Today’s Gospel reading is often called the Parable of the Sower. Barbara Brown Taylor, an Episcopal Priest who Baylor University called one of the twelve most effective preachers in the English language tells it like this:
Once upon a time a sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came along and devoured them. So he put his seed pouch down and spent the next hour or so stringing aluminum foil all around his field. He put up a fake owl he ordered from a garden catalog and, as an afterthought, he hung up a couple of traps for the Japanese beetles.
Then he returned to his sowing, but he noticed some of the seeds were falling on rocky ground, so he put his seed pouch down again and went to fetch his wheelbarrow and shovel. A couple of hours later he had dug up the rocks and was trying to think of something useful he could do with them when he remembered his sowing and got back to it, but as soon as he did he ran right into a briar patch that was sure to strangle his little seedlings. So he put his pouch down again and looked everywhere for the weed poison but finally decided just to pull the thorns up by hand, which meant that he had to go back inside and look everywhere for his gloves.
Now by the time he had the briars cleared it was getting dark, so the sower picked up his pouch and his tools and decided to call it a day. That night he fell asleep in his chair reading a seed catalog, and when he woke the next morning he walked out into his field and found a big crow sitting on his fake owl. He found rocks he had not found the day before and he found new little leaves on the roots of the briars that he had broken of in his hands. The sower considered all of this, pushing his cap back on his head, and then he did a strange thing: he began to laugh, just a chuckle at first and then a full-fledged guffaw that turned into a wheeze at the end then his wind ran out.
Still laughing and wheezing he went after his seed pouch and began flinging seeds everywhere: into the roots of trees, onto the roof of his house, across all his fences and into his neighbor’s fields. He shook seeds at his cows and offered a handful to the dog; he even tossed a fistful into the creek, thinking hey might take root downstream somewhere. The more he sowed, the more he seemed to have. None of it made any sense to him, but for once that did not seem to matter, and he had to admit that he had never been happier in all his life.
Let those who have ears to hear, hear.[1]
The parable of the outrageously generous, magnanimous sower. A super-abundantly generous God is also portrayed in our other lessons. In Isaiah: Everyone who thirst, come to the waters, and you that have no money, come, buy and eat. Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Eat what is good, delight yourselves in rich food. I will make with you and everlasting covenant. Come, eat, drink. A table is prepared for you, everything has been done, all is ready for you. Come and eat, that your soul may live! “God’s invitation is not merely to find a supply of bodily needs but to satisfy a person’s whole being . . . with true life.”[2] God’s covenant will enable his followers to be servants, to fulfill the promises, but they also must accept what God has done, accept his invitation. “A banquet table is worse than useless to the person who is either too proud or too ashamed to come and eat from it.”[3]
In our Isaiah lesson for this week a few verses are left out, and I’ll read them now. “Seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near. Let the wicked forsake his way and the evil man his thoughts. Let him turn to the LORD, and he will have mercy on him, and to our God, for he will richly pardon. For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.
God challenges his people to respond, to step out in faith, to trust in his word. “God promises that what he says . . . is indeed reliable and that forgiveness and abundance are theirs now and in the future if they will only seek him. . . . [and then] all nature will rejoice in the redemption of humanity, and in place of sorrow and sighing there will be ‘joy’ and ‘peace.’[4] Amazing and abundant.
The theme of God’s abundant generosity continues in our Psalm: You visit the earth and water it abundantly, you make it very plenteous. . . you bless the grain, and bless the earth with rain. God’s hills are rich, his hills are clothed with joy. The meadows and valleys sing for joy. God abundantly pours out his blessings throughout the earth.
Even in out Epistle: “If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also through his Spirit that dwells in you. . . . All who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God . . . adopted as sons.” The abundant generosity of God who enables us to be his children, causes us to cry out with joy! Abba, Father!
Yes, each of our lessons point to God’s abundant generosity. But there is also a sub-theme regarding our responsibility. In the Isaiah passage, we need to respond, to come to the banquet, to seek God. We need to repent, to turn to the Lord. Often this is an act of faith, of trust. It’s about letting go, even though we don’t know God’s ways and plans. It’s about surrendering our life to Him, and allowing God to determine our paths. God invites us to his banquet, but “we are to leave our comfortable worldly ways and launch out in paths of service and living that do not depend on our strength but on his.”[5]
Last week, in the Epistle reading we heard that “there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Rom 8:1). But today we heard “if you live according to the flesh, you will did, but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live.” (v.13) Can both of these be true? There is a tension there, a tension that we are exploring today between God’s generosity and his Sovereignty, and man’s responsibility. A mystery. “What is important is a careful balance between what God gives us in Christ and what we must do in response to that gift.” [6] God is abundantly generous and grace-fully loving towards us, but we must respond to that gift in a manner pleasing to him. Living with the Spirit’s presence, the Spirit works in us, but in cooperation with us. Through the Spirit, we are able to put sin to death in our lives. We do it, but we can only do it through the Spirit. This is bearing good fruit, the fruit of the Spirit.
Which brings us full circle to the Parable of the Sower. It is also a parable of the soil. It’s not about worrying abut which kind of soil you are, but about being receptive to the seed, to God’s abundance spread out in our lives. We are called to be good soil, good dirt. Hearing and understanding, with obedience, results in fruit. The responsibility for producing fruit is the responsibility of the sower, of the Gospel message itself, but “we must be careful to supply proper nutrients and care for our well-being by continually being watered with the Word of God and enfolded in a . . . community of other believers. We likewise must be careful not to allow the weeds of this world to choke us.”[7] Good soil produces good fruit. Good soil is seeking God and allowing Him to work in us and through us by the power of the Holy Spirit. Good soil is a product of the Master Gardener. Lord, we pray that you will abundantly and generously sow your seeds in us and though us. Amen.
[1] Taylor, Barabara B. The Seeds of heaven: Sermons on the Gospel of Matthew. Westminster John Knox Press, 2004, p. 28-9.
[2] Oswalt, John N. The NIV Application Commentary: Isaiah. Zondervan, 2003, p. 601.
[3] Ibid, 602.
[4] Ibid, 602.
[5] Ibid, 604.
[6] Moo, Douglas. The NIV Application Commentary: Romans. Zondervan, 2000, p. 258.
[7] Wilkins, Michael J. The NIV Application Commentary: Matthew, Zondervan 2004, p. 503.
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Year A Proper 9
As you all know, I spend a fair amount of time in my car during the week. And while I like all kinds of music—from country to classical to classic rock, blues and jazz—I usually listen to Christian Radio. I am careful these days as to what kind of stuff I am letting into my head, you know, garbage in, garbage out. Not that there’s anything wrong with a lot of the music out there, but I’m not comfortable filling my ears with some of the stuff presented in song. Like Paul said in Phillippians chapter 4, “6 Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. 8 Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” So I almost always have Contemporary Christian music playing on my car radio—and we are really blessed to have a couple good stations available in this area! In Pittsburgh I never found one.
So, I was driving earlier this week and heard the intro to a program where the speaker said: “After 29 years, I quit trying to be a Christian.” Hmm. Got my attention. I know in the past I’ve spent a lot of time trying to be a Christian—how about you? Do you find it hard to be a Christian, hard to keep from sinning, hard to keep on the straight and narrow, hard to be focused? Too many rules, too many commandments? I understand that—been there. And I think that’s what the guy on the radio was talking about—and what today’s lessons are about. The answer is, Quit Trying. That’s right, Quit Trying!!!!!!
In his letter to the Romans, Paul talks about his struggles to obey the law. Now there are lots of different perspectives on this, but I think he is talking about his life as a Pharisee, before his encounter with Christ. Paul begins by talking about the principle he discovered in his struggle, that when he wanted to do good, evil is close by. He continues by contrasting “God’s law with another ‘law,’ ‘the law of sin.’ For just as God in his law makes a claim on our lives, so sin, acting through our members, exerts its own claim on us. These two claims battle for our allegiance.” [1] God’s law could not save us from our sinful tendencies. The result, as Paul says, is that he is most wretched, looking for rescue from sin, for salvation. And this rescue is provided by Christ Jesus—thanks be to God!! “Having expressed the desire for rescue from the frustration of not being able to do God’s law that he felt as a Jew under the law, Paul the Christian cannot refrain from interjecting thanksgiving for the source of the deliverance he has experienced.”[2]
Paul continues by saying “there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” In Christ, there is a new law, the law of the Spirit of life which overcomes the law of sin and death. “The Spirit exerts a liberating power through the work of Christ that takes us out of the realm of sin and the spiritual death to which sin inevitably leads.”[3] And this happens through Christ Jesus. Jesus Christ is God’s intervention, doing what the law could not. Christ himself did not sin, and he was not subject to the law of sin, but he “became what we are so that we could become what he is.”[4] Through Christ, the righteous requirement of the law was fulfilled—on our behalf. We are no longer condemned. What the law required, Christ accomplished for those who walk in the Spirit, those who live in the realm of the Spirit, setting their minds on things of the Spirit. This is life and peace—not struggle, not trying, but life and peace. Freedom.
