May my words and my thoughts be acceptable to you, O Lord, my refuge and my redeemer. (Psalm 19:14)
SEASON: PENTECOST 8
PROPER: 12C
PLACE: St. John's Parish, Kingsville
DATE: July 29,2001
TEXT: Luke 11:1-13 – Jesus was praying in a certain place, and after he had finished, one of his disciples said to him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.”
ISSUE: “Teach us to pray.” It is difficult for Americans and western culture to appreciate prayer. There are so many ‘scientific’ miracles around us, and we have so much relative control over our own lives that prayer doesn’t always seem very relevant, until we are out of control. Then, we make a dramatic appeal to God, and feel disappointment if there seems to be no answer or the answer is “No.” We have lost the concept of regularity in prayer as a means to intimacy with God in simpler things, and God’s great compassion for the human condition.
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I believe that one of the more difficult aspects of being a Christian is in understanding how to really pray, and in understanding what prayer is. Some of you may share with me some of the frustrations about understanding and comprehending what prayer is. Last week I addressed the story of Mary and Martha, and how busy Martha was, and how Mary had chosen the better part of listening to Jesus. In one sense prayer is listening to God’s direction. It comes through quiet meditation, scripture reading, perhaps a sermon, a poem, or some wise or catchy phrase that is particularly meaningful. The important part of the prayer of listening or discerning what God is saying is setting aside the busyness and thinking our thoughts and opening ourselves up to direction from God so that our lives become a meaningful extension of the love and compassion of God, and not merely activities that burn us out in the end.
On the other hand prayer is addressing God with praise and thanksgiving, but also with intercession, and asking for the help of God, if not a kind of pleading over and over again with God to grant our requests. It is a form of prayer that is often frustrating, because people will feel that their prayer is not answered, or has been ignored. Some will say that the answer was simply “No.” Others more frustrated or devastated will say prayer doesn’t work or even that there is no God.
Modern Americans are pretty much in charge of their own lives, and believe that they should be. With so much taken for granted from a technological and scientific point of view, we are not as needful of prayer, except that prayer becomes something we do in extreme situations. It is something foreign to us. We might even ask, “If God is God why is it necessary for us to pray without ceasing, or even to have to seem to plead and desperately implore God’s response to our human needs?” For us prayer is very mysterious.
It is helpful, I think, for us to appreciate what prayer was like and meant for the early Christian Communities, and to understand prayer as Jesus taught. Jesus’ disciples ask Jesus, “Teach us to pray.” It might be helpful for us to explore Jesus’ teaching as well. Be mindful of the fact that in Jesus’ time ninety percent of the population had little or no control over their lives. They were poor and constantly in debt. Nature determined the weather and the climate. Landowners determined what was to be planted, and how much the peasants could keep. The Romans determined how much taxes were to be paid, in crops, not cash. Peasants had to pray or implore people who controlled their lives for certain benefits to be granted. The peasant hoped his patrons, those who granted special favors and benefits, would treat them compassionately and as family. They hoped their patron (or landlord, etc.) would grant them what they could not provide for themselves. It was almost feudal like. The disciples want to know from Jesus how they could influence God to provide them favors.
Luke’s account is the simplest form of what we today refer to as the Lord’s Prayer. The opening word of the prayer is Father, Abba, in the Aramaic, which was a familiar form of the word ‘Father’, as we might refer to our father’s as ‘dad.’ It was an intimate form and metaphor, which gave the clear impression that a person was in the Family of God. And clearly offer praise that the Father’s Kingdom or realm is our reality. The basic prayer of Jesus was for three things: Prayer for basic sustenance, our daily bread, forgiveness from sins or alienation from the Father, and prevent us from ever being apostate or unfaithful. To be forgiven from our sins or debts was an interesting phrase. Everyone was in debt to everyone else. Just as these folk had to forgive the debts of one another, the prayer asks God to forgive them in their poverty, as they were forced to forgive others. The prayer is very basic: food (sustenance), forgiveness, forgiveness of others, and the ability to be always a faithful participant in the family of God.
Jesus also offers a parable. Suppose, he says that, you have a friend come drop in you late at night. Remember the basic honorable requirement of hospitality in this Middle Eastern culture. If you are out bread, you run next door to the neighbor’s house for bread. The neighbor is very upset about having to get up to get you the bread. These were basically one room houses, and you would wake up the wife, the children, the animals all bedded down for the night. But, to prevent you from being shamed and the community being shamed, your neighbor will get you what you need. God does not want to be shamed either. Approach him with you needs. Search, ask, knock, and you will receive. This statement is a statement of great confident hope on the part of Jesus.
