In the Line of Succession

I Chronicles 29:10-20

The first king chosen and anointed by God, King David, knows that the time has come to abdicate the throne. But first, he gathers an offering for building a Temple for worship. David knows that he won’t be the one to build the Temple. He won’t be alive to worship there, but he calls for an offering and blesses it. “Everything in heaven and on earth are yours, God. Our lives on earth are so short, they are but a shadow in eternity. The Temple that will be built will not be a credit to any human, everything we have given for it belongs to you. Your desire from us, and all that WE have to offer you that is not already provided by you to us, is integrity of heart. I pray my son, Solomon, might have wholehearted devotion.” And he calls to the whole assembly, “Praise the Lord, your God.” And they bow down in worship. Then, Solomon is anointed King and sat on the throne of the Lord as king in place of his father David.

Twenty-eight generations later, a man named Joseph and a woman named Mary welcomed a child and named him Jesus, which means “the Lord saves,” a descendant from the line of King David. This Jesus as he prepared to give himself up for us, after the supper, was talking with his disciples. “I am the vine, and you are the branches.” You are the ones who will bear the fruit. As God loves me, so I have loved you. Now, it is time for you to take your place in the line. If you keep my commandments, Love God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, and love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.”

Some 80 generations later, we are the heirs to the throne. Brothers and sisters of Jesus and saints of God. Paul wrote to the church in Ephesus that the work of the leaders of the church is “to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ.” We are all saints being shaped and formed into the image of Christ.

Did you know that Ray and Aline, Jean, and Neal are saints? And so are Sandy and Laurinda and Susan and YOU. And it’s not because of what you do that you are a saint. In fact, all of us who have been baptized have all we need to be saints because all it takes to be a saint is to belong to God. It is the work of God to form you into a saint – and God will if you allow it. We see God is doing that work by the fruit you bear, by the way you live, by the way you sacrifice and give and quietly use your skills and talents for the building of the church.

Each year we celebrate All Saints’ Sunday by reading aloud the names of all our church members who have died in the past year. The act of remembering them in their earthly life, their death, and eternal life brings them close to us and helps us know that they continue to keep us company. The words of Hebrews 12 proclaim that we are “surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses.” We keep company with generations of Christians who have been our mentors and role models, whether figures from the Bible or people we knew firsthand. They have demonstrated what it means to live the life of faith. They have encouraged us and even now pray for us. It is as if it is time for our coronation, time for the crown to be placed upon our heads, and are surrounded by a crowd of witnesses cheering us on as we take our turn to follow the way Jesus set before us.

As we come to this Table today, we join the line of succession. May we come with integrity of heart. May our joy be overflowing as we contemplate the lineage of love from God to Jesus to us. As God loved Jesus, Jesus loves you. Now, may you continue the lineage. Amen.