the future descending
Prayer: May the words of my lips and the mediations of all our hearts be called great in your kingdom.
Intro: It has been a little over a year since I found out I was going to do my internship in Seattle at St. John United with all you. Given this occasion, I want to tell you a little about the experience of getting assigned an internship location.
We have all spoken about St. John United losing ELCA funding to help pay for the internship. St. John United receives ELCA funding because you are a “horizon internship site.”
Horizon internship sites are specific locations that have a dynamic ministry, and therefore the ELCA helps fund these sites so future pastors can learn at these locations.
Now, this might sound silly, but there is a lot of competition for these horizon internship sites. You would think future pastors wouldn’t get so caught up in all that, but honestly reading about these sites and their wonderful ministries, many of us began to hope for such a location.
And, I have to say, although we had to choose three sites to be in the Horizon Internship process, St. John United was the only one I really wanted. I cannot tell you how elated I was that late-January morning when I was called to field education office. Our field education director told me I was getting to go to my first choice.
And, he also told me to be delicate about how I told people about this. He told me to be careful because my good news meant disappointment for my other classmates and other seminarians. A number of students wanted to get assigned here.
Now, he also told me that I should be ready to do a lot of work at this site. I think I should have paid more attention to him when he said that, but by then my mind had already drifted to my future in Seattle… When he was telling me about the workload I was thinking about looking up your webpage and telling digging out my Mariner’s Jersey.
Anyway, I only tell you that story to help you think a little about how St. John United is thought about within the ELCA…
In Today’s reading we hear more of Jesus’ sermon on the mount that began last week with the beatitudes.
You will remember that last week Pastor Carol helped us think about what exactly the Sermon on the Mount is.
Pastor Carol spoke about Jesus, and this set of teaching as something akin to a coach giving a speech inviting players into an alternative reality. The coach helps the players understand who they are, and what their mission is.
For instance, last week in the beatitudes Jesus taught about those who are blessed. Last week Jesus described the people who live into Jesus’ alternative realm. Those who Jesus blesses, unlike the world’s standards, are the meek, those who mourn, etc.
And this week, the Sermon on the Mount continues. Jesus continues talking about those who are invited into his alternative realm. Last week we hear Jesus describe those of us who are blessed, and invited us into his alternative realm.
This week Jesus tells us about how those of us who are blessed are to live, what our mission is.
Jesus does this by describing us as salt and light.
These images are interesting. These images of salt and light are interesting because they are ubiquitous and mundane at the same time. Salt is quite common, and light (whether it is coming through clouds or not) happens every day. So, what does it mean to be salt and light then? Why does Jesus call us salt and light?
The clue to understanding these images is by noticing what they have in common. When we notice what characteristics salt and light share, we are able to better understand why Jesus calls us to be salt and light.
The similarity between salt and light is that neither one of these things exist for themselves.
Salt is an ingredient that is added to food to enhance the dish being prepared. Light reveals. Light breaks into the darkness and illumines our path. This is what we too are called to be.
Jesus calls us to be salt and light. Those of us who are called into this alternative realm of Jesus’ exist for the sake of the world. I think this is really remarkable.
You would expect Jesus to initiate this alternative realm, and then call us to protect that realm. That isn’t what Jesus does, though. Instead, Jesus invites us into his alternative realm to live for the sake of the world.
Those of us that are blessed are blessed to be a blessing.
In these days, with all of the challenges we face daily it might be easier to self-insulate and protect ourselves, but that is not what we are called to. That is not our mission.
In fact, with all of the challenges churches face it might be easy for us to imagine up ministries just to try to get more and more members. That way we could be sure St. John United would survive.
But, apparently, that is not what we’re called to do. Instead, we are blessed to be a blessing. This community is invited into an alternative realm to be a blessing for the world. We are salt and light for the world, for North America, for Washington, for Seattle, for the Phinney neighborhood.
Our ministries do not exist for our sake, but for the sake of the world.
St. John United is blessed to enrich this neighborhood, St. John United is blessed to reveal God’s love for this world. The ministries of St. John United exist to realize that realm Jesus has invited us into.
Earlier I told you about how I felt when I found out that I was called to serve my internship with you all. I told you that story for a reason. When Jesus calls us to be salt and light, Jesus does not say you should be salt and light, Jesus does not even say we will one day be salt and light.
Instead, Jesus says you are salt and light.
Right now you are salt and light. You really are salt and light. St. John United is a light to those in the ELCA. St. John United is a light in the ELCA because your ministries shine so brightly. You all are so salty. Your witness to justice, to service, to creation is a light. You are the salt of the earth, a light to the world.
Last week when Pastor Carol told us about this sermon on the mount as a speech a coach might give, she made the point that unlike a speech before a game where you will either win or lose Jesus gives preaches about his alternative realm, and goes ahead and wins the game, too.
This call to be salt and light is the same way.
When Jesus says we are salt and light, we are. When Jesus gives us that promise, it happens. You are, we are, salt and light.
During this season of epiphany we talk about light and Jesus being revealed as the hope of creation. And, in this sermon Jesus is revealed to us for the savior he is.
When Jesus is revealed to us, Jesus also reveals us as salt and light. As Jesus becomes revealed to us, we became the tools that reveal Jesus. We become Jesus’ living Sermon on the Mount.
We really become salt and light. It is us, our lives, our witness and our ministries that reveal Jesus as the hope of humanity. This is our reality. This alternative realm Jesus invites us into may seem too good to be true, but true it is. And, as we live into this realm we become Jesus’ living salt and light in this world.
You are the salt and light of this world. This is good news. It is good news for us, and it is good news for the world.
So go, go and be what you are. Jesus calls us to it, and the sound of his voice makes it happen. You are salt, and you are light.
Amen.
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