If you are a father (or mother) and your child asks you for a fish, you wouldn’t give a snake (eel). If the child asked for an egg, you wouldn’t give her a scorpion (which when curled up looked like and egg.). You give what is best to meet the basic needs of your children. So even those who are and can be evil know what is good to give to their children. How much more will the heavenly Father give good gifts and the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!
Keep in mind here the simplicity of this kind of prayer. Jesus says God is like a compassionate and loving Father, who did what was possible to meet the basic human needs of his family. It was an intimate loving compassionate relationship. Jesus did not see God as a great welfare system, or as a great magician, or even a great wonder worker who manipulated and disrupted the natural order. For Jesus God responded to human need in terms of what was basic, God provides basic need of nurturing, forgiveness so that no one will be beyond the reach of God, and will seek to maintain a faithful relationship. God will provide the Holy Spirit of love, compassion, mercy, and forgiveness. Ask, knock, search, and grace will abound for you.
In this passage of scripture from the Gospel Account of Luke, you have a picture of God the Father as an intimate Father. People of the time had very simple basic needs; food and water, forgiveness from debt, and the temptation to lose sight of God, or to feel unworthy. Today in our affluence and materialism we tend to expect so much. Our prayers and expectations may be far more grandiose. But a good father or mother provides us with the realities of life. A good parent is well aware that you can’t have everything you wish. Some things are not good for us. Some things are out of the question. These are the realities of life. Meaningful life is not a matter of how much stuff we have, but what are our relationships like. Through prayer, we are invited into an intimate relation with God. He provides us love, compassion, mercy, forgiveness, and what is basic for the day. Through prayer we learn what the language of the Kingdom or realm of God is.
In and through this real relationship we live our lives. If the Father is compassion, merciful, forgiving, loving to us, then these are the spiritual things we have to give and share with others. If God is Father, then we are all brothers and sisters of one another. If God is held in awe and as holy, then so is his creation and his realm, and as brothers and sisters of one another we hallow and honor one another. If God is giving of human need, then we participate in that generosity. If God forgives us, then we forgive one another. If God will keep us faithful, then we minister to bring the faith of a loving God to others.
In our parish bulletin there is on the first page, a prayer list of people within our community for whom we pray. Many of those names appear week after week. We are reminded of our need to be constantly mindful and concerned and involved as the people of God, children of God to be continually involved in concern for their welfare. That prayerfulness is what Christians do. In remembering and lifting up their names before God, we visit, send cards, are mindful of their need for compassion, acknowledgement, healing through friendships and their perpetual belonging to the family of God.
We may wonder what is the use of praying for someone who has cancer. And we may all know of some folk who have gone into spontaneous remissions. Is it because they had more people praying for them than someone else? I doubt it. Prayer is hardly a popularity contest. The nature of the disease is that either some people have within them what is necessary to stifle the disease, or the disease itself dies within some people. Of course we long for the cure, but not just for one person, but for all. And our prayer is that God will enable and help those in research to continue to faithfully search, knock, ask for the way to healing. Prayer puts us all in union with God the Father, and opens us to the receiving of the Holy Spirit that enable us to be in partnership, in compassion, in faithful endurance with God, with God’s way and will. Prayer is the language and the way of the family of God to bring hope to the whole world.
Sunday, July 29, 2001
Sunday, July 22, 2001
PENTECOST 7
May my words and my thoughts be acceptable to you, O Lord, my refuge and my redeemer. (Psalm 19:14)
SEASON: PENTECOST 7
PROPER: 11 C
PLACE: St. John's Parish, Kingsville
DATE: July 22, 2001
TEXT: Luke 10:38-42 – Mary and Martha
“As they went on their way, Jesus entered a certain village, where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. She had a sister named Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to what he was saying.”
See also: Genesis 18:1-14 - Abraham’s Visit from God
“And Sarah was listening at the tent entrance behind him.”
ISSUE: Two stories tell how two women listen to the heart beat of God. Sarah listens to the messengers of God tell Abraham she will bear a son. Mary sits at the feet of the Lord listening to his word. The least among the people of God become worthy to hear the life-giving message of hope. The passage of Mary and Martha who is so distracted, teaches the real need for having a spiritual life close to God. Through the spiritual guidance we live our lives. A spiritual life is hardly secondary. We must be hospitable in our relationship with God.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Hospitality was an important aspect of both ancient and Middle Eastern Culture. We have two stories this morning in both the Hebrew Scriptures and Luke’s Gospel that are expressive of the importance of appropriate hospitality. A part of the code of living was that travelers would be received into homes and given food, protection, and safe lodging.
