Lossiemouth Church of Scotland

We celebrated the baptism of Jack Simpson on 25 February 2018 and Rev. Geoff McKee had scripture from Genesis, chapter 17. The discussion includes the concept of a change of name to mark a change of destiny. Abram becomes Abraham and Sarai becomes Sarah.  He also discusses the concept of grace – how God gives us what we need rather than what we deserve.

You can download a PDF of the sermon by clicking here.

Genesis 17:1-7, 15-16 (New International Version)
The Covenant of Circumcision
17 When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and said, “I am God Almighty; walk before me faithfully and be blameless. 2 Then I will make my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers.”

3 Abram fell facedown, and God said to him, 4 “As for me, this is my covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations. 5 No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations. 6 I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you. 7 I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you.

…

15 God also said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you are no longer to call her Sarai; her name will be Sarah. 16 I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her. I will bless her so that she will be the mother of nations; kings of peoples will come from her.”

Remember the words inscribed on the headstone of Joy Gresham, the wife of C.S. Lewis’ that I referred to last Sunday:

“Here the whole world (stars, water, air,
And field, and forest, as they were
Reflected in a single mind)
Like cast off clothes was left behind
In ashes, yet with hopes that she,
Re-born from holy poverty,
In lenten lands, hereafter may
Resume them on her Easter Day.”

O, how we long for the Easter Day and we long to exit the lenten lands…

But we can’t head straight from our enjoyment of Christmas delights and onto Easter Day.

We can’t do it and so we shouldn’t try.

The season of Lent shares the liturgical colour purple with the season of Advent. But the four weeks of Advent are very different in feel and tempo to the six weeks of Lent.

Advent is over in a flash of frenetic activity and Lent drags its feet like a rainy weekend.

Abram and Sarai in the Genesis’ text today are very much like lenten folk.

Abram is 99 years old and his wife, Sarai is about 90.

Twenty-four years have elapsed since Abram first heard God’s promise.

What would have happened to Mary, the mother of Jesus, if she had to wait twenty-four years for Jesus to be born? She would have had grey hairs!

Nothing happened quickly in Genesis and so Abram and Sarai are the people of the long, slow, reflective lenten times. We need to linger with them to allow ourselves time to reflect on the significance of God’s promises to us.

In all likelihood, it will not be many years before the reign of our Queen, Elizabeth, comes to an end.

At that time, her successor will, of course, be her eldest son Charles. King Charles III? – I wonder!

I read the following recently:

“Prince Charles was nine when he was given the title the Prince of Wales. He’s now 68 and is the longest-serving heir apparent in British history.

As speculation around the day that he inherits the throne gains momentum, questions around his future title are bubbling up. Will we be welcoming the reign of King Charles III?

Back in 2005, multiple reports said the Prince had discussed giving up the title Charles III because of unfortunate associations with previous monarchs named Charles. (Charles I was the only member of the monarchy to be tried and executed for treason, and his son, Charles II, who was known for his legendary love life, ruled during a particularly nasty bout of the plague and the Great Fire of London).

According to The Guardian, the Prince, who was christened Charles Philip Arthur George, held private talks with “trusted friends” about the possibility of using his third middle name and reigning as George VII. And former Buckingham Palace press spokesman Dickie Arbiter said, by using the name George, Charles would be paying tribute to the both his grandparents.

“It would not just be a tribute to his grandfather [King George VI], but a sort of loving memory to his late grandmother, whom he absolutely adored,” Arbiter told the BBC at the time.

But Clarence House quickly denied these claims. “No decision has been made and it will be made at the time,” Charles’ representatives said in response to the news.”

We will have to wait and see. But what is interesting and relevant to the passage in Genesis today is the concept of a change of name to mark a change of destiny.

All the principal characters receive a new name in our Genesis text, including God Himself.

God referred to Himself as El-Shaddai for the first time in Scripture.

El-Shaddai is often translated as God Almighty; it may mean more specifically ‘God of the Mountains’. Abram becomes Abraham and Sarai becomes Sarah.

