Risky Business
Pentecost 17 (Narrative Lectionary 4)
September 15, 2013
Genesis 21.1-3; 22.1-14; John 1.29
I wonder how Jay and Stephanie, who had Lincoln baptized a few minutes ago, think about this story. Would they be willing to offer him up to God? Today’s text from Genesis is one of the hardest in the Bible to understand. It’s right up there with the story of Job and Jesus’ crucifixion. There have been two questions that have run through my mind all week: “What kind of a God would ask a man to sacrifice his only, beloved son?” “What kind a person would follow such a God?” The fact that this story and the others mentioned “turn out all right in the end” lulls us into a false sense of security. One way to slow ourselves down so we can grapple with the story is an old one: to ask questions. In the ancient Jewish tradition, this is called midrash, which also refers to a body of commentary that not only poses questions of the text but proposes answers as well.
Before we do, it would be helpful to recap some of the story since last week’s creation narrative. Humans have indeed become fruitful and multiplied, but they have also tried to play God instead of play human. Adam and Eve have disobeyed God by eating the forbidden fruit. The first homicide, indeed fratricide, has occurred as Cain kills Abel. In fact, it became so bad that God does a reboot of the system with an earth-wide flood. Apparently this doesn’t work so well because soon after people tried to build a tower to heaven to live with God. As a result, God decides to form a special people through whom all families of the earth would be blessed. Curiously, he chooses, of all people, an elderly couple long past the child-bearing stage, Abraham and Sarah.
Sarah is 90 and Abraham 100 when Isaac is born, 10 long years after God’s initial call and promise to give them descendants. (Imagine, Jay and Stephanie, having a baby at that age.) Now, after seeing some concrete results of the promise, Abraham is told to sacrifice his son. What kind of God would ask such a thing, and what kind of person would follow that kind of God? There are many more questions. For example, why doesn’t Abraham stand up to God as he has before? Where is Sarah while all of this is going on and what would the story look like from her perspective? What about Isaac? Can you imagine the conversation when he and Abraham return from Mt. Moriah? How would Isaac tell the story?
I think the key to teasing out some meaning for us is to think of this story as a parable. That doesn’t mean to say that it isn’t true but to think of it as not a problem to be solved but as a story to open us up to God. It is helpful to remember that the Bible in general, and this story in particular, is all about relationships, and relationships as we know are risky business. These are flesh and blood people who are trying to be in a faithful relationship with God and each other, a relationship that deepens and broadens as time goes on, and one that is not always perfect. To have a relationship with someone, including God, is to risk ourselves, to open ourselves up. It is helpful to remember that we aren’t the only ones taking risks; God has taken risks, too. By making humankind in his image, to exercise freedom over our lives, God risks having us turn our backs on him and walking away.
Relationships develop over time and they don’t always go the way we want them to, but we trust anyways, don’t we? As I think about this, and what it might have been like from Isaac’s point of view, I remember when our daughter Angela was very young. She fell, hitting her head on a sharp corner of the coffee table and sliced her head open, just above her eyebrow. I took her the doctor, who told me to wrap her in a sheet and lay her on the examination table, so she couldn’t thrash around. Then he used what must have looked like a huge needle to anesthetize her wound and proceeded to sew up her head with an even larger needle. All the while I held her and told her she needed to trust the doctor. Why did she do it? She somehow knew that I had the ability to do something for her even though she had no idea what that something might be.
Perhaps Abraham knew that the same God who was able to bring life out of two lifeless bodies could bring life out of death, even though he had no idea he that could possibly happen. In Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, we experience if not the culmination of this promise then a huge step towards it: crucifixion becomes resurrection.
What kind of God would ask a person to do such a thing? The kind of God who is willing to go all in for the sake of a loving relationship with everyone, giving up his Son, his only Son, his beloved Son. What kind of people would take a risk and follow such a God? People such as you and me, who in the midst of our cancers and divorces and addictions and tragedies of our lives trust that it is this God, crucified and risen from the dead, who can and will provide for us, even when we don’t know how. Having a relationship is risky business, I know, but as Peter says, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.” Amen.
Sunday, September 15, 2013
Sunday, September 8, 2013
"In the Image of God" Sermon for the 16th Sunday after Pentecost
In the Image of God
Pentecost 16 – Narrative Lectionary 4: Creation
September 8, 2013
Genesis 1.1-2.4a; John 1.1-5
Then God said, “Let us make humankind in our own image, according to our likeness.”
