Independence Day, Gay Marriage, and the Mission of God

This morning, I preached for the first time following the gay marriage ruling by the Supreme Court. What I shared is written below. 

July 5, 2015

Mark 6: 1-13

As many of you know,

    I was on vacation last week…

We had a lovely time in Florida

    and I was so grateful to be able to spend the time

      with my family and friends

It also happened to be one of the most active news cycles

     we have seen lately…

     some commentators have reflected

     that with the shooting in Charleston

      and the supreme court rulings on the Affordable Care Act

     and gay marriage

It may have been one of the most historic two weeks of my lifetime..

   time will tell

Before vacation,

    we reflected in worship upon the shooting in Charleston

      and now that several black churches have also been burned

    we need to continue to keep this issue before us

    through prayer and action

I was out of the pulpit

   immediately following the gay marriage ruling

    and on this weekend when we celebrate and give thanks

    for our nation, it seems an appropriate time to pause

   not only to give thanks for our nation,

   but to reflect upon the happenings in our great land

“The fact of the matter is

      that we are a divided nation,

          a divided people.

 In today’s culture,

       every possible division between people

          is emphasized and expanded

        and exaggerated and exploited.

Everything is turned into an “either/or” scenario.

       Either you agree with me, or you’re a bigot.

            Either you agree with me, or you’re completely immoral.

This week, there are people who,

       in the midst of their story and their struggle

          are celebrating equality.

But this week, there are also people who disagree,

         people who have a different story

           and a different experience.

The reality is

      that there are not “two sides” on this issue.

There’s not a singular gay experience

         or a singular straight experience.

Each of us has a different story,

     unique experiences, particular struggles,

       and when we make anything a simple “either/or,”

          we miss the mark.

When we proclaim from our soapboxes

        that you’re either in favor of this decision

         or you’re a hateful bigot,

            we’re being shortsighted.

When we say you’re either against this decision

       or you’re championing immorality,

         we’re failing to understand the complex reality

            in which we find ourselves.

What I’m feeling this morning

       in such a divided time and cultural landscape,

           is a deep sense of gratefulness

            that I believe in a God who loves all people.

I’m thankful to be part of a church

           that has an open table:

             all people are invited to sit at God’s table.

Which means, by the way,

          that people with whom I strongly disagree

           are loved by God

      and invited to sit at God’s table.

 People who are and have been hurtful to me

          are loved by God and invited to sit at God’s table.

After all, Jesus died for bigots.

     Jesus died for the immoral.

Jesus died for all of us.[1]

Our gospel lesson for us this morning

   has, as always, an important word for us this morning…

It is the story of Jesus returning to his hometown

   and finding no welcome there

The social conventions of the day

    proved more powerful than the good news Jesus brought

Jesus was appalled by their unbelief

So Jesus shook the dust from his feet,

    and he set off for the surrounding villages…

     he went looking for the places that were ready to hear

     a Word from the Lord

He refocused upon the mission before him..

    and he redoubled his efforts to share the love of God’s kingdom

  He sent the disciples out in pairs

     with instructions to trust radically in God

      by taking nothing for the journey

    He charged them with sharing the gospel of healing and peace

Whether you are dismayed by this week’s ruling on gay marriage

   or heartened by it, as I am,

    I submit to you that the word from the Lord this morning is the same:

We are to go out, two by two in community,

   to proclaim the gospel of love and peace

I am so grateful for this community of faith..

As I begin my fifth year of service as your lead pastor,

    I have been thinking about

         what God has taught me through you

You have given me deeper appreciation

    for what love for God and country looks like

You, my church, have given me my most significant experiences

    with active duty and retired military service men and women

Before being sent among you,

    I was not blessed with so many experiences

      in such abundance

  You continue to witness to me about courage, duty, honor,

      respect for authority, and diversity.

What you have witnessed to me about diversity

   has been the biggest blessing…

   we are a church that knows how to tolerate differences of perspective

    and opinion

At its core,

   this is of course a fruit of the Spirit…

      because loving our sisters and brothers,

    even when they disagree with us,

     is rooted in love and commitment….

  Here, you have shown me that tolerance for difference of opinion

      is reinforced by military service…

   So long as we are all focused upon the same mission,

        we will find a way to get there together…

The gospel of Mark reminds us this morning

   of the importance of remaining focused upon our mission

 We are to shake the dust from our feet

       and share the gospel of healing and peace

   We are taught to do this together,

       in community

We are a diverse church in many ways…

    theologically, socioeconomically, racially, and in sexual orientation

 we are a beautiful mixture of perspectives

    held together by the same Lord

We have a diversity of reactions to the gay marriage ruling….

  I know that for many,

     hearing your pastor say that I am supportive of the gay marriage ruling

    are very hard words to hear…

  While others celebrate the ruling

Regardless of your reaction,

   I hope that you will hear the words from Mark

Inviting us to shake the dust from our feet

       and share the gospel of healing and peace

 and to do this together, in community

John Wesley, the founder of Methodism,

     published a sermon entitled Catholic Spirit.

John Wesley has an important word for us to hear…

The sermon is based on Jehu’s question to Jehonadab in 2 Kings 10;

       ‘Is thine heart right,

             as my heart is with thy heart?’

And Jehonadab answered:

          ‘It is. If it be, give me thine hand.’

 While acknowledging that Jehu was not exactly a model saint,

        Wesley urges that his example here

            is one that every Christian should imitate.

Jehu’s question is not about Jehonadab’s opinions

        but about his spirit,

              his attitude and his affections.

How does he regard his neighbour?

         In a word, is there love in his heart?

 And then Wesley writes a glorious sentence,

        pleading that even allowing our differences of opinions,

             we must not let this stand in the way of brotherly affection.

 ‘Though we can’t think alike,

       may we not love alike?’

John Wesley wrote much in defense

         of that understanding of Christian sanctification

              that he understood as love perfected,

                and this sentence is as good a practical summary

       of it as anything he argued elsewhere.

Wesley taught and preached the essentials of the Christian faith..

   and yet in a time when people being executed for their faith

    as a part of recent history in England,

    he urged unity across a diversity of theological perspectives..

   focusing upon unity in the love offered to us

    from the Cross of Christ

‘Though we can’t think alike,

       may we not love alike?’

The Supreme Court ruling

          does not directly address how pastors, churches,  

              and individual Christians must or should view

           the issue of same-sex marriage. 

Pastors and churches are still permitted

         to refuse to marry same-sex couples,

   and indeed in the United Methodist Church,

    I continue to be barred from performing these marriages

As an ordained elder,

     I have vowed to follow the Discipline of our Church

         and the Discipline specifically prohibits clergy

    from performing these ceremonies

And yet, even as I grieve that I cannot provide

    this kind of pastoral care

    to members and family of Wesley Church

     (and yes, I have been asked)

  I trust that God is at work in all of us…

       and that we see through a mirror dimly

    as the Apostle Paul reminds us

I trust that even though we may not think alike

    we can love alike…

Even as we struggle with knowing God’s will concerning same- sex marriage

    I trust that if we are faithful,

     Jesus will not be amazed at our unbelief

      as he was in his hometown,

    but that he will send us out,

      two by two,

     to love, and teach, and heal…

Even as I find it persuasive

    to understand scripture as complicated and sometimes contradictory

  I hold Scripture as the normative Word for my life

    and for our lives together

“Within its pages we learn of the heart, character, and will of God,

         but we also find on its pages things that we might question. 

