November 4, 2007 Sermon
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All Saints Sunday 2007
November 4, 2007 Allan Conkling
All Saints Day is always one of my favorite holidays. I love singing, for all the saints who, from their labors rest. Once again we have set up our "Altar of Remembrance" as a reminder of our loved ones. It seems to fit so well with our first reading, from the Apocrypha:
"Let us now sing the praises of famous men (and women), our ancestors in their generations...their bodies are buried in peace, but their name lives on generation after generation."
In
"Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses...let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us."
They cheer us on to victory; they support us as we run the race of life with courage. Saints are everywhere, living and dead. We have only to open ourselves to their presence.
Today is also one of the few days when we read from the Book of Revelation. The image of our loved ones, robed in white, circling the throne of God singing "Holy, Holy, Holy" is a comfort and consolation:
"They will hunger no more, and thirst no more...for the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of the water of life, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes."
Throughout the 20 centuries since Jesus was alive there have been countless examples of faithful people, the Big Name saints, who lived and died for what they believed. This is the day to acknowledge their example and to dedicate ourselves to similar service. But don't forget the "small saints" as well. These are the ones: grandparents, a teacher, a scout leader, and aunt, uncle, friend or mentor, who cared enough to tell you about Christ, or bring you to church, or just pray even when you didn't know it. Nothing, not even death can separate us from their love. We call this the "Communion of Saints."
The Gospel reading for this day is always the Beatitudes from Matthew or Luke. Jesus spoke to the crowds on the hillside and revealed a world which was like the tip of an iceberg. We see the outward and visible things but just below the surface is to be found a deeper, inward, mystical world of God's Kingdom. Here we see a world of suffering and sorrow, but God's kingdom is healing, and redemption. God's kingdom is freedom for the oppressed, open arms for the outcast, and the defeat of evil. God's Kingdom is given to each one of us, not to possess, not to own or to hoard. Rather it is given to us to extend and share with others. This is the world of the saints.
This is also the life of Stewardship. In a few moments we will take all the pledge cards we have received so far and offer them back to God. We will pray God to use them to his glory in the coming year. Everything we have has been given to us by our Creator. When we pledge we release this church to be all that God would have it be. I pray that Emmanuel Church will have a renewed vitality and dedication for the coming year. True vision isn't about eyesight, but imagining everything as God sees it. That is to say, how we live our lives and how we set our priorities...what we do with our things--all can be seen from the point of view of the One who created us, sustains us, who loves us. God frees us from fear, doubt, and anxiety to be all that we can be.
The challenge in all this is that faith is not something you ever attain. You can't possess faith. You can only live it and desire to make it yours inside. No one sets out to be a saint. The ones who are often our best examples of selflessness and fidelity are the least likely to think of themselves that way.
Yet, even if we fail again and again to live up to God's vision for us, God never stops calling us. Christian faith is a way of living, an attitude, a "vocation" demanding the best from us. The good news is God loves us and accepts our offerings of our selves our lives, our time, talents, treasures...and our frailties. All can be used for the growing of the Kingdom.
This morning we worship in the presence of the saints and angels. How many countless prayers have gone heavenward from these pews? How many have received strength and encouragement from this altar? You are here at Emmanuel because a few folks had a vision: A vision of a church that would stand as a beacon to the city of San Angelo and the Concho Valley. They cared enough to pass this on to us, and pledged their support that this building would continue into the future. I pray that in our time we do as well for those who come after us.
So today we honor the
holy men and women of the Church; the exemplars of our faith:
"One was a doctor and one was a queen and one was a shepherdess on
the green: they were all of them saints of God--and I mean, God helping,
to be one too."
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Revised: 11/11/07