In the Hebrew Story of Abraham and Sarah, three men come to Abraham’s home. It is a peculiar story that says it was three men, but the story centers upon one, who is eventually understood as the Lord God himself. You might think of it in terms of three angels, messengers of God. In any event, unbeknown to Abraham, he is entertaining the Lord’s presence. Abraham instructs Sarah to begin making cakes and bread to provide appropriate hospitality. Abraham himself sends servants to select a calf to be prepared for the meal. The accustomed hospitality is provided.
What is especially peculiar about the story is that Sarah does not only do her part being hospitable for the guests, but stands behind the flap of the tent listening to the conversation between Abraham and the Lord. Sarah and Abraham are up in age, well beyond their child-bearing years. She hears the men, the Lord, the angels tell Abraham that when they pass by the next time, Sarah will have a Son. Sarah laughs as they very notion that in her old age she will have such pleasure. But, then, she does in fact bear a son to Abraham, named Issac, which incidentally means laughter.
Luke also tells a somewhat controversial story of the Martha and Mary entertaining and providing hospitality to Jesus and perhaps some of his disciples. We are told that Martha invites Jesus into her home. She has a sister Mary. Martha in her feminine role does the work of preparing a meal. We do get the impression that it is not going to be a light supper. Mary on the other hand takes a masculine role of listening to Jesus and his word. Martha, of course, challenges Mary for her masculine position, and instructs Jesus to tell Mary to get busy and help her in the kitchen. To Martha’s surprise Jesus tells her that she is worried and distracted by many things; there is need for only one thing. “Mary has chosen the better part.” Listening.
Usually when people read or hear sermons, issue is taken with how would things ever get done if we didn’t have Martha’s in the world to do the work. But, let’s not miss the main point. Jesus himself was a very active preacher, teacher, and healer. Jesus himself at the Last Supper actively takes up the towel and washes his disciples feet, no minor act of profound hospitality. But, the point seems to be before running in to do things where angels may fear to tread, do we know what we are about, and what are the things that we should be doing. These stories seem to be about the priority of listening to the heartbeat of God. Sarah is listening through the tent to the very voice of God who gives her great pleasure laughter, and hope. She becomes the mother of nations faithful to God, or at least based on a relationship with God. Mary, undistracted and worried, listens to the Christ express the word, the way of God. Then these people live their lives.
In the Luke story it is particularly interesting that it is women, the lesser folk in the social strata, who are symbolically up graded by Jesus to the call to listen and participate in the mission of Christ. But, the mission of the church, partnership in the ministry of Jesus Christ begins with listening to the voice and the direction of God.
This story of Mary and Martha is a kind of acted out parable similar to the parable of The Sower. Recall that the farmer sows his seed and some falls on poor ground where it becomes choked and distracted and fails to grow well. Yet some falls on good soil, and the crop is bountiful. We need to be clear first about receiving, knowing, and listening to the heartbeat of God before allowing our lives become so distracted that they don’t amount to much, or that we expend a lot of energy without knowing where we are going. I would imagine that Luke’s relating this story to the early Christian Community was elevating the position of women, but also calling the church to being centered on the heartbeat of God, on the close relationship with Jesus Christ, first and foremost, without being led astray to busy, maybe even noble actions, that were irrelevant to the Gospel of Christ.
What is it that God may be directing us to do? Like Sarah we might be stunned! But before we act, we need to listen to what are the needs? What is God calling us to do? What is God calling us to be? In a fast changing world, we can get easily caught up in the business. In the church alone we may feel the demands of working with youth, teaching Sunday School, setting up the altar, singing in the choir, helping with the next flea market, involved in this that an the other thing, not to mention the demands of community and family outside the church. Then, we hear expressions like: “I’m worn out.” “I’m burned out.” “I’m fed up.” I have heard people say, “I feel like I’m losing my spiritual life.” “I feel like my life is without purpose.” “I do things, but there doesn’t seem to be any fun, or I feel useless.” Sometimes you will hear people say about themselves or even about the church, “We’ve lost our center.” “We seem out of focus.” Things are done, and a parish can be very active. Lives can be active but what we do is off center it is not in keeping with what Christ called us to do and to be in the world. Sarah is listening through the tent flap and hears that in your old age you shall become mother of many nations. Mary listening at the feet of Jesus is rediscovering a whole new role and mission in her life as a woman.