Things that seem to reflect the culture and times

         the biblical authors lived in

                 more than the timeless will of God.

We find that women were often seen as second class

           in much of the Bible.

Concubinage and polygamy

       and the use of slave girls as surrogates in childbirth

         were all acceptable family values in the Old Testament.

 Slavery was found to be morally acceptable

      in the Old Testament

          and slave-owning Christians in the early church

           were not asked by the apostles to set their slaves free.

Priests were commanded

        to burn their daughters alive if they became prostitutes,

         and rebellious children were to be stoned to death.

Women who were raped were required to marry their rapist.

 And when Israel went off to war

       she believed God called her to destroy

       every man, woman, and child among the nations she conquered—

         what today we call genocide. 

The writer of some of the Epistles teaches

        that women are to pray

           with their heads covered

               and to not wear their hair in braids. 

They are not permitted to teach a man,

          and Corinthians notes that it was “shameful”

             for a woman to even speak in church.

 The Bible, in its writing, content, and canonization,

          is wonderfully complex

            and we do not do it justice,

              nor are we always able to discern God’s will,

                simply by quoting a handful of verses. 

If it worked this way we’d still embrace

        slavery, polygamy, and concubinage. 

Victims of rape would still be forced to wed their rapists.”[2]

        

Yet, even as I find this persuasive,

    I respect and admire many faithful Christians and staff members

     who feel very very differently about gay marriage..

   and I say to our whole community

    even

And so to all of us

  Though we can’t think alike,

       may we not love alike?’

  We agree on the main points of Christian teaching

       we are all sinners saved by grace

       we are all dependent on God’s healing love

and we are all sent out by the same Lord

   to shake the dust from our feet

       and share the gospel of healing and peace

 and to do this together, in community

On this weekend of celebration our nation’s independence

    let us not only focus upon the overarching truth that

      we are all loved by the same Lord…

Let us also remember

    that we are blessed to live in this nation

      which enables us to live peacefully

   among a diversity of opinions and perspectives

     united by the truth that we are all Americans

For truly, though we may not think alike,

    surely we can love alike

To this truth we must hold fast..

    for God has work for us to do

---

[1] Travis Garner, UMC Pastor

[2] Adam Hamilton, UMC Pastor 

Reflections on Sunday September 15, 1963 by Jim O'Quinn

I was born in 1971, about eight years after this happened. I have always felt the presence and blessing of the Civil Rights movement in my life. Here is a reflection written by a clergy colleague in Virginia. He was a first grader in Birmingham the day of the Sixteenth Street Bombing. He wrote this sermon on the anniversary of that event. 

Reflections on Sunday September 15, 1963.

On Sunday morning, September 15, 1963, the Ku Klux Klan bombed the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, killing four girls. This murderous act shocked the nation and galvanized the civil rights movement. Even as a child, that heinous act shaped my thinking about the nature and purpose of the church and the destructive power of hate. I was sitting in the sanctuary of North Highlands Methodist Church that morning when I heard ‘there was trouble down the hill.’

Our family lived about one mile from Sixteenth Street Baptist Church. I had just started the first grade at Martin School in the North Highlands community of Birmingham. I have my first grade class photo hanging upstairs in my personal study. Little Jimmy O’Quinn is there sitting in his desk hands folded and looking quite mischievous. When I look at that photograph I do wonder what happened to all the other children. I wonder if they have the same feelings that I do about that tumultuous year. The world as those little first grade children knew it would change. Few of us would say that 1963 was a good year.

In 1963, Birmingham was known as one of the South's most segregated cities. That same year, newly-elected Gov. George Wallace physically barred two African-American students from entering the University of Alabama and Birmingham's Commissioner of Public Safety, Eugene "Bull" Connor, sparked controversy with his use of fire hoses and attack dogs to disperse civil rights protesters.
On Good Friday, April 12, Martin Luther King was arrested with Ralph Abernathy by Police Commissioner Eugene "Bull" Connor for demonstrating in support of the garbage workers for the City of Birmingham. During the eleven days he spent in jail, MLK wrote his famous Letter from Birmingham Jail in a response to a call by prominent white clergy for patience. Also in 1963, John F. Kennedy would be assassinated on November 22^nd. Civil unrest and violence were the norm in 1963 Birmingham. It is September 15^th that has the most meaning for me.
My father was pastor of North Highlands Methodist Church, which was located on what was also known as ‘Dynamite Hill’ because of the Klan activity that year. The Sixteenth Street Baptist Church was a well-known meeting place for civil rights activists, where Martin Luther King Jr. and others planned marches, sit-ins and other nonviolent protests. That fact made the church building a target, but no one expected an attack to come during the crowded Sunday morning services.

One memory from that Sunday was that the doors of North Highland Methodist Church were locked during the church service. As a six year old, I knew this was an unusual step for a church. I learned since, several other churches locked their doors during their Sunday service. There was a lot of fear that morning. At the moment sitting inside a locked building, we didn’t know what we feared only that there had been some trouble down the hill.

The nation later learned fourteen-year-olds Cynthia Wesley, Carole Robertson and Addie May Collins, as well as 11-year-old Denise McNair, were killed in a church washroom when the bomb detonated. Twenty-two others were injured. I reflect on the ages of these children because I had just turned six-years-old the day before. The news of other children not living to adulthood seemed poignant. That act of terrorism also drove home that even being in a church building isn’t a true refuge from those who hate.
Members of the Ku Klux Klan were immediately suspected -- a 1965 FBI memo to agency director J. Edgar Hoover named Robert E. Chambliss, Bobby Frank Cherry, Herman Frank Cash and Thomas E. Blanton, all locals and alleged Klansmen, as possible culprits. But the FBI closed its investigation in 1968 without filing any charges. A 1980 Justice Dept. investigation concluded that Hoover prevented agents from disclosing their findings to prosecutors.
Alabama Attorney General Bill Baxley reopened the investigation in 1971, but it took him half a decade to bring charges against suspect Robert Chambliss because the FBI refused to cooperate for years. The watershed moment in the Chambliss trial came on Nov. 15, 1977, when Chambliss' niece, The Rev. Elizabeth Cobbs testified that her uncle had made comments to her suggested his involvement in the bombing. Chambliss was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison. He maintained his innocence until he died in 1985.
As a pre-ministerial student at Birmingham-Southern College, I had several close friends. Elizabeth Cobbs, in college now 36 was one of my dear friends. We were just a handful of students who were also serving as student local pastors. Libby, was married with two children and was a pastor of a small United Methodist church near Legion Field in Birmingham. We often spoke of lectures and celebrated our work as beginning pastors. I treasure those memories with her and our other friend, Paul Tucker. Paul and I went on to seminary together. Paul is now married and serves in Memphis, Tennessee.
Libby had a different course. The Klan harassed her until her marriage broke and she left the United Methodist Church. She was relocated to Texas and lived under an assumed name. Paul told me she sold real estate. Later, we learned she died of cancer. Libby Cobb was a hero in life and in death. I am a better person for knowing her.

