Separating the Leaven

Collect for Friday in the Third Week of Lent

Grant us, O Lord our Strength, to have a True Love of your Holy Name; so that, trusting in your grace, we may fear no earthly evil, nor fix our hearts on earthly goods, but may rejoice in your full salvation; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Separating the Leaven (16:1-12) 
This is not a good day for Jesus.  It starts with the Pharisees and the Sadducees coming to test him, and ends with the disciples showing a block-headedness that is unusual for Matthew, but common enough in the Gospels. 

The Pharisees and the Sadducees approaching Jesus together is unlikely, as many commentators have stated.  But it is important to the story so that Jesus may make a break with the entirety of the religious leadership.  They come to him and demand a sign, some sort of miraculous event that will prove that Jesus is who he says he is.  Jesus responds by quoting what are a couple of common sayings about the weather.  Eugene Peterson paraphrases it in The Message: "You have a saying that goes, 'Red sky at night, sailor delight; red sky at morning, sailors take warning. You find it easy enough to forecast the weather‚' why can‚ you read the signs of the times?"  If they can see the sign in what he has already done, they will receive no sign except the "Sign of Jonah."  Jonah spent three days and nights in the belly of a great fish and then was vomited on the shore.  Jesus will spend three days and nights before rising from the dead.  His resurrection will be a final sign for them.  At the end of the paragraph, Jesus abandons or leaves them behind as opposed to the other encounters in the Gospel where he withdraws.  It is his final word to them before his final confrontation in Judea. (19:3; 22:23)

No doubt still grumbling from that encounter, Jesus then reunites with the disciples.  "Beware the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees."  Leaven, or yeast, has many different connotations in the Bible.  In this case, it is clearly negative, meaning that a small amount of their teaching can worm its way into the Gospel, thereby corrupting it.  The disciples are confused, and think he's angry at them for not bringing bread.  Jesus, after probably sighing deeply, reminds them about his miraculous feedings and that he's not talking about bread at all.  In contrast to the Gospel of Mark, they finally seem to get what Jesus is talking about.

So what is it about the leaven of the Sadducees and Pharisees that Jesus finds so objectionable?  The teachings of the two sects of Judaism are very different.  What is the common thread Jesus is concerned about?  It is that both sects are concerned with maintenance of "Checklists" in order to be in right relation with God.  The Sadducees were obsessed with the minutiae of the worship of the temple.  The Pharisees were preoccupied with maintaining moral and ritual purity.  Members of both parties strove to make sure they got all their respective "t's" crossed and their "i's" dotted, and felt themselves righteous because of their hard work. 

In opposition to that, Jesus often violated purity, ritual and sabbath commandments not because they were bad in themselves, but to demonstrate that they had become an object of idolatry for the religious elite.  Jesus taught that the way to reconciliation with God was not through tidy wrote obedience, but through messy relationship.  Jesus was concerned about the spirit and intent of the law rather than the letter.  When the disciples are unable to free themselves of a literal interpretation of the leaven metaphor, they are in danger of sliding back into the kind of wrote observance that the religious elite were guilty of, and for which Jesus had just broken off communication.

When reading this passage in Lent, it is a good time to ask ourselves if we have allowed the leaven that Jesus was so concerned about to creep into our lives of faith.  This leaven was certainly not confined to just the Pharisees and Sadducees.  Why do we practice Lenten disciplines?  Why do we go to church?  Why are we participating in this Bible Study?  Is it in order to fulfill another checklist in our Franklin-Covey planner under the master goal of "Be a more religious person?"  Or is it to have an encounter with the living God and open ourselves up to the transformative power of the water of life?  My guess is, we all have at least some of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees within us. Perhaps this is a good opportunity to separate that portion of the dough out. 



The Rev. David Simmons
Rector
St. Matthias, Waukesha

Jesus Feeds

Collect for Thursday in the Third Week of Lent

Keep watch over you church, O Lord, with your unfailing love; and, since it is grounded in human weakness and cannot maintain itself without your aid, protect it from all danger, and keep it in the way of salvation; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Jesus Feeds (Matthew 15:1-39)

Matthew 15 contains several familiar stories; the most familiar to most of us is the story of the feeding of several thousand people from a modest portion of bread and fish.  For many of us, as children this story illustrated Jesus’ ability to perform miracles.  Perhaps this is all that we needed to take from the “feeding of the thousands.”  However, as we come to understand the story more fully we draw more from it.  One aspect that I have always found helpful is that Jesus was seeking to speak to this crowd but immediately saw that the group’s basic needs must be met first.  I often find this to be a good reminder that as we encounter need in the world we are called first to help meet that need. 

