All Saints' Sunday
Sunday, November 3rd, 2019click here for past entries
Loving God, you invite us to look beyond what we can see right in front of us and to trust in your love and mercy. Help us to continue to learn from Jesus, and empower us by your Spirit for life in your service, through the same Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
One of the things that is a little bit different in the Orthodox tradition is that people of faith from the Old Testament are also counted among the saints. Thus, in the Church of the Transfiguration on Mount Tabor, there are two side chapels. One is dedicated to St. Moses and the other is dedicated to St. Elijah.
Above the altar in the St. Elijah chapel, there is an image of Elijah sitting in between two stone altars with his hands lifted up in prayer. On one altar, if you look closely, there are large hunks of meat there. The other one probably has the same hunks of meat, but they are obscured by the fire that is descending from heaven and consuming everything that is on and around the altar. It is an image of the contest between Elijah and the prophets of Baal – a contest that leaves the people confessing, “The Lord indeed is God; the Lord indeed is God” (1 Ki. 18:39).
While the outcome is undoubtedly in God’s favour, Elijah seems to exhibit some rather unsaintly behavior in this story. In the midst of this contest, while the prophets of Baal are praying for Baal to answer them, Elijah mocks them and goads them and taunts them. “Call louder! Perhaps he’s busy relieving himself, or maybe he fell asleep. Or maybe he’s gone away and forgotten about you!” Is this how you treat people of a different faith who are waiting for an answer to prayer?...
There are at least a couple of explanations, however. Elijah is trying to show the people how ridiculous it is to expect an answer from a god who doesn’t really exist. So maybe these things are said to try to convince the people who are standing by. At the same time, though, Elijah is pretty close to the end of his rope at this point. It is not so long after this contest that he heads for the wilderness, totally burnt out, and tells God that he’s had enough and is ready to die. He is worn out from being zealous for the Lord in the midst of a people who insist on worshipping other gods like Baal.
And so it is among the saints. Behaviour is not always particularly saintly. Sometimes rest and renewal are needed in order to be able to continue serving God and others. And sometimes all earthly supports are stripped away in order to teach us how to rely on God – just like Elijah spent time being fed by the ravens, and by a poor widow who was down to her last meal.
I am reminded of a recent conversation with one of the young adults in the MNO Synod who traveled to Cameroon this past year. He observed how Christians in Cameroon are much better at relying on God than we are here in Canada. This is because most of them do not have any sort of back-up plan or rainy-day fund for when they suddenly lose their job or don’t get paid when they should. There is no food bank to go to or welfare to apply for or EI. And so, they look to God for all that is needed and support one another within the church. In this respect, we have a lot to learn from them!
To return for just a moment to the contest between Elijah and the prophets of Baal, imagine that this contest is taking place in California right now. Would it make any sense to you to ask God to answer by fire in this setting?... [No] Yet, this contest takes place after three years of drought. Not only that, but Elijah wastes 12 large jars of water by pouring them over the altar. Why would anybody do this when what they really need is rain?...
The answer perhaps lies in Elijah’s ability to see beyond the present moment. Did he have faith that God was going to send rain soon? Or, did he know that God was going to send rain soon? As it turns out, it is right after this contest with the prophets of Baal that Elijah bows down in the presence of God and prays for rain, and the drought comes to an end (1 Ki. 18:41-45). Perhaps he was not being as wasteful as one might think in pouring out all of that water!
Today, as we celebrate All Saints’ Sunday, we remind ourselves of the pouring of water that happens at our baptism. And with that water, too, we are challenged to look beyond what we can see right in front of us. For, as that water is used together with God’s Word, it becomes a life-giving water that promises resurrection and new life and enrolls us among the saints (Luther’s Small Catechism).
Today we are also invited to see beyond the candles that burn in front of the altar to the cloud of witnesses that surrounds us. We are invited to see the communion of saints, both past and present, who gather with us around the altar every time we celebrate the Lord’s Supper. We are invited to see that those who die in Christ are not dead and gone, but are here with us, just as Jesus is here with us.
At the same time, we are reminded by people like Elijah that saints are not perfect – just forgiven. We are also reminded to look beyond what is right in front of us and to put our trust in God for all that is needed. For Jesus has come for the love of the world, that all those who believe in him may not perish, but may have eternal life. Thanks be to God! Amen.
All Saints’ Sunday (NL 2) 1 Kings 18:17-39
November 3, 2019 Mark 9:2-4
St. Luke’s Zion Lutheran Church
Pastor Lynne Hutchison
© 2019 Lynne Hutchison All Rights Reserved
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