Journey With The Rev

I am the Rev. Dr. Dwight R. Blackstock and welcome you to my blog! Whenever I preach, I post my sermon for your review and comment and welcome your positive or critical comments. I look forward to sharing ideas so that each of us will have the opportunity to grow.

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Location: Denver, Colorado

I am a PC(USA) pastor, currently on disability because of a back injury, but guest preaching occasionally for Presbyterian Churches in the Denver Metro area. Please join me on this journey.

2.24.2008

Drinking At the Well of Living Water

Sermon text for February 24, 2008:
John 4:5-42

Dr. Nicodemus is confused and perhaps mortified by Jesus who has just said to him, “You must be born again if you want to see the Kingdom of God.” The image of a grown person crawling back inside a mother’s womb did not present an attractive possibility. Yet Nicodemus very much wanted to see the Kingdom of God.

“Born again”, “born anew”, “born from above” – each phrase describes a phenomenon that some say is the mark of a true Christian. But no one is quite sure what it means.

Three high school youth groups gathered in a mountain resort for their annual “snow camp”. The snow was falling softly outside and the flames from the fireplace cast a warm glow in the room. The speaker that night was talking about being born again. All at once a young girl shrieked and danced to her feet. “I just accepted Jesus” she said. “I am born again”. Other young people followed her lead and danced in joy at being born again. But Jean, a thoughtful fifteen year old in my group, remained seated and began to cry softly. She felt nothing like what the others were describing and she wondered what was wrong with her. Didn’t Jesus love her? Why wasn’t she born again like the others? Jean was inconsolable.

Many of us understand Jean’s questions. Maybe we’ve never experienced anything like what others describe as being born again. Listening to our friends may cause us to wonder if something is wrong with us. Have we missed out on something important? If we wonder about these things, then we are in good company, because Dr. Nicodemus didn’t understand either. Our lesson from John provides a commentary on the idea of being born again. It is not everything we need to know, but it is helpful.

One day a lonely, rejected Samaritan woman made her way to Jacob’s well to get water. It was about mid-day and the other women of the village have long since gone home. The women usually gathered at the well in the early morning to talk with one another and share each others lives. We can imagine the chatter, the laughter, and even the shared tears when one of the women was grieving.

But the woman John describes is not welcome in the company of women. Her living situation is questionable, her morals suspect, and the other women want nothing to do with her. From their perspective she is a husband-stealer and not to be trusted. So she went to the well long after the others have gone home. On this particular day as she drew near the well she saw Jesus sitting there, and she was not happy. A woman by herself had nothing to do with men in public places. To add to her problems, Jews and Samaritans were enemies and had as little as possible to do with one another.

“Give me a drink”, said Jesus. While this seems innocent to us, it was a serious breach of etiquette. “How is it that you, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a woman from Samaria”? asked the woman. Jesus responded, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, ‘give me a drink’ you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.”

“Living water” – the words touch something deep inside of the woman. Her soul is parched, and Jesus offers her the refreshment of “living water”. The woman probably imagines living water to be a spring or artesian well. If there is such a thing, she can draw water any time she wants and she will not have to bear the sarcasm and dirty looks from the other women.

She doesn’t understand, but she is interested. Jesus tells her to go and get her husband. “I have no husband” the woman admits. After five tries at marriage, she is now just living with a man. Jesus responds to her honesty by telling her all about herself.

It is an uncomfortable conversation. She tries to avoid her discomfort by arguing theological differences between Jews and Samaritans. But Jesus knows that the conversation is too important to the woman’s life to join in mind games with her. Finally he tells her, “I am the Messiah.”

It is a turning point in the conversation. Everything depends on what the woman decides to do next. She can continue to argue, she can run away so she doesn’t have to deal with her life, or she can begin to wade in the living water. She is literally at the moment when her life can begin again.

Notice what has happened here. Jesus cares enough to break convention and speak to the woman. He loves her enough to offer her the precious gift of living water. He refuses to play intellectual games with her and he accepts her unconditionally. And the woman who is valued for the first time in her troubled life, allows Jesus to change her life. In this story the change is quick and powerful. Within minutes the woman began spreading the news of Jesus to the people of her village. But this is not the end of the story. We are not privy to how the story ends, but we can say with some confidence that the woman only began a process that would take the rest of her lifetime to complete.

The process of being born, or being born again, begins a lifetime of growth and change. Those who speak of being born again as if it is the end instead of the beginning, miss the point.

