Sunday, 24 August 2003

Ephesians 6 : “As shoes for your feet put on
whatever will make you ready
to proclaim the Gospel of peace …”

I’ve come across several descriptions of the sixth chapter of Ephesians. One I like in particular :

“An agenda for doing the job of a Christian.”

As we listened just now to this part of Paul’s letter to the struggling Church at Ephesus that ‘agenda’ was lengthy but straight to the point – the armour of God, the struggle against the many faces of evil, the breastplate of righteousness, the shield of faith – and finally the Sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God … A shopping list and an agenda that says it all. Written for a young Church – it has all the relevance and demand we’ve got to listen to today.

Whatever will make us ready to proclaim a Gospel of peace …

Just think over some of the headlines this past week.

The slaughter of people working for the UN in Baghdad : the carnage of men, women and children because of another suicide bombing in Jerusalem : the on-going revelations at the Hutton Inquiry about the background to the war in Iraq : here at home attacks on people because of their religious or political identity : worries about more terrorism across the world. On and on it goes. A planet created by God torn asunder by violence, death and misery. We may well ask - what has this Gospel to say to a world like ours – and what has it to say to those of us who still believe, still believe despite it all in a Gospel of Peace?

I often remember the young engineering student who said to me : “I’m being trained for a profession that will build things to make this a better world. As a Christian how can I be sure I’m really making a contribution to the Gospel when there are so many who want to destroy things?”

I remember the senior doctor in one of our hospitals who remarked : “I’m dedicated to healing but there are times when I wonder where I fit into the plan God has for this world.”

But most of all I remember the elderly lady living on her own in an isolated cottage – alone with her memories – who put it like this :

“What can I do as I am here on my own to be a part of the Gospel message?”

Different words, different circumstances – but all asking the same basic question –

Now I know there’s nothing really new to this dilemma. Here we have the Gospel imperative – find through God’s grace what we need to proclaim a Gospel of peace. Beside it we put ourselves who want to believe, who want to listen – but who have our moments of wondering – how on earth can we as individuals, as mere mortals living in very different places and possessing very different gifts – how can we respond to that Gospel demand?

At the heart of the Gospel we proclaim in this service the simple but profound truth – each one of us made in the image of God has a role to play – where we are and as we are. We all have our doubts. If we’re really honest with ourselves – we all have our failures. But Paul is saying – face up to it – look for what you need to be a part of the Gospel of Peace.

In Churches throughout the length and breadth of these islands today people will pray for peace in the world. But there are times like the present when above all we need as Christians to be encouraged that we do have a Gospel that matters to this world – that there is a relevance in what we say and do – a relevance that will make a difference.

First let’s recognise the personal nature of it all. At the centre of the Christian story is the simple fact we are important as individuals. We matter as a person. We are unique because of the gifts and opportunities God gives us. The simple word of encouragement, the simple expression of personal belief, the word of understanding to a friend or stranger, the patience to listen and to try to understand what is important to someone else. Small, seemingly insignificant ways in which we don’t just preach but practice the Gospel of Peace. They may seem small – but no one knows what can result from the simple personal word or attitude. To me those small beginnings are just as vital as world-shattering developments. In isolation, in loneliness, in regret or sadness – it doesn’t matter – it is the same Gospel and it stems from our importance as the person we are to God.

Second, Paul recognises we will need different attributes to respond to this call. We don’t need to be a world statesman or a national leader to recognise that where we are, what we are and how we are counts. Too often the good we can do is blocked by our attitude to others. We don’t have to agree with someone, we don’t have to like let alone love someone, to recognise they are just as important as us. How often have we prayed for someone we dislike? Don’t dismiss that as some sort of Christian platitude … Don’t pray that others will see the error of their ways and agree with us – pray for them as people just as important to Almighty God as we are. Because – just remember – they might be right and we might be wrong. A sobering thought isn’t it.

There’s another thought occurs to me in this service.

Worship like very other human response to God takes many different forms. What is it we are taught – “the beauty and majesty of God”. Sometimes people may wonder about the relevance of worship in a world of violence, brutality and uncertainty. Worship may seem like some sort of escape into beautiful music and fine liturgy. But real worship must draw from us solemnity, reverence and awe. I hope you find this service is doing just that. Yet if it is true worship it must inspire, it must challenge – it must compel us to leave the beautiful atmosphere of a Cathedral or a Church and to do the work of God – actually do the work of God. We’ve got to leave the comfortable pew, the gracious sanctuary, the solemn atmosphere and go out into the world as it is. To put it plainly – worship must help us to see the world of sorrow, suffering and despair NOT as a lost cause but as something over which God rules and which He has redeemed. It’s not the world of pleasant, loveable things. It’s a world crying out for help. That’s the world which waits for us when our worship ends.

This week here in Armagh we remember that son of Armagh, Charles Wood, whose music and words captured this very thought. So in the midst of all those unanswered questions about God, about suffering – and about peace – let’s take fresh heart from words appropriately named ‘Armagh’ which we often sing to his setting :

“It were my soul’s desire to see the face of God
It were my soul’s desire to rest in his abode …
This still my soul’s desire whatever life afford
To gain my soul’s desire and see thy face, O Lord …”