Ordinary People of Extraordinary Commitment

All Saints – Year C Luke 19:1-10

There you are – minding our own business, standing at a fruit stand picking raisins & dates when someone jostles you. You reach to see if you've lost your wallet, but it's still there. You turn to see who elbowed you & you see a short stocky man in a fine linen robe pushing other people out of the way. Your irritation turns to amazement as the little man jumps up, grabs onto a big branch of a tree near the curb. He tries to swing his legs up & grab the branch, but he can’t, because of his long robe. So he hikes it up, tucks it into his belt & manages to get his legs around the limb. He rolls over on the branch on his belly, & then he stands up & climbs to another limb.

Just as you're thinking how odd it is for a grown man dressed in a fine suit of clothes to be climbing trees, YOU'RE SHOVED AGAIN. This time a flood of people in a hurry come around the corner & are flowing out into the street. The crowd of both men & women is loud & boisterous. At front & center of this mob is a man who is obviously in charge. Like a politician working a crowd, he smiles, talks to many people at once, shakes everyone's hands. You figure it's just one more crowd of loud Galileans on pilgrimage.

At once, you notice the crowd lurch to a halt when this man --the man in charge--stops under the tree right where this man in his fine suit is perched. The crowd looks up; They begin to laugh. Someone next to you says, “That dog Zaccheus is sure ‘gonna catch it now. They say Jesus is a friend to the little guy. Zaccheus up there is such a crook he'd steal the coins off a dead man's eyes.”

With that, you look up & see a swarthy little man , sweating profusely, his fine linen robe all wrinkled & twisted. And you can't help but notice a little trickle of blood where he has scraped his shin climbing the tree. He sort of reminds you of a trapped animal, run up a tree.

So you wait for Jesus to give this puny little runt the searing sermon he deserves. But Jesus looks up, & instead of giving him holy hell, Jesus simply tells Zaccheus to come on down. “Let's go have supper,” he says. “& you're buying.”

What a surprise this must have been for everyone! Acc. to Luke, Zaccheus had made his fortune by stepping all over people. He had used his own Jewish brothers & sisters as stepping stones to power & wealth. He squeezed taxes from the little people, sent the money to Rome, & Rome --in return --had made him a big person. To get to be the MAIN TAX COLLECTOR, he'd probably not only walked over the peasants, but he’d also – more than likely -- scrambled over some of his colleagues as well. After all to get to the TOP, it takes stepping over ALL KINDS, you know.

Zaccheus no doubt was accustomed to the best seat in the house. But on this particular day, being elevated above the rest meant only that the street urchins could look up his skirts & that dogs could snap at his stubby little feet dangling from the limb.

It was Jesus who gave this man a graceful way down. Jesus didn't condemn or lecture him. He didn't point out the obvious to Zaccheus -- that his greed & ambition had left him out on a limb. Jesus treated the man like one of his best friends. And he reached up & helped him down.

Now -- the crowd didn't particularly like what Jesus did that day. To them, Zaccheus was the worst of the worst of sinners --the most despised dirty cheating scoundrel around – a corrupt, immoral tax collector. And here was Jesus -- treating him as if he were a SAINT.

I think it was the German poet Goethe who noted, “If one treats a person as if he were what he ought to be and could be, he will become what he ought to be, and could be”

On that day because of the way Jesus treated him -- Zaccheus dared to dream a new dream for his life. And right then & there, he started down the road to becoming a whole NEW PERSON: Zaccheus raised all of his five foot three inches to its full stature, & he made some astonishing promises – big promises – selfless promises -- about what he planned to do with his himself – his time, his energy & money. That day Jesus helped Zaccheus down out of the tree & he raised him back up to life. In essence, Jesus transformed Zaccheus from a sinner right into a saint.

Today is ALL SAINTS Sunday. Our Catholic brothers & sisters are celebrating BIG TIME in church this morning --remembering those who have “gone on to glory”, those down through history who’ve been persecuted for righteousness sake, those whom their church has named officially as “SAINTS.” But we Protestants generally haven't made much out of this day. In some of the more liturgical Protestant churches – like the Lutherans, the Episcopalians and Anglicans -- ALL SAINTS has been celebrated, but in the LESS LITURGICAL ones, like ours, we’ve hardly even mentioned it. During the past few years, what with the growing use of the lectionary, the church calendar, the colors, and so forth, MOST OF OUR CONGREGATIONS are beginning to celebrate ALL SAINTS in some fashion. That's why today we read the names of those of our own congregation who have died over the past yr. It's also why we pause now to think together about those whom we, even in the Protestant tradition, might term as SAINTS.

So -- What is a SAINT? Our church – the UCC-- doesn't have an appointment to such standing. Most of us have been led to believe that the saints are sort of plaster-like figures, people who were free from all human limitations & faults -- People like Joan of Arc, or the Apostle Paul-WHO LIVED SUCH PERFECT LIVES that they got the honor of being used to decorate stained glass windows for ages hence. But a good look at the Bible should remove such an illusion. There we see that while people like Peter & Paul, Matthew & John, all lived vibrant lives, they were ANYTHING BUT WITHOUT FAULT or limitations.

