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Sermon on Sacraments

SERMON ON SACRAMENTS

WE NEED EACH OTHER, WE NEED GOD

WORLD COMMUNION SUNDAY

A CHANGE OF PLANS

I announced in the newsletter that I was going to preach on the Ten Commandments today. But we've had a baptism, a mission moment, and are looking forward to communion. And I am aware of the 11th commandment which is "Thou shalt not make the worship service run late." I just can't do the Ten Commandments justice in an 8 minute homily. So I've decided to talk about the sacraments since we so seldom celebrate both of our sacraments on the same day. Now, I can't do that justice in an 8 minute homily either, but I'll try to hold up just a few of their meanings for our consideration.

WE OBSERVE TWO SACRAMENTS
Baptism and Communion. The two sacraments of most Reformed Protestants. Catholics and Episcopalians have 7. Some denominations like Quakers observe none. The Reformation emphasis on sola scriptura (scripture alone) moved the Protestant church away from the sacraments instituted by the church-confession, confirmation, marriage, ordination, last rites-to the only two they felt were commanded by the Bible.

One of the reasons I find the sacraments so meaningful is that along with music, they take us out of our heads. The faith of our Pilgrim forbears is a very wordy religion. Oh, we've given up the hour-long sermon, but we're still pretty oriented toward intellectualizing our faith. One preacher commented that scripture tells us that the Word became flesh and we keep trying to turn that living flesh back into words again.

BAPTISM AND COMMUNION ~ TANGIBLE ACTIONS
Baptism and communion are tangible actions. They deal with the body-the feel of water on the forehead, the taste of bread on the tongue, the sweet smell of grape juice. They assert that religious faith is, in fact, embodied. We cannot separate spirit from flesh. We don't just think about how God interacts with us, we feel it and live it.

CHILDREN UNDERSTAND SACRAMENTS ON AN INTUITIVE LEVEL
This is why at Pilgrim we bring children into the sanctuary for communion. Children can respond to the "realness" of it. They understand what it means to share bread with each other, to be part of a common meal. And, perhaps, more than adults even, they get caught up in the mystery. I wish you could stand where I do when I lift the bread and break it; to look at the faces of the kids in the first rows and to see how attentive they are. A colleague told me about the time her six-year-old son came forward for communion. He tore a piece of the bread from the loaf and popped it in his mouth. Immediately he turned to his mom who was the pastor serving and said, very loudly, "Mmmm, that was so good! I want more!" What a great image of the spiritual hunger we bring to the communion table.

In baptisms, the attentiveness goes to the adults. I often see tears and always huge smiles as I walk the child down the aisle. The idea that this child becomes ours in baptism becomes palpable. For myself, I'm into the unpredictability of it-especially in infant baptism. Will the child come to me willingly? Will she squirm or settle? Will he become fascinated by my earrings? Will she try to launch herself into the water? That edge, the not knowing, is symbolic for me of how God affects our lives.

IF WE TAKE OUR BAPTISM VOWS SERIOUSLY, ANYTHING CAN HAPPEN
When we are baptized, if we mean those words about following Jesus, anything can happen. We might end up ordering our entire lives around those promises-getting ourselves to church every Sunday morning instead of reading the papers in our pjs. We might cook up 100 pieces of chicken every month and go to serve dinner to people who need a hearty meal. We might or lose our hearts to a village in Honduras or a school in Africa. Or spend a few precious hours on Saturday preparing a Sunday school lesson. Or, even in perilous economic times, decide that giving money away is still a priority. You never know where baptism is going to take you.

IN THE SACRAMENTS, WE DRAW CLOSE TO GOD AND TO EACH OTHER
In both of these sacraments, we see the cross. The vertical axis connects us to God. God is at work in baptism and communion-drawing us closer. The horizontal axis reminds us that the arms of the cross stretch out and we draw closer to one another.

THE SACRAMENTS POINT TO GOD'S PRESENCE IN EVERYDAY LIFE
The best thing about these sacraments is that even though they are supposedly sacred ceremonial acts, they are not weird rituals made up to wow or intimidate us. They reference ordinary life. The font holds water we've brought from our favorite places. The table could be our own dinner table. In fact, that's the idea.

Every morning when Martin Luther leaned over his wash basin, he's splash his face from the sink and say, "Martin, remember, you are baptized." It was a blessing for his day and a reminder of who he belonged to. When Jesus broke the bread, he said, "As often as you do this, remember me.". I don't think he meant "remember me when you have communion in church" but "remember me every time you break bread." Remember me at every family meal, when you are out for coffee with a friend, when the youth group gathers for pizza, when kids are crazed with sugar at a birthday party. "Remember me."

REMEMBER ME
These sacraments are reminders that all of life is sacred. That the holy is as common as bread and water. God is present not just in baptismal water but in the water that flows from your shower. God is with us at our coffee break at work just as surely as God is here at the communion table.

This week let's see if something shifts in our lives if we put this into action. With every touch of water, in every meal, God is yearning to wants to come closer to you. Take a moment to hear the voice of Jesus saying, "Remember me."