Sermon: What Can *You* Do?

          I love history.  With one phrase in the lesson in Acts, we are told huge amounts about the woman, Lydia, a woman honored in both the Roman and Orthodox churches this past week as a saint.  According to our text, she – not her husband, not her father – she was a "dealer in purple cloth."  She was a Macedonian woman, an area that has been fought over for centuries, but at the time of our story today, it was a colony of Rome.  So, Paul and his companions, while still technically traveling to a part of Rome, have just, geographically entered what will become part of Greece in Europe over time.  Just from geographic information, this is significant, because we are witnessing the start of Christianity spreading beyond the geographic boundaries.

          But before I go on to that part of the story, let's go back to the purple.  Paul found Lydia and a large group of women at the river.  What they don't tell you, because at that point in time, it was fairly common knowledge, was that they were gathering snails.  There were two methods of creating the purple dye:  one was to have a colony of about 12,000 snails which you had to literally startle so that they would excrete an ink that you could collect that would be brought together to make into dye that would be enough to make one purple toga in about a year.  Doing it this way provided a renewable source, but obviously, was very slow and work intensive.  Alternatively, and much easier, you would collect the snails and crush them, being able to obtain a much higher level of the colorfast ink, but of course, it meant that you had to constantly collect the snails.

          Here, we get to what are known as sumptuary laws – those laws governing clothing of the time.  Some of you know that I was involved with the Renaissance community for quite a long time, and thus had to know the sumptuary laws surrounding the time my guild portrayed.  Usually, there were quite a few, but our time period was right before the Elizabethan period, and the sumptuary laws had decreased down to one:  ladies of the evening had to wear a stripe of red or yellow upon themselves. 

          But during of first century Rome, only the Emperor was allowed to wear the 'trabea' which was a toga entirely colored in purple.  Also interesting to note, statues of gods were also dressed in the purple toga.  Only lower ranking officials were able to wear a stripe, or a border of purple for very specific festivals or official events.  So we're looking at a product made by Lydia and her household that was only made for the very elite of society.  This is a very rich household.

          But the reading from Acts and the reading from the Gospel today both deal with how the Holy Spirit works.  "… The Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything, and remind you of all that I have said to you."  Paul was given a vision to go to Macedonia, where a man was asking them to come there and help them, although nothing was particularly clear about it.  But here, we have the example of the Holy Spirit guiding Paul, and Paul trusting the Lord to send him where he should go; and we have Lydia, at the river where Paul and his companions stopped to pray, and coming upon her and her household.  The "Lord opened her heart to listen eagerly to what was said by Paul."  In both of these instances, we are given examples of how the Holy Spirit is working.  Their actions are taken after listening to God. 

          As a result, the entirety of Lydia's household was baptized that day.  Her household was taught about equality, about the brotherhood and sisterhood of the believers that are incorporated into the body of Christ.  And when Paul and his companions were attempting to find a place to stay, they demurred from her invitation to stay with her and her household.  But she, too, was listening, and had taken Paul's lessons to heart.  She assumed that their reluctance came from her being a Gentile and a woman, so she gently reminded them of Paul’s own teaching of equality before God: “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come and stay at my home.” The knowledge and understanding she received from Paul’s teaching would prepare her to give an answer for the hope that she had gained through Christ. Her business gave her opportunities to discuss her faith in Jesus as she came into contact with people from all over the world.  And her house became the first European house church.

          Today, in our hectic, loud, demanding days, how often do we stop, even for just a few minutes during the day, to pray?  To tell God thank you for the good things, and pray for the more difficult things, to simply breathe with the intention of communing with God?  And how often do we listen for the guidance that the Holy Spirit always has for us?

          Today’s gospel provided us – not only then, but today, and throughout time – with a promise of a very specific, utterly essential gift that is given us by Jesus: “But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.”  Without the empowering and prodding of the Holy Spirit, the church today is always in danger of becoming just another well-meaning, sometimes helpful, but only human organization.  Is one reason why so few congregations attempt anything demanding that they are attempting to be the church on their own, limiting their work to what they, on their own, are able to accomplish?

          Think about that.  Think about your own lives, and where prayer fits in, but most importantly, think about where you make the time to listen for the Holy Spirit's advice.  Think about those things that you immediately reject because they take you out of your comfort zone.  One woman and one teacher made a huge difference in the course of Christianity.  What has the Holy Spirit prompted you to do?  And remember that, "I can do all things through him who strengthens me."  Amen.