Dear Friends
As all ancient peoples know, gods dwell on mountains and it is to high places humanity must go to interact with their gods. The writers of Scripture, too, knew this and do not go against it, they rather present the Almighty God as above, as more powerful, as unlike the gods; he is the God of gods.
For the Lᴏʀᴅ your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who shows no partiality nor takes a bribe.
Deuteronomy 10:17
Give thanks to the God of gods,
Psalm 135:2–3 ʟxx
For his mercy endures forever;
Give thanks to the Lord of Lords,
For his mercy endures forever.
Truly your God is the God of gods, the Lord of kings, and a revealer of secrets, since you could reveal this secret.
Daniel 2:47
And from out of Creation, God creates a mountain for mankind to encounter him. That this is a mountain is only alluded to in Genesis,
Now a river went out of Eden to water the garden, and from there it parted and became four riverheads.
Genesis 2:8
For the four rivers to flow out of Eden it must have been in an elevated place, but later the status of Eden as a mountain is made more specific: in identifying the King of Tyre as the Satan, in the prophecy which came from the Word of God through Ezekiel, God parallels Eden with the mountain of God.
You were the seal of perfection,
Ezekiel 28:12–14
Full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.
You were in Eden, the garden of God;
Every precious stone was your covering:
The sardius, topaz, and diamond,
Beryl, onyx, and jasper,
Sapphire, turquoise, and emerald with gold.
The workmanship of your timbrels and pipes
Was prepared for you on the day you were created.
You were the anointed cherub who covers;
I established you;
You were on the holy mountain of God;
You walked back and forth in the midst of fiery stones.
But man was not satisfied with having to climb a mountain to interact with the divine, man was determined to bring God, bring the gods, down.
Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower whose top is in the heavens.
Genesis 11:4
This tower—an artificial mountain, a temple—would be a place to hold onto God, to trap God, to bring God down that he could be manipulated: not the mountain of God where God meets his people but the artificial mountain of man from where man attempts to control God. And at Babel—literally the gateway (Bab) of the gods (el)—man stepped forward in his arrogance and hubris, and man gets his wish as God does indeed come down.
‘Come, let us go down and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech.’
Genesis 11:7–9
So the Lᴏʀᴅ scattered them abroad from there over the face of all the earth, and they ceased building the city.
Therefore its name is called Babel, because there the Lᴏʀᴅ confused the language of all the earth; and from there the Lᴏʀᴅ scattered them abroad over the face of all the earth.
On Sunday we will celebrate the Lord descending upon the earth another time, but quite the opposite of Babel. Of old the Lord came to separate one from another because they were attempting to control him, but by the death and Resurrection of our Lord, God and Saviour Jesus Christ, our race was in a position to receive power from God for unity in Christ.
If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink.
John 7:37–38
He who believes in me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.
And from the Upper Room, the Holy Spirit does not undo the operation of Babel, does not wipe it out that we speak with one language, but blesses the diversity and honours the peoples.
And there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under heaven.
Acts 2:5–11
And when this sound occurred, the multitude came together, and were confused, because everyone heard them speak in his own language.
Then they were all amazed and marvelled, saying to one another, ‘Look, are not all these who speak Galileans?
And how is it that we hear, each in our own language in which we were born?
Parthians and Medes and Elamites, those dwelling in Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia,
Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya adjoining Cyrene, visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes,
Cretans and Arabs—we hear them speaking in our own tongues the wonderful works of God.’
Notice that the text does not say the Apostles were themselves speaking these different languages, rather that by the Holy Spirit, their voice was understood by all those around them, that the words spoken by David may be spoken about them,
Their proclamation went forth into all the earth,
Psalm 18:5 ʟxx
And their words to the ends of the world.
My brothers and sisters in Christ, dear friends, Babel has been undone. We have been freed from the delusion of idolatry, freed from trying to trap the divine which in reality would make us slaves to their powers, and out of our hearts flow rivers of living water. Let us share this blessing we have received, let us live out the fulfilment of the Resurrection, let us be conduits for the grace of God in our world.
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Sermon
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, one God, Amen.
Why are we here in Church? What have we come to see? Is it to meet with friends and to have fellowship with them? Or to here a thought-provoking message? Or are you here out of habit? Or obligation? Or to receive positive answers to prayers, a new job or a good grade? Why are you here in Church?
“Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you.” And we must face the reality of the situation—this is about more than fellowship, as important as that is, and more than “food for thought.” This is not just a “nice way to live,” this is about Truth—either it is a lie and we must run away, or it is true and we must embrace it; Christianity cannot be partially true, or true to some people but not for others, there is no middle option.
You and I have come together to offer glory and worship to the living God. And the Lord tells us what he offers in return, “to give eternal Life to all whom the Father has given the Son.” We have been given to Christ—won by Christ, saved through Christ, joined together in Christ—but not as slaves, traded from one master to another, rather as freed human beings, as bearers of the image of God, as persons. And by Christ, through Christ, in Christ, we receive eternal Life.
…
Read this Sermon, Why are we here in Church?
Archive of Past Sermons.
Services this week
Friday 21st June
Discussion on the Gospel of Matthew, 8 pm.
Online only
Saturday 22nd June
Great Vespers, 6.30 pm.
At 3rd URC Scout Hall, Chandlers Ford
Sunday 23rd June
Matins and Divine Liturgy, 9 am.
At 3rd URC Scout Hall, Chandlers Ford
Online session is via Google Meet: please get in contact for the details.
Please join us: all are welcome, come and see.
Attending Church
We meet at 3rd URC Scout HQ, Kings Rd, Chandlers Ford SO53 2EY. The Scout hall is behind and to the left of the URC Church. Come and See.
Can I help you?
I am here for you, you need only ask. Is there a way I can support your life of faith? Get in touch.
Can you help the parish?
Yes, absolutely. Offer yourselves to the Lord: pray! Make available to him all your talents and ask him how he would like you to use them — listen for his reply.
Your prayers!
With love in Christ
Fr Alexander
[email protected]