When I meet with couples who are preparing for marriage, we study four biblical texts that talk about marriage and relationships. One is the tricky passage in Ephesians 5 about wives being subject to their husbands and a second even trickier one is from Mark 10 on divorce. A third is from the second creation story from Genesis 2 about God creating men and women as partners. (Did you know there are two creation stories?) The fourth is from the first creation story, part of our focus text for today. One of the questions I ask the couples is, “What do you think it means to be made in the image of God?” Of course, many answers have been given over the years, most of them rightly and understandably talking about love. One perceptive young woman mentioned forgiving.
Today we begin a fresh year of the narrative lectionary, our trip through the story-line of the Bible. This fall we’ll move from the creation story in Genesis to the unfolding of God’s interaction with humanity through the major stories in the Old Testament, ending with the Prophets during Advent. These lead up to the Jesus story at Christmas, this time from the Gospel of John. We’ll stay with John through the death and resurrection of Jesus at Easter and then move through the stories of the early church in Acts and Paul’s letters. Along the way, we’ll see again how God works to keep in relationship with humanity, no matter what humanity does.
Right off the bat, we hear a startling claim: humankind is made in the image of God the Creator. Ironically, the God who will not tolerate the making of permanent graven images creates us in his image. With the couples in counseling, I reflect on one aspect that has always stuck out to me, our ability to use language. The creator who speaks everything into existence gives us the unique ability to speak back. I am also struck by the fact that the God who rested on the seventh day bids us to do the same. I’ve long been concerned that the original reason for Sabbath, rest and re-creation, has been lost to us in midst of our way too busy lives.
However, I’ve other thoughts in light of today’s recognition of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America’s 25th Anniversary, “Always being made new,” and our celebration of such with the produce from our community garden. God calls us to create. Phil Hefner, who taught at our Chicago seminary, puts it this way: we are “created co-creators.” Gary Simpson, who teaches at Luther Seminary, prefers to say it a little differently: we are “co-creating creatures.” Ted Peters, who has done work in the area of the ethics of science, particularly genetics, and religion, says we are not “playing God” when we are engaged in scientific endeavors; we are “playing human” as God created us. God has called us to a unique role in the world, a position of authority and responsibility. God’s creative power doesn’t end on the seventh day; God continues to be involved in the world. Creation is heading somewhere and we aren’t just along for the ride. God works in, with, and through us, creator and created co-creators.
Even as ours is dull and tarnished, it is in Jesus that we see the intended image of God most clearly. The Word who was with God and was God, who was at the beginning and through whom all things came to being, freely and willingly emptied himself, taking on human flesh to be with us. As God gave and continues to give of God’s self in creation, Jesus does the same for us. To be made in God’s image means to give one’s self away for the sake of others. It means to participate with God’s mission to love and bless the world, to be made new.
I appreciate many things about our community garden: the number of people who have been energized and involved; the community members who are interested and participating; and certainly the amount of produce that is benefiting so many who have so little. But what I really appreciate is that you all have said that we are going to give ourselves away for the sake of others, not ourselves, to love and serve others as Christ has loved and served us. Where is it that God is inviting you to create alongside God, to give yourself away for the sake of others? Made in the image of God, we are always being made new for the sake of God’s creation. That’s very good. Thanks be to God! Amen.
Pentecost 16 – Narrative Lectionary 4: Creation
September 8, 2013
Genesis 1.1-2.4a; John 1.1-5
Then God said, “Let us make humankind in our own image, according to our likeness.”
When I meet with couples who are preparing for marriage, we study four biblical texts that talk about marriage and relationships. One is the tricky passage in Ephesians 5 about wives being subject to their husbands and a second even trickier one is from Mark 10 on divorce. A third is from the second creation story from Genesis 2 about God creating men and women as partners. (Did you know there are two creation stories?) The fourth is from the first creation story, part of our focus text for today. One of the questions I ask the couples is, “What do you think it means to be made in the image of God?” Of course, many answers have been given over the years, most of them rightly and understandably talking about love. One perceptive young woman mentioned forgiving.
Today we begin a fresh year of the narrative lectionary, our trip through the story-line of the Bible. This fall we’ll move from the creation story in Genesis to the unfolding of God’s interaction with humanity through the major stories in the Old Testament, ending with the Prophets during Advent. These lead up to the Jesus story at Christmas, this time from the Gospel of John. We’ll stay with John through the death and resurrection of Jesus at Easter and then move through the stories of the early church in Acts and Paul’s letters. Along the way, we’ll see again how God works to keep in relationship with humanity, no matter what humanity does.
