Questions for Nicodemus

This week's story addressing Nicodemus is more appropriate for older children (like the ones who stay back in the pews).  But as we are getting very few children in church these days, I'm taking a risk with it.  I'm sure I can deliver it in such a way to keep the children engaged.  Please enjoy, adapt and use the story for your own use.  But do let me know if you've used it and give me credit.

Why are you here Nicodemus?   Why do you come sneaking in under the cloak of darkness?  In the wee small hours when things plain and clear by daylight become obscure and difficult to discern?  Why do you wait till we are tired: for our senses to be dulled, our defenses to be down, and our wit to be slowed?  Why do you come when no one will see your face or hear your questions?  When no one can identify you and say, “That’s him, that’s the one who has seen the Lord.”

Don’t shout it out too loud, Nicodemus.  Don’t bore your friends with stories of what it means for you to be here.  Certainly don’t bother inviting them or bringing them along with you.  They might find out about you.  They might figure you out that they don’t see you eye to eye.  You and your little heresy... that you believe, that you believe in something more than your friends and family or co-workers say you should; that you think the world can be different and you might have something to do with changing it?   

Why are you here Nicodemus: Pharisee, leader of the Jews, teacher of Israel?

Oh yes, you use all the right words: Rabbi, teacher, one who was sent by God.  But why have you come?  You sing the hymns; you say the prayers; you stand up at the right moment and then sit down; you attend the feasts and put your dollar in the plate; you have nice words to say to the people you meet along the way.  But why are you here?

Have you come to see yet another miracle?  Were you filled with wonder when the water changed to wine?  Does the selection of my words give you chills and excite you?    Do you want to hear me speak of tomorrow or other things unknown?  Were you amazed to see the lame walk, the blind gain their sight, and demons flee from the possessed? 

Do you come to hear the choir sing?  To see the children giggle and play or hear some fancy preaching?  Do you want to be entertained by interesting stories or amused by beautiful music?

Well listen up Nicodemus and I’ll tell you something important. 

None of it means anything, if you aren’t born from above.

No don’t tell me you are already grown up and you can’t be born again, because that’s not what I mean and you know it. 

Of course you are born in the body, but the Kingdom of God means something new, something different, something changed.

The Holy Spirit is like the wind.  You don’t know where it comes from, you don’t know where it is going, but you know it is there.

Close your eyes, Nicodemus, take a deep breath and you will know that it is there... the Holy Spirit, in you waiting to be born, waiting to re-birth you! 

You don’t know where it comes from, you don’t know where it is going, but know that it is there, willing you into a new creation.  The Holy Spirit, the image of God, the light of Christ is in you, waiting to be born, waiting to re-birth you!

Did you come to see another miracle, Nicodemus?  to witness another sign or wonder?  Did you come seeking to be entertained or amused?  Well, I’m sorry to disappoint you

We are not here to be entertained, we are here to be engaged by the Holy Spirit, and that means to be changed:

• we are here to have our darkness changed into light
• we are here to have our despair changed into hope
• we are here to have our pain changed into comfort: our anger to forgiveness, our bitterness to joy, our resentment to acceptance, ignorance to knowledge, shame to pride, greed to compassion, alienation to love, lifelessness to passion
• We are here to be born from above and to be made new

For God so loved the world that God sends everything God is, that we might remember what the image of God looks like and gaze upon that image in ourselves and in each other and in the world around us and be born again into the eternal loving embrace of God.

Jesus Teaches the Disciples

For Year B Proper 20.  Mark 9:30-37.  "Jesus speaks again about his death," "Who Is the Greatest?"  There are several pieces for this story: walking and sitting Jesus, walking and sitting disciples, three crosses, a risen cross, columns and a child.

I wonder if you have ever tried to teach something that was hard to understand

I wonder if you have ever tried to explain something to someone and they didn't understand what you were saying.

 

In today's story, Jesus tries to teach his disciples some things but his disciples don't get it.

 

Jesus [place the walking Jesus] and his disciples [place the walking disciples] were passing though Galilee.  Jesus didn't want anyone to know because he was teaching his disciples, saying, "I will be betrayed and handed over to the soldiers.  They will kill me, [place the three crosses and pause] and three days after I've been killed, I will rise again.  [remove the three crosses and place the risen cross, pause] But the disciples didn't understand what Jesus was saying and were afraid to ask him what he meant.

