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Submit Your Own! Sermon on Trinity and Father's Day By David von Schlichten Sermon on the Trinity and Father’s Day On June 19, 2011, Year A, Trinity Sunday, St. James Evangelical Lutheran Church, Youngstown, PA The Reverend Dr. David von Schlichten
Trinity-Shaped (word count: 1087)
Often times we do things in the name of the Trinity, that is, in the name of God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. I just invoked that name when I prayed a minute ago. What exactly does that phrase mean, “In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit”? We usually begin and end our services with that name. What does it mean to use the name of the Trinity? Throughout the Bible, to access the name of God is to access the power of God. So the Trinity’s name brings power. When we pray or baptize in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, we are calling upon God’s power, and God permits us to receive some of that power. Saying the name of the Trinity is not like casting a magic spell that causes God to do our bidding. God is not a genie who has to grant our wishes. Nevertheless, when we use the name of the Trinity, the Trinity responds by allowing us to receive some of the Trinity’s power. In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. What else does it mean to do something in that name? To do something in the name of the Trinity is also to do something for the sake of the Trinity. If we worship in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, we are worshipping, not primarily for our benefit, but for the sake of, for the glory of, the Trinity. So we use the name of the Trinity to draw from God’s power and to show that we are doing something for the sake of the Trinity. What else? When we use the name of the Trinity, we are also saying that we are doing something according to the Trinity. When we begin our service in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, we are saying, “May this worship service contain the Trinity’s power and serve the Trinity, and may this worship service be Trinity-shaped.” So what does a Trinity-shaped worship service look like? For that matter, what does a Trinity-shaped anything look like? What does it mean to live a Trinity-shaped life? To answer that question, we need to look closer at the Trinity itself. What is the Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, like? Let me share with you three important Trinity-traits. First, the Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, is equal. The Father is not the head god with the Son and the Spirit underneath him. No, Father, Son, and Spirit are equal. Second, the Father, Son, and Spirit are not competing with each other. I’m not saying that competing is always bad, but the Trinity-members do not compete with each other. The Father is not trying to outdo the Son. The Son is not trying to outdo the Spirit. No, these three members are not competing but cooperating. What are they doing as they cooperate as equals? They are loving. God is love. That’s our third point. So the members of the Trinity are, among other things, loving, cooperative equals. Now, if the Father, Son, and Spirit are equal, cooperative, and loving, and if we are trying to do things in the name of the Trinity, then it makes sense that we are also to be equal, cooperative, and loving. For instance, take our Men’s Communion Breakfast. Is the Men’s Communion Breakfast Trinity-shaped? Actually, based on my experience of the Men’s Communion Breakfast over the last fourteen years, I’d say that yes, for the most part, this gathering is Trinity-shaped. We share a service and meal that is for everyone equally and requires cooperation to make it happen and is in the name of love for God and one another. We work together to make the service and breakfast happen. We may compete a little to see who’s first in line, but, overall, we are united, working together, offering breakfast and worship to all. And there is certainly love here. So this is a Trinity-shaped event. Trinity-shaped. Can you think of anyone who leads a Trinity-shaped life? My biological father did not. He was abusive. But my stepfather, on the whole, lives in the name of the Trinity, in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. My stepdad loves us four kids equally, values each of us equally. He also is cooperative, eager to help us. My stepdad is a pastor, so sometimes I call him for pastor-advice. He is always willing to help without making me feel foolish for asking. He doesn’t try to outdo me or put me down. He tries to help me. Finally, my stepdad is loving. He is quick to praise us, slow to criticize us. He is non-judgmental. He loves us with equality and cooperation, and he does all of that as part of being a Christian. He leads a Trinity-powered, Trinity-shaped life. He lives in the name of the Trinity. As some of you know, last December, my mother suddenly became ill. We asked the Trinity to heal her so that she could live on earth a few more years, but the Trinity said no. Four days before Christmas, Mom died. She was 64. We four children said to our stepfather, “Now we need you even more,” and he has indeed given us even more. More wisdom, compassion, love. In the name of the Trinity. Of course, we humans are sinful, fallen, and sooner or later we fail to be Trinity-shaped. We fail to live in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, but, thanks be to God, the Trinity