Every once and a while a particular scriptural text will fire the imagination of a community of Christians in a given place and in a given time. Martin Luther, for example, was captivated by that section of Paul’s letter to the Christians in Rome that declares that we are justified by faith through God’s gracious gift rather than by our pious works. From this spark grew the fire of reformation that spread throughout the western Christian world and, even today, continues to fuel Christian thought and action.
What happened to Martin Luther happened to those responsible for the creation of The Book of Alternative Services during the late 1970’s and early 1980’s. They were captivated by a portion of today’s reading from the letter to the Christians in Ephesus.
Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine; to him be glory in the church and Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen. (Ephesians 3.20-21 NRSV)
This sentence summed up their firm belief that we, the disciples of Jesus, are not mere bystanders in God’s on-going work of re-creation, reconciliation and renewal. We are co-workers with God, actors in the great drama of the kingdom of God unfolding in our world.
And so, at the end of the eucharist, we who have heard the Word and shared in the holy food offered at this holy table are sent forth, commissioned just as Jesus commissioned his first disciples as agents of the kingdom. We give praise to God even as we re-commit ourselves to the work of the kingdom. You know it well. Say it with me now.
Glory to God, whose power, working in us, can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine. Glory to God from generation to generation, in the Church and in Christ Jesus, for ever and ever. Amen. (BAS 214)
These are powerful words. They are easily said but are difficult to fulfill.
When Jesus and his disciples find themselves surrounded by a large crowd of hungry people, the disciples first response is to send them into the neighbouring villages and countryside to fend for themselves. But Jesus is having none of this. ‘What resources do you have,’ he asks. ‘Precious little,’ the disciples answer. ‘Use them and let’s see what happens,’ Jesus responds. I have little doubt that the disciples feared for their lives as they began the distribution. Hungry crowds have little patience when they discover the food has run out. But it doesn’t run out and there are even left-overs.
Twenty years or so ago I was chairing a meeting of a committee of the Native Ministries Program at Vancouver School of Theology. No arrangements had been made for lunch, so I made some suggestions about where folks could find a meal. I apologized that I hadn’t been shopping so I was not able to offer lunch at my home on campus. One of the members of the committee said, ‘That’s one of the differences I notice when I’m in a city from when I’m at home in my village. Here you apologize for not having enough. At home we invite you and figure out how to make due with what we have. Rarely does anyone complain about being hungry afterwards.’
So often we find ourselves looking so closely at what we do not have that we cannot see what we do have. Sometimes we are hindered in our actions by a perception of scarcity that we find ourselves taking no action at all. Yet the last two years have proven that we are actually ‘richer than we think’.
In 2019 few if any of us here at Holy Trinity Cathedral had any idea of how to make use of digital technology. But we did not throw up our hands in despair. We had a Facebook page and a website and, when asked, parishioners provided the financial resources to purchase the hardware to do more. Last Sunday I officiated at the marriage of a couple who came to us because of our on-line presence. In September we will have the baptism of an adult and in October two people confirmed who also came to us in the same way. Glory to God, whose power working in us . . . !
In 2019 COVID achieved what snow, rain and winds could not: we had to suspend our breakfast program. But our dedicated volunteers would not be stopped. Plans were made. A new day and time were identified. The Archbishop was sent a plan. We resumed our program and have become a distribution point for another program that serves several other churches with food resources. The City of New Westminster and the United Way have provided financial and other resources. Glory to God, whose power working us . . . !
Today Laurel joins us as a disciple of Jesus Christ. She’s just one small person who does not yet know fully what being a disciple means, but the possibilities are more than we can imagine. She will bring her own gifts and insights into the midst of this peculiar people we call the church. She will surprise us with her questions and with her glimpses of God’s wisdom hiding just beyond our immediate sight. But it’s through the small things that God begins the greatest work.
God can and is doing infinitely more than we can ask or imagine. All God needs is for us to use the gifts we have in confidence and in hope. After all, we’re the living proof of the power of one young woman’s ‘yes’ to an outrageous request from God’s angel. It’s amazing what’s possible in a world such as this.
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