{"id":400,"date":"2020-05-16T22:44:32","date_gmt":"2020-05-16T22:44:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/oneking.ca\/wp\/?p=400"},"modified":"2020-05-16T22:44:32","modified_gmt":"2020-05-16T22:44:32","slug":"easter-vi","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/michaelkooiman.com\/index.php\/2020\/05\/16\/easter-vi\/","title":{"rendered":"Easter VI"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"http:\/\/oneking.ca\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/image-9.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-404\"\/><figcaption><em>Window detail, Westminster Presbyterian Church, Minneapolis<\/em>.  While the window appears to reference Matthew 19 (&#8220;Suffer the little children to come unto me&#8221;) it also suggests Jesus&#8217; promise in our reading today: &#8220;I will not leave you orphans.&#8221;<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<p><em>During this time of physical isolation, we look for ways to share words of comfort and hope in the face of uncertainty and fear. We encourage you to pray over the words that follow, and follow the links within the liturgy. Thanks this week to Dave, Barbara B., and Heather!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n<p>PRELUDE: \u201cHealing\u201d (Haugen)<\/p>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-audio\"><audio controls src=\"http:\/\/oneking.ca\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/healing-haugen.m4a\"><\/audio><\/figure>\n\n\n<p>OPENING PRAYER<\/p>\n\n\n<p>Come then and listen,<br \/>\nall you in awe of the Most High.<br \/>\nThe God who preserves us from evil.<br \/>\nThe God who helps us pass through fire and water.<br \/>\nThe God who listens when we cry out.<br \/>\nThe God who sends us only mercy.<br \/>\nAt all times and all places,<br \/>\nGod is worthy of our praise,<br \/>\nAmen and amen!<\/p>\n\n\n<p>HYMN OF PRAISE: \u201cRejoice the Lord is king\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-audio\"><audio controls src=\"http:\/\/oneking.ca\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/rejoicethelord.m4a\"><\/audio><\/figure>\n\n\n<p><em>Rejoice the Lord is King!<br \/> Your risen Lord adore!<br \/> Rejoice, give thanks and sing<br \/> and triumph evermore.<br \/>     Lift up your heart, lift up your voice:<br \/>     rejoice; again I say, rejoice!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n<p><em>Jesus the Saviour reigns,<br \/> the God of truth and love;<br \/> when he had purged our sins,<br \/> he took his seat above.  R<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n<p><em>God&#8217;s kingdom cannot fail;<br \/> Christ rules o&#8217;er earth and heaven;<br \/> the keys of death and hell<br \/> are to our Jesus given.  R<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n<p><em>Rejoice in glorious hope,<br \/> for Christ, the judge, shall come<br \/> to glorify the saints<br \/> for their eternal home.<br \/>     We soon shall hear the&nbsp;archangel&#8217;s voice;<br \/>     the trump of God shall sound, rejoice!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n<p>PRAYER OF CONFESSION<\/p>\n\n\n<p>It feels like we&#8217;ve been tested, God,<br \/>\nand the results are mixed.<br \/>\nIn the midst of trouble,<br \/>\nwe struggle to trust in you.<br \/>\nIn the midst of sadness.<br \/>\nwe struggle to trust in you.<br \/>\nEven in the valley of the shadow of death,<br \/>\nwe struggle to trust in you.<br \/>\nRenew our trust, as you renew our strength,<br \/>\nand help us to walk with you.<br \/>\nAmen.<\/p>\n\n\n<p>ASSURANCE OF PARDON<\/p>\n\n\n<p>God is \u201cslow to chide, and swift to bless.\u201d<br \/>\nPraise to God, singing alleluia,<br \/>\never glorious in faithfulness! Amen.<\/p>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"http:\/\/oneking.ca\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/image-10.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-408\"\/><figcaption>Carl Heinrich Bloch, detail of Jesus Christ with the Children, n.d., Frederiksborg Nationalhistorisk Museum, Denmark.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<p>SPECIAL MUSIC: \u201cTis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus\u201d (Stead)<\/p>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-audio\"><audio controls src=\"http:\/\/oneking.ca\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/tissosweet-dave.mp3\"><\/audio><\/figure>\n\n\n<p>FIRST READING: Psalm 66<\/p>\n\n\n<p>Bless our God, all peoples,<br \/> and let the sound of praise be heard.<br \/>     <strong>God has preserved us among the living,<br \/>     and kept our feet from stumbling.<\/strong><br \/> For you, O God, have tested us;<br \/> you have tried us as silver is tried.