The theologian & writer, Frederick Beuchner defines a saint in this way, “In his holy flirtation with the world, God occasionally drops a handkerchief. These handkerchiefs are called saints.”

Others have been more pedestrian in their understating, distinguishing the saints as forgiven sinners. An article that appeared once in The Christian Century put it this way: “Life is more than a scoreboard to record wins & losses. Life does not require us to win; It asks us instead to grow. We can do this from our losses as well as our successes. God invites us to be pilgrims & stewards of our lives, to see life as a gift which grows in meaning with experience...There are no winners, only redeemed sinners. Unlike our secular culture, which rushes to anoint its winners...the church declares its saints are SIMPLY SINNERS REVISED & EDITED.”

Jesus stopped under a tree in Jericho to claim that even the most dishonest & oppressive of tax collectors was a child of Abraham, an heir to the promise. Perhaps the saints are merely those who realize how much they have in common with Zaccheus, -- that they too are simply sinners, edited & revised.

In a functional way, it's been said, that saints are basically just those who make it easier for others to believe in God. Like in the beautiful little story about saints that I'm sure you've all heard. The minister asks the children, “What is a s saint?” One of the children looks at the stained glass windows of the church & says, “A saint is the person the light shines through.” Those whose Gods light shines through so we all can see.

Beuckner goes on in his book to clarify a little more about what he means when he talks about saints: “I mean saints as men & women who are made not out of plaster & platitude & moral perfection but out of human flesh. I mean saints who have their rough edges & their blind spots like everyone else, but whose lives are transparent to something so extraordinary that every so often it stops us dead in our tracks.” Think about those words for a moment -- “Whose lives are so transparent to something so extraordinary that every so often it stops us in our tracks.”

It doesn't take a perfect person to let God's light shine through, you know. It only takes being open, honest, & receptive. Rabbi Harold Kushner makes this observation: “The people who staff God's embassy's are rarely perfect. Most of the time, they are flawed, imperfect, inconsistent, weak, & confused. This is the case not because churches attract the insecure & problem-ridden, but because most of us are like that to some degree. The religiously aware are brave enough to see their flaws & to try to do something about it.”

The truth of the matter is, Saints are ordinary Christians whose lives reflect the life of Jesus Christ. They're ORDINARY PEOPLE OF EXTRAORDINARY COMMITMENT, NOT people who seem to walk about one foot off the ground. So-- here we are this morning, called to lift up THESE KINDS of people. Some of them may have come across bigger than life in your mind's eye. But in reality, they were more than likely just simple everyday folk, who allowed themselves --WARTS & ALL--to be used by God as they went through life. Actually, most of the time, saints don't even know they're saints. They’re just so focused on God & living the kind of life they're promised, they don't notice effect they have on people.

§ You know, like that 6th grade Sunday School teacher, who even though at times she was mean as sin, she always, always, always showed up to teach us about her faith, EVEN WHEN WE WERE THE ROTTENEST BRATS AROUND!

§ Or maybe like the youth group leader who was from the hills of Tennessee. She was a really strange character to think of for sainthood. She loved bawdy jokes, & had little time for pious platitudinal preachers. One day she ignored the cautions of her church board, loaded in her car teens from the affluent white suburbs where she lived & went to church, & she took them to the inner city-- right into the housing projects to work side by side with African American teens on a VBS, in a time & placed that was unexpected.

§ Or maybe like our grandparents, or others we've loved who've simply let the light shine through them in ways that made some difference in our lives.

One person, Ferrell Sams, writes about how his grandmother communicated grace to him: “Her love for flowers enriched my life. Whenever I was on the verge of excessive punishment for fussing with my sisters, grandmother would lure me away on the pretext of needing my help in her flower beds. There she taught me the difference between weed & choice plant, the effect of chicken or cow manure on growing things & the joy of pulling weeds & grass out by the roots so that the flowers would flourish. She also managed to counsel me about temper, the virtues of manhood & family pride. She made me feel special & she imbued him with a reverence for womanhood I've never forsaken. She became part of my life, & to this day, I love flowers in homage to her.”

All Saints is a day to celebrate the MANY & VARIED characters whom God has used to bring about change & Christian love in this world. We want to stop & remember those special persons & give thanks to God for the privilege of walking beside them & for their positive influence in our lives. it's also a day to realize that we too are called to be people like them --ORDINARY PEOPLE OF EXTRAORDINARY COMMITMENT, as well. Every generation has the joy & the responsibility of transferring the love of Christ & the message of the gospel to the next. Today we acknowledge OUR CALL to be among their number, as we strive to build on the foundation they laid – with Christ as our cornerstone as well as theirs.