In Christ, the apostle Paul found life and peace. And so did Martin Luther, the great reformer. Luther was a faithful and obedient monk, righteous according to all the religious standards of his day just like Paul the Pharisee. But Luther was filled with doubt and despair, worrying over the littlest sins, afraid he’d die before his next confession—until he recognized that he was saved by faith alone, by God’s grace alone. It’s not about doing, struggling, trying and failing, but about living in Christ.
And that’s what Jesus is saying in the gospel, and especially in what we used to refer to as “the comfortable words” “Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” Jesus calls and says, “’Come to me,’ a tender call to mercy for those who are weary and burdened. ‘Weary evokes the image of persons exhausted from their work or journey, while ‘burdened’ indicates persons weighted down with heavy loads . . . harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.”[5] In Christ, there is rest, rest that cannot be found in trying to live up to the legal requirements of the Pharisees, of the law.
Jesus said, “take my yoke upon you.” We need to remember that a yoke is a wooden frame which joined two animals together for pulling loads. In 1st century Judaism, they would have understood the yoke of the law, the yoke of studying the Torah, and also the yoke of foreign oppression. Jesus’ “yoke—a metaphor for discipleship to him—promises rest from the weariness and burden of religious regulation and human oppression, because it is none other than commitment to him.”[6] That’s all, just follow him, learn from him. The yoke of discipleship brings rest—because Jesus is gentle and humble in heart. Jesus came humbly, in human form, and gently, bringing the good news of the Kingdom of Heaven; bringing healing to a sin-sick world.
Discipleship is, however, still a yoke—a yoke that is easy and a burden that is light. “His discipleship is an easy or serviceable yoke because his teaching equips us most effectively to live out God’s will in the way life was meant to be lived. Furthermore, his discipleship is not the oppressive burden of Pharisaic legalism (23:4) but instead turns the load of life into one that is manageable.”[7] Life on earth is not always easy and pleasant, but Jesus will help us carry the load. Rest and peace. Quit trying.
By trying to live up to the demands of perceived religious expectations, we become weary and frustrated, burdened down by our inability to measure up. Jesus invites us to find rest in him, rest in his yoke of discipleship. This seems counterintuitive, doesn’t it, that we will find rest in him, rest in a discipleship that demands us to commit our very lives to him. But I have found it to be true, that when I finally realized that I couldn’t do it on my own, that I couldn’t measure up, and when I gave up and surrendered my life to Him, the struggle and worry about trying to be a Christian, to read and meditate and do all the right things—the struggle wasn’t there. For me, these became pleasure. I know that we think we find rest and comfort in all sorts of places and pleasures, things that dull the pain, but these leave us empty in the end. “Jesus offers us—true life (John 10:10), one that forms us from the inside out . . . and makes us into the kinds of people who love and serve God under his easy yoke of discipleship.”[8] A Christian author by the name of Douglas Webster wrote a book called The Easy Yoke, and he said,
Apart from the grace of Christ and the saving work of the Cross, it would be impossible to convince people that the easy yoke is doable, let alone easy. But for those who live under the yoke, there is absolutely no other way to live. Who in their right mind would go back to the gods of Self, Money, Lust and Power? Who would return on bended knee to the shrines of pious performance and judgmentalism? Is not love better than hate, purity better than lust, reconciliation better than retaliation? And is not “better” really “easier” when measured in character rather than convenience, rest for the soul rather than selfish pride?[9]
The freedom we have in Christ is so much better, so much easier. It is Life, peace, and rest. As Janice Joplin in the song, “Me and Bobby McGee,” “Freedom’s just another word for nothing left to lose.” When you have nothing left to lose, Quit trying. Jesus said come to me and you will find rest, an easier and lighter burden. Life and peace. Freedom. Amen.
[1] Moo, Douglas. The NIV Application Commentary: Romans, p. 238.
[2] Ibid, 239.
[3] Ibid, 249.
[4] Ibid, 249.
[5] Wilkins, Michael J. The NIV Application Commentary: Matthew. 422.
[6] Ibid, 424.
[7] Ibid, 424.
[8] Ibid, 433.
[9] Qtd. Wilkins 433-4.
So, I was driving earlier this week and heard the intro to a program where the speaker said: “After 29 years, I quit trying to be a Christian.” Hmm. Got my attention. I know in the past I’ve spent a lot of time trying to be a Christian—how about you? Do you find it hard to be a Christian, hard to keep from sinning, hard to keep on the straight and narrow, hard to be focused? Too many rules, too many commandments? I understand that—been there. And I think that’s what the guy on the radio was talking about—and what today’s lessons are about. The answer is, Quit Trying. That’s right, Quit Trying!!!!!!
In his letter to the Romans, Paul talks about his struggles to obey the law. Now there are lots of different perspectives on this, but I think he is talking about his life as a Pharisee, before his encounter with Christ. Paul begins by talking about the principle he discovered in his struggle, that when he wanted to do good, evil is close by. He continues by contrasting “God’s law with another ‘law,’ ‘the law of sin.’ For just as God in his law makes a claim on our lives, so sin, acting through our members, exerts its own claim on us. These two claims battle for our allegiance.” [1] God’s law could not save us from our sinful tendencies. The result, as Paul says, is that he is most wretched, looking for rescue from sin, for salvation. And this rescue is provided by Christ Jesus—thanks be to God!! “Having expressed the desire for rescue from the frustration of not being able to do God’s law that he felt as a Jew under the law, Paul the Christian cannot refrain from interjecting thanksgiving for the source of the deliverance he has experienced.”[2]
Paul continues by saying “there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” In Christ, there is a new law, the law of the Spirit of life which overcomes the law of sin and death. “The Spirit exerts a liberating power through the work of Christ that takes us out of the realm of sin and the spiritual death to which sin inevitably leads.”[3] And this happens through Christ Jesus. Jesus Christ is God’s intervention, doing what the law could not. Christ himself did not sin, and he was not subject to the law of sin, but he “became what we are so that we could become what he is.”[4] Through Christ, the righteous requirement of the law was fulfilled—on our behalf. We are no longer condemned. What the law required, Christ accomplished for those who walk in the Spirit, those who live in the realm of the Spirit, setting their minds on things of the Spirit. This is life and peace—not struggle, not trying, but life and peace. Freedom.
In Christ, the apostle Paul found life and peace. And so did Martin Luther, the great reformer. Luther was a faithful and obedient monk, righteous according to all the religious standards of his day just like Paul the Pharisee. But Luther was filled with doubt and despair, worrying over the littlest sins, afraid he’d die before his next confession—until he recognized that he was saved by faith alone, by God’s grace alone. It’s not about doing, struggling, trying and failing, but about living in Christ.
And that’s what Jesus is saying in the gospel, and especially in what we used to refer to as “the comfortable words” “Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” Jesus calls and says, “’Come to me,’ a tender call to mercy for those who are weary and burdened. ‘Weary evokes the image of persons exhausted from their work or journey, while ‘burdened’ indicates persons weighted down with heavy loads . . . harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.”[5] In Christ, there is rest, rest that cannot be found in trying to live up to the legal requirements of the Pharisees, of the law.
Jesus said, “take my yoke upon you.” We need to remember that a yoke is a wooden frame which joined two animals together for pulling loads. In 1st century Judaism, they would have understood the yoke of the law, the yoke of studying the Torah, and also the yoke of foreign oppression. Jesus’ “yoke—a metaphor for discipleship to him—promises rest from the weariness and burden of religious regulation and human oppression, because it is none other than commitment to him.”[6] That’s all, just follow him, learn from him. The yoke of discipleship brings rest—because Jesus is gentle and humble in heart. Jesus came humbly, in human form, and gently, bringing the good news of the Kingdom of Heaven; bringing healing to a sin-sick world.