Right off the bat, we hear a startling claim: humankind is made in the image of God the Creator. Ironically, the God who will not tolerate the making of permanent graven images creates us in his image. With the couples in counseling, I reflect on one aspect that has always stuck out to me, our ability to use language. The creator who speaks everything into existence gives us the unique ability to speak back. I am also struck by the fact that the God who rested on the seventh day bids us to do the same. I’ve long been concerned that the original reason for Sabbath, rest and re-creation, has been lost to us in midst of our way too busy lives.
However, I’ve other thoughts in light of today’s recognition of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America’s 25th Anniversary, “Always being made new,” and our celebration of such with the produce from our community garden. God calls us to create. Phil Hefner, who taught at our Chicago seminary, puts it this way: we are “created co-creators.” Gary Simpson, who teaches at Luther Seminary, prefers to say it a little differently: we are “co-creating creatures.” Ted Peters, who has done work in the area of the ethics of science, particularly genetics, and religion, says we are not “playing God” when we are engaged in scientific endeavors; we are “playing human” as God created us. God has called us to a unique role in the world, a position of authority and responsibility. God’s creative power doesn’t end on the seventh day; God continues to be involved in the world. Creation is heading somewhere and we aren’t just along for the ride. God works in, with, and through us, creator and created co-creators.
Even as ours is dull and tarnished, it is in Jesus that we see the intended image of God most clearly. The Word who was with God and was God, who was at the beginning and through whom all things came to being, freely and willingly emptied himself, taking on human flesh to be with us. As God gave and continues to give of God’s self in creation, Jesus does the same for us. To be made in God’s image means to give one’s self away for the sake of others. It means to participate with God’s mission to love and bless the world, to be made new.
I appreciate many things about our community garden: the number of people who have been energized and involved; the community members who are interested and participating; and certainly the amount of produce that is benefiting so many who have so little. But what I really appreciate is that you all have said that we are going to give ourselves away for the sake of others, not ourselves, to love and serve others as Christ has loved and served us. Where is it that God is inviting you to create alongside God, to give yourself away for the sake of others? Made in the image of God, we are always being made new for the sake of God’s creation. That’s very good. Thanks be to God! Amen.
Sunday, August 11, 2013
"The Wisdom of Solomon and Jesus" - Sermon for the 12th Sunday after Pentecost
The Wisdom of Solomon and Jesus
Proverbs 10.1-12; Luke 6.37-38
Pentecost 12 (Narrative Lectionary 3 – Summer)
August 11, 2013
Our unofficial family motto growing up was, “You only tease the ones you love.” Boy was I loved! This skill came in handy with my friends Doug, Greg, and Mark where it was raised to an art form, though we called it slamming and cutting. Good-natured teasing can be fun, but unfortunately, it can also be thinly disguised anger. Even with the best of intentions, teasing can harm our relationships, making fun at another’s expense. Early in our relationship, Cindy and I were cautioned by my good friend, Jim, about this. He pointed out how our teasing could be harmful to our relationship, especially in public. I wish I could say it was the last time someone admonished me – it’s been a life-long battle for me to watch my tongue.
The move into chapter 10 of Proverbs shifts the style of the book from wisdom poems to proverbs. Many of the themes that we have encountered in our survey of the Wisdom literature, prominent in chapters 1-9 are also found here, but in a different form. This section uses antithetical parallelism (paired opposites) to illustrate the wisdom contained. It’s helpful to remember that although proverbs contain truth, they are not always or in every circumstance true. We know that good people do go hungry, hard work doesn’t always pay off, and evil is often rewarded. Yet, it’s important to heed them because the proverbs give as a window into God’s values.
They are also important because they remind us that what we think, say, and do matters. In fact, as Greg Nelson reminds us, there are only five things we have any control over: what we do and don’t do, what we say and don’t say, and what we continue to think about something. Many of us take this for granted, but a moment’s reflection shows that taking responsibility for oneself is in short supply. Dennis Challeen is a retired Winona district court judge who writes about our judicial system. In a Winona Daily News column, he cites a case where he told a young man who had appeared before him that he needed to take responsibility for his life. The young man had no idea what Challeen meant.
