INTRODUCTION
Giacomo Puccini wrote some of the worlds most beautiful music. Among the works of
this great Italian composer are a number of famous operas, such as La Boheme and
Madame Butterfly. In 1922 the 64 year old composer was stricken with cancer. In spite
of the disease which ravaged his body Puccini determined to complete his opera Turandot
He worked on it day and night. Many people urged him to rest, thinking that he couldn’t
possibly finish it anyway. When his illness worsened and Puccini knew his death would
soon come he wrote to his students, "If I don’t finish Turandot I want you to finish it for
me".
When you look out on all that needs to be done here in our church. The jobs that need
doing, the money that needs to be raised, the endless projects on our “To Do Lists.” Do
you ever feel a sense of panic? A sense of fear. Do you ever wonder how can we possible
do all that needs to be done? How will we ever pay for all that we have committed
ourselve to? Do you? Have you? Well, you’re not alone. And that is exactly what we must
remember most at times of fear. We must remember that we are not alone and that the one who stands with us is also the one who prayed for us long before we were even born.
“I do not pray for these disciples only, but also for those who believe in me through their
word, that they may all be one; even as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they
also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.”
As some of you know lately I have been researching our church history. The other day I
came upon an article written by Rev. Sanford Smith Martyn who served as pastor to our
church between 1870-1874. In his article Rev. Martyn is addressing the current theology
of his day in the 1800’s to which he writes, “the gift of God in Jesus sealing his life with
the death of the cross is a gift of healing, mercy, pardon, new divine life begotten in the
soul and bringing us into divine order and divine possibilities--in a word into union with
God, never reached in any other way. ‘For truly our fellowship is with the Father and
with his son Jesus Christ.” Of all the things Jesus could have prayed for the night before
he was about to die he prays that all who would believe in Him might be made one as the
Son is one with the Father. Why unity you might ask, because as president Abraham
Lincoln knew “United we stand, divided we fall.” And so for us to be able to do the tasks
that God has placed before us, we must be united. But this is not about simply being in
agreement or working off of the same sheet of music. For to God unity is an act of
restoration. A divine gift of grace by which God’s wayward children find their way back
home. A gift from above by which we who were once sinners are restored to the divine
glory in which we were originally created. It is for this divine purpose that Jesus prayed,
“The glory which thou hast given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as
we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the
world may know that you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.”
Do we have all that we need to do the work of God in this church? When we look at the
seemingly endless requests for money ... workers and participation in on-going activities
One might be prone to say no, we don’t. But then, that’s what our eyes can see. But we
are christians and are therefore not to live by sight alone. As Rev. Martyn puts it, “this
development of truth signifying relations and facts centering in God has a realm
distinclevely its own, and that realm is faith. It is a realm signifying a sway of the whole
being by facts and influences other than either physical or merely intellectual, even that
which remains satisfied only when it hearkens to the one word--God.” Faith is how we
are to live Oh, sure we say that God loves us God is with us God is for us even that God
will take care of us But do we really believe it? When the rubber meets the road do we
really have the faith to trust that God will come through? Not just once But again and
again and again, day after day, month after month, year after year?
Have you heard the story about the man who went for a walk in the woods one day. He’s
minding his own business when suddenly he hears a growl. Looking over his shoulder he
spots a black bear charging towards him. As quick as his legs will carry him the man tears
off through the woods. Until he runs right off the edge of a cliff. On his way down he is
able to grab a passing tree branch. With the bear above him and several hundred feet to
the ground below him the man cries out for God to save him. And to his amazement he
hears God say, “Let Go, and I’ll catch you.” “What did you say?” asked the man. “I
said, Let Go, and I’ll catch you.” To which the man relied, “Is there anyone else up
there I can talk to?” Faith that can endure the trials and tests of life does not come easy.