Discipleship is, however, still a yoke—a yoke that is easy and a burden that is light. “His discipleship is an easy or serviceable yoke because his teaching equips us most effectively to live out God’s will in the way life was meant to be lived. Furthermore, his discipleship is not the oppressive burden of Pharisaic legalism (23:4) but instead turns the load of life into one that is manageable.”[7] Life on earth is not always easy and pleasant, but Jesus will help us carry the load. Rest and peace. Quit trying.
By trying to live up to the demands of perceived religious expectations, we become weary and frustrated, burdened down by our inability to measure up. Jesus invites us to find rest in him, rest in his yoke of discipleship. This seems counterintuitive, doesn’t it, that we will find rest in him, rest in a discipleship that demands us to commit our very lives to him. But I have found it to be true, that when I finally realized that I couldn’t do it on my own, that I couldn’t measure up, and when I gave up and surrendered my life to Him, the struggle and worry about trying to be a Christian, to read and meditate and do all the right things—the struggle wasn’t there. For me, these became pleasure. I know that we think we find rest and comfort in all sorts of places and pleasures, things that dull the pain, but these leave us empty in the end. “Jesus offers us—true life (John 10:10), one that forms us from the inside out . . . and makes us into the kinds of people who love and serve God under his easy yoke of discipleship.”[8] A Christian author by the name of Douglas Webster wrote a book called The Easy Yoke, and he said,
Apart from the grace of Christ and the saving work of the Cross, it would be impossible to convince people that the easy yoke is doable, let alone easy. But for those who live under the yoke, there is absolutely no other way to live. Who in their right mind would go back to the gods of Self, Money, Lust and Power? Who would return on bended knee to the shrines of pious performance and judgmentalism? Is not love better than hate, purity better than lust, reconciliation better than retaliation? And is not “better” really “easier” when measured in character rather than convenience, rest for the soul rather than selfish pride?[9]
The freedom we have in Christ is so much better, so much easier. It is Life, peace, and rest. As Janice Joplin in the song, “Me and Bobby McGee,” “Freedom’s just another word for nothing left to lose.” When you have nothing left to lose, Quit trying. Jesus said come to me and you will find rest, an easier and lighter burden. Life and peace. Freedom. Amen.
[1] Moo, Douglas. The NIV Application Commentary: Romans, p. 238.
[2] Ibid, 239.
[3] Ibid, 249.
[4] Ibid, 249.
[5] Wilkins, Michael J. The NIV Application Commentary: Matthew. 422.
[6] Ibid, 424.
[7] Ibid, 424.
[8] Ibid, 433.
[9] Qtd. Wilkins 433-4.
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Year A Proper 8
What does it mean to be a disciple? What is a disciple? The basic definition is that a disciple is a learner, a student of a teacher, or even the adherent of a particular outlook in religion or philosophy, or even art and architecture. In the first century, the Jews considered themselves to be disciples of Moses. The Pharisees had their own disciples. Even John the Baptist had disciples. While Jesus was not an officially recognized teacher, he was known as a rabbi and his followers were called disciples. Disciples are more than just students, though; they often embrace and spread the teachings of the teacher. They are imitators of their masters. We are called to be students of Christ and imitators of him, to be doers and not just hearers.
In the New Testament, we know especially of Jesus’ 12 disciples, but in other places all who responded to his message and followed him were his disciples. Discipleship is based on Jesus’ call and involves exclusive loyalty to him. As we heard in today’s gospel, this can result in conflict within the family, and many disciples left their homes, businesses and possessions. Disciples of Jesus are his representatives to the world.
Today’s lessons all have something to say about what it means to be a disciple of Jesus Christ.
In the Old Testament reading from Isaiah, we are called to humility and away from pride and idolatry in order to that the Lord will be exalted. The reading emphasized the theme of God’s exclusive “glory by contrasting it with every ‘high’ thing in creation. That includes trees (v. 13), mountains (v. 14), fortifications (v. 15), and beautiful, tall-masted ships (v. 16). Noting in all creation can compare to the Lord. He is another order of being all together. So how can mere humans . . . hope to stand up to him (vv. 17-18)?”[1]
Humility . . . is not feeling bad about ourselves. It is not self-denigration or trying to get others to say good things about us. True humility is recognizing who we are in God’s eyes. It is putting God first, and then to know ourselves as children of God, to know that he has a purpose for us and that we are valuable in his sight. He has made us for himself, and called us to himself. It is submitting to God and allowing him to care for us as sons and daughters of the Most High. Jesus said, “Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted (Matt 23:12).” When we try “to take his place, we become nothing, but allowing him to be exalted alone, we become the princes and princesses of the universe.”[2] True humility is not striving or self serving, but is a gift like grace. It is self-forgetting. “It is the ability to go about the tasks God has given, secure in his love and his valuing, without wondering if others appreciate us as much as they should. It is the ability to see others being praised and not need to belittle them either silently or aloud, in an effort to make oneself look good by comparison. To paraphrase a popular saying: “Humility is to know there is a God, and to know you are not him."
So a disciple evidences humility. In his first letter, Peter said: “Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble." Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. "(1 Peter 5:5b-7).
In our Psalm selection, we see that disciples sing praise to God, convinced of his love by his faithfulness and his lovingkindness, shown to us in sending Christ as David’s descendent, preserving the throne of David. We are called to rejoice in the Name of God, walking in the light of God’s own presence. God is the glory, the Lord is the King. Disciples praise the Lord for the great things he has done.
In the section from Paul’s letter to the Romans, our Epistle reading, we learn that as disciples, as followers of Christ, we are baptized into Christ’s death, buried with him. Baptism is a sign, a sacrament, representing the fact that we have died to sin and have been raised up to a new life in Christ. We are united spiritually with Christ. We are “in Christ.” There is a death to sin and an experience of new life within the heart. This is a new kind of life. It has a new moral quality and new moral power.” By emphasizing that the Christian is united with Christ in his death and resurrection. Our lives should look different from the rest of the world, different than they used to. This happens at conversion, at baptism, but we spend our whole lives learning what this looks like, to be one with Christ. Just as Christ died to sin once and for all and now lives to God, we also must consider ourselves dead to sin and alive to Christ. We will still sin, because we are human, but the power of the Holy Spirit is available to us to keep us from sinning. Sin no longer rules our lives, no longer dictates our conduct. Our old self has been crucified with Christ.
Our situation is a little like that of the people of Iraq. The old government has been destroyed. The victory is final and will not be reversed. There is a new day. But people still have to choose whether they will live in the old regime or the new. Some people in Iraq choose to live as if Saddam were still in control – because of fear, or lack of faith in the new government, or their identification with their oppressor, or just because it’s hard to change after 30 years. There is a new regime. They have been set free. But they have to choose to live that way. Some of us as Christians continue to live as if sin were still our master even though sin is really powerless and has been defeated forever.[3]
Martin Lloyd-Jones, the London pastor who preached for years on Romans, asked his hearers to picture a scene in the British countryside. There are two fields enclosed by high rock walls. Every person begins life in one of the fields, the one ruled over by Satan and sin. We have no chance of scaling the walls and escaping on our own. But God in his mercy reaches down and picks us up out of Satan’s field and puts us down in the field next door, ruled over by Jesus Christ and righteousness. So we have a whole new relationship to sin, but we can still hear Satan calling across the wall from that old field where we used to live. Out of long habit, we sometimes still obey his voice, even though we don’t have to [cited in Douglas Moo, Romans, NIV Application Commentary, Zondervan, 2000, p. 208]. Our “mortal bodies,” Paul says, are still susceptible to his influence even though we as whole persons have been set free and transferred to a new place. We have to choose not to listen, not to offer our bodies to him but to God, and to move further and further away from the wall. That old master who promised self-fulfillment and freedom from God never did anything for you except produce shame and death. Don’t listen to him. You’re free from him. Listen instead to your new master, Jesus, and do what he says, because his way will produce a life that is holy and eternal.[4]
Disciples are free from sin and death, and are alive in Christ Jesus, united to him, spending our lives learning what it means to be one with him.
