Sermon Preached by Rev. Dr. Dawn M. Conti at KPC on Memorial Day Weekend, 5/30/16

The Gift of Consolation

Sermon preached by Rev. Dr. Dawn M. Conti at KPC on Memorial Day Weekend, 5/30/16

Focus: God is the God of consolation/encouragement

Function: As those who’ve received this gift in Christ, we pass it on in our woudness working for redemption of others and ourselves.

John 14:25-27 "I have said these things to you while I am still with you. 26 But the Advocate,1 the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything, and remind you of all that I have said to you. 27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid.

2 Corinthians 1:1-11

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,

To the church of God that is in Corinth, including all the saints throughout Achaia:

2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,

the Father of mercies and the God of all consolation,

4 who consoles us in all our affliction,

so that we may be able to console those who are in any affliction with the consolation with which we ourselves are consoled by God.

5 For just as the sufferings of Christ are abundant for us,

so also our consolation is abundant through Christ.

6 If we are being afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation;

if we are being consoled, it is for your consolation,

which you experience when you patiently endure the same sufferings

that we are also suffering.

7 Our hope for you is unshaken; for we know that as you share in our sufferings,

so also you share in our consolation.

8 We do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters,1 of

the affliction we experienced in Asia; for we were so

utterly, unbearably crushed that we despaired of life itself.

9 Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death so that we would

rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead.

10 He who rescued us from so deadly a peril will continue to rescue us;

on him we have set our hope that he will rescue us again,

11 as you also join in helping us by your prayers,

so that many will give thanks on our1 behalf for

the blessing granted us through the prayers of many.

This is the Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.

Introduction

Nine years ago we took a wonderful family vacation to Washington DC.

One of the many things we did was take a bus tour of

the memorials and war monuments.

By far, the Viet Nam Veterans Memorial Wall

spanning over 500 feet wide was the most powerful.

Perhaps you know that the wall is etched with the names

of the 58,000 American soldiers who had died in the war.

Memorial Day is a time for

Remembering those who have died in military service.

The total number of Americans killed in all US Wars

Is more than 1.1 million persons[1]!

Memorial Day also sadly reminds me of

an old tale of ancient India about 4 royals sons

who were looking to make their mark on the world and

so they set out each on their own.

Time past and the brothers met again at an agreed on meeting place.

The first born son reported,

“I have mastered the science of covering a bone with flesh.”

The second son said that he had learned to grow skin and hair on a

bone with flesh on it.

The third said that he was able to create limbs once

bone, flesh and skin were present.

Finally, the fourth son said that he had mastered the science of

giving life to a creature with all of those things:

bone, flesh, skin, hair and limbs.

Together the brothers journeyed into the jungle and found a piece of bone.

What they didn’t know was it was a bone from a lion.

The first added flesh, the second skin and hair, the third limbs.

When the fourth son added life, the lion jumped on his creators,

killed them all, and then disappeared into the jungle.

On Memorial day, the saddest thing that I remember that none of the wars in the history of the world have resulted in a peace that lasts.

Even so, human beings keep killing each other; we can’t seem to find another solution.

When Paul wrote this letter,

he wasn’t addressing the brokenness brought by death or war.

He was addressing brokenness in human relationships in the church at Corinth.

Paul had made difficult visit to Corinth

(He’d been working in Ephesus and traveled to Corinth) and

apparently some sharp words had been exchanged and there was a

deep sense of being woundedness. .

Paul is using this word of consolation which could also

be better translated as “encouragement” paraklesis.

It reflects his desire to overcome the shattering that has taken place.

Trouble in the World

Although we may not have experienced the loss associated with war or even church squabbles, Each of us is broken in some way.

A young couple experiences the loss of child.

A man loses his job in a company layoff.

A daughter is diagnosed with breast cancer.

A man asks his wife for a divorce.

A tornado, fire, or hurricane destroy a home.

Wherever you’ve been; wherever you are now; Christ has been there first.

Christ has experienced first-hand all the brokenness of the world and has provided the way of healing.

Through Christ, God promises to bring something good out of even our darkest moments.

As James 1:2 puts it,

“My brothers and sisters,1 whenever you face trials of any kind,

consider it nothing but joy,

3 because you know that the testing of your faith

produces endurance; 4 and

let endurance have its full effect,

so that you may be mature and complete,

lacking in nothing.”

Good News in the Text

Instead of beginning the letter of 2 Corinthians with a thanksgiving,

which he does in other letters,

Paul begins with a blessing that calls on God, saying:

“the Father of all mercies and the God of all consolation,”

who consoles us in all our affliction so that we may be able to console others in any affliction with the same consolation (1:3-4).