never fails to live that way. [go from tree to tree] Trinity-power. The Father holds you and says, “I made you, I feed and clothe you. I love you, all of you, equally, and work to help you.” The Spirit puts his arm around you and says, “Don’t worry, child. I fill you with faith and love so that you can believe and serve. I empower you to love with equality and cooperation.” And the Son stretches his arms out up on the tree and says, “And I died for you. You, the baptized, shall live forever because of me. All of you. No discrimination. All are invited.” The Trinity, Father, Son, and Spirit, surrounds you. [sing] “I’ve been drawn into the holy Trinity. Father, Son, and Spirit love me and set me free. We’ve been healed, healed, healed, by the Trinity, by the Trinity.” Pentecost/Holy Spirit Sermon on John 20, Acts 2, and 1 Corinthians 12 By David von Schlichten Sermon on Pentecost and the Holy Spirit (Based on Acts 2, 1 Corinthians 12, and John 20) On June 12, 2011, Year A, Day of Pentecost St. James Evangelical Lutheran Church, Youngstown, PA The Reverend Dr. David von Schlichten
Pinwheel and the Holy Spirit (word count: 797)
During Sunday school, we are making/made pinwheels, and then we will take/took them outside to let them spin in the breeze. Without breath or breeze, some sort of moving force, the pinwheel does not do much. It just sits there. With breath or breeze, the pinwheel has life. The same holds true for the Church with respect to the Holy Spirit. Without the Holy Spirit, the Church is dead, lifeless, motionless, helpless, a heap of dry bones in a valley. With the Holy Spirit, the sacred breath of God, the Church rattles together, becomes enfleshed, lives. Who is this Holy Spirit? The Holy Spirit is God. At it declares in the Athanasian Creed, just as the Father is God and the Son is God, so is the Holy Spirit, and the Spirit is equal to Father and Son. The Holy Spirit is part of the Trinity. The Holy Spirit is God, period. What specifically does the Holy Spirit do to give the Church life? Much. Wow. First, without the Holy Spirit we would not even be Christians. Did you know that? It says in 1 Corinthians 12:3, “No one can say ‘Jesus is Lord’ except by the Holy Spirit.” Without the Holy Spirit, there would be no Church—no one, holy, catholic and apostolic church, no communion of saints. No Lutherans. No St. James. The pinwheel needs something to move it, and the Church needs the Holy Spirit in order to breathe. What else does the Holy Spirit do for the Church? Our reading from 1 Corinthians 12 teaches us that the Holy Spirit imparts to each of us some gift for the common good. Everybody—yes, you, too—receives a gift from the Holy Spirit. You may have the gift to work with children or the elderly or mentally challenged. You may have the gift to fix things, mow, work with numbers, write, lector, sing, run a sale, sing, be an acolyte. Several of you have the gift of being a Sunday school teacher or superintendent, and we praise God for your service. Thanks be to the Spirit for the gifts of our Sunday school teachers and superintendents. What gift do you have? If you don’t know, pray about the matter, and then ask someone to help you figure out what your gift is. Certainly feel free to come talk to me. What else does the Holy Spirit do for the Church? The Holy Spirit enables us to have forgiveness of sins. In our gospel, John 20:19-23, Jesus gives the disciples the Holy Spirit by breathing on them and then tells them that they have the power to pronounce forgiveness of sins. Think of it! Because of the Holy Spirit, we, the baptized, can reassure each other that yes, because of Christ’s death on the cross, we have forgiveness of sins. Forgiven! No worries! Yes! The Holy Spirit. Incredible. The Holy Spirit enables us to believe in Christ. The Holy Spirit gives the Church life just as a breeze or a breath animates a pinwheel. The Holy Spirit endows us with gifts that we are to used for the good of one another. The Holy Spirit authorizes us to declare forgiveness of sins. What else does the Holy Spirit do for the Church? In our reading from Acts 2, the Spirit gives the disciples the ability to speak languages they had never studied so that they can tell the world about Christ. Imagine suddenly being fluent in Spanish, Chinese, or Arabic. Incredible! Of course, most of us have never experienced that miracle, suddenly being able to speak a different earthly language or even being able to speak in tongues. Even so, the Spirit does empower many of us with the ability to communicate in loving, upbuilding ways with each other. Think about it. The Holy Spirit gives us preachers the words we need for the sermon. The Spirit grants legions of us the words we need to comfort, teach, correct, reassure, and empathize with each other. Can you think of a time when someone said just the right thing to you, or you said just the right thing to someone else? Praise the Spirit! Yes! What else does the Holy Spirit do for the Church? We could go on for an hour at least. Think this week about how the Holy Spirit works in your life. As we continue to think on and give thanks for the Holy Spirit, we praise the Spirit for being our comforter, coach, advocate, teacher, friend— in a word, paraclete—who teaches us over and again that, because of Christ, we have the resurrection of the body and the life everlasting. Someday, new bodies and life forever! Alleluia! Praise the Holy Spirit, the breath and wind to us pinwheels. [Exhale loudly.]