In the Gospel according to Matthew, Jesus promises his disciples not peace, but division. We will face tests even at home and even family members will turn on each other. For most of us this is not the case, at least not to the extreme, but converts from Islam especially are cut of from their family. It took a long time for Jesus’ own family to recognize his true identity and mission; disciples of Jesus “can expect division to occur in their famil[ies].”[5] Even further, being a disciple means that Jesus reigns supreme in the lives of believers. Our allegiance to Jesus must come before our allegiance to parents or children. We are called to give priority to Jesus as God above all other relationships. In taking up our crosses, we take up God’s will for our lives, just as the cross was God’s will for the Son’s life. Then we will find true life. We are called to be missionary disciples, going into the world with the authority and message of Jesus. A disciple carries the message.
As missionary disciples, chances are most of us won’t go overseas. We may not go on a mission trip at home or abroad. But we are called to be involved in mission in some fashion. “The specifics of how one engages in mission should be tailored to ones giftedness and abilities, but a disciple of Jesus will see that carrying he message of salvation to the world is a vital part of our discipleship.”[6] We are to be involved with mission work, within our homes and communities, but we can also support the mission work of the church. We can support missionary efforts financially, perhaps through Anglican Relief and Development or some other Mission agency, and we can also support missionaries through our prayers, which is equally important. “When we stay at home and support those who go, we are fellow workers with them. God gives generously to us, his disciples, so we should likewise give generously to mission-disciples involved in full-time mission.”[7]
So, today we have learned that disciples are humble. Disciples praise God for his greatness. Disciples are buried with Christ in baptism, and raised to new life. Disciples are dead to sin and alive to God. Disciples face opposition, even at home, but are to put their allegiance to Christ above all else. Disciples are missionaries, at home and abroad. Disciples are you and me.
[1] Oswalt, The NIV Application Commentary: Isaiah, 96.
[2] Ibid, 103.
[3] http://www.latoniabaptist.org/templates/System/details.asp?id=24346&PID=104711&Style=
[4] http://www.latoniabaptist.org/templates/System/details.asp?id=24346&PID=104711&Style=
[5] Wilkins, Michael J. The NIV Application Commentary: Matthew, 397.
[6] Ibid, 404.
[7] Ibid, 404.
In the New Testament, we know especially of Jesus’ 12 disciples, but in other places all who responded to his message and followed him were his disciples. Discipleship is based on Jesus’ call and involves exclusive loyalty to him. As we heard in today’s gospel, this can result in conflict within the family, and many disciples left their homes, businesses and possessions. Disciples of Jesus are his representatives to the world.
Today’s lessons all have something to say about what it means to be a disciple of Jesus Christ.
In the Old Testament reading from Isaiah, we are called to humility and away from pride and idolatry in order to that the Lord will be exalted. The reading emphasized the theme of God’s exclusive “glory by contrasting it with every ‘high’ thing in creation. That includes trees (v. 13), mountains (v. 14), fortifications (v. 15), and beautiful, tall-masted ships (v. 16). Noting in all creation can compare to the Lord. He is another order of being all together. So how can mere humans . . . hope to stand up to him (vv. 17-18)?”[1]
Humility . . . is not feeling bad about ourselves. It is not self-denigration or trying to get others to say good things about us. True humility is recognizing who we are in God’s eyes. It is putting God first, and then to know ourselves as children of God, to know that he has a purpose for us and that we are valuable in his sight. He has made us for himself, and called us to himself. It is submitting to God and allowing him to care for us as sons and daughters of the Most High. Jesus said, “Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted (Matt 23:12).” When we try “to take his place, we become nothing, but allowing him to be exalted alone, we become the princes and princesses of the universe.”[2] True humility is not striving or self serving, but is a gift like grace. It is self-forgetting. “It is the ability to go about the tasks God has given, secure in his love and his valuing, without wondering if others appreciate us as much as they should. It is the ability to see others being praised and not need to belittle them either silently or aloud, in an effort to make oneself look good by comparison. To paraphrase a popular saying: “Humility is to know there is a God, and to know you are not him."
So a disciple evidences humility. In his first letter, Peter said: “Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble." Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. "(1 Peter 5:5b-7).
In our Psalm selection, we see that disciples sing praise to God, convinced of his love by his faithfulness and his lovingkindness, shown to us in sending Christ as David’s descendent, preserving the throne of David. We are called to rejoice in the Name of God, walking in the light of God’s own presence. God is the glory, the Lord is the King. Disciples praise the Lord for the great things he has done.
In the section from Paul’s letter to the Romans, our Epistle reading, we learn that as disciples, as followers of Christ, we are baptized into Christ’s death, buried with him. Baptism is a sign, a sacrament, representing the fact that we have died to sin and have been raised up to a new life in Christ. We are united spiritually with Christ. We are “in Christ.” There is a death to sin and an experience of new life within the heart. This is a new kind of life. It has a new moral quality and new moral power.” By emphasizing that the Christian is united with Christ in his death and resurrection. Our lives should look different from the rest of the world, different than they used to. This happens at conversion, at baptism, but we spend our whole lives learning what this looks like, to be one with Christ. Just as Christ died to sin once and for all and now lives to God, we also must consider ourselves dead to sin and alive to Christ. We will still sin, because we are human, but the power of the Holy Spirit is available to us to keep us from sinning. Sin no longer rules our lives, no longer dictates our conduct. Our old self has been crucified with Christ.
Our situation is a little like that of the people of Iraq. The old government has been destroyed. The victory is final and will not be reversed. There is a new day. But people still have to choose whether they will live in the old regime or the new. Some people in Iraq choose to live as if Saddam were still in control – because of fear, or lack of faith in the new government, or their identification with their oppressor, or just because it’s hard to change after 30 years. There is a new regime. They have been set free. But they have to choose to live that way. Some of us as Christians continue to live as if sin were still our master even though sin is really powerless and has been defeated forever.[3]
Martin Lloyd-Jones, the London pastor who preached for years on Romans, asked his hearers to picture a scene in the British countryside. There are two fields enclosed by high rock walls. Every person begins life in one of the fields, the one ruled over by Satan and sin. We have no chance of scaling the walls and escaping on our own. But God in his mercy reaches down and picks us up out of Satan’s field and puts us down in the field next door, ruled over by Jesus Christ and righteousness. So we have a whole new relationship to sin, but we can still hear Satan calling across the wall from that old field where we used to live. Out of long habit, we sometimes still obey his voice, even though we don’t have to [cited in Douglas Moo, Romans, NIV Application Commentary, Zondervan, 2000, p. 208]. Our “mortal bodies,” Paul says, are still susceptible to his influence even though we as whole persons have been set free and transferred to a new place. We have to choose not to listen, not to offer our bodies to him but to God, and to move further and further away from the wall. That old master who promised self-fulfillment and freedom from God never did anything for you except produce shame and death. Don’t listen to him. You’re free from him. Listen instead to your new master, Jesus, and do what he says, because his way will produce a life that is holy and eternal.[4]
Disciples are free from sin and death, and are alive in Christ Jesus, united to him, spending our lives learning what it means to be one with him.
In the Gospel according to Matthew, Jesus promises his disciples not peace, but division. We will face tests even at home and even family members will turn on each other. For most of us this is not the case, at least not to the extreme, but converts from Islam especially are cut of from their family. It took a long time for Jesus’ own family to recognize his true identity and mission; disciples of Jesus “can expect division to occur in their famil[ies].”[5] Even further, being a disciple means that Jesus reigns supreme in the lives of believers. Our allegiance to Jesus must come before our allegiance to parents or children. We are called to give priority to Jesus as God above all other relationships. In taking up our crosses, we take up God’s will for our lives, just as the cross was God’s will for the Son’s life. Then we will find true life. We are called to be missionary disciples, going into the world with the authority and message of Jesus. A disciple carries the message.
