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    • Sunday service - Holy Communion December 28, 2025 at 9:30 am – 11:00 am Grace Church 215 Pleasant Street, Sheldon, VT Website: www.gracechurchsheldon.comTime:  09:30 AM Eastern Time (US and Canada)        Every week on Sun.Join Zoom Meetinghttps://us02web.zoom.us/j/83929911344?pwd=alZQTWZMN0ZkWFFPS1hmNjNkZkU2UT09Meeting ID: 839 2991 1344Password: Call for detailsOne tap mobile+13126266799,,83929911344#,,1#,816603# US (Chicago)+19294362866,,83929911344#,,1#,816603# US (New York)Dial by your location        +1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)        +1 929 436 2866 US (New York)Meeting ID:…
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Epiphany 2 Year A RCL January 19, 2014

Posted on January 18, 2014 by Beth Crane

Isaiah 49:1-7
Psalm 40:1-12
1 Corinthians 1:1-9
John 1:29-42

Our first reading this morning is from the Second Servant Song of Isaiah. God has called God’s servant Israel since the time the servant was in his mother’s womb. This is very similar to the prophet Jeremiah’s story. God has called us from the beginning of time and God will love us for all eternity.

The Servant is to call God’s people home from exile. But God gives the Servant a much larger mission—to call all of God’s people, to be a light to all nations.

As the people of God, we are called to welcome all people into what Archbishop Desmond Tutu calls “God’s big family.”

Paul is writing to the congregation he founded in Corinth. This faith community is having some serious problems. There are factions in the church. Some members are claiming to have superior knowledge and special spiritual gifts. There is even sexual immorality.

Paul reminds the congregation of their identity as children of God and followers of Jesus and reminds them that, no matter how many challenges they may face, God will give them the strength to meet those challenges.

In our reading from John’s gospel, John the Baptist is standing with two of his disciples.  Jesus walks toward them. John identifies Jesus as the Messiah. John makes it clear that Jesus is one who is greater than he, the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit

The next day, John is again with standing with two of his disciples. Jesus walks by. Again, John says that Jesus is the Lamb of God. So the two disciples follow Jesus. Jesus asks them, “What are you looking for?”

These are two disciples of John the Baptist. John has a huge following. At this point, he is far better known than Jesus. Thousands of people are flocking to him to be baptized because they see the need for repentance, transformation in their lives, a shift that will bring them closer to God.

But now John is telling these disciples of his that Jesus is the messiah. They are probably overwhelmed and confused. They want to learn more about Jesus. Maybe they think they can quietly tag along and hang out with Jesus and learn what he has to say. But now Jesus is asking them this question, “What are you looking for?” And they are thinking, “Our teacher, John, says this is the messiah. The messiah has just asked us a question.” How could we possibly have conversation with the Savior of the world? They are nervous, probably even scared. They are in awe of Jesus.

They address him as “Rabbi,” meaning “Teacher,” a term of great respect, but this is the messiah. How do you address the messiah, the Savior? They don’t know what to say, so they ask, “Where are you staying?” They are drawn to Jesus. They want to be with him.

And he says, “Come and see.” They spend the day with him. Imagine what that must have been like, sitting at his feet and absorbing his presence, his love, his healing, and his teaching. Now we find out that one of the two is Andrew, Simon’s brother. It is four o’clock. The evening is drawing near. Andrew goes and finds Peter and tells him, “We have found the messiah!” Think what this must have meant to Peter and Andrew.

Andrew brings Peter to Jesus, and Jesus says, “You are Simon, son of John, You are to be called Cephas, Peter.”

God calls all people to come to the light, God calls all people to be a part of God’s big family. Like John the Baptist and Andrew, we are called to bring people to Jesus. We are called to help people to meet and experience Jesus. How do we do this?

We can bring friends to church. We can tell people how we get strength from the presence of Jesus in our faith community. We can share our experiences of how Jesus has led us through the thickets of life and gotten us to the still waters of peace and love. We can sit and listen, just listen, not even say anything. We can share the gifts of faith and love and listening and healing, and by doing those things, we are helping folks to be in the presence of our Lord.

John the Baptist and Andrew had the gift of connecting people with Jesus. These are powerful examples for us.

We are all here because we want to follow Jesus. It’s a wonderful journey.

Our journey is similar to that of the Servant in our first lesson. The Servant, embodying the people of God, is called to lead all people to God and to God’s shalom. We are called to lead all people to Jesus, the light of the world, We are called to welcome all people into God’s kingdom, God’s shalom of peace and harmony.