<br \/>     <strong>You led us into the desert,<br \/>     you laid a burden upon our back,<\/strong><br \/> you let sickness furrow our brow,<br \/> we passed through fire and water;<br \/>     <strong>but you brought us out to a land of plenty. <\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n<p>I will come to your house with burnt-offerings;<br \/> I will pay you my vows,<br \/>     <strong>the vows which I made with my lips,<br \/>     and swore with my mouth when I was in trouble.<\/strong><br \/> I will offer fat beasts in sacrifice, a savoury offering of rams;<br \/>     <strong>I will prepare you an offering of bulls and goats.  <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n<p>Come then and listen, all you that fear God,<br \/> while I tell what God has done for me.<br \/>     <strong>I cried aloud to God; high praise was ready on my tongue.<\/strong><br \/> If I had cherished evil in my heart,<br \/> God would not have heard me.<br \/>     <strong>But truly God has heard me,<br \/>     has given heed to the voice of my prayer.<\/strong><br \/> Blessed are you, O God,<br \/> for you have not rejected my prayer,<br \/>     <strong>nor withdrawn from me your steadfast love.  <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n<p>SECOND READING: John 14.15-21<\/p>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-audio\"><audio controls src=\"http:\/\/oneking.ca\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/john14.m4a\"><\/audio><\/figure>\n\n\n<p>15 \u201cIf you love me, keep my commands. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever\u201417 the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be[a] in you. 18 I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. 19 Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. 20 On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you. 21 Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n<p>HYMN: \u201cWe praise you for the sun\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-audio\"><audio controls src=\"http:\/\/oneking.ca\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/wepraiseyou.m4a\"><\/audio><\/figure>\n\n\n<p><em>We praise you for the sun,<br \/> the golden shining sun,<br \/> that gives us healing, strength, and joy;<br \/> we praise you for the sun.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n<p><em>We praise you for the rain,<br \/> the softly falling rain,<br \/> that gives us healing, strength, and joy;<br \/> we praise you for the rain.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n<p><em>We praise you for your love,<br \/> your patient, endless love,<br \/> that gives us healing, strength, and joy;<br \/> we praise you for your love.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n<p>REFLECTION<\/p>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-audio\"><audio controls src=\"http:\/\/oneking.ca\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/17may2020sermon.mp3\"><\/audio><\/figure>\n\n\n<p>James Bond is one.<br \/>\nHarry Potter is one.<br \/>\nAnakin Skywalker is one (sort of).<br \/>\nBatman is one.<br \/>\nDorothy (of Oz) is one.<br \/>\nFrodo Baggins is one.<br \/>\nAlmost everyone in the Marvel Universe is one.<br \/>\nAnne (with an e) is one, and Little Orphan Annie too.<\/p>\n\n\n<p>If you guessed orphans, well done.  If you guessed orphans after hearing Little Annie\u2019s middle name, don\u2019t pat yourself on the back too hard.  Curious, isn\u2019t it, that all these fictional characters\u2014mostly aimed at children\u2014are orphans.  This is worth exploring, wouldn\u2019t you say?<\/p>\n\n\n<p>Whenever I have a question that relates to comic books, or comic book characters, I call my friend Ted.  He knows comic books.  He may be the only minister who signed up after learning that \u201cto seek justice and resist evil\u201d is at the heart of our call as a church, a bit of comic book hiding in plain sight.  <\/p>\n\n\n<p>\u201cTed,\u201d I say, \u201cI\u2019m calling about all those orphans in the Marvel Universe.\u201d<br \/>\n\u201cSure, he says, \u201cit\u2019s all about abandonment redeemed by dedication to a higher ideal.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n<p>Now, with any trip to the mountaintop to consult with your comic book guru, there will need to be some pondering, unpacking, maybe some reframing.  But before we do that, Ted also gave me a quick illustration of the opposite.  Seems that in the golden age of comic books, DC introduced a character called Mister Terrific, who was, well, terrific.  Athlete, scholar, self-made millionaire, Mister Terrific had it all, then turned to helping others mostly out of boredom.  Needless to say, audiences didn\u2019t respond to the character, and he was soon retired.  Superheroes need to suffer on the road to becoming superheroes, so it would seem.