Gospel of Luke 11
"While he was speaking, a Pharisee invited him to dine with him; so he went in and took his place at the table. 38The Pharisee was amazed to see that he did not first wash before dinner. 39Then the Lord said to him, ‘Now you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness. 40You fools! Did not the one who made the outside make the inside also? 41So give for alms those things that are within; and see, everything will be clean for you.
‘But woe to you Pharisees! For you tithe mint and rue and herbs of all kinds, and neglect justice and the love of God; it is these you ought to have practised, without neglecting the others. 43Woe to you Pharisees! For you love to have the seat of honour in the synagogues and to be greeted with respect in the market-places. 44Woe to you! For you are like unmarked graves, and people walk over them without realizing it.’"
Jesus was no lover of vain, empty religious practices. Jesus was intolerant of hypocrisy, especially among religious people. They do what is expected of them publicly, but privately they are greedy and wicked. They follow their religious rules in order to appear holy or better than others. They go to church, but they have no compassion in their hearts. They neglect justice and the love of God. Jesus called them out for their hypocritical judgment, because they accused Jesus of abandoning right religious practices and habits. Instead, Jesus practiced excessive mercy and radical forgiveness and selfless love. He did this without the endorsement of the religious leadership. He taught without their authority and consent. He was more concerned about broken people than about broken rules. He noticed that the religious system actually prevented people from encountering the God he knew as Father. It actually replaced an authentic relationship with a living, speaking, acting God with a religious transaction---do these things and you will be blessed. Fail to do them and you will be cursed. The myth we still buy into today goes something like this: If your life is hard, perhaps it is because you are not religious or faithful enough. If your life is good, it is because you are obeying God's will. Suffering people may be faithful, but they are most likely in God's disfavor. Doing what is right is necessary to have a good life. Blessed people prosper. Cursed people suffer. Jesus debunked this myth. A crucified man is supposed to be a cursed man, according to the Hebrew Scripture. But he says the cross is the way of salvation. He says the poor are blessed. He says the sick and sinful belong to God. He says the vulnerable are our neighbors to whom we are called as servants. We can see why religious hypocrisy causes so many people to reject Christianity and even God.
Religious practices, including Sunday morning worship, can prevent us from living a God centered life. Jesus implies that those who claim to have a relationship with God and have hatred for their neighbor do not really know God. You can't claim to have an UP/DOWN relationship if you have no terrible OUT relationships. We think that if we show up, are members of a church, pay our dues, and do the rituals then that satisfies God and insures us a place in God's care. We can do our duty to God and never serve anyone else. We can, in fact love God with our lips and hate our neighbors, especially those who are not like us.
But, Jesus proposes an alternative to religious hypocrisy. For Jesus, the table was the place of radical inclusion, welcome, and encounter--where God is present in food and drink and human companionship. He proposes an authentic life of love, mercy, and justice. This takes place within the human heart first and extends outward through our actions and words. Jesus shows us what it looks like to have an authentic relationship with God demonstrated in the ways we show love to other people. Jesus shows us authentic relational balance. It is costly. It requires a lot of grace. And he envisioned and established a community to practice it. What if church was more like that and less like 1st century Pharisaic religion---a religion that drew very clear exclusionary lines between those who were in the club and those who were not?
How have you experienced religious hypocrisy? What about this alternative message appeals to you? Who do you know that has been turned off by religious hypocrisy, exclusion, and bigotry? How might you invite them to the table of grace?
Wednesday, November 02, 2016
On the Difference between Right and Justified
Preached on October 23, 2016
gospel: Luke 18:9-14
[Jesus] also told this parable to some who trusted in
themselves that they were righteous and regarded others with contempt:10“Two men went up to the
temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11The Pharisee, standing by
himself, was praying thus, ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people:
thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. 12I fast twice a week; I give a
tenth of all my income.’ 13But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even look
up to heaven, but was beating his breast and saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a
sinner!’ 14I tell you, this man went down to his home justified rather
than the other; for all who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who
humble themselves will be exalted.”
Who are those who trust in themselves that they are
righteous and regard others with contempt?
Not me. I’m not like those hypocrites, those self-righteous do-gooders
who think they’re better than everyone else.
