"A Full Church" - Psalm 145:1-10; Ephesians 1:15-23
A Full Church
All Saints Sunday, Nov. 6, 2022
Psalm145:1-10 // Ephesians 1:15-23
Rev. Kate Fiedler
After more than a year worshiping online, we returned to gather for worship in this sanctuary on Pentecost of 2021—May 23rd. That may seem like a long time ago for some of you, and just last week to others. I am grateful that we are now able to gather more safely for worship, with the wonderful option of worshiping online for those who can’t be here for one reason or another. Yet, there were some unexpected blessingswhen we weren’t gathering and our best, most caring option was a recorded service.
One blessing was the delight of looking for familiar faces during the pre-recorded videos of hymns from worship services in 2019 and earlier. While we were quarantined at home, it was lovely to see families and friends in their usual spots in the pews, and tender to see the faces of those who have died. For me, watching Bo Jacob’s work, weaving together recently recorded liturgy and music with hymns that were previously recorded, it was a reminder of the fullness of the community of faith. I got to know this church family during the hymns each week, and I learned where many of you prefer to sit in this sacred space. Old and young, those who have been members for decades and those who were just visiting that week—the cameras often moved from different angles to display the full congregation. I got a glimpse of this church family and beloved saints who are still present in memory and hearts, even if they no longer sing with us.
Those pre-recorded hymns are a glimpse of the church universal, which we celebrate today as we honor All Saints Sunday. Today we remember that our church family stretches back beyond those worshiping with us here in the sanctuary and those online—it includes loved ones who have met their final rest and ancestors of the faith we read about in scripture. Our church family includes all the parishioners and pastors who have gathered here to worship a loving God since 1845, and we trust with God’s guidance, this church family will continue beyond our own lives. Today we remember that the church is bigger than any one particular congregation or time; God’s gathered people include generations and the full geography of the globe. On this All Saints Sunday, I pray you will feel the fullness of the church—including saints sitting near you and those whose memory fills your heart.
Today’s second scripture is a letter written to the early church, with hope that they too will sense the fullness of the church and their connections with the communion of saints. Scholars debate whether it was actually Paul who wrote the letter, and whether it was meant for the church in Ephesus or was meant to passed around house churches in the general region. With the Spirit’s leading, I hope you will focus in on the content and intent of this part of the letter. This prayer for the early church is still good news for us today. Listen to how the Spirit is calling the church now, in the first chapter of Ephesians, starting with verse 15:
15 I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love towards all the saints, and for this reason 16I do not cease to give thanks for you as I remember you in my prayers. 17I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him, 18so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints, 19and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe, according to the working of his great power. 20God put this power to work in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, 21far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the age to come. 22And he has put all things under his feet and has made him the head over all things for the church, 23which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.
This is the Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.
We hear a prayer of thanksgiving for God’s plan for the faithful and praise for Christ as the head of the church. This prayer lifts up the importance of community and the strength we find in the collective. When we consider the needs of the church right now, in our nation, and across the world, we too seek a spirit of wisdom and revelation as we come to know God and understand God’s word. Such a message of unity in and through Christ is a balm to our weary ears. We seek wisdom and God’s presence as we navigate how to be the body of Christ in a divided country, with the planet in peril, and ongoing war and violence near and far. Like the early church of the first century, we too are praying for God’s wisdom and power to guide us. When our hope falters, the hope of our church family can lift us up. This week we head into another election, and as Christians, I hope you vote, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, and with hope for God’s world to become our reality. Like the saints of the early church, we are called to live with the eyes of our heart enlightened, holding on to the hope of our calling and the strength we gain from our inheritance and connections to the saints who have gone before us and who are among us. The church is a reminder that together, we can accomplish far more than we can alone; with the communion of saints, we can risk for justice and work for peace with more strength than if we attempt to forge ahead as lone rangers.
There is an old “Hasidic tale [that] tells of the disciple who asked his rabbi the meaning of community one evening when they were all sitting around a fireplace. The rabbi sat in silence while the fire died down to a pile of glowing coals. Then he got up and took one coal out form the pile and set it apart on the hearth. Its fire and warmth soon died out.”[1] We need each other. Through the community of saints, we gain fire and warmth, wisdom and revelation, courage and hope, and the strength to carry on in the struggle. This letter to the early church reminds us today of the importance of community—those in our midst this moment, and those who have laid the foundation of our faith.
Today’s scripture also emphasizes the power of God, and the power God gives Christ as the head of the church. God grants Christ power over all others—above death, and above all rule and authority and power and dominion—not only now but also in the age to come. We in the church also have God’s power available to us. Pastor and one of my mentors, Bob Dunham writes about this passage,
“We may protest that we are not up to the task, that we lack the courage and the strength necessary to live faithfully in such tumultuous times. To such protests the Ephesian letter serves as a reminder of whose power is at work in the life and witness of the church.”[2]
God is at power, through the Lordship of Jesus Christ, who leads the church. It may be hard to discern and difficult to believe, but we are not the first faithful to question the power of the Creator. The disciples were often confused; God’s people complained against Moses in the desert; if you have questions about God’s power at play on earth, then you are in good company among the communion of saints. Ephesians gives us another example in scripture when God’s power is beyond our human understanding. We are encouraged to see with our heart and seek understanding.
One place we seek understanding and see with our hearts is at the Lord’s table. Today we gather again to share the joyful feast of the people of God. Christ invites us to share this sacred meal, not just with those who worship with us, but also with the communion of saints. A beautiful example of such Communion is the closing scene in the movie, Places of the Heart. The people in a small town in Texas are gathered together for worship, with the women all wearing hats and the men all wearing ties. They sing the hymn, This is My Story, then they hear the passage from 1 Corinthians 13:1-8. “Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful. Love never ends,” they hear from the pulpit. As the choir sings, In the Garden, the trays of bread and the cups of juice are passed along the pews. And as the camera follows the bread and the cup, you see the trays passed between black and white, shared between those who have died, murdered, and those who are living. It’s a scene of God’s grace and mercy, of forgiveness and community among regular people, regular saints, when we see it with our hearts, even if it’s beyond our understanding.
On this All Saints Sunday, I invite you to breathe deeply, and to consider who among your cloud of witnesses you want to remember as we share this sacred meal. Who do you wish you could pass the bread and the cup to today? As you gaze upon the saints here in mosaic, behind this table, whose presence would add warmth and fire to your heart? Whose face would add to the fullness of our church? As Kathy plays, I invite you to see the faces of those saints with the eyes of your heart.
[Kathy plays one verse of For All the Saints.]
Beloved of God, as we celebrate the meal Christ shared with his friends, we celebrate the power of God, the communion of saints, and the fullness of your church. We give thanks for our place at the table, and we work together for the whole world to know the promise of God’s love for all creation. May the joyful feast be a reminder for us all—here and across time—that God’s will cannot be defeated, and God’s love knows no bounds. Ephesians reminds us this was true in the first century, and it is true for us today. Thanks be to God.
Let us pray. God of all generations, we give you thanks for your love that never ends. We praise you for the communion of saints who inspire us and connect us. Inspire us to follow Christ with courage and hope, we pray. Lead us to see with our hearts and to listen to your voice above all others. We pray by the power of the Spirit. Amen.
[1] Neumark, Heidi. Breathing Space: A Spiritual Journey in the South Bronx. Boston: Beacon Press. 2003. 61.
[2] Dunham, Bob. “Ephesians 1:11-23, Homiletical Perspective” Feasting on the Word, Year C, Vol. 4. Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2010. 235.