Another familiar story from Matthew 15 is that of the woman seeking deliverance for her daughter who is possessed by a demon.  Again, as young people we saw this as yet another examples of Jesus’ ability to heal and perform miracles.  This brief story, however, is far deeper.  I have heard this passage preached a number of times and always find something new in it.  As followers of Jesus it is sometimes hard to come to terms with what appears to be the fact that Jesus really couldn’t be bothered with this woman and her daughter.  Even more interesting to me is the fact that the mother essentially talked-back to Jesus and, frankly, called him out.  Given the gender roles of the time this had to have been quite startling.  And what does Jesus do in this situation?  He rewards her and her faith.  That instant had to have been revolutionary in and of itself.

For all these great stories, during Lent I find that in terms of Matthew 15 I draw more from the portion of the chapter that speaks about the things which emanate from our hearts.  If Lent is to be a time of reflection, of discipline, of re-focusing and renewing our faith, I find the verses 1-20 to be very helpful.  Here we have another example of Jesus challenging the scholars and leaders of the day, taking them to task for their laws and traditions that have no place in the New Covenant.  Jesus tells us that it is what is in our hearts, and what that may lead us to do, that defiles us.  He rejects the hand-washing traditions about which some people were presumably rather obsessed.  He points out that unclean hands do not defile us but unclean hearts do.  This provides another example that the faith Jesus calls us to has far more to do with how we act, how we treat one another, how we honor God through our words and actions than whether or not we adhere to old purity customs such as ritual hand-washing.  It is this new call to us as followers that I find helpful during Lent.  What does God really require of us?  Are we living our lives in a way, led by our hearts, which is pleasing to God or do we simply follow our human desires?  Taking time to reflect on our own hearts is, to me, at the core of Lent.

Marcus White

Trinity Church, Wauwatosa

Jesus Feeds, Heals and Teaches

Collect for Wednesday in the Third Week of Lent

Give ear to our prayers, O Lord, and direct the way of your servants in safety under your protection, that, amid all the changes of our earthly pilgrimage, we may be guarded by your mighty aid; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Jesus feeds, heals and teaches (Matthew 14:13-14:35)

Today’s readings are familiar stories of Jesus’ ministry in and around Galilee. They also happen to be two of my favorite passages of Holy Scripture; the feeding of the five thousand and Jesus walking on the water to his disciples whose boat had drifted away, “far from the land.”

When I first told a friend of mine that I would be writing about the feeding of the five thousand, she commented that it was the perfect reflection for me. She knows me well and knows I am the type of person who loves to feed others. According to the Meyers-Briggs Personality Indicator, I am a bit more of an extrovert than an introvert and, for the most part, I am energized by being with others. But the truth is, I am the most comfortable when I can feed them and create an atmosphere of welcome and care.

So, I reflected on that for a while; thinking about what it might have felt like to the disciples who, through God’s grace, fed the multitude with an abundance of food that came from relative scarcity.  This prompted me to think about another dear friend of mine who also likes to feed others, make them feel welcomed and cared for. Having been the recipient of her gracious care, I am mindful of what it feels like to be hungry and in need and to be cared for. Imagine what it must have felt like to have been among the five thousand! You have just spent the afternoon listening to Jesus, watching him cure others and praying over them. (Perhaps Jesus even prayed for you.) And then, you are fed with an abundance of food. Wow.

Then comes the “You of little faith” story.  After feeding the five thousand, Jesus sends the disciples off in their boat, sends the crowd on their way and he goes to a mountain to pray. Upon his return we read that the boat had been “battered by the waves, was far from land, for the wind was against them.”  So, Jesus decides to walk on the water to join the disciples. At first they’re frightened by what looks to them like a ghost walking on the water. Peter challenges Jesus and says, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.”  (You know the rest of the story.) Jesus simply says, “Come.”  Peter steps boldly out of the boat and is holding his own as he walks on the water in response to the Lord’s command, “Come.” But then the wind picks up, Peter feels unsteady, looks away from Jesus and begins to sink. He cries out, “Lord, save me!” As Jesus reaches out and to catch Peter, he admonishes him saying, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?”

I’m on the vestry at Trinity, Wauwatosa. In the past year, we read the book Jesus Freak: Feeding-Healing-Raising the Dead, by Sara Miles. We’ve had lots of discussion about what it means to feed others and to be fed. We’ve explored what it means and what it looks like to step out in faith to feed, heal and to figuratively “raise the dead.” In these two Scripture stories Jesus calls the disciples to action. He calls for actions of faith that empower the disciples to feed and to walk. What I am reminded of in the story of Peter’s doubt is how easy it is to be filled with good intention and move boldly into action, only to be buffeted about by uncertainty and then lose my way.

In her book, Jesus Freak, Miles points out that Jesus consistently chose unconventional table fellowship as a sign of God’s kingdom. I am mindful of how God’s kingdom is reflected in my own church community. I am thankful for the power we draw from one another through prayer and the way in which we see Christ in one another.

