Hail and Farewell

Psalm 46
Philippians 1:1-10


The Rev. Suzanne Rudiselle

April 22, 2007

Suzanne, servant of Christ Jesus, to all the saints in Christ Jesus who are in Rockville. Grace to you and peace from God and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Twenty-two months ago I began my first sermon here with those words and these same texts. They were pertinent then and now in a different way. They still offer us promise, and call us to silence and hope - and thanksgiving. This has been a time of change and adventure after the long and distinguished ministry of Mansfield Kaseman (Kasey). You have been welcoming and kind, you have listened and many times made the changes I asked of you. You are now about to build again on the strong foundation of forty years and enter yet another faze of ministry and mission. And, yes, there will be more changes, and many more challenges for the whole church of Jesus Christ.

The world has changed in these twenty-two months. The evidence is clear. We have struggled with the news of a tsunami obliterating whole island nations and laying waste to parts of others. We have seen the terrible destruction in our own country from Katrina. Pakistan and Japan have suffered devastating earthquakes. Hundreds of thousands of innocent Iraqi civilians have been killed or fled their country while the war rages on, unabated by the “surge” or any sane policy. 3,300 of our own military personnel have died, 24,000 have been wounded. Neighboring nations in the Middle East remain in tension, with periodic outbursts of violence. North Korea has tested nuclear weapons and Iran threatens to build their own. Our dollar is devalued, we have a record deficit, our manufacturing edge is gone, our schools are in deep trouble, and health care is absent from those who need it most. Worst of all we have a crisis of leadership in business and in the government, and our Constitution is ignored by the very people we elect to protect it.

The world has changed! It feels as it must have felt to those to whom the psalmist wrote - like the mountains shaking in the heart of the sea. Truly the nations are in an uproar, the kingdoms totter - including our own. And this week we have seen a tragedy of mental illness exploding in senseless violence. Our hearts ache for all those whose lives are gone, and those whose lives will never be the same. We read the papers and watch in horror at all these things with our heads are reeling and questions loom large.

There are other changes as well - good changes - caring people stepping up to work for peace and non-violent means of settling difference, and calling attention to the terrible price we are paying for military intervention. Community Ministries of Rockville, of which this church is a vital part, is serving the elderly, the homeless, those struggling to pay for basic necessities, and trying to provide health care for those who have none. There is a renewed awareness of the needs of our young people in colleges and universities, and the dedicated work of people like Denise Giacomozzi serving in ministries on campuses. And yes there are generous spirits right here learning new hymns!
What kind of a last sermon is this? Is it just a diatribe or is there hope? The challenge I see for us - all of us in the church is that we are not here to be bystanders but to be activists in the cause of God’s righteousness. We have just celebrated Easter and proclaimed the resurrection of Jesus Christ. That power is still operative and transformative, and the God of Jacob is still our refuge. We have a calling. We have a mandate to claim that power and begin to act as if we believed that God’s will has a place in this world, in spite of what we see around us.

Paul, writing to the Philippians, people he cares deeply about, and from whom he is absent, begins with thanksgiving for these people, and the ministry they have shared. He has great confidence in them and what God will do through them. Then he adds his prayer that their “love may overflow more and more with knowledge and full insight, to help (them) determine what is best, so that in the day of Christ they may be pure and blameless, having produced the harvest of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ for the glory and praise of God.”

He has confidence in them and in God for work yet to be done; work born of love; “not love that shrinks from truth-telling and tough engagements; but a love that is joined to knowing and understanding , to probing and discerning, to putting itself to the test in real-life situations, and making moral choices in matters that count.” (Philippians, Fred Craddock p.21) This is love which will result in righteousness. It’s a tall order. All those things which we know to be wrong and in need of correction are waiting for us to stir our stumps and put ourselves out to help affect change. Christians are not to hide out in a nice sanctuary but to pray and act on our convictions - in love.

After all the proof reading I noticed yesterday that the bulletin says Philippians 2:1-10 instead of chapter 1:1-10. I have wrestled with the implications of the error and finally went back to my original choice. However, God is still speaking - even to me - when I am still and listening! Chapter 2 contains the wonderful christological hymn which contains these words, “Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus”. All that we are called to be and do is from a posture of humility and obedience, following Christ’s example, being of the same mind of Jesus, even at the cost of our comfort and convenience and our very lives. Together as part of the greater church we continue to be indicted and invited to live out our faith with conviction and energy and love.

“Be still“, says God, and listen and hear and heed the call that God is issuing to you individually and as this Body of Christ to work for justice and righteousness, to continue to bring those positive changes that offer life and hope. Trust that the call is accompanied by the God who is refuge and strength, and whose word is true. Let the Holy Spirit guide and direct you as this journey of faith unfolds. Pray without ceasing with and for each other, and encourage each other. Give thanks in all circumstances.

Like Paul, “I thank my God every time I remember you, constantly praying with joy in every one of my prayers for all of you, because of your sharing in the gospel” for the time we have had together “I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work among you will bring it to completion by the day of Christ.”

May the grace of Christ be with you; the love of God surround you; the Holy Spirit guide you that you may live in faith, abound in hope and grow in love, now and forevermore