Blessedly, we do not have any of the problems which were plaguing the congregation in Corinth. Nobody here is claiming to have superior knowledge. No one is on a power trip. No one is trying to lord it over others or bully others. We know we are far from perfect, but our morals and ethics are strong. We have much to be thankful for.

May we follow the example of John the Baptist and Andrew. May we lead others to Jesus. May we share his light and love.  Amen.

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The Day of Pentecost June 12, 2011

Posted on August 22, 2011 by Beth Crane

The Day of Pentecost Year A RCL June 12, 2011

Acts 2: 1-21
Psalm 104: 25-35; 37b
1 Corinthians 12:3b-13
John 20:19-23

Last Sunday we talked about Jesus’ commissioning of the disciples to spread the good news. He has told them that he will not leave them comfortless, that he will send the Holy Spirit to guide them into all truth.

He has told them to wait. They are waiting. He has told them to pray. They are praying. They are together in one place. That is a key thing. We are together in one place. The Spirit comes in power when we are gathered in community.

Yes, there have been the betrayals, the denials. Some have run away. Some have come back. But now they are together, waiting, praying, as we are waiting, praying. Because they have hung in there, gathered in prayer and expectation, we can accurately assume that they have much more trust than they had, say, on Good Friday, and maybe even on the first Easter. He told them that he would die, and that happened, and it was horrible. He told them that he would rise, and they have seen him, in the upper room, on the road to Emmaus, on the beach, and other places. It has been an intense journey, and all of it has brought them to that place of trust and openness which allows God to work fully.

They are in the house, and we can just imagine the scene. A mighty wind, like the desert ruach, the wind of the Spirit, molding and shaping us into the persons God calls us to be. And something like flames dancing over the heads of the apostles, and gifts pouring out everywhere, gifts of the Spirit pouring into their hearts, into the core of their being. And suddenly, overflowing with the Spirit, they burst forth, speaking all the languages of the known world.

There are faithful Jews gathered in Jerusalem for the Jewish feast of Pentecost, fifty days after the Passover, a celebration of the giving of the covenant on Mt. Sinai and also a harvest festival. Wind and flames are swirling around the house where Jesus’ followers have gathered, and we can imagine people coming to see what’s going on here. There is a joyful commotion. The whooshing of the wind and flames, the paradoxically harmoniously unifying cacophany of all these languages. And the strangest thing—these people gathered from all over the known world—the writer of the account wants to make sure we understand just how far they have come, so the writer names the nationalities—Parthians, Medes, Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Rome, Egypt, Arabia, people from far and wide—all these people can understand what these Galileans are saying! Jesus’ disciples, who have never gone to the Middlebury language school, are breaking through the barriers and the separations caused by our human brokenness and limitations, and they are speaking the good news heart to heart with all these people. And that’s how the good news spreads—from one heart to another.

In today’s gospel, which we also read on the second Sunday of Easter, we have another account of Jesus giving the Spirit to his followers. Another side, another aspect of how the Spirit comes to us. Again, the key thing is that they are together. They are waiting and praying. It is the evening of the first Easter. They are afraid. The doors are locked for fear of the religious and secular authorities. Suddenly he is in the room. He quietly and gently walks through their fear. “Peace be with you,” he says. He gives them the gift of shalom, peace, that paradoxical peace that means the reconciling and bringing together of opposites and conflicts and differences. He gives them the gift of forgiveness—forgiveness of others, yes, and also forgiveness for them—for all the denials and betrayals and doubts and self-seeking. His whole attitude is one of forgiveness and acceptance. Now, given the gift of forgiveness, they are called to share that gift with others. And he gives them his breath; he breathes into them his life. This band of fearful people becomes his body, carrying on his ministry.

Our epistle today comments on the extraordinary nature of the Body of Christ. The Corinthians had a misunderstanding about the Body. They were beginning to think that some gifts, mainly speaking in tongues, were better than others.  Paul says very clearly that all the gifts and all the members of the Body are equal. Every gift and every member is needed. Weeding our gardens and washing the windows and cleaning the church are just as important as conducting the liturgy in a reverent manner, teaching, preaching, praying, and learning.

The Holy Spirit comes to us in different ways at different times. Sometimes, it is a dramatic encounter, as at the first Pentecost, the Birthday of the Church. But at other times, the Spirit comes into our lives and hearts quietly, as Jesus came quietly into this world, born in a stable. But the Spirit is always at work, transforming our lives and our world, building God’s shalom. The Spirit is always building, always creating.

May we be open to the gifts of the Spirit. May we, as the Body of Christ in this place, know that each member and every gift is infinitely precious in God’s sight. In the power of the Spirit, may we live the Good News and share God’s love.

                        Amen.

Filed under: Reverend Janet Brown, Sermons | Tagged: , , , | Leave a comment »

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