Sometimes we do some noble and good things in our lives and in the church. But then, satisfied with what we do or have been doing, we continue doing the same old things over and over again. But life changes, the world changes, and surely we need to change ourselves and listen to the new things that God may be calling us to do and be in our lives. The church, especially in the cities, has closed many churches who had ministries very similar to what we do here. But neighborhoods changed and the church is now called to a very new kind of ministry in some areas, especially the cities.
It is foolish for us to think that nothing changes here in the suburbs. Ministries have to change. It used to be that women were at home all day. Today everyone in the family works, including not only mothers, but teenaged children. Where there are people at home, involvement in competitive sports and an overwhelming number of activities that people can now afford change considerable people’s association with their community church, if they even have one now. Rather than seeking guidance in all the changes and the busyness, we are sometimes more inclined to complain that things just aren’t how they used to be, which in itself is useless and even destructive.
We need to keep our listening ears to the heartbeat of God. What are the new things that God is calling us to do, to be, and to accomplish? There have been a group in the Diocese of Maryland that have made it their whole mission to help people, and parish vestries, to learn how to discern what God is calling them to do. They refer to themselves and the book that tells of their methods as “Listening Hearts.” So much of our prayers are about telling God what God should do, rather than listening to what God would have us to do, and to show us our real calling as God’s agents in a vastly changing world.
SEASON: PENTECOST 7
PROPER: 11 C
PLACE: St. John's Parish, Kingsville
DATE: July 22, 2001
TEXT: Luke 10:38-42 – Mary and Martha
“As they went on their way, Jesus entered a certain village, where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. She had a sister named Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to what he was saying.”
See also: Genesis 18:1-14 - Abraham’s Visit from God
“And Sarah was listening at the tent entrance behind him.”
ISSUE: Two stories tell how two women listen to the heart beat of God. Sarah listens to the messengers of God tell Abraham she will bear a son. Mary sits at the feet of the Lord listening to his word. The least among the people of God become worthy to hear the life-giving message of hope. The passage of Mary and Martha who is so distracted, teaches the real need for having a spiritual life close to God. Through the spiritual guidance we live our lives. A spiritual life is hardly secondary. We must be hospitable in our relationship with God.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Hospitality was an important aspect of both ancient and Middle Eastern Culture. We have two stories this morning in both the Hebrew Scriptures and Luke’s Gospel that are expressive of the importance of appropriate hospitality. A part of the code of living was that travelers would be received into homes and given food, protection, and safe lodging.
In the Hebrew Story of Abraham and Sarah, three men come to Abraham’s home. It is a peculiar story that says it was three men, but the story centers upon one, who is eventually understood as the Lord God himself. You might think of it in terms of three angels, messengers of God. In any event, unbeknown to Abraham, he is entertaining the Lord’s presence. Abraham instructs Sarah to begin making cakes and bread to provide appropriate hospitality. Abraham himself sends servants to select a calf to be prepared for the meal. The accustomed hospitality is provided.
What is especially peculiar about the story is that Sarah does not only do her part being hospitable for the guests, but stands behind the flap of the tent listening to the conversation between Abraham and the Lord. Sarah and Abraham are up in age, well beyond their child-bearing years. She hears the men, the Lord, the angels tell Abraham that when they pass by the next time, Sarah will have a Son. Sarah laughs as they very notion that in her old age she will have such pleasure. But, then, she does in fact bear a son to Abraham, named Issac, which incidentally means laughter.
Luke also tells a somewhat controversial story of the Martha and Mary entertaining and providing hospitality to Jesus and perhaps some of his disciples. We are told that Martha invites Jesus into her home. She has a sister Mary. Martha in her feminine role does the work of preparing a meal. We do get the impression that it is not going to be a light supper. Mary on the other hand takes a masculine role of listening to Jesus and his word. Martha, of course, challenges Mary for her masculine position, and instructs Jesus to tell Mary to get busy and help her in the kitchen. To Martha’s surprise Jesus tells her that she is worried and distracted by many things; there is need for only one thing. “Mary has chosen the better part.” Listening.
Usually when people read or hear sermons, issue is taken with how would things ever get done if we didn’t have Martha’s in the world to do the work. But, let’s not miss the main point. Jesus himself was a very active preacher, teacher, and healer. Jesus himself at the Last Supper actively takes up the towel and washes his disciples feet, no minor act of profound hospitality. But, the point seems to be before running in to do things where angels may fear to tread, do we know what we are about, and what are the things that we should be doing. These stories seem to be about the priority of listening to the heartbeat of God. Sarah is listening through the tent to the very voice of God who gives her great pleasure laughter, and hope. She becomes the mother of nations faithful to God, or at least based on a relationship with God. Mary, undistracted and worried, listens to the Christ express the word, the way of God. Then these people live their lives.