Even fifty years after the bombing; it is a quick and powerful reflection that the church should be open to all instead of restricted to the approved few. My mind contrasts the locking of the doors on Sunday September 15^th, 1963 with the old southern evangelical expression for an altar call being referred to as the opening the doors of the church.

Separate water fountains and restrooms are a memory. Debates if the race of a teacher changed the quality of a child’s education are past. Yet, the effects of sin remain. On my trips to Birmingham, Alabama I often drive by the former site of North Highlands Church (it closed and was paved over just two years later to be an exit ramp to I-65) I will drive through the neighborhood to look at the old parsonage and pray for the people who now live there. I conclude my trip down the steep hill past Sixteenth Street Baptist Church. I remember seeing Libby standing at the reconstructed site of the blast. My wandering North Birmingham It is a reflection of a spiritual journey I did not know I was on until later in my life. My memory is my journey.

I can remember other things about North Highlands Church. Mr. Benson was a man who seemed to be 106 to me as a six year old. Every Sunday he had something for the children in the church. I recall getting a car and I remember a postcard with the drawing of buffalo stampeding as Indians were in wait with bows and arrows. I remember his praying in church for what seemed like forever. I recall his favorite song: The Lilly of the Valley. I remember him because he paid attention to this little six-year-old boy who was stuck in church. Mr. Benson wanted me to feel good about being in church. That was his message to me and the other children in the church.

The most powerful message from these reflections is that we should not underestimate what our children are learning in those adult moments of ours. God is speaking and the children are listening. Understanding may not happen for decades. I am unsure of the meaning of the lesson I learned at age six. Now fifty years later, I am closer than I was in knowing the meaning, but there is still so much to filter through. God’s message is planted in each of us, even with the child. It is up to us to wrestle the full meaning for the rest of our life. We have to filter through it all until it becomes clear.

My prayer is that we finally find the clarity we need to live, work and breathe in a world so tenacious in its hate that children are blown up. We may not know what our world will be like at the 100^th commemoration of September 15, or of the other acts of 1963. We may not be able to make sense of our 9-11-2001 memories. We may not make sense of gassings and bombings in Syria and currently in the news. Yet somewhere, even if it is in the heart of a six-year old sitting in a church; God is planting a seed.

My September 15th is significant to my calling to church life and ministry. What is the date of your calling?

-          Jim O’Quinn

God and the Poor

On Sunday morning, I am preaching the third in a five part series on God's Purpose for our life. The overarching focus is:
1. Loving God in response to God's love for us
2. Using our Spiritual Gifts wherever we find ourselves day to day
3. Caring for the overlooked
4. Caring for creation
5. Thereby making disciples of all the world.

As I was reviewing my sermon, I came across this web page. I was doing a search about how many times the bible mentions care for the poor (answer: more than 300).

This page alone is rather challenging, wouldn't you say? Sitting here feeling convicted....

http://www.zompist.com/meetthepoor.html

The Bible on the Poor

The Bible contains more than 300 verses on the poor, social justice, and God's deep concern for both. This page contains a wide sample of them, and some reflections. It's aimed at anyone who takes the Bible seriously.
As you read these passages, you will very likely feel a good deal of resistance (possibly at first manifesting itself as indifference). American churches have departed strongly from Biblical values in these areas, and even created a rationalization-- "prosperity theology"-- for rejecting them. It takes time and reflection to get past this misteaching.
But try to get past the resistance. Spiritual growth doesn't come from what goes down easily, or what we like to hear and read. It comes from what's different, and even difficult.
This page can easily be used as the basis for a Bible study. I tried writing it like one, but ultimately decided that web pages just don't work that way. It makes a smashing good one, though; if you want to try, replace the commentary with questions. The best questions to ask are those without a fixed answer (e.g. "Why does Jesus say this?" or "What did you learn from these verses?").
--M.R.

---

God's concern for the poor

In this section we are not yet concerned with what the believer should think or do for the poor, but with God's thoughts. Though we often forget poverty and oppression, it is clear from the Bible that they are always on God's mind.

Deut. 26:5-9. The Egyptians treated us harshly and afflicted us, and imposed hard labor on us. Then we cried to the LORD, the God of our fathers, and the LORD heard our voice and saw our affliction and our toil and our oppression; and the LORD brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm and with great terror and with signs and wonders; and He has brought us to... this land flowing with milk and honey.Luke 4:16-21. And He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up; and as was His custom, He entered the synagogue on the Sabbath, and stood up to read... "The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, because He appointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free those who are downtrodden, to proclaim the favorable year of the LORD... Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing."
Ps. 140:12. I know that the LORD will maintain the cause of the afflicted, and justice for the poor.
Is. 25:4. For You have been a defense for the helpless, a defense for the needy in his distress.
Ps. 10:14. The unfortunate commits himself to You; You have been the helper of the orphan... O LORD, You have heard the desire of the humble; You will strengthen their heart, You will incline Your ear to vindicate the orphan and the oppressed.
Is 41:17. The afflicted and needy are seeking water, but there is none, and their tongue is parched with thirst. I, the LORD, will answer them Myself, as the God of Israel I will not forsake them.
Luke 6:20-21. Blessed are you who are poor, for yours in the kingdom of God. Blessed are you who hunger now, for you shall be satisfied. Blessed are you who weep now, for you shall laugh.
James 2:5. Did not God choose the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him?

Commentary: I think it's fair to say that American attitudes toward the poor-- and perhaps not just in America-- are mostly disdain and fear. They're dangerous and different. Sometimes there's a suspicion that their condition is their own fault, that they're simply lazy or inferior. Other Americans are more kind-hearted, but prefer not to look at the poor too closely; it's depressing, and they're surely not fun people to be with.
These attitudes are a world away from God's attitudes, as described in these verses. Neediness arouses compassion in God-- and action.
We may think: "Of course God loves the poor; he loves everybody." But it's not so simple as that; God's character is presented as a model for our own. If God values the poor, we have to think about what that means for us.

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God's commands concerning the poor

This section collects some specific commands from Old and New Testaments on serving the poor.

Deut. 15:7. If there is a poor man among you, one of your brothers, in any of the towns of the land which the LORD your God is giving you, you shall not harden your heart, nor close your hand to your poor brother; but you shall freely open your hand to him, and generously lend him sufficient for his need in whatever he lacks.Deut. 26:12. When you have finished paying the complete tithe of your increase in the third year, the year of tithing, then you shall give it to the Levite, to the stranger, to the orphan and the widow, that they may eat in your towns, and be satisfied.
Lev. 19:19ff. Now when you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap to the very corners of your field, neither shall you gather the gleanings of your harvest. Nor shall you glean your vineyard, nor shall you gather the fallen fruit of your vineyard; you shall leave them for the needy and for the stranger. I am the LORD your God.
Prov. 31:8ff. [Commandment to kings.] Open your mouth for the dumb, for the rights of all the unfortunate. Open your mouth, judge righteously, and defend the rights of the afflicted and needy.
Is. 58:66ff. Is this not the fast which I choose, to loosen the bonds of wickedness, to undo the bands of the yoke, and to let the oppressed go free, and break every yoke? Is it not to divide your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into the house; when you see the naked, to cover him, and not to hide yourself from your own flesh?
Jer. 22:3. Do justice and righteousness, and deliver the one who has been robbed from the power of his oppressor. Also do not mistreat or do violence to the stranger, the orphan, or the widow; and do not shed innocent blood in this place.
Luke 12:33. "Sell your possessions and give to charity; make yourselves purses which do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near, nor moth destroys."
Luke 3:11. And [John the Baptist] would answer and say to them, "Let the man with two tunics share with him who has none, and let him who has food do likewise."
Mt. 5:42. Give to him who asks of you, and do not turn away from him who wants to borrow from you.

