March 2 7, 2022, "Get Set" - Westminster Presbyterian Church, Pasadena

Joshua 5.9-12; 2 Corinthians 5.16-21

On your mark.

Get set.

Go!

That’s how the race begins … 

We are the people … these are the times. 

It’s our race … our moment … no one else to run the race for us … others have run their race long before we born, and to all of them, a debt of gratitude.

From the vast beyond, they say to us:

Thank you; thank you for your gratitude; we’re glad you recognize what we did. 

We built something with stone and steel; we built it by the Spirit of God … we didn’t give up, we didn’t give in … by the mercies of God, and for the love of Christ, we raised this Tower to the glory of God - a beacon of love and hope.

We did it for you.

We did it for the world.

We appreciate your gratitude, but we want something more.

We want you to run your own race.

That’s the best gift you can to us. 

Gratitude, for sure, then your gumption.

Your determination - to run the race as well as you can.

Here we are dear friends.

We’re on the mark.

And now the announcement: “Get set!” …  

In our prayers and with our devotion.

In our meetings together and our plans.

In the strength of our bodies, as best we can.

And if the body isn’t what it used to be, then the courage of our soul. 

No greater tower can be crafted, than the tower of prayer.

From God’s call to Abraham and Sarah to the final trumpet of the Book of Revelation.

The race is set.

Always forward, always something new … not forgetting the past, but building upon it … denying the temptation to recreate the past, bring the past back - like Lot’s wife, who turned around to see from whence they had come; she turned into a pillar of salt. 

Nothing wrong with salt, but a pillar of salt ain’t going anywhere. 

It’s stuck in place and stuck in time. 

The challenge any of us face, when times are changing, when one era is ending, to know how to say “Farewell!”

“Farewell!” to what was, and welcome the new.

Even when we haven’t a clue what the new will be like, or where it’ll take us.

In our reading from Joshua:

The people are now, finally, in the Promised Land after 40 years of wandering in the Wilderness.

Moses did his work.

Moses confronted Pharaoh and demanded the release of his people.

Pharaoh said Yes, and then Pharaoh said No.

There was the crossing of the Sea, just in the nick of time.

Pharaoh and his army are washed away.

The people march through the sea - safe and sound.

A pillar of cloud to guide them during the day … a pillar of fire to give them light at night. Manna in the morning, and water from a rock.

Moses on the Mountain … Moses and the Ten Commandments. 

But when faced with the Promised Land, they fail to take it.

They’re afraid … Maybe we should go back to Egypt. It wasn’t so bad after all.”

The lure of the past.

The troubling trick of the mind -  when we trick ourselves about the past … we remember the best of it, and not all of it … “if only we could regain the past,” we think, “then we’d be happy.”

Churches succumb to this troubling trick of the mind … so do political parties, and entire nations, and folks just like you and me - when the past lays hold of the mind and imagination, it leaves no room for innovation, experimentation; fear takes over and the future dies.

That’s what happened to Israel, as they stood on the threshold of the Promised Land, the first time around. Their spies came back and said: There are giants in the land, and we can’t fight them. In their eyes, we’re as small as grasshoppers.

It was all “fake news” - the people rose up in anger at Moses and Aaron … better dead instead, they cried. Why is God doing this to us? Let us choose a captain who will take us back to Egypt.

So off to the Wilderness God sent them; forty years of wandering, until they could shake off yesterday's dust, set aside inaccurate memories, reject fake news, trust the LORD God Almighty, and get ready to try it again.

In our reading today, Joshua 5 - the second time around …  they crossed the Jordan, set up camp, just shy of Jericho. 

Joshua said: We’ve got some prep-work to do. Here and now. To get ready for the Promised Land.

Circumcision for one … the cut of the flesh to mark the body. To God we belong, in life and in death … God’s purpose is our pursuit.

The Lords says, “Today, I’ve rolled away from you the disgrace of Egypt.” The past is past … this is now … tomorrow stands before us.

And then the Passover Feast - to remember when the Angel of Death came to do its hard and terrible work - taking the first-born of all living things … but the Angel of Death passed over the homes marked with the blood of a lamb.

It’s a harsh and terrible business sometimes … 

To set the captives free.

To right the wrongs.

And clear the way.

To see a brand new day.

That day, the Children of Israel ate the produce of the land.

The manna was no more.

Forty years of wandering - behind them.

Ahead of them, the Promised Land.

Centuries later, the Apostle Paul says to his friends: If anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away … everything has become new!

Paul says: in Christ, God was reconciling the world to God, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting the message of reconciliation to us. So we are ambassadors for Christ.

The high and holy calling of God.

The past is behind us. The race is before us.

On your mark!

Get set!

Amen and Amen!

Costly - September 7, 2008

Exodus 12:1-14

Dreams are the energy of the future!

Bill Gates thought it possible to put a computer in every home … John Kennedy said we could reach for the moon … the Wright Brothers believed we could fly.
They all changed the world with their dreams.