In the Luke story it is particularly interesting that it is women, the lesser folk in the social strata, who are symbolically up graded by Jesus to the call to listen and participate in the mission of Christ. But, the mission of the church, partnership in the ministry of Jesus Christ begins with listening to the voice and the direction of God.
This story of Mary and Martha is a kind of acted out parable similar to the parable of The Sower. Recall that the farmer sows his seed and some falls on poor ground where it becomes choked and distracted and fails to grow well. Yet some falls on good soil, and the crop is bountiful. We need to be clear first about receiving, knowing, and listening to the heartbeat of God before allowing our lives become so distracted that they don’t amount to much, or that we expend a lot of energy without knowing where we are going. I would imagine that Luke’s relating this story to the early Christian Community was elevating the position of women, but also calling the church to being centered on the heartbeat of God, on the close relationship with Jesus Christ, first and foremost, without being led astray to busy, maybe even noble actions, that were irrelevant to the Gospel of Christ.
What is it that God may be directing us to do? Like Sarah we might be stunned! But before we act, we need to listen to what are the needs? What is God calling us to do? What is God calling us to be? In a fast changing world, we can get easily caught up in the business. In the church alone we may feel the demands of working with youth, teaching Sunday School, setting up the altar, singing in the choir, helping with the next flea market, involved in this that an the other thing, not to mention the demands of community and family outside the church. Then, we hear expressions like: “I’m worn out.” “I’m burned out.” “I’m fed up.” I have heard people say, “I feel like I’m losing my spiritual life.” “I feel like my life is without purpose.” “I do things, but there doesn’t seem to be any fun, or I feel useless.” Sometimes you will hear people say about themselves or even about the church, “We’ve lost our center.” “We seem out of focus.” Things are done, and a parish can be very active. Lives can be active but what we do is off center it is not in keeping with what Christ called us to do and to be in the world. Sarah is listening through the tent flap and hears that in your old age you shall become mother of many nations. Mary listening at the feet of Jesus is rediscovering a whole new role and mission in her life as a woman.
Sometimes we do some noble and good things in our lives and in the church. But then, satisfied with what we do or have been doing, we continue doing the same old things over and over again. But life changes, the world changes, and surely we need to change ourselves and listen to the new things that God may be calling us to do and be in our lives. The church, especially in the cities, has closed many churches who had ministries very similar to what we do here. But neighborhoods changed and the church is now called to a very new kind of ministry in some areas, especially the cities.
It is foolish for us to think that nothing changes here in the suburbs. Ministries have to change. It used to be that women were at home all day. Today everyone in the family works, including not only mothers, but teenaged children. Where there are people at home, involvement in competitive sports and an overwhelming number of activities that people can now afford change considerable people’s association with their community church, if they even have one now. Rather than seeking guidance in all the changes and the busyness, we are sometimes more inclined to complain that things just aren’t how they used to be, which in itself is useless and even destructive.
We need to keep our listening ears to the heartbeat of God. What are the new things that God is calling us to do, to be, and to accomplish? There have been a group in the Diocese of Maryland that have made it their whole mission to help people, and parish vestries, to learn how to discern what God is calling them to do. They refer to themselves and the book that tells of their methods as “Listening Hearts.” So much of our prayers are about telling God what God should do, rather than listening to what God would have us to do, and to show us our real calling as God’s agents in a vastly changing world.
Sunday, July 1, 2001
PENTECOST 4
May my words and my thoughts be acceptable to you, O Lord, my refuge and my redeemer. (Psalm 19:14)
SEASON: PENTECOST 4
PROPER: 8C
PLACE: St. John's Parish, Kingsville
DATE: July 1, 2001
TEXT: Luke 9:51-62 – Another said, “I will follow you Lord; but let me first say farewell to those at home.” Jesus said to him, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”
See also:
I Kings 19:15-16, 19-21 – Elijah casts his mantle on Elisha.
Galatians 5:1,13-25 – There is no law against the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.
ISSUE: There is no escaping the fact that the Gospel of Jesus is quite radical. There’s just no turning back; the embracing of the message of Christ and the Spirit of God has urgency in the world we live in. We need to release ourselves from the ties and bondages and boldly follow Jesus Christ.