As missionary disciples, chances are most of us won’t go overseas. We may not go on a mission trip at home or abroad. But we are called to be involved in mission in some fashion. “The specifics of how one engages in mission should be tailored to ones giftedness and abilities, but a disciple of Jesus will see that carrying he message of salvation to the world is a vital part of our discipleship.”[6] We are to be involved with mission work, within our homes and communities, but we can also support the mission work of the church. We can support missionary efforts financially, perhaps through Anglican Relief and Development or some other Mission agency, and we can also support missionaries through our prayers, which is equally important. “When we stay at home and support those who go, we are fellow workers with them. God gives generously to us, his disciples, so we should likewise give generously to mission-disciples involved in full-time mission.”[7]
So, today we have learned that disciples are humble. Disciples praise God for his greatness. Disciples are buried with Christ in baptism, and raised to new life. Disciples are dead to sin and alive to God. Disciples face opposition, even at home, but are to put their allegiance to Christ above all else. Disciples are missionaries, at home and abroad. Disciples are you and me.
[1] Oswalt, The NIV Application Commentary: Isaiah, 96.
[2] Ibid, 103.
[3] http://www.latoniabaptist.org/templates/System/details.asp?id=24346&PID=104711&Style=
[4] http://www.latoniabaptist.org/templates/System/details.asp?id=24346&PID=104711&Style=
[5] Wilkins, Michael J. The NIV Application Commentary: Matthew, 397.
[6] Ibid, 404.
[7] Ibid, 404.
Year A Proper 7
In the past several weeks, our epistle lessons have been working through the Pauls letter to the Romans. The Grace of God towards us is one of the significant themes, at least in the past few weeks and chapters. God’s grace, his unmerited favor towards us, is shown by the fact that while we were still sinners, Jesus Christ died for us in order that we might be reconciled to God. Before Christ, we were dead in our sins, suffering from a terminal disease brought on by the sin of Adam, but because of what Christ has done for us we are raised to new life in him. Grace, free grace, reconciled us to God.
There are numerous stories, numerous explanations of grace. Charles Spurgeon, an English preacher, author, and editor in the 1800’s has an interesting note on grace. He said:
Someone asked me once, “Why do you. say free grace? Of course, if it is grace, it’s free.” “Oh, well!” I replied, “I do so to make assurance doubly sure.” We will always call it, not only grace, but free grace, to make it clear that God gives his grace freely to sinners,—the undeserving and ungodly. He gives it without any condition. If, in one place, he says that he requires repentance, in another place he promises it; if he demands faith at one moment, he bestows it at another. So grace is always God’s free gift, and that suits a man who has not a penny in his pocket.
Spurgeon continues: I have walked—as I dare—say some of you have—by the goldsmiths’ and jewellers’ shops in the Palais Royal at Paris, and seen the vast amount of wealth that is exhibited there; and many of you have gone along the great streets of our city, and seen perfect mines of wealth displayed, and you have said to yourself,” Ah! I cannot purchase any of these things, because there is a little ticket hanging down below with certain pounds marked on it, and I cannot afford to buy them. It is all I can do to get bread and cheese for those who are at home, so I must leave these luxuries to others.” But if I should ever pass by a goldsmith’s shop, and see a ticket bearing the words, “Free gift!” I should be willing to take a few things at that price. I am glad that you smile at that expression, because those are my Master’s terms. He has treasures worth more than the most glorious jeweller’s shop ever contained, and they are all free gifts to all who trust him. I dare not laugh at you, but I shall have to blame and condemn you, if eternal life be God’s free gift, and yet you will not say, “I will take it, and have it for ever.” You would like to take jewellery for nothing, but you will not accept everlasting life mad pardon for nothing by simply trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ[1].
Our New Testament reading today begins in the middle of a thought, and is of course referring to Adam. Adam was an antitype, a forerunner in a sense, of Christ, alike but different. There are several parallels between Adam and Christ, as we shall see; the difference between the two is that in Christ God’s grace is made known to us. The words “grace” and “gift” occur something like seven times in the first three verses. While the result of Adam’s sin was death, judgment and condemnation, the result of Christ is justification and the overwhelming grace of God. It is truly amazing that ‘the accumulated sins and guilt of all the ages should be answered by God’s free gift, this miracle of miracles, utterly beyond human comprehension.”[2] Christ not only “cancels the effects of Adam’s sin, he enables those who have received the ‘abundant provision of grace’ and the ‘gift of righteousness’ not just to experience life but to ‘reign in life.’”[3]
In the last couple of verses, we see the parallels between Adam and Christ. First
of all, Adam committed a trespass by his disobedience, resulting in death, and Christ, by his obedience, committed righteousness. Adam turned away from God, and Christ turned towards God. Finally, Adam’s disobedience led to condemnation, and Christ’s righteous obedience resulted in justification and life. Adam’s sin made people sinners; Christ enabled our goodness and obedience. We are made righteous in God’s eyes, because of Christ’s free gift of sacrifice.
All that Paul says is designed to impress the wondrous nature of grace and the reality of Christ’s saving work. Grace is more powerful than sin. It is God’s remedy for sin, the free gift of his love. Sin is a tyrant, but grace sets men free. Sin separates from God, but grace reconciles men to God. Salvation by grace, therefore, is God’s response to the need of sinful men. The creative wisdom, compassionate mercy, and eternal purpose of God, all brought to focus in the sacrifice of Christ on the cross, have achieved salvation from sin.[4]
This is the great good news of the gospel, the good news of Jesus, and as a result we should be like the prophet Jeremiah in our Old Testament lesson, compelled to shout the good news, burning with a fire in our bones. John Wesley once said, “Catch on fire with enthusiasm and people will come for miles to watch you burn.” That’s what happened to Jeremiah, and that’s what happened to the disciples.
In our gospel, Jesus warns of persecution and trials on account of Jesus, as a testimony to governors and kings, and the Gentiles. But Jesus also promises that in trials he will be with his disciples, giving them the words to say, the Spirit of the Father speaking through them. Opposition will come, from outside powers but also from within the family. . “Moses had warned the people that even if one’s own brother or sister or wife or closest friend tries to beguile a person into idolatry, this person was to be stoned.”[5] While Jesus’ disciples have the honor and privilege of knowing Christ and carrying his message, they will also be the subjects of hatred and persecution. But Jesus also promises that all those who endure, those who are faithful, will be saved. The Spirit will provide the resources to withstand difficulties.
Jesus also says that the student, the disciple, is like his teacher, the servant like his master. The trials he experiences will be theirs as well. But he repeatedly tells his followers not to be afraid, and gives three reasons for their confidence. 1. The truth about Jesus and his ministry will be revealed, and the religious leadership will be exposed as false. 2. Their eternal destiny is secure. Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. These words are a call to courage in the face of persecution and opposition. 3.,His disciples should not be afraid because God is in charge, watching over them in every single detail, even to the number of the hairs on their head. God is in control—do not be afraid.
The ultimate test of a disciple’s commitment to Jesus comes when opposition arises. When the disciple is able to stand firm and acknowledge Christ, he will please the Father, but denial of Christ as Lord and God results in rejection by the Father.
When we, today, catch on fire for the Lord, we will face opposition and even persecution. That seems practically irrelevant for us here today, but persecution happens every day. Wilkins writes of:
Oswaldo (Wally) Magdangal, a Filipino pastor whose house church in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, grew too noticeable for the authorities, was arrested for blaspheming Islam. Shari’ah law requires beheading for ‘apostates’—those who renounce Islam. Religious police tortured every part of Magdangal’s body, trying to force him to renounce his faith, and he was beaten throughout 210 minutes of mocking interrogation. During that time no Friday passed without at least one execution in the public square, and Pastor Wally was sentenced to be executed on Friday, December 25th, 1992. But through the combined efforts of Western human rights organizations and his close friends in the Saudi government, God miraculously intervened and Pastor Wally was deported; he is now president of Christians in Crisis, an advocacy based group based in Sacramento, California. His goal is to wake up the church to the real persecution that Christians around the world experience every day.[6]
I subscribe to the Voice of the Martyrs and receive an email every week as a call to pray for dozens of similar situations, and there are dozens of websites devoted to the persecuted church.
But persecution doesn’t only happen in the on the opposite side of the globe. Our country is becoming increasingly secular, and “Christians are discouraged from denouncing practices condemned in Scripture. . . In the name of ‘freedom of religion’ many of the normal practices of faith once enjoyed—such as public prayers or even displays of a manger scene at Christmas, have been stripped away. The agenda of much public policy seems more like freedom from religion, and the consequences for those who decry this, secularist public policy will grow increasingly harsh.”[7]
And yet, we must speak boldly in order to promote the Gospel of Christ. I challenge you to be aware of these injustices, to fight for religious freedoms, to pray for the persecuted church at home and abroad. Catch on fire, burn, get involved, and pray. Pastor Wally’s Christians in Crisis website says that “Prayer is the least, yet the most we can do for them.”
