Sermon 22nd May 2011

Today, our Curate, Rev Gill Tayleur, preaches based on the Bible reading from John 8: verses 12-20

I AM THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD


David received a parrot for his birthday. This parrot had a bad attitude and even worse vocabulary. Every other word was a swear word! David tried hard to change the bird and was constantly saying polite words, and playing soft music. But nothing worked. He yelled at the bird & the bird got worse. Finally, in a moment of desperation,
David put the parrot in the freezer. For a few moments he heard the bird squawking, kicking and screaming and then, suddenly, no more noise came from the cold darkness inside.
David was frightened he might actually have hurt the bird, & quickly opened the freezer door. The parrot calmly stepped out into the light, blinked and said, "I'm sorry that I offended you with my bad language. I ask for your forgiveness."
David was astounded and was about to ask what changed him,
when the parrot continued, "May I ask what the chicken in there did?"

There isn’t really a proper link between that joke and our text this morning, apart from the darkness of the freezer. But it made me laugh.

Jesus said,
“I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will have the light of life and will never walk in darkness.”

What a thing to say! It sounds wonderful, light of the world,
and the light of life. But what does it mean?

These words of Jesus have a picture, a claim, a call & a promise.
The picture, the claim, the call and the promise are all enormous,
and we’re going to look at each 1 of them.

First the picture, or metaphor. The light of the world.

The greatest natural light we know, the light of the sun, is incredibly powerful. And it’s a source of life. What I mean is, without the sun,
there would be no life on our planet. The sun’s rays keep the earth at exactly the right temperature to sustain life as we know it. Any hotter would be too hot, any colder too cold. That’s why global warming
and depletion of the ozone layer are so worrying. And the sun gives life to plants in a very direct way. Most plants need sunlight on their leaves to make food, and die if put in a dark place. And plants provide food for the rest of the food chain, right up to us humans.

So light is a source of life.

Light is also a source of truth, the source of knowledge. It’s how we get information about the world around us. Without light we stumble around and bump into things, because we don’t know what’s there!
But with light, we do know what’s there, and we can behave accordingly. And we talk about ‘throwing light on’ a subject, because we know it’ll help us understand something better. So light is a source of knowledge, of truth.

And light is a source of joy. People who live at the north and south poles experience depression in the dark months, as do many people who suffer from SAD seasonal affective disorder. It’s medically known that without enough sunlight, some people get very depressed. And many of us find a light bright day, be it a hot one in summer, or a cold bright day in winter, brings a smile to our faces and lifts our spirits. So light is a source of life, of truth and of joy. That’s the picture.

Secondly the claim. Jesus said I AM the light of the world.

We heard from Cameron last week, about the significance of Jesus saying I AM. I AM were the words God used as his name, to Moses and his people in the Old Testament. I AM was such a special name,
that then, and now, Jewish people don’t write it down. They might write G_D.

Saying I AM in the way Jesus did, was a way of saying I’m God,
and it outraged the people to hear it. As Cameron said last week,
who did Jesus think he was?

In the Old Testament, there are many places where God himself is described as a light to his people. David said in the Psalms,
“The Lord is my light and my salvation”, and he prays, “let the light of your face shine upon us O Lord.” The prophet Micah declares,
“Though I sit in darkness, the Lord will be my light.” And Isaiah prophesies the coming of the Lord with the words, “the Lord will be
your everlasting light.”

But there’s more that we need to understand, to grasp the enormity of this claim to be the light of the world. Let’s look at the context.
Back in chapter 7 of John, v 37, it says that this scene took place
at the end of the Feast of Tabernacles. The feast of tabernacles
was a national 7 day holiday, which remembered the time the Israelites spent 40 years in the desert after being freed from Egypt.
In those years in the desert, God gave them something to follow,
as they travelled around. In the day they had a great pillar of cloud, and at night a pillar of fire, which went in front of the people
as they journeyed through the desert. The pillar of cloud, and of fire at night, showed God’s presence with them, his protection of them
and his guidance, literally leading the way. They followed it.

So, at the Feast of Tabernacles, as part of the celebration, to remember the pillar of fire, there were 4 enormous candelabras of candles, in the temple area where offerings were given. These huge candelabras blazed so brightly that they lit up the whole temple and beyond. And at the end of the feast, they were put out. At that point, many of the people must have felt very keenly, the fact that they no longer had God’s presence in quite the same way his people had in the past.

