I sat by the man`s hospital bedside with a strange mixture of emotions. “You know, Vicar”, he said. “I`m not sure I really believe any of this”. The man was within days of dying and here was an invitation, you might think, to get into a theological discussion. I warmed to his honesty but he was tired, heavily medicated as the dying often are these days and (though it`s not impossible) it`s very difficult to do your religious homework at that stage in life…

But two things have stayed with me. Firstly, here was a man who had been at worship each Sunday for much of his life (though it was the “wife`s fault”, he always insisted!) and secondly, I was bothered by the way he narrowed faith down to what we might call a `zero-sum game`. Basically he had bought into the idea that faith was a matter of either there is a God or there isn`t ……..and in those last days he really wasn`t so sure.

Now, there was an awful lot going on in that conversation and I`m not reporting it in a flippant or disrespectful way. I was simply saddened that after all these years there was so much about the faith that he hadn`t embraced and that he had become so stuck. I understand why people get hung up on what we call the `God` debate; and far cleverer minds than mine engage with it all ……but it`s always struck me as the wrong way to go about things. Theological and philosophical arguments and so-called `proofs` of the existence or otherwise of the one we refer to as God always generate far more heat than light don`t they?

I`m not against using the brains we`ve been given but if this were the way we were to go about things I just find it interesting that there`s precious little sign of it for example, in the life and ministry of Jesus. I don`t see Jesus wasting his time on speculations. No his approach is to make an announcement. As we are told this morning, he `proclaims` the Good news of the Kingdom… and then asks his followers to do the same. (Matthew 9 35, 10.36)

In other words, it`s not that the questions don`t matter but Jesus doesn`t treat God (His Father) as a concept or a subject of speculation. No, he goes about his business announcing that something has happened, something is happening and something will happen and then he invites us to open our eyes. This `something` is the Kingdom reign of God. And this is why so many of the healing miracles have to do with blindness and sight. Coming to see what`s really going on. “Behold” is one of my favourite Biblical words.

And St. Paul, who wasn`t averse to the occasional theological argument adopts pretty much the same approach in our Epistle this morning. (Romans 5.1-8) In trying to build up the peoples` faith he doesn`t speculate about the existence or otherwise of God he also points to what has happened, is happening and will happen.

In that short piece from his letter to the Church in Rome Paul tells us about the material change that has come about because of the life, death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus and he asks us to open our eyes and to see how we have been caught upon in it all. What`s happened? Well firstly, he says we have been `justified by faith` (Romans 8.1) Justification in the New Testament is about the final judgement which God will make; it`s about our being declared `in the right`.

Paul is saying that Christians can experience this sense of being justified in the here and now by our faith in Christ. Put it another way; the pressure is off. Unlike many around us, we don`t have to live out o0ur days pursuing all manner of `self-justifying activity`. There`s no need to as we say, `justify our existence` and so on. So, as a consequence, Paul goes on to say, “We have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 8.1). The word `peace` here has a far richer meaning than we might appreciate. It`s much more than `Give peace a chance` or `ban the bomb`… it`s about experiencing the life of the kingdom; the age of the Messiah in the here and now… (Like we say, “a bit of heaven on earth”)

Then in verse two Paul says that through Christ we stand `under grace`. Curiously, he`s saying far more than (as we might expect) that we are the objects of His unmerited and unconditional love… No, he`s saying that we`ve entered the `sphere` of God`s grace. To put it another way, it`s as if we`ve been brought into the court of the King; and this is where we have, he says taken `our stand`. We belong in this new space, breathing this new air and this new relationship is as someone says is “not sporadic but continuous, not precarious but secure”. (John Stott) And there`s much more on the horizon. Pauls says, “We boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God” (Romans 5.2)

All of which acts not as an insulation from the troubles we face but as a way of understanding and navigating our way through them. Christian struggles are a sharing in the path taken by Christ; they form a robust faith and are often the occasion in which a window is opened onto the Lord`s providence. And these wonderful few verses are capped off by one of those lines we should all commit to memory. “God proves his love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us”. (Romans 5.8) Or if you can`t manage that try, “God helps those who can`t help themselves”.

So, let`s put it this way. This morning`s readings tell us that Christ announces the presence of the Kingdom reign of God; a material change and Paul illustrates it by telling us what it means: `We are Justified, we have peace with God, we live under grace, with the hope of glory, a robust faith and as redeemed sinners`.

There`s SO much in these few verses which, as I say are a statement of what has happened, is happening and will happen. Back there at that bedside I was well aware that speculation; all that `head-work` has its place but the Psalms tells, “Taste and see that the Lord is Good” (Psalm 34.8) Open your eyes.

I remember many years ago being told: “Don`t think too much about God… let him happen to you”. The ground on which we walk is holy. Burning bushes are everywhere to be seen. The trick is making a commitment to act on the truth of what Jesus proclaims. Going about our business as part of God`s story as if this Kingdom is real. And learning to see ourselves as those who are Justified, who have peace with God, living under grace, with the hope of glory, a robust faith and as redeemed sinners`. Do this now. Don`t leave your theological homework to the end.

Taste and see. Let God happen to you.

A few years ago, one of our Bishops hit the headlines for all the wrong reasons. He had been to a lunchtime reception and had become somewhat merry. On his way home, he was restrained by the police for his somewhat erratic behaviour and when asked for his name he allegedly replied, “I`m the Bishop of Southwark. It`s what I do”. This was an unfortunate episode, though as today`s New Testament reading points out, he wasn`t the first Christian to be accused of being drunk! But as well as being both amusing and tragic, his reply is interesting. “I`m the Bishop of Southwark. It`s what I DO”.

I say this because firstly, as one of my colleagues reminded me….. when we speak of the Holy Spirit, as we do today; we`re speaking about God and we bring together these two things; who God IS and what God DOES. “I`m God, it`s what I DO”.

To put it another way it`s always seemed to me that if we`re going to say, “We believe in the Holy Spirit” then we can`t avoid speaking of him in the present tense… We`re talking `practical God`.

So, my first warning would be to take care for instance, whenever you hear people say things like, “Of course, Jesus WAS….” this that or the other. Take care when He is located as a figure from the past. Think very carefully when you hear that fashionable maxim, “What would Jesus do?”… as if he`s stepped out for a while, leaving us to get on with things under our own steam…. No, God IS as God DOES.

And what does God do? Well secondly, we need to notice that our scriptures teach us very clearly that the Holy Spirit comes to reveal and (as we say) to bear witness to Jesus. You see, when we speak of the Holy Spirit we are speaking of Jesus and we`re speaking of his continuing mission and ministry in and through the lives of his people. This gift, this active presence that we call the Holy Spirit doesn`t come apart from this task of revealing Him and drawing attention to Him. That`s why you need to have a care when you hear someone describe themselves as `spiritual`… The give-away is that invariably it`s all about THEM… rather than Jesus.