Sermon on the Ascension (Acts 1:6-14) By David von Schlichten Sermon on the Ascension On June 5, 2011, Year A, Seventh Sunday of Easter St. James Evangelical Lutheran Church, Youngstown, PA The Reverend Dr. David von Schlichten
The Ascension (word count: 670)
Today is Tickertape Parade Day here in heaven, because today the Son of God is returning home. Yes! Alleluia! The Son left thirty-three Earth years ago. We hated to see him go. We had a party for him before he left. Everyone assembled in the central ballroom of the main Palace. The food was fantastic, but then, we always have fantastic food here in heaven. After we listened to a new cantata by Bach, which he himself conducted, the Father raised a glass, and we all raised our glasses. “To the Son,” the Father said. “I am well-pleased with him who is going to Earth to die and rise in order to redeem humanity and all creation.” We all cheered, the Spirit filling each one of us with a mild current of God-electricity. We drank our wine. The Father, Son, and Spirit hugged each other, and we each could feel ourselves being included in the embrace. All of us, all of heaven, hugged the Son as one. Then he disappeared. That was thirty-three Earth years ago. We have watched his birth, childhood, young adulthood, baptism, ministry. When he gave sight to the blind, we cheered. When he preached hope, we cheered. When he fed over five-thousand people with five loaves and two fish, we cheered. When he raised Lazarus from the dead, boy did we cheer. When he rode into Jerusalem as the king, Bach, Beethoven, and Mozart led us all in a sing-along. Then we saw the arrest, that travesty of a trial, the whip across the back, the thorns into the scalp, the forced trudge to Golgotha. The nails into his flesh. All of heaven gasped. Our streets grew dark. When he hung from the cross and cried out, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” the Father looked away, ran into the arms of the Spirit, and sobbed. Nobody in heaven ate or drank anything until the following Sunday. Then, early on that day, we heard Satan scream from down in hell. The lights grew bright again in heaven, brighter than they have ever been. Jesus fractured the spine of death. Yes! Celebration! We had a feast, including my favorite, ice cream cake. We had games, fireworks, parades, rides. We celebrate the Resurrection non-stop. We are still celebrating, and we will forever. The population of heaven has increased exponentially. We’re building new houses like crazy. It’s miraculous! Alleluia! Keep ‘em coming! Of course, there are those who turn their backs on God and heaven. Heartbreaking. Please, Holy Spirit, help them to change. Now, today, the Son is coming home. Today he is returning to heaven, returning to the right hand of the Father, the place of omnipotence. We have lined the streets for the parade. We have tons of confetti, tickertape, and noisemakers. We are ready to cheer and sing when the risen, victorious Son rides down the streets of heaven mounted upon Caritas, his blazing, gold triceratops. Behold! Here he comes. The Son! Yes! Home at last! He looks different, though. He looks earthier, more physical. And he has holes in hands. “Holy Spirit, why does the Son look different?” I ask. “Before he left, the Son was God. Now the Son is God and human, two natures, and, as God and human, the Son opens the way for all human beings. His victory is humanity’s victory. His ascension is humanity’s ascension. All of creation is being made new.” The Spirit then lets out a loud, wild yawp. I can feel intense warmth flooding through me, God-electricity. Wonderful. God and human. Paving the way for all human beings, all creation. For God so loved the world. “And,” adds the Holy Spirit, “even though the Son is here, the Son is also, in a new way, on earth, abiding with humans. Transcendent and immanent.” “Amazing!” I say. “I can hardly take it all in.” The Holy Spirit giggles, claps a hand on my shoulder, and says, “Wait ‘til you see what I’m going to do on Pentecost.” Psalm 66:10; God Refining Us By David von Schlichten Sermon on Psalm 66:10 On May 29, 2011, Year A, Sixth Sunday of Easter St. James Evangelical Lutheran Church, Youngstown, PA The Reverend Dr. David von Schlichten
How Does God Refine Us? (word count: 824)