This blessing gets at a central theme in the Old Testament –

that God saves and liberates us from whatever is oppressing us so

that we can be of service to others;

“the chosen are called to serve.”[3]

In this blessing, we find God’s response to evil, sin, and suffering.

And in this blessing we are given a description of what God’s salvation is all about:

We pass on the consolation and encouragement that we have received to others.

At the center of all this are the sufferings and consolations of Christ,

which overflow within and through us.

Christ’s sufferings (pathemata) for all not only

become a means of abundant consolation and grace amid our own suffering,

but also unite us with Christ that we too share in both his suffering for others and in the abundant overflow of his consolation

that spills over through him and within us, and now on to others.

In Christ, we have a different way interpreting all that happens to us:

all our brokeness becomes the means for others’ consolation and encouragement.

Paul’s hope for the church in Corinth remains unshaken;

this overflow of Christ’s sufferings and consolation and encouragement

is the basis for an

authentic sharing or communion not only between him and them,

but also among them –

where they share in one another’s brokeness and joy (see also 1 Cor 12).

Good News in the World

To help young architects understand the needs of those for whom they design housing,

David Dillard sends them on “sleepovers.”

They put on pajamas and spend 24 hours in a senior living center

in the same conditions as people in their 80s and 90s

They wear earplugs to simulate hearing loss,

tape their fingers together to limit manual dexterity, and

exchange eyeglasses to replicate vision problems.

Dillard says, “The biggest benefit is [that] when I send 27 year olds out,

they come back with a heart 10 times as big.

They meet people and have a better understanding of their challenges.

(Rodney Brooks, USA Today).

The same is true for us when we experience times of loss, pain and brokenness.

God can use our suffering to help others and

in the process our own suffering is redeemed for a higher purpose.

It’s precisely because we’ve had the experience of loss, hurt, pain or disappointment,

that we can become channels of Christ’s consolation or comfort for others.

Trials in life have a way of carving out our souls in ways that make us

more compassionate,

more in tune,

more willing to care for another person in a similar situation.

Sometimes the gift of consolation/encouragement is made know in the ministry of presence.

That is, just showing up.

I am reminded of the practice of sitting shiva in the Jewish traditions.

When someone dies, mourners sometimes sit on low stools or boxes

while they receive condolence calls.

Its what we did last Sunday when we gathered in Jerry’s Bar in Philadelphia to

Celebrate the life and mourn the loss of Kevin’s Uncle Mark.

Although we weren’t there for 7 days, we were there together for about eight hours, surrounding Mark’s only child, Juliette with the ministry of presence.

Cousins who hadn’t seen each other for over 20 years reunited,

Friends who hadn’t seen each other in decades

And there we were, gathered together

Sharing the ministry of presence.

And through that experience, all were healed

Through the gift of consolation, comfort and encouragement.

It’s what we do here at KPC in every funeral or memorial service.

Console each other through the pain by clinging to the promises of our faith and each other.

Sometimes the gift of consolation/encouragement is made known through the gift of listening.

Sometimes it means being willing to be transparent in our own brokenness which

Can make another child of God feel less alone in his or hers.

We may not have had the same exact experience,

but often there are common threads.

The chosen are called to serve.

We are, as Henry Nouwen might put it, “wounded healers.”

Our woundedness, we can be the source of healing for others.

Conclusion

We live in a world that may never learn that war

is not the way to lasting peace.

Even so we can choose to participate in God’s redemption

Channeling Christs healing to others while that healing

Binds up our own brokenness in the process.

Today we give thanks for all of those who lost their lives in service for our country.

But we also remember the lives of all of God’s children lost to war since the world began.

The Psalmist 56:8 speaks of God’s compassion for us saying that God counts our sorrows.

It goes on to say that our tears are so precious to God, the Holy One keeps them in a bottle. .

We worship the God who promises to

“wipe every tear from our eyes.”

We stand on the Promise that in God’s perfect time there will be
“no more death or mourning or crying or pain.”

And in the meantime, we participate in God’s plan established in Jesus Christ

for the redemption of the world:

Let us pray:

Good and gracious God,

We thank you that you sent Jesus to heal broken lives

And still meet us in our unique brokenness working to make us whole.

Open our eyes to those you have placed in our path who need your

Consolation, comfort and encouragement.

Work through our brokenness to bring healing.

Empower us to respond in love and action.

Passing along what we have received in Christ.

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[1] http://www.pbs.org/newshour/updates/many-americans-died-u-s-wars/