What I mean is that `Spiritual` is all too often a label people give to themselves so as to appear a bit `alternative`. And when you scratch beneath the surface their professed interest in `spiritual things`, (particularly words like the `power` of the Spirit) is all too often little more than a cover for their need to gain some kind of control over their life; or even over others. Basically, this `Spirit` (again they`ll talk in general terms rather than about Jesus) is some kind of fuel they can tap into at their own convenience.

Now, I`m not wishing to be unduly negative or cynical, I just think it needs pointing out that from the earliest days belief in the Holy Spirit has gone hand in hand with some pretty silly and dangerous notions. This is especially true today because as I`ve already hinted, the idea of some `generalised` spirit plays very well in our individualised culture. But the way we avoid this kind of pitfall is to look at the likes of our readings this morning. We could spend ages on this but let`s notice two things.

Firstly, in the Acts passage we heard about different languages; the experience of the wind and breath …….and a quotation from the Prophet Joel ……all of which point us in the direction of the Old Testament. These are the roots of our understanding of God the Holy Spirit. As ever, this is where our horizons are being expanded. We`re being reminded for example, about the Holy Spirit present both in the creation story and in the confusion of languages we learn about in the story of the Tower of Babel…. What I mean is that the coming of the Spirit at Pentecost is part of a much larger project than the sprucing up of my life; or of providing me with fuzzy or apparently holy feelings.

What`s at stake is the implementation of all that Christ did on the Cross- God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself. So, what the disciples experienced… what WE experience- is a sense of being swept up in God`s recreating work. That first reading tells us that to receive the Holy Spirit (again) is to be caught up in God`s story…. His world narrative. And Jesus hammers it home in the Gospel where He tells the disciples: “As the Father sent me, so I send you”. We have a job to do. As our Gospel points out, there is a repentance (a turning around), forgiveness and reconciliation to be announced to a wayward world.

But then secondly, notice we`re not on our own. The Spirit creates the Church. God`s new humanity. Of course, it`s the Church that is the other casualty of this `fad` for being a supposedly `spiritual` person. Taking our cue from other philosophies and `isms` we define `spiritual` not just in rather ethereal and what we might call other-worldly terms… We think in individualised terms as well. So, God `however I wish to define him` becomes little more than a life-style choice; a reflection of my own need to hold things together or for a bit of peace and quiet.

In that sense, what we think of as `spiritual` has almost by definition to be set apart from our daily experience of tensions, disagreements and all the rest; and what need would I have for anyone else? Unless they are there to affirm my `spiritual` credentials!

“Body, Mind and Spirit” is the label the booksellers often use to display the vast range of writings encouraging us to adopt our own `spirituality`…. We pick and choose something that will enhance our uniqueness … “Because we`re worth it..!”

But tragically it`s all about creating illusions… and the casualties are many. Those who don`t give up (assuming they`ll never be `spiritual` enough) either persist in their isolation and their own `spiritual` trip or they`ll attempt to create their ideal `holy` club … which is frequently a conflict-free gathering of the like-minded. So how do we identify the real thing? Well, as someone said, “We come in search of a `spiritual experience` and we are perpetually surprised when we turn up here and all we are given is bread and wine and the messiness of human relationships in which for reasons we can`t fathom, God promises to be present”.

Again, because we`re surrounded by so many false and escapist notions of spirituality, that “Church” doesn`t much feel like the real thing. This is compounded by the way we associate the Spirit`s work far too much with our feelings and otherwise heightened states. But we`ve been duped. Forget these generalised notions of `spirituality`; spend some time in the company of St. John and in his Gospel you`ll hear Jesus teach you about who the Holy Spirit is and how you`ll see him at work.

Bread and wine- and the messiness of human relationships. Venture into this territory and you will see the Spirit at work… You`ll see `Jesus-shaped` things begin to happen.

So, where is the Holy Spirit? How will we recognise the Holy Spirit? Well, I say again, to speak of the Holy Spirit is to speak of God in the present tense. It means to speak (not, of fuzzy feelings) but of the continuing work and ministry of Jesus in the here and now; in and through his people. It means to speak of God`s great act of re-creating all things and bringing into being `a people for his praise`; a people called to lead creation in the worship of the creator.

So, to speak of the Holy Spirit, is to hold a great question mark over the world`s casual and general definitions of that word `spiritual` and to turn away from any attempts to use God for our purposes. Because, contrary to our many misconceptions, the Holy Spirit (the life and presence of God) is poured out `on all flesh` and into the messiness of human lives where the clear objective is to reveal a world under new management; the Kingdom of God.

Our God desires to create a community of people whose lives are distinctive; and characterised by `Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control` (Galatians 6.22-23) The things St. Paul refers to as the Fruit of the Spirit`. Yes, we learn to get used to our humility; our inability to live up to our high calling. -Each day we long to make a more consistent `Yes` to God. But we are here to let the life of Jesus shine in and through us; to bring forth the fruit of the Spirit; that the world may believe. Each day we learn to pray, `Come Holy Spirit`.

One of the most moving moments in the Gospels is that scene in the garden on Easter Day where Mary stands weeping outside the entrance to the tomb. (John 20). I say, `moving` because there are few of us who haven`t or won`t experience that same sense of loss, standing by a graveside.

But it`s a moment which succeeds in touching us on many levels. For example, it has it has a frankly `comic` side to it as well… as Mary mistakes Jesus for the Gardener! But the serious point is that the one whom she is seeking is right there in front of her. The God whom she longs for is right there with her – but she doesn`t recognise him. It`s the same Jesus but somehow… different. The tears have clouded her vision.

And then Mary says something which I think goes to the heart of this meeting with the risen Jesus. She`s asked: “Woman, why are you weeping?” She (says) “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” (John 20.13) What`s amazing is the language she uses: ‘They have taken away my Lord`. What she`s basically saying is, “They have taken my God away”. In other words, because of all she`s been through she`s saying: “I don`t know where God is anymore” ….

And this of course is another thing we find ourselves wrestling with in times of loss or grief or disappointment… It`s a question many will ask in the light of the events in Manchester last week. We simply can`t see where God is in this… We can`t see the point when the wicked can do such things….

Mary, of course, hears the Lord call her name and her eyes are opened. And then something else happens… She tries to get hold of Jesus and curiously he steps back saying, ‘Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father`. (John 20.17) What seems to be happening is that she`s being invited into a new way of seeing, recognising, and understanding Jesus. And at the heart of it is this `Ascension`…And of course, that`s the link with our first reading this morning.

