Sunday of All Saints ---- 3 November 2019

Daniel 7:1-3, 15-18

1 In the first year of King Belshazzar of Babylon, Daniel had a dream and visions of his head as he lay in bed. Then he wrote down the dream: 2 I, Daniel, saw in my vision by night the four winds of heaven stirring up the great sea, 3 and four great beasts came up out of the sea, different from one another.

15 As for me, Daniel, my spirit was troubled within me, and the visions of my head terrified me. 16 I approached one of the attendants to ask him the truth concerning all this. So he said that he would disclose to me the interpretation of the matter: 17 "As for these four great beasts, four kings shall arise out of the earth. 18 But the holy ones of the Most High shall receive the kingdom and possess the kingdom forever—forever and ever."

Ephesians 1:11-23

11 In Christ we have also obtained an inheritance, having been destined according to the purpose of him who accomplishes all things according to his counsel and will, 12 so that we, who were the first to set our hope on Christ, might live for the praise of his glory. 13 In him you also, when you had heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and had believed in him, were marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit; 14 this is the pledge of our inheritance toward redemption as God's own people, to the praise of his glory. 15 I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, and for this reason 16 I do not cease to give thanks for you as I remember you in my prayers. 17 I 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, 18 so 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, 19 and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe, according to the working of his great power. 20 God 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, 21 far 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. 22 And he has put all things under his feet and has made him the head over all things for the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.

Luke 6:20-31

20 Then he looked up at his disciples and said: "Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. 21 "Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you will be filled. "Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh. 22 "Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you, revile you, and defame you on account of the Son of Man. 23 Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, for surely your reward is great in heaven; for that is what their ancestors did to the prophets. 24 "But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation. 25 "Woe to you who are full now, for you will be hungry. "Woe to you who are laughing now, for you will mourn and weep. 26 "Woe to you when all speak well of you, for that is what their ancestors did to the false prophets. 27 "But I say to you that listen, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. 29 If anyone strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also; and from anyone who takes away your coat do not withhold even your shirt. 30 Give to everyone who begs from you; and if anyone takes away your goods, do not ask for them again. 31 Do to others as you would have them do to you.

Then he looked up at his disciples and said: "Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.”

·       What Jesus speaks of in our Gospel passage does not seem possible to us. How can the poor be blessed if they are poor? Why are the rich and the satisfied and the happy told that woe is theirs? Our own experience of the world says that this doesn’t seem right.

·       Our readings today are loaded with things that don’t seem right. The prophet Daniel has dreams of monsters rising from the sea – although our reading did not describe those monsters. They represent four earthly kingdoms as the writer uses them to make a point.

·       Paul speaks of Jesus as raised from the dead and enthroned over all creation - he has put all things under his feet and has made him the head over all things…

·       Finally Luke tells us of Jesus’ teaching on the nature of true blessing, which seems to go against reality as we know it. What we call “the Beatitudes” bring a message of hope for the poor and the suffering, many of whom have no hope in this life. It also proclaims ‘woe’ to those who have it all now. Our world and our society see those-who-have as blessed with all anyone could want in creation.

·       What we see however is an illusion. The four kingdoms of Daniel’s dream all collapsed sooner or later – Babylon, the Medes, Persia, and the empire of Alexander and his successors. We confirm the resurrection and Jesus’ existence while others doubt his life has any meaning for anyone. Finally all the money, comfort, respectability, and self-centered security are passing and sometimes they crumble quickly.

·       When we remember our passed loved ones on All Saints Sunday – as we do today – we look to the lasting realities of God’s love and God’s mercy. Riches and worldly fame fade. Cash slips through our fingers despite our best efforts. The beasts that rise from the sea – the powerful empires - in Daniel’s dream pass into history. The topsy-turvy promises of Jesus stand and stand fast. The kingdom of God is promised to the poor, the hungry, the mourning, and the excluded, not in some dim future but now. The kingdom is even promised to the rich, the satisfied, the laughing, and the respected who realize that all they have is from God’s grace and is to be shared. What a person is before God is all they are and nothing more. (Francis of Assisi)

·       Those who have passed from our sight and whom we have commended to the mercy of God are remembered here today. They are saints because Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. It is the grace of God that makes saints and those who abound in God’s grace might not look or sound like the plaster saints we imagine. Saints are all real people and every last one of them depends on God’s grace… and every last one of us depends on God’s grace. It’s what make us all “The communion of saints.”

·       As a pastor, I’ve buried a large number of people. At funerals, I add a short prayer of my own. It’s from the remembrance card given at my mother’s funeral and it is an old prayer used in other Christian traditions. It brings together the communion of the saints in a way few others do: "May the angels lead you into paradise; may the martyrs receive you at your coming and lead you to the holy city Jerusalem. May the choirs of angels receive you and with the once poor Lazarus, may you have eternal rest."

·       I also add another prayer from the traditions of the Eastern Christian Churches: Christ is risen from the dead; by death, he conquered death and to those in the tombs, he granted life.

·       Today can be a sad day for remember what we’ve lost. It can also be a bright day of hope for we look forward to what we have been promised.

“…the holy ones of the Most High shall receive the kingdom and possess the kingdom forever—forever and ever."