Dreams are the energy of the future.
We’re all dreamers …
We dream of a hammock in the mountains … or the day we’re given the corner office.
We dream of romance and wealth.
We dream of winning the lottery, making it big, getting to the top of our mountain!

Every dream costs something … maybe just a few moments of downtime before the next appointment … or maybe the dream will be a life-time adventure.

Our new series - all about dreaming …
Dreaming of a better world …
Freedom and hope …
Everyone welcome … safe and sound …
Love abundant … shelter for all.

That’s the Exodus dream …
A big dream.
As large as heaven.
Large enough for the whole world … all things bright and beautiful, all creatures great and small … for God so loved the world.
God’s dream.
Our dream.

To be God’s people!
To be the church of Jesus Christ … Covenant on the Corner, a Presbyterian Congregation rooted and grounded in Scripture and committed to worship & justice.
We dream the dreams of God.

We rest our chin on our hands and we dream away.
We read the newspapers with God’s heart.
We think with the Gospel.
We dream of the world put right.

Where swords are beaten into plowshares, and we study war no more.
A world where Zacchaeus is welcomed.
The leper embraced.
Children blessed with a chance for life.

Jesus invites us into the dream … “Come and follow me,” said He.
We’ll feed the hungry and clothe the naked.
Visit the lonely and care for the wounded.
We’ll not only give someone a fish, but we’ll teach them how to fish.
We’ll speak truth to power.
Bring light to darkness.
Salt the earth with the love of God.
Bear our cross and carry the name of Jesus.
There’s much to do … and some of it is very dangerous.
Sin is real.
Golden calves all over the place.
Darkness is plentiful.

A young couple preparing for their wedding met with the pastor … they said, “We’d like you to leave out the for poorer, sickness and death parts – they’re a little dark” [Christian Century, Sept. 9, 2008 – from the New Yorker Collection].

Well, things are little dark … and sometimes very dark.

Who can ignore the sounds of war … the cry of a child alone and frightened … a despairing mother who can only watch her child succumb to a fever … a man out of work … a child forced into prostitution … human trafficking … the haves afraid of the have-nots; the have-nots angry at the haves … economic systems, political systems, out of whack.

God’s people never shy away from harsh realities.
We don’t have all the answers … so we ask the questions: What’s right? What’s just? What’s decent and kind?

So let’s get to work.
Let’s dream God’s dream!

Jesus began His work with a dream:

When he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the sabbath day, as was his custom. He stood up to read, and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written:
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to bring good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

The poet Langston Hughes wrote [“Dreams”]:

Hold fast to dreams
For if dreams die
Life is a broken-winged bird
That cannot fly.
Hold fast to dreams
For when dreams go
Life is a barren field
Frozen with snow.

Jesus held on to the dream … when the disciples missed the point again and again.
Jesus held on to the dream when He stood in Pilate’s courtroom … while the crowds clamored for his death.
Jesus held on to the dream when they beat Him within an inch of His life and marched Him off to Calvary.
Jesus held on to the dream when they nailed him to the cross.
Jesus held on to the dream until it was finished.

To sign on with God is to dream big.

And the bigger the dream, the greater the cost.

Everyone in this room knows costly dreams.

A young gymnast dreams of Olympic Gold … gets up at 3:30 in the morning five days a week to train before school … sprained muscles, countless failures, … and then trying again, until she starts to get it right, and then train some more, because getting it right isn’t good enough … something more is needed to get the gold. Costly!

A family dreams of having a child … biology throws up a stop sign … so they embark upon a long and difficult journey seeking the help of science … costly!

Or they travel across the oceans to adopt a child … costly!

A young man dreams of setting the world right and joins the Peace Corp … costly!
A young lady dreams of defending the rights of inner city mothers … college and law school; bar exams; more debt than you can shake a stick at … grueling hours on the street … late-night hours of preparation. Costly!
A young writer wants to write the novel of all novels or the script that’ll set Hollywood on its heels. How many rejection notices? How many unanswered emails? Sitting in front of a computer; hours of research – honing the words and fine-turning the story. Costly!

Even the Mamas and the Papas had their “California Dreaming” …

all the leaves are brown
and the sky is grey
I've been for a walk
on a winter's day

I'd be safe and warm
if I was in L.A
California Dreamin'
on such a winter's day

From the moment Adam and Eve plucked the fruit and turned the world upside down, God has been dreaming of a world put right-side up.

But putting things right is very hard.
Ever try putting toothpaste back into the tube?
Or putting together a plate smashed on the floor?
Putting the world back together again is no small task.

In one of the most poignant moments in the Bible, God declares,

What shall I do with you, O Ephraim?
What shall I do with you, O Judah?
Your love is like a morning cloud,
like the dew that goes away early (Hosea 6:4).

What should God do with the world? … with you, with me?

Like a frustrated parent, God got angry one day, a wait-until-your-dad-gets-home kind of anger …
I’ll flood the world.
I’ll wash ya’ right outta my hair.
I’ll be done with ya’, once and for all.
Let it rain, let it rain, let it rain.