I’m a Lutheran. We’re humble
church folk. This is who we are and what we believe. Listen to these four
statements:
- Know the difference between right and wrong and choose what is right. Do the right things.
- The bible teaches us the right way to live. Follow the bible’s teachings and you will please God. If you’re on the wrong track, turn around and get yourself right with the Lord.
- A right relationship with God and others is the key to a happy life.
- God wants you to know that you are good, that you can do good things, and that doing good things for others is the calling of all Christians.
Do these statements describe us? I think we can all agree that these
statements sound, well, right. To a
certain extent, this is what we believe isn’t it? Christianity teaches us how to live the way
God wants us to live, teaches how to behave, what righteousness looks
like. From the ten commandments to the
Sermon on the Mount, from the prophets words of admonition to Paul’s Christian
household codes, the bible is a manual for holy living. Now, we Lutherans are taught that we are all
sinners, incapable of following the law.
So Jesus was sent to die for our sins, freely taking my place on the
cross, so that I can receive forgiveness and eternal life. We call this amazing grace. And it frees us from slavery to sin so that
we can be the good people God intends for us to be. As a result, we are encouraged to try
harder. We are free from the threat of
punishment to work harder at doing God’s will, doing what is right. Because of Jesus, we are able to confidently
move toward righteous obedience. We call
this sanctification, becoming holier as we reject sin and follow Christ. Our actions, worship and service to our
neighbors move us closer and closer to sainthood. The more we do, the closer we get. The less you do, the further you get from
God. Non-practitioners of the faith are
maybe more lost than unbelievers. They
don’t know any better. Right> but saved people should act like they are
grateful. Again, this sounds right in
our ears. This is the correct formula
for a Christian life. I suspect that
most people who come to church do so to hear a positive message, an uplifting
message and an encouraging message.
Mainly that God cares about you, that you are loved and capable of real
goodness. We love stories of people
doing good things for others. I suspect
this is what we want Christianity and church to be about. Feel good, do good, be good. It is what we do or don’t do that counts for
or against us. Our behavior is a sign of
our character. Morality is the hallmark
of the Christian life. Salvation is the
reward of a life lived well. Either good
people are saved or saved people are good.
This is what we have come to believe.
So, Jesus tells a story. Two men go up to the temple to pray. One thanks God that he is a good man who does
the right things. He is upright,
religious, faithful. He brings no guilt
or shame or remorse. But he is
grateful. He contrasts himself with
immoral people like the other man praying nearby. The other begs God for mercy because he is
not a good man. He is a tax collector, a
traitor working with the enemy occupiers.
He has guilt, shame, and remorse.
He is not right with God or others.
He is not a good person. He has
made bad choices. Both men pray to the
same God. But only one man goes home
justified. Only one man goes home
changed. Only one man goes home lighter,
freer, happier. Only one man goes home
with a new relationship with God, a clean heart and a clear conscience.
To be righteous is to trust in our own ability, our
own goodness, our own moral character.
To be righteous is to live in contrast to those around you who are not,
who are wicked, bad, immoral, sick, depraved, etc…this is how we so easily
ignore criminals, the poor, the addict.
Righteousness can become arrogant disassociation, detachment from those
other people. Righteousness divides
people into good people and bad people.
And it is a false reading of the bible.
To be justified is to experience myself as a sinner,
to fall on my knees, to cry out for mercy, to hope for unearned acceptance, and
to receive a great gift. To be justified
is to surrender one’s self to God, who might very well punish or reject you,
and instead chooses to embrace you and welcome you home and restore you to your
created self, child of God. To be
justified is to be clothed with Christ in baptism, fed by Christ at the table,
crucified with Christ, and raised with Christ.
To be justified is to be seen by God in the likeness of Jesus. We set nothing right. When we try, we are more likely to sin. Our work is to beat the chest and cry out for
mercy and hope for God to listen and take action for you and for your
neighbor. Our work is to have faith
enough to believe that God has the power and the glory forever. Amen.
