Whew! Buckle your seatbelts... it's going to be a bumpy ride across the seed-strewn farmland we plan to harvest again this Sunday! Plenty of "food for thought."
If you were at Water's Edge last week, you know Rev. Molly tackled what can be a very heavy scripture reading... The Parable of the Talents. Armed with her courageous honesty and innate humility, she simply let us know that "It bothers me too." That set our course for a great journey. We explored what it means to use your God given talents... as well as various takes on wealth and want, the haves and have nots.
This week will be another soul-searching quest as well when Rev. Molly leads us through the Judgment of the Nations... the sheep v. goats. Yep. That one. No easy task, but fear not! We will learn together and will also explore Psalm 100, a prayer of thanksgiving... which provides our Hollywood, happily-ever-after ending.
Communion and prayer time will be celebrated after the sermon, giving us an opportunity to tie-in the teachings with our joys/concerns and communion prayers of supplication, thanksgiving and confession. We will be able to individually contemplte, over an individual communion serving, our role in the sheep v. goats scenario.
If you read ahead to Matthew, keep this in mind: the goats and the sheep were both clueless as to what they had (or hadn't) done to be invited into the kingdom. They were goats or sheep long before they came to be judged. And, we're not each called to save all of our brothers and sisters on Earth from sickness, hunger and imprisonment, all the time. We are to help in the here and now, when we can, which allows us to live the life that reflects the gospel. So, bring your confusion, cluelessness and a health dose of humility, and we'll ponder together!
If you were at Water's Edge last week, you know Rev. Molly tackled what can be a very heavy scripture reading... The Parable of the Talents. Armed with her courageous honesty and innate humility, she simply let us know that "It bothers me too." That set our course for a great journey. We explored what it means to use your God given talents... as well as various takes on wealth and want, the haves and have nots.
This week will be another soul-searching quest as well when Rev. Molly leads us through the Judgment of the Nations... the sheep v. goats. Yep. That one. No easy task, but fear not! We will learn together and will also explore Psalm 100, a prayer of thanksgiving... which provides our Hollywood, happily-ever-after ending.
Communion and prayer time will be celebrated after the sermon, giving us an opportunity to tie-in the teachings with our joys/concerns and communion prayers of supplication, thanksgiving and confession. We will be able to individually contemplte, over an individual communion serving, our role in the sheep v. goats scenario.
If you read ahead to Matthew, keep this in mind: the goats and the sheep were both clueless as to what they had (or hadn't) done to be invited into the kingdom. They were goats or sheep long before they came to be judged. And, we're not each called to save all of our brothers and sisters on Earth from sickness, hunger and imprisonment, all the time. We are to help in the here and now, when we can, which allows us to live the life that reflects the gospel. So, bring your confusion, cluelessness and a health dose of humility, and we'll ponder together!
See you Sunday!
2 comments:
Kim and others,
Whenever I listen or read the Keith Green's rendition of the sheep and the goats passage, I even get a little different flavor. Here are Keith Green's Lyrics:
And when the Son of Man comes, and all the Holy Angels with Him,
Then shall He sit on His Glorious throne,
And He will divide the nations before Him, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.
And He shall put the sheep on His right and the goats on His left,
And He shall say to the sheep; come ye, blessed of My Father,
inherit the Kingdom I have prepared for you from the foundation of the world,
For I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat,
I was thirsty, and you gave Me something to drink,
I was naked, and you clothed Me,
I was a stranger, and you invited Me in,
I was sick, and I was in prison, and you came to Me.
Thank you! Enter into your rest.
And they shall answer Him, yes, they shall answer Him,
And they'll say, Lord, when?
When were You hungry Lord, and we gave You something to eat?
Lord, when were You thirsty? I can't remember. And we gave You drink?
Huh, when were You naked Lord, and we clothed You?
And Lord, when were You a stranger and we invited You in?
I mean, we invited lots of people in Lord. I could never forget that face.
And Lord, when were You sick and we visited You?
Or in prison, and we came to You? Lord, tell us?
In as much as you did it to the least of My bretheren, you've done it unto Me.
Oh yes, as much as you've done it to the very least of My bretheren, you've done it,
you've done it unto Me. Enter into your rest.
Then He shall turn to those on His left, the goats.
Depart from Me, you cursed ones, into everlasting fire,
prepared for the devil and his angels.
For I was hungry, and you gave Me nothing to eat,
I was thirsty, and you gave Me nothing to drink,
I was naked, out in the cold, in exposure, and you sent me away,
I was a stranger, and I knocked at your door,
But you didn't open, you told Me to go away,
I was sick, racked in pain upon My bed,
And I begged, and prayed, and pleaded that you'd come, but you didn't,
I was in prison, and I rotted there,
I'd prayed that you'd come.
I heard your programs on the radio, I read your magazines, but you never came.
Depart from Me!!!
Lord, there must be some mistake, when?
Lord, I mean, when were You hungry Lord and we didn't give You something to eat?
And Lord, when were You thirsty, and we didn't give You drink?
I mean, that's not fair, well, would You like something now?
Would one of the Angels like to go out and get the Lord a hamburger and a coke?
Oh, You're not hungry, yeah, I lost my appetite too.
Uh Lord uh, Lord, when were You naked,
I mean Lord, that's not fair either Lord,
We didn't know what size You wear.
Oh Lord, when were You a stranger Lord,
You weren't one of those creepy people who used to come to the door, were you?
Oh Lord, that wasn't our ministry Lord. We just didn't feel led, you know?
Lord, when were You sick? What did You have, anyway?
Well, at least it wasn't fatal; oh, it was?
I'm sorry Lord, I would have sent You a card.
Lord, just one last thing we want to know,
When were You in prison Lord? What were You in for anyway?
I had a friend in Levenworth..
ENOUGH!
In as much as you've not done it unto the least of My bretheren,
You've not done it unto Me.
In as much as you've not done it unto the least of My bretheren,
You've not done it unto Me. Depart from Me.
And these shall go away into everlasting fire.
But the righteous into eternal life!
And my friends, the only difference between the sheep and the goats, according to this scripture,
is what they did, and didn't do!!
These are the best of times, these are the worst of times... The real problem for many {if not most} is that these days are full of depression and desperation despite the massive fortunes of those who live a few minutes away. Where are our honest leaders and advocates who see the people's dreams and say 'we are so much the same, I will walk with you.'? Fred
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