Presbyterians have two words that help us talk about being born again, and then the rest of the story. The first word is “justified”. We are justified at that moment when we come to faith. In that moment we are assured of our salvation, but we are far from the end of our faith journey.

The second word we use is “sanctification” which is the rest of the story. It is the process that begins when our salvation is assured and lasts for the rest of our lives. Sanctification is a partnership between us and God that makes us more holy or more like God.

The story of the Samaritan woman at Jacob’s Well tells us about the moment when she became justified and began the process of sanctification. And the woman’s experience with Jesus may help us understand our own baby steps in faith. Because of the woman, we believe that Jesus cares enough to stay with us, even when we think we have him outsmarted. Because of the woman we look forward to the precious gift of living water. The moment when we have our first immature ideas about Jesus, we receive our first sip of refreshing, cleansing, living water.

Like the woman at the well, let us ask Jesus for the “living water” that “wells up within us” and brings us to eternal life. And then let us allow the water to cleanse and refresh us, in our journey toward holiness.

Copyright © 2008 by Dwight R. Blackstock

2.17.2008

Look At The Cross

Sermon text for February 17, 2008:
John 3:14-21 and Numbers 21:4-9

Some people don’t seem to know it when they have it good. I remember a story about a seventeen year old boy who thought he had a rough life. He lived in his parents’ home, had his own room, a computer, a television, had plenty of food and appropriate clothing (although the family sometimes disputed about what was appropriate). His father had saved an old junker of a car for the day when his son got a driver’s license. You know the kind of car I’m talking about. It was a big old ugly tank that could stand up in a wreck against almost anything smaller than a train.

But the boy was unhappy because he didn’t have a sleeker, faster, more cool form of transportation. He demanded that his father buy him something different, and when the father refused the boy got upset and swore never to drive the car. And as far as I know he never did.

Some people just don’t understand when they have it good. According to our story from Numbers, the people of Israel didn’t know when they had it good. As they wandered around in the wilderness, somewhere between Egypt and the Promised Land they grew tired of the journey and their thoughts turned to the good life they had in Egypt.

The memory of slavery and cruel oppression began to fade, and all that they could remember is that in Egypt they had enough food and water. In the fantasy of memory the days in Egypt seemed awfully good.

Yet their nomadic life in the wilderness wasn’t really so bad. Whenever there was a problem Moses spoke with God, who promptly fulfilled the peoples’ need. When they were thirsty God gave them water. When the desert couldn’t feed the people, God sent manna. But the people didn’t know that they had it good.

One day the people began to complain loudly against both God and Moses. “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness. For there is no food and water, and we detest this miserable food.” Obviously what they were really saying is that the manna has become boring. They sound like college kids complaining about food in the cafeteria. “There’s nothing to eat! Well alright there is, ‘but we detest this miserable food.’”

They didn’t know when they had it good and they screamed in anger against God and Moses. This time God does not deal kindly with the people’s complaint. This time God becomes angry and sends snakes to bite the people. Some say the snakes were of fire and others that they were poisonous. When the people were bitten the wound burned and some died. The plague of snakes caught the people’s attention and they confessed that they were ungrateful and asked for forgiveness.

God accepted the people’s confession and instructed Moses to make a bronze snake and lift it high on a pole so that anyone who was bitten could look at it and live. Moses did as he was told and those who focused on the serpent lived.

Isn’t it interesting that God did not remove the source of the trouble. Instead God simply provided a way for the people to live through the plague. This is one of the central messages of scripture. Sometimes God removes the cause of our pain, but more often God provides us with the strength we need to survive and even to overcome our adversities. We find victory by living faithfully in spite of the pain that sometimes comes in life.

One day Jesus was talking with Dr. Nicodemus, and he says, “And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up so that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.”

Jesus knew that the people remembered the story of Moses with the life-giving serpent that was lifted up for the people’s salvation. Now in his conversation with Dr, Nicodemus he offers a similar image for believers to focus on. He invites us to see the Son of Man high and lifted up. The image is a foreshadowing of Jesus’ glorification which begins with being lifted up on the cross.

In this promise God does not take us out of the troubles and difficulties of life. Instead God provides us One on whom we can focus, who gives us life beyond the things that bring us pain.

Look at the cross! Like the bronze serpent in the wilderness it is the way God chose for our salvation. Look at the cross, high and lifted up and see who is hung there. When we focus on the saving act of Jesus on the cross, many of the things which afflict get us become less important. Look at the cross! It is the greatest symbol of God’s love, because on the cross Jesus died so that we might live.