On Reformations, personal and public
This weekend begins a year-long commemoration of the
500th anniversary of the Lutheran Reformation. The Pope, once called the antichrist by
Luther who was condemned by that Pope in 1520, is this week joining Lutherans
in Lund, Sweden to kick off a year of commemoration with a joint worship
service. We are moving toward restored
communion with Rome and historic levels of unity among Catholics and Lutherans. 499 years ago tomorrow, Dr. Martin Luther posted his 95 theses on
indulgences and the authority of the Pope on the doors of the Wittenburg
Church. Luther was a Black Augustinian
monk, a Roman priest, and a university professor of the bible. The result of his theses and the debate about
them that followed was fuel on a fire that had already been lit. By 1520, Luther was a heretic and by 1521 a
fugitive from the law and both the Roman and German authorities. In the years that followed, Luther and his
colleague wrote the Augsburg Confession, a document outlining the principle
assertions of the reformers. What they
said about God, Jesus, the human condition, salvation, and the church’s mission
are not mere dogmatic statements, but a confession of what the reformers
believed to be the truth. Their rebellion
was three-fold. First they dared to
believe in their own interpretation, their own reasonable understanding of the
scripture. They took as their primary authority’s
scripture and faith and the grace of God.
The Pope didn’t like that.
Second, they dared to imagine and establish an alternative Christian
community, a reformed congregation outside the confines of Roman authority. Third, they dared to put the scriptures into
the hands of peasants and ordinary people.
They took the great commission task of the church seriously. As evangelical Christians, they saw as their
mission to make disciples of all nations, baptizing and teaching them. The Reformation gave the bible to the
world. Of course the danger in all of
these things has been realized too.
There has been blood shed between Catholics and protestants, animosity,
and discord. Only in the last century has some of that begun to fade. Also, if you put scripture in everyone’s
hands you risk its misuse, misinterpretation, and biblical idolatry. We
continue to see how sin and the devil interpret the bible and use it to drive
wedges between people. But, Luther was a
teacher of the bible who believed in rigorous study of the Word, in communal
interpretation, and a theological education for all people. This is, perhaps, what is missing. Disciples, after all, are those called to be
students of God’s Word. We are called to hear God’s Word speaking to us law and
gospel, sin and salvation, death and resurrection, responsibility and
relationship, failure and forgiveness.
At its core the Lutheran Reformation is a daring,
personal experience of the grace of God made known to us in the Word, the
water, the bread and cup. Faith is a
living, daring confidence in Jesus Christ.
For Luther, the movement was always personal, always an inner struggle
with God and the neighbor to live as Christ.
It was a struggle against sin, death, and the devil. It was a struggle to love the neighbor, the
enemy, the ignorant coworker, one’s wife and children.
But salvation is given and received, it is not earned
or rewarded. The only condition of
salvation is faith in God and in his son Jesus, a faith which is given by the
Holy Spirit. Faith is a particular way
of seeing. Even seeing God hidden in
suffering, in struggle, and human failing.
Zacchaeus was a
Jew. Not a very good one according to most.
In fact, he had made full use of his privilege as chief tax collector, a
member of the Roman occupation bureaucracy set to oppress his own people, by
abusively forcing taxation and collection, with threats of prison and death
carried out by Roman soldiers at his suggestion. Luther said, “The Lord
commonly gives riches to foolish people, to whom he gives nothing else.” Zacchaeus
was increasingly troubled in his spirit about the damage he’d done and about is
own status among his people. He was
rich, but despised. And his wealth was
gained by exploitation and violent oppression.
He hated what he had become. So
when he heard about Jesus, teacher of mercy and forgiveness, he wanted to see
for himself. Some said Jesus was the
Messiah, sent by God to restore Israel. ON
his way to Jericho, just hours before, Jesus had supposedly restored the sight
of a blind beggar. Recovery of sight to
the blind. So Zacchaeus climbed a tree
to get a view from the back of the large crowd from Jericho who had come out to
meet Jesus on the road. Jesus must’ve
asked someone who that little man was perched in the sycamore tree like a
sparrow. Zaccahaeus, our chief tax
collector, a fiend. Did the crowds boo
when Jesus approached the tree, called him by name and told him to come down so
that he could host Jesus in his house that day?
