Lossiemouth Church of Scotland

The sixth Sunday of Easter was 21 May 2017 and Rev. Geoff McKee’s sermon was based on 1 Peter 3:13-22. He considers two difficult issues from that Scripture: the so-called “Harrowing of hell”; and the issue of baptism and its claim for salvation. He goes on to encourage us, in the week of the Church of Scotland’s General Assembly in Edinburgh, to leave aside dogmatic ways and – with gentleness and reverence – engage effectively with others by respecting their views when we may not agree with them.

As usual, the scripture is immediately below, followed by the sermon.  Alternatively – or in addition – you can download a pdf version of the sermon by clicking here.

1 Peter 3:13-22 (New International Version)

13 Who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good? 14 But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. “Do not fear their threats; do not be frightened.” 15 But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, 16 keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander. 17 For it is better, if it is God’s will, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil. 18 For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive in the Spirit. 19 After being made alive, he went and made proclamation to the imprisoned spirits— 20 to those who were disobedient long ago when God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built. In it only a few people, eight in all, were saved through water, 21 and this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also—not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a clear conscience toward God. It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ, 22 who has gone into heaven and is at God’s right hand—with angels, authorities and powers in submission to him.

Isn’t it odd that one of the least referred to – and most obscure – events in Scripture is referenced in the Apostles’ and Athanasian Creeds; succinct and valued summations of early Christian belief?

This is the so-called ‘Harrowing of hell’.

It is solely based on Ephesians 4:9 and 1 Peter 3:19-20 which refer to Jesus’ descent to the place of the dead and to his preaching to spirits in prison, presumably after his crucifixion and before his resurrection.

It’s all very murky and uncertain – and sounds extremely odd in our rational, sceptical age.

We might be tempted to ignore it and we might be embarrassed that it is found in the Apostles’ Creed, in particular: after all it’s not easy to avoid it in the most universally accepted of all the Christian creeds.  And, even if we belong to the most non-creedal traditions of Christianity, we still have a problem with this teaching appearing in the New Testament.  So what can we say about it? [Read more…]

The Scripture for the Fifth Sunday of Easter (14 May 2017) is 1 Peter 2:2-10 (“The Living Stone and a Chosen People”), in which Peter refers to Jesus as “the stone the builders rejected” who “has become the cornerstone”.

Rev. Geoff McKee discusses again the overall context of the Christian’s life as one of exile. For that exile to find any hope, we must have a sense of pulling together, with a common purpose. Christians should be built up; not used as wreckers.  How well are we doing? How much of our time are we spending tearing down when we are called to be built up?

The Scripture is immediately below and then the sermon after that.  You can also download a copy of the sermon in pdf format if you wish.

1 Peter 2:2-10 (New International Version)

2 Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, 3 now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.

The Living Stone and a Chosen People
4 As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him— 5 you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6 For in Scripture it says:

“See, I lay a stone in Zion,
a chosen and precious cornerstone,
and the one who trusts in him
will never be put to shame.”
7 Now to you who believe, this stone is precious. But to those who do not believe,

“The stone the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone,”
8 and,

“A stone that causes people to stumble
and a rock that makes them fall.”
They stumble because they disobey the message—which is also what they were destined for.

9 But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. 10 Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

There are some occurrences in life of which no man has any direct experience.

Childbirth is an obvious one that springs to mind immediately and – despite a man’s assertion that he has experienced comparable pain to it – most women would be inclined to disagree.

And there is no argument with that because men have no experience of it. [Read more…]

For the Fourth Sunday of Easter (07 May 2017), the Scripture is 1 Peter 2:18-25 , a passage whose meaning has – more than once in history – been misconstrued to justify terrible things in the name of Christianity. Rev. Geoff McKee explains the truth of these words, via the over-arching principle of the Great Commandment, allowing us to see the importance of experiencing Jesus’ love for us as our Shepherd rather than as some kind of slave master.  The Scriptural passage is immediately below and the sermon follows after that. The sermon is also available for free download in PDF format.

1 Peter 2:18-25 (New International Version)

18 Slaves, in reverent fear of God submit yourselves to your masters, not only to those who are good and considerate, but also to those who are harsh. 19 For it is commendable if someone bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because they are conscious of God. 20 But how is it to your credit if you receive a beating for doing wrong and endure it? But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God. 21 To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps.

22 “He committed no sin,
and no deceit was found in his mouth.”
23 When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly. 24 “He himself bore our sins” in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by his wounds you have been healed.” 25 For “you were like sheep going astray,” but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.

Howard Thurman, in his autobiography, recalled the day when he visited Daytona Beach with his little daughters:

“We sauntered down the long street from the church to the riverfront. This had been the path of procession to the baptismal ceremony in the Halifax River….. At length we passed the playground of one of the white public schools. As soon as Olive and Anne saw the swings, they jumped for joy. ‘Look, Daddy, let’s go over and swing!’ This was the inescapable moment of truth that every black parent in America must face sooner or later.

What do you say to your child at the critical moment of primary encounter?

‘You can’t swing in those swings.’

‘Why, Daddy?’ [Read more…]

30 April 2017 was a Communion Service at St James’ Church and Rev. Geoff McKee had 1 Peter 1:17-23 as the scripture for his sermon. This instructs Christians to “live out your time as foreigners here”. It’s Jesus’ challenge to us to live as exiles in this world.

Geoff explains, by reference to this passage and also the story of the two disciples who met the risen Jesus on the Road to Emmaus (Luke 24:13-35), how Christians must be people of the exile, while still living together in witness to Jesus Christ. The text from 1 Peter is immediately below and then the sermon.

You can download a copy of the sermon in pdf format, if you wish.

1 Peter 1:17-23 (New International Version)

17 Since you call on a Father who judges each person’s work impartially, live out your time as foreigners here in reverent fear. 18 For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. 20 He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake. 21 Through him you believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him, and so your faith and hope are in God.

22 Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for each other, love one another deeply, from the heart. 23 For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.

One of the most poignant scenes in the second of the famous Godfather films – probably the finest sequel ever made – is when the boy Vito Corleone arrived in New York by ship from Sicily.

He was alone without any family help.

He did not speak the language and he was unsure who would step in to help him.

His story has a modern feel to it as thousands of children have set off in recent years, fleeing terrible trauma in their homeland to find refuge in a foreign land. They are refugees.

Peter did not use that word for the Christians he was addressing in his first epistle but he used a very similar word. He used the term ‘exiles’ in the opening sentence of his letter and in verse 17 here – in our passage today – he referred to ‘the time of your exile’. [Read more…]

On ‘Low Sunday’ (23 April 2017), the second Sunday of Easter, Rev. Geoff McKee’s sermon is based on 1 Peter 1:3-9, a passage which refers to both joy and suffering. He explains how joy and suffering come together to form a genuine faith in Christ; how joy is sown in tears – as the Easter story illustrates. The Scripture is immediately below and then the sermon. If you like, you can download a pdf version of the sermon, which contains references for the various quotations included within the sermon.

1 Peter 1:3-9 (New International Version)

Praise to God for a Living Hope
3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, 5 who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. 7 These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. 8 Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, 9 for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

By the time she was 21, Gerda Weissman Klein had spent six years living under Nazi rule — three of them in concentration camps.

• Her parents and brother had been taken away.
• Her best friend had died in her arms, during a 350-mile death march.
• And she weighed only 68 pounds, when she was found by American forces in an abandoned bicycle factory.

But Gerda survived. [Read more…]