This prayer is adapted from A Prayer Book for Sailors and Soldiers (1941) Let’s pray together:
O blessed Lord, who yourself underwent the pain and suffering of the Cross; Uphold, we beseech you, with your promised gift of strength all those of our brothers and sisters who are suffering for their faith in you. Grant that in the midst of all persecutions they may hold fast by this faith, and that from their stedfastness your Church may grow in grace and we ourselves in perseverance, to the honour of your Name, who with the Father and the Holy Spirit are one God, world without end. Amen.
[1] http://preceptaustin.org/romans_516-17.htm
[2] Cranfield, The Epistle to the Romans, 286; quoted in Moo, Douglas The NIV Application Commentary: Romans, 183.
[3] Moo, Douglas. 184.
[4] Allen, Clifton J. the Gospel According to Paul: A Study of the Letter to the Romans, p. 66.
[5] Wilkins, Michael J. The NIV Application Commentary: Matthew, 393.
[6] Wilkins 407
[7] Ibid, 407.
There are numerous stories, numerous explanations of grace. Charles Spurgeon, an English preacher, author, and editor in the 1800’s has an interesting note on grace. He said:
Someone asked me once, “Why do you. say free grace? Of course, if it is grace, it’s free.” “Oh, well!” I replied, “I do so to make assurance doubly sure.” We will always call it, not only grace, but free grace, to make it clear that God gives his grace freely to sinners,—the undeserving and ungodly. He gives it without any condition. If, in one place, he says that he requires repentance, in another place he promises it; if he demands faith at one moment, he bestows it at another. So grace is always God’s free gift, and that suits a man who has not a penny in his pocket.
Spurgeon continues: I have walked—as I dare—say some of you have—by the goldsmiths’ and jewellers’ shops in the Palais Royal at Paris, and seen the vast amount of wealth that is exhibited there; and many of you have gone along the great streets of our city, and seen perfect mines of wealth displayed, and you have said to yourself,” Ah! I cannot purchase any of these things, because there is a little ticket hanging down below with certain pounds marked on it, and I cannot afford to buy them. It is all I can do to get bread and cheese for those who are at home, so I must leave these luxuries to others.” But if I should ever pass by a goldsmith’s shop, and see a ticket bearing the words, “Free gift!” I should be willing to take a few things at that price. I am glad that you smile at that expression, because those are my Master’s terms. He has treasures worth more than the most glorious jeweller’s shop ever contained, and they are all free gifts to all who trust him. I dare not laugh at you, but I shall have to blame and condemn you, if eternal life be God’s free gift, and yet you will not say, “I will take it, and have it for ever.” You would like to take jewellery for nothing, but you will not accept everlasting life mad pardon for nothing by simply trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ[1].
Our New Testament reading today begins in the middle of a thought, and is of course referring to Adam. Adam was an antitype, a forerunner in a sense, of Christ, alike but different. There are several parallels between Adam and Christ, as we shall see; the difference between the two is that in Christ God’s grace is made known to us. The words “grace” and “gift” occur something like seven times in the first three verses. While the result of Adam’s sin was death, judgment and condemnation, the result of Christ is justification and the overwhelming grace of God. It is truly amazing that ‘the accumulated sins and guilt of all the ages should be answered by God’s free gift, this miracle of miracles, utterly beyond human comprehension.”[2] Christ not only “cancels the effects of Adam’s sin, he enables those who have received the ‘abundant provision of grace’ and the ‘gift of righteousness’ not just to experience life but to ‘reign in life.’”[3]
In the last couple of verses, we see the parallels between Adam and Christ. First
of all, Adam committed a trespass by his disobedience, resulting in death, and Christ, by his obedience, committed righteousness. Adam turned away from God, and Christ turned towards God. Finally, Adam’s disobedience led to condemnation, and Christ’s righteous obedience resulted in justification and life. Adam’s sin made people sinners; Christ enabled our goodness and obedience. We are made righteous in God’s eyes, because of Christ’s free gift of sacrifice.
All that Paul says is designed to impress the wondrous nature of grace and the reality of Christ’s saving work. Grace is more powerful than sin. It is God’s remedy for sin, the free gift of his love. Sin is a tyrant, but grace sets men free. Sin separates from God, but grace reconciles men to God. Salvation by grace, therefore, is God’s response to the need of sinful men. The creative wisdom, compassionate mercy, and eternal purpose of God, all brought to focus in the sacrifice of Christ on the cross, have achieved salvation from sin.[4]
This is the great good news of the gospel, the good news of Jesus, and as a result we should be like the prophet Jeremiah in our Old Testament lesson, compelled to shout the good news, burning with a fire in our bones. John Wesley once said, “Catch on fire with enthusiasm and people will come for miles to watch you burn.” That’s what happened to Jeremiah, and that’s what happened to the disciples.
In our gospel, Jesus warns of persecution and trials on account of Jesus, as a testimony to governors and kings, and the Gentiles. But Jesus also promises that in trials he will be with his disciples, giving them the words to say, the Spirit of the Father speaking through them. Opposition will come, from outside powers but also from within the family. . “Moses had warned the people that even if one’s own brother or sister or wife or closest friend tries to beguile a person into idolatry, this person was to be stoned.”[5] While Jesus’ disciples have the honor and privilege of knowing Christ and carrying his message, they will also be the subjects of hatred and persecution. But Jesus also promises that all those who endure, those who are faithful, will be saved. The Spirit will provide the resources to withstand difficulties.
Jesus also says that the student, the disciple, is like his teacher, the servant like his master. The trials he experiences will be theirs as well. But he repeatedly tells his followers not to be afraid, and gives three reasons for their confidence. 1. The truth about Jesus and his ministry will be revealed, and the religious leadership will be exposed as false. 2. Their eternal destiny is secure. Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. These words are a call to courage in the face of persecution and opposition. 3.,His disciples should not be afraid because God is in charge, watching over them in every single detail, even to the number of the hairs on their head. God is in control—do not be afraid.
The ultimate test of a disciple’s commitment to Jesus comes when opposition arises. When the disciple is able to stand firm and acknowledge Christ, he will please the Father, but denial of Christ as Lord and God results in rejection by the Father.
When we, today, catch on fire for the Lord, we will face opposition and even persecution. That seems practically irrelevant for us here today, but persecution happens every day. Wilkins writes of:
Oswaldo (Wally) Magdangal, a Filipino pastor whose house church in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, grew too noticeable for the authorities, was arrested for blaspheming Islam. Shari’ah law requires beheading for ‘apostates’—those who renounce Islam. Religious police tortured every part of Magdangal’s body, trying to force him to renounce his faith, and he was beaten throughout 210 minutes of mocking interrogation. During that time no Friday passed without at least one execution in the public square, and Pastor Wally was sentenced to be executed on Friday, December 25th, 1992. But through the combined efforts of Western human rights organizations and his close friends in the Saudi government, God miraculously intervened and Pastor Wally was deported; he is now president of Christians in Crisis, an advocacy based group based in Sacramento, California. His goal is to wake up the church to the real persecution that Christians around the world experience every day.[6]
I subscribe to the Voice of the Martyrs and receive an email every week as a call to pray for dozens of similar situations, and there are dozens of websites devoted to the persecuted church.
But persecution doesn’t only happen in the on the opposite side of the globe. Our country is becoming increasingly secular, and “Christians are discouraged from denouncing practices condemned in Scripture. . . In the name of ‘freedom of religion’ many of the normal practices of faith once enjoyed—such as public prayers or even displays of a manger scene at Christmas, have been stripped away. The agenda of much public policy seems more like freedom from religion, and the consequences for those who decry this, secularist public policy will grow increasingly harsh.”[7]
And yet, we must speak boldly in order to promote the Gospel of Christ. I challenge you to be aware of these injustices, to fight for religious freedoms, to pray for the persecuted church at home and abroad. Catch on fire, burn, get involved, and pray. Pastor Wally’s Christians in Crisis website says that “Prayer is the least, yet the most we can do for them.”
