Christ, the Presence that Sustains All

Opening Scriptures

Hebrews 1:1-4 “1 Long ago God spoke to our ancestors in many and various ways by the prophets, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by a Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom he also created the worlds. 3 He is the reflection of God’s glory and the exact imprint of God’s very being, and he sustains all things by his powerful word. When he had made purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, 4 having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs.”

Hebrews 2:5-12 “5 Now God did not subject the coming world, about which we are speaking, to angels. 6 But someone has testified somewhere, “What are human beings that you are mindful of them, or mortals, that you care for them? 7 You have made them for a little while lower than the angels; you have crowned them with glory and honor, 8 subjecting all things under their feet.” Now in subjecting all things to them, God left nothing outside their control. As it is, we do not yet see everything in subjection to them, 9 but we do see Jesus, who for a little while was made lower than the angels, now crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone. 10 It was fitting that God, for whom and through whom all things exist, in bringing many children to glory, should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through sufferings. 11 For the one who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one Father. For this reason Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters, 12 saying,

“I will proclaim your name to my brothers and sisters,

in the midst of the congregation I will praise you.”

Prayer

Introduction - We Join the Story

We are living in the story of God. God is writing a story, a story with no beginning and no end, a story that ignites with the explosive moment of the universe’s creation and expansion. It is a story of creation from the most basic elements of the cosmos to become the complexities and intricacies that we have come to know as life and consciousness and spirit. It is a story written by the God of all, God of all creation, all life, all hope, all power — God who is good and invites creation to participate in this goodness.

And this is our story. No, we are not writers of it ourselves. Rather, we are written and knit and created to participate in God’s story. We are not actors, we are co-creators. We are not puppets, we are beloved members of God’s family.

The book of Hebrews launches us right into this story. Not from the moment of our first breath, for we are part of something much greater. Rather, we enter the story with the recollection that God has been speaking this story for generations, through our ancestors in many and various ways, by prophets and teachers, oral tradition and written word.

At the center of this story is Christ, God’s only son, who turns the story and opens it wide for all people to know their part.

The book of Hebrews is an expansive, mystical book. Of somewhat uncertain origins, the unannounced author of Hebrews is clearly hoping to help new Christians see their part in the trajectory of God’s redeeming work that has been happening through the Hebrew people. The author is well versed in the priestly practices of the Hebrew people. You actually have to have a pretty grounded understanding of the Hebrew Torah, and specifically the book of Leviticus, to be able to write a book like Hebrews. It is steeped in priestly imagery, practices of the temple, and how they are fulfilled in the priesthood of Jesus. We will explore that over the next several weeks.

But first and foremost, remember that this is a part of the story we are all invited into. As people we claim that we are “in Christ,” so we are participants with Christ in this story. We believe that God has placed upon us the imago dei, the image of God. It is what we first see in Christ, who bears the very imprint of God’s self upon him. Christ is the heir of God’s creative work and the perfecter of God’s story in us. In Christ’s death and resurrection, the story is made whole once more, purified by a sacrifice of one for the story and salvation of many. And Christ is lifted up, seated with God, above all things and overseeing this story with God — Christ, our priest, our savior, our beloved friend — his name is above all other names of authority and power and in him, we are lifted up as well, reconciled and made whole.

We share this story with Christ, as we embrace Christ as our Lord. And we share the story with each other. We are all welcomed into the story, all called to be participants in it.

This all may sound lovely, but also a bit ethereal and disembodied. What’s our relationship look like, practically? What’s this bit about angels? What about the inheritance piece?

Let’s get practical for a moment.

The God of Creation sent Jesus Christ to live and die and live again. We believe that through this physical death and resurrection, Christ undoes that power of death. Death dies. Now, certainly, we know our physical bodies die too. No argument there. But practically, what this is saying, is that we are more than those bodies, more whole than just that part. And in Jesus, we experience that the power of death is undone as well. We are therefore to expect that the end of this good story, this real story, that we are a part of, is in being swept up into participation with Christ in the real, physical, embodied and whole life of God’s coming reign. We believe that the church is a picture, an example, of what this reign is and will be.

That’s the practical piece — the church. The living, breathing, messy, human, embodied church. Us. St. James Presbyterian Church. And not just us, but our siblings in Christ who are worshipping faithfully all around the world today. We are the practical, lived reality of all of this spiritual story coming into real being.

You may want me to be more practical, because I’m still using spirit language. Here it is: as we gather, as we serve, as we practice, as we love one another — we are the physical, lived reality of Christ’s body. You, me, the stranger, the deacon, the outcast, the committee chair, the worship leader, the pianist, the Godly play teacher, the child, the visitor…we are the lived body of Christ. We bear that image and imprint that Christ bore. Jesus Christ is the first of our lineage, the first fruit of God’s new humanity, as the Scripture says.