There is an ancient tradition at baptisms where the candidate would be given a new name too.

In the Acts of St. Balsamus, who died AD 331, there is an early example of the connection between baptism and the giving of a name.

“By my paternal name”, this martyr is said to have declared, “I am called Balsamus, but by the spiritual name which I received in baptism, I am known as Peter.”

We use the term “Christian name” to refer to a person’s first name.

But, historically, that implied that the name was given at the point of infant baptism.

Jack will be christened, or baptised, this morning and he will not receive a new name but the name that has been chosen for him will be used throughout the rite of initiation and so becomes in the fullest sense of the term, his Christ name, his Christian name.

The covenant that God has made with creation through his Son Jesus is brought to mind and applied specifically in the naming of Jack before all of you present with God’s spirit: with blessing and promise come naming and covenant.

All of this is achieved by God.

This covenant with Abraham and his descendants is different from the unilateral covenant made with the created order after the Flood. Here with Abraham and his descendants there is a requirement that they worship El-Shaddai exclusively.

You see, Abraham lived in an age where multiple gods were worshipped by different peoples in different locations. Here, there is one God promising one people-group a multitude of nations spread throughout the world. Such a God demands exclusive worship. There is no room for a return to religious pluralism.

And yet, of course, we know that’s exactly the trap that the people fell into.

We might have expected the covenant with Abraham to be declared null and void but we find quite the opposite. Instead of withdrawing his favour, God expands his promise.

Charles Spurgeon and Joseph Parker led churches in London in the 19th century.

On one occasion, Parker commented on the poor condition of children admitted to Spurgeon’s orphanage. It was reported to Spurgeon however, that Parker had criticised the orphanage itself. Spurgeon blasted Parker the next week from the pulpit. The attack was printed in the newspapers and became the talk of the town. People flocked to Parker’s church the next Sunday to hear his rebuttal.

“I understand Dr. Spurgeon is not in his pulpit today, and this is the Sunday they use to take an offering for the orphanage. I suggest we take a love offering here instead.”

The crowd was delighted. The ushers had to empty the collection plates 3 times.

Later that week there was a knock at Parker’s study. It was Spurgeon.

“You know Parker, you have practised grace on me. You have given me not what I deserved; you have given me what I needed.”

God’s covenant promise led him to name his son Jesus, ‘God saves’, and to take his son to the Cross, the Grave and the Skies that the promise remained unshakeable.

That’s grace – and it’s that grace we celebrate today, as we present young Jack for baptism.

Amen.

God’s unilateral covenant with Noah from near the start of the Old Testament (Genesis 9:8-17) is the scripture for Rev. Geoff McKee’s sermon of 18 February 2018. He discusses the tensions we face, living in “Lenten Lands” – how humanity’s corrupting influence on all things is in conflict with God’s desire for a balanced, peaceful cosmos.

You can download a PDF version of the sermon by clicking here.

Genesis 9:8-17 (New International Version)
8 Then God said to Noah and to his sons with him: 9 “I now establish my covenant with you and with your descendants after you 10 and with every living creature that was with you—the birds, the livestock and all the wild animals, all those that came out of the ark with you—every living creature on earth. 11 I establish my covenant with you: Never again will all life be destroyed by the waters of a flood; never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth.”

12 And God said, “This is the sign of the covenant I am making between me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all generations to come: 13 I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth. 14 Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, 15 I will remember my covenant between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life. 16 Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth.”

17 So God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant I have established between me and all life on the earth.”

Psalm 7 and verses 12 and 13 read:

“God is a righteous judge,
a God who displays his wrath every day.
If he does not relent,
he will sharpen his sword;
he will bend and string his bow.
He has prepared his deadly weapons;
he makes ready his flaming arrows.”

Aren’t we glad that when it rains and the sun shines through the rain drops and a beautiful rainbow appears in the clouds that the rainbow is pointing away from the earth?