Through this power, this gift of God’s grace, I see individuals as well as the community of Trinity, stepping out, being fed and in a multitude of literal and spiritual ways feeding others. We are being fed and feeding others through the abundance of God’s blessing on our gifts as individuals and as a community of faith. Through this Lenten season, I am praying about where God is calling me to feed and to be fed. I am praying that when I step out, I will keep my focus on Christ in the hope that I will not falter. But, if I do, (and I probably will) I know Christ will reach out to me… all I need to do is to call out to him.

Carlynn Higbie

Trinity Church, Wauwatosa

Experiencing God in Ways We Might Not Expect

Collect for Tuesday in the Third Week of Lent

O Lord, we beseech you mercifully to hear us; and grant that we, to whom you have given a fervent desire to pray, may, by your mighty aid, be defended and comforted in all dangers and adversities; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Experiencing God in Ways We Might Not Expect (Matthew 13:53-14:12)

What an odd combination of readings!  Check it out for yourself.  Doesn’t it seem a bit odd that Matthew would write about Jesus being rejected in his hometown, and in the next “breath” talk about John the Baptist’s death?  Sometimes I find it helpful to review the text and focus on the actions of the characters.  In this case, Jesus is rejected and the people are offended because someone they knew, someone they watched grow up as a child, could claim such authority.  They viewed Jesus as a child, and of course what child could have authority over them.  Even though they recognized Jesus’ “wisdom and these deeds of power” they could not bring themselves to accept what they just experienced.  I think today we would call this a major case of denial.  Even though they witnessed Jesus first hand, they could not accept him.

The story of John’s death takes place in the past.  This is Herod’s memory of John’s death.  And that caused me to look back to the first line in chapter 14 where Herod said, “this is John the Baptist”.  Herod recognized something in Jesus.  He recognized a divine power, the same power he saw in John.  And therefore thought Jesus was John resurrected.  And Herod’s response was fear.  He feared John because John spoke the truth to him.  John would not let him get away with marrying his brother’s wife just because he was king!  John called Herod to change, to repent and seek God again.

In both cases Jesus was recognized as someone of power, wisdom, and authority.  And in both cases he was resoundingly rejected.  At home because they “thought” they knew him and could not see past their current understanding.  They could not accept Jesus even though they were witnesses to his wisdom and deeds of power because it didn’t fit with their previous experience and understanding.  Herod understood Jesus to be a prophet but also knew that admitting that would mean he would have to confess his own sins and make a change in his life.

I think Matthew puts these stories together to show us that if we are to follow Jesus, we must be open to experience God in ways we might not expect, and sometimes if we do, we might hear or see something we don’t like in ourselves.  And yet, aren’t these concepts taught in self-help books, business leadership classes, support groups, and many schools?  Be open to new ideas!  Don’t be threatened by those ideas that challenge us!  Be willing to change!  And although we don’t follow this advice much better in business than we do in our spiritual lives, it must be good advice since so many have copied it from Jesus!

The Rev. Mark Moore

Rector

St. Paul's Church, Watertown

A Lesson in Abundance

Collect for Monday in the Third Week of Lent

Look upon the heart-felt desires of your humble servants, Almighty God, and stretch forth the right hand of your majesty to be our defense against all our enemies; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

A Lesson in Abundance (Matthew 13:1-52)

Jesus is the kind of teacher who asks his students to discover the point of the lesson for themselves—and that is the best kind of teaching there is. Despite Jesus’ attempts at explaining the parables, the disciples don’t seem to get it. They have not yet learned to see for themselves what Jesus is saying.

So what is Jesus saying, in these parables? Each one of them is rich in meaning and symbolism. But, taken all together, what is especially powerful about these parables is that each of them point to God’s abundance. The seeds that fall on good soil bring forth an astonishingly large harvest “some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty” (Matt. 13:8). Considering that a harvest of four to tenfold was considered normal[1] that is an amazing yield! The wheat in the field comes up, despite being planted with weeds. The mustard seed grows into a great plant, despite its tiny size. The yeast, mixed with three measures of flour, would make enough bread to feed about 100-150 people.[2] There is definitely a theme of God’s abundance in these parables.

And perhaps this is what makes Jesus’ lesson so difficult for the disciples, and for us, to see for ourselves. As Jesus says, “Many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, but did not see it, and to hear what you hear, but did not hear it” (Matt. 13:17). It is difficult to see that we are recipients of God’s abundant love, generosity, and grace, even when we claim that we want to see it. Maybe we do this because we find it hard to believe that we actually do receive, and deserve, blessing.  And yet, even if God’s gifts do sometimes fall on thin or thorny soil, or if we occasionally plant weeds among the riches given to us, we still receive abundance from God. More than that, God’s abundant gifts to us are always present, even if we don’t immediately recognize them for what they are. The trick is learning to see these gifts for ourselves. Only then can we can truly appreciate them. So perhaps our project for Lent is this: to try to see more clearly the gifts that God has already given us.