This prayer is adapted from A Prayer Book for Sailors and Soldiers (1941) Let’s pray together:
O blessed Lord, who yourself underwent the pain and suffering of the Cross; Uphold, we beseech you, with your promised gift of strength all those of our brothers and sisters who are suffering for their faith in you. Grant that in the midst of all persecutions they may hold fast by this faith, and that from their stedfastness your Church may grow in grace and we ourselves in perseverance, to the honour of your Name, who with the Father and the Holy Spirit are one God, world without end. Amen.
[1] http://preceptaustin.org/romans_516-17.htm
[2] Cranfield, The Epistle to the Romans, 286; quoted in Moo, Douglas The NIV Application Commentary: Romans, 183.
[3] Moo, Douglas. 184.
[4] Allen, Clifton J. the Gospel According to Paul: A Study of the Letter to the Romans, p. 66.
[5] Wilkins, Michael J. The NIV Application Commentary: Matthew, 393.
[6] Wilkins 407
[7] Ibid, 407.
Year A Proper 6 Father's Day
[10 years ago] Television News Anchor Tom Brokaw wrote a best-selling, gripping tribute to what he calls The Greatest Generation. It is a collection of stories about the generation that grew up in the Great Depression which was shaken out of everyday life to help save the world by fighting the Second World War on two fronts, and which then immediately undertook the daunting task of rebuilding the economies and political institutions of their own homeland and those of their former enemies.
One of the most important themes that Brokaw wanted to get across is that these were common people who all joined together to face these challenges. It wasn’t just an elite group who made up this greatest generation. They were ordinary men and women who answered the call to serve their country in whatever capacity they were gifted and equipped. Some were on the front lines fighting hand to hand with the enemy, while others were on the home front nursing the wounded back to health. Some heroes humbly received Medals of Honor, while other heroes served nobly in the obscurity of a factory. The Allied victory in World War II and the rebuilding of the war-ravaged world could not have been accomplished except for the full mobilization of an entire generation.
When we read the story of Jesus’ mission of the Twelve, we can also think of them as the greatest generation of the church. They were called out of the hardship of occupation by the Roman Empire, but they went on to fight a battle, not with swords and chariots, but with the good news of the arrival of the kingdom of heaven and a message of transformation. They went on the lay the foundation of the church, and most suffered martyrdom for the name of the Lord Jesus.[1]
On Father’s Day it’s important to remember that the Bible is full of ordinary men-- and women--most of them unlikely and even reluctant candidates. But as a result of God’s call they accomplished extraordinary things. In our Old Testament reading, Moses is the mediator between the people and God, and the one to whom God is speaking. Moses, full of excuses and reluctance, had to be prodded and pushed into taking up the task of delivering the Israelites. A man with a speech defect, a man with no confidence, became one of the greatest leaders and prophets in the Bible.
In Romans Paul makes it clear that those who are justified by grace are not likely candidates either. “The very concept of grace, in fact, makes it plain that anyone who is claimed by God, has no innate claim on God in any way. ‘While we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. . . . God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. . . .For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life.”[2] While we were weak, while we were sinners, while we were enemies—God’s grace saved our lives for his own sake. Unlikely candidates indeed.
And then there are the twelve disciples named in our gospel reading. Again, in who’s opinion other than God’s would this band of ordinary men-- businessmen, husbands and fathers--be the ones chosen to change the world. When chosen by God, by Jesus, these men were equipped and transformed, but they aren’t all that different than you and me. Take a look and see if there are any you can identify with any of these 12 men:
· Peter—a businessman who was regularly in a leadership position.
· Andrew, his brother—a person highly sensitive to God’s leading, though overshadowed by his brother Peter.
· James the son of Zebedee—who left a successful family business to follow Jesus but was the first apostle martyred.
· John, his brother—who had a fiery temper but also a profound love for God.
· Philip—never quite one of the inner circle, yet took a leadership role among the lesser-known apostles.
· Bartholomew—known for his outspoken honesty (he is probably the one called Nathaniel in John 1:43-51)
· Thomas—a skeptical rationalist who eventually had one of the most profound theological understandings of Jesus’ identity as the God-man.
· Matthew the tax collector—formerly a traitor to his own people to support himself and his family but became a missionary to them by writing his Gospel.
· James the son of Alphaeus—either younger, shorter, or less well known than the other James [we refer to him as James the Less], faithful throughout his life but never given much recognition for it.
· Thaddaeus (or Lebbaeus)—also called Judas son of James, often confused with Judas Iscariot and didn’t develop much of his own reputation.
· Simon the Zealot—before accepting Jesus as Messiah, a guerrilla fighter who wanted to bring in God’s kingdom by force.
· Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him—love of money and power may have drawn him to abandon and betray even his closest friends. [3]
Ordinary men, not much different than us. Real men, with real strengths and weaknesses, with positive character attributes, and real foibles, failings and faults. And see how God transformed them. Remember Peter, always sticking his foot in his mouth, an outspoken leader but didn’t quite understand the program. Peter, who betrayed the Lord. And this same Peter preached on the day of Pentecost and 3000 people were baptized!! One of the most remarkable things in the bible is the transformation of the disciples presented in the gospels—to the power houses many became in the book of Acts—truly something substantial occurred, transforming their lives.
This same transforming power is available to us, every day of our lives. “Christians are everyday people who have been called to advance the kingdom of God in an alien and hostile world. We are the church, the body of Jesus Christ, some of whose service results in external and public honor, while others carry out their service in the humility of obscurity. But each individual is vitally necessary to the functioning of the church in the world.”[4]
We are all called to be disciples, and even to be missionaries to our families, friends, and neighbors, even these things are sometimes hard to do. But when God transforms our minds and our hearts, our lives will have an impact on those around us. God uses ordinary people doing ordinary things in an extraordinary way—a way that reflects God’s light into the world around us. A way that shines with Christ’s own light. A way that looks a little bit different than the way the world might do things.
God can and will transform us from the inside out, and he can and will transform relationships between fathers and children, husbands and wives, children and parents. There is no higher calling than to live out our lives in a Christian manner, and in our own families. On this Father’s Day, we honor especially the role of fatherhood, ordinary men with an extraordinary responsibility. In President Bush’s Father’s Day proclamation he said,
“Fathers play a unique and important role in the lives of their children. As mentor, protector, and provider, a father fundamentally influences the shape and direction of his child's character by giving love, care, discipline, and guidance. As we observe Father's Day, our nation honors fatherhood and urges fathers to commit themselves selflessly to the success and well-being of their children. And we reaffirm the importance of fathers in the lives of their children. Raising a child requires significant time, effort, and sacrifice; and it is one of the most hopeful and fulfilling experiences a man can ever know. A father can derive great joy from seeing his child grow from infancy to adulthood. As a child matures into independence and self reliance, the value of a parent's hard work, love, and commitment comes to fruition. Responsible fatherhood is important to a healthy and civil society. Numerous studies confirm that children whose fathers are present and involved in their lives are more likely to develop into prosperous and healthy adults. Children learn by example; and they need their father's presence as examples of virtue in their daily lives. A child's sense of security can be greatly enhanced by seeing his parents in a loving and faithful marriage." [5]
A biblical scholar named D.A. Carson wrote a book about his own father, a pastor. Here’s what a reviewer had to say:
Tom Carson was a pastor in the province of Quebec in Canada from the 1930s to the 1970s. He spoke at no major conferences, wrote no seminal work, and never pastored even a mid-size church by American standards. Yet it is clear from his son's profile that he was an exceptional man. He was a faithful husband, a devoted if quiet father, a dogged servant of the church, and a passionate witness for Christ. I never met him, but I know him. He is the man who can be found in countless little towns and hamlets across the country--no, across the world--who labors faithfully for the Lord in an unspectacular but steady fashion. Unlike many of us self-promoters, he's not in ministry to make a name for himself, but to glorify his God. [6]
On Father’s Day, may all fathers—and all of us--seek nothing more, and nothing less, than to glorify our God. Let us pray for all the fathers represented here today:
God our Father, in your infinite wisdom and love you made all things, and caused us to be in families. Bless these men present today, that they may be strengthened as Christian fathers, following your example of Fatherhood. For some of these men, being a father has come easily and naturally, and we praise you and thank you for that. But for others, it’s hard and they are wounded. Lord, hear our confession of sin, of failure, of ignorance. Help us all to forgive our own fathers for their faults and failings. For these men here today, I pray that the example of their faith and love will shine forth in their families. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, help them to love the mother of their children, and to be shining examples of a life lived to glorify you, our God and Father, through Christ our Lord, Amen.