 

They came to Capernaum. [place the columns] When they were alone, Jesus asked the disciples, "What were you arguing about along the way?"  The disciples were silent because along the way, they had argued with one another about who was the greatest.

 

Jesus [remove the walking Jesus and place the sitting Jesus] sat down, called the disciples [remove the walking disciples and place the standing disciples] to him and said, "Whoever wants to be first, must be last of all and servant of all." 

 

Then he took a little child [place the child before the disciples, pause] and put it among them; and taking the child into his arms, [move the child to Jesus's lap] he said to them, "Whoever receives one such child in my name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me, but God who sent me."

 

I wonder what the most important part of that story was.

I wonder what part you liked the most

I wonder what part could have been left out

I wonder which part of the story you are experiencing right now

Lady Wisdom Cries Out

This is the story for Year B Proper 19, Proverbs 1:20-33.  The figure pieces are Lady Wisdom, a marketplace, city gates, and four groups of people.

I wonder if you have ever had something important to tell people, but no one would listen to you.  I wonder how it made you feel that no one would listen to the important thing you had to say.

 

This is a story about a woman who has something important for everyone to hear.

 

Her name is Lady Wisdom.  In Greek, her name is Sophia and in Hebrew, her name is Hohkma.

 

Listen!  Lady Wisdom  is in the street, [place Lady Wisdom in the center of the storyboard] in the marketplace [place the marketplace in an upper corner] and on the busiest street corners.  She is at the entrance to the city gates.  [place the city gates opposite the marketplace]

 

Wherever there were lots of people, there was Lady wisdom calling out.  [place four groups of people surrounding Lady Wisdom]

 

"Fools!" she says, "How long will you be foolish? How long will you make fun of important news?  I want to tell you about God.  But you won't listen.  I want to share wise things with you, but you walk away!  Listen to me.  When you are afraid, God is with you.  When your world is troubled, God will keep you safe."

 

But no one listened to her.  Some people laughed.  Others walked away. [remove two groups of people]

 

"You laugh at me and you don't listen.  When something bad happens, you won't know how to talk to God.  If you keep ignoring me, when you need help, you won't know that God is there.  When trouble comes like a whirlwind and you are distressed and anguished, you won't be able to find God."

 

Nobody listened to Lady Wisdom.  They all just kept going in their busy lives. [remove two more groups of people leaving Lady Wisdom alone on the story board]

 

So Lady Wisdom kept calling out, hoping someone would hear her.

 

[pause]

 

I wonder what part of that story you liked most.

I wonder what the most important part of that story is.

I wonder what part of that story you are experiencing right now.

I wonder what part of that story could be left out.

 

Ephphatha

I'm back and experimenting with "Godly Play" story style.  The figures needed for this story which appears in Year B Proper 18 of the revised common lectionary are: Jesus, a Sea of Galilee, the man whose ears will be opened, and I used the words: "Be Opened!" "Opened" "Released" "Hear" and "Speak"

What does it mean to be amazed?

I wonder what would amaze you

I wonder what would make you so amazed, you would want to run out and tell everybody about it

 

This is a story about Jesus that made some people so amazed, they ran out and told everybody what had happened.

 

Jesus [place the Jesus figure in the center of the story board] was returning to the Sea of Galilee. [I placed a long triangular strip to represent the Sea stretching out to the horizon]

 

They brought to him a man who was deaf and could not speak.  They begged him to lay his hands on him.

 

Jesus took the man [place the man before Jesus] aside, away from the crowd.  He put his fingers in the man's ears; he spat and touched the man's tongue.  Then he looked up to heaven, sighed and said, "Ephphatha," which means, "Be Opened!" [place the words "Be Opened" at the top of the storyboard]

 

Immediately, the man's ears were opened [place each of the following words when they are spoken] and his tongue was released. And he could speak clearly.

 

Jesus ordered them to tell no one.  But the more he ordered them, the more they told EVERYONE.  They said, "He has done everything well; he even makes the deaf to hear and the mute to speak."

 

[pause]

 

I wonder what the most important part of the story is

I wonder what part of the story do you like most

I wonder what part of this story is most amazing

I wonder if there is a part of this story we could leave out

I wonder what part of the story you are experiencing right now

As I use the story in the middle of worship, I don't put the pieces away when the time of wondering is done.  However, if I were using the story separate from larger service, I would light a candle at the beginning, perhaps with a prayer, some breath work and silence.  At the end, I would carefully remove each of the pieces reminding the listeners of the part each piece played in the story.