The Rev. Anna Doherty

Rector

St. Aidan’s Episcopal Church, Hartford, WI

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[1]  Boring, M. Eugene. The New Interpreter’s Bible Commentary, Volume VIII. Abingdon Press, Nashville: 1995. Page 303.

[2]  Ibid. Page 309.

Rest for the Weary

Collect for the Third Sunday in Lent

Almighty God, you know that I have no power in myself to help myself: Keep me both outwardly in my body and inwardly in my soul, that I may be defended from all adversities which may happen to the body, and from all evil thoughts which may assault and hurt the soul; through Jesus Christ the Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Rest for the Weary (Matthew 11:2-12:50)

Jesus isn't pulling any punches in these chapters filled with teaching, healing, and run-ins with the authorities. He compares his opponents to whiny “children sitting in the marketplaces” (11:16); he pronounces woes upon the cities that witnessed his “deeds of power” and yet “did not repent” (11:20); he flouts the laws prohibiting work on the sabbath (12:1-14); and he calls the Pharisees a “brood of vipers” (12:34) and worse. But amid all the vitriol are some equally significant moments of mercy, like the restoration of a man's withered hand (12:13-14) and a demoniac's senses (12:22).

I think there's an important insight bound up in the contrasts found in this eighty-verse emotional roller coaster. On one hand, we are reminded that Jesus is nothing if not demanding. With his words he warns repeatedly of the coming “day of judgment” (11:22, 12:36), and with his actions he calls his followers to join him in sacrificial solidarity with all who are needy, ailing, or marginalized (11:5, 11:19, 11:25, 12:13-14, 12:22). There's no doubt about it: the Lord expects great things from us.

AND there is tender reassurance here too, a reminder that God mercifully equips us for the work ahead. We saw at the beginning of Chapter 10 how Jesus gave his disciples authority to do their healing work in the Judean countryside. Now at the end of chapter 11 he promises us all a still greater gift: “Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light” (11:28-30).

We hear these words so often that I think it's easy to overlook their counter-intuitive implication. But it seems like the message is this: the rest and refreshment goes (or rather comes) hand in hand with our willingness to shoulder, as it were, the responsibility God places upon us. It is in taking up the work of the gospel that we receive the rest our souls so long for. How exactly does that work? Beats me. My guess is that it helps us reevaluate the weight we were originally carrying.

Kyle Oliver

Seminarian studying at Virginia Theological Seminary

St. Francis House Episcopal Student Center, Madison

Israel's Repudiation of Jesus

Video for Week 3, March 27-April 2

Israel’s Repudiation of Jesus

Matthew 11:2-16:12

Discussion Questions

We witness people starting to question Jesus and his role more fervently this week.  I wonder when you may have had a time in your life when you questioned God, when you questioned Jesus?  Where did you find God/Jesus in this time?

We hear of people, especially the Pharisees, questioning Jesus and wanting him to be put down, to be arrested and tried.  Throughout these struggles and questions, Jesus remains true to who he is and what he has come to do.  What do you think it was like to be one of the disciples in the midst of this back and forth?  What was it like to be in the midst of this struggle?

Jesus strives to make his word and works clear to those around him.  Is there a place of clarity for you in this week’s readings?  In the Gospel of Matthew?

We Can, With God's Help

This week, we heard a great deal of teaching from Jesus.  

What is the Kingdom of Heaven like?  Who are we and what are we to do as people of God?  What is our role in the world around us?  How are we to spread the word?  

These are all questions that were dealt with in our readings this week.  Jesus says to them - you are the salt of the earth and you are the light of the world.  YOU, not someone else, but YOU are God's people and you can't hide that, so go show others what this Kingdom means.

Matthew uses the phrase "Kingdom of Heaven" throughout his gospel.  One reason for this is that he is writing to the Jewish people and therefore he is avoiding using God's name.  So when he says Kingdom of Heaven, his followers and his readers would have understood that this was not about something in the afterlife or something that we have to work toward, but it is about bringing God's Kingdom here on earth.

So how do we do that?  Matthew tells us that we do that by showing our light, by praying and giving to God, by forgiving others and allowing others to forgive us.  We do that by not storing up treasures for ourselves here on earth, but by focusing on our treasures in heaven - or our treasures that we already have with God.  We are to strive first for God (6:33) and all will be given to us.