Commentary: The message here is really very simple: help the needy. It's not hard to understand; it's just hard to do.
And the message is continuous. It's in the Torah; it's in the Prophets and Psalms; it's in the Gospels; it's in the Epistles. How many churches emphasize serving the poor as much as the Bible itself does? Would the world look the way it does if all believers followed these commands?
Another thing to note about these verses is the lack of caveats-- the lack of excuses. None of them add "...once a year" or "...when you feel you can" or "...if they're moral" or "...unless they're black" or "...if they speak English". We have plenty of reasons (I'm sure you can think of a dozen) why we can't go out and feed the hungry, why we have to turn away the needy borrower-- and God help us, how many of us have sold so much as a lawnmower in order to have money to give away? But all those reasons belong to our sinful human nature, not to God. God just wants those needy people helped.
If you wanted to be a Biblical one-issue voter, you'd do well to make that one issue serving the poor.

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Blessings on those who serve the poor

Serving poor may be The Right Thing To Do; but the Bible also associates it with material and spiritual reward. Here we'll look at the benefits promised to those who serve the poor; in the next section we'll examine the consequences of not doing so.

Prov. 22:9 He who is generous will be blessed, for he gives some of his food to the poor.Jer. 22:16 "Did not your father eat and drink, and do justice and righteousness? Then it was well with him. He pled the cause of the afflicted and needy; then it was well. Is that not what it means to know Me?" declares the LORD.
Deut. 15:10. You shall give generously to [your poor brother], and your heart shall not be grieved when you give to him, because for this thing the LORD your God will bless you in all your work and in all your undertakings.
Prov. 19:17. He who is gracious to a poor man lends to the LORD, and He will repay him for his good deed.
Jer. 7:5-7. "For, if you truly amend your ways and your deeds, if you truly practice justice between a man and his neighbor, if you do not oppress the alien, the orphan, and the widow, and do not shed innocent blood in this place, nor walk after other gods to your own ruin, then I will let you dwell in this place, in the land that I gave to your fathers forever and ever."
Is. 58:10. "And if you give yourself to the hungry, and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then your light will rise in darkness, and your gloom will become like midday. And the LORD will continually guide you, and satisfy your desire in scorched places, and give strength to your bones; and you will be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water whose waters do not fail."
Luke 14:12-14. "When you give a luncheon or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, lest they also invite you in return, and repayment come to you. But when you give a reception, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed, since they do not have the means to repay you; for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous."
Luke 12:44. "Sell your possessions and give alms; make yourselves purses which do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near, nor moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also."
Mt. 19:20ff. The young man said to Him, "All these commands I have kept; what am I still lacking?" Jesus said to him, "If you wish to be complete, go and sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you shall have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me."

Commentary: Americans like money; the American dream is about being rich. No wonder we're susceptible to religious quacks who promise riches to those who believe in God.
We do find promises of reward in the Bible-- to those who serve the poor. God's making a very simple proposal here: "You help the poor, and I'll repay it."
Full disclosure: there's a little bait-and-switch going on. Jesus promises treasure in heaven. In the sociology of religion game, we call this spiritualization. In plain English, it means that Jesus is asking us to go way past our comfort level in giving things away. And in not getting them back.
Who are the poor, by the way? Among our rationalizations is the feeling that the actual poor aren't people we really have to pay attention to. They may be of different races, or not speak our language, or aren't moral enough for us; they may be illegal immigrants. (Imagine that, a class of human beings that are illegal. Imagine explaining that to God.)
God doesn't want to hear these excuses; he specifically commands us to help the stranger, the alien, the sojourner. Jesus' command on dinner parties couldn't be clearer: the people you need to help are not the people like you, the people you like, the people who can repay you. As for racial prejudice, note that the first person in the gospel of John to whom Jesus clearly confesses to being the Messiah is a Samaritan; Samaritans were despised by the orthodox Jews of the time. (And for that matter, she was a woman, and an adulterer.)
Can you give too much? We believe in moderation in all things. Unfortunately, we get this idea from the Greeks, not the Bible. Jesus asks for immoderate giving.

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Consequences of not serving the poor

As there are blessings for those who serve the poor, there are consequences for those who oppress them... or who simply ignore them.

Ezek. 16:49ff. "Behold, this was the guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had arrogance, abundant food, and careless ease, but she did not help the poor and needy. Thus they were haughty and committed abominations before Me. Therefore I removed them when I saw it."Is. 10:1-3. "Woe to those who enact evil statutes, and to those who continually record unjust decisions, so as to deprive the needy of justice, and rob the poor of My people of their rights... Now what will you do in the day of punishment, and in the devastation which will come from afar?"
Luke 1:52ff. [Mary's Magnificat.] "He has brought down rulers from their thrones, and has exalted those who were hungry. He has filled the hungry with good things; and sent away the rich empty-handed."
Ezek. 22:29,31. "The people of the land have practiced oppression and committed robbery, and they have wronged the poor and needy and have oppressed the sojourner without justice... Thus I have poured out My indignation on them; I have consumed them with the fire of My wrath; their way I have brought upon their heads," declares the Lord GOD.
Jer. 5:28f. "[The wicked] do not plead the cause, the cause of the orphan, that they may prosper; and they do not defend the rights of the poor. Shall I not punish these people?" declares the LORD. "On such a nation as this, shall I not avenge myself?"
James 5:1-6. Come now, you rich, weep and howl for your miseries which are coming upon you. Your riches have rotted and your garments have become moth-eaten. ...Behold, the pay of the laborers who mowed your fields, and with you have withheld, cries out against you; and the outcry of the harvesters has reached the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth. You have lived luxuriously on the earth and led a life of wanton pleasure; you have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter.
Luke 6:24. "But woe to you who are rich, for you are receiving your comfort in full."
Luke 16:19-25. "Now there was a certain rich man, and he habitually dressed in purple and fine linen, gaily living in splendor every day. And a certain poor man named Lazarus was laid at his gate, covered with sores, and longing to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table; besides, even the dogs would come and lick his sores.
Now it came about that the poor man died and he was carried away by the angels to Abraham's bosom; and the rich man also died and was buried. And in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes, and saw Abraham far away, and Lazarus in his bosom.
And he cried out and said, 'Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool off my tongue; for I am in agony in this flame.'
But Abraham said, 'Child, remember that during your life you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus bad things; but now he is being comforted here, and you are in agony...'"