Taking responsibility for what we say and don’t say, or even how we say it, is also in short supply. I am reminded of that proverbial saying, variously attributed to Abraham Lincoln and Mark Twain, "It is better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to open one's mouth and remove all doubt." In a time of instantaneous communication, civil speech seems to be the exception rather than norm. From Facebook to Twitter to various blogs, people dash off what passes for their thoughts, much of it ill-conceived if not breaking the 8th Commandment not to bear false witness against our neighbor.
Indeed, we can do great damage with our tongues, and their logical extensions, posts and tweets. However, we can also do great service with our tongues as well, and our society needs it desperately. Amy Lazarus tells of an experience in a Sojourners blog, “A Jew and a Mormon Find Common Ground Midair,” in which she describes a difficult but important conversation she had with a fellow traveler. Their views on virtually every topic were about as opposite as you can find, yet they were able to listen and learn while speaking respectfully to each other. These are the kind of conversations our society needs and I think we as the church are well-suited to foster them.
It is said that ethics involves knowing that adultery is wrong and morals involves not cheating on your spouse. For us, there is a third component, the ethic of love. So, ethics involves knowing that lying is wrong and morals involves, in my challenging case, not using teasing in a harmful manner. But an ethic of love shown by Jesus goes further: we are to speak well of others and to others regardless who they are. In the final analysis, it is God’s mercy that is the measure we use in our relationships with others. Rather and judge and condemn, we are to be giving and forgiving, just as God has done for us.
I’m acutely aware that this sermon more than others that screams, “Physician, heal thyself!” My mouth continues to get me in trouble, and I do my best to anticipate circumstances where that might happen. When I remember, which isn’t as often as I’d like, I pray before I enter meetings and conversations, asking God to help me. I try to remember that not everything I think has to be spoken, that others just might have more to contribute to the conversation than I do, and to be gracious in how I say what does need to be said. However, this isn’t about me. It is about a God who, when I do stumble—which is far more often than I like to admit—picks me up, dusts me off, forgives me, and gives me a chance to grow in daily wisdom, being what I was created to be. That same God is working in your life, too. Thanks be to God! Amen.
Proverbs 10.1-12; Luke 6.37-38
Pentecost 12 (Narrative Lectionary 3 – Summer)
August 11, 2013
The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life. Proverbs 10.11
Our unofficial family motto growing up was, “You only tease the ones you love.” Boy was I loved! This skill came in handy with my friends Doug, Greg, and Mark where it was raised to an art form, though we called it slamming and cutting. Good-natured teasing can be fun, but unfortunately, it can also be thinly disguised anger. Even with the best of intentions, teasing can harm our relationships, making fun at another’s expense. Early in our relationship, Cindy and I were cautioned by my good friend, Jim, about this. He pointed out how our teasing could be harmful to our relationship, especially in public. I wish I could say it was the last time someone admonished me – it’s been a life-long battle for me to watch my tongue.
The move into chapter 10 of Proverbs shifts the style of the book from wisdom poems to proverbs. Many of the themes that we have encountered in our survey of the Wisdom literature, prominent in chapters 1-9 are also found here, but in a different form. This section uses antithetical parallelism (paired opposites) to illustrate the wisdom contained. It’s helpful to remember that although proverbs contain truth, they are not always or in every circumstance true. We know that good people do go hungry, hard work doesn’t always pay off, and evil is often rewarded. Yet, it’s important to heed them because the proverbs give as a window into God’s values.
They are also important because they remind us that what we think, say, and do matters. In fact, as Greg Nelson reminds us, there are only five things we have any control over: what we do and don’t do, what we say and don’t say, and what we continue to think about something. Many of us take this for granted, but a moment’s reflection shows that taking responsibility for oneself is in short supply. Dennis Challeen is a retired Winona district court judge who writes about our judicial system. In a Winona Daily News column, he cites a case where he told a young man who had appeared before him that he needed to take responsibility for his life. The young man had no idea what Challeen meant.
Taking responsibility for what we say and don’t say, or even how we say it, is also in short supply. I am reminded of that proverbial saying, variously attributed to Abraham Lincoln and Mark Twain, "It is better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to open one's mouth and remove all doubt." In a time of instantaneous communication, civil speech seems to be the exception rather than norm. From Facebook to Twitter to various blogs, people dash off what passes for their thoughts, much of it ill-conceived if not breaking the 8th Commandment not to bear false witness against our neighbor.