And it’s right then, at the end of the feast,
right there where the blazing candelabras had been put out, that Jesus stands up and said, I AM... the light of the world!!! Not I’m the light of the temple, or the light of the Jews, but I am the light of the world!

It’s as though he said, you have seen the blaze of these temple candelabras flooding the night with light. Well I’m the light of the world, not just for the festival but for all people for all their life. The lights in the temple make a brilliant light, but in the end they’re put out. I am the light which lasts forever!

What a claim! It led to an argument with the Pharisees about whether Jesus had the right to make any claim at all about who he was. They argued about who his witnesses might be and who could testify to support his claims. And Jesus makes more claims to be
sent from his father God.

These claims are so enormous, so outrageous to them, that John implies it’s surprising no-one grabbed him to kill him, v 20. Not yet they don’t.

So Jesus used a picture, light, and makes an enormous claim. I am the light of the world. How are we to respond to such a claim?

Along with the claim, Jesus made a call. A call to follow. “Whoever follows me will have the light of life and will never walk in darkness.”

Jesus calls people to follow him. All people, everywhere. WHOEVER follows me. Whoever you are, whatever your background, whatever your age. Whoever follows me. This applies to all of us.

So what does it mean to follow Jesus?

The Greek word John usesd for follow here, in whoever follows me, is akolouthein, and it’s found used in 5 ways:

It’s used of a soldier following their captain. Following their captain on long route marches, following into battle, following in campaigns in strange lands. A soldier follows wherever their captain leads, and Jesus is calling us to follow him as our commander, going where he says, doing what he says, living how he says.

Then this word for follow is used about a slave following their master,
doing whatever is required, at the master’s beck and call. Jesus calls us to serve him like a slave, willingly, joyfully. We can do so, knowing he’s the best master we possibly could have, because he loves us so much!

Next this word for follow means following the advice of someone wise. It’s accepting an expert’s opinion, and following their guidance. Jesus calls us to follow him because he is the ultimate expert and guide for life.

Then this word for follow is used for following the laws of a city or nation. Jesus calls us to follow the laws of the kingdom of God,
that is to live his way, under his kingly rule.

Finally this word for follow, is used to follow an argument or line of teaching. Jesus calls us to listen, understand, remember, hear and obey what he says.

Those are some of the ways that word follow is used, and they’re some of the ways we are called to follow Jesus. Whoever follows me – will have the light of life! That’s the promise.

With the call, comes a Promise. Jesus said, Whoever follows me, will have the light of life. You and I can have the light of life!

Like the pillar of fire in the desert, we can have God’s presence with us, his protection, and his guidance for our lives.

We thought earlier about how light is the source of life, truth and joy.
And Jesus brings us life, truth and joy when we follow him.

On another occasion (in John 10, we’ll look at in 2 weeks time) Jesus said he came that we might have life to the full. We have life to the full when we follow Jesus, because we’re living life as God intends, living with meaning and purpose. Our recent series on the book the Purpose Driven Life explored the whys and hows of living for the purpose we were designed for. Planned for God’s pleasure, to worship him, formed for his family the church, created to become like Christ, shaped for serving God and made for a mission.
Following Jesus we can have a purpose driven life, living life to the full, both here and now, and for all eternity. When we follow Jesus, we have real life!

Then when we follow Jesus, he shows us truth. If we want to know what God is like, why he has made us and what life is all about, we can look to Jesus. God has shown us what he’s like, by sending his son Jesus to come and show us, in what he did and what he said.
And here’s the record of it! When we follow Jesus, we discover the truth about God and about life.

And when we follow Jesus, we know his joy. Jesus promised his followers joy, the joy that comes from living life as God intends. Joy that’s not dependent on circumstances, like happiness is, because many sad and painful things happen to us in life. No, the joy Jesus gives is deeper than that, and comes from knowing that we are following him, and from knowing his presence with us, whatever we go through in life. Knowing how much he loves us! There is no greater joy than comes from following Jesus and living his way.

So following Jesus is the way to know real life, life in all its fullness.
It’s the way to know the truth about God, and to know his joy.