Commentary: Many Evangelicals worry what might happen to our country if sexual immorality flourishes. Now, the sexual morality the Bible tells us to be worried about is our own, but that's another discussion. A more serious worry is what will happen to us, our churches, our nation, if we don't serve the poor.
Obviously, adding to the misery of the poor is bad-- exploiting workers, oppressing immigrants, robbing the needy. But it doesn't stop there. Merely ignoring the poor is a crime. Sodom wasn't destroyed because of sexual immorality; it was destroyed because it "had arrogance, abundant food, and careless ease"-- and isn't that a pretty good description of America?-- and it "did not help the poor and needy".
There isn't the least suggestion that the rich man being punished in hell was responsible for Lazarus's condition... except in the most general sense: he was responsible as a fellow human being, as a man who was aware of the one suffering at his door and did nothing to help.
"Pleading the cause" of the poor, being their advocate and defender, is simply something a righteous person does. Are you someone who, when others are silent, advocates for the poor in your company, your church, your nation, your political party?

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Biblical attitudes for believers toward the poor

So far we've examined only the surface God's commands concerning the poor, what happens if we obey or if we don't. Here we consider the spirit in which we respond. Without some of these correctives, we might make many mistakes serving the poor.

Prov. 29:7. The righteous is concerned for the rights of the poor; the wicked does not understand such concern.1 John 3:17. But whoever has the world's goods, and beholds his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him?
Luke 6:33ff. "And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, in order to receive back the same."
2 Cor 9:7. Let each one do just as he has purposed in his heart; not grudgingly or under compulsion; for God loves a cheerful giver.
Mt. 6:2-4. "When therefore you give alms, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be honored by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, that your alms may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will repay you."
Mt. 6:24. "No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will hold to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and Money."
1 Tim. 6:10. For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith, and pierced themselves with many a pang.
Gal. 2:9ff. Recognizing the grace that had been given to me, James and Cephas and John... gave to me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship, that we might go to the Gentiles, and they to the circumcised. They only asked us to remember the poor-- the very thing I also was eager to do.
Lev. 19:15. "You shall do no injustice in judgment; you shall not be partial to the poor nor defer to the great, but you are to judge your neighbor fairly."
Acts 2:44. All those who had believed were together, and had all things in common; and they began to sell their property and possessions, and share them with all, as anyone might have need.
Acts 4:32-35. And the congregation of those who believed were of one heart and soul; and not one of them claimed that anything belonging to him was his own, but all things were common property to them. And with great power the apostles were giving witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and abundant grace was upon them all. For there was not a needy person among them, for all who were owners of land or houses would sell them and bring the proceeds of the sales and lay them at the apostles' feet; and they would be distributed to each, as any had need.
Eph. 4:28. Let him who steals steal no longer; but rather let him labor, performing with his own hands what is good, in order that he may have something to share with him who has need.

Commentary: Some unimpressive ways to give:

• With a big frown on your face
• Back to those who've given you things
• Showing others that you're giving

How do you tell if you're worshiping Money? Well, how do you tell if you're worshiping anyone? What do you spend your time on; what do you worry and talk about the most; what do you make sacrifices for? I often wonder how people can read these verses on Sunday, and on Tuesday go vote for the Money Party. James and Peter and John don't exhort Paul to remember the tax cuts.
Acts 4 is a mini-description of the proverbial Christian Nation. There was not a needy person among them. Why isn't that said about us? We have a lot more resources than a mob of mostly poor first-century Palestinians.
Another excuse sometimes used to ignore passages like this is Dispensationalism-- roughly, the idea that since we have Scripture, we can ignore large parts of Scripture. It doesn't make much sense when you state it in plain English, does it? There are some good reasons that we need not follow the Jewish Law; but the obligation to help the needy has not been repealed. It's found throughout the New Testament, with a good deal more emphasis than many subjects that Christians prefer to focus on.
With the prohibition on stealing, we may feel that we're on more familiar ground. But note the actual advice; it's not "Build so many jails that you rival the worst dictatorships for the percentage of your population in prison." Simply let the thieves stop stealing and do honest work.
When you think "thieves", by the way, do you picture a poor person? The Bible doesn't assume that the poor are especially prone to sin; on the contrary. Rich thieves as well should put aside their thievery: accountants swindling stockholders, corporations cheating taxpayers, CEOs making millions while their companies fail, presidents spending money they don't have to benefit their wealthiest contributors.

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God's identification with the poor

Like a good king, the Lord is concerned with his poor subjects. In the passages below, we see that His heart goes deeper still: he identifies with the poor; he puts himself in their place.

2 Cor. 8:9. For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich.Prov. 19:17. He who is gracious to a poor man lends to the LORD, and He will repay him for his good deed.
Prov. 14:31. He who oppresses the poor reproaches his Maker, but he who is gracious to the needy honors Him.
Mt. 25:31-46. "When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne. And all the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them from one another, as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats; He will put the sheep on His right, and the goats on His left.
Then the King will say to those on His right, 'Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in; naked, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me.'
Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see You hungry, and feed You, or thirsty, and give You drink? And when did we see You a stranger, and invite you in, or naked, and clothe You? And when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?'
And the King will answer and say to them, 'Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me.'
Then He will also say to those on His left, 'Depart from Me, accursed ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry, and you gave Me nothing to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me nothing to drink; I was a stranger, and you did not invite Me in; naked, and you did not clothe Me; sick, and in prison, and you did not visit Me.'
Then they themselves will also answer, saying, 'Lord, when did we see You hungry, or thirsty, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not take care of You?'
Then He will answer them, saying, 'Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.' And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life."

Commentary: God isn't a conservative; he's a revolutionary. He not only takes the side of the poor; he puts himself in their place. In the very alarming parable of the sheep and the goats he speaks of salvation as depending on how we treat the poorest and the most afflicted.
According to prosperity theology (and according to the best Pharisaical opinion) Jesus should have come as a lord, a tycoon, a cult leader. Some of his followers today act as, presumably, they felt Jesus should have acted, building multi-million-dollar cathedrals. But Jesus came as a poor man.
There's all sorts of meaning in that, but at the very least we can say that Jesus takes the issue of poverty personally. A church or a nation that ignores its poor or places stumbling blocks in their way, whose supreme good is Money, is very far from the spirit of God.

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Based on a 1989 compilation by myself, Andrés Tapia, and Arnie Fishman.
 

Violence Spirals

As I was reading a post by my friend Mark Holland, he put his finger upon something that has been disturbing me in a sort of subconscious sort of way. Each time I hear someone make the case that teachers in Newtown should have been armed, or that teachers now should be armed, it would not sit well in my spirit. But I could not articulate well as to why this is. I would think of Jesus' teachings on forgiveness, and turning the other cheek, but I still was not satisfied.

Today, Mark posted a quote from Martin Luther King, Jr. and when I read it, I thought "yes, this is what has been churning in my mind, that I could not quite articulate. Thanks Mark.

The ultimate weakness of violence is that it is a descending spiral, 
begetting the very thing it seeks to destroy. 
Instead of diminishing evil, it multiplies it.
Through violence you may murder the liar, 
but you cannot murder the lie, nor establish the truth. 
Through violence you may murder the hater, 
but you do not murder hate. 
In fact, violence merely increases hate. 
So it goes. 
Returning violence for violence multiplies violence, 
adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. 
Darkness cannot drive out darkness: 
only light can do that. 
Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Prayers from the Vigil for Newtown

It was good to gather on Sunday night at 5:00 for the Vigil to remember and to pray. Below is what we used to guide us in prayer; perhaps you would like to continue to use some of these prayer resources. 