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This is the season when we Americans give thanks and rejoice in the revolutionary spirit of our forefathers. We celebrate our Declaration of Independence from oppression and tyranny. We cherish our freedom and long to be forever free. We celebrate a great country, as well we should. The longing to be free is rooted in our history, as well as in our Judaic-Christian tradition. You’ve probably heard it said that we should not mix religion and politics. We quickly forget that much of the Hebrew Scriptures were related to the politics of the time: Moses delivers his people from oppression and bondage. Both prophets Samuel and Nathan influence the political reign of King David. Jesus himself challenged the politics and political leaders of his time. It was the political leaders, you will recall, that condemned him to crucifixion. Jesus was radical in his time, a fact often suppressed by sentimental religion that makes Jesus too saccharine. We turn him too much into a protestant personal savior, and miss the real impact Jesus had on the community as a whole, and savior of the world.
Look first at the reading this morning from I Kings (19:15-16,19-21). The great Hebrew prophet is called to an intervention into the politics of his time. God directs Elijah to anoint rulers, Hazael as king over Aram, and Jehu as king over Israel. He also appoints a successor for himself to continue the prophetic ministry. Actually, it is actually the successor to Elijah, Elisha, who will make the political anointing. It is actually the prophets of God involved in revolution to remove pagan, corrupt, and oppressive governments for the benefit of God’s people.
There’s an interesting contrast between our Hebrew Scripture reading this morning and the Christian reading from Luke (9:51-62). When Elijah appoints Elisha as the successor prophet, Elisha asks permission to kiss father and mother goodbye. Permission is granted, and Elisha returns to his family and offers a great sacrifice of his twelve oxen, which indicates that Elisha is well off, and has much to leave behind. Sacrificing the oxen, he gives the meat to the people, and becomes the servant of his prophet mentor Elijah. As prophet of God with Elijah he participates in the liberation movement.
In the Christian Scripture from Luke, we have Jesus prepared to go to Jerusalem, the religious-political center of the land. His urgency is striking in his attempt to go through Samaritan territory, where no hospitality will be extended. His disciples are ready to call down fire and brimstone upon the Samaritans for their insult, but Jesus is not out for revenge. He is intent on Jerusalem. Someone offers to go with him, and he reminds the man that foxes have holes, and birds their nests, but the Son of Man will have no place to lay his head in this difficult time. To another person Jesus says, “Follow me.” (Interesting that he doesn’t say, “Would you like to be a volunteer in my movement.”) It is the urgent imperative, “Follow me.” To those he calls, not unlike Elisha, they want to return home first to make arrangements for their parents, and to say farewell. Yet from Jesus you get a very radical reply, “Let the dead bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.”. . . . . . “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.” This statement was very radical in the sense that the Commandment to honor father and mother implied their appropriate burial. For Jesus, for the early church, there was the imperative to set oppressed people spiritually free, to long for justice, to hunger and thirst for righteousness and justice, to enable them to realize their dignity in the sight and eyes of God. Please don’t get hung up on this saying from a literal interpretation. The radical issue is the Kingdom of God is different, unique, and unlike the world and its binding traditions and anti-religious cultures. We don’t turn back, because the cause of Christ, the coming of the Realm of God is embraced with urgency and undivided attention.
The mission of Jesus is to bring the expendable people, the lost and alienated back into a relationship with the God of Love and forgiveness. He rejected the aspects of the culture and religious life that hampered or got in the way of that mission. Personal success, i.e. a place to lay your head, when others had no place to lay theirs either called for an imperative and urgent mission. Oral traditions and rules that prevented people from a potential relationship with God were to be abandoned.
St. Paul in the Galations (5:1, 13-25) picks up on this theme: “For freedom, Christ has set us free.” In a world where be fight and bite and involve themselves in all forms of violence and hostility, greed, and constant self-gratification you nothing more than a constant consumption of one another, a spiritual cannibalism. There is a great need for the spiritual realm of God where Spiritual things abide that are not against the law: love, gentleness, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. These are the things of which the Kingdom of God is made, and are urgently needed. Christ call the world to freedom, freedom from all that destroys and oppresses us, that makes us less than human, and less than being in the image of God. Freedom requires responsibility, faith, trust, loyalty, and self-control or self-involvement in the mission of Jesus Christ. All else is bondage to the past, to the world’s way of thinking, to eye for eye mentality, to spiritual emptiness.
Most of us Americans think of ourselves as blessed. In many ways we are. We are relatively secure. We possess considerable power among the nations of the world. We are rich as a country. Even poverty in this country is not poverty like in other nations around the world. We have one of the best forms of democratic government. We are free to worship. And we are a relatively free people. But we are not perfect. Our government is not perfect, and neither is our Episcopal Church. Some of our so-called blessings may in fact lull us into a most unfortunate complacency and apathy. We are surrounded by the sickness of drug abuse. Family life is threatened. Racism and significant hostility with people who differ from us abounds in our society. These kinds of evil impoverish us spiritually and keep us in fear and bondage. If our systems, our traditions, our laws, our culture perpetuate such conditions, then changes must be made. Jesus was calling for a breaking free, free from the bondages and the fears of the world and make urgent and bold leap of faith into the future, and to the change that resonates with God’s Kingdom. For Jesus and the early church the need was urgent. Such urgency for the Christian and for the church of today has not gone away.