That’s not an accident. It’s God’s intention that we all see that he is not shooting his arrows at us.

The great flood is recorded in Genesis chapters six to eight.

It’s a significant chunk of Scripture referring, in effect, to the traumatic act of re-creation.

Before the original act of creation was complete the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep.

We have almost a return to this state as all living things were eliminated, barring what God permitted to come through from the primeval age. What a mess humanity had made of the privilege of stewardship!

Violence and destruction that is not confronted and dealt with builds and gathers momentum.

The downward spiral draws all things into its whirlpool. [Read more…]

Rev. Geoff McKee’s sermon for 11 February 2018 has the story of Elijah being taken up to Heaven as its scriptural basis (2 Kings 2:1-12). His servant and successor, Elisha, showed great persistence in sticking with his master to the end. There are clear parallels with Jesus’ earthly journey (and, of course, Jesus met with Elijah – and Moses – during the Transfiguration (Mark 9:2-13)).

We must be persistent in following Jesus and take inspiration from his example, knowing that he is someone who felt the same daily vulnerability we experience, haunted by the past and uncertain about the future.

Click here to download a PDF version of the sermon.

2 Kings 2:1-12 (New International Version)

Elijah Taken Up to Heaven
2 When the Lord was about to take Elijah up to heaven in a whirlwind, Elijah and Elisha were on their way from Gilgal. 2 Elijah said to Elisha, “Stay here; the Lord has sent me to Bethel.”

But Elisha said, “As surely as the Lord lives and as you live, I will not leave you.” So they went down to Bethel.

3 The company of the prophets at Bethel came out to Elisha and asked, “Do you know that the Lord is going to take your master from you today?”

“Yes, I know,” Elisha replied, “so be quiet.”

4 Then Elijah said to him, “Stay here, Elisha; the Lord has sent me to Jericho.”

And he replied, “As surely as the Lord lives and as you live, I will not leave you.” So they went to Jericho.

5 The company of the prophets at Jericho went up to Elisha and asked him, “Do you know that the Lord is going to take your master from you today?”

“Yes, I know,” he replied, “so be quiet.”

6 Then Elijah said to him, “Stay here; the Lord has sent me to the Jordan.”

And he replied, “As surely as the Lord lives and as you live, I will not leave you.” So the two of them walked on.

7 Fifty men from the company of the prophets went and stood at a distance, facing the place where Elijah and Elisha had stopped at the Jordan. 8 Elijah took his cloak, rolled it up and struck the water with it. The water divided to the right and to the left, and the two of them crossed over on dry ground.

9 When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, “Tell me, what can I do for you before I am taken from you?”

“Let me inherit a double portion of your spirit,” Elisha replied.

10 “You have asked a difficult thing,” Elijah said, “yet if you see me when I am taken from you, it will be yours—otherwise, it will not.”

11 As they were walking along and talking together, suddenly a chariot of fire and horses of fire appeared and separated the two of them, and Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind. 12 Elisha saw this and cried out, “My father! My father! The chariots and horsemen of Israel!” And Elisha saw him no more. Then he took hold of his garment and tore it in two.

The U.S. standard railroad gauge, the distance between the rails, is four feet, eight-and-one-half inches.

Why such an odd number?

– Because that’s the way they built them in Britain, and American railroads were built by British expatriates.

Why did the English adopt that particular gauge?

– Because the people who built the pre-railroad tramways used that gauge.

They, in turn, were locked into that gauge because the people who built tramways used the same standards and tools they had used for building wagons, which were set on a gauge of four feet, eight-and-one-half inches.

Why were wagons built to that scale?

– Because with any other size, the wheels did not match the old wheel ruts on the roads.

So who built these old rutted roads?

“The first long-distance highways in Europe were built by Imperial Rome for the benefit of their legions. The roads have been in use ever since. The ruts were first made by Roman war chariots. Four feet, eight-and-one-half inches was the width a chariot needed to be to accommodate the rear ends of two war horses.”