And when we do so, as his followers, we then reflect the light that comes from him,
the light of life, to the world around us.
In Matthew 5 Jesus said
“you are the light of the world...
let your light so shine before others,
that they will see your good works
and praise your father in heaven.” We follow Jesus, the light of life,
and as we do so, we reflect that light into the world. Living God’s way, we love as he does, we put others first, we are generous and kind and patient and self controlled. We spread the light of Jesus
by our words and our actions.

So the question is, do we want to go our own way, or follow Jesus, the light of the world?

When we walk alone, going our own way, we’re bound to stumble and fall, because so many of life’s problems are beyond our solution.
When we walk alone, in the dark, we’re bound to take a wrong turning because we can’t see where we’re going. But when we follow Jesus, following him as our commander, our loving master, our wise expert, our king and our teacher – then he has promised, that we’ll know fullness of life! We’ll know the truth! And we’ll know real joy!

The picture, the claim, the call and the promise – they add up to a wonderful invitation: “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will have the light of life and will never walk in darkness.”

Do you want to stumble through life in the dark? Or do you want the light of life? Then let’s follow Jesus!

And now let’s pray...
Jesus, light of the world, we thank and praise you for calling us to follow you, and for your promise that you’re with us, even closer than the pillar of fire in the desert. May we follow you faithfully, in every way that you call us. In your name, amen.

Sermon 15th May 2011

Today, our Vicar, Cameron Barker, preaches based on the reading from John 6 verses 35-43 and 48-51

“Who do you think you are, then?” If you have ever had that question put to you directly, you will know how it can feel. Depending on where the emphasis is put, it is anything from demeaning to argumentative through confrontational to downright aggressive – or worse. There is nothing positive about being asked, “Who do you think you are?”, though – as I too know from personal experience. But there is a way in which that same question can be raised in an even less positive way: “Who does s/he think they are, then?” And that's exactly the way we hear that question put in today's reading from John chapter 6!

Who does he think he is, then? “Isn't this man Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know?” That's how the religious leaders grumbled to each other, in verse 42 of this story. By this stage they had already heard, and seen more than enough. They were quite rightly outraged by it – just not enough to put the question quite so rudely to Jesus' face; or not yet, anyway. But what he had said, and done by this stage (and that was even before they had heard the shocking nature of what he was about to claim); who did he think he was!

Now, this is all new, to all of us. We're jumping straight in today, landing here in the middle of chapter 6. Not only is the story well under way already. It's also the story as it's told in what is the most notoriously challenging gospel to grasp. Of the four biblical accounts that we have of Jesus' earthly life, death, and resurrection, John's is the most foreign to us. It's best put in terms of John thinking and writing in a circular fashion rather than a linear one. John didn't begin at the beginning, with Jesus' birth, and then go through the key events of his life and work until his death, followed by his resurrection, and then end neatly with his return to heaven.

No, John dipped in and out, exploring in depth, from different angles, themes and ideas that emerged from the story of Jesus. That was far from random, though. John had the bigger picture in mind, right from the beginning. He deliberately started with his own theological development from the story of creation, with how Jesus fitted into God's eternal plan. And John made no secret of what he did, or of why. As any good reporter would, just like the other gospel writers, he chose his material carefully. He wanted people to come to accept that Jesus is the Son of God, to believe in him, and through that to have this eternal life that Jesus came to bring. And we know that's what John wanted to do, because he said so (in 20:31).

That was, and is, fully consistent with what God Himself wants – as we've heard Jesus also say here, in verse 40. “What the Father wants is that all who see the Son and believe in him should have eternal life”. So John wrote his gospel with that as his main aim. Those who study John must keep his intent very much in mind, then. Adults here will be studying this book, right through to the summer. We'll be doing so in a rather John-like way too. Instead of going through a section of it one part at a time, we're picking out a particular theme. Like 90% of what's in John, this is a theme that we won't find spelled out in any other gospel – but it's still a really important one for us to grasp. Apart from anything else, it makes clear Jesus' own answers to the more polite version of that question: “Who are you?”

Of course these are answers to that question being taken seriously. It does need to be taken that way too. It comes up time and again, in all 4 gospels, in the mouths of any number of different people who had encountered Jesus. More than that, the Bible says that one day we will each have to answer it for ourselves. Eternity hinges not just on what we say in response to the question about who Jesus, but on what we truly believe. Is he the unique Son of God, who died and rose again for us? In the language of this passage, is Jesus the one who can feed us with the sort bread that will sustain life for ever? Or is he not? What do you say?

