Sun. Apr. 28, 2013 (Jim Neudorf)

Jim Neudorf, in a story from Nu 15 “A man caught collecting firewood on the Sabbath...” inquired of God why a man should be stoned for this? Hard stories abound in the Bible, so Jim examined God’s justice, so different from our own, and gave us four paradigms: the first - directive - inherently right or wrong behaviour (example: thou shalt not kill); the second - utilitarian - establishes the greatest benefit for the greatest number; (until the ends justify the means) ; the third - stoic - that people of virtue will always make virtuous decisions (until they don’t); and fourth - selfish - gaining the greatest personal benefit without regard to others. All are problematic, so in looking to both general and special revelation Jim noted that justice and righteousness are the same in Hebrew (shalom), and God, the moral being, holds justice essential in his work to establish goodness and holiness in the world. Lepers and bleeding women (among other broken relationships) were restored to society through justice and healing, just as the Hebrews were restored after Egypt and Babylon. The Year of Jubilee made redistribution the ultimate act of restorative justice. But justice requires judgment, the hardest of God’s qualities to determine. Not intended solely as punishment, judgment acts to refine and restore. Thus, though we cannot divine the meaning of the fatal punishment of a man caught collecting wood on the Sabbath, we may take heart from God’s essential goodness that the intention was to restore the man and the community to God’s shalom. Jim’s touchstone passage in the message from Dt 4:29-31 “If you seek the Lord your God, then there is mercy” thus calls us not to view every punishment and blessing from God as reward or punishment for proper behaviour - that old and discredited worldview denies God’s ultimate authority. Again and again, God demonstrates the evil done in the world is not done solely to punish, but to offer the hope of restoration - shalom - to all who seek the good and just God. Will we trust God’s purpose? Or our own judgment? [AP]

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Sun. Apr. 21, 2013 (Julia Bowering)

Julia Bowering launched from Psalm 42 and 43 to describe personal encounters with thirst, relating that to a thirst for God. Fainting in the desert on a hike from lack of water was not the encounter she desired, but remains with her as a metaphor for life without the Lord. As the hart yearns for water, so my soul pants for you. This song is for those who felt abandoned by God or overwhelmed in despair. The two psalms (laments) are so perfectly written to fit together, particularly the refrain (“Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you disquieted within me?...”) that repeats again and again, challenging God in the way that those close to death are wont to do. In a day after bombings in Boston and plots in Toronto, this lament calls out to Julia with its raw honesty. She noted the history of Jewish peoples called for frequent festivals and feasts, to which God was to be praised and thanked for his blessings, and this contrasts with the despair that so often occupied life. Though we experience God in different ways and different seasons, our call is nevertheless to maintain hope, no matter our experience, even when the silence of God’s absence presses upon us. So too is voicelessness where we soon find ourselves in dependency. Turn to prayer, Julia asks, as the Psalmist did in Psalm 43 in the hope of finding God will be there to support us. [AP]
Listen to the sermon audio MP3 recording from Sunday, April 21st, 2013 using your browser's preferred media player.

Sun. Apr. 14, 2013 (Kevin Miller)

Kevin Miller spoke on the theme of one of his recent movies, Hellbound? Brad Jersak's book, Her Gates will never be Shut: Hope, Hell and the New Jerusalem fascinated Kevin because of the profound questions it raised about atonement and the very nature of God. The various branches of Christianity offer a cornucopia of views about hell [hell and the concept of eternal damnation do not appear in the Old Testament until the later rabbinical writings, which are then accepted by certain writers in the New Testament (though fire has often been viewed as something which refines). All of our modern questions about the afterlife ultimately take us to the question, "Who is God?" Voltaire quipped that if God has made us in his image, we have returned the favour, and therein lies our problem. Believers claim to hope that if we abandon ourselves to God, everything will be fine. However, we also deeply wish to control our own fate if at all possible and not just rely on our chances with God, so complicated systems are created which too often are effectively fear-based control systems. Jewish religious leaders certainly did this with their myriad of regulations which had to be followed--or else, and some of this type of thinking has also crept into various expressions of Christianity over the centuries. As contemporary believers contemplate the mysteries of the afterlife, we of course examine our scriptures. Unfortunately, we do this only in ways (through cultural glasses) which let us understand some things and cause us to overlook others. Kevin asked what kind of images of God do our selective assumptions about God create within us? Do we actually believe that God the Judge will do what is right, or do we want to offer advice? Kevin reminded us that if we think about it seriously, we will realize that we have no choice in this matter. He encouraged us to remember that "God is not the enemy, God is love, so take a second look at God". [JEK]

Listen to the sermon audio MP3 recording from Sunday, April 14th, 2013 using your browser's preferred media player.

Sun. Apr. 7, 2013 (Kevin Hiebert)

How big is the universe? How long is forever? Kevin Hiebert asked these questions in reflecting on the verses from Revelation: “To him be glory forever and ever.” The universe is likely over 13.8 billion years old. Kevin stressed the need to be awe filled, especially when looking at the size of the universe and the expanse of creation. God is in a state of eternal “now,” noting that at the speed of light time ceases to flow. God is the “now,” implied in the Hebrew name of God. God is the ‘I was, I am, I will be.’ C.S. Lewis said there is something of God that flows into us, we need to exalt the God who made us and also retain a sense of awe in creation. [HN]

Listen to the sermon audio MP3 recording from Sunday, April 7th, 2013 using your browser's preferred media player.