PRAYER VIGIL Dec. 16, 2012

Wesley United Methodist Church

A word of welcome: you are welcome here. All are welcome here. Tonight we gather in the ancient practice of holding vigil. We watch and wait in hope, even as we grieve. We light candles to protest the darkness that pervades, especially the darkness that has befallen Newtown, CT. You may stand, or be seated. Be a part of this gathering as you feel comfortable. It is not necessary to close your eyes and bow your head for each prayer. You may prefer to look at the flickering candlelight, or at the stars, or at the leader. Do what feels comforting and right for you in the presence of God, as together we join our hearts in lament and prayer.

GATHERING

Everliving God, in Christ’s resurrection you turned the disciples despair into triumph, their sorrow into joy. Give us faith to believe that every good which seems to be overcome by evil, and every love that seems to be buried in death, shall rise again in life eternal; through Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you for ever more. Amen. (UMBOW164)

Matthew 2: 13-18

We remember this night the slaughter of the innocents that took place in Bethlehem after Jesus’ birth.

Now after the wise men had left, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.” Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother by night, and went to Egypt, and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet, “Out of Egypt I have called my son.”

When Herod saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, he was infuriated, and he sent and killed all the children in and around Bethlehem who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had learned from the wise men. Then was fulfilled what had been spoken through the prophet Jeremiah:

   “A voice was heard in Ramah, wailing and loud lamentation,

          Rachel weeping for her children; she refused to be consoled,

               because they are no more.”

PRAYER

We remember today, O God, the slaughter of the holy innocents in Bethlehem by King Herod. We remember the slaughter of innocents in Newtown, Oak Creek, Aurora, Oakland, Toulouse, Chardon, Rio deJaneiro, Omaha, Baku, Winnendon, Oxnard, Tuusula, Blacksburg, Columbine, and too many more. We pray into the arms of your mercy, all the innocent victims. By your great might, frustrate the designs of evil people and establish your rule of justice, love, and peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

(Christmas Sourcebook, p.81, Collect for the Holy Innocents, adapt.)

REMEMBRANCE

Let us remember the names of those who have died. As each name is read, and the bell is rung, let us pray for all who grieve their passing, even as we give thanks for the hope of eternal life.

Adults:

  Rachel Davino

  Dawn Hochsprung

  Anne Marie Murphy

  Lauren Rousseau

  Mary Sherlach

  Victoria Soto

Children:

  Charlotte Bacon

  Daniel Barden

  Olivia Engel

  Josephine Gay

  Ana M. Marquez-Greene

  Dylan Hockley

  Madeleine F. Hsu

  Catherine V. Hubbard

  Chase Kowalski

  Jesse Lewis

  James Mattioli

  Grace McDonnell

  Emilie Parker

  Jack Pinto

  Noah Pozner

  Caroline Previdi

  Jessica Rekos

  Avielle Richman

  Benjamin Wheeler

  Allison N. Wyatt

PRAYER

Almighty God, in your keeping there is shelter from the storm, and in your mercy there is comfort for the sorrows of life. Hear now our prayer for those who mourn and are heavy laden. Give to them strength to do your will. Lighten their darkness with your love. Enable them to see beyond the things of this mortal world the promise of the eternal. Help them to know that your care enfolds all your people, that you are our refuge and strength, and that underneath are your everlasting arms. Amen.

(UMBOW164)

FOR OUR CHILDREN, EDUCATORS, and ADMINISTRATORS

Gracious, loving God, you are ever more ready to hear than we are to pray. You know our needs before we ask, and our ignorance in asking. Give to us now your grace, that as we shrink before the mystery of death, we may see the light of eternity. We lift before you our schools and all of the people who learn, teach, and serve within them. We pray to you for one another in our need, and for all anywhere who mourn with us this day. To those who doubt, give light; to those who are weak, strength; to all who have sinned, mercy; to all who sorrow, your peace. May our schools be filled with learning, laughter, and joy and may they be freed from sorrow, grief, and pain. Surround them with a hedge of your protection. Bless our children that every day they may grow more and more into the persons you have created them to be. Bless our educators, administrators, and support staff that they may know be filled with your grace and comfort, for we pray in the precious and holy name of Jesus. Amen.

(UMBOW adapt.)

Psalm 28: 1-2, 6-9. NRSV

Leader: To you, O Lord, I call; my rock, be not deaf to me, lest if you are silent to me, I become like those who do down to the pit.

People: Hear the voice of my supplication, as I cry to you for help, as I lift my hands toward your most holy sanctuary

Leader: Blessed by the Lord, who has heard the voice of my supplications!

People: The Lord is my strength and shield in whom my heart trusts; so I am helped, and my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to the Lord

Leader: The Lord is the strength of the people, the saving refuge of the anointed.

People: O save your people, bless your heritage; be their shepherd, and carry them forever.

FOR OUR NATION

Lord of all nations, keep our country under your protection. Wipe out sin from this land. Lift us up from the depth of sorrow, O Lord our shining light. Bless us in the midst of our grief. Grant us your wisdom, so that we may learn your ways of peace. Free us from the vain belief that violence is a solution. Strengthen our leaders with courage and discernment as they consider policy changes. O Emmanuel, our King and Lawgiver, the Expected of the nations, and our Savior:

Come and save us, O Lord, our God.

(UMBOW and UMH, adapt.)

CLOSING PRAYER

The season of Advent is one in which we seek to open our hearts afresh to the transforming love of God. As we grieve the sin and evil that has wrought such heartache, let us pray for the mind of Christ to be in us, knowing that is through the power of the Spirit that sin is defeated.

We believe in a bright and amazing God,

  who has been to the depths of despair on our behalf;

 who has risen in splendor and majesty;

  who decorates the universe

with sparkling clear water, clear white light,

  twinkling stars and sharp colors,

   over and over again.

We believe that Jesus is the light of the world;

  that God believes in us, and trust us,

  even though we make the same mistakes over and over again.

We commit ourselves to Jesus,

   to one another as brothers and sisters,

   and to the Creator’s business in the world

We thank you for the gift of salvation,

    for we cannot save ourselves.

May the mind be in us which was in Christ Jesus.

  Amen

50 Great Prayers from the Iona Community, Helen Lambie (adapt.)

Newtown

I did not sleep well last night. I went to bed heart broken, lamenting the tragedy of Newtown. I have been thinking and praying and crying, along with the rest of our nation.

As a pastor, my next response has been to help organize a prayer vigil. That will be Sunday at 5:00 at Wesley Church on Lookerman St. You are invited. So is everyone you know.

Now, as I sit at my dining room table, watching my two precious children play with their friend from down the street, I am struggling to re-finish my sermon for tomorrow. So I share with you some of the thoughts, theological and otherwise, that are running through my mind.

1. Ben Gosden's blog post was excellent... here is an excerpt:

If Advent teaches us anything, it’s that One is promised to us who will bring salvation to the world. And if this tragic event teaches us anything, it’s that we are NOT the authors of our own salvation. It’s hard to admit that we cannot save ourselves no matter how hard we try.

Today families are hurting because their babies didn’t come home from school. Today children are without parents and spouses are left without partners. Today a nation is crying out for salvation from the evil that is all too real among us. The time for abstract discussion about policies can wait until tomorrow (note: tomorrow is about right). Today God is busy weeping with us. Our congressmen and senators cannot save us. President Obama cannot save us. Only God can save us — and we have to come to terms with that.