What we are witnessing in these passages is that God elevates humanity to a place of high position in the story. Humans have a significant place in God’s care for and redeeming of Creation. We have a place among spiritual realms, certainly, but also in the lived reality of people seeking to bring peace and lovingkindness to the brokenness of the world.

It’s important that we turn to this language of angels and hierarchy in the reign of God for a moment. It is easy to think that as we participate in the spiritual journey, we become more detached from the earthly ways of life, leaving them behind, and becoming more spiritual. Yes, sure, there is something to that. But the caution is for us to not confuse ourselves with mere messengers of God, as the angels are regarded. Yes, our spirits are awake, enlivened with God’s Holy Spirit. But this passage from Hebrews 2 makes it very clear that mortals, us human beings, are entrusted with much more. As Christ is lifted up, so humanity in Christ is lifted up and reminded of our central place in the restoration of and care for all Creation. That’s a huge honor and task.

As a quick aside, this is where we get our theology for caring for the environment. Humans are promoted, lifted up, to steward all creation. This is why Christians must care for the earth — it is our duty, our task. To ignore our present climate crisis is to shirk our God-given responsibility as people who have been entrusted with the imprint and image of God!

Let’s once again bring this down out of the clouds and make it practical.

The church, this gathered body, is where it gets real. We gather to receive the good news, to fellowship with other followers of Jesus, to remember our baptism and our faith as it is renewed in our shared company. We are the physical, lived reality underneath the priesthood, leadership, beloved-gaze of Christ our savior.

This is where the closing lines of our passage ring out:

Hebrews 2:11–12 NRSV

11 For the one who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one Father. For this reason Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters, 12 saying, “I will proclaim your name to my brothers and sisters, in the midst of the congregation I will praise you.”

We share one God, God the Creator, the Mother, the Father. Our brother Christ has brought us into God’s family, God’s story.

And remember, this is a good story, with a trajectory that points towards restoring everything under God’s authority and love.

So…we get on with it.

We get on with it by giving up our lives to this story. We get on with it by giving up of our talents, our time, our resources, our ingenuity, our creativity, our gifts. We get on with it by taking the bread and drinking the cup and being nourished to go and be agents of reconciliation in the world out there. We get on with it by embracing each other in peacemaking love and calling each other to account for the good work we are each to do. We get on with it by living our lives in response to this story.

All of us have faltered. All of us have sinned. All of us have lost track of the story from time to time.

And, in the love of Christ, all of us are received in grace. All of us are welcomed back into the story, not by our own doing or being, but by our belovedness. We are loved by God and God restores us. Christ, the priest who stands over all of what we do, has made the sacrifice, has torn the curtain away, has made a clear path to reconciliation for us all. For us. ALL.

Christ, the Presence, that Sustains All — World Communion Sunday

Today is World Communion Sunday. The first Sunday of October, churches around the world mark our shared meal as one body, not bound by space or time, but gathered up as one in this common sacrament. As we have seen, it is through Christ that we gather into this story, through Christ that we become one. And today, it is Christ’s presence that we partake of as we gather at the table.

In ancient Hebrew practice, priests would bake twelve loaves of bread each week, to represent the twelve tribes of Israel. These loaves were then placed upon the tabernacle or in the temple as a part of the ancient worship practice. The bread of presence was a reminder of God’s sustaining food in the desert and God’s continuing presence with God’s people in their worship and life. This is one of the pieces that was ultimately translated into the practice of communion that we are familiar with. In the meal of the last supper, Jesus refers, in Matthew, to the bread of Presence, marking the simple loaf he passed to the disciples as linked to the lineage of Hebrew practice, yet, changed. Catholic Christians will still often refer to the bread of the Eucharist as the bread of presence. The bread is a tangible reminder of God’s physical body, manifested and present with us.

And as we close, today, we remember that this same presence is with us, sustaining us and the whole world now. This single loaf that sits upon our table is a sign and symbol of the abiding presence of Christ with us. It is also a symbol of our shared practice with Christians around the world, as one body, manifested here in this particular instance at St. James, but like yeast, spreading in and around all places and through all Christians as good news of great joy to the world.

In a few moments, you will be invited to come forward to this table. We will invite our children back up to join us in the practice. And while we come as individuals, putting our hands out to receive the bread and cup, we come as one. One people, gathered at one table, to eat and drink of the one salvation we know in Christ our one Lord.

This tangible practice reminds us of our part in the story. It is all about remembering. Remembering Christ’s death and resurrection. Remembering God’s goodness and faithfulness through all things. Remember that you and I and all of us are welcome, we belong at this table, we are served here by Christ’s loving hands. Come. All you who hear this calling to participate in this life, come.

Amen.