We must guard against, as a church and as individuals, complacency and minimal generosity that keep us personally comfortable and that keeps us arranging things for our own personal families, personal lives, and benefits. By our baptisms we were made a part of a much larger family, the Family of God. Some of the most difficult passages of the Christian Scriptures deal with how Jesus dealt with his own family. He seemed removed from them. At the very least he saw the potential for reclaiming the Kingdom of God, a community of power that embraced the love of God for all people, and turned all people into his brothers and sisters. He had such a broad and hopeful confident vision that he himself embraced with urgent mission. Servanthood with Christ Jesus is the real liberation, the perfect freedom that sets us free from an otherwise oppressive world.
Everyone today is familiar with the number 911. Even some of the smallest children can dial up 911 in an emergency. When we see trouble, an accident, an injury, most of us respond promptly by dialing 911 to get help. It is the human thing to do. Think of what it is like if you are the person in need. When you’re hurting you want quick relief. In an emergency, it is best that on lookers act quickly and responsibly. You don’t want them to say, let me check at home first, or get the kids off to school first. Jesus saw a world in urgent need for a new way, for God’s spiritual presence. For him it was urgent and he didn’t ask for help much or for volunteers. He appointed it: “Follow me and keep your hand to the plow and the human need that lies ahead, and be fit and trim for the real world, The Kingdom of God.
SEASON: PENTECOST 4
PROPER: 8C
PLACE: St. John's Parish, Kingsville
DATE: July 1, 2001
TEXT: Luke 9:51-62 – Another said, “I will follow you Lord; but let me first say farewell to those at home.” Jesus said to him, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”
See also:
I Kings 19:15-16, 19-21 – Elijah casts his mantle on Elisha.
Galatians 5:1,13-25 – There is no law against the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.
ISSUE: There is no escaping the fact that the Gospel of Jesus is quite radical. There’s just no turning back; the embracing of the message of Christ and the Spirit of God has urgency in the world we live in. We need to release ourselves from the ties and bondages and boldly follow Jesus Christ.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
This is the season when we Americans give thanks and rejoice in the revolutionary spirit of our forefathers. We celebrate our Declaration of Independence from oppression and tyranny. We cherish our freedom and long to be forever free. We celebrate a great country, as well we should. The longing to be free is rooted in our history, as well as in our Judaic-Christian tradition. You’ve probably heard it said that we should not mix religion and politics. We quickly forget that much of the Hebrew Scriptures were related to the politics of the time: Moses delivers his people from oppression and bondage. Both prophets Samuel and Nathan influence the political reign of King David. Jesus himself challenged the politics and political leaders of his time. It was the political leaders, you will recall, that condemned him to crucifixion. Jesus was radical in his time, a fact often suppressed by sentimental religion that makes Jesus too saccharine. We turn him too much into a protestant personal savior, and miss the real impact Jesus had on the community as a whole, and savior of the world.
Look first at the reading this morning from I Kings (19:15-16,19-21). The great Hebrew prophet is called to an intervention into the politics of his time. God directs Elijah to anoint rulers, Hazael as king over Aram, and Jehu as king over Israel. He also appoints a successor for himself to continue the prophetic ministry. Actually, it is actually the successor to Elijah, Elisha, who will make the political anointing. It is actually the prophets of God involved in revolution to remove pagan, corrupt, and oppressive governments for the benefit of God’s people.
There’s an interesting contrast between our Hebrew Scripture reading this morning and the Christian reading from Luke (9:51-62). When Elijah appoints Elisha as the successor prophet, Elisha asks permission to kiss father and mother goodbye. Permission is granted, and Elisha returns to his family and offers a great sacrifice of his twelve oxen, which indicates that Elisha is well off, and has much to leave behind. Sacrificing the oxen, he gives the meat to the people, and becomes the servant of his prophet mentor Elijah. As prophet of God with Elijah he participates in the liberation movement.
