It is a tradition in the Diocese of False Bay to have a Back-to-School Sunday in early January. The school-going children wear their school uniforms (and so do some adults!) This is the first time I had the privilege of presiding and preaching at a Back-to-School Sunday.
SERMON
Words are important things. As you, the children of the parish, go back to school this week you are going to find out that you are learning new words. Some of the words you will learn are useful words in your studies. Other words you learn, not in the classroom but in the playground, will perhaps also be new to you. These might not be such nice words to use, especially in front of your teachers or your parents and certainly not here in Church!
You see, we go to school to learn new things. Doing new things, learning new things can be exciting but also scary – because it is different from what you are used to. Did you hear the words I used in the greeting this morning. I said: The Lord has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and release to the prisoners; to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour. Do you think those are my own words or did someone else use them? Yes, Jesus used them when he started his ministry, in the synagogue in Nazareth and all the people waited to hear what he had to say with eager anticipation.
If you look at those words you can see that they might very well fit your situation as you prepare to return to school or go to school for the first time. You might feel oppressed pushed down by all the worries you have – Jesus says he has good news for you. You might feel brokenhearted that your friends are going to different school from you or that you are no longer going to be at home with your mommy or your ma during the mornings any more but Jesus will bandage that broken heart, you might feel that being in school is like having your freedom taken away but in fact school will bring you more liberty and freedom, especially if you work hard and with consistency. You will turn the year 2024, the year of the Lord’s favour.
Even though I look very old, I too had to go to school for the first time. I was pretty lazy at school and only won one prize in all the 12 years I was at school. That was in what we called Sub B, now called Grade 2. It was a book called The Littlest Reindeer by Johanna De Witt Pictures by Phoebe Erickson (The Word’s Work (1813) Ltd., Kingswood, Surrey. 1957). Inside it says Fish Hoek Primary School: awarded to Derek Pratt for Hard, consistent work. signed the principal D N Vaughan. Look at that date! 1957.
Later I went on to Wynberg Boys High School – here it the original school tie I wore. I kept it as a memento. Last year 2023 was the fifty fifth year since I wrote matric in 1968!
I said just now that words were important. Did you notice that I said it was 55 years since I wrote Matric. I did not say 55 years since I passed Matric. You see I only got a F symbol for Afrikaans in Matric so I got what they called a Cape Senior Certificate. Later I did a degree through UNISA and when I had completed that initial degree, they sent me a Matric Certificate and later again, after I God had called me to serve in God’s Church, I did another Degree – this time a Bachelor of Theology and then while I was at theological college in Makhanda or Grahamstown, I got permission to go down to Rhodes University and I was privileged to be able to do Honours and a Masters degree in Church History and I was already 47 years old by then! So, you see, it took me a few efforts to get my qualification and although I still can’t speak Afrikaans very well, but can I just say, ‘Moenie panic nie!” Why not? Because God’s got a plan for you. It might not be your plan, but it is God’s plan and you must seek God out to find out what that plan is.
That reminds me a bit of the Old Testament reading this morning. I suppose one could say that Samuel was attending school. Slightly different from the sort of school that you are attending. Samuel’s mother wanted a son and she promised God that if God gave her a son, she would dedicate her son to serve God in the shrine at Shiloah under the priest Eli. So, Samuel went off to ‘boarding school’ in the temple. Here while he was sleeping, he heard a voice calling him. The voice was the voice of God but Samuel thought it was his teacher Eli, so obediently he went quickly to Eli. But Eli said it wasn’t him and so Samuel went back to his bed this happen again twice and by then Eli realised it might be God calling the boy and so he said to him that he must go back to bed and if he hears the voice again, he must say: “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.”
Our reading ends there but Samuel’s story goes on and as an adult, he is used by God to place David on the throne of Israel and David was the greatest King of Israel there ever was. When you are in the Bible Class, I’m sure you will learn more about this. But how does this story affect you? And when I say ‘You’ I don’t just mean the boys and girls returning to school but also the adults and parents here. Can you expect God to speak to you in dreams as he did with Samuel? Well, God might, if God has a plan for you, if God has something God wants you to do. The question is ‘How do you know it is God calling?’ after all Samuel didn’t, until Eli told him what to say. This is another reason why we go to School, another reason, Mom’s and Dad’s, why you come to church – to learn how to discern what God has planned for you and your family. As you learn more about God you soon learn when it is God calling or perhaps the opposite, when the devil trying to tempt you.
Our gospel reading is also a story about calling. Jesus called Philip – he just said – ‘Follow me’. What did Philip do? He went and told Nathaniel. Nathaniel didn’t believe that Jesus was the one the Jewish people were expecting – in other words the Messiah, but Philip said come and see and Nathaniel did. You see, it is a bit like school – we can’t learn things from our brothers and sister without input from the educators and Jesus is the ultimate educator.
This story takes a lovely turn here. When Jesus sees Nathaniel he says: ‘Here is truly an Israelite in whom there is no deceit!’ in other words- here is a trustworthy person. Jesus knew Nathaniel to be a trust worthy person. Nathaniel asked Jesus, ‘How did you know about me?’ Jesus simply says: ‘I saw you under the fig tree.’ Nathaniel replies: ‘Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!’ Goodness that is quite a response! Even Jesus thinks so, because he answered, ‘Do you believe because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than these.’
You will see greater things than these. My Grade 2 prize book about the littlest reindeer tells of the littlest reindeer who saw lots of great things.
What he saw were the antlers on the heads of all the other reindeer except him.
He didn’t have any and he felt very ashamed.
So, he didn’t join the reindeer herd as they travelled southward because winter was coming.
The snowbird came to him and said he mustn’t be silly, he would have antlers he must just be patient.
The littlest Reindeer also met a large musk who said the same.
Poor littlest reindeer ended up crying, but it was so cold, his tears froze as they fell from his eyes. So, cold and miserable he headed south by himself.
On his journey he met a walrus and a polar bear both wanted to eat him so he had to run away as fast as he could.
As he got further to the South, he noticed that his head was itchy so he rubbed it against a tree.
Then he saw the other reindeer heading north again as winter was over and he felt sad that he had no antlers and he felt he couldn’t join them, but voice said ‘Why not?’ It was the snowbird. ‘But where are you asked.’ the littlest reindeer. ‘Look down,’ said the bird and so he looked into a pool of clear water.
“Antlers!” cried the littlest Reindeer, “I have antlers.” “And fine antler they are too.” said the snowbird. “and think of all the tears you wasted. Sometimes you just have to be patient and wait for things to happen.” But the littlest reindeer didn’t hear him he was running off to join the reindeer herd.
God has a plan for you. It might not be tomorrow but God has a plan. It might be scary as you try and find out what that plan is. It might mean suffering. Jesus had to suffer to fulfil God’s plan but like Nathaniel, when that plan comes together then, as Jesus said to him: ‘Very truly, I tell you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.’ And that is something to look forward to.
So, as you enter school again or for the first time later this week, remember that God has a plan for you and take some time to be with God in bible reading and prayer and here in church on Sundays to discover what God’s plan is for you.
Derek Pratt with a little help from the Littlest reindeer!
