St. Paul’s Church in
Bergen & Church of the Incarnation, Jersey City NJ
August 26, 2018
Year B, Proper 16:
The 14th Sunday after Pentecost
1 Kings 8: 1, 6,
10-11, 22-30, 41-43
Psalm 84
Ephesians 6:10-20
John 6:56-69
A Beautiful Dwelling Place for God
Last Sunday we
said our farewells to Rev. Gary (though, fortunately, I suspect we’ll still see
him from time to time), and we also said goodbye to King David.
For much of the
summer we’ve been hearing the story of David’s reign over Israel, the
highlights and also some pretty terrible lowlights. We’ve been hearing the
story of this great king chosen by God who made many big mistakes.
After David died, his
son Solomon succeeded him as king.
Solomon is
remembered today for his great wisdom and also for constructing the first
Temple in Jerusalem.
You may remember
that a few weeks ago we heard the story of King David realizing, to his credit,
that there was something not quite right about the fact that he was living in a
grand palace constructed of cedar while God was living in… a tent.
Reasonably enough,
David proposed building a dwelling, building a palace for God.
It sounded like a pretty
good idea, but God objects, more or less saying to David, “You are going
to build me a house?!?”
But now, God goes
along with this idea, allowing Solomon to build the great Temple, recognized as
one of the wonders of the ancient world.
In a way, it seems
like God will no longer be on the move in a tent but instead will stay put in
the great Temple.
Now, if that idea
makes you a little uneasy, you’re in good company. In fact, we can hear
discomfort with the idea somehow “housing” God in today’s text, when Solomon
himself asks,
“But will God
indeed dwell on the earth? Even heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain
you, much less this house that I have built!”
That was about
three thousand years ago. Today, there’s still that same kind of unease, or
even tension, that Solomon experienced and expressed when he unveiled his grand
house for God.
On the one hand,
our churches, including our own church, are built to be houses for God. We sometimes
talk that way, right? We often refer to the church as God’s house.
And, so it is.
And,
because God dwells here in a particularly special way – because God dwells here
in our community – because God dwells here in the Word – and, most of all,
because God dwells here in the Body and Blood of Christ that we are about to
receive – because God dwells here in a particularly special way, we come here,
hoping to leave behind the many troubles of our lives and the many cares of the
world – or, better yet, maybe, we come here to bring and place our troubles and
cares at the altar, to let God handle our many problems.
Because
God dwells here in a particularly special way, we come here to draw closer to
God – to allow God to draw closer to us.
“Will
God indeed dwell on the earth?”
Well,
we make every effort, invest a lot of resources, into making this - and keeping
this - a beautiful dwelling place for God.
But,
there’s that same tension, that same unease that Solomon experienced long ago,
right?
Because,
although it’s true that God dwells here in this beautiful place in a
particularly special way, the truth is that God dwells out there in the world,
too.
God
dwells with refugees and migrants fleeing for their lives.
God
dwells with people living in cities and towns all across our country where the
stores on Main Street are all boarded up, where factories are closed and
rusting, and where most of the young people with talent and ambition have moved
on.
God
dwells with the prisoners and detainees locked up in our own county jail and with
others incarcerated all across our land.
God
dwells with the coal miner fearing for his job -and with those whose water has
been contaminated with coal ash.
God
dwells with the people huddled at the homeless drop-in center, and those
drinking or getting high at Journal Square or along Bergen Avenue, day after
day.
God
dwells with Republicans and Democrats and with those of us who are confused and
sickened by the whole circus.
As
you’ve probably heard by now, Senator John McCain died yesterday. In the days
leading to his death, there’s been a lot of reflection on his life, especially
his heroism, his selfless devotion to duty, honor, and country.
McCain once wrote,
“Nothing in life is more liberating than to fight for a cause larger than
yourself, something that encompasses you but is not defined by your existence
alone.”
For Christians – especially for Christians who
get fed so well here in this beautiful dwelling place – the cause bigger than
ourselves is to share the love – it’s our responsibility
and privilege to do our best to make our little corner of the earth a beautiful
dwelling place for God.
Not
easy, for sure, but with God’s help, we have everything we need.
As
I’ve mentioned to you about a hundred times by now, one of my most favorite
things to do is to show off our beautiful temple to people who are here for the
first time.
Maybe
you remember the first time you walked through those doors. I know I do.
People
usually remark that the church is a lot bigger than it looks from the outside.
They
comment on the beautiful wood and how well cared for it all is.
And,
they sometimes take an interest in the beautiful rose window behind me, above
the altar.
As
you can see, it has a sword and a book – meant to represent the Bible – and the
words, “Spiritus Gladius.”
It’s
Latin for “the sword of the spirit” and it comes from today’s second lesson,
from the Letter to the Ephesians.
That
passage is a stirring and vivid call to spiritual arms:
“Stand
therefore, and fasten the belt of truth around your waist, and put on the
breastplate of righteousness. As shoes for your feet put on whatever will make
you ready to proclaim the gospel of peace. With all of these, take the shield
of faith, with which you will be able to quench the flaming arrows of the evil
one. Take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the
word of God.”
So,
yes, we come here to God’s beautiful dwelling place for rest and refreshment,
but the truth is that God dwells out there in the world, too.
God
dwells out there in a world that is broken, angry, fearful, and so hungry for
the Good News of Jesus Christ.
With
God’s help, our cause is to spread the love – to do our
part to make the whole earth a beautiful dwelling place for God.
So,
we come here to this temple not just for our own peace of mind but also to
receive the Bread of Life.
We come here to
this temple to get the shield, and the helmet, and the sword of the Spirit –
all the things we’ll need when we go back out into the world.
We
come here to this temple to receive all that we need to go back out there and
do our small but essential part in making the whole earth what it was always
meant to be – to make the whole earth a beautiful dwelling place for God – and,
a beautiful dwelling place for us all.
Amen.
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