You see what I want us to ponder this morning is that just as the experience of the cross and resurrection led Mary into a completely new understanding of God and his purposes for the world… so the same kind of thing is happening to the disciples. Just look again at those opening verses of the Acts of the Apostles…. We hear about a group of people who are frankly bewildered by Christ. He`s appeared to them and as he`s briefing them about the future they simply can`t get beyond the assumptions they`ve always had about him and about what God was going to do. These assumptions are, to say the least pretty earth-bound and limited. Their conception of God and what he is doing is still apparently wrapped up in a somewhat narrow and nationalistic agenda.

But this is where everything was about to change. Putting it simply; for the penny to drop they must lose sight of him. They must experience what Mary went through. They must know what it means to say: `We don`t know where God is anymore`. They must come to know him in an entirely new way. It`s not that he has literally `gone away` but now they need to learn to see him differently and interact with him differently.

Many years ago, when I was preparing for training my Director of Ordinands, as he was called was a lovely priest called Michael. He was kind and gracious and very wise. I met him some years after my ordination as he invited me to become Vicar of a parish. I said, “Hello Michael”. And then I was taken aback as he kindly said- “I think we`d better make that `Bishop Michael`”. Now, he wasn`t being po-faced.. he was quite correct. Our relationship had changed. And in a similar way at the Ascension, the disciples` vision of God is entirely re-framed. The Jesus they walked with in Galilee is now revealed as their Risen and Ascended Lord… And the point, I think, is that this is a process we all go through (perhaps many times) in our life of faith. Not least because, if we`re honest our sense of God is all too frequently far too small.

So, just think about it. A `Sunday School` faith – a childhood understanding of God- simply must grow and change and be capable of supporting an adult life lived for Christ. Far too many of us miss that opportunity for growth because the transition isn`t always comfortable. Often as not it involves some experience of death or loss; and as Mary and the disciples discovered it invariably means that he `disappears from our sight`. This is what I think we learn from those few verses at the beginning of Acts. In these days following the Ascension the church is, to some extent, in transition. They are as grief stricken, bewildered and uncomprehending as Mary was ….and as we often are…. And we need to become more adept at noticing moments such as these.

Because the problem is that in such moments of bewilderment, grief and disappointment where we don`t know where God is anymore…. The temptation is to walk away; to give up. But notice, the disciples grew because they went to pray.

So, what do they teach us? Well the first thing is that they were together. Luke goes to great length to list the names of this motley crew; these bewildered disciples. And we mustn`t underestimate the power of this simple point; this simple together-ness… Because I`ve sadly seen the faith of so many shipwrecked because in time of bewilderment they chose to isolate themselves.

Just when their sense of who the Lord God is and what he`s about needed re-shaping… they thought that prayer and worship was the LAST recourse. Whereas (as the disciples teach us) it should be the very first. Why? Well because secondly, in their prayer and worship they had the means; a framework for making the change; of coming to an enlarged vision of God. We mustn`t imagine for a minute that in their praying they were in any sense making this up. For example, we can be virtually certain that they will have been using the Psalms.

Now there are many reasons why the Psalms are important but one of the best is that they give us a grammar or a language of prayer…. Words to use when words won`t come. The Psalms both come to our help and stretch us hugely. And they give us permission to say all those things we have grown up believing we can`t or shouldn`t say in prayer: not least our questions…

Just listen to the passionate prayer that is Psalm 10

1 Why stand so far off, O Lord? Why hide yourself in time of trouble?

2 The wicked in their pride persecute the poor; let them be caught in the schemes they have devised.

3 The wicked boast of their heart’s desire; the covetous curse and revile the Lord.

4 The wicked in their arrogance say, ‘God will not avenge it’; in all their scheming God counts for nothing.

I mean, this is prayer `telling it like it is`… isn`t it? In a sense, the writer has a good old rant…. But the point is that we accompany this person (or maybe they accompany us) in not just getting these things out of our system… but in being led into a greater conception of God. That despite the bewilderment… the Lord God knows what he`s about.

Again, the writer says:

14 Surely, you behold trouble and misery; you see it and take it into your own hand.

15 The helpless commit themselves to you, for you are the helper of the orphan.

18 Lord, you will hear the desire of the poor; you will incline your ear to the fullness of their heart, (Psalm 10.14-18)

You see what`s going on here is more than trying to find a means of self-expression… (of getting things out of our system) it`s about getting in touch with the truth of who God is ….and who we are. From time to time, bewilderment just goes with the territory- because we are finite creatures. But it`s not the end of the story; and if we are wise it will be a moment of growth.

St. Paul told the Colossians: “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly; teach and admonish one another in all wisdom; and with gratitude in your hearts sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to God”. (Colossians 3.16)

Why? Not because he wanted to boost numbers at the Morning Service but because he knew that such praying forms us and keeps us in the truth especially when we`re being called to grow into a bigger vision of God. Someone said it`s rather like a trellis… such worship, such prayer provides an anchor for healthy growth.

So, in their time of bewilderment, waiting and uncertainty, the disciples pray. Firstly, they are together… and secondly, they let the Psalms, the scriptures shape their praying… and they are led into an enlarged vision of God. And this is a key point about praying and worshipping… It`s not about US… It`s not about self-expression; it`s about singing, chanting, recounting and being formed by the truth of who God is… especially when it seems that he`s been `taken from our sight` (Acts 1.9)

 

Jean Clarkson (1942-2017)

Today (11th May 2017) in a service at St. Bees Priory, Cumbria, we said farewell (for now) to our good friend Jean Clarkson- Churchwarden at St. Mary`s Windermere.

Following family Tributes I offered the following homily:

I realise that standing here I`m playing a little imaginative game with myself. Sunday by Sunday I would see Jean out of the corner of my eye (somewhere on my left) and today I am imagining her in the same direction… and somewhat embarrassed by all the nice things being said about her ….

Since it wouldn`t do to let us see too much evidence of that sensitive side of her nature, I imagine that this is the occasion on which she would likely as not want to `heckle` me!

It would probably go along the lines of, “Well, if you must, Vicar, make it short”… And I would likely as not reply (bearing in mind her often selective hearing) “Ah, you probably can`t hear me anyway….!”. And we would laugh…

So, let me say that keeping it short I simply want to say thank you to Jean. A personal one if I may… because Jean was extremely kind to me.

But I want (on all our behalf) to thank you Helen and Marcus- for sharing Jean with us; and especially for letting us share this time with you today. We can only imagine what her death will mean to you but we are grateful for being here because we`d like to give you some sense that you don`t bear these things alone.

I`d also like to say thank you to the people of St. Bees Priory. Those of us from St. Mary`s in Windermere are grateful for your kind welcome today.

But we want to thank you also for sharing Jean with us for these past nine or ten years. If I can put it rather bluntly, it has always been clear to me that we only ever had her `on loan`…. Because as she told me so often; this is where her heart lay.

