Matthew 1:18-25
God with us, not God with me or God with you, God with us. This is not an individualistic interpretation, it is meant to be communal. God is not with me when God breaks into this world, God is always with us. It has been that way since the beginning. God looked for Adam and Eve in the garden, God spoke to Abraham to create a nation, a people who were with God.
Community is counter cultural. We have grown up in a world that tells us we can make it on our own. What we have is people who are longing for community though. The rate of suicide has increased, particularly in older males who have lost a spouse. The rate of people feeling lonely and isolated has increased and this is not good for peoples health or welfare. This is the one thing God gave to us, community.
God with us asks us all to participate in the community God created. When God created the earth there was a whole community: flowers, birds, animals, trees. Any good thing in creation doesn't exist alone it has to have a community, an ecosystem which is the community that supports life. It says not to swim or wade at Big Spring, this is because the ecosystem is so fragile it would be destroyed by someone putting their big foot in it. If you look closely there are numerous signs of life in this cold water. It is a community that supports one another. One of the things which is happening to our oceans is the death of vast coral reefs, which effects the overall ocean health, it is meant to be a community that supports a much wider community.
God with us, or the incarnation breaks in and tries to get us to recognize our dependence, our interconnections, our need for community, the community of God. God with us tells us a story of God trying to show us we are stronger, more wonderful together than apart. It is what we were created for.
Yesterday in my Advent devotions it explained the Samhain celebration. People would take an ember from their fire and carry it to this place where the collected embers would be pushed together to start a great fire, a bonfire seen for miles away. Then the community gathered tells stories. Stories of their lives, of people lost, of what the year has been, of the things they have come through together. Then as the fire dies in the morning each person takes an ember back to their home to start their fires before going to bed after the long night together.
The story of a people, the community gathered to hear, to listen, to be together. It is why God with us is so important. Salvation was never the I won it and my God is bigger, better, brighter than yours, God with us, is what salvation is all about. God with us in our stories, God with us as we create communities of care and love in a world which desperately needs it.
Community is one of the gifts we have been given. It is a fabric with which we weave all the stories. Jesus was not born in a stable alone with two poor parents, Jesus came to the shepherds, to the wise men who traveled a long way away and didn't even believe in this Jewish God. Jesus came and called 12 to follow, to be the community who made more communities. Community was so important to Paul that even though he didn't agree with the church in Jerusalem he would travel back to there and follow the communities rules to him.
Community, God with us, is essential to our continued growth and health. When we just become a group of individuals who meet there is no community. God with us invites us to create those communities where people can see God is breaking into the world. God has moved into the neighborhood and God is changing hearts and minds to create this special light, which shines through all the worlds darkness and makes it bright.
God with us, not God with me or God with you, God with us. This is not an individualistic interpretation, it is meant to be communal. God is not with me when God breaks into this world, God is always with us. It has been that way since the beginning. God looked for Adam and Eve in the garden, God spoke to Abraham to create a nation, a people who were with God.
Community is counter cultural. We have grown up in a world that tells us we can make it on our own. What we have is people who are longing for community though. The rate of suicide has increased, particularly in older males who have lost a spouse. The rate of people feeling lonely and isolated has increased and this is not good for peoples health or welfare. This is the one thing God gave to us, community.
God with us asks us all to participate in the community God created. When God created the earth there was a whole community: flowers, birds, animals, trees. Any good thing in creation doesn't exist alone it has to have a community, an ecosystem which is the community that supports life. It says not to swim or wade at Big Spring, this is because the ecosystem is so fragile it would be destroyed by someone putting their big foot in it. If you look closely there are numerous signs of life in this cold water. It is a community that supports one another. One of the things which is happening to our oceans is the death of vast coral reefs, which effects the overall ocean health, it is meant to be a community that supports a much wider community.
God with us, or the incarnation breaks in and tries to get us to recognize our dependence, our interconnections, our need for community, the community of God. God with us tells us a story of God trying to show us we are stronger, more wonderful together than apart. It is what we were created for.
Yesterday in my Advent devotions it explained the Samhain celebration. People would take an ember from their fire and carry it to this place where the collected embers would be pushed together to start a great fire, a bonfire seen for miles away. Then the community gathered tells stories. Stories of their lives, of people lost, of what the year has been, of the things they have come through together. Then as the fire dies in the morning each person takes an ember back to their home to start their fires before going to bed after the long night together.
The story of a people, the community gathered to hear, to listen, to be together. It is why God with us is so important. Salvation was never the I won it and my God is bigger, better, brighter than yours, God with us, is what salvation is all about. God with us in our stories, God with us as we create communities of care and love in a world which desperately needs it.
Community is one of the gifts we have been given. It is a fabric with which we weave all the stories. Jesus was not born in a stable alone with two poor parents, Jesus came to the shepherds, to the wise men who traveled a long way away and didn't even believe in this Jewish God. Jesus came and called 12 to follow, to be the community who made more communities. Community was so important to Paul that even though he didn't agree with the church in Jerusalem he would travel back to there and follow the communities rules to him.
Community, God with us, is essential to our continued growth and health. When we just become a group of individuals who meet there is no community. God with us invites us to create those communities where people can see God is breaking into the world. God has moved into the neighborhood and God is changing hearts and minds to create this special light, which shines through all the worlds darkness and makes it bright.
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