Today we turned the service upside down. There was an earthquake in Christchurch. The cathedral is in ruins, as are the parish churches. We met in a school hall (which is our habit and tradition) and dealt with the notices and children’s talk. Then we recalled the dead, the heroic. We recalled that our duty is to worry for today, not for tomorrow.

We cannot undo the past. We have no control over tomorrow. Even the stones can move. The ,text for today was:

Matthew 6:24-34

²⁴“No one can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.

²⁵“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? ²⁶Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? ²⁷And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life? ²⁸And why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, ²⁹yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these. ³⁰But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you — you of little faith? ³¹Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ ³²For it is the Gentiles who strive for all these things; and indeed your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. ³³But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

³⁴”So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today’s trouble is enough for today.”

However, the discourse on the news, on facebook, in the blogs is about the rebuilding of Christchurch. They are looking to the future. They are worrying about tomorrow. In part this allows us to escape today, for today we recover bodies, bury our dead, and demolish the central business of the second biggest city in New Zealand.

We forget that the future is in the hand of God, and in the end our aim is to glorify him. From the readings for today.

John 12:1-8

¹Six days before the Passover Jesus came to Bethany, the home of Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. ²There they gave a dinner for him. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those at the table with him. ³ Mary  took a pound of costly perfume made of pure nard, anointed Jesus’ feet, and wiped them with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume . ⁴But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (the one who was about to betray him), said, ⁵“Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and the money given to the poor?” ⁶(He said this not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief; he kept the common purse and used to steal what was put into it.) ⁷Jesus said, “Leave her alone. She bought it so that she might keep it for the day of my burial. ⁸You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me.”

2 Timothy 4:1-8

¹In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I solemnly urge you: ²proclaim the message; be persistent whether the time is favorable or unfavorable; convince, rebuke, and encourage, with the utmost patience in teaching. ³For the time is coming when people will not put up with sound doctrine, but having itching ears, they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own desires, ⁴and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander away to myths. ⁵As for you, always be sober, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, carry out your ministry fully. ⁶As for me, I am already being poured out as a libation, and the time of my departure has come. ⁷I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. ⁸From now on there is reserved for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will give to me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have longed for his appearing.

Why are these passages useful for today? Because, in the end, our worship is to glorify God. Our lives are to glorify God. The buildings we build to worship are dedicated to his glory.

And… these are not buildings built by the state. They have been funded and built by congregations. There is no established church in New Zealand: there instead is a tradition of volunteerism. A churcch, a hall, a cathedral is not the church. The people are the church. And the people need to rebuild as they choose.

Not funded by the state, but funded by giving. We may weep as the old building comes down, but but the church is not the building. Locally, this is important: my kirk is has a two churches, one of which is unable to be altered externally because it is a landmark. Both buildings need extensive repairs and reconfiguration to be useful. There is a question about how we deal with this – as the cost of these buildings is a large amount of the kirk budget.

On this, I am in two minds. I do not see much virtue in any building. I’m a bloke – it leaves me cold. But Mary broke over Jesus a most expensive perfume as an act of worship. My wishes are not important. The wishes of the people of God in Maori Hill and the leading of the spirit is what is important. Over the last two thousand years, Christians have worshiped in Herond’s temple, in caves, in forests and in Cathedrals.

In the end, I think it is immoral for us to ask for monies to rebuild any Church. When the people are fed and housing is safe – which will require the state and private groups working together, the need is that great — then we can attend to such things. Indeed, Holy Service should continue in a tent until the city is rebuilt. The day for rebuilding is not yet. Let’s put the effort into mourning and healing.