In the Christian Scripture from Luke, we have Jesus prepared to go to Jerusalem, the religious-political center of the land. His urgency is striking in his attempt to go through Samaritan territory, where no hospitality will be extended. His disciples are ready to call down fire and brimstone upon the Samaritans for their insult, but Jesus is not out for revenge. He is intent on Jerusalem. Someone offers to go with him, and he reminds the man that foxes have holes, and birds their nests, but the Son of Man will have no place to lay his head in this difficult time. To another person Jesus says, “Follow me.” (Interesting that he doesn’t say, “Would you like to be a volunteer in my movement.”) It is the urgent imperative, “Follow me.” To those he calls, not unlike Elisha, they want to return home first to make arrangements for their parents, and to say farewell. Yet from Jesus you get a very radical reply, “Let the dead bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.”. . . . . . “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.” This statement was very radical in the sense that the Commandment to honor father and mother implied their appropriate burial. For Jesus, for the early church, there was the imperative to set oppressed people spiritually free, to long for justice, to hunger and thirst for righteousness and justice, to enable them to realize their dignity in the sight and eyes of God. Please don’t get hung up on this saying from a literal interpretation. The radical issue is the Kingdom of God is different, unique, and unlike the world and its binding traditions and anti-religious cultures. We don’t turn back, because the cause of Christ, the coming of the Realm of God is embraced with urgency and undivided attention.
The mission of Jesus is to bring the expendable people, the lost and alienated back into a relationship with the God of Love and forgiveness. He rejected the aspects of the culture and religious life that hampered or got in the way of that mission. Personal success, i.e. a place to lay your head, when others had no place to lay theirs either called for an imperative and urgent mission. Oral traditions and rules that prevented people from a potential relationship with God were to be abandoned.
St. Paul in the Galations (5:1, 13-25) picks up on this theme: “For freedom, Christ has set us free.” In a world where be fight and bite and involve themselves in all forms of violence and hostility, greed, and constant self-gratification you nothing more than a constant consumption of one another, a spiritual cannibalism. There is a great need for the spiritual realm of God where Spiritual things abide that are not against the law: love, gentleness, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. These are the things of which the Kingdom of God is made, and are urgently needed. Christ call the world to freedom, freedom from all that destroys and oppresses us, that makes us less than human, and less than being in the image of God. Freedom requires responsibility, faith, trust, loyalty, and self-control or self-involvement in the mission of Jesus Christ. All else is bondage to the past, to the world’s way of thinking, to eye for eye mentality, to spiritual emptiness.
Most of us Americans think of ourselves as blessed. In many ways we are. We are relatively secure. We possess considerable power among the nations of the world. We are rich as a country. Even poverty in this country is not poverty like in other nations around the world. We have one of the best forms of democratic government. We are free to worship. And we are a relatively free people. But we are not perfect. Our government is not perfect, and neither is our Episcopal Church. Some of our so-called blessings may in fact lull us into a most unfortunate complacency and apathy. We are surrounded by the sickness of drug abuse. Family life is threatened. Racism and significant hostility with people who differ from us abounds in our society. These kinds of evil impoverish us spiritually and keep us in fear and bondage. If our systems, our traditions, our laws, our culture perpetuate such conditions, then changes must be made. Jesus was calling for a breaking free, free from the bondages and the fears of the world and make urgent and bold leap of faith into the future, and to the change that resonates with God’s Kingdom. For Jesus and the early church the need was urgent. Such urgency for the Christian and for the church of today has not gone away.
We must guard against, as a church and as individuals, complacency and minimal generosity that keep us personally comfortable and that keeps us arranging things for our own personal families, personal lives, and benefits. By our baptisms we were made a part of a much larger family, the Family of God. Some of the most difficult passages of the Christian Scriptures deal with how Jesus dealt with his own family. He seemed removed from them. At the very least he saw the potential for reclaiming the Kingdom of God, a community of power that embraced the love of God for all people, and turned all people into his brothers and sisters. He had such a broad and hopeful confident vision that he himself embraced with urgent mission. Servanthood with Christ Jesus is the real liberation, the perfect freedom that sets us free from an otherwise oppressive world.
Everyone today is familiar with the number 911. Even some of the smallest children can dial up 911 in an emergency. When we see trouble, an accident, an injury, most of us respond promptly by dialing 911 to get help. It is the human thing to do. Think of what it is like if you are the person in need. When you’re hurting you want quick relief. In an emergency, it is best that on lookers act quickly and responsibly. You don’t want them to say, let me check at home first, or get the kids off to school first. Jesus saw a world in urgent need for a new way, for God’s spiritual presence. For him it was urgent and he didn’t ask for help much or for volunteers. He appointed it: “Follow me and keep your hand to the plow and the human need that lies ahead, and be fit and trim for the real world, The Kingdom of God.
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