Maybe It's About Us

Well this explains it all now, doesn’t it? Jesus just confirmed what we already know! We already know that there are some people who get it and other people who just don’t get it, or don’t want to get it, or don’t care to get it. And we are all pretty sure that we are the ones who’ve got it. And a lot of the time, we feel compelled to make sure people know that we’re the ones who’ve got it. Face it, there are just some people who lose out. They hear the word, get all hepped up, attend church for a while, get all involved in programs…and then….gone….back to their couches, their sports, their ‘too busy’ mindsets. They are the rocky ground ones who hear the word; receive it with joy; but when it feels like too much of a commitment, or asks too much of them …they just fall away. Then there are those others who are way too invested in what the world thinks, unable to decide between man and manna…and even when they hear the word just as clearly as you and me - the thorns of the world choke out the good news – and well, nothing takes root. And last but not least there are those who even though the word was sown in their hearts, - maybe in their childhood – or at a tough time in their lives – but they never take the time to study and learn and understand it – and the word that was given to them…is just lost. And then there’s us, right…we are the ones who have not only heard the word but we understand it, and not only do understand but we bear fruit because of it…and the yield, in some cases is thirty, or sixty, or a hundred fold. Yep, that’s us. Or so we like to think. But if we take just a minute to reconsider this parable – a parable that tends to put us in an US AND THEM mode… It may be that this parable hits closer to home than we first thought…and maybe it’s about us. Granted we should all be fertile ground – so that the seed of God’s word takes a good hold of us; so that its roots grow deep in our hearts; so that the word sprouts from us growing tall and green, and the world sees the fruit of our Christian spirit. Yes, we should all be fertile ground. But the reality is – we may not always be that fertile ground. Sometimes right next to that fertile ground are some rocks and over here and a little over there thorns can be found growing – not only growing but thriving. The truth about us is even if we think we are always fertile ground – receptive to God’s words and Christ’s teachings = being human --- we are not. There are times in our lives when we feel God’s presence in the most profound way. When our communion with God seems to be right on. When we dive into Scripture like thirsty man gulps down a bottle of water. And find in the words – exactly what we need – be it courage or comfort; help or hope. And then there are those times when the search falls flat on its face. God seems to have taken a temporary leave of absence. Nothing in Scripture seems to apply, no words can be found to describe what and how we are feeling. Life is empty, we are empty, we’ve got nothing more to give and can’t find what we need to replenish us…and the only words that come to our minds when life hits hard are Lord, why have your forsaken me? And what may prove most frustrating to us more than any other is when we know but don’t do. When we come to this realization…. I know that I feel better when I spend intentional time with God. I know that I feel stronger when I take maybe just 10 -15 minutes to begin and end my day with Scripture. I know that I cope with life’s ups and down when I keep close to the Lord. So why do I do only do these things in spirts…why do I start these disciplines = get all revved up, make these commitments during Lent or Advent or as a New Year’s resolution and then let them slide? Each of us possesses fertile ground – as one Episcopal priest* wrote: Jesus is asking us to come into his presence with our best dirt. And I find that image fascinating. Jesus is not asking us to till or hoe, not asking us to fertilize or water, not asking us to root out the moles or spray for aphids or squash bugs. All Jesus wants us to do is to bring him our best – ears ready to hear, eyes ready to see, minds open and longing for the spirit’s breeze to inform us, refresh us; minds hungry to learn and understand; hearts vulnerable enough to embrace his word and internalize his message. All Jesus wants us to do is bring him the best dirt we have, to be the fertile ground – ready to receive his word, his teachings and his call to discipleship. If it might be that this parable is about us – then all the Lord is asking is that we bring him our very best selves – as best as we are able - and lay ourselves open to the workings of the Holy Spirit so that Christ’s word can be made manifest in us, and we in turn can be adequately equipped to take Christ’s message out into the world.