They grumbled, He’s going to that sinner’s house? Anger and envy swept
through the crowd. Whatever they did,
didn’t matter. Zacchaeus came down and
stood before Jesus. Something broke open
inside and he declared, “ “Behold, half
of my possessions, Lord, I will give to the poor; and if I have defrauded
anyone of anything, I will pay back four times as much.” He will exceed the demands of the Law to set
things right. WHY? To impress Jesus? Or because meeting Jesus changed his
heart? We cannot know. But Jesus declares, “Today Salvation has come
to this house.” In Christ, it is not your
past or your future that are in question.
It is this present moment.
Salvation is both release from a troubled and sinful past and a promise
of future glory in the coming kingdom.
But chiefly salvation is what is happening for you in the present
moment. What is God doing for you right
now. How is God’s Spirit changing the
human heart right now, calming fear, bringing peace, offering comfort to
troubled souls? This is the ministry of
the Gospel. To apply the salve to the
wounded heart. If the Zaccaheus’ can change, there is hope for everyone. Salvation leads us to work that reconciles, work that heals, work that blesses others. Salvation opens our hearts to serve our neighbors.
Luther says that in Christ we are freed from sin to love
and serve the neighbor. It is this
freedom that makes us disciples. The liberating grace of God that changes the
human heart and makes us children of God and heirs of eternal life. Today, the church is undergoing a season of
reform. Every 500 years or so, we need
to do some housecleaning. Freshen things
up a bit. Fix what’s broken. In a divisive world, we see signs of healing
of the old division between Catholics and Lutherans. We are becoming something new. As a church, we will not be what we were. We
are becoming smaller, older and younger, and more attuned to the needs of our
neighbors. We must remain rooted in the
Word as the source of our mission, faith, and life together. And above all else, we put our trust in
Christ who by the cross and resurrection has set us free from sin to serve all
people with generosity and joy. We do
not celebrate schism. We do not
celebrate Lutheran doctrines that set us apart or make us more right than any
other religious group. We celebrate the
grace of God made known to us by faith in Jesus Christ. We celebrate that today salvation has come to
this house as each of us here encounters the life changing Word, are fed and
forgiven and sent to serve. Today, we are the church because we have heard good
news that we have to share. May we do so
boldly, with confidence, for our neighbors.
Amen.
Tuesday, November 01, 2016
All the Saints
Today is November 1st, All Saints Day. Christians have observed this day for centuries, perhaps since the first millennia. (Before 1,000 AD). It is a day to remember the Christian faithful who have died, or fallen asleep, and now await the day of resurrection. We often associate saints with people like Mother Theresa, Francis of Assisi, and Augustine. And they are. The Apostles of Jesus, early Christian martyrs, and desert monks are Saints, whose devotion to Christ accounts for the spread of Christianity in the first 500 years. There are hundreds of saints, whose lives of very public faith, witness, and service demonstrate Christ to the world. Roman Catholicism venerates saints, prays to saints, and celebrates saints throughout the Christian year.
But, sainthood is not an unattainable condition merited to only the most devoted practitioners of Christianity. Saints are not perfect people, or those who attained some special place because of their virtue. Beyond the martyrs and holy ones who led exemplary lives, saints include all baptized Christians. Saints live ordinary lives of faith and doubt. Saints go to the bathroom and house the homeless. Saints worship God weekly, pray daily, and eat at McDonalds. Saints follow Jesus and follow the Chicago Cubs.In my life, my parents and my pastors and Sunday School teachers were my saints. They guided me, taught me, loved me, and called me into a life of Christian faith. Bernie Gigliotti was one of the first people to encourage me to think about becoming an ordained pastor. I still see him sitting on the pew in the narthex of Our Saviour Lutheran in Utica, NY. I still receive meaningful counsel and inspiration from the compilation of Daily Readings from Luther's Writings given to me as a gift from Pastor Bill Preuss at a church assembly in 1994---two years before I graduated from college and seven years before I would be ordained. I believe that assembly, filled with the saints, inspired me to serve the church as a pastor and evangelist.
My wife and sons show their devotion to Christ every week as they share their gifts with the faith community. My friends who gather around the table every Sunday, hungry for God to speak and give life to them, embody the life of ordinary saints. We drink beer together. We care about and for one another. We struggle with each other. We encourage each other. We pray for each other and for the world. We hope for things to get better and strive to be part of that hard healing work. We feed hungry neighbors. We grow food. We accompany people through hard decisions, through illness, through seasons of suffering. We try to live in community, to serve our neighbors, and to do things that matter.
