Monthly Archives: March 2015

Unknown's avatar Rev. David J. Schreffler 5:38 am on March 25, 2015
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O Faithless Generation – Rev. David J. Schreffler

March 25, 2015

“Teacher, I brought my son to you, for he has a dumb spirit; and wherever it seizes him, it dashes him down; and he foams and grinds his teeth and becomes rigid; and I asked your disciples to cast it out, and they were not able.” Jesus answered, “O faithless generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you?” Jesus continues, “All things are possible to him who believes.” Mark 9:14ff

“I think there is no suffering greater than what is caused by the doubts of those who want to believe. I know what torment this is, but I can only see it, in myself anyway, as the process by which faith is deepened. What people don’t realize is how much religion costs. They think faith is a big electric blanket, when of course it is the cross. It is much harder to believe than not to believe.” Flannery O’Connor (1925 – 1964) “For All The Saints” volume III, p. 963

“It is much harder to believe than not to believe”, says Flannery O’Connor. To that I say Amen. It is much harder to believe in the cross of Jesus Christ, in the teachings of Jesus, in the selflessness of Jesus than not to believe in all of these – just like it is easier to not believe in “Big Foot” than to believe. We only have a few eyewitness accounts of Big Foot – some relics like hair and footprints, and of course the fuzzy, grainy, shaky, brief seconds of video that purports to show the creature. But even with scant “evidence”, millions of people believe that Big Foot exists. So, what do we say to the “nay sayers” who dispute the existence of the death and resurrection of Jesus? We only have the written accounts of a few witnesses. We have just a few relics – the Shroud of Turin; pieces of the cross; the cave where he was buried and resurrected, (not to mention the site of his birth, supposedly). We have more “evidence” about Jesus than Big Foot – and yet people still do not believe in Jesus – it is easier to doubt than to believe.

Flannery O’Connor goes on to say, “When we get our spiritual house in order, we’ll be dead. Don’t expect faith to clear things up for you. It is trust, not certainty.” (p. 963)

Until we get a carcass of a Big Foot, there is no proof that this creature exists – we can only take the many eye-witness accounts as proof – whether credible or not. So at this point it is easier to say that Big Foot does not exist – to say that you do not believe in Big Foot – than to say that you do believe. But it does take faith and courage to stand up for your opinion about the beast.

So, will you have the courage to stand up for your faith in Jesus when others say he didn’t exist? We have nothing to stand on except for some eyewitness accounts about Jesus, and G*d’s promises from so many years ago. One thing that Big Foot and Jesus have in common is this: the accounts of their presence covers thousands of years even without much physical evidence. But Jesus’ presence is so powerful through the Holy Spirit that our faith will sustain us, even though our faith will not necessarily clear things up. That is where trust comes in. G*d promised to send the Messiah – we trust that Jesus is the One. For me, that is all I need. But as for Big Foot, I will need more….

Pastor Dave

Unknown's avatar Rev. David J. Schreffler 2:00 pm on March 24, 2015
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“Sir, We Wish to See Jesus” – Rev. David J. Schreffler

“Now among those who went up to worship at the festival were some Greeks. They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and said to him, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” Philip went and told Andrew; then Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus. Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Very truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. Those who love their life lose it, and those who hate their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am, there will my servant be also. Whoever serves me, the Father will honor.” John 12:20 – 26

I look around the church, my own church, and others as well, and I wonder “Where is the enthusiam for helping seekers find Jesus?” Where is the spirit of people like Philip, and Andrew, and Nathanael – and these un-named Greeks – the spirit to seek, to know, to move, to act, to question? I also wonder where the spirit is for the members of our congregations to welcome seekers – in the spirit of Philip and Andrew? If someone came to our door looking for Jesus, how would our members respond?

Did you ever wonder about that question – if someone came to you and said “I want to find Jesus”, how would you respond – and act? And, are you certain that if someone came to find Jesus, would they find Jesus in your worshipping community? I once read in a commentary that “though many people feel a real “closeness” to each other in their congregation, outsiders would most likely view it as “closed-ness” not “closeness”.  (Roy Oswald and Martin Saarinen in The Alban Institute paper called Why Some Churches Don’t Grow)

Now this is not said to be offensive, but it is a reality in many congregations, and a question we need to consider each and every week – each and every day – if this congregation or any congregation is really committed to helping people find Jesus.

What is the real tipping point of this Gospel lesson? Why, when Philip and Andrew come to Jesus to tell him that there are some Greeks looking for him, does he go into this solliliquy saying “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.”? What does one have to do with the other?  Well, first and foremost, this seems to be the beginning of the unchurched coming to see Jesus – or at least outsiders, outside the Jewish community, coming to see Jesus. So, this does signal the coming of the “hour of Jesus”, the “time of Jesus”, in that the future mission of the church is being realized – that future mission being the inclusion of gentiles in G*d’s promises. Jesus will say that when he is lifted up he will draw all people to himself.

This becomes another area of discussion for us – for we need to ask often “How are we doing drawing all people to Jesus?” This is another area where many congregations are failing – not completely — but miserably. There is a real “Parochialism” going on in our Lutheran churches, and many Christian churches around us. What do I mean? too many people identify themselves as “Lutheran” or “Methodist” or “Baptist” – as much as they identify themselves as Trinity Lemoyne, or Trinity Mechanicsburg, or Trinity Camp Hill – rather than identifying themselves as Christians. Too many congregations, when they look at ministry, or their own survival, they can only focus on their own needs – rather than on the needs of the Chritian community – the Christian church.

There are a lot of people out in the world who are looking to see Jesus, in their lives, in the life of their congregations, in their ministries. How are we doing helping all people find Jesus? With the help of the Holy Spirit we can and will help people find Jesus – or at least point them in the right direction.