I’ll save Noah.
I can do something with that man.
So build me an ark.
Take up the animals, two by two.
You can start a new world for me Noah.

When the rains finally stop and the waters dry up,
Out comes Noah and the animals.
Fresh start … new day.

Noah plants a vineyard.
Why not?
Pick the grapes … make some wine … get flat-out drunk.
Makes a fool of himself.
Ham laughs.
Shem and Japheth see it differently.

Family divided …
Tower of Babel …
Hatred … war … pride … death.
The flood failed!

What’s God to do?

God dreams a little bit more …
God pays Abraham and Sarah a visit … psst, can I have a few moments of your time?

New family … new nation … for the sake of the world.
Big dream.

But dreams rarely have a smooth trip …
The bigger the dream, the more obstacles to climb …
Dreams bump into dreams …

God’s dream … Pharaoh’s dream.

And if you’d asked anyone at the time, “Who’s got the best dream?”
How do ya’ think they would’ve answered?

Of course, Pharaoh’s dream is the right one.
Look at the power, look at the glory.
Look at the big buildings – the pomp and circumstance …
Success on every hand.
Of course, Pharaoh has it right … not the rabble in the streets, not the Hebrew fieldhands, nor their traitorous leader, Moses.

Dreams bump into dreams …
Barak Obama has a dream and so John McCain …
Sarah Palin has a dream and so does Joe Biden …
Wall Street has a dream and so does the John Muir Society…
D. James Kennedy had a dream, and so did William Sloane Coffin.

Ante-bellum Christians in the South had a dream and so did Abraham Lincoln …
General Custer had a dream and so did Sitting Bull …
Ghandi had a dream and so did the British Empire …
Hitler had a dream and so did FDR …

Dreams bump into dreams sometimes.

God’s dream bumped headfirst into Pharaoh’s dream …
“No way” said Pharaoh … “over my dead body.”

Nine plagues to set the stage …frogs and flies … hail and locusts … just to name a few …

But nothing moved the heart of Pharaoh … because God hardened the heart of Pharaoh … God took a hard heart and made it harder … flint hard, steel hard, as hard as hard could be.

And then the final plague … the death of every first born in the land … and Pharaoh relented – “Get outta here,” said Pharaoh, “and be quick about it.”

And what did God do?
God led the people to the edge of the sea … and hardened Pharaoh’s heart even harder … Pharaoh had second thoughts; buyer’s remorse … called up the army and the chariots, and off they went to take the Hebrew people back to Egypt.

Pharaoh in pursuit … the sea in front … all seems lost … but you know the rest of the story …

Why the hardening of Pharaoh’s heart?

So the Hebrew people would know for sure that God set them free, not Pharaoh …
I am the LORD your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, you shall have no other gods before me.

If there had been any doubt about it, the Hebrew people would be telling their children about Pharaoh’s kindness.
Pharaoh saw the error of his ways and granted freedom to us.
Statues of Pharaoh erected in the town square … troubadours singing songs about Pharaoh’s goodness … children sent to expensive schools in Egypt.

The dream would have been lost.

Dreams are lost in the chaos of history.
Folks give up a hundred feet shy of the summit.
It’s tough to keep going against the odds … tough for you, tough for me … and tough for God, too.
There’s always an easy road.
Easy answer.
Easy way out.

How easily the dream could have been gobbled up by Egypt.

Egypt was no slacker.
Remember Pharaoh’s earlier edict? – kill all the male Hebrew babies to control their population.
Egypt was a land of armies linked with religion, and religion linked with power.
Egypt was a formidable enemy.
It wouldn’t have taken much to quench the fires of freedom.
To sink the dream.
Lose the goal.

God had to do some terrible things …

No pleasure in God’s heart on Passover night.
No pleasure when the angel of death marched through the land of Egypt, passing over the homes with the blood of a lamb smeared on the doorframe.

Throughout the land, a cry went up … the firstborn in every household … in every barn … everywhere … from palace to dungeon, from frogs to dogs … the firstborn was dead.

Out of such horror, the Hebrew people are on their way … the dream survives for a few more generations … and grows as it goes … often in danger of being lost; saved again and again by God … and men and women of faith who stand by the covenant, remember the dream, keep it alive – put their lives on the line for it; defend and promote it …

And then something happened in God’s heart … a little more dreaming … on a cold wintry night in a tiny little town called Bethlehem …

For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given [Isaiah 9:6].

And thirty-three years later, God’s firstborn Son dies … Behold, the Lamb who takes away the sins of the world.

On Calvary’s Cross … it is finished, says Jesus … the dream turns a final page …

No more lambs to be slaughtered.
No more land to be defended.
No more temple to be protected.
No more distinctions … in Christ, a new world, a new family, a new day.

The boundaries pushed to the widest horizon.
Salvation.
Redemption and Life.

What’s your dream today?
Every dream is costly.
The bigger the dream, the greater the cost.

Stay with it.
Believe it.
Trust it.
And keep on going.

Because God knows all about big dreams, and God will stand with you.

Amen and Amen!