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Sermon: Eucharist with the Blessing of Oils and Renewal of Ministerial Commitment
St Alban's Anglican Church Epping 12:30 pm - 12th April 2011
We meet again for the Blessing of Oils and Renewal of Ministerial Commitment. But why?
The case with the oils is straight forward. The oil for anointing the sick, the Oil of Catechumens and the Oil of Chrism, were they are used, run out and need to be renewed.
But what of ministerial commitment? Does it run out? Do we need to top up our various ordinations?
Well no, not really. But there is value in renewing ministerial commitment none the less.
You know that long term living out of your promises made at your ordination is not an easy matter.
Mission creep. Distraction. Law of spiritual empathy.
Pressures and burden of living in a society that marginalizes what we have made our life’s passion.
Disappointments of fishing al night but catching nothing.
And the pain of so often comes from the church itself.
Quote from Rowan Williams when he was Bishop of Monmouth
Living in the Christian institution isn’t particularly easy. It is generally, today, an anxious, inefficient, pompous, evasive body. If you hold office in it you become more and more conscious of what it’s doing to your soul . Think of what Coca-Cola does to your teeth. Why bother? Well, because of the unwelcome conviction that it somehow tells the welcome truth about God, above all in its worship and sacraments. I don’t think I could put up with if for five minutes if I didn’t believe this.
Turn to the gospel for today from Luke 4. What does this have to say to us?
I still get tingle of excitement whenever I read the account of Jesus famous return to his hometown of Nazareth.
They had heard of the remarkable things that had been going on with one from their town.
Nazareth was then small out of the way place not from of the big towns like Sephorus.
But Jesus, the old boy returning to the town where brought up and lived until only recently, would make it one of the most famous villages of the ancient world.
He become known by the place ‘Jesus of Nazareth’
That is still ahead when on a Sabbath at the Synagogue of Nazareth he attended as part of the congregation, ‘as was his custom’.
Then hestood up apparently indicating he would speak from a passage of the Scripture.
It was to be from the prophets
A scroll was taken given him of the prophet Isaiah
He unrolled it to find the place he was looking for.
(Quite a job: a long continuous parchment 10 metres)
He found the place where these words was written
18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to bring good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to let the oppressed go free,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.”
It is Isaiah 61 A passage where someone writes of their commissioning.
61.1 The spirit of the Lord God is upon me,
because the Lord has anointed me; he has sent me …
(spirit upon me “anointed me, sent me” = be given a commission, a task
What Hebrew for ‘anointed person’? meshiach (anglicised “Messiah”)
Anointed commissioned by the Spirit of the Lord God. Empowered not just sent.
And what is this figure commissioned by the Holy Spirit’s power to do?
to bring good news to the oppressed,
to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim liberty to the captives, and release to the prisoners;
2 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour
(That’s as far as the man in the Nazareth Synagogue read, if we take Luke literally).
The figure is commissioned to announce a wonderful change. Healing life release liberty
“to bring good news to the oppressed” lit evangelise the poor/ oppressed
“ The broken hearted, bound up,
“To the captives and the prisoners proclaim liberty and release
“It’s over ! All is now well!” The year of the Lord’s favour”
A grand Starting All Over.
And he is commissioned to go to announce a wonderful change to the oppressed, broken hearted, captive, prisoners. In the context of Isaiah that is Israel in exile.
(Removed. Cities and temple ruins. Grief and mourning, loss of heart.)
Echoes of other famous words Isaiah earlier
1 Comfort, O comfort my people, says your God.
2 Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her
that she has served her term, that her penalty is paid,
that she has received from the Lord’s hand double for all her sins. (Isaiah 40:1-2)
“It is over!” More to it than that. “God is coming your God is coming to bring forgiveness and release and bring you home.”
The anointed messenger of Isa 61 just the same. Extravagant promises of utopia when the Lord comes.
That’s what Jesus deliberately found and read out.
And then?
20 And he rolled up the scroll,
gave it back to the attendant,
and sat down.
The eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him.
And then comes the electric moment
21 Then he began to say to them,
“Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”
“In your ears. evn toi/j wvsi.n u`mw/nÅ
Jesus is the one who is commissioned to bring good news to the poor and who is sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour. And not just announce it but in him that reign of God personified and realised.
Crucified and risen from the dead!
How does this help us here today? Two ways.
First is that it reminds us of the ministry we have been ordained in to and that ministerial commitment we are renewing.
In the ministry of Jesus he is unique but not alone.
Luke 9 he sends the 12 to do as he does. In Luke 10 he sends 70. In the other gospels no sooner has Jesus announced the Kingdom of God than he calls other to be with him.
We are not apostles but whatever ministry you have in the pastoral office is an apostolic ministry.
- Focus.
Focus on the gospel of the reign of God through Jesus Christ the crucified and risen. Mission creep rejected. Repented of? - Confidence.
Announce not make happen. Trust God. Repent of distrust? - Joy.
What a wonderful thing it is to be part of this! good news to the poor and who is sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.
There is a second way this account help us today.
Before any one of us can be a minister of Jesus Christ, we must let Jesus Christ minister to us. He came not to be served but to serve.
Ministry can be bruising. We suffer grief.
At times we the poor and to the captives and the blind, the oppressed go free, and need again to hear to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.
So we too need to hear afresh the words of Jesus to us as we renew our ministerial commitment today and feed on him in our hearts by faith.