There's a story told about Mother Teresa as she was arriving at the airport in Stockholm to receive the Nobel prize. She was met by a large & boisterous crowd or reporters. One young reporter elbowed his way to the front of the crowd, stuck a microphone in Mother Teresa's face & shouted: “Mother Teresa, are you a saint?” “Yes I am,” she gently replied, “& so are you.”

“To be a saint is to live not with the hands clenched to grasp, to strike, to hold tight to a life that is always slipping away more tightly than we hold it; but it is to live with the hands stretched out --both to give & to receive with gladness...It is to live life that is always giving itself away.”

Let us celebrate this kind of life on this Day we call ALL SAINTS.

PASTORAL PRAYER

God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob -- God of all good people who have inhabited this world, we come to you this morning, this day we have set aside in memory of the Saints of your church, with nothing but praise to you. We come with praise to you for all those of ancient days, and through our time, in whose hearts & lives were reflected your love & care. We thank you that it was their vision to strive for the coming of your kingdom and to do your will. We remember those who dreamed dreams, and hoped hopes, and translated those dreams and hopes into Christian action.

Today we remember O God, those who left behind a worthy example. Thank you for men and women who have had and continue to have the courage to be reformers--who challenge their society, their state, and their church. Thank you, God, for men and women who have had and continue to have the inner fortitude to stand up for the unpopular cause, even if it means a personal loss. Thank you, God, for men and women whose lives illustrate fidelity to their friends, to their spouses, and to God. Thank you, God, for men and women who are truthful, honorable, who are kind--in short, who illustrate in their lives what it means to be a person who follows Jesus Christ.

Especially today we hold in grateful memory those who were members of this church and assisted in the growth and strength of service. We remember those who made this church a reality in their dreams, whose labors and dreams we have inherited.

At this time we lift up in prayer the saints who are sick at home or in hospital. We remember each of them now in the silence of our hearts. (pause) Bless them, God of Life, with your Healing Touch. Help them to sense your presence surrounding them throughout all their endeavors. God, hear our prayers.

Finally, gentle Savior, we bring to you our thanksgiving for those of our membership who have died during this past year. In just a moment we will lift up their names before you lighting candles on their behalf. May our remembrance of them not be a cause for renewed sorrow, but rather an experience of joy and love for the gift of having known and served with them. In Jesus name now we pray together using the words He taught us. “Our Father…” Amen.

LITANY AND LIGHTING OF THE CANDLES OF THE SAINTS

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THE CELEBRATION OF THE LORD’S SUPPER

Invitation to the Table

Leader: The Lord be with you.

People: And also with you.
Leader: Lift up your hearts.
People: We lift them to the Lord.
Leader: Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
People: It is right to give thanks and praise.

The Meaning of Communion

Table fellowship in the ancient world was serious business. Whom you chose to break bread with was a reflection of your moral character, your values, and your reputation. Well aware of this, Jesus ate with everybody! He dined with anyone who invited him: men, women, and children --Pharisee, prostitute, and leper. And, as we saw in the story of Zaccheaus, he wasn’t at all shy about inviting himself to eat with even the most scorned of outcasts.

Friends, the Lord’s Supper is a feast of belonging & acceptance. It’s a celebration. At The Lord’s Table, there’s a place for everyone. Jesus welcomes each of us & invites us each to join him now -- in the sharing of the bread of life and the cup of forgiveness. So come, let us seek the presence and Spirit of Christ together. Let us dine with the God of Creation.

Prayer of Preparation

Pour out your Holy Spirit upon us, O God, and upon these gifts of bread and wine, that they may be for us the life of Christ and that we may make that life visible through the way we love and serve you and one another. In Jesus'

name we pray. Amen

Words of Institution

Closing Prayer

Holy God, we give you thanks that we have been fed at this table and renewed by Christ's life in us and we go now to share that life with others. Send us forth equipped with the power of your Spirit to follow Jesus and to spread the message of his love to all whom we meet. In his name we pray. Amen

OFFERTORY SENTENCE

As we give, let us follow the example of those who have gone before us; those who sacrificed so we could hear the Word of life; those who gave their resources so we could have a house of worship; those who gave of themselves so we could receive Christ. Let us now present our tithes & our offerings.

*Prayer of Dedication (unison)

The gifts we bring this day, Almighty God, are not our gifts to you, but your gifts to us. We pray that we have sweetened them by our fruitful labor, strengthened them by acts of mercy, and brightened them by faithful discipleship. Bless them for your work. You have already blessed us by inviting us to give for the sake of your work in the world. Amen. COMMISSIONING In the power of the Holy Spirit, we now go forth into the world, to fulfill our calling as the people of God, the body of Christ. Go in peace, love and care for one another in the name of Jesus,§ and may God give you grace to follow the saints of Christ in faith, hope, and love, § may the living word bloom and grow within your hearts and minds,§ and may the fruit of the Holy Spirit be present in your lives, both now and forevermore. Amen