<\/p>\n\n\n<p>Before we draw a link between John 14 and some mountaintop wisdom, let&#8217;s look at the choice of the word \u201corphans.\u201d  One of the pivotal (and often ignored) passages in scripture is found in Mark 3 (and Mat 12, Luke 8) where Jesus\u2019 family comes knocking, and someone in the group says \u2018your mother and brothers are here, looking for you.\u2019  He looks around the room and asks \u2018who are my mother and my brothers?\u2019  A pause, and then \u2018you are my mother and my brothers, along with anyone who does what God intends.\u2019  <\/p>\n\n\n<p>Clearly, the church has found this awkward through the ages.  For most of our history, we have billed ourselves as \u2018family-friendly,\u2019 where we honour mothers and fathers, and seek to love our siblings, literal and metaphorical.  But here, Jesus seems to reject his mother and brothers, making himself an orphan.  In fact, he is redefining family, and adding to the concept rather than replacing it.  Still, it is dramatic, stepping out of kin and clan and naming friends and fellow-travellers as his family as well.  <\/p>\n\n\n<p>Back to John 14, Jesus is busy explaining this new universe they have entered, a universe where family is redefined, where the Spirit is promised, and where the faithful are Jesus\u2019 kin and clan.  And he describes it like this: \u201cIf you love me, keep my commands.\u201d  It\u2019s pretty simple, and it opens that other instruction, to love God and neighbour\u2014the heart of the law.  In other words, Jesus is saying \u201cif you love me, keep the command to love God and love your neighbour.\u201d  Or in other, other words, \u2018when you love me, you are loving God, and cannot help but do what God intends.\u2019  That\u2019s a lot packed into seven words.  <\/p>\n\n\n<p>He then promises an advocate, the Holy Spirit, who we know will arrive in just two weeks&#8217; time (Pentecost).  He calls the Spirit the \u201cSpirit of truth,\u201d something the world cannot accept, and something that will live within us.  Then the same promise, restated: \u201cI will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.\u201d  And finally, some poetry, a new psalm that expresses the heart of the gospel:<\/p>\n\n\n<p>Before long, <br \/>\nthe world will not see me no more, <br \/>\nbut you will see me. <br \/>\nBecause I live, <br \/>\nyou also will live. <br \/>\nOn that day you will realize <br \/>\nthat I am in my Father, <br \/>\nand you are in me, <br \/>\nand I am in you.<\/p>\n\n\n<p>We cannot be orphans, since death is no more.  We are alive in Christ, and he is one with God.  \u201cYou in me, and I in you,\u201d the re-formed family of God.  <\/p>\n\n\n<p>So what about suffering, or \u201cabandonment redeemed by dedication to a higher ideal\u201d?  All of the characters listed a moment ago began with suffering and loss, and applied that same suffering and loss to the service of others, to prevent them from being defined by the same experience.  And isn\u2019t that just another way of saying Jesus died on the cross to save us?  The way it works is a mystery, but the outcome is the same: suffering redeemed for the salvation of others.  \u201cBecause I live, you also will live.\u201d  <\/p>\n\n\n<p>That\u2019s the cosmic answer, the \u201cmeta-narrative\u201d that animates the universe of Christianity.  Closer to home\u2014today\u2014there is another answer: our sense of abandonment (in this time of COVID-19) redeemed by dedication to a higher ideal.  The higher ideal is being the body of Christ, even when we\u2019re separated by disease and the threat of death.  Jesus said \u201cyou are in me, and I am in you.\u201d  Our suffering is his suffering, and his suffering is our suffering.  In any part of the body, suffering is added to the great well of suffering that God keeps\u2014as God tends to it, and holds it in our stead.  We surrender it to God, trusting that we never suffer alone, nor will we ever be orphans.  Amen.  <\/p>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img src=\"https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/0\/0f\/Anthony_van_Dyck_-_Suffer_Little_Children_to_Come_Unto_Me%2C_c._1618%E2%80%9320.jpg\/800px-Anthony_van_Dyck_-_Suffer_Little_Children_to_Come_Unto_Me%2C_c._1618%E2%80%9320.jpg\" alt=\"File:Anthony van Dyck - Suffer Little Children to Come Unto Me, c. 1618\u201320.jpg\"\/><figcaption>Anthony van Dyck, Let the Children Come to Me, c. 1618-20, National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<p>PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE<\/p>\n\n\n<p><em>This adapted prayer is from the Book of Common Worship, Presbyterian Church (USA).<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n<p>Merciful God,<br \/>\n your Spirit hovers over us and all our troubled world, <br \/>\n interceding for us with sighs too deep for words. <br \/>\n Help us now.