This seems like a really tall order, and quite frankly pretty overwhelming to me.  I am human.  I am fallible.  I need help.  YES!  We do need help and that help comes not only from God (think of our Baptismal Covenant, "I will, with God's help") but it also comes from those around us.  By people coming together to work for the Kingdom here on earth - not doing it all at once, but doing it one step at a time, one encounter at a time.

We also heard about miracles this week and miracles can seem like a very far off, ancient thing that doesn't happen to us, but I beg to differ. Yes, miracles can me huge things like regaining sight or being able to walk or being healed from illness, but miracles can also be the small things in our lives that change us, that change our course for the better and help redirect us toward our calling and our walk with God.  

Just this week, when I was struggling, when I was feeling down, I received an email from a friend which lifted my spirits and made me see the light of God in an otherwise dismal time.  The next day, I got a phone call from a friend, who listened and encouraged me and understood me.  Both of these were healing for my soul.  

We never know how our actions, how our words, how our lives will touch others lives.  By living in the light of Christ, by not hiding our light, we are able to effect one another in ways that we may not even understand and comprehend.  Miracles are all around us. 

As we say in youth ministry, it's all about relationships.  God did not come and say to the twelve disciples - go and do this alone.  No, he said go together and spread the word.  Do not let others drag you down if they are not willing to listen to the word.  Go into the world and proclaim, teach, heal, show the Kingdom of Heaven/God here so others will see God's work.  

Can we do this?  Can we, as fallible human beings spread the good news?

We can, with God's help.

The Rev. Shannon Kelly

Bishop's Assistant for Christian Formation

The Diocese of Milwaukee

Following God

Collect for Friday in the Second Week of Lent

Grant, O Lord, that as your Son Jesus Christ prayed for His enemies on the cross, so we may have grace to forgive those who wrongfully or scornfully use us, that we ourselves may be able to receive your forgiveness; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Following God (Matthew 9:35-11:1)

The commissioning of the twelve disciples is one reading that I feel is scary to many people who read it. Jesus starts by saying “The harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few” to rouse the twelve to action. The harvest (the people of the world) is bountiful and it is the labor’s job to help the harvest find God. Jesus then tells of all the troubles that the disciples will face when they go out into the world. “See, I am sending you out like sheep into the midst of wolves…” is just one terrifying statement made by Jesus in this reading. And yet, when we look closer, I feel Jesus had a different intent than to scare the disciples or us.

“The harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few” is one of my favorite quotes from Jesus. When I read it, I feel empowered to be one of those laborers; to devote my life to God and to live my life in a way I feel he would see fit. This quote almost makes me feel overzealous with ambition and  makes me want to stop everything I am doing, leave all the friends I know, all my possessions, and run to help the Lord because I am going to bring in that harvest with no trouble. While this is an amazing feeling, it is not the truth. There will be trouble. The harvest, while plentiful, is not easy to bring in many times. When Jesus tells of the troubles the disciples will face, I think he is trying to calm them from this overwhelming feeling that the twelve can do everything with ease. People will rebel against what you believe and life will not be a walk in the park.

At the end of this reading, the disciples, after hearing what lies ahead of them, go out into the world to spread the word of God. They did not fight what Jesus was saying but accepted their trials knowing they were doing the right thing. They may have been scared but they went out to do what was right, just as Jesus did when he died on the cross. Life isn’t always easy when following God, but hard work also yields the best rewards.

Kate McKey

Youth Minster

St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church Madison, WI

and

Christian Formation Assistant

Diocese of Milwaukee

Mighty Miracles

Collect for Thursday in the Second Week of Lent

O Lord, strong and mighty, Lord of Hosts and King of glory: Cleanse our hearts from sin, keep our hand pure, and turn our minds from what is passing away; so that at the last we may stand in your holy place and receive your blessing; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Mighty Miracles (Matthew 8:1-9:34)

This powerful passage brims with mighty miracles performed by our Lord Jesus Christ. In these two chapters alone, Jesus heals a leper, a centurion’s servant, a woman with a fever, two demoniacs, a woman suffering from hemorrhages, a paralytic, two blind men, and a mute person. If that weren’t enough, he restores a girl to life, calms a raging sea, and heals many more people at Peter’s house. That’s quite a series of accomplishments by any standard.

As followers and believers of Jesus, it’s tempting for us to say, “There’s no way we can perform such mighty miracles.” And on the surface that is true. In the entire history of the human race, there has been only one Jesus, only on person capable of performing such deeds, only one person able to cure “all who were sick,” as verse 16 in chapter 8 notes.

A key to this Gospel passage is the willingness of Jesus to heal. Notice how he responds by word or touch to all whom he encountered – and it is a call for us to do likewise. We are called to be Jesus to our friends, co-workers, relatives, and even outright strangers. There is no greater need in the world today than to bring the love, mercy, care, concern, compassion and peace of Christ to those we encounter.

