I know I have said this before, but it is the preacher’s job to make connections; connections between what is happening in our world, in our community and the good news of Jesus Christ. Sometimes it is the world news that is important, sometimes it is what is happening in our own lives, but always we turn to the scriptures, the books of the Bible, to see what blessing God has prepared for us.

Today I have the knowledge that the building of this church was begun on the 4th March, 1882, exactly 125 years ago, so I would like to say something about the church and its foundations. I know, too, that today we say farewell to Kathy Pate, who is moving to Newcastle. I need to thank God for her time with us here. But also in my mind is the remembrance that Tony Abou Takka died after a terrible accident at his workplace, and that Rajnesh Singh, Rachael Reddy’s brother, was murdered by people who were part of his community.

When I turned to the gospel for today I was surprised and pleased, because Jesus was faced with almost exactly the same events. We read that some Galileans, going to offer their sacrifices in the Temple at Jerusalem, were murdered at the orders of Pontius Pilate. Secondly, eighteen people died in a building accident; a tower in the lower part of Jerusalem fell on them and killed them. Accidents and murder brought death in Jesus days as they do now, and the people may have been asking Jesus to explain why. Why did these people die so terribly? Was it because they had committed some crime or some sin?

Jesus answered them and said, “Those who died were no better and no worse than the rest of us, they were human beings who are foolish and misguided like we are.” Tony and Rajnesh made mistakes and took risks like we do, and their deaths, remind us that no matter who we are or how live, our lives are very fragile. Because our lives are so fragile, Jesus calls on his hearers to repent, to live in the best way they possibly can. The parable of the fig tree reminds us that we may be cut down at any time, and therefore we should bear fruit while we can. I have no doubt that Tony and Rajnesh were good people. The love that they gave and inspired will be with us as long as memory lasts and we pray that we may follow them in all the good and loving and beautiful things they have done. This is their best memorial, and it will be ours as well, that others will set aside our foolishness and live according to the good of our example.

This is what St Paul is saying to the Philippian church, “Brothers and sisters,” he says, “join in imitating me, and observe those who live according to the example you have in us.” Paul wants the Philippians to build their lives on a good foundation.

He points out that many people build their lives on earthly things, like the abundance of possessions or selfishness and greed. Such people he calls “enemies of the cross of Christ” and he weeps because “their end is destruction.”

On the other hand, God’s plan for us is that we will be citizens of heaven. This is another way of saying that the foundation of our lives should be our Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ. So St Paul advises the Philippians to build their lives on the foundation of Jesus Christ. “Stand firm in the Lord,” he says.

The parish of Enmore was founded in 1880 and this church was built in 1882. The foundation stone was laid on 4th March and the church was finished by June. If you read the history of the parish, you will see that the first year was not very happy. There was a dispute over parish boundaries, the choir resigned and so did the Rector’s Warden. There was not enough money to provide housing for the Rector and the Rector was beginning to be ill. It sounds as if this parish was built on very earthly things, arguments, factions and lack of generosity.

But a human community is not like a building. Once a building is built it stays built until it falls down. A human community must always be aware of its foundations. Every generation builds from the ground up. This is why Jesus called the people of Jerusalem to repentance. He meant that they had to rediscover their foundations and rebuild.

Our lives are always like that. When bad things happen to us, we need to rediscover our foundations and rebuild. When our lives are going well, we need to make sure we are building on the right foundation. Several people have said to me how much they value the accepting community of St Luke’s church. They can see that we are building on the right foundations, and they want to be built on that foundation too. Kathy Pate is leaving us to go to Newcastle. We are sorry because her going will leave a gap in our community. At the same time we give thanks for her new job and the new opportunities it gives her. Our blessings go with her and we pray that she will find a community of faith which she will value and where she will be valued. Again, it is a matter of finding a secure, loving and affirming foundation for life.

In our community here at St Luke’s we are trying to build exactly that – a secure, loving and affirming foundation for life. Communities don’t just happen; they do need to be built accidents and tragedies are constantly tearing them apart and they need to be rebuilt.

So we begin with the love of God, the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit. These are our building blocks and the way in which we invite others to join us. We share our lives and our worship, our fellowship and care, building and rebuilding trust and commitment. In this way our lives and the lives of those whom we meet are transformed by the power of the Holy Spirit to be like Christ, who is our example, our saviour, our joy and the foundation of our lives. Amen.