But it`s because of this and because of what she described of her life here that I knew from the beginning what a wonderful Church Warden she would be.

It`s because of what she experienced here that she proved such a blessing to us. Because Jean understood that Church is people…. and that relationships matter, and no there`s nothing quite like a good Christmas Party especially when (as Jean did) you`ve convinced the hotel manager not to raise his prices from last year!

St. Mary`s is grateful for Jean`s humour and flirtatiousness… For the way she told the more po-faced us to `cheer up` and for all she taught us about the value of just being friends…. Because, it really isn`t `rocket science`. And yes, I`d like it known that we forgive her inability to get up on time for the ten o`clock service on a Wednesday morning!

And I suppose also, I again want to thank Jean for one little but very profound observation which I know meant a great deal to her.

You might remember, that there`s a moment in the service of Holy Communion where the president says, “Great is the mystery of faith” and we all respond, “Christ has died, Christ is Risen, Christ will come again”.

Well, Jean transformed that little moment for me… and I think I`ll always associate her with it. She would say in such an animated way, “It really is a mystery isn`t it….?”

Like many of us, I suspect that when it comes to faith, Jean vacillated between on the one hand a deep sense that here was something she really couldn`t fathom (and she loved a good religious argument!) whilst on the other hand she was simply bowled over by the notion that she was in touch with something simply awesome…..

“Great is the mystery of faith… Christ has died, Christ is Risen, Christ will come again”. These are three things we might for all manner of reasons also struggle to get our minds around… especially today…

But let there be no mistake; in life and in death we are in the presence of something… someONE simply awesome. The living Christ.

This is Christian living and dying. Paul tells us “Now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then we will see face to face”. (1 Corinthians 13.12) There is so much we don`t as yet understand… But that`s OK.

The point is that we are known, we are understood. And “Great is the mystery of faith… Christ has died, Christ is Risen, Christ will come again”.

May Jean rest in peace and rise in glory.

One of the things I enjoy about our children`s Workshop on Good Friday morning is sending the children out into the churchyard on their Easter Egg Hunt! As you can imagine, it`s something they rather enjoy as well…..! The more serious points behind this bit of amusement and the two things I always try to teach them is that firstly, the discovery of these eggs in unusual places is a way of reminding us what these days of Easter were rather like for the first disciples… As the Gospels tell us, there was this forty-day period in which they had repeated encounters with Jesus, often in unusual ways and places.

And then, secondly, I`ve begun to tell them that once they`ve found an egg they need to remember that their task changes… So, if they are fortunate enough to find another egg they have to give it to someone else…. and if not then the very least they must do is to help others in their search.

Now, at this point (for understandable reasons) I always anticipate a bit of a groan; I mean it`s almost a matter of instinct to avoid everyone else and either say “job done” when I`ve got my egg… or go in search of more chocolate again, entirely for myself. But the serious point behind this is my attempt to say that the events of Good Friday and Easter Day are about far more than what we might term “job done” – that`s my salvation is sorted out… and neither is it about me going in search more spiritual thrills, as it were, for my own benefit. No, if Good Friday and Easter do anything then they turn us outwards… Having been grasped by the wonder of it all we turn towards others… Putting it simply, we become the kind of people who draw others into encounter an with the risen Jesus.

It was summed up for me some years ago in the title of a book I came across. It was called `Practice Resurrection`(Eugene Peterson). In other words, what I want us to get hold of this morning is this sense that Good Friday and Easter Day have the quality of a `springboard` to them. There is a great momentum about Good Friday and Easter Day. Something incredible has been set in train. Resurrection has consequences… And this is perfectly illustrated by the first of our readings this morning, (Acts 2.42-47) where we see that one of the most important consequences of resurrection is the creation of a new community; the Church.

Just as resurrection is the announcement of God re-creating his world… so this involves the calling into being of a new model humanity… a community that demonstrates what life lived under God actually looks like. Now, we can only begin to touch on these things just now… but look again at those few verses from the Acts of the Apostles… I mean, you don`t need `A` levels to see what a distinctive and uniquely attractive community emerged in the days following the resurrection… The nature, quality and depth of their common life has been and remains an encouragement, a challenge and a rebuke to the church in our day.

So, for example, whilst we can often seem timid… bound by the patterns and social conventions of our own day; what happened among them was nothing if not revolutionary. Just consider your reaction to the way they dismantled the financial differences between them … How do you react to their decision to hold `all things in common`? This is not an aberration…. this is just one of the more obvious differences; one of the radical changes that resurrection living brought about among them. It demonstrated for everyone to see that something new had begun.

You see, I think it`s far too easy… far too convenient…. to just gloss over this incident and maybe think of it as utopian or pie in the sky; as let`s be honest, many people do. Yes. we might concede that there are practical and other reasons not to go quite so far as they did…. but let me put it another way… The extent to which we are shall we say reluctant to let other people know `how much we`re worth` is probably a fair indication of whether we get the point… It really doesn`t matter- so why do we mind?

You see to practice resurrection; to live the resurrection life means taking your bearings and your understanding of yourself using entirely different categories from the likes of wealth and all the rest. And if this strikes us as difficult or it gets under our skin a bit, then we`re probably in a good place… It`s probably because the Kingdom of God has come near….

So, practising or living resurrection has consequences… We`re drawn into a community whose orientation and values (if we`re prepared to live them out) will be regarded by many as both shocking and yet curiously attractive.

This I think is one way of understanding one of the big tensions of our day… the future of the church. The word we use is `ecclesiology`…. `Church-ology` if you like. In days when we`re seeing great change in the life of the church (and huge confusion) we take our lead from passages like this one. It`s not so that we can slavishly copy it; that’s not the point. The question is “What shape of Church do you end up with when God`s people let Christ have his way with us…. When we take resurrection living seriously?”

This is where our Gospel reading this morning helps us. (John 10.1-10) Jesus tells a story about sheep stealing; and about the safe transit of the sheep from the fold to the pasture… He describes himself as the `gate` to the sheepfold. This is apparently, a reference to the way a shepherd would lie across the entrance to the fold overnight.

And because they don`t get it Jesus explains by making (to the minds of many) some outrageously exclusive claims about himself as the one who is the gateway… the bridge between heaven and earth… The one through whom the Kingdom reign of God becomes visible, accessible and real.

What`s the connection with the first reading? Well, why did the early church become the kind of community it was? Why did it assume the kind of shape described to us by St. Luke this morning? What will make Jesus Church / St. Mary`s more closely resemble the community he wants it to be? I would suggest that what makes the difference is a group of people who won`t accept any imitation. What Jesus refers to as the `thieves and bandits` (John 10.8) It takes a group of people who are not afraid to accept the incredible and frankly mind-boggling claims which Jesus made about himself…. And say yes to them with their hearts, lives and even wallets….. A people who know that they have begun to practice resurrection. That`s when you get the church that Jesus wants.

