Season of Creation

September 4th Sunday I 

Reading from the Book of Jeremiah 18: 1-11
At the Potter’s House

This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD: “Go down to the potter’s house, and there I will give you my message.” So I went down to the potter’s house, and I saw him working at the wheel. But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him.

Then the word of the LORD came to me. He said, “Can I not do with you, Israel, as this potter does?” declares the LORD. “Like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand, Israel….

Reading from the Letter of Philemon 1 - 21
Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus, and Timothy our brother,
To Philemon our dear friend and fellow worker

… although in Christ I could be bold and order you to do what you ought to do, yet I prefer to appeal to you on the basis of love. It is as none other than Paul—an old man and now also a prisoner of Christ Jesus— that I appeal to you for my son Onesimus, who became my son while I was in chains. Formerly he was useless to you, but now he has become useful both to you and to me.

I am sending him—who is my very heart—back to you. I would have liked to keep him with me so that he could take your place in helping me while I am in chains for the gospel. But I did not want to do anything without your consent, so that any favor you do would not seem forced but would be voluntary. Perhaps the reason he was separated from you for a little while was that you might have him back forever—no longer as a slave, but better than a slave, as a dear brother. He is very dear to me but even dearer to you, both as a fellow man and as a brother in the Lord.

So if you consider me a partner, welcome him as you would welcome me. If he has done you any wrong or owes you anything, charge it to me. I, Paul, am writing this with my own hand. I will pay it back—not to mention that you owe me your very self.

I do wish, brother, that I may have some benefit from you in the Lord; refresh my heart in Christ. Confident of your obedience, I write to you, knowing that you will do even more than I ask.

Gospel of Luke 14: 25-33
The Cost of Being a Disciple
Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple. And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.

 “Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it? For if you lay the foundation and are not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule you, saying, ‘This person began to build and wasn’t able to finish.’

“Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Won’t he first sit down and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand?  If he is not able, he will send a delegation while the other is still a long way off and will ask for terms of peace. In the same way, those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples.

Reflection Points

1. We need to be re-formed: The Image of the Potter gives us an image of God reshaping Israel and us. The passage is mainly about nations, but applies also to churches / communities, and to individuals. The passage speaks of God relenting from judgment if the people repent, and God then literally re-forming them – reshaping them to a new purpose. Are we prepared to recognize our need and place ourselves in the hands of the potter.
2. We need to restore relationships: Paul’s concern about Onesimus speaks about inequality and injustice between slave and master then, and in global relationships today – between nations and individuals. Our hearts need changing to see migrants, refugees and our Christian sisters and brothers in the global South as ‘my very heart’ and ‘my dear brother / sister’. In Christ we have a new family – not based on ancestry and DNA, but based on being made new creations in Christ. Jesus’ strong words on ‘hating’ family should challenge us deeply about who we really care about.
3. We need to reduce our addiction to stuff! Jesus very bluntly tells us: ‘those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples’ (Luke 14:33). Which matters more to us: our security, home, bank balance and pension provision, or God’s kingdom of justice and peace? Jesus was speaking in the home of a well-known Pharisee, somebody who was devoutly religious, including in their giving, and probably fairly wealthy. Today we have all the solutions we need to address the ecological challenges we face. The problem is not the science or technology. It is us. We can blame politicians or big business, but they ultimately answer to voters and shoppers. The problem is people. We are resistant to giving up our comforts, to reducing our addiction to air travel, to new tech (phones, TVs, laptops), to keeping our homes artificially hot or cold, to eating whatever we feel like. We place convenience before conscience, and comfort before God’s Kingdom. 

As Christians we are called to follow Jesus, whatever the cost. Today, Jesus’ challenging words on money and possessions call us to take our cross and follow him. Follow Jesus to a life of greater simplicity, to being re-formed from our selfish consumerism into a new community which models the way of God’s kingdom.

Action Make sustainable lifestyle changes on an individual level

The Season of Creation is a wonderful time to reflect on how our lifestyles affect the environment and to make a commitment to more sustainable ways of living. The good news is that making more sustainable lifestyle choices in just a few areas adds up to a big difference overall. As the saying goes, “Let us live simply so that others may simply live.” Living simply is a way to ensure our planet is truly a home for all.

Let us find ways this week to:

Be Reformed in God’s Image
Restore Relationships with Creation and One Another
Reduce our Addiction to Stuff

Lord’s Prayer We pray our common prayer that Christ taught us.

Eternal Spirit, Earth-maker, Pain-bearer, Life-giver,

Source of all that is and that shall be, Father and Mother of us all, Loving God, in whom is heaven:

The hallowing of your name echoes through the universe!
The way of your justice be followed by the peoples of the world! 

Your heavenly will be done by all created beings!
Your beloved community of peace and freedom sustain our hope and come on earth. With the bread we need for today, feed us.

In the hurts we absorb from one another, forgive us. 

In times of temptation and test, strengthen us.

From trials too great to endure, spare us. 
From the grip of all that is evil, free us.
For you reign in the glory of the power that is love, now and forever.
Amen.

(Adapted from The New Zealand Book of Prayer | He Karakia Mihinare o Aotearoa.

 This version of the Lord’s prayer was influenced by Maori theologians)

Give Thanks to the Lord

Dan Schutte

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=70cIycImjp8