<br \/>\n Chaos and infection have shattered our lives.<br \/>\n Stay with us as we wait<br \/>\n for news, for healing, for help.<br \/>\n Give us strength and courage to bear the unknown. <br \/>\n Uphold us with your sustaining grace,<br \/>\n and show us your care<br \/>\n through neighbours, strangers, and friends.<br \/>\n Sustain all those whom we love<br \/>\n with your healing and your peace, <br \/>\n and comfort those who mourn.<br \/>\n Guide the hands and strengthen the hearts<br \/>\n of medical professionals as they work to save.<br \/>\n Let those who have been afflicted know that you are near; <br \/>\n give them rest from pain and fear,<br \/>\n and restore their hope,<br \/>\n we pray in the name of Christ, our light. Amen.<\/p>\n\n\n<p>THE LORD\u2019S PRAYER<\/p>\n\n\n<p>Our Father who art in heaven,<br \/>\nhallowed be thy name.<br \/>\nThy kingdom come,<br \/>\nThy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.<br \/>\nGive us this day our daily bread;<br \/>\nand forgive us our trespasses<br \/>\nas we forgive those who trespass against us;<br \/>\nand lead us not into temptation<br \/>\nbut deliver us from evil.<br \/>\nFor thine is the kingdom,<br \/>\nand the power, and the glory,<br \/>\nfor ever and ever. Amen.<\/p>\n\n\n<p>HYMN: \u201cLove Divine\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-audio\"><audio controls src=\"http:\/\/oneking.ca\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/lovedivine.m4a\"><\/audio><\/figure>\n\n\n<p><em>Love divine, all loves excelling,<br \/>     joy of heaven to earth come down,<br \/> fix in us thy humble dwelling,<br \/>     all thy faithful mercies crown.<br \/> Jesus, thou art all compassion,<br \/>     pure, unbounded love thou art;<br \/> visit us with thy salvation,<br \/>     enter every trembling heart.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n<p><em>Come, almighty to deliver;<br \/>     let us all thy grace receive;<br \/> suddenly return, and never,<br \/>     nevermore thy temples leave.<br \/> Thee we would be always blessing,<br \/>     serve thee as thy hosts above,<br \/> pray, and praise thee, without ceasing,<br \/>     glory in thy perfect love.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n<p><em>Finish, then, thy new creation;<br \/>     pure and spotless let us be;<br \/> let us see thy great salvation<br \/>     perfectly restored in thee,<br \/> changed from glory into glory,<br \/>     till in heaven we take our place,<br \/> till we cast our crowns before thee,<br \/>     lost in wonder, love, and praise.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n<p>BLESSING<\/p>\n\n\n<p>Now may the God of peace make you holy in every way,<br \/>\nand may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless<br \/>\nuntil our Lord Jesus Christ comes again. Amen.<br \/>\n\u20141 Thessalonians 5:23<\/p>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-audio\"><audio controls src=\"http:\/\/oneking.ca\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/meetagainredux.m4a\"><\/audio><\/figure>\n\n\n<p>God be with you till we meet again;<br \/>\nloving counsels guide, uphold you,<br \/>\nwith a shepherd\u2019s care enfold you;<br \/>\nGod be with you till we meet again.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>During this time of physical isolation, we look for ways to share words of comfort and hope in the face of uncertainty and fear. We encourage you to pray over the words that follow, and follow the links within the liturgy. Thanks this week to Dave, Barbara B., and Heather! PRELUDE: \u201cHealing\u201d (Haugen) OPENING PRAYER &hellip; <a href=\"http:\/\/michaelkooiman.com\/index.php\/2020\/05\/16\/easter-vi\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Easter VI<\/span> <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/michaelkooiman.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/400"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/michaelkooiman.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/michaelkooiman.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/michaelkooiman.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/michaelkooiman.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=400"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/michaelkooiman.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/400\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/michaelkooiman.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=400"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/michaelkooiman.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=400"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/michaelkooiman.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=400"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}