Martin Luther had this to say about ordinary saints: "You say that the sins which we commit everyday offend God, and therefore we are not saints. To this I reply; Mother love is stronger than the filth and scabbiness on a child, and so the love of God toward us is stronger than the dirt that clings to us."
If you're reading this, you are probably a saint who has inspired me in some way. So, thank you. You have shown the love of Christ to me and to others. You are blessed.
Reluctant Messenger
WORD: Jonah 3-4
"The word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time, saying, 2‘Get up, go to Nineveh, that great city, and proclaim to it the message that I tell you.’ 3So Jonah set out and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the Lord. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly large city, a three days’ walk across. 4Jonah began to go into the city, going a day’s walk. And he cried out, ‘Forty days more, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!’ 5And the people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast, and everyone, great and small, put on sackcloth.
When the news reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. 7Then he had a proclamation made in Nineveh: ‘By the decree of the king and his nobles: No human being or animal, no herd or flock, shall taste anything. They shall not feed, nor shall they drink water. 8Human beings and animals shall be covered with sackcloth, and they shall cry mightily to God. All shall turn from their evil ways and from the violence that is in their hands. 9Who knows? God may relent and change his mind; he may turn from his fierce anger, so that we do not perish.’
When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil ways, God changed his mind about the calamity that he had said he would bring upon them; and he did not do it."
I haven't written in a while. I've been neglecting or avoiding this part of my call. I know that I am called to write, to share a message of hope that comes from a heart and a mind of faith. I have a lot to say. But I have not wanted to say it. I have been discouraged. I have been tired. I have been weary. I have felt indifferent. I have wondered why I am called here. I have been frustrated with church, with myself, and with the uncivil national public debate. We are living in dark times, people. We do not know right from wrong, good from bad, up from down. There is mass confusion caused by a deep mistrust in institutions that used to be sources of truth. Religious institutions are so divided that they are not trustworthy. There is political gridlock and real animosity. The election of 2016 is symptomatic of some deeper problems. Let's call it a crisis on every level; personal, communal, and national. I have been reluctant to speak against the current situation. Not unlike Jonah.
Jonah is a reluctant prophet. A prophet is someone who speaks a message of truth, a message from God. The message is often discomforting, a little scary, and hard to hear. It usually deals with infidelity and disobedience in the relationship between God and God's people. Often social, racial, and economic justice are themes of the prophet. Some prophets suggested that God is more interested in human equality and the ethical treatment of vulnerable people than in religious ceremonies and rituals. Also, there are false prophets. And discerning between true and false ones is important. True prophets are often reluctant, unexpected, humble, and yet powerful in their delivery. Jonah is an authentic prophet.
Jonah did not go to Nineveh the first time he heard God call and send him there. Jonah despised the people who lived there. He saw them as evil people, unworthy of God's mercy. And because he believed that God was merciful, he feared that God was going to use him to announce mercy to those who didn't deserve it. Jonah wanted God to destroy Nineveh.
God will have God's way with us, though. Eventually, after a stormy night and a fishy rescue, Jonah reluctantly goes to Nineveh. He walked into the city and gave the least inspiring message that he could possibly give. "In forty Days, Nineveh will be overthrown." That is the entire message. Seven words of pending doom. Notice, Jonah does not say that God will destroy Nineveh. His delivery was simple, powerful, and effective.
Upon hearing this word, the people receive it and undertake a massive city wide day of humility. Even the King gets involved, decreeing a day of repentance, in the hope that God's mind might be changed by their changed behavior. They hope to avoid the path of destruction by heeding the warning and taking public action. As a result, God does change God's mind and does not bring calamity and destruction upon them.
Words matter. Jonah announced a hard truth to the people. They were not living in a way that was good, just, or pleasing to God. But, people can change. The Ninevites publicly shame themselves. They want to avoid divine wrath. They fear that they are indeed destroying themselves. I suspect people know when things are going in the wrong direction.
God shows mercy, undeserved forbearance. God changes from anger to compassion.
We are called to speak hard truths. God is not responsible for our self-destructive ways. There is no one to blame but ourselves. But there may be another chance. We may get to try again. We may get to make amends. Guilt that leads to positive change is healthy guilt. Sometimes, hearing the truth is both painful and necessary.