And hence the expression in life: “That’s the way it’s always been”.

Elisha might have hoped that Elijah was going to be there forever.

But that just wasn’t going to happen.

Jesus, as he climbed the mountain with a few of disciples, knew that he wasn’t going to be there forever. [Read more…]

In his sermon for 04 February 2018, Rev. Geoff McKee deals with themes of forgetting and remembering, prompted by the words in Isaiah 40:21-31, which begin: “Do you not know? Have you not heard?” God knows we will not always keep him in mind but he wants us to remember him. This passage reminds us that God provides power to the weak and strength to the weary – to the downtrodden exile and to those who feel that life has nothing more to give.

You can download a PDF copy of the sermon, if you wish. Click here.

Isaiah 40:21-31 (New International Version)
21 Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
Has it not been told you from the beginning?
Have you not understood since the earth was founded?
22 He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth,
and its people are like grasshoppers.
He stretches out the heavens like a canopy,
and spreads them out like a tent to live in.
23 He brings princes to naught
and reduces the rulers of this world to nothing.
24 No sooner are they planted,
no sooner are they sown,
no sooner do they take root in the ground,
than he blows on them and they wither,
and a whirlwind sweeps them away like chaff.

25 “To whom will you compare me?
Or who is my equal?” says the Holy One.
26 Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens:
Who created all these?
He who brings out the starry host one by one
and calls forth each of them by name.
Because of his great power and mighty strength,
not one of them is missing.

27 Why do you complain, Jacob?
Why do you say, Israel,
“My way is hidden from the Lord;
my cause is disregarded by my God”?
28 Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He will not grow tired or weary,
and his understanding no one can fathom.
29 He gives strength to the weary
and increases the power of the weak.
30 Even youths grow tired and weary,
and young men stumble and fall;
31 but those who hope in the Lord
will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint.

It’s very human to begin looking for something and then forget what you’re looking for.

I know it’s worrying: I have found myself at the top of the stairs coming to a halt and wondering why I climbed the stairs in the first place!

That’s a short-term memory problem.

But we can also be beset by long-term memory problems too.

Tennessee Williams tells a story of someone who forgot.

It’s the story of Jacob Brodzky, a shy Russian Jew whose father owned a bookstore. [Read more…]

This is Rev. Geoff McKee’s sermon for 28 January 2018.

If you wish, you can download a PDF version of the sermon, including footnotes, by clicking here.

Deuteronomy 18:15-20 (New International Version)
15 The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your fellow Israelites. You must listen to him. 16 For this is what you asked of the Lord your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly when you said, “Let us not hear the voice of the Lord our God nor see this great fire anymore, or we will die.”

17 The Lord said to me: “What they say is good. 18 I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their fellow Israelites, and I will put my words in his mouth. He will tell them everything I command him. 19 I myself will call to account anyone who does not listen to my words that the prophet speaks in my name. 20 But a prophet who presumes to speak in my name anything I have not commanded, or a prophet who speaks in the name of other gods, is to be put to death.”

When Moses’ time on earth had come to an end the compiler of the book of Deuteronomy wrote: “Never since has there arisen a prophet in Israel like Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face.”

That’s some epitaph, isn’t it?

On two occasions I have stood in a pulpit and announced to a congregation that I would be leaving for another charge.

I remember a wiser, older colleague once telling me that when you announce that you are leaving some folks will be upset and some folks will be relieved; some folks will be surprised and other folks will have seen it coming.

But, whenever you announce it, get on with it because there’s nothing worse than bumping into someone in the street one day who greets you with the words: “Are you still here?”  Or, to put it another way, “Here’s your hat, what’s your hurry?!”

In the Old Testament reading today, Moses intimated that the day was coming when he would be on his way.

He wasn’t for hanging around either.

It was going to happen quickly and the people would have to learn to adjust to their new circumstances.

But they were very fragile; they were doubtful that the goal of their journey would be reached even though they were right on the brink of their journey’s end. [Read more…]