Jesus said, “I am the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly”. (John 10.9-10) Just take him at his word. That`s when Resurrection life begins. Just like the Easter egg…. You discover it and you share it….

Back in the 1990`s, one of our right-wing politicians very controversially coined the phrase `The cricket test`. It was, he said, his way of deciding who had really integrated themselves into what he called British culture. He suggested that those who support their native countries rather than England at the sport of cricket wouldn`t really pass the test.

Now, comments like this are inflammatory to say the least, especially since we live in days when the poisonous idolatry of `nationalism` has reared its head. `Citizenship` is what we call a hot topic these days and whatever you say about it is easily misconstrued. We have to tread very carefully when talking about how far those from one culture should be expected to what we call `integrate` with another. But what we often miss, I think, is how often this language of `citizenship` is used to describe the space occupied by Christians. So, for example, in one of his letters St. Paul describes us as a `colony of heaven`(Philippians 3.20).

In these terms a colony is rather like a beachhead, an outpost, an island of one culture in the middle of another; it`s a place where distinctive values and ways of living are practiced and passed on perhaps in contradiction to the surrounding or `host` culture. And it seems to me that we`ve rather got out of the habit of using this `citizenship` language as a way of understanding ourselves and the way of Christ. This I think is partly because we are used to thinking of ourselves as very much at home thank you very much… We`ve lived for a long time with the notion that we have created a `Christian` culture… But without being cynical… I sense it`s time to realise that we`ve been fooling ourselves and this picture of being a `colony` of heaven might help.

I recently heard the story of a rabbi who said, “It`s hard to be a Jew in our town. We are forever telling our children, `That`s fine for everybody else, but it`s not fine for you. You are special. You are different. You have a different story. A different set of values. You are a Jew`”. I want to suggest this morning that if we are going to understand our current situation; and if we are going to flourish as Christian people then we are going to have to listen very carefully to this experience of our Jewish brothers and sisters.

So, let`s begin by noting that after 25 years of reporting these things, the organisation called `Open Doors` identified 2016 as what it called the “worst year yet” for the persecution of Christians. It says, “Throughout the world (we) continue to risk imprisonment, loss of home and assets, torture, beheadings, rape and even death as a result of our faith.” It is no exaggeration to say that 90,000 and more Christians die each year simply because of their continuing loyalty to Christ … Because they choose to live their difference; and have their lives, actions and attitudes shaped by him rather than the surrounding culture. They know what it is live as a `colony of heaven`.

Now, these are awful and staggering statistics and sometimes I think we don`t really know what to do with them.On the one hand, it`s easy for instance to become alarmist. All you need is for someone to suggest that, ”Well, we`ll be next” and Christians start `circling the wagons`, retreating into a ghetto of fear and paranoia. But I think on the other hand, the experience of our brothers and sisters elsewhere is best used, as a way of exposing what we can only describe as our complacency and ignorance of the fundamentals of our faith… The difference in being Christian. Let`s put it bluntly. Over many generations we have in many subtle ways re-packaged our faith so that we wouldn`t have to die for it.

If I were to sum it up I think it`s fair to say that we`ve allowed the Gospel -the news of what God has done in Christ- to become muted and privatized. We have been all too content to take our place in the market of `spiritualities` as just another means of helping bored, western materialists feel better about themselves. And again, I think we are `hobbled` by this notion that we have managed to create a `Christian` culture.

So, for example, we have allowed the name `Christian` to be `re-defined` in apparently ethical terms as meaning `generally nice`. We bend over backwards to agree with virtually every cultural whim and fancy because the aim it seems is to be `liked`… to fit in… to be acceptable… to `integrate` rather than to challenge and transform. It was summed up so well by the person who said, “The Ten Commandments have now become Ten Suggestions”. I`m sure you know the kind of thing I mean…

Perhaps I exaggerate for effect but nowadays the overriding task is to make the Christian message credible to what we call the modern world… We call it `relevance`. But what if we`ve got it the wrong way round? I mean, as we heard in our Gospel reading last Sunday …(Matthew 28.1-11) the `earthquake` that is the resurrection of Christ from the dead…. is the announcement that actually a new world has begun; a new order; one which profoundly questions the way this one is going….

You see, the message of resurrection is not, “There is life after death” (though that`s part of it). The message of resurrection is not that we are leaving here and `going to heaven` so much as `heaven (God`s space) has come to meet us`. The message of resurrection is `new creation`. God has acted to re-create all things and we the Christians, the Church are a colony of this Heaven… God`s space… We`re a beach-head.. an invasion… an alternative way of living. So, the message of resurrection is “get on board.. get with the plot…” St. Paul said, “Consider yourself as dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus”. (Romans 6.11)

Sin literally means to `miss the mark` (It`s rather like firing arrows at a target and missing). In this sense, we all `sin` we all miss the mark when it comes to being human. The message of resurrection is that on the cross there is forgiveness for all that `mark-missing` and the chance to begin anew as part of the colony of heaven… God`s invasion.

It was a bit of a cheap shot but in my teenage years it used to be asked, “If you were in court charged with being a Christian… on what evidence would they convict you?”. It`s a version of `the cricket test`. But it`s a sobering thought.

No, bearing the name Christian means that we have to take our lead, not from what the world around us finds acceptable… but from what we find in Christ. Our calling is not `integration` but transformation. C.S. Lewis once said: “Christianity is the story of how the rightful king has landed…and is calling us to take part in a great campaign of sabotage.”

St. Paul says: “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, (Romans 12.2) Or as one translation puts it “Don`t let the world squeeze you into its mould”. This is the beginning of discipleship… the life to which we are called. And no, you`re not going to fit in.

Curiously, I think we`ll know something`s beginning to happen when you start to hear people say: “It`s hard to be a Christian in our town. We are forever telling our children, `That`s fine for everybody else, but it`s not fine for you. You are special. You are different. You have a different story. A different set of values. You are a Christian`”.

One of the little treasures which I have on my shelf at home is this card. It was given to me almost thirty years ago now. It both makes me laugh and helps me get up in a morning. It`s a cartoon picture of Good Friday.

There`s an empty cross on a hillside. Jesus has just died and been taken down … It`s pouring with rain…. there are nails and a hammer lying on the ground and three disconsolate women are walking away. But someone has pinned a note to the cross which reads: “To be continued…”

As I say, it brings a smile to my face but it also has a certain poignancy which makes yesterday -the day between Good Friday and today- a day for being thoughtful and hopeful. To live with this sense of “To be continued…..”

Now, this mood was reinforced for me yesterday by an amusing text message I received from my daughter. Knowing what kind of week I will have been having, and that yesterday was a `pause for breath` so to speak…. she jokingly and kindly said, “Happy Intermission Day”.