Jesus is In the Boat

We are comfortable with the idea of Christianity – after all it’s been around for close to 2000 years. And in this country-- and for us – Christianity has become a part of our tradition, and our heritage. We are used to what sociologists call our Judeo-Christian foundations and ethics. So used to it that sometimes maybe we forget that Christianity was not always around… so used to it that maybe we forget that when Christianity hit – it hit like an 10-on-the-Richter-scale-earthquake – maybe we forget that Christianity was a monumental change that rocked the world and shook up a whole lot of people. We are living in a time of monumental rapid change that seems constant. Sometimes things change before we are able to get used to the previous change – sometimes we lag behind numerous changes. Change can make us feel really good…and then again, change can make us miserable and uncomfortable. However, from the day Jesus was born and from the day he showed up at the Jordan River – his mission was about challenge and change. Jesus challenged every known belief of his time. He chipped away at the patriarchal system by speaking to and associating with women in public – and by including them among his disciples. He broke the sacred cleanliness laws when he touched a leper and let a bleeding woman touch him. He broke natural law when he turned a few fish and loaves of bread into a feast for 5,000. He broke Jewish Law when he worked and healed on the Sabbath. He stood in the synagogue, and in the Temple, and in the streets and he challenged the way things had always been done - challenged the authorities – both religious and civil – challenged people and their way of living and their way of thinking. He inserted himself into societal norms; political thought; cultural beliefs; and religious doctrine. He made waves, pushed the envelope, caused problems, infuriated people and scared people. He had the audacity to question the authority of the Hebrew Scriptures //// and thousands of years of religious teaching; the audacity to reinterpret Scripture: You have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, but I say…..and he said an awful lot that changed what it meant to murder, to divorce, to commit adultery, to swear falsely, to turn the other cheek..to love and pray for your enemies. And to fly further into the face of every authority he added the 11th commandment: love one another --just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. And to add insult to injury he told people he was God’s son and the fulfillment of the law. And he lost followers –we know this because it’s recorded: From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him. And he caused families to break up; and he caused schism in the Temple and in the synogogue. And some considered his ideas and his proclamations crazy – even his family said so... And some said he was evil – that he came from the devil and was the leader of demons. And he was hated, considered a blasphemer, made so many enemies that there was a plot to kill him…a plot based on lies and conjecture and opinion – all of which fueled the hatred of the crowds – that plot to kill Jesus succeeded. We know that sometimes his disciples didn’t understand why he did what he did or why he said what he said. We know that his disciples were not happy every time Jesus upset the traditional applecart – when they tried to shoo the children away from him – and when they found him talking to that woman at a well – and how many times did they try to get him to stop talking about all that betrayal and dying stuff. But he didn’t stop any of it – he forged ahead – taking the people into a future they could not yet imagine. And we know that when the Holy Spirit came upon them = and when the disciples --now apostles left that house and began to preach and teach and heal…the authorities plotted to kill them too = because they were afraid of what was happening to their faith --- and they said – these are a people who are turning the world upside down. Right now the PCUSA has turned many a world upside down. Some in a good way – and others in a very bad way. Some in this denomination are – like Miriam and David - dancing --and others – like Job -have put on ashes and sackcloth. Some believe their prayers have been answered, and other prayers are filled with questions. But we have been here before – with Luther and Calvin. Been here before when we allowed divorcees to become elders, when we allowed African Americans to leave the balcony and join us on the main floor, when we invited women to take on leadership positions as elders, deacons, and yes, ministers. And..When we said yes to the gifts a person brought to ordination. Oddly enough we had a combination of happy, sad, joyful, and despairing even when the divided northern and southern churches came back together and we once again became one church – the PCUSA. A thought from our book study struck me as I considered this sermon. The author wrote that when the disciples dropped everything to follow Jesus, they had no idea what they were in for..no idea what would happen..no idea about the end game. After I thought about it for a while, I thought Well, neither did they ask. When they became members of Christ’s mission - They didn’t ask for an agenda or an itinerary, didn’t ask for a promise or a guarantee that it would be smooth sailing from then until whenever. But – in this faith journey - they witnessed the good, bad, and the ugly…and miracles --and helped establish a diverse community made one in Christ – this thing called the church. The thing called the church is always symbolized by a ship - tossed periodically on the sea of disbelief, worldliness, and persecution but finally reaching safe harbor with its cargo of human souls. This morning we heard of a great windstorm that suddenly arose on the sea of galilee. And as the boat that carried Jesus and the disciples began to pitch and sway – as the waves began to sweep higher and crash into the boat – the disciples became scared and unnerved and cried out Lord save us – we are perishing. But Jesus who was in that boat – and Jesus who is in this boat with us right now as I speak…said: Why are you afraid – you of little faith. And like he did then -- now today Jesus will get up, rebuke the wind, and in his loving mercy and grace he will show HIS church how to be calm…and how to reach safe harbor. Today we are reminded that no matter what we humans think or do or say – no matter if we agree or disagree -- Jesus is in charge of this ship called the church.