If this season of Advent means anything, it means we are preparing for the coming of a Messiah — one who will save us — in the form of a helpless and vulnerable baby. And that baby is to be found lying in a manger. Or maybe nursing at the loving bosom of his mother. This mother will tenderly hold that baby not knowing that one day she will also lose him to the violence of this world. And we cannot explain the mystery of why this event is so beautiful, but it just is. Maybe it’s because if violence, tears, and heartache are to be defeated, then they will be defeated by One who knows all too well the consequences of such evil realities.

In the meantime, we grieve with those who are grieving this day. And in our grief we sing the words of the carol when it says says: And in despair I bowed my head. There is no peace on earth, I said. For hate is strong and mocks the song of peace on earth, goodwill to men.

O Come, O Come, Emmanuel. We need you more now than ever. Come, Lord Jesus. Amen.

2. I received an email from a clergy colleague, with a suggestion that perhaps tomorrow, we should not light the third candle. This candle is traditionally known as the candle of Joy. I can certainly understand the sentiment. It does not feel appropriate to be joyful in the midst of this tragedy. Indeed, this is a time of lament and sorrow.

But I am actually looking forward to lighting those Advent candles tomorrow in worship. Here's why: the overall message of the Advent Wreath is to light candles in the face of the growing darkness of shorter days and thus proclaim that the darkness can never overcome the light.  I think it will be important to proclaim that this Light is the light of hope, and darkness does not overcome it.

I was reading Adam Hamilton this week. In his book The Journey, he noted that "joy, unlike happiness, can come to us independent of our circumstances. It comes not from changing our circumstances but from viewing them through the eyes of faith."

Even as we are deeply sorrowful and unhappy in the face of this tragedy...and we are right to lament and grieve.... we are not without hope... or even joy... because even in the midst of our profound sorrow, Emmanuel is among us.

3. I have been thinking about an email exchange I had with a friend. After a teen's death in a car accident, she kept hearing people make comments about God needing another angel in heaven; how she had accomplished her purpose on earth. It was driving her crazy. I replied in agreement that God does not cause such tragedy to happen. Here is what I wrote:

I am reminded of Dr. Larry Stooky threatening us in worship class in seminary (and he is a gentle sweet man) "If I ever hear that you preach a child's funeral by saying 'God needed another angel in heaven' I will come to your church and shout you out of your pulpit"

I think it reflects a poor understanding of what we mean by God's purpose. We all have an overarching purpose in life: To love God with all our being, to love our neighbor as ourselves...especially the overlooked, to care for creation (our first charge in Genesis), to use our spiritual gifts for ministry and service, and thereby make disciples of all nations.

I do not believe that these are accomplished on only "one path" or "plan"...but are the overarching purpose that is supposed to inform our journey.. and may be accomplished on a myriad of "paths" through choices.

To say that she had accomplished her purpose on earth and therefore God called her home is to have a poor understanding of God. As Leslie Weatherhead writes, it is frankly to accuse God of murder. His book on this topic is short, sweet, and well written.

Yes, I believe God welcomed her home. Yet no one was more sad than God to see her die so young.

I remember a sermon, which I wish I could find. It was preached by Peter Gomes, the late chaplain at Harvard. He lost a son to a car accident. He preached that "God wept the first tear when my son went over that bridge" He railed against the idea that God caused it and celebrated God's presence and comfort in the midst of it.

I think that people want to believe that life has an unerring order to it. The idea that her death was "God's plan", especially if there is any sense of fault or blame or grey area, want to find comfort and certainty. For the driver especially this may be comforting.

But in general, I find it damaging to the faith...as do you my friend.

I do not believe, cannot believe, that the deaths of these children and teachers was "a part of God's plan." They are evidence of the evil, sin, and death which Jesus came to end. Although the Kingdom of God is not yet complete, it has begun.

And so in this season that is proclaimed by the Church as a time to watch and wait, in hope and expectation, for the Holy One to return, I groan with all of creation and say "Come, Lord Jesus."

Controversy, Suffering, and Hope... Sunday Sermon May 20, 2012

A few notes:
1. This was first preached on May 27, 2001 at Summit UMC in Middletown. The (updated/edited) version below was preached on May 20, 2012 at WesleyUMC
2. I cannot figure out how to get blogger to accept footnotes. If you want the footnoted version, please contact me. For editorial integrity, please know that this draws from three books. Two are by the same author: Trinity and Kingdom, and The Crucified God,  by Jurgen Moltmann. The third is Holy Listening by Margaret Guenther
3. I wrote this at a time when I preached from a manuscript; I now use outline notes.

Ascension Sunday/Easter 7
Luke 24:44-53

This morning is the seventh Sunday of Easter the seventh Sunday of our celebration of the Great Fifty Days of Easter.

If you have ever wondered why the Easter Season is called “The Great 50 Days, ” it is based on a Jewish festival of fifty days that began with the opening of the harvest season two days after Passover and continued until what came to be called Pentecost.

The number seven is highly regarded by Jews, and indicates fullness. On the seventh day of creation, God celebrated the fullness of creation. The number seven came to be known as a week; and if seven is a good number,

then seven squared- forty nine- is even better. So a 49 day period is a “week of weeks,” and as one seventh of the week is holy, so one seventh of the year is held in special regard.

Fifty also has sacred meaning. In Leviticus 25, the 50th year was the year of the Jubilee. This was to be a year of liberation and debt forgiveness, overthrowing business as usual. So the number fifty points to the renewing of Creation, and Christ’s coming return and restoration

Thus it makes sense that forty nine days of festival with a fiftieth day that represents newness and rejoicing
make up the Easter Season.

This morning is officially called “Ascension Sunday” for reasons that are probably clear, now that we have heard the scripture for this morning. We have just heard the story of Jesus’ ascension into heaven.

This mornings’ scripture also contains Luke’s version of the commission to the disciples. In each of the gospels there are actually last words by Jesus to the Disciples, where Jesus commissions the disciples for ministry.

Matthew’s version beginning in 28:18 is the most widely recognized commission.
“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely, I am with you always,even to the end of the age”

We have heard John’s version from 20:21“Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.”

Mark says in 16:15 “go into all the world and proclaim the good news to the whole creation. The one who believes and is baptized will be saved; but the one who does not believe will be condemned."

This morning, we hear Luke’s version in 24:46:
“Thus it is written, that the Messiah is to suffer and to rise from the dead on the third day, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed in h is name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem.”

This is Luke’s version of Jesus’ final commission to the Disciples. Notice that it is rooted in the Jewish scriptures. It begins with the words “Thus it is written…” referring to the Jewish scriptures as a way of saying ‘This is what God has been up to for a very long time…’

The message is familiar: Christ has suffered, died, and been raised to give us the gift of repentance and forgiveness of sins. It is this message that is to go to all nations.

The early church struggled in both of these areas almost immediately. They struggle to embrace belief in a Messiah (a Savior) who suffers and dies, because this meant showing weakness by the world’s standards. They also struggled to embrace all nations, initially having a hard time welcoming non-Jews without distinction, and struggling to welcome people from all classes of society.