Our actions, however small they may seem, can often provide much-needed healing and comfort. Just as Jesus “stretched out his hand and touched” the leper, so too can we hold someone’s hand in ours or wrap an arm around their shoulder as we speak gentle words of comfort and encouragement that can help dispel dark clouds of despair or loneliness. Our words, spoken with the love of the Christ we serve, can help calm a raging storm of angry emotions. They can provide soothing comfort during a time of heart-wrenching grief.

Through our words and actions, miracles can be performed. We can guide people down paths of restoration, provide them with hope and comfort, and help them experience the peace of God that passes all understanding. That is our call and that is our commission.

John Koski

Candidate for ordination to the vocational diaconate

Currently interning at St. Thomas of Canterbury Episcopal Church, Greendale

Sermon on the Mount

Collect for Wednesday in the Second Week of Lent

O God, you so loved the world that you gave your only begotten Son to reconcile earth with heaven; Grant that we, loving you above all things, may love our friends in you, and our enemies for your sake; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

 

The Sermon on the Mount  (Matthew 5-7)

So often we hear these great teachings in snippets - one at a time, a reference here and another there, and then it’s not so hard to be told that we should not let our anger fester, that we should give without recognition, that worry will serve no purpose, that money will distract us from God.  But today, when these passages are read together, when we take in the whole of this wisdom from our great Rabbi, the demands that Jesus makes upon us begin to seem overwhelming...

Jesus does not waste time beating around the bush. In a fleeting moment The Sermon on the Mount gives us the standards we are to grasp: those of the Ten Commandments laid out and sifted through until the very heart of their meaning is revealed.  It’s a tall order.  I don’t know about you, but I find it frustrating to know I’m going to fail before I even begin a task.  Scarlett O’Hara had the right idea.  These things are just too much to deal with today... maybe tomorrow.

But there’s no getting around it.  In these teachings, Jesus is quite clear that he means business:  we are to be perfect, as our heavenly Father is perfect.  Not that crazy sort of perfection that turns mere mortals into obsessive/compulsive/rigid/miserable beings.  But perfect as in healthy and whole and consistent.  We are to make sense. 

To accomplish this, there are two things which matter.  The first is the transformation of our inner selves - what we think, what we care about, the state of our hearts.  The second flows outward as that new self takes on outward expressions - what we do, how we behave.

Both matter very much, indeed, each proving the other.  How we think and feel determine the actions which flow forth from us and, just so, what we do gives the world a window into each of our souls.  Do we walk the walk, not just talk the talk?  Is there an ever-increasing consistency between our inner self and our outward behavior?  Are we becoming more and more healthy and whole, in body, mind, and spirit?  Because health and wholeness are the just the sort of perfection Jesus calls us to right in the middle of this sermon.

It is a lifelong process, this discipleship.  It means paying attention, every day.  Examining our hearts, evaluating our responses.  We, like the Apostle Paul, so often do the very thing we want not to do.  Jesus knows it is tough - he calls it “entering through the narrow gate.”   It is anything but easy, and frankly impossible if we do not begin our work on the foundation of God’s love and grace.
 
And so, today, knowing how fully loved we are, we choose the narrow gate.  We seek to love the one we think is an enemy and to humble ourselves to the one we esteem lower.  We seek to give anonymously, to pray without being noticed, to release the worry which distracts us from God’s abundance.  We will not judge our sister or belittle our brother.  Today, however briefly, we will offer our innermost selves and the works of our hands to God.  And catch a just a glimpse of perfection...

The Rev. Martha Berger

Learning the Beatitudes

Collect for Tuesday in the Second Week of Lent

O God, you willed to redeem us from all iniquity by your Son: Deliver us when we are tempted to regard sin without abhorrence, and let the virtue of his passion come between us and our mortal enemy; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Learning the Beatitudes

Matthew 4:23-48

As a child, okay, who am I kidding, even as a new priest, I wasn’t very fond of the Beatitudes. I think I managed to spend the first four years of my ordained life avoiding preaching and teaching anything related to the Beatitudes.

Looking back, I saw the Beatitudes as yet another set of expectations of how I must live my life. You know, like the Ten Commandments: another list of thou shall’s and thou shall not’s! I have this understanding that we are children of God who are loved by God not for what we didn’t do wrong, but for who we are in our created being...the last thing I needed was another list of expectations.

It was sometime about 2 or 3 years ago, long after I found the Episcopal church, even after I had been ordained, that I began to see the Beatitudes not as a to-do (or not-to-do) list, but as a set of “sign-posts”, as John Purdy calls them in his Blessed are You Kerygma study (p. 3). The Beatitudes are, for example, sign-posts to remind us that when we are going through life and we feel as if someone has done an injustice to us and we should seek justice, we must remember “blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.”

