had somehow cancelled Jonathan's reservation. Well obviously that was unacceptable. So they found a way to get us on the flight.

However, as it turned out, I was crunched in coach between two people that weren't really made to fit in airline seats, while my son was being waited on hand and foot in the luxury of first class. So about a third of the way through the trip, while I'm trying to figure out how this happened, a flight attendant makes her way back to my seat. She says, "Are you Mr. Rowell?" Yes. "Well your son would like to talk to you so please follow me and bring your belongings, she said with a wink."

Suddenly things have changed. I'm kind of doing the Bob Ueker thing, "I must be in the front row." And in the twinkling of an eye I was transformed from cattle car class to luxury. All because I was connected. I knew the right person. (And of course he knew if he didn't do something about the situation life would not be good).

But isn't that how it is in life? You're a nobody unless you are connected to a somebody. There are certain requirements to getting admitted to the best places in life. I thought about that as I watched the arrival of the pope in St. Louis. Millions would have loved an audience with him, but only those who were somehow connected to the right people, got within any distance of him.

We experience that in a lot of places in life. In fact it seems sometimes that almost everything we do has certain prerequisites and requirements that must be met if we want to participate. It starts when we are children. If you want to play with the other kids and be included in the group then you quickly learn that are some entrance requirements. You either have to have the right toys, or use the right language, or dress the right way. And that gets reinforced throughout life. If want to get in, you have to be connected in the right way.

I guess it's no wonder, then, that we carry that mindset right over into our spiritual lives. Until we just almost automatically assume that in order to come before God there are some prerequisites. We just have this sense that when we come into the presence of God it isn't a free for all. There is something that is going to be exacted of us--something that's going to be demanded. There must be some requirements for entrance.
I think that's a pretty common mindset. The question that seems to be on most people's minds when they think about God--especially in terms of eternal life and going to heaven is, "Who gets in?" What does it take to be able to dwell in the presence of a holy God?

Well as a matter of fact that's what this psalm is talking about. Did you hear that as we read it? Verse 1 of this psalm is a question and the rest of the verses are the answer to that question. The question is fairly straightforward and simple: "Lord, who may dwell in your sanctuary? Who may live on your holy hill?" Fair enough question, right? Who gets in?

Well the balance of this psalm is the answer to that question but I have to tell you it isn't altogether an encouraging word. Listen again to the requirements for entrance: [read 2-5]

"Who gets in?" The one whose walk is blameless. Now I don't know about you but I'm not sure I'm willing to go and get in the front of that line. Because I know me. I mean I might be willing to get in the "pretty good but not perfect line." But the blameless line? I don't know.

Now picture for a moment how this psalm was probably used. It was probably used as an entrance psalm in the worship of the temple. Picture in your minds eye, the worshippers standing outside the temple, they have not yet gained entrance. And as worship begins they call into the inner part of the sanctuary: "Lord, who may dwell in your sanctuary? Who may live on your holy hill? And the answer comes back to them from the priest, "He whose walk is blameless and who does what is righteous."

Are you going in? Suppose we did that here. Rather than gathering here in the sanctuary we gather out in the parking lot. And then when it's time for worship to begin to we call into the sanctuary: "Lord who may dwell in your sanctuary? And the answer comes back: "If you have been without blame in your walk, if you have been righteous, if you have been completely honest and have not hurt anyone this week, you may come in."

I wonder if we would have to bother turning on the lights. That's not a very encouraging word is it? But that's Old Testament, right? We live under the new covenant. What happens when you go to the new covenant and hear what Jesus says about who gets in. Well, let's see. What did he say?

"Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God."

"Unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven."

"You live by--'don't murder.' I say, 'don't hate.'"

"You live by--'don't commit adultery.' I say, 'don't lust.'"

"Love your enemies. Pray for those who hurt you. Forgive others when they sin against you."

"Don't worry about physical needs, God will provide."

"Don't be judgmental toward others or you will bring judgment upon your self."

Now according to Jesus that's what it means to live as a Christian. That's an equally disturbing word isn't it? So what do we do? Does that mean that nobody gets in? Has the bar been set so high that no one can clear it? Is there no one who can enter the sanctuary? Is there no one who can dwell in the presence of a holy God?

The call in both this psalm and even in the teaching of Jesus is clearly to a pure and holy life. But that call to purity is a hard word because we know that we are not. We have no hope of salvation if it depends upon our ability to be like this before we can come to God. So why is this word here? What is this call all about?