Indeed, we can do great damage with our tongues, and their logical extensions, posts and tweets. However, we can also do great service with our tongues as well, and our society needs it desperately. Amy Lazarus tells of an experience in a Sojourners blog, “A Jew and a Mormon Find Common Ground Midair,” in which she describes a difficult but important conversation she had with a fellow traveler. Their views on virtually every topic were about as opposite as you can find, yet they were able to listen and learn while speaking respectfully to each other. These are the kind of conversations our society needs and I think we as the church are well-suited to foster them.
It is said that ethics involves knowing that adultery is wrong and morals involves not cheating on your spouse. For us, there is a third component, the ethic of love. So, ethics involves knowing that lying is wrong and morals involves, in my challenging case, not using teasing in a harmful manner. But an ethic of love shown by Jesus goes further: we are to speak well of others and to others regardless who they are. In the final analysis, it is God’s mercy that is the measure we use in our relationships with others. Rather and judge and condemn, we are to be giving and forgiving, just as God has done for us.
I’m acutely aware that this sermon more than others that screams, “Physician, heal thyself!” My mouth continues to get me in trouble, and I do my best to anticipate circumstances where that might happen. When I remember, which isn’t as often as I’d like, I pray before I enter meetings and conversations, asking God to help me. I try to remember that not everything I think has to be spoken, that others just might have more to contribute to the conversation than I do, and to be gracious in how I say what does need to be said. However, this isn’t about me. It is about a God who, when I do stumble—which is far more often than I like to admit—picks me up, dusts me off, forgives me, and gives me a chance to grow in daily wisdom, being what I was created to be. That same God is working in your life, too. Thanks be to God! Amen.
Sunday, August 4, 2013
"God’s Wisdom for Everyday Living: Wisdom at Creation" - Sermon for the 11th Sunday after Pentecost
God’s Wisdom for Everyday Living: Wisdom at Creation
Pentecost 11 (Narrative Lectionary 3 - Summer)
Proverbs 8.22-36; Luke 8.22-25
Grace Lutheran, Mankato, MN
August 4, 2013
When doing my doctoral work, most of it was online, but we’d gather for a week two times a year on the campus of Luther Seminary. Part of our schedule was doing daily devotions. One classmate, Michael, did terrific devotion on the wonders of creation using pictures and music in a PowerPoint presentation. It was beautiful, breath-taking, and stirring, extolling God’s handiwork in our world. Afterward, one of our professors wondered why Michael hadn’t included the dark side of creation. Missing were animals devouring each other, hurricanes, tornados, etc. Think of Wild Kingdom meets The Weather Channel. The professor was chided by his co-teacher, but I think his point was valid. What about the dark side of creation?
Today’s passage presents us with a Michael version of creation and the role of Wisdom in it. This is our third of six excursions into the Wisdom Literature and it presents a third major theme. The first week we learned that the beginning of wisdom is fear of the Lord. Fear of the Lord doesn’t mean quaking in our shoes, and it’s not just awe at God’s power and obedience to God’s word, but rather to be in a right relationship with God. Last week the theme was how the reader of Proverbs is to come to the book as a child learns wisdom from parents. Today, we encounter Woman Wisdom, a feminine figure as the personification of God’s wisdom.
We could do a whole Bible study on Woman Wisdom alone and her counterparts Woman Stranger and Woman Folly. Frankly, no one knows exactly what to make of her presence here. She seems to have many of the attributes of God, so is she a feminine counterpart, meant to soften God’s warrior king image? Is she Israel’s answer to the feminine gods of other national religions that surrounded them? Is she merely a literary device meant to engage the presumably young male reader? How about Jesus’ precursor as the Incarnate Logos, who “was with God and was God” at the beginning of creation? Though these are interesting discussion points, I want to spend the rest of the time looking at the text itself.
There are two main points in the text, but I want to put them in conversation with Michael’s devotion, the gospel story of Jesus’ calming of the storm, and the disciples in its midst. The first point is that God’s wisdom is present in creation, and that we can see it clearly. There is orderliness about creation that makes sense, or will make sense, as we uncover it. We rely on this order and predictability in our everyday lives. The second point is that God delights in what has been created, an assertion that goes back to and even further than the book of Genesis. Not only did God declare creation good, God and delights in us and even delights in our delight of creation. I still remember my internship supervisor, Rev. Dr. E. Gordon Ross, talking about his desire to see as much of God’s creation as he could in the remaining time of his life. God delights in our delight.