If I was told that I was going to lose everything unless I stopped doing something, would I stop doing it? Would you? What if I did stop, and my life got somehow better? Would I tell others my story?
As we stand together on a precipice, what do we do? What do we believe? What matters to us?
I believe in the power of mercy, forbearance, and the prospect of justice. I believe our political life can get better, if we learn to trust one another and see one another as brothers and sisters and not enemies. I believe that God sends messengers to tell us the truth, to wake us up, and call us to acknowledge our weaknesses and explore the possibility of our better selves. I believe I am sometimes called to be that prophetic voice. And so are you, So pay attention. Someone greater than Jonah is coming.
"The word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time, saying, 2‘Get up, go to Nineveh, that great city, and proclaim to it the message that I tell you.’ 3So Jonah set out and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the Lord. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly large city, a three days’ walk across. 4Jonah began to go into the city, going a day’s walk. And he cried out, ‘Forty days more, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!’ 5And the people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast, and everyone, great and small, put on sackcloth.
When the news reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. 7Then he had a proclamation made in Nineveh: ‘By the decree of the king and his nobles: No human being or animal, no herd or flock, shall taste anything. They shall not feed, nor shall they drink water. 8Human beings and animals shall be covered with sackcloth, and they shall cry mightily to God. All shall turn from their evil ways and from the violence that is in their hands. 9Who knows? God may relent and change his mind; he may turn from his fierce anger, so that we do not perish.’
When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil ways, God changed his mind about the calamity that he had said he would bring upon them; and he did not do it."
I haven't written in a while. I've been neglecting or avoiding this part of my call. I know that I am called to write, to share a message of hope that comes from a heart and a mind of faith. I have a lot to say. But I have not wanted to say it. I have been discouraged. I have been tired. I have been weary. I have felt indifferent. I have wondered why I am called here. I have been frustrated with church, with myself, and with the uncivil national public debate. We are living in dark times, people. We do not know right from wrong, good from bad, up from down. There is mass confusion caused by a deep mistrust in institutions that used to be sources of truth. Religious institutions are so divided that they are not trustworthy. There is political gridlock and real animosity. The election of 2016 is symptomatic of some deeper problems. Let's call it a crisis on every level; personal, communal, and national. I have been reluctant to speak against the current situation. Not unlike Jonah.
Jonah is a reluctant prophet. A prophet is someone who speaks a message of truth, a message from God. The message is often discomforting, a little scary, and hard to hear. It usually deals with infidelity and disobedience in the relationship between God and God's people. Often social, racial, and economic justice are themes of the prophet. Some prophets suggested that God is more interested in human equality and the ethical treatment of vulnerable people than in religious ceremonies and rituals. Also, there are false prophets. And discerning between true and false ones is important. True prophets are often reluctant, unexpected, humble, and yet powerful in their delivery. Jonah is an authentic prophet.
Jonah did not go to Nineveh the first time he heard God call and send him there. Jonah despised the people who lived there. He saw them as evil people, unworthy of God's mercy. And because he believed that God was merciful, he feared that God was going to use him to announce mercy to those who didn't deserve it. Jonah wanted God to destroy Nineveh.
God will have God's way with us, though. Eventually, after a stormy night and a fishy rescue, Jonah reluctantly goes to Nineveh. He walked into the city and gave the least inspiring message that he could possibly give. "In forty Days, Nineveh will be overthrown." That is the entire message. Seven words of pending doom. Notice, Jonah does not say that God will destroy Nineveh. His delivery was simple, powerful, and effective.
Upon hearing this word, the people receive it and undertake a massive city wide day of humility. Even the King gets involved, decreeing a day of repentance, in the hope that God's mind might be changed by their changed behavior. They hope to avoid the path of destruction by heeding the warning and taking public action. As a result, God does change God's mind and does not bring calamity and destruction upon them.
Words matter. Jonah announced a hard truth to the people. They were not living in a way that was good, just, or pleasing to God. But, people can change. The Ninevites publicly shame themselves. They want to avoid divine wrath. They fear that they are indeed destroying themselves. I suspect people know when things are going in the wrong direction.