I'm using free hand drawings on white paper stuck to a black sheet as a story board.

Witness Is My Compass

Jesus was talking to his disciples and he explained that soon, he would be arrested, tried, killed and buried and three days later he would rise again.

Thomas, known to be a doubter, was sitting in the corner.  He shook his head and said to himself:

I don't believe in prophecies;

I don't believe in boasts.

I can't confess the living dead,

Like zombies, wraiths and ghosts.

I can't believe one rises from the burial tomb or grave;

No matter what their lineage, what they earned or what they gave.

A wispy apparition thus boasted of aloud,

Is not sufficient proof that Jesus tossed aside his shroud!

Witness is my compass,

Knowledge is my wealth;

I’ll only know what’s really real,

If I know it for myself.

Well, Jesus was arrested.  He was tried and hung on a cross.  He died and his friends placed him in a tomb.  On the third day, Mary went to anoint Jesus’ body with spices and she returned to the group of disciples all excited.

“The tomb is empty!” she said, “Jesus is risen!”

Thomas, who was known to be a doubter, shook his head and said to himself:

I don't believe in prophecies;

I don't believe in boasts.

I can't confess the living dead,

Like zombies, wraiths and ghosts.

I can't believe one rises from the burial tomb or grave;

No matter what their lineage, what they earned or what they gave.

A wispy apparition thus boasted of aloud,

Is not sufficient proof that Jesus tossed aside his shroud!

Witness is my compass,

Knowledge quells my fears;

I’ll only know what’s really real,

If I hear it with my ears!

Later that day, two friends of Jesus’ were walking the road to Emmaus.  They met a stranger on the way.  As they talked to him about Jesus and scripture, their hearts were warmed.  When the stranger was with them in their home and broke bread with them, they recognized the Living Christ.

They ran all the way back to the disciples in Jerusalem and announced, “We’ve seen Jesus.  He is risen!”

But Thomas, known to be a doubter, shook his head and said to himself:

I don't believe in prophecies;

I don't believe in boasts.

I can't confess the living dead,

Like zombies, wraiths and ghosts.

I can't believe one rises from the burial tomb or grave;

No matter what their lineage, what they earned or what they gave.

A wispy apparition thus boasted of aloud,

Is not sufficient proof that Jesus tossed aside his shroud!

Witness is my compass,

Knowledge is my guide;

I’ll only know what’s really real

If I see it with my eyes!

Later that week the disciples were gathered together in a room and the door was shut.  They were grieving, sad about Jesus’ death, wondering what they should do now.  They were telling stories about Jesus and remembering what he taught and how he wanted them to live.

Suddenly, Jesus was standing there among them.

“Peace be with you,” Jesus said.  He breathed on them and said, “the Holy Spirit be with you.”

Thomas wasn’t with them when Jesus came.  The disciples told him about Jesus.

But Thomas, who was known to be a doubter, shook his head and said:

I don't believe in prophecies;

I don't believe in boasts.

I can't confess the living dead,

Like zombies, wraiths and ghosts.

I can't believe one rises from the burial tomb or grave;

No matter what their lineage, what they earned or what they gave.

A wispy apparition thus boasted of aloud,

Is not sufficient proof that Jesus tossed aside his shroud!

Witness is my compass,

Knowledge is my rose;

I’ll only know what’s really real,

If I smell it with my nose!.

The disciples went out fishing one night.  They fished and fished and fished, all night long, but didn’t catch a thing.  They were just about to row into shore, when a man on the bank said, ”Children you haven’t caught anything, have you?  Throw the nets in again.”

The disciples did as they were instructed and there were so many fish in the nets, they couldn’t pull them back into the boats.

Then they recognized Jesus and told everyone, “We’ve seen Jesus!  He is risen!”

But Thomas, who was known to be a doubter, shook his head and said,

I don't believe in prophecies;

I don't believe in boasts.

I can't confess the living dead,

Like zombies, wraiths and ghosts.

I can't believe one rises from the burial tomb or grave;

No matter what their lineage, what they earned or what they gave.

A wispy apparition thus boasted of aloud,

Is not sufficient proof that Jesus tossed aside his shroud

Witness is my compass,

Knowledge is my lands;

I’ll only know what’s really real

If I touch it with my hands.