Look at the cross and remember those timeless words, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son (to die on the cross) so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but have eternal life.”

Look at the cross and know that one day Jesus hung there and died. Look at the cross it is the symbol of God’s overpowering, amazing, protective love. Look at the cross and focus on the One who was lifted up so that we might find security in God’s love.

As we journey more deeply into Lent and toward the events of Holy Week, look at the cross for the One who hung there brings us salvation. The image of the crucifixion is almost too horrifying to look at but in it we know that no matter what life brings, we have it good. “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, so that whoever believes in him may not perish, but have everlasting life.

Copyright © 2008 by Dwight R. Blackstock

2.10.2008

Understanding Your Baptism

Sermon text for February 10, 2008:
Matthew 4:1-11

The day that she renewed her baptismal vows before the whole congregation was one of the happiest moments of her life. Like so many who grew up in the church, she was baptized as an infant. Her parents were faithful to their vows and brought her up to know Jesus.

When her eighth grade class was confirmed, the preacher said something about all of them taking on the vows which their parents had made for them when they were baptized, and that seemed important at the time. But this was different.

Now she was an adult, with grown-up experiences with the living God. Now she knew from a grown-up point of view that she wanted to be a follower of Jesus. In fact she wanted to be re-baptized, as a sign of her new relationship with the Lord. Of course her pastor explained that in the Presbyterian Church one baptism was sufficient and while she could not be re-baptized it was possible for her to re-affirm her baptismal vows in front of the whole congregation.

She was nervous as she stood in front of the congregation that day and was almost in tears as the pastor touched her forehead with oil and said, “You are a child of God, and I charge you to remember your baptism.” A jolt of electricity ran down her spine and she felt giddy and light-headed. This day truly marked a new direction in her life.

But in the days and weeks ahead she discovered that her transformation was not nearly as complete as she thought it was. In fact, in the firsts few days following her public renewal of vows, several things got out of hand. She found herself using an idea that was developed by a co-worker and presenting it to her boss as if it were her own. A little voice from somewhere deep inside said, “Since you are a child of God you’ve got to get ahead to show others how important it is to be a believer.” And she almost believed the voice. But another voice asked, “What would Jesus do?”

Another time she found herself in a compromising position with friends. They wanted to get together and smoke a few joints after work – just to relax. She wanted very much to be liked and accepted by others. The Tempter’s voice said, “Even Christians can be regular people.” But another voice asked, “What do you think Jesus would do?”

One day while she was driving, the traffic was especially bad and the slower the traffic went the more angry she became. Soon she was laying on the horn and waving at the other drivers with one finger. “Even Christians can get angry” said the now familiar voice. “What would Jesus do?” asked the other.

By now she was thoroughly confused. She noticed that temptations seemed especially bad since she had publicly confessed her faith and renewed her baptismal vows. “How can this be?” she wondered. Why was it that just at the moment she felt the most dedicated, she was having the most difficulty behaving like a Christian?

Some scholars believe that the story of the temptations of Jesus is really a commentary on the story of his baptism. Do you remember what happened to Jesus? He came up out of the water and saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and resting on him. And he heard a voice from heaven saying, “This is my son, my beloved, with whom I am well pleased.” This had to have been one of the most moving moments in Jesus’ life. If he ever had any doubts about who he was, they were removed when God said, “This is my beloved son.” But evidently there was a problem. Jesus knew about his special relationship with God, but he didn’t know what to do about it. The big question was, what now?

The Bible says that “Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. He fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was hungry. It was then that the temptations began to come. Jesus was baptized and now he had to figure out how to live as the baptized Son of God.

“Turn these stones into bread,” said the Tempter. “People do not live by bread alone”, said the voice of faith.

Jesus saw himself on the highest pinnacle of the Temple. “Jump” said the tempters voice, “You will be alright”. But the voice of faith said, “You shall not tempt the Lord your God.”

Jesus saw all of the kingdoms of the world. “Bow down to me” said the Tempters voice, “and I will give you all of these”. “You shall worship the Lord your God, and serve only him” said the voice of faith.

Usually, people decide how we are going to live in the world by trying out different ways of being. Some of us imagine being different while others of us actually act out. Our lives become a drama, starring us. That is what adolescence is all about. We try on different things to decide if they fit. It is a process so essential that the Holy Spirit actually led Jesus to the place where he could be tempted and try out different ways of being the Messiah.

Lent is a time of testing, of trying out different things. It is a time to ponder how a deeper relationship with God will make a difference. Like Jesus, it is not uncommon for us to have the most difficult time of testing in the days and weeks after our deepest religious experiences.