Earlier this spring, a few of us and I participated in a fitness program called You Can Too. Part of the program was that, on Saturday mornings at 5:30, we would go in for a supervised workout that lasted about ninety minutes. We’d run on the treadmill, use weight machines, and go to stations where we’d have to do exercises. The first day was exhausting, but, of course, we got stronger. By the end of the six weeks, I was impressed with how much weight I could lift. That six-week workout program was a refinement process. Through painful challenges, we burned fat and increased muscle mass. The experience was demanding, but it made us stronger. We were refined in that some of the impurity, fat, was burned away. The Bible speaks of another kind of refinement process. God spiritually refines us, the baptized. Our psalm, number 66, in verse ten says, “For you, O God, have tested us; you have tried us just as silver is tried.” This verse is referring to the refining process that purifies silver. One heats silver to remove impurities. Likewise, Psalm 66:10 and other passages teach that God subjects us to a refining process to remove our impurities. God refines us. It is crucial to state and stress that God does not refine us in order to make us eligible for entering heaven when we die. We can never be pure enough to be eligible for entering heaven, and we do not need to be. Because Christ died on Good Friday and rose on Easter, you and I, the baptized, have a place in heaven already, even though we do not deserve it. As the Book of Concord teaches, we are justified by grace through faith, which means that we will go to heaven, not because we are good enough or because we earned our way. No, we will go to heaven for one reason and one reason only: Jesus died and rose. Period. So then, God does not refine us to make us worthy of heaven. Rather, God refines us that we may grow holier, but this growing in holiness is not what gets us into heaven. Christ gets us into heaven, period. Refinement does not justify us for heaven. It sanctifies us, makes us holier. We know, then, that Christ saves us and that one way God helps us to grow holier is through refining us. Okay, how does God refine us? [sing #796, verse 3] One way God refines us is through hardship. Now, we need to make an important distinction here. Listen carefully. It is theologically problematic to suggest that hardships come from God. Given that God is love and does only what it is good, and given that hardships are complicated and are frequently the result of several valuables, it is illogical to assume that a given hardship comes from God. Therefore, we are wrong to assume that, for instance, the tornadoes that have overwhelmed our country this year are from God. We have no way of knowing that. Tornadoes can be the result of a number of dynamics. Tornadoes could be happening because of a climate issue that God is allowing but not causing. We don’t know. What we do know is that, as it says in Romans 8:28 and elsewhere, God uses hardship in good ways. God may not cause hardship, but God uses hardship toward good. God can use hardship to refine us, make us holier, purer. Tornadoes hit. God weeps, but then God sends the Holy Spirit so that we will respond to the tornadoes, not by doubting God, but by drawing closer to him and helping each other. God may not cause hardship, but God uses hardship to refine us. So God refines us through hardship. God also refines us through the regular challenges of being a Christian. Obeying God is demanding. Attending worship, helping people, caring for the planet, being patient, kind, not envious boastful, arrogant, or rude—that’s difficult. Just as a rigorous exercise regimen can refine us, so can following a rigorous spiritual regiment under the guidance of Coach God. God also refines us through the Bible. The Bible can comforting yes, but it can also be confusing, scouring, even disturbing. Through our persistent, determined, Spirit-guided study, our souls get a workout. God refines us. God also refines us when we repent of our sins and God forgives us. God refines us every time we eat and drink the body and blood. How else does God refine us, make us holier? Let us pray: Thank you, God, for saving us through Jesus Christ. We have a place in heaven because of Christ, and not because of us. Refine us, so that we may honor and serve you better while here on earth. This week, help us to see what refinement we need. Thank you for making us holier. In the name of Jesus we pray. Yes.” Luke 24:13-35; Osama bin Laden's death; Mother's Day By David von Schlichten Sermon on Luke 24:13-35 On May 8, 2011, Year A, (Mother’s Day and a Week after the Death of Osama bin Laden) St. James Evangelical Lutheran Church, Youngstown, PA The Reverend Dr. David von Schlichten
Bin Laden’s Death, Mother’s Day (word count: 841)