The Smallest of Gestures

There is a lot of ugliness in the world. And in this century it seems we are overwhelmed with it. There is no escaping the news – which insists on giving us every gory detail of every situation, circumstance, and event. And though it might be interesting to ponder our get away...what it would be like to unplug from the tv, radio, internet, ipads, laptops, and smart phones- move deeper into the woods, and live blissfully unaware of the world’s ugliness – it’s not very practical. It seems that no matter how many advances we make in – medicine, science, space exploration, technology –no matter how far we believe we have come from our early barbarian days…human beings continue to do ugly things to one another. But we don’t have to watch the news about North Korea, or Syria, or Nigeria, or hear about another American high school, or yet another amber alert – to know that there is ugliness in the world. We can see that anywhere. In homes and communities, in politics, governments and classrooms, in churches and in the places where we work. When it comes to ugliest side of evil in this world – I’m not sure we in this country are really able to relate. We don’t live under the thumb of an oppressive or suffocating government, or worry about the SS knocking on our door and hauling us away in the dead of night, we can pretty much live and worship the way we want to, pretty much travel where we want and say what’s on our mind without the fear of being thrown a labor camp or lined up and shot. So when we look at the real ugly evil in this world, it’s hard for us to comprehend how it got this way so fast, and with every news report or police report, or newspaper item - it seems to creep closer and closer. We say something must be done, but we have no idea where to begin or how to fix it. We feel powerless to change things or make much of a difference in this crazy brutal world. But maybe we could start with one line from Matthew’s scripture: And whoever gives even a cup of cold water…It is the simplest of gestures – to give another human being a single cup of cold water. How many fresh water systems are being constructed in how many places in this country and around the world. How many people here and around the world are sick from the lack of clean water? How many people in this state were affected by a chemical spill in the Kanawha River? How many here felt a sense of panic when just 2 years ago the derecho cut off power, fuel, and left us without water. Water is life – we cannot live without it. But there is more to this cup of cold water than just a cup of cold water. Because a cup of cold water can come in many a guise. A smile for someone having a tough day. Listening when you don’t want to. Helping out when you’d rather be taking a nap. Reaching out even when it makes you feel uncomfortable. Trying to understand even though it makes no sense to you at all. A cup of cold water can look like - Going the extra mile, saying yes instead of no, giving someone the benefit of the doubt or a second chance. This passage says much about hospitality. Not the kind of hospitality that welcomes people who are just like us into our newly cleaned house, with pleasant conversation spoken over the meal that took you all day. But the big word hospitality – the kind that we carry with us when we leave home – and take with us into our communities, churches, and classrooms, take with to work, and into our politics and our government. Not because we need to win the most wonderful person in the world award and not because we want to be noticed and acknowledged as the most wonderful Christian in the world, but because as a minister in Texas writes: Hospitality frees us to offer a cup of cold water to someone who might be in a situation completely foreign to our life experience; someone in a world that is outside our limited understanding. And when we are brought into relationship with one another by the bond that hospitality creates, there is no more host and guest, no more insider and outsider; no more us and them; no more I’m doing you a big favor --there is only a holy space in which we listen to and learn from one another, there is only a holy space in which two human beings – two of God’s children - can learn to value and honor one another until all the uneven ground on which we once stood becomes level, and the rough places that once separated us are made a plain. Discipleship does not have to be proven through any radical sacrificial or heroic act like in the Abraham and Isaac story – discipleship is made up of hundreds upon hundreds of the simplest of gestures. Our cups of cold water may seem as not much to us – but will loom large in the life of one in need. Hospitality – according to that Texas minister -- is crucial to the advancement of forgiveness and healing, of justice and mercy, of righteousness and hope. Where there is no hospitality, there is no gospel message; there is not Christ; there is no discipleship.