Musical Prelude and Service.

Psalm 104:14-23 & 1 Corinthians 1:10-23
As often happens when you are reading New Testament scripture, there is a need for caution against
slipping into Antisemitic readings. For blaming Jews for the death of Jesus, or leaning into hatred and
seeing Jews as less than or outside of God’s love.
We can’t know with absolute certainty the attitude of everyone who wrote in our scriptures. And it is
certain that there was a growing tension over the years between those of Jewish faith and those who
were Jesus followers who eventually became the Christian community. And absolutely over time, that
grew into Antisemitic attitudes and policy through pretty much all of Europe and parts of the Middle
East. But Antisemitism is dehumanizing and leads to evil, and that goes against everything we are
taught. That is nowhere close to the path; the way Jesus, a Jewish rabbi leads us on. So we need to
take care sometimes reading our English translations of the books and letters passed down to us over
the millennia.
The foolishness of the cross is a stumbling block for the Jews. Let’s never forget that that man who
wrote those words, Paul, was a Jew. He was a devout Pharisee who through a mystical experience
came to know Jesus, while persecuting his followers. For him, as he looks back on his early work as
Saul, the foolishness of Christ and the cross would certainly appear as a stumbling block.
The message of hope that followers of Jesus find in the crucifixion and Christ’s resurrection, was one
that those outside of this faith, from the very first years, looked on with suspicion, bewilderment or
even scorn. In the early years, it was often referred to as the scandal of the cross.
The Romans would look at Christians and their worship and devotion to the man they called God with
us and observe that the Empire executed him. Jesus died the death of a rebellious slave. In their
eyes, the Roman Empire killed their God in the most humiliating way possible.
We find hope in a God who became fully human and demonstrated their love for us by humbling
himself and showing absolute vulnerability, suffering torture and brutal death.
In the view of the empire, this appears to be a weak and powerless God. Especially compared to
Caesar. By the wisdom of the empire. By the wisdom of the world, this is foolishness.
And yet it is this foolishness – this faith, in the one who was crucified and rose again, offering us
hope and salvation; a promise of something better, more just, more loving, that draws us together.
That is Paul’s message. We find hope and togetherness, unity though Christ. Not through factions or
pride in a particular set of teaching. Paul is writing to urge the church in Corinth to get past their
petty differences and their squabbling. To remember who they follow. Not him, or Cephas or Apollus.
It is in this togetherness, this sense of communion in one another, that they may find joy and
recognize the beauty of Creation tat God provides.
In Psalm 104, we get a reflection of how God is in creation. It is not a story of Creation but a
reflection of God creating. That God can be found in all parts of creation, ordering creation bringing
harmony to all of creation. God is in the plants, the trees, the grass, the flowers and the vegetables
that nourish us. God can be found in the animals and birds. In the rabbits and the lions, offering
shade and protection, cover and water. There is room and time and comfort for all of god’s
creatures.
We all live in relationship to the rest of creation. We are connected in mysterious and wondrous
ways. We have been created to be in harmony with the rest of creation, and tragically we seem to
forget that, and as I’ve noted before we live with a belief, we have mastery over this world. We can
bend the world to our purposes. We can reshape the world. We can solve all our problems. And to be
sure, we have through our imagination, and our intellect solved a great many mysteries and
overcome a great many diseases and physical challenges. And for that I am grateful.
But we can also in our arrogance forget that we are still part of something so much larger than
ourselves, and we are still subject to rhythms and movements of the tides and the setting and rising
of the sun. We remain mortal and need water and food. We still look to what we grow to find joy and
pleasure I this life. We are still dependent on what this planet provides. We are called to live in
harmony with God’s creation. We are a part of this creation. We are among the flora and fauna.
God created the world and all that is found in and on it. God created with purpose and in intimate
detail, so that the grass and grain, the fruit and the berries provide nourishment for the creatures
that walk and crawl, that fly. Those plans offer shelter and nesting space for the creatures. And those
creatures, the lions, the birds, the animals and humanity live for a time amongst this wonder.
We have time, we have a place. We are called to make the most of it and to honour and respect the
gift of this life and this creation. We are called to be the church. To live with respect in Creation.
But as I said, we can forget that we are one part of God’s creation. We can think it was all designed
for us. We do not owe this world our care and devotion. But as much as this world is a miracle, it is a
delicate balance. As abundant as life is on this planet, it can be oh so fragile.
Paul refers to God’s wisdom and love seeming like foolishness to the wisdom of the world. God
provides for us. God offers us abundance through God’s creation. And yet we push and prod and
attempt to bend creation to our immediate needs. Science has provided us with so much and
challenged and overcome so much. That is good, but our push for progress has also poisoned and
disrupted so much of what God offers. Where do we find our balance.
Our attempts to solve the problem of certain pests that disrupt our agriculture have often harmed
other parts of our eco-system. The damage brought on by DDT to eagle population is one well known
example.
May we be open to the wisdom to move with care and to trust in the life giving and life renewing
love of the risen Christ as we make our way through the wondrous creation that is God’s world.
Amen.
Rev. Warner Bloomfield

Music provided with permission through licensing with CCLI License number
2701258 and One License # A-731789