We don't have to answer that right now – though hopefully many of us could do so. The plan is to take some time to look at the answers to this question that we find in John. Amongst other things, this series will help us to hear what Jesus has to say about himself. This is one of the many features that John is famous for – how Jesus made 7 key claims about who he is. Of course those were usually phrased in the language of first-Century Palestine. None of them take too much unpacking to make just as much sense today, though. Bread certainly doesn't; or is it just in my house that the only question is how many loaves to buy?!

Before we get to this claim of Jesus in more detail, it may help to look back briefly. We spent the first part of this year on what became our Lent book, The Purpose Driven Life. We said at the end that we'll carry on living on purpose, for God. So, just to be clear, this new series links into our life-purpose of being Created to become like Christ. Its purpose is to help us to understand more fully who Jesus is, and then how we can become more like him ourselves. To state the obvious, of course there are ways we can't, and won't, ever become like him. In those places we can understand better who he is, though, and what he came to do; and how to tell others that.

So there's our purpose, to keep in mind along with John's. To all of which there is one more important introductory point to add. It relates to the nature of the theme that we have picked out for this series. These are known as the “I AM” sayings of Jesus, because that's how they each begin. Jesus said: “I AM ... the bread of life” being today's specific topic. That may not sound like much of an issue in such a me-shaped society. We're used to people talking about themselves: “I ... ; I am ... ; I will ...” – we all do it, lots! But there was something very significant about Jesus applying that phrase in particular to himself, in the way that he did, at the time, and in the place that he did.

We need to realise that for any Jew, then or now, this was significant in a deeply offensive, blasphemous way. “I AM” was the name of God as He had revealed it to Moses. For Jesus – or anyone else – to take it for themselves in this way, in that culture, was to be saying that they were God; and that never goes down well! The trouble in this instance was that this large crowd, including the religious leaders, had followed Jesus to find out more about what had just happened. Of course his words, said here three times, “I AM the bread of life”, hadn't come out of the blue. Chapter 6 opens with the familiar story, of Jesus, up a mountain in the middle of nowhere, feeding a crowd of at least 5 000, with hardly any food.

It's the only miracle story that all 4 gospel have in common, and the detail in them is almost identical. But it's not the kind of thing that we expect from those claiming to be God. So it's no surprise that those who had witnessed it started to ask who Jesus is, then! There's plenty to the conversation that then ensued – which we were never going to have time for today. In fact we don't even have time now for a proper look at the edited highlights of that conversation. But I'm sure that you have already got enough to take away with you to ponder further through the rest of this week. That's the kind of thing that John inspires in many people, wanting to go and look from a few other angles at the issues that he raises!

I'm sure too that you haven't missed the main point of this amazing claim. Jesus is saying that what he does, here by feeding all these people, isn't the main point – much less the end of the matter. Him then saying, “I AM the bread of life”, extends his purpose so much broader, and deeper. Bread here is more than 'just' the staple food that keeps us alive day by day. The Hebrew people had that too, bread from heaven that kept them alive in the desert. But this is more than that: when it comes from Jesus, this is the kind of food that is able to feed us so that we won't ever die.

John intends us to see that this is God, Jesus, speaking eternal life into being – in the same way that He spoke, and made the world! As this passage ends, Jesus was crystal clear about exactly what that would mean for him. This bread, that gives those who believe in him eternal life, is his body, which he will give for that exact purpose. This has been God's plan since before the world was made. It's a plan that Father and the Son work together with the Spirit to bring about, and to make real in life-changing ways – for whoever accepts it.

This is the first “I AM” saying in John. But we couldn't pick a better starting place for this series if we tried. What is to follow will pick up so much of what we have begun to see today. Jesus is the source of life, and the one who keeps it going eternally. His words have power to change reality in ways that we can scarcely believe. These are words, and deeds that can change our reality – now and for ever. Isn't it worth taking time to find answers to who he is, and what that means, then? Let's pray ...