God shows mercy, undeserved forbearance. God changes from anger to compassion.
We are called to speak hard truths. God is not responsible for our self-destructive ways. There is no one to blame but ourselves. But there may be another chance. We may get to try again. We may get to make amends. Guilt that leads to positive change is healthy guilt. Sometimes, hearing the truth is both painful and necessary.
If I was told that I was going to lose everything unless I stopped doing something, would I stop doing it? Would you? What if I did stop, and my life got somehow better? Would I tell others my story?
As we stand together on a precipice, what do we do? What do we believe? What matters to us?
I believe in the power of mercy, forbearance, and the prospect of justice. I believe our political life can get better, if we learn to trust one another and see one another as brothers and sisters and not enemies. I believe that God sends messengers to tell us the truth, to wake us up, and call us to acknowledge our weaknesses and explore the possibility of our better selves. I believe I am sometimes called to be that prophetic voice. And so are you, So pay attention. Someone greater than Jonah is coming.
Reluctant Messenger
WORD: Jonah 3-4
"The word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time, saying, 2‘Get up, go to Nineveh, that great city, and proclaim to it the message that I tell you.’ 3So Jonah set out and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the Lord. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly large city, a three days’ walk across. 4Jonah began to go into the city, going a day’s walk. And he cried out, ‘Forty days more, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!’ 5And the people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast, and everyone, great and small, put on sackcloth.
When the news reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. 7Then he had a proclamation made in Nineveh: ‘By the decree of the king and his nobles: No human being or animal, no herd or flock, shall taste anything. They shall not feed, nor shall they drink water. 8Human beings and animals shall be covered with sackcloth, and they shall cry mightily to God. All shall turn from their evil ways and from the violence that is in their hands. 9Who knows? God may relent and change his mind; he may turn from his fierce anger, so that we do not perish.’
When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil ways, God changed his mind about the calamity that he had said he would bring upon them; and he did not do it."
I haven't written in a while. I've been neglecting or avoiding this part of my call. I know that I am called to write, to share a message of hope that comes from a heart and a mind of faith. I have a lot to say. But I have not wanted to say it. I have been discouraged. I have been tired. I have been weary. I have felt indifferent. I have wondered why I am called here. I have been frustrated with church, with myself, and with the uncivil national public debate. We are living in dark times, people. We do not know right from wrong, good from bad, up from down. There is mass confusion caused by a deep mistrust in institutions that used to be sources of truth. Religious institutions are so divided that they are not trustworthy. There is political gridlock and real animosity. The election of 2016 is symptomatic of some deeper problems. Let's call it a crisis on every level; personal, communal, and national. I have been reluctant to speak against the current situation. Not unlike Jonah.
Jonah did not go to Nineveh the first time he heard God call and send him there. Jonah despised the people who lived there. He saw them as evil people, unworthy of God's mercy. And because he believed that God was merciful, he feared that God was going to use him to announce mercy to those who didn't deserve it. Jonah wanted God to destroy Nineveh.
God will have God's way with us, though. Eventually, after a stormy night and a fishy rescue, Jonah reluctantly goes to Nineveh. He walked into the city and gave the least inspiring message that he could possibly give. "In forty Days, Nineveh will be overthrown." That is the entire message. Seven words of pending doom. Notice, Jonah does not say that God will destroy Nineveh.
Upon hearing this word, the people receive it and undertake a massive city wide day of humility. Even the King gets involved, decreeing a day of repentance, in the hope that God's mind might be changed by their changed behavior. They hope to avoid the path of destruction by heeding the warning and taking public action. As a result, God does change God's mind and does not bring calamity and destruction upon them.
Words matter. Jonah announced a hard truth to the people. They were not living in a way that was good, just, or pleasing to God. People can change. The Ninevites publicly shame themselves. They want to avoid divine wrath. They fear that they are indeed destroying themselves. I suspect people know when things are going in the wrong direction.
God shows mercy, undeserved forbearance. God changes from anger to compassion.
We are called to speak hard truths. God is not responsible for our self-destructive ways. There is no one to blame but ourselves. But there may be another chance. We may get to try again. We may get to make amends. Guilt that leads to positive change is healthy guilt.