For the grace of God calls us to journey to the limits of our faith and then bids us come a
little father now, pass beyond the edge of your sight. Step into the darkness for the light
of Christ burns brightest in the darkness. No, grace led faith does not come easy, nor does
it come cheap. To have a faith that endures costs us dearly, for it is a faith the connects us to the costly grace of God. This grace that comes from God alone is costly, says Dietrich Bonhoeffer,
“because it costs a man his life, and it is grace because it give a man the only true life. It
is costly because it condemns sin, and grace because it justifies the sinner. Above all, it is
costly because it cost God the life of his Son. And it is grace because God did not reckon
his Son too dear a price to pay for our life, but delivered him up for us. Costly grace is
the Incarnation of God. Costly grace confronts us as a gracious call to follow Jesus, it
comes as a word of forgiveness to the broken spirit and a contrite heart. Grace is costly
because it compels a man to submit to the yoke of Christ and follow him."
Costly Grace, and the faith to follow that grace, no matter where it may lead us. This is
what Christ offers us when he prays, “Father, I desire that they also, whom you have
given me, may be with me where I am, to behold my glory which you have given me in
your love for me before the foundation of the world.” To be where the Christ is. To go where He leads us. To do what He commands us to. To believe in Him, even when it’s the darkest. This is grace filled-faith. A faith that can come only from God above passed on to us through Jesus the son. For Christ has already given us all that we need to fulfill his will in the world, for he has given us himself. We have received his glory. We have been given his love. It’s now up to us to finish the work that He has begun.
Conclusion
In 1924, as his cancer spread, Puccini went to Brussels for surgery. He died there two
days later. Back in Italy, his students gathered together to honor him. They gathered the
various scores for his opera, and after having studied them with great care they completed
his final work, Turandot. In 1926 the world premiere was performed in the La Scala opera
house in Milan. It was directed by Puccini’s favorite student, Arturo Toscanini. Everything
went beautifully until the orchestra reached the point where Puccini was forced to put
down his pen. With tears running down the conductor’s face. He stopped the music, put
down his baton, turned to the audience and cried out, "Thus far the master wrote, and
then he died." There was a long silence throughout the opera house. No one moved! No
one spoke! Total silence! After a couple of minutes, the conductor picked up his baton
again, smiled through his tears and cried out, "But his disciples have finished his work."
When Turandot ended the audience broke into thunderous applause, there was not a dry
eye in the house. No one ever forgot that moment. What makes this work so great is that
it is the work of more than one soul. The master and his disciples did it together, and that
is its’ glory. When Jesus stepped into the river Jordan, he began his ministry, knowing it
would not be completed without us. Jesus calls us to take up his task and carry it on. He
knows that what he asks of us will not be easy. There will be times Jesus knows that we
will feel like giving up. For this reason He prayed for us, to be one with him and with one
another as He is with the heavenly Father. He prayed, that we might follow in His
footsteps and carry on His ministry where He left off. This is not our work it is the work
of Christ. It is therefore by Christ’s will and Christ’s power that we are able do it at all.
Knowing this divine truth the man who would come to be known as Saint Patrick wrote
this prayer, which has come to be known as St Patrick’s Breastplate,
I bind this day to me for ever,
By power of faith, Christ’s incarnation;
His baptism in the Jordan river;
His death on a cross for my salvation
His bursting forth from a spiced tomb;
His riding up the heavenly way;
His coming at the day of doom
I bind unto myself today
Christ be with me, Christ within me,
Christ behind me, Christ before me,
Christ beside me, Christ to win me,
Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ in quiet, Christ in danger,
Christ in hearts of all that love me,
Christ in mouth of friend and stranger
I bind unto myself today
The power of God to hold and lead;
His eye to watch, his might to stay,
His ear to hearken to my need;
The wisdom of my God to teach,
His hand to guide, his shield to ward,
The word of God to give me speech
His heavenly host to be my guard.
Beloved of God. Let us not fear. For though we know not what our future holds we
know who holds our future. Remember Jesus is with us, Jesus is for us, Jesus will see us
through. Let us therefore, move forward in faith. Trusting in the one who said, “I will
never leave you nor foresake you.” For we are not alone