Remembering the Card I`ve just told you about… I texted back, “Yes, Normal service will be resumed!” And then, after a while with a typically wry sense of humour she wrote, “It`s just like they turned Jesus off and on again- just like a computer!” I apologised for getting heavy but replied, “Yes, but it`s the world that gets `re-set`”. And I think, this is the point I want us to ponder this morning.

Many of us will know how strange it is that a computer can sometimes `freeze` on you; and how the standard remedy is to switch it on and off again…. Press it`s re-set button. Frankly a good many of us live lives in which we wish there were some possibility of re-setting things… And what I`m saying is that this might be one way of getting a hold on what it is we actually celebrate this morning.

With great humour, St. Matthew tells us that the resurrection of Jesus came with a great earthquake… and describes an angel who rolls away the stone “and sat on it”. I like that. (Matthew 28.1-10)

Basically he`s saying that the resurrection of Jesus is an event of seismic proportions…. It`s an `earthquake` of an event. In fact it`s the pivotal moment in all history… Things have never been quite the same since…

In other words, the staggering claim that we make today is that a world that was dysfunctional, lost in repetitive cycles of death and destruction; and clogged up with bad memories has been re-set … Resurrection is yes, the fact that Jesus who died is alive again. Yes, that there is hope of life beyond this… but more fundamentally Resurrection is `a whole new world…`

Jesus called it the Kingdom of God; the new regime which Christ had announced is in fact breaking in with unstoppable force… like a seed growing in secret… and continuing to well up in the lives of countless men and women who are learning to breathe a totally different atmosphere…. where all the rules for being human and for being a world have changed.

Some years ago, I was playing a game of snakes and ladders with some children. Because I`m like that I said. “What do you think it would be like if we went up the snakes as well as the ladders?”

It was another of those silly conversations… in which it was clear that this didn`t seem right…. It was disorientating… I mean, we become so used to there being `penalty clauses`. There has to be a down-side; there has to be a catch…. Doesn`t there?

But what if the rules have changed? What if (because of the resurrection) the air that we breathe is actually rather different. What if the underlying truth of all things is actually `kindness` and what we call `grace`?

What if forgiveness and service and compassion and self-giving love (everything which we see in Christ) are actually our natural environment; the things we are actually wired for….. . and made for?

What if this old, defective way of life we have become so used to (what we call `sin`- this old order of sin and death) has been swept away… and the re-set button has been pressed?

What if, like the Father in the story of the prodigal son, our God has come out to greet us; to restore us to our place as his children? What if our record of `missing the mark` has been swept clean?

What if we don`t need to be anxious or afraid anymore? What if, instead of grasping at life we can receive it as his gift?

Yes, like climbing up the snakes it seems confusing… out of place… There must, we think, be some kind of catch? Well, no, there`s no catch. This is the heart of what we celebrate today. All the rules have changed….

I so often think (as Richard Rohr says) that what we call salvation is a matter of `when? When will you get with the plot? Live and breathe the air of the Kingdom? In the Resurrection of Christ, the re-set button has been pressed… St. Paul says: “If anyone is in Christ, there is new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new!” (2 Corinthians 5.17)

Alleluia, Christ is Risen. He is risen indeed, Alleluia!

Firstly, this morning we heard that simply magnificent passage from Ezekiel. (Ezekiel 37.1-14) Some of us perhaps recall the recall the old `spiritual`, “Dem` bones dem` bones; them dry bones……” and so on. It`s easy to make light of it. But if you look closely you`ll see that it`s a passage told with such great pathos. Ezekiel`s vision is probably of a battlefield where the peoples` defeat was so complete that there was no time to even bury the dead. And their bones dried and bleached by the sun served as a graphic metaphor for the state of their faith and their national life.

Then secondly, we heard about the raising of Lazarus; (John 11.1-45) Jesus visiting his grieving friends and he restores Lazarus to life. The first reading was, if you will, a word of prophecy; of God speaking into his peoples` circumstances and promising to lift them from the depths of despair and the second an account of God in our very midst setting a man free from the grave itself.

Now to our (perhaps) modern way of thinking it might be reasonably straightforward to categorise the Ezekiel passage as a good old yarn… One of those myths that speaks of hope and all the rest…. But the Gospel passage raises (no pun intended) some considerable problems for us. “Raising someone from the dead?” we ask. Some will think it ridiculous; others another myth.

Those of us who wouldn`t want to dismiss it out of hand might attempt to concoct some theory or other that offers some supposedly `spiritual` insight whilst confirming our belief that “This sort of thing just doesn`t and of course, can`t happen”.

Even though the story itself echoes our incredulity by stressing that this man had been dead for four days and decomposition had (surely) set in! No, the instinct is to go for what we would call a `rational` explanation. Which, of course is another way of saying that we want, we expect this story to fit in with our picture of the way the world works. But what if it`s our picture of `the way the world works` that is wrong?

After all, the text (again) makes it absolutely clear…. even the characters in the story know what we know… “That you can`t just bring someone back to life after four days”. They aren`t stupid or credulous. Of course they knew that the dead don`t get raised! So, what are we to make of it?

Well here`s a suggestion. It seems to me that while ever the purpose of the Christian life is seen to be something along the lines of, “We live this life… we try to keep our noses clean… so that eventually we can leave here to go somewhere else (which we call `heaven`)” then we`ll continue to have this problem. We`ll continue to think (rationally, as we say) that dead people don`t get raised…. Because this picture of the world automatically reserves stuff like `resurrection` for much later. We place things like this in what we`re pleased to label the `spiritual` as opposed to the `physical` sphere.

As I`ve said before; one consequence of this picture of the world is that we end up with a God who occupies a space somewhere `out there`; distant and otherwise not engaged with the world as we know it. And this is the view of the world that has held sway for the past two hundred years or so. In these terms, we`re quite correct to say, “The dead don`t get raised”. But if, however, we turn things around and suggest that the Christian life is instead about welcoming and anticipating the arrival of God`s Kingdom (God`s `space`) “on earth as in heaven…” then the idea that we will begin to see signs of this happening… this `coming of the Kingdom (even a man brought back to life) starts to make very good sense indeed. I mean, this, for instance, is how the resurrection of Jesus himself is portrayed in the Gospels.

In two weeks` time we`ll celebrate Easter Day not because that empty tomb is some kind of `spiritual` happy ending or `knockdown proof` that there`s life after death and that we`re all going to heaven when we die`. No, Easter Day is proof that the inauguration of God`s new creation has begun. The Lord is here- his Spirit is with us. And when you look closely you see that this is what John says throughout his whole Gospel. In other words, he tells his story of Jesus as one in which there are a whole host of what he calls `signs`.