Yet, the Wild Kingdom-Weather Channel reality that we all know too well is that there are many times we do not take delight in creation and we wonder if there is any wisdom in it at all. Jesus’ followers are a good example: though some were experienced fishers and sailors, the sea was a source of fear and uncertainty for them, somewhat like the chaotic waters of creation. When a sudden storm blows in and threatens to capsize the boat, they understandably panic. Hurriedly, they waken Jesus, who astounds them with his ability to calm both the wind and the waves.
At the Men’s Bible Study a couple of weeks ago, there was a discussion about the bad things that happen to us. Someone may have even quoted Romans 8.28, “All things work together for good.” However, another person said he didn’t see how good things could come out of his son’s death or his recent horrific accident. I responded that I believed that God was present throughout in all of our circumstances of life, good or bad, and that sometimes it’s hard to see what God’s presence brings about. Often, it is not until we have some distance on an event or when others see for us what we cannot see for ourselves that we are able to see God working.
What is the difference between knowledge and wisdom? I have been hearing a commercial for a mattress company talking about, believe it or not, this very same thing. Knowledge, according to the ad, means knowing that a tomato is a fruit; wisdom means knowing that the tomato doesn’t belong in a fruit salad. For us today, knowledge means knowing that there is orderliness in creation that is discoverable, and that God delights in us and our delight in it. Wisdom means knowing that God continues to be present in, with, and under all creation, creating and recreating, bringing order out of chaos. This includes our lives, whether sunny skies or cloudy, storms or calm, in creation in all its beauty and its terribleness. Where is God present in your life today, creating and recreating? God delights in doing so. Thanks be to God! Amen.
Pentecost 11 (Narrative Lectionary 3 - Summer)
Proverbs 8.22-36; Luke 8.22-25
Grace Lutheran, Mankato, MN
August 4, 2013
When doing my doctoral work, most of it was online, but we’d gather for a week two times a year on the campus of Luther Seminary. Part of our schedule was doing daily devotions. One classmate, Michael, did terrific devotion on the wonders of creation using pictures and music in a PowerPoint presentation. It was beautiful, breath-taking, and stirring, extolling God’s handiwork in our world. Afterward, one of our professors wondered why Michael hadn’t included the dark side of creation. Missing were animals devouring each other, hurricanes, tornados, etc. Think of Wild Kingdom meets The Weather Channel. The professor was chided by his co-teacher, but I think his point was valid. What about the dark side of creation?
Today’s passage presents us with a Michael version of creation and the role of Wisdom in it. This is our third of six excursions into the Wisdom Literature and it presents a third major theme. The first week we learned that the beginning of wisdom is fear of the Lord. Fear of the Lord doesn’t mean quaking in our shoes, and it’s not just awe at God’s power and obedience to God’s word, but rather to be in a right relationship with God. Last week the theme was how the reader of Proverbs is to come to the book as a child learns wisdom from parents. Today, we encounter Woman Wisdom, a feminine figure as the personification of God’s wisdom.
We could do a whole Bible study on Woman Wisdom alone and her counterparts Woman Stranger and Woman Folly. Frankly, no one knows exactly what to make of her presence here. She seems to have many of the attributes of God, so is she a feminine counterpart, meant to soften God’s warrior king image? Is she Israel’s answer to the feminine gods of other national religions that surrounded them? Is she merely a literary device meant to engage the presumably young male reader? How about Jesus’ precursor as the Incarnate Logos, who “was with God and was God” at the beginning of creation? Though these are interesting discussion points, I want to spend the rest of the time looking at the text itself.
There are two main points in the text, but I want to put them in conversation with Michael’s devotion, the gospel story of Jesus’ calming of the storm, and the disciples in its midst. The first point is that God’s wisdom is present in creation, and that we can see it clearly. There is orderliness about creation that makes sense, or will make sense, as we uncover it. We rely on this order and predictability in our everyday lives. The second point is that God delights in what has been created, an assertion that goes back to and even further than the book of Genesis. Not only did God declare creation good, God and delights in us and even delights in our delight of creation. I still remember my internship supervisor, Rev. Dr. E. Gordon Ross, talking about his desire to see as much of God’s creation as he could in the remaining time of his life. God delights in our delight.