[1] Wilkins, Michael J. The NIV Application Commentary: Matthew, p. 402.
[2] http://www.predigten.uni-goettingen.de/predigt.php?id=1023&kennung=20080615en
[3] Wilkins, 406.
[4] Ibid., 403.
[5] http://www.fathersdaycelebration.com/fathers-day-prayer.html
[6] http://consumedblog.blogspot.com/2008/03/when-ordinary-is-extraordinary.html
One of the most important themes that Brokaw wanted to get across is that these were common people who all joined together to face these challenges. It wasn’t just an elite group who made up this greatest generation. They were ordinary men and women who answered the call to serve their country in whatever capacity they were gifted and equipped. Some were on the front lines fighting hand to hand with the enemy, while others were on the home front nursing the wounded back to health. Some heroes humbly received Medals of Honor, while other heroes served nobly in the obscurity of a factory. The Allied victory in World War II and the rebuilding of the war-ravaged world could not have been accomplished except for the full mobilization of an entire generation.
When we read the story of Jesus’ mission of the Twelve, we can also think of them as the greatest generation of the church. They were called out of the hardship of occupation by the Roman Empire, but they went on to fight a battle, not with swords and chariots, but with the good news of the arrival of the kingdom of heaven and a message of transformation. They went on the lay the foundation of the church, and most suffered martyrdom for the name of the Lord Jesus.[1]
On Father’s Day it’s important to remember that the Bible is full of ordinary men-- and women--most of them unlikely and even reluctant candidates. But as a result of God’s call they accomplished extraordinary things. In our Old Testament reading, Moses is the mediator between the people and God, and the one to whom God is speaking. Moses, full of excuses and reluctance, had to be prodded and pushed into taking up the task of delivering the Israelites. A man with a speech defect, a man with no confidence, became one of the greatest leaders and prophets in the Bible.
In Romans Paul makes it clear that those who are justified by grace are not likely candidates either. “The very concept of grace, in fact, makes it plain that anyone who is claimed by God, has no innate claim on God in any way. ‘While we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. . . . God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. . . .For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life.”[2] While we were weak, while we were sinners, while we were enemies—God’s grace saved our lives for his own sake. Unlikely candidates indeed.
And then there are the twelve disciples named in our gospel reading. Again, in who’s opinion other than God’s would this band of ordinary men-- businessmen, husbands and fathers--be the ones chosen to change the world. When chosen by God, by Jesus, these men were equipped and transformed, but they aren’t all that different than you and me. Take a look and see if there are any you can identify with any of these 12 men:
· Peter—a businessman who was regularly in a leadership position.
· Andrew, his brother—a person highly sensitive to God’s leading, though overshadowed by his brother Peter.
· James the son of Zebedee—who left a successful family business to follow Jesus but was the first apostle martyred.
· John, his brother—who had a fiery temper but also a profound love for God.
· Philip—never quite one of the inner circle, yet took a leadership role among the lesser-known apostles.
· Bartholomew—known for his outspoken honesty (he is probably the one called Nathaniel in John 1:43-51)
· Thomas—a skeptical rationalist who eventually had one of the most profound theological understandings of Jesus’ identity as the God-man.
· Matthew the tax collector—formerly a traitor to his own people to support himself and his family but became a missionary to them by writing his Gospel.
· James the son of Alphaeus—either younger, shorter, or less well known than the other James [we refer to him as James the Less], faithful throughout his life but never given much recognition for it.
· Thaddaeus (or Lebbaeus)—also called Judas son of James, often confused with Judas Iscariot and didn’t develop much of his own reputation.
· Simon the Zealot—before accepting Jesus as Messiah, a guerrilla fighter who wanted to bring in God’s kingdom by force.
· Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him—love of money and power may have drawn him to abandon and betray even his closest friends. [3]
Ordinary men, not much different than us. Real men, with real strengths and weaknesses, with positive character attributes, and real foibles, failings and faults. And see how God transformed them. Remember Peter, always sticking his foot in his mouth, an outspoken leader but didn’t quite understand the program. Peter, who betrayed the Lord. And this same Peter preached on the day of Pentecost and 3000 people were baptized!! One of the most remarkable things in the bible is the transformation of the disciples presented in the gospels—to the power houses many became in the book of Acts—truly something substantial occurred, transforming their lives.
This same transforming power is available to us, every day of our lives. “Christians are everyday people who have been called to advance the kingdom of God in an alien and hostile world. We are the church, the body of Jesus Christ, some of whose service results in external and public honor, while others carry out their service in the humility of obscurity. But each individual is vitally necessary to the functioning of the church in the world.”[4]
We are all called to be disciples, and even to be missionaries to our families, friends, and neighbors, even these things are sometimes hard to do. But when God transforms our minds and our hearts, our lives will have an impact on those around us. God uses ordinary people doing ordinary things in an extraordinary way—a way that reflects God’s light into the world around us. A way that shines with Christ’s own light. A way that looks a little bit different than the way the world might do things.
God can and will transform us from the inside out, and he can and will transform relationships between fathers and children, husbands and wives, children and parents. There is no higher calling than to live out our lives in a Christian manner, and in our own families. On this Father’s Day, we honor especially the role of fatherhood, ordinary men with an extraordinary responsibility. In President Bush’s Father’s Day proclamation he said,
“Fathers play a unique and important role in the lives of their children. As mentor, protector, and provider, a father fundamentally influences the shape and direction of his child's character by giving love, care, discipline, and guidance. As we observe Father's Day, our nation honors fatherhood and urges fathers to commit themselves selflessly to the success and well-being of their children. And we reaffirm the importance of fathers in the lives of their children. Raising a child requires significant time, effort, and sacrifice; and it is one of the most hopeful and fulfilling experiences a man can ever know. A father can derive great joy from seeing his child grow from infancy to adulthood. As a child matures into independence and self reliance, the value of a parent's hard work, love, and commitment comes to fruition. Responsible fatherhood is important to a healthy and civil society. Numerous studies confirm that children whose fathers are present and involved in their lives are more likely to develop into prosperous and healthy adults. Children learn by example; and they need their father's presence as examples of virtue in their daily lives. A child's sense of security can be greatly enhanced by seeing his parents in a loving and faithful marriage." [5]
A biblical scholar named D.A. Carson wrote a book about his own father, a pastor. Here’s what a reviewer had to say:
Tom Carson was a pastor in the province of Quebec in Canada from the 1930s to the 1970s. He spoke at no major conferences, wrote no seminal work, and never pastored even a mid-size church by American standards. Yet it is clear from his son's profile that he was an exceptional man. He was a faithful husband, a devoted if quiet father, a dogged servant of the church, and a passionate witness for Christ. I never met him, but I know him. He is the man who can be found in countless little towns and hamlets across the country--no, across the world--who labors faithfully for the Lord in an unspectacular but steady fashion. Unlike many of us self-promoters, he's not in ministry to make a name for himself, but to glorify his God. [6]
On Father’s Day, may all fathers—and all of us--seek nothing more, and nothing less, than to glorify our God. Let us pray for all the fathers represented here today:
God our Father, in your infinite wisdom and love you made all things, and caused us to be in families. Bless these men present today, that they may be strengthened as Christian fathers, following your example of Fatherhood. For some of these men, being a father has come easily and naturally, and we praise you and thank you for that. But for others, it’s hard and they are wounded. Lord, hear our confession of sin, of failure, of ignorance. Help us all to forgive our own fathers for their faults and failings. For these men here today, I pray that the example of their faith and love will shine forth in their families. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, help them to love the mother of their children, and to be shining examples of a life lived to glorify you, our God and Father, through Christ our Lord, Amen.
[1] Wilkins, Michael J. The NIV Application Commentary: Matthew, p. 402.
[2] http://www.predigten.uni-goettingen.de/predigt.php?id=1023&kennung=20080615en
[3] Wilkins, 406.
[4] Ibid., 403.
[5] http://www.fathersdaycelebration.com/fathers-day-prayer.html
[6] http://consumedblog.blogspot.com/2008/03/when-ordinary-is-extraordinary.html
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