This portion of Matthew’s Gospel we are to read today, the beginning of the Sermon on the Mount, calls to our attention that we need to focus on our intentions as we continue along our spiritual journeys. If we focus only on our actions, then we are already lost on our journey. However, if we can control our intentions, then our actions will surprise even ourselves. As you go along your journey, let your yes be yes and your no be no and when you see the uprising start, “remember that blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called the children of God.”

Oh, and one final thing, this year, for the first time, I am teaching, and learning even more, about the Beatitudes. What an awe-filled experience! God’s truth was unchanging, but my understanding of God’s truth was transformed by the sign-posts along my journey. This Lent, how will you be transformed by God’s signs posted along your journey?

The Rev. Kenny Miller

Rector

St. Boniface Episcopal Church, Mequon

The Calling of the First Disciples

Collect for Monday in the Second Week of Lent

Let your Spirit, O Lord, come into the midst of us to wash us with the pure water of repentance, and prepare us to be always a living sacrifice to you; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

The Calling of the First Disciples

Matthew 4:18-22

Jesus’ ministry is beginning and he needs to put his team together and to build a community able to carry on his message – ‘Repent the Kingdom of God is near’ (Matt 4:17). How would you put such a team together? How would I? I would need to know what their role is and what are their expectations – what skills are needed? Let’s go back and look at what discipleship meant in Jesus’ time.

The role of the disciple (student, apprentice or follower) was to learn as much as they could from the rabbi to be able to carry on the rabbi’s work just as he did. They were the best of the best and expected to have memorized the Torah, the laws of Moses and be able to respect and honor the rabbi and his work. It was an honor to be chosen. If you were not chosen, believed not to have the knowledge and skills to be a disciple, you went back to your family and learned the family trade.

I see now why the disciples act as they do upon the invitation to follow Jesus. They are back learning their trade and have been passed by other rabbis and now to have Jesus come to them and say ‘Follow me and I will make you fishers of men’. Jesus has faith in them and he believes they can carry on his work – wow that is a powerful statement.

Jesus takes them where they are and builds on who they are. We see Simon and Andrew working on their own while James and John are still working with their father - and all of them leave their homes. They have hope and the desire for more. They know as a disciple they will learn, will be supported in community and moreover they will obey their rabbi by doing and living into his teachings and commandments. They are called into action and they are ready to go because of the belief and faith Jesus has in them simply by saying the words ‘Come follow me’.

Is discipleship different for us? If it means that we are learning, spending time with Jesus, living in and support of a community of followers, AND obeying the teachings and commandments of Christ then no it is the same. The question for us is do we understand discipleship to be the honor Simon, Andrew, James and John did?

Does Jesus have the same expectations of us as he had for the first disciples? Does he have faith in us that we can carry on his message and live into full discipleship (Matt.28:18-20)? I believe he does and I believe he takes us as we are and builds up our gifts and skills so that we can go and engage the world just as he did with Simon, Peter, James and John. To be on ‘the team’ and part of the community of followers is more than understanding about Jesus it is taking our whole self into action. It is trusting in the faith that Jesus has for us, that he has called each one of us – just as we are – to follow him. We know what the role of discipleship is and we know the expectations. I hope we also know Jesus has faith in us, hope in us and belief in us as he calls us into his community. He invites us to know him and to carry on his work as he continues to guide us, strengthen us and be with us.

Where are you on answering his call – “Come, follow me”?

Mrs. Peggy Bean

Bishop’s Assistant for Congregational Development

Diocese of Milwaukee

Repentance and Re-arranging Ourselves

Collect for the Second Sunday in Lent

O God, whose glory it is always to have mercy: Be gracious to all who have gone astray from your ways, and bring them again with penitent hearts and steadfast faith to embrace and hold fast the unchangeable truth of your Word, Jesus Christ your Son; who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Repentance and Re-arranging Ourselves

Matthew 4:12-17

“Now when Jesus heard that John had been arrested… ‘Jesus’ left Nazareth and made his home in Capernaum… and began to proclaim, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.’”

“Repent for the kingdom of heaven is near!” How easy it is to say it, but how difficult it is to do. Sometimes, there are moments in life when we are reminded of our human nature, a nature that is not perfect, but a nature that helps us face and re-evaluate actions that cause pain to others or to ourselves. Most of the time, after we have re-evaluated these circumstances we are invited to repent and ask for forgiveness, but it is difficult to do so. Many of us do not like to accept our own mistakes and try to run from this responsibility.

A few weeks ago, while walking around Virginia Theological Seminary’s campus, I noticed a group of trees that grew from the ground, pointing in every direction but the sky. These trees were beautiful for their unique structures, but it was precisely because of their structures that they all met a similar end. Because their main trunk was anything but strait, these trees grew pointing in all different directions and at some point, when to much weight was added to their structures, each tree would fall down and die. Because these trees do not have the possibility to re-arrange the direction in which they grow, they share a common end.