We see evidence of both struggles other places in scripture…In 1 Corinthians 1:18, Paul defended the message of the cross, saying  “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing,
but to us who are being saved, it is the power of God.

Continuing in verse 22 Paul goes on "For Jews demand signs and Gentiles desire wisdom, but we proclaim Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God”

We see evidence of the early church struggle to welcome non-Jews in Acts 15 and Galatians 2, called the Jerusalem Conference. Jewish food laws were hotly debated.  And in 1 Corinthians as well as James, believers were encouraged to welcome all people, including the poor… to treat all people well.

If you have ever spent time looking forward to a time when the church will not be divided by controversy, I encourage you to maintain that hope in the context of Jesus’ return. Because the church as we know it has always had points of controversy and disagreement.

We may consider food laws arcane; but consider how difficult a debate this was for the early church. Imagine that for your entire life, you were taught practiced a very important, daily way of honoring God by observing food laws, and practicing circumcision. Now imagine that this daily practice is declared unnecessary. Conversely, imagine that you have no experience with food laws and circumcision, and you have an experience of the Holy Spirit, and the saving power of Christ. How might you react to food laws and circumcision?

Ultimately, the controversy was settled in Paul’s favor (over Peter). Orthodox Christian practice holds to the doctrine that since Christ has fulfilled the law, food laws and circumcision are not necessary for salvation.

Today, with Jesus’ words ringing in our ears,we continue to face the same struggle: to proclaim a Savior who suffers and dies in order to accomplish God’s will, and to welcome all people in without distinguishing between them.

These are two foundational beliefs in the Christian faith.

So now that we have a clearer understanding of Jesus’ commission in Luke, let’s focus upon the crucifixion
and resurrection, since this is what we celebrate this Easter Season.

What are the implications of believing that our Savior has been crucified? Certainly it means that we must be willing to appear foolish to the world. We all know people who think that religion is just some human invention that people make up to deal with the difficult parts of life. I used to be one of those people.

Not only do we believe in God- we believe in a God who is willingly weak and vulnerable – in order that the world might be saved. This is different from the world’s belief in power and might as the safest and best path forward. And who hasn’t had an experience of wishing God would act more powerfully in the world, and set things “right” according to our judgments?

Another implication of believing that our Lord and Savior has suffered, died, and been raised, is that we are able to wrestle with an important question in a meaningful way. The question of suffering is a question that has existed  since time began. The crucifixion and resurrection help us to engage this question.

The fancy word for this question is “theodicy.”

There is a theologian named Jurgen Moltmann who has devoted his life to the theodicy question. This stems from his personal experience as a German soldier in WWII.

In a book called The Trinity and the Kingdom he writes this about theodicy, the question of suffering:

“It is the open wound of life in this world. It is the real task of faith and theology to make it possible for us to survive, to go on living, with this open wound. The person who believes will not rest content with any slickly explanatory answer to the theodicy question. And he will also resist any attempts to soften the question down. The more a person believes, the more deeply he experiences pain over the suffering in the world, and the more passionately he asks about God and the new creation”

Questioning human suffering leads us to the cross of Christ, where God suffered. It is on the cross, that the Father and Son are most deeply separated. And so it is here that God experiences suffering.

At the same time, the Father and the Son are most inwardly one in their surrender.

As a result of the crucifixion, the Holy Spirit, who comforts and saves all of us who suffer. Because God is intimately familiar with suffering, God is able to fill us with God’s love…. love so strong that it can even make the dead live.

Thus it is our God who suffers, who can offer us hope and new life even in the face of suffering and injustice.

It is the God who knows our suffering completely; who has been crucified for the sin of the world, and who has been raised from the dead. It is THIS God who offers us the hope and the strength to make it possible for us to go on living with the open wound of suffering in the world.

God IS love- completely and totally. We know this is true because God takes upon himself the grief and pain that flow from the contradictions to life. God does not angrily suppress the contradictions. Rather, God willingly allows himself to be forced out God suffers on the cross of Christ, and allows himself to be crucified, showing God’s unconditional love. This love is filled with hope, because we know through the resurrection that suffering is never the final word.

Real love is free. Love cannot be forced to exist. Real love cannot be a requirement. Choice must be allowed. Therefore, love cannot prohibit the things that cause suffering.

Think about it: if you knew that your spouse, or someone else in your life whom you love, was hard wired to love you. If they were incapable of doing anything else, would it feel like real love? Real love requires the freedom to choose.

This is the closest we come to an explanation for suffering: that to eliminate suffering, freedom and love would also cease exist.

However, that is not a complete answer to our question. Honestly, there is no complete answer that is revealed to us at this time. It is one of the most difficult mysteries and contradictions of life.

What Love CAN do, is to take suffering upon itself- and take on the grief over this contradiction using the grief as a protest against suffering…This is what happened on the cross of Christ.

Suffering is a part of the human condition. Suffering does not come from God, but rather is part of our world, broken by sin and evil. God cares so deeply about our sufferings, that God himself has suffered for us, giving us hope through the resurrection, and giving us the gift of knowing how intimately God is familiar with our suffering.

I was at a luncheon several years ago, where a man was sharing with us about a difficult time in his life. As he recalled those years, he talked about one man who really, truly understood what he was going through. And so they talked about it.

He related this story with tears in his eyes, as he said “you know what? I’m here to tell you that you can go through HELL as long as somebody else understands….”

Our God understands. God knows what it is to suffer, and God offers us hope through the resurrection, with the promise that one day, all things will be made whole and new.

And in this in between time, we know that our God loves us suffers with us. We also know that we are called to suffer with our brothers and sisters. Paul talks about this in Galatians when he tells us that we are to
“bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ”

It is when we listen compassionately to one another, we are able to bear one another’s burdens. It is when we willingly enter into pain and the grief with a sister or brother in Christ that we are able to take another’s burden upon ourselves. And it is in this way that the burden becomes bearable.

In her book Holy Listening (29-30) Margaret Guenther says that after a day of listening she feels “heavy and very tired, with queasy stomach and aching head. It helped me to understand my somatic reactions when I remembered novelist-theologian  Charles Williams and his theory of “exchange” and “substituted love.”

She quotes this writer, who said: “St. Paul’s injunction is to such acts as to ‘fulfil the law of Christ,’ that is, to acts of substitution. To take over the grief or the fear or the anxiety of another is precisely that; and precisely that is less practiced than praised.”

The one who gives has to remember that he has parted with this burden, that it is being carried by another, that his part is to believe that and to be at peace. The one who takes has to set himself – mind and emotion and sensation- to the burden, to know it, to imagine it, receive it- and sometimes not be taken aback by the swiftness of the divine grace and the lightness of the burden”

So we are to rejoice and to suffer with others- to bear one another’s burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ- because it is in this way that we experience God. It is in this way that we are in relationship with God. In the suffering and death of Christ, and in his resurrection, we find hope in the midst of Godforsaken circumstances because we have the promise of the world’s never dying salvation and renewal.

This morning, I invite you to consider how it is that you experience God in the midst of suffering I invite you to consider how you are being called into relationship with the God who is intimately familiar with all suffering and into relationship with fellow Christians.

Suffering is perhaps the greatest mystery. There are no easy answers to these questions. What we have, though, is even greater- God’s awesome, ever present love- and hope through the resurrection- Amen.