I think this word serves us as a jarring and shocking reminder that if we ever rely on what we can do to be pleasing to God we are in deep trouble. God calls us to a life of holiness and purity that is beyond our ability to live. Why? Is that a cruel joke? No. It's a life-long lesson of scandalous grace. You see this word of Psalm 15 came to a people who could easily rely on a religious system. It was so easy for them reduce their covenant relationship with God to a system of sacrifices and rituals and feasts. And they constantly dealt with the temptation to feel like if they had simply done the sacrifices right, if they had worked the system then they were welcome into the presence of God.

So this word comes to remind them powerfully that their salvation is not based on their sacrifices. It is not based on their ability to act like religious people. This relationship with God was much deeper than that. And they needed to stand at the entrance of the temple and see not their self-justification but their need of forgiveness and grace.

The question was not "Have you fulfilled the requirements of your religion?" The question was, "Do you live out of the covenant? Is Yahweh lord of the everyday?"

And it's not different for us. It is so easy for us to begin to rely on our religious systems. If we make the sacrifices and keep the rituals then we of course have the right to come before God and be justified. But the disturbing words of Jesus comes to remind us that we are not able to make ourselves pure enough. He calls us to something that is beyond our natural ability.

But that is precisely where the gospel word comes to bring hope. That's precisely why the story of Jesus is good news. Because when we hear the qualifications for entrance, when we hear the requirements--we all come face to face with our undoneness before God. But then we hear Jesus say to us, "Ask and it will be given to you, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened to you."

What transforms the requirements of this psalm from a barrier to a gateway is simply the realization that as I look at my life against the call of God, I see my need for forgiveness and mercy. I may be able to work the religious system well, but I cannot meet the conditions of holiness. I stand in need of God's grace before I can ever hope to enter the divine presence.
It is only in receiving that gift that I realize the holy God is not inaccessible to me. He offers me entrance into his sanctuary if only I will acknowledge my need.

You see the confronting word to us this morning is simply this: if we ever come before God, if we ever come into his sanctuary because we think we have earned the right to come--we are in serious trouble. And that doesn't mean that we have to come to church crawling in our hands and knees or that we have to despise ourselves. Because of Jesus Christ we do enter the presence of God in celebration. No doubt about it. But there is a world of difference between grace and pride.

My concern is that we never turn God's great grace into a feeling that somehow "I deserve the favor of God." The attitude that should characterize our worship is the realization that God calls us to be a holy people--and we are not. Not on our own. Not by our effort. We are only holy by his grace. We are only holy because through the sacrifice of his son we are forgiven for our sin and justified before God.

Some time ago I worshiped at a convent where I attended mass with the sisters. One of the things that impacted me most was their entrance into the sanctuary. They came into worship with complete reverence and awe. They came in silence. The bowed before the symbol of their Lord and acknowledged in their spirit and actions that they were on holy ground--they that did not have some inalienable right to come but they were there by invitation.

And I contrasted that with how we sometimes come to worship. I want us to come with joy but frankly it seems that sometimes we come as if we have the right to be here. If we are not careful, we come carelessly. We come talking about everything from sports to what's on sale at Dillon's. Do we have any idea what we are doing? Do we have any appreciation for why we are here? When we hear the kind of life that God has called us to it should put us on our faces before him.

Until we hear the words of Jesus come to us, "Rise, your faith has made you well." And we rise in the embrace of his forgiveness and mercy and worship him with joy. And we realize that we have nothing to bring. We have been invited into this wonderful relationship of grace.

I really think this psalm is calling us to a new kind of attitude in our worship. Not an attitude of self-deprecation. This is not worm-theology teaching here. But an attitude of awe and reverence in which we recognize that we are undone and unholy until we bring our lives before him and receive his touch.

So who gets in? The scripture reminds us today that it is not those who have tried hard to make themselves righteous. But those who are indeed righteous through the gracious gift of God--Jesus Christ. In his holy and gracious presence we are made new. And we can, in his power, live out the call of these verses to treat others with the same grace that we have received.
So, how have you come today? How do you approach your relationship with God? What makes you think that you get in? Is it based on what you have done, or is it based in what he has done?

I call you this morning to surrender your life to the only one who can call you up front and give you a seat among the redeemed.