If I was told that I was going to lose everything unless I stopped doing something, would I stop doing it? Would you? What if I did stop, and my life got somehow better? Would I tell others my story?
As we stand together on a precipice, what do we do? What do we believe? What matters to us?
I believe in the power of mercy, forbearance, and the prospect of justice. I believe our political life can get better, if we learn to trust one another and see one another as brothers and sisters and not enemies. I believe that God sends messengers to tell us the truth, to wake us up, and call us to acknowledge our weaknesses and explore the possibility of our better selves. So pay attention. Someone greater than Jonah is coming.
"The word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time, saying, 2‘Get up, go to Nineveh, that great city, and proclaim to it the message that I tell you.’ 3So Jonah set out and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the Lord. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly large city, a three days’ walk across. 4Jonah began to go into the city, going a day’s walk. And he cried out, ‘Forty days more, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!’ 5And the people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast, and everyone, great and small, put on sackcloth.
When the news reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. 7Then he had a proclamation made in Nineveh: ‘By the decree of the king and his nobles: No human being or animal, no herd or flock, shall taste anything. They shall not feed, nor shall they drink water. 8Human beings and animals shall be covered with sackcloth, and they shall cry mightily to God. All shall turn from their evil ways and from the violence that is in their hands. 9Who knows? God may relent and change his mind; he may turn from his fierce anger, so that we do not perish.’
When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil ways, God changed his mind about the calamity that he had said he would bring upon them; and he did not do it."
I haven't written in a while. I've been neglecting or avoiding this part of my call. I know that I am called to write, to share a message of hope that comes from a heart and a mind of faith. I have a lot to say. But I have not wanted to say it. I have been discouraged. I have been tired. I have been weary. I have felt indifferent. I have wondered why I am called here. I have been frustrated with church, with myself, and with the uncivil national public debate. We are living in dark times, people. We do not know right from wrong, good from bad, up from down. There is mass confusion caused by a deep mistrust in institutions that used to be sources of truth. Religious institutions are so divided that they are not trustworthy. There is political gridlock and real animosity. The election of 2016 is symptomatic of some deeper problems. Let's call it a crisis on every level; personal, communal, and national. I have been reluctant to speak against the current situation. Not unlike Jonah.
Jonah did not go to Nineveh the first time he heard God call and send him there. Jonah despised the people who lived there. He saw them as evil people, unworthy of God's mercy. And because he believed that God was merciful, he feared that God was going to use him to announce mercy to those who didn't deserve it. Jonah wanted God to destroy Nineveh.
God will have God's way with us, though. Eventually, after a stormy night and a fishy rescue, Jonah reluctantly goes to Nineveh. He walked into the city and gave the least inspiring message that he could possibly give. "In forty Days, Nineveh will be overthrown." That is the entire message. Seven words of pending doom. Notice, Jonah does not say that God will destroy Nineveh.
Upon hearing this word, the people receive it and undertake a massive city wide day of humility. Even the King gets involved, decreeing a day of repentance, in the hope that God's mind might be changed by their changed behavior. They hope to avoid the path of destruction by heeding the warning and taking public action. As a result, God does change God's mind and does not bring calamity and destruction upon them.
Words matter. Jonah announced a hard truth to the people. They were not living in a way that was good, just, or pleasing to God. People can change. The Ninevites publicly shame themselves. They want to avoid divine wrath. They fear that they are indeed destroying themselves. I suspect people know when things are going in the wrong direction.
God shows mercy, undeserved forbearance. God changes from anger to compassion.
We are called to speak hard truths. God is not responsible for our self-destructive ways. There is no one to blame but ourselves. But there may be another chance. We may get to try again. We may get to make amends. Guilt that leads to positive change is healthy guilt.
If I was told that I was going to lose everything unless I stopped doing something, would I stop doing it? Would you? What if I did stop, and my life got somehow better? Would I tell others my story?
As we stand together on a precipice, what do we do? What do we believe? What matters to us?
I believe in the power of mercy, forbearance, and the prospect of justice. I believe our political life can get better, if we learn to trust one another and see one another as brothers and sisters and not enemies. I believe that God sends messengers to tell us the truth, to wake us up, and call us to acknowledge our weaknesses and explore the possibility of our better selves. So pay attention. Someone greater than Jonah is coming.
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