Once again, the disciples were gathered in a room and the door was shut.  This time, Thomas was with them.  They were telling stories about Jesus and remembering what he taught and how he wanted them to live.

Suddenly, Jesus was standing there among them.

“Peace be with you,” Jesus said. 

He showed his hands and side to Thomas and told him to touch his wounds.  “You believe,” said Jesus, “because you have seen me.  But those who believe but haven’t seen me are really blessed.”

Then Thomas, who was known to be a doubter, shook his head and said:

I don’t believe in prophets

I don’t believe in boasts.

I cant’ confess the living dead,

Like zombies, wraiths and ghosts.

But now I’ve really seen him with my  very own eyes.

He isn’t any living dead; he really did arise!

He’s not an apparition, boasted of aloud.

He’s living love incarnate: Love without a shroud!

Witness is my compass,

Knowledge must be sung;

Now I know he’s really real,

I’ll praise him with my tongue!

Go to Galilee

Mary Magdalene and the other Mary: "What shall we do?"

Earthquake: [stomp feet]

Angel: "Hear the word of the Lord!"

Jesus: "He is Risen!  Risen indeed!"

Hear the words that are printed in bold, call out or do the corresponding response.

After he had died and been lain in the tomb, the religious leaders had a great stone placed across the entrance and soldiers were ordered to guard it so no one could steel his body or tamper with his body.

It was a sad morning on the first day of the week, as Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to the tomb where their teacher had been lain.  As they came to the tomb, suddenly, there was a great earthquake; an angel of the Lord, descending from heaven, came and rolled back the stone and sat on it.

The angel's appearance was like lightning and his clothing as white as snow.  For fear of him, the guards shook and became like dead men.  But the angel said to Mary Magdalene and the other Mary, "Do not be afraid; I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified.  He is not here; for he has been raised, as Jesus said.  Come, see the place where he lay.  Then go quickly and tell his disciples, "Jesus has been raised from the dead, and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will find Jesus.' This is my message for you."

So Mary Magdalene and the other Mary left the tomb and the angel quickly with fear and great joy and ran to tell Jesus' disciples.  On their way, suddenly, Jesus met them and said, "Rejoice!" and they came to him, took hold of his feet, and worshiped him.  Then Jesus said to Mary Magdalene and the other Mary, "Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me."

Mary Magdalene and the other Mary ran to tell the others about Jesus.

Jesus Is too Late

A certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany.  He was the brother to Mary and Martha.  Mary and Martha sent a message to Jesus to let him know that Lazarus, Jesus friend, was very sick and might die.  Jesus knew that Lazarus illness would lead to the Glory of God so he stayed where he was with his disciples for two more days.

Then the message came to Jesus that Lazarus had died.  And the disciples said,
"Jesus, You're too late!"

When Jesus arrived in Bethany, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days.  There were many Jews, friends of Mary, Martha and Lazarus, who were visiting from Jerusalem, to be with Mary and Martha in their grief.  

Martha went out to meet Jesus.  When she saw him she said, "Jesus, You're too late!"

"If you had come sooner," she asserted, "My brother wouldn't have died.  But I know that God will give you whatever you ask for."

Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise again."

"I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day," Martha replied.

But Jesus said, "I am the resurrection and the life.  Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die.  Do you believe this?"

"Yes, Lord, I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one coming into the world."

Martha went back to the house and sent her sister Mary to see Jesus who was waiting for her.  When Mary saw Jesus she said, "Jesus, you're too late!"

"Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died."

Jesus saw her weeping as well as her friends who had come with her.  He was deeply moved.  "Where have you lain him?" He asked.  And he wept.

But the friends of Mary said, "Jesus, you're too late!"  You opened the eyes of the blind man; you could have kept Lazarus from dying."

Jesus came to the tomb where Lazarus had been lain.  A great stone was lying against it.  "Take away the stone," said Jesus.

But everyone said, "Jesus, you're too late!"

"Lord, already there is a stench.  He has been dead four days," said Martha.

"Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?" said Jesus.

So they took away the stone as Jesus commanded.  And Jesus prayed, "Father, I thank you for having heard me.  I knew that you always hear me, but I have said this for the sake of the crowd standing here, so that they may believe that you sent me."  And with a loud voice he cried out, "Lazarus, come out!"

The dead man came out, his hands and feet bound with strips of cloth, and his face wrapped in a cloth.  "Unbind him and set him free," said Jesus.

Many who had come with Mary and Martha, saw what Jesus did and believed in him