If we were trees that grew without the possibility of re-arranging our trunks, we would fall down and die, but because we are able to repent, to re-arrange our structures, we are invited to accept our mistakes and ask for forgiveness. God loves us so much that we have the opportunity to repent and to re-arrange ourselves.

In this time of lent, lets re-evaluate our own structures and come to recognize our mistakes. Let us repent. Repentance is difficult only until we take the first step...

Almighty God, help us to recognize our mistakes, but more importantly, help us repent so that we might share with you in your heavenly kingdom.

Mr. Oscar Rozo

Seminarian studying at Virginia Theological Seminary

Grace Church, Madison

Jesus Teaches - Matthew 4:12-11:1

Video for the Week of March 20-26
Second Week in Lent



Discussion Questions

Discussion Questions March 20-26

Jesus Teaches (Matthew 4:12 – 11:1)

With a focus on the Sermon on the Mount

1. Jesus goes up on the Mountain to address the people of God, giving them a new law and a new covenant. This echoes Moses on the mountain and coming down the with the Ten Commandments. As you think of the law, commandments and teachings that we hear on a mountain top, which one do you remember the most? Which one strikes a chord in your heart?
2. Matthew wants us to know from his language and the action of this Gospel that Jesus is the one who has come to fulfill the law. How do you see his law being similar and different from the law that came before him?
3. What do these laws have to do with us today? How can they be a part of our everyday lives?

Reflection on the First Week in Lent

Collect for Saturday in the First Week of Lent

O God, by your Word you marvelously carry out the work of reconciliation: Grant that in our Lenten fast we may be devoted to you with all our hearts, and united with one another in prayer and holy love; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Matthew 1:1-4:11

As you look back on the readings and reflections for the week, I wonder what stood out for you? What surprised you? What made you think in a different way?

As I have read through these reflections in conjunction with the scripture, what has come to me each and every day is how alive the scripture is. This is not necessarily surprising, but it has struck a new chord with me this week. Maybe it was the wonderful diversity of the reflections from people all over the Diocese, maybe it was the fact that these voices are giving new light to scripture that we hear often, or maybe it is that we are reading each and every part of Matthew as a story and then pausing to think about what that section or phrase or word means to the scripture and to us a people of God.

Thank you to all of our writers this week. I can't wait to see what next week brings us.

Don't forget that you can comment either here on the Blog or on the Facebook updates at the Diocese of Milwaukee Facbook page at http://www.facebook.com/DioceseOfMilwaukee.

Peace and blessings to you all as we continue this journey together.
The Rev. Shannon Kelly
Bishop's Assistant for Christian Formation

Temptation of Jesus

Collect for Friday in the First Week of Lent
Lord Christ, our eternal Redeemer, grant us such fellowship in your sufferings, that filled with your Holy Spirit, we may subdue the flesh to the spirit, and the spirit to you, and at the last attain to the glory of your resurrection; who live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

The Temptation of Jesus
Reflection on Matthew 4:1-11


Jesus comes up from the muddy water of the Jordan River, the Spirit of God alights upon him like a dove, and a voice from heaven proclaims him God’s Son, the Beloved, with whom God is well pleased. But before Jesus can begin his public ministry he is led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the Devil.


Jesus came to reconcile all people to God, to turn us back to the God who loves us unconditionally, and to help us to return that love in joy and thanksgiving. Jesus goes into the wilderness and the Devil offers him three means by which he might accomplish his mission.


Turn these stones into bread and buy their loyalty. They will follow you wherever you go if you will just fill their bellies.


Throw yourself off of the temple and make their loyalty a matter of proof, of science. When the angels bear you up everyone will know that it would be foolish not to follow you.


Force your will upon them. I will give them into your hands. Surely you would be a benevolent dictator and everything that you do would be for their good. Take this power and make them follow you.


The temptation that Jesus faces is the temptation to coercion. Buy their allegiance, make it a matter of science and fact, or force them to follow. The problem with these three options is that what Jesus wants, what God wants from us is love and coercion never leads to love. “If you can’t say ‘no’ it isn’t love.”


So Jesus chooses another path. Jesus reveals God’s true nature and draws us into loving by giving himself to us, by refusing to abandon us no matter how we treat him, by loving us even when we do not love in return.


Coercion never leads to love. Love cannot be bought, proven, or forced. Love does not come through guilt, shame, or manipulation. Jesus understands that true love only happens when we are willing to make ourselves vulnerable, giving up control of the outcome, and love one another as God loves us. Jesus rejects the temptation to coercion so the Devil leaves him and the angels come and wait on him.


The Rev. Andrew Jones
Rector
St. Andrew’s Church, Madison