So, right at the start he takes us to the wedding in Cana; where Jesus turned the water into wine; and he concludes by saying,’ Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee, and revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him. (John 2.11) What I`m trying to say is that this is how the miracles (as we call them) actually work. They are not so much the suspension of physical laws as we know them; they are more like windows opening on “the world that is coming into being” where, as Paul says “God is all in all” (1 Corinthians 15.28).

To my mind; the `signs` as we call them are less important in themselves as they are indications of what the `new order` the `new creation` will actually look like. We sometimes talk of somewhere or of some moment as being “a little piece of heaven on earth” don`t we? Now, we can get all sentimental about that sort of thing… And if we`re to avoid this we need to know what to look for. So, what are the `signs` in our day?

Well, do you recall that story of how John the Baptist is languishing in prison and he sends his followers to ask Jesus if he`s really the one they`re waiting for? Jesus tells them: “‘Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, the poor have good news brought to them`”. (Luke 7.22)

Here we have an example of Jesus talking about the `signs`; about what he was doing… and he`s inviting John the Baptist to make a connection between them and the coming Kingdom. These, in other words, are `signs` that demonstrated that God`s way of being a world was starting to happen in their midst. We could of course, multiply the examples… and my guess is that we would end up giving an account of simply everything Jesus said and did…. Because he frankly, `embodied` this Kingdom of which he spoke.

Now, Christians are sometimes unkindly (though in some cases justifiably) referred to as `God-botherers`. I prefer, I think to refer to us as `God-spotters`. What I mean is that I think it`s part of our task to be so close to Christ and so open to his way of being in the world that we`re able to do two things. Firstly, it`s our task to point out to others the `signs` of His action in the world. And for instance, to say to those who (whether they know it or not) find themselves doing `Jesus-shaped` things that (as he himself said) “You are not far from the Kingdom of God” (Mark 12.34) This is what God wants for his world. And then secondly, as those called to pray for and welcome the coming of the Kingdom… it`s our calling to demonstrate what life looks like when it`s shaped by obedience to him. And this is another good reason to enter into Lent…. It`s in this season that we as our Eucharistic prayer says, “We learn to be your people once again”…

Some weeks ago there was a story in the news about a man who borrowed his son`s video camera to take away with him on holiday. Sadly, he didn`t know which way to point it… So when he got home all he had was two weeks` worth of film of his own face!

But this is just a rather extreme version of what many folk do all the time. Mobile phones are seen all over the place; and of course they`re more than just a phone. They play music, send e-mail and yes, they are cameras too.

And the neat feature that so many have latched onto is that you can effectively turn the camera lens around… so that you can hold it out there and take a picture not of the scenery, or the kids playing in the park but YOURSELF!

It`s all a bit sad really isn`t it? It`s just what we do these days and my guess is that in time to come you`ll be able to sum up a whole generation by pointing to this one activity… `The Selfie`. Yes, we can have some fun with it; but when you see people wandering around the street with a phone on the end of the stick attempting film themselves you do wonder.

By the way I`m told it`s called the `Selfie`, because they weren`t clever enough to spell `Narcissist`- That of course is the word we use to describe that self-absorbed way we behave when we`re infants… So again, seeing it in adults just makes you wonder.

But I wonder if you`ve noticed, that you never really see a good `selfie`. I mean, the `selfie` is always a bit wonky. Mostly, they`re pictures of people who are always slightly out of focus or too far to one side of the frame. And it seems to me that`s a good way of summing up this `selfie` generation.

We are encouraged from all sides, to be the centre of our own picture; the star of our own `movie of life` and as such we`re adrift. We seem compelled to create some significance for ourselves. And the harder we try the more wonky it gets.

We anxiously spend our time if not working all hours then as someone put it `entertaining ourselves to death`. It seems we`ll stop at nothing in our drive to find some way of justifying our existence… by what we do, by what we own, by our achievements.

We are to all intents and purposes `consumers` of life. This is the age of the `bucket list` of things we want to do or achieve…. After all, as the stars of our own movie, we have to give them something to talk about when they come to `celebrate` our life, don`t we?

I mean you can go to some funerals today and you`d hardly think anyone had died! We`re in denial. If we recognise dearth at all it`s all too often seen as a rather rude interruption. After all, we had other plans and other `selfies` to take didn`t we? And because we`re `at sea`; rootless and unsure of who we are we rear children in our own image and likeness.

We bring even more little `selfies` into the world, who are crying out for someone to guide and teach them who they are. To give them guidelines for living and to pass on some wisdom but we insist “No, no they must make their own choices” they must be little `selfies`.

And we mustn`t fall out with them or challenge their `selfie-ness`. What little time we have with them must be perfect, serene and idyllic; devoid of anything that smacks of the clarity and discipline they desperately need. So all they learn is how to take `selfies`.

And the `selfie` is always wonky because we try to take it ourselves. We try to give shape to our lives by ourselves and according to our own likes and dislikes… and it never comes out right. To get a really good picture of yourself you need someone else to take it… someone with an expert eye..… someone who can see the whole scene and ensure that bits aren`t falling off the edge.

In that Bible reading we heard a moment ago, (The Prodigal Son: Luke 15.11-32) Jesus tells a story about a young lad who was good at taking `selfies`… He was really good at placing himself at the centre of things ….or so he thought. Because it didn`t turn out well.

That story and in particular, the Father who comes running out to meet him is Jesus`s way of re-framing the picture. This is Jesus`s way of saying, “This is what life looks like when you give up taking `selfies`”.

Jesus told this story because people were moaning about the company he was keeping. They wanted to know why Jesus would bother with all the `selfie` takers in the world…? So he told them that he is just like the Father in that story. He`s come in search of the `selfie takers` like you and me.. to get us to turn the `camera` the right way round.

When he was at his lowest point we`re told very simply that the young lad “came to himself”. The Bible word we use for this is “Repent”.

In a few moments we`ll ask this of the parents and God Parents. “Do you repent of your sins…” basically, “Do you repent of your `selfie-ness?” It means dropping your agenda and trusting Jesus for his. It means no longer putting (or trying to put) yourself at the centre of the picture….. God is not the supporting actor in our drama… It`s the other way around. (Michael Horton)

In other words, let Jesus tell you who you are. Let him re-frame your life as a gift and not something to be grabbed and exploited; because real life is not a bucket list of things to do or a stage for your `selfie taking`.

In that story, Jesus says; “This is what life looks like when you are brought back into relationship with the Father who made and loves you. This is what it looks like when you know who you are ….and don`t need to take `selfies` anymore”.

If you are familiar with the Old Service of Matins in the Book of Common Prayer you will have recognised our Psalm this morning. Psalm 95 – otherwise referred to as `The Venite` – is a recognisable invitation to sing out God`s praises at the beginning of our worship.