Sermon 8th May 2011

This Sunday, our Vicar, Cameron Barker, delivers a shortened sermon - due to the fact that today is our Annual General Meeting here at St. Paul's. He preaches, based on the reading from Hebrews 10 verses 19-25.

It is only just after Easter; but fast-forward in your mind if you can – to Christmas. Picture a happy family gathered round the tree, opening presents. For his younger son, the proud father has got an iPod; for his daughter, he has bought an iPhone; for his older son, he has splashed out on iPad. Domestic bliss is ruptured when his wife opens her present – to find an iRon!

I want to say that today's joke has nothing to do with the short sermon that follows. But then I realise that it perhaps does, after all. It may be that the point of it is this: none of us, no matter what our age, our gender, our standing in the family, or anything else, receive anything other than the very best that God can give. Because of Jesus, and his death for us we are invited to enter into the Holy of Holies, the inner throne room of heaven – with confidence! Wow!! What a place to be; what a standing to have; what a privilege to have been given, for free. And all 'just' because God loves us, and so has himself paid the price for us to come in!

Today is a 1-off; it's a transition, from Easter to life beyond, with our AGMs added into the mix too. But it's still worth saying that this is where the application begins in this letter. Up to this point, it has been ground-work. Here's where we begin to grasp what it really means, that Jesus is who he is, and has done what he has. And there could be no better launching-pad than that. For both reviewing the year that's behind, and setting the agenda for the year ahead, where else could we want to look? Where else other than to this amazing privilege that we now have, because of Jesus' death?

This really is the best context for us to do our necessary task in. Each year at this time we are challenged to work out again what it means for us to be God's Easter people. How do we live in the light of this story that we rightly re-tell year in and year out? For all good Anglicans, the church annual meetings are never far behind Easter. So we have this ready-made framework. It invites us to ask questions about our past year of being God's Easter people; and to resolve how we will be that in the year ahead. But do note how both hinge on us being God's Easter people. How we lived last year, and how we will live out this one, depend on us being those for whom all things have changed, for all time.

Yes, we are those for whom all things have now changed, because of Jesus' death at Easter. But I believe that God's message to us for the year ahead is mostly about Him wanting us to carry on as we have been! That's not a secret, as anyone who's seen the programme card knows. Today's heading, based on these words from Hebrews, is a call to persevere – to keep on keeping on. As we look forward, let us indeed then “Consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds”, as it's phrased here.

Doing that won't be anything new, it must be said. Spurring one another on toward love and good deeds is something we had plenty of practice of in the last year. Now, strange as it may seem, we are looking back today to see how we did that, and more, in the calender year of 2010. That was quite a year, for some of us personally, and for all of us corporately. It was another year when we had to depend on God, and grew in faith and trust and hope, in ways that we couldn't possibly have foreseen. And we did both depend on God and grow in 2010 – not least because He who promised is faithful.

As usual, by the time we get here, we are already well into the year that we are looking ahead to. That doesn't matter much – because part of what we're doing today is 'only' affirming the course that we are already on in this new year. In that sense, this is simply a health-check; but it is a well-timed one, coming this soon after Easter. So it's worth us thinking about how confident we really are about entering the Most Holy place. We know that can do that, because of Jesus: but do we? How confidently? And how sincere are our hearts if and when we do so; not just today but every day? And then, how unswervingly are we holding onto the hope that we profess? How much are we trusting in God's faithfulness – and, in particular, in how He keeps His promises?

These are all questions that we can, and should, be asking ourselves today, and as we go on from here. Looking back at the past year, in this Easter context, should encourage us in every way that we need. It reminds us first and foremost of what God has done – and that it truly all depends on Him. We couldn't ever do any of this for ourselves; but He has done it for us, and now invites us in. 'All' we have to do is to respond, in faith and hope and trust: and then we do have to persevere, to carry on as we are!

So, there is the challenge, and the encouragement for today – looking both forwards, and backwards. As we look back, let's see what God has done, and praise Him for it. That's not 'just' for the good news of Easter, but also for all that we saw and experienced for ourselves in 2010. And as we look forward, let's do so with confidence in what God has done, and in what that means. Let's enter His throne room with confidence; drawing near with sincere hearts; holding unswervingly to the hope we profess; trusting in God's faithfulness; and spurring one another one to love and good deeds, day in and week out; in and for Him. And so let's pray ...