Readings for the Day:
Sermon:
Hear these words: "Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God."
This is how the author of Hebrews ends the reading we have from him today. Just as last week we were taken through the cloud of patriarchs- Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob- so this week were are reminded of yet more witnesses from the Old Testament- mainly Moses, Joseph, Rahab, Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, and Samuel. Prophets, Kings, and Judges. People called on specifically to listen to God and lead His people.
And we have an even greater cloud of witnesses to guide us into glory today. Not just the disciples, the Apostles, Paul's students Timothy and Titus, and all those who followed after. We have those who surround us here. We have the many names that surround us on plaques and Windows. Names I am wise enough to let you read in case I accidentally forget one.
We are surrounded by many who have gone before us into glory. And we look towards them as we follow the path to Jesus. Not because we wish to make them into idols. But because they clearly saw the importance of serving God. Otherwise, their names would not still surround as a cloud of witnesses to Christ's glory. And that reason, that witness that they serve to us, that is why we still hang on to them.
Because they constantly remind us of Christ Jesus who stands before us. They remind us of why and how to follow Him.
Following the example of those before us is very much the tradition of the Episcopal Church as a member of the Worldwide Anglican Communion. In fact, we worship in such a way every time we come together. It is the very reason for the approach of our current Prayer Book.
We were fortunate, as Christians, to rediscover in the 20th Century some of the older forms of worship, particularly for the Eucharist, which we then used to form our own services we use today.
But, we did not do so rejecting the work of the first writers of Anglican Prayer Books, such as Thomas Cranmer. We still have reminders in the service of what Cranmer offered to us for our faith. Reminders such as the Prayer of Humble Access and the words of "our sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving."
Our service today is a reminder of what Cranmer offered us as Christians in the Anglican Tradition. Morning Prayer was Cranmer's use of services that had been employed in various forms in Christian tradition for centuries. He merely tweaked them to better serve as a tool to evangelize and remind people of the rich treasure we have in Scripture.
In our Prayer Book, we have tried to honor the first Christians while also recognizing the wealth of worship we have received since then, especially from the tradition of Cranmer. In it, we try to recognize the many works of the past that have been a reminder and example as we try to turn towards the path of Jesus. They are a cloud of witnesses that constantly surround us. Because every time we worship, we aren't just together as the congregation of St. Paul's Greensboro. We aren't just worshiping together with fellow Episcopalians, Anglicans, Christians. By praying in the ways we do, ways that remind us of that cloud of worshippers who have gone before us, we worship with that same cloud of witnesses as we all strive to give honor and glory to Christ our King.
And as we reflect on how we are moving forward, how we are raising a new generation to serve Christ Jesus, I believe we will find that this way of worship that reminds us those who have gone before us as a cloud of witness, isn't just an Anglican form. Or even just an Episcopalian form. It is the way in which we as St. Paul's worship.
Because it is not just the names of those long before us that surround our worship. We have tools for worship that have been in use at St. Paul's for decades, and at times for longer.
These tools are a reminder that we never worship alone. That we are always surrounded by the cloud of witnesses who have come before us.
Again, we don't keep these reminders with us in it for themselves. We don't remember the past because we worship it. We remember it because the cloud of witnesses gives us an example and constant reminder of how to continue to move forward towards Christ, as Hebrews tells us.
So, as we move closer in our relationship with Jesus, we can remember those
who have walked the path before us. And we can learn from them. And we can
move forward to give all praise and glory to Christ Jesus, who died so that we
could rise to new life in Him. And for the hope we have and for the wonderful
cloud of witnesses who have gone before us to act as a constant reminder of the
love Jesus has for us and the honor and praise we should always offer up to the
one who has given us the gift of grace, we can truly say, thanks be to God!