Loving God, you ask us to choose whom we will serve and set the example through Jesus.  Restore in us today the joy of your salvation and empower us for service by your Holy Spirit; through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

    Have you ever noticed that some of the saints seem to be a lot saintlier than the others?  There are some people where we can point to them and say, “Now there’s a really good example of what it means to follow Jesus.”  We look up to them as an example to be followed and as a source of wisdom.  However, then there are others where we’re not really sure if they should be numbered among the saints at all.  Sure, they were baptized.  And maybe they came to church at least every so often.  And there were at least some times when they said that they believed.  But lifted up as a good example?  Possibly not so much.

    These past few weeks we’ve been hearing about people like Ruth, and David, and Solomon, and Rehoboam.  Some of them are definitely better examples than others of what it means to be a servant of God and of other people.  Ruth is lifted up for her faithfulness to Naomi and for her willingness to make Naomi’s God her God.  David is lifted up for the faith and the courage he showed in facing Goliath the Philistine and for the way in which he kept the worship of God at the center during his reign.  Solomon is lifted up for his wisdom - the gift that he asked God for when he was younger.  He is remembered for building the Temple in Jerusalem and for his wise judgments.  And then along comes Rehoboam, Solomon’s son, who manages to divide the kingdom into two, and who doesn’t seem to have inherited any of his father’s wisdom.

    The thing is that every single one of the kings of Israel and Judah did things that were not particularly saintly.  David was not allowed to build a temple for God because he had shed too much blood.  There was also that little incident with Bathsheba where he committed adultery and then had her husband killed to cover it up.  In Solomon’s case, we are told that he loved lots of foreign women, and that he ended up worshiping idols with some of his wives.  He also made his own people into slaves, conscripting them into forced labour in order to build the Temple and all of his other projects for economic growth.  And so when Rehoboam comes along, the sins of his father are part of the picture, as well as the wisdom of those in his realm who still know what it means to worship God.

    Of course, as we see in today’s reading, Rehoboam has an important choice to make.  Is he going to continue the legacy of his father, using his own people as slave labour, or is he going to accept the wisdom of the elders, listening to the people and serving them?  It is a choice that every king after him has to make: worship and serve God, or serve yourself?  As we are reminded in today’s gospel, Rehoboam could have been truly great had he been a servant leader.

    However, Rehoboam chooses to act tough and show lots of bravado.  In fact, it is his own pettiness and insecurity that show through.  And so, when he promises more oppression for people who are already feeling oppressed, the results are predictable.  The vast majority of the Israelites reject him as their king and make Jeroboam their king instead.  The fact that Judah remains loyal to Rehoboam, along with the tribe of Benjamin, is a real sign of God at work.  For God had promised to David that one of his descendants would continue to rule in Jerusalem forever.  We see in today’s reading more than ever how God is faithful, even when human beings do nothing to deserve it!

    Today, as we think about All Saints, we are also aware of God’s faithfulness and God’s promises.  We will be remembering people today who are counted among the saints as baptized children of God.  Some of them have been amazing examples to us of what it means to worship God and to believe in Jesus Christ.  Some of them may not have set a particularly good example.  However, God promises that all those who are baptized and believe in Jesus Christ are part of the communion of saints.  And ultimately, God is the judge.  Just like was mentioned last week, God makes us saints in baptism.  Then God says, “Become the person I have created you to be.  Grow up into Christ.”

    As we think about the saints and the example that they have set, I keep thinking of my friend Robert, who is the director of Anglican Missions in New Zealand.  He has followed the example of his grandfather (or perhaps great-grandfather), who is considered to be one of the martyrs in the church in New Zealand.  Their family is Maori, and they are part of the Ngati Ruanui tribe.  Robert’s grandfather, you see, had a heart for mission.  He accompanied an important chief from his tribe on a mission to share the gospel of peace with the traditional enemies of their tribe.

    As they approached the enemy village, they were shot by warriors who were waiting in ambush.  Robert’s grandfather Kereopa died right there, but the chief Te Manihera was wounded and did not die until sunset.  The entire time he lay there dying, he prayed for the people of this enemy tribe.  Both men were buried nearby, and I saw the grave site near Taupo while I was there.

    While some might say that they were foolish to approach their enemies in this way, their deaths actually paved the way for peace.  The chief who had led the attack against them gave land for a church and mission house to be built, and shortly afterward 30 people came forward for baptism.  This is among the stories of the first Maori people to become Christian in Aotearoa New Zealand.  This is also among the stories of the saints.

    Among other things, this made me wonder how many stories we know about our ancestors in the faith and about the history of this country and this place.  Are there stories you have heard of your ancestors that have inspired your faith and have led you to strive to follow their example?

    The thing is that we, too, have a choice as to which example we are going to follow.  In Robert’s case, he has continued to share the gospel just like his grandfather.  In Rehoboam’s case, he rejected any of the good examples from his family and decided to serve himself.  And in Jesus’ case, he set the example for all of his brothers and sisters in the faith to follow.  Which example will you follow, and what sort of a legacy do you want to leave for those who come after you?

    However, as we think about this, we cannot emphasize enough the role of the Holy Spirit.  No person who has ever set a good example in the faith has done so without the Spirit of God working within them and through them.  It is God who makes us saints.  It is the Spirit who makes us holy.  We don’t just decide one day to do it all on our own.  And so, may the Spirit of God rest on you and be at work in you this day, “that the one who began a good work among you [may] bring it to completion by the day of Jesus Christ” (Phil. 1:6).  Amen.

All Saints Sunday (NL 2)                        1 Kings 12:1-17, 25-29
November 1, 2015                            Mark 10:42-45
St. Luke’s Zion Lutheran Church
Pastor Lynne Hutchison

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