Beginning Again

Beginning Again
By Pastor Pete Grassow

Introduction
 
November is the month of Thanksgiving: we look back on the past year and give thanks for blessings - and we look forward to Christmas as a moment of family, and of gifts and of love.
Our religious calendar sees this as the moment of new beginnings: we have come to the end of the green growing season - and we begin our faith journey through the dark winter months trusting in the renewing Spirit of God.

I want to read a passage that speaks of endings - and of new beginnings.
Mark 13:1-8
Jesus Foretells Destruction of the Temple
Mar· 13:1 And as he came out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him, "Look, Teacher, what wonderful stones and what wonderful buildings!"
Mar 13:2 And Jesus said to him, ''Do you see these great buildings? There will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down."
Signs of the Close of the Age
Mar13:3 And as he sat on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew asked him privately,
Mar 13:4 "Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign when all these things are about to be accomplished?"
Mar 13:5 And Jesus began to say to them, "See that no one leads you astray.
Mar 13:6 Many will come in my name, saying, 'I am he!' and they will lead many astray.
Mar 13:7 And when you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed. This must take place, but the end is not yet.
Mar 13:8 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. These are but the beginning of the birth pains. 

The disciples are walking with Jesus through the temple in Jerusalem: King Herod had spent the last 10 years renovating the temple: He doubled the size of it, rebuilding it into one of the great wonders of the Middle East.

This was a heritage project - intended to make him famous ...and obviously he taxed the people to do so.
Mar   13:1 And as he came out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him, ''Look, Teacher, what wonderful stones and what wonderful buildings!"
We all have moments when we admire human achievement - anyone who has been to the Black Hills and seen the faces of the presidents on Mount Rushmore - or the Crazy Horse monument - can understand the disciples.
"Wow - amazing"
And Jesus refuses to join them - Jesus says: these stones will fall down one day.
 
They then cross the Kidron valley and sit on the Mount of Olives: and the disciples ask Jesus: "Why are you not impressed with what Herod has done?"
And Jesus gives this answer:
Mar 13:5 "See that no one leads you astray.
Mar 13:6 Many will come in my name, saying, 'I am he!' and they will lead many astray.
To paraphrase: many people will set themselves up as the heroes of society "I am he - I am the one who will save you"
Jesus was speaking specifically about Herod - who was trying to win support from the people by re-building the temple: but for us 2000 years later we can hear the warning of Jesus echoing through the centuries: Beware of  those who will tell you:
I will protect your interests
I will be the one who will keep you safe am the one to vote for

This calls to mind Adolf Hitler: I am the one responsible for the morale of the German Volk.
I come from South Africa - and I grew up with politicians who promised to save my country - but all they did was enrich themselves.
......... perhaps you have heard a politician promise you that he/she will be the one to save America... when in fact they are trying to promote their own fame and fortune.
Sometimes it is not politicians - there are wealthy people who, like King Herod, use buildings to preserve their fame.
The San Francisco General Hospital is now the Zuckerberg General Hospital...and you can probably name other examples.
 
And Jesus says: There will come a time when these stones will fall down-

Jesus is not wishing the temple to fall. Instead he is teaching his disciples not to trust in the      passing parade of people who claim importance:  Do not trust King Herod - who renovated this building into an amazing temple - in fact Herod's temple was barely completed when Rome destroyed it. In AD70 they dismantled the temple stone by stone and burned everything.
I can hear the disciples saying to each other: Jesus said that this would happen.
 
But the words of Jesus could echo through the next 2000 years of history - "do not trust the powerful leaders who build monuments to themselves - there will be wars, and earthquakes, and leaders will vanish and their buildings will fall down."
And at the point that the disciples begin to despair....
and at the point that we might want to despair - and say: well is there any hope for our own lives in this world - or are we at the mercy of the passing parade of powerful people:
Jesus adds hopeful words:

Mar 13:8 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. These are but the beginning of the birth pains.
With every death - there is the possibility of rebirth!
As one kingdom comes to an end
As one leader steps down
As one building is pulled down
There open up the possibility of a new beginning.
 
This is the core of our Christian faith:
Jesus death on Good Friday offered the possibility of an Easter Sunday rebirth. Had Jesus not died - we would not have heard the Good News of Resurrection after death.
This is our Christian faith: When one thing dies - the power of God brings something new to life in its place.

• When the Roman Emperors try to take over the authority of the Christian church - God brings the Christian church to life in the desert communities of north Africa and Syria
• When religious wars of the Reformation burned across Europe
  
  • God raised up Christian communities like the Lutherans, and in England the Methodists, new life from the ashes of the old churches.
• In the 19 Century, when the Russian government tried to kill the Christian beliefs of the Mennonite communities on the Volga River - God gave them new birth inNorth America.

So in the words of Jesus:
Mar 13:7 And when you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed. This must take place, but the end is not yet.
God will always bring new life again. This is particularly appropriate today:
We are coming to the end of summer - but even as you see the ending of one season of life - do not be afraid because God will bring rebirth.

This is the story we tell each year: it is the story of Christmas: at the moment when things are dying / at the moment when the cold is setting in and the darkness gathers: a saviour is born.
And we are given hope of a new beginning.

If you have been feeling depressed
If the politics of our times are depressing
If your sports team loses in the final second of the  game
If the Corona Virus has got your spirits down
If your personal circumstances are difficult:
 
Do not be dismayed - for a Saviour has been born to us - his Name is Jesus.
And he invites us to take hands with him - and with one another: And work for a rebirth.
Do not hang onto the old things in the  hope that they will bring life -

• Do not hang onto buildings or status or wealth - it will all fall down like stones in the temple
• Do not hold onto your ancient bitterness, and anger, and fear - they will betray you in your old age and make you fall down on your face before God
• Do not hang onto the old ways of worship/ or the old religious prejudices / or the old tired dogmas that crush the love out of our faith - they will fade to dust and ashes

 
Take the risk and let go: and see what new birth God has in store for you!
Invite us to be open to the wonder of the holiday season: be open to God beginning something new in your life.