“O come, let us sing to the Lord; let us heartily rejoice in the rock of our salvation”. (Psalm 95.1)

What`s always amused me, however, (and it`s actually our habit here in Troutbeck) is that we tend only to sing the first seven verses of this Psalm. And I have to say, (and I`m only the Vicar!) I`m really not sure how we have come upon this particular practice.

What I find intriguing that it`s in verse eight that the tone of the Psalm swiftly changes. In other words, from the opening verses filled with praise we suddenly turn to something rather different: because the bit we don’t sing begins…..

“O that today you would listen to his voice: ‘Harden not your hearts as at Meribah, on that day at Massah in the wilderness, ‘When your forebears tested me, and put me to the proof, though they had seen my works. (Psalm 95.8-9)

Now, this obscure observation about Matins is hardly the kind of thing that keeps you up at night I`m sure and if you brought it up at a party I`m equally sure people would begin to give you a wide berth…. “Have you noticed we only sing the first seven verses of the Venite…” shock horror! But for our purposes this morning I think there is something here worth looking at here.

Firstly, I think it`s the genius of this particular Psalm that manages to hold together both these words of sublime praise as well as recalling what is evidently a record of the complete opposite… The account of a time when as the people of God, we really let ourselves down.There`s something which is so `true to who we are` contained in these few verses. I mean, this is a Psalm which at one and the same time reminds us of our high calling … whilst also managing to keep our feet very much on the ground.

And then secondly, I think this brings home one of the important themes of Lent- which doesn`t often get too much attention…. Which is that of our `collective` sin. What I mean is that the story referred to at the end this Psalm confronts us with our collective attempts to live as if God is not God. This matters because Lent is traditionally the time for welcoming newcomers into the faith. That we have some way to go to make this more of a theme of our common life tells its own story…. But the underlying point is that during Lent as well as examining our individual life and conduct we also `fess up` to our collective imperfection… And all newcomers are therefore under no illusion that when it comes to fidelity to God our collective record leaves much to be desired!

And this is, as I say, is brought home (as you perhaps noticed) because that second part of the Psalm is a re-telling of the events we heard about in our Old Testament Reading this morning. There before us, is one particular example of our infidelity … We heard about the thirsty Israelites groaning in the wilderness (Exodus 17.1-7).

Now the best way to approach a passage such as this is plain and simply to allow ourselves to be drawn into it. We`re asked to see ourselves as part of it. We`re asked to see these escapees from slavery in Egypt as our kith and kin… And then to reflect on how very good we are at demonstrating the family resemblance; at showing ourselves to be `chips off the old block`. Not least because (as should be evident) our behaviour before the Lord is no different from theirs, is it? We have the same high calling… and yet we exhibit the same degree of infidelity… But what especially do we learn?

Well the first and most important thing is what we might call the `Fidelity of God`. Israel is out there in the wilderness and the Lord does indeed give them the water they need- the means to sustain them on the way to all that he promised. And we shouldn`t make light of this.

But what the second half of the Psalm and the reading point out however, is the degree of moaning that preceded it: the in-fidelity of the people. At the heart of it all, is how what me might call the `water` question (“We`re thirsty”) eventually turns into what we might call, the `God` question (“Is the Lord among us or not?”). And what`s interesting to me is that the people don`t immediately ask the God question at all.

Firstly we`re told, “The people quarrelled with Moses, and said, ‘Give us water to drink.’ (Exodus 17.2) And then secondly, “the people complained against Moses and said, ‘Why did you bring us out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and livestock with thirst?’ (Exodus 17.3) It`s all very bitter.

But what we need to grasp is that first target was Moses. They looked on him as the guilty party… He was the one who should give them water…. And for some unaccountable reason they saw him as the one responsible for bringing them out of Egypt in the first place. As far as they were concerned it was `The Moses question` that was at issue. But this is where we stand back and we marvel at his wisdom. They`re all having a go at him… and yes, he`s knocked back on his heels by the ferocity of it all but Moses refuses to take it personally. He stands there and says, “Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you test the LORD?”. In other words, they`d singled him out as the one to blame….. but Moses asked the `God question` and he knew that what was really going on was between them and the Lord. Basically he turns the whole thing into prayer.

It`s not an easy prayer by any means: “Moses cried out to the LORD, ‘What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me.’ (Exodus 17.4) But, trying to put it in simple terms, it seems that the real `collective` sin of the Israelites was their forgetfulness. Yes, they were in the wilderness (it was difficult) but they forgot that this challenging period was only part of a much bigger story in which God worked out his good purposes for them. And so, in pointing at Moses as their apparent `liberator` they demonstrated just how far they`d lost their sense of being caught up in God`s story.

Secondly, in calling on Moses for water we see how they`d lowered their horizons completely. By effectively saying that their escape from Egypt was the result of good political moves by Moses or a stroke of good fortune… effectively setting aside any sense of their divine calling and purpose… the only resources they could expect in their troubles would be what their `all too fallible` leader, Moses could provide. In other words, if their great escape wasn`t a `Godly` thing… they could hardly expect `godly resources for the journey.

A few moments ago I suggested that we should allow ourselves to be drawn into this story… to see it as ours….and ourselves as `chips off the old block` and prone to the same `collective sin`. And my point is that this is exactly what happens when for example, we think or speak of ourselves (the Church) as if it were just another social construction; something that we create; something that we `do` or are responsible for. When like the Israelites we forget that our origins are in what God has done in Christ we can`t help but think and act as if “It all depends on us”… and consequently, the only means of coping is our own resourcefulness.

And so, just as Moses got it in the neck we find our own scapegoats. General Synod? The House of Bishop`s? (Yours truly!) Yes, fallible, unprofitable servants all… And this is how it will stay until we learn to turn the water question (“We`re thirsty in these difficult days”) into the God question (“He has called us and he is faithful”).

To put it another way, while ever we fail to grasp (amazing though it might seem) that we have `divine appointment` we`ll just continue to try to cope under our own strength and fail to draw on the resources the Lord wishes to give… The `Living water` of which Jesus spoke. (John 4)

And this is why, during Lent, we place so much store on reminding ourselves of our Baptism. Here`s another connection with that Exodus story: You see, like the people of Israel going through the Red Sea we are those who have come through the water; the waters of Baptism. This is the Lord`s doing; it`s the sign of our liberation and our divine appointment. The promise is that the one “who has begun this good work will bring it to completion”. (Philippians 1.6) But Baptism is also a call (as I colloquially put it) to continually ask `The God Question`. Not only to recognise this divine appointment but to live in the strength HE gives. As Rowan Williams says: “When we pray (basically, when we ask the God question) we are at our strongest- because we have surrendered the false notion that we are facing a problem as God and instead find the blessing of facing it under God”.