New feelings, ideas, and understandings need to be tested, until we become more secure in who God is calling us to be. So even if you are completely secure in your faith, allow yourself to be tested during this season of discovery. Imagine your life apart from God. Allow the Holy Spirit to take you into the wilderness, so that when you emerge you will be like Jesus and ready to take on the world.

Copyright © 2008 by Dwight R. Blackstock

2.03.2008

Transfigured Before Them

Sermon text for February 3, 2008:
Mark 9:2-9

My legs were a bit wobbly when I stepped out of the taxi on the top of Mount Tabor. We were there because tradition identifies Tabor as the probable site of the transfiguration. My legs were shaking because of the homicidal taxi driver who I am convinced was trying to kill us, and because the road to the top of the Mountain is treacherous when taken at one hundred miles an hour.

The mountain rises about two thousand feet from the valley floor in just a couple of miles. There are lots of twists and turns and hair pin curves. And I believe that the taxi drivers have a contest with one another to see who can come the closest to the edge of the road, at the highest velocity, without plunging over the side.

I remember sitting in the back seat of the Mercedes Benz cab thinking, “So this is how it’s all going to end.” You know how they say that when you are about to die your whole life passes before your eyes? The only thing that passed before my eyes was the image of a third class bus I had once ridden in Mexico. I found out later that the bus company’s motto was, “Better dead than late!”

It is easy to see why Mount Tabor is identified as the site of the transfiguration. The bible says that Jesus led the disciples up a high mountain, and Tabor is one of the few high mountains to choose from. In scripture God often chooses high mountains, shrouded in clouds, as the right moment to give place for significant revelations. And that is what happens in our gospel lesson.

Jesus took the leaders from among the disciples to the top of a high mountain where the crowds were unlikely to follow. And the Bible says that Jesus, “was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white.”

While the disciples struggled to understand what was happening they realized that they were not alone. Elijah and Moses appeared with Jesus and the three were talking together. The disciples were literally dumbstruck, and could not speak. Finally Peter found his voice. “Lord it is good for us to be here,” he said. “If you wish I will make three dwellings here; one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah”. Peter wanted to live in this awesome, holy moment, for as long as possible. It must have seemed to the disciples as if they could reach out and touch the face of God. Peter wanted to control this experience. He offered to build three dwelling: one for each of the Holy Men. “Perhaps they will want to stay”, he reasoned, “if I can make them comfortable.” Peter had not yet learned that faithfulness is measured by what we do down the mountain, among the people.

But we can understand Peter, can’t we. Something amazing, holy, and glorious has happened and he did not want the experience to end. We have had moment like this also. Maybe it was a religious retreat, a special time with family, or even a vacation. These kinds of experiences are wonderful and painful all at the same time, because we know that we can’t stay there. The moment will end. Like Peter, James, John, and Jesus we have to go back down the mountain and face the realities of life.

The Bible says that while Peter was still speaking a “bright cloud overshadowed them” and they heard a voice speaking from the cloud. The voice said, “This is my Son, the beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him.”

In that moment the disciples knew for certain that Jesus was the Messiah. Before they heard the voice of God, they might have speculated about who Jesus was, but now Jesus’ identity was confirmed by God. Jesus is the Messiah! Jesus is the Messiah! Imagine that, Jesus whose feet became dirty after a long day of walking on the dusty roads; Jesus who at times grew weary of the crowds; Jesus who suffered from hunger and thirst just like the disciples; Jesus stands transfigured before them. And now they know that he is uniquely God’s beloved Son, the long awaited Messiah.

Scholars debate the meaning of this story. But the simplest interpretation might be the best. Jesus who is so genuinely human is also genuinely divine. In the person of Jesus we catch a glimpse of God, and I believe that God understands us in a different way also. Because of Jesus God understands hunger, longing, loneliness, temptation, and discouragement. In the experience of the transfiguration Jesus brings humans close to God and God close to humanity. And that is enough reason to continue telling this story to new generations of Christians.

As we prepare to move into Lent, let us ponder the God who loves so much that staying in some far away heaven is not enough. Neither is staying in the worlds most beautiful cathedral good enough. God chose to become Emmanuel, which means, God with us. And if we ever ponder the nature of Jesus, the story of the transfiguration shows us that while Jesus is completely human, he is also uniquely the Son of God. He is the One of whom God spoke out of the cloud, “This is my son, the beloved, I am well pleased with him.”

Copyright © 2008 by Dwight R. Blackstock