I have to warn you: yesterday, when I was writing this sermon, I fell asleep. Fell asleep during my own sermon. That’s bad. Let us pray . . . Amen. On the first Easter Day, Cleopas and another disciple walk together. They are heading to Emmaus. They know how to get there, but they are lost. They are confused, sad, overwhelmed. Jesus of Nazareth, who they thought might be the Christ, the Savior, is dead. The Romans crucified him. They saw the body, his mother sobbing next to it. He was dead all right. No breathing. No movement. No sign of life. Jesus was dead. Then, this morning, several of the women reported that the tomb was empty and that two men in white had told them that Jesus is alive. Dead but now alive? What’s the truth? As the two disciples walk lost and heartbroken on the road to Emmaus, a figure walks with them. There’s something about the eyes and mouth. He is familiar and strange at the same time. Anyway, as they walk along, this person starts to teach them about Jesus. This stranger explains, “Don’t you see? Jesus had to die. It was necessary. That’s what the prophets teach us. He died and rose so that, despite your sins, you can have eternal life.” On and on he explains in calm, straightforward way. He’s not condescending. He’s just confident and direct, and Cleopas and the other disciple cannot get enough of him. When they reach Emmaus, they sit down to eat. He takes up a piece of bread, blesses it, breaks it, gives it to them. Something clicks. Breaking bread. Jesus! It was him all along. Of course! And then—gone! I wonder why he vanishes. The two disciples finally recognize him, and then he disappears. Why? Perhaps so that they will rush back to Jerusalem to tell the others that they had met him. Yes? If Jesus had stayed, had not disappeared, then the two disciples may not have rushed on to tell others. Maybe that’s why he vanishes. I don’t fully understand the ways of Jesus, but I do know that he is alive and looking after us. Although we may not realize he’s with us, he is, walking beside us, teaching us through the Bible. Although we may think that Christ is absent, he is alive and present, revealing himself to us through the body and blood, the real presence, which, the Book of Concord teaches us, nourishes our souls. Jesus is the guide. Just as he guided the disciples on the road to Emmaus, he guides us in ways large and small every day, especially through Scripture and holy communion. Do you feel him walking along side you, baptized child? In some ways, Christ is like a good mother. He looks out for us, teaches us, corrects us, feeds us, supports us, encourages us. Christ our brother is Christ the good mother. Christ the good mother is the one who cares for us, including by providing a model for us to imitate. Just as Christ teaches us, feeds us, and walks with us, so are we to teach, feed, and walk with one another. Teach, feed, walk with each other. Care for each other. Help each other, just as Christ, like a good mother, helps and cares for us. Indeed, good mothers often remind us of Christ. Good mothers, both biological mothers and social mother-figures, teach us how to be loving. My mother did that. Mom was a devoted Christian and social worker who taught the four of us kids the importance of looking out for the underdog. As a social worker, Mom was ever an advocate for the elderly especially. Throughout her life, Mom taught us that part of being a Christian is helping those in need. No wonder that the four of us became a nurse, an inner-city teacher, an animal rights advocate, and a pastor. Years ago, I read a sermon by Elizabeth Achtemeier in which she says that part of making the world safe for our children is making our children safe for the world. That is, if we all work to raise our children to be loving, peaceable people, then the world will be that much safer. If we raise children not to be Osama bin Laden, then there will be a reduced chance of someone growing up to become the next Osama bin Laden. That’s part of what good mothers do: they raise us to be good people so that we can contribute to making the world more peaceful. Good mothers guide us, just as Jesus guides us. Indeed, one of the ways Jesus guides us is through good mothers. Jesus is walking beside you. Through loving guides, such as good mothers, through Scripture, through holy communion. Jesus walks beside you. He is with you now, even though you cannot always see him. He walks with you all the way from the baptismal font to the new Jerusalem. Ever present: the dark-brown-eyed beauty of God’s resurrection love.
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