Yet, the Wild Kingdom-Weather Channel reality that we all know too well is that there are many times we do not take delight in creation and we wonder if there is any wisdom in it at all. Jesus’ followers are a good example: though some were experienced fishers and sailors, the sea was a source of fear and uncertainty for them, somewhat like the chaotic waters of creation. When a sudden storm blows in and threatens to capsize the boat, they understandably panic. Hurriedly, they waken Jesus, who astounds them with his ability to calm both the wind and the waves.
At the Men’s Bible Study a couple of weeks ago, there was a discussion about the bad things that happen to us. Someone may have even quoted Romans 8.28, “All things work together for good.” However, another person said he didn’t see how good things could come out of his son’s death or his recent horrific accident. I responded that I believed that God was present throughout in all of our circumstances of life, good or bad, and that sometimes it’s hard to see what God’s presence brings about. Often, it is not until we have some distance on an event or when others see for us what we cannot see for ourselves that we are able to see God working.
What is the difference between knowledge and wisdom? I have been hearing a commercial for a mattress company talking about, believe it or not, this very same thing. Knowledge, according to the ad, means knowing that a tomato is a fruit; wisdom means knowing that the tomato doesn’t belong in a fruit salad. For us today, knowledge means knowing that there is orderliness in creation that is discoverable, and that God delights in us and our delight in it. Wisdom means knowing that God continues to be present in, with, and under all creation, creating and recreating, bringing order out of chaos. This includes our lives, whether sunny skies or cloudy, storms or calm, in creation in all its beauty and its terribleness. Where is God present in your life today, creating and recreating? God delights in doing so. Thanks be to God! Amen.
Sunday, July 28, 2013
Sermon for the Tenth Sunday after Pentecost - "God's Wisdom for Everyday Living: on Trusting God"
God’s Wisdom for Everyday Living: on Trusting God
Pentecost 10 – Narrative Lectionary 3: Summer
July 28, 2013
Proverbs 3.1-8; Luke 12.29-31
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. Proverbs 3.5
When Cindy’s father passed away last month, she did what a number of children do, give a remembrance at his funeral service. I thought it was one of the finest, if not the finest, remembrances I’d heard, and I’ve heard many. She told about the lessons she had learned from her father through her experiences with him. For example, fishing taught her patience, donating blood taught her to give back, bowling taught her to be a part of a team, and so on. Her remembrance was not only a wonderful tribute to her dad, it also exemplifies our Proverbs text for today.
Today we have the second in our six-part Wisdom series, God’s Wisdom for Everyday Living. Last week we discovered that Proverbs is more than just good advice; it’s part of God’s creation, something we’ll explore in greater depth next week. We found that living wisely in fear of the Lord means not only to be in awe of God’s power and obedient to God’s word, is also means to be in right relationship with God. Today’s text casts the conversation about wisdom in terms of a parent’s wise advice to a child. It confirms what we know very well, that parents teaching children is a major building block of society. In less direct way, it also reinforces the fact that parents are the primary faith developers of children.
The main thrust of the passage and the core of parental wisdom and advice are to trust God. When the Bible talks about faith it does so in a wonderfully nuanced and multi-faceted way. There’s certainly head belief, but there is also heart trust and the faithfulness of God that inspires our loyalty and faithfulness. I love the way Eugene Peterson puts this in The Message: “Don’t lose your grip on Love and Loyalty. … Trust God from the bottom of your heart; don’t try to figure everything out on your own. Listen for God’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go; he’s the one who will keep you on track.”
Do you realize how countercultural this trust of God is in a world that constantly advertises that we “can have it our way,” to “be yourself,” “follow your heart,” “live your dreams,” and “I just gotta be me?” There is nothing wrong with dreams, but I’m concerned that we are cultivating the most narcissistic and self-centered society ever. If we stop and think about it, we realize that our hearts don’t always desire the best things, do they? I love this quote of Mark Twain the exposes our naïve self-centeredness: "When I was a boy of 14, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be 21, I was astonished at how much the old man had learned in seven years."
Jesus understands just how difficult trusting God can be for us, so he orients us properly. It’s important to know that Jesus doesn’t make light about what we need or how much we need to work to get it. Jesus wants us to grow in our understanding that God provides for us on God’s terms, including giving us the skills and abilities to do so. We are to see God working in, with, and through us and our lives. I was reminded of a story from CS Lewis’ Prince Caspian, in The Chronicles of Narnia, where the girl, Lucy, encounters the Christ figure in the form of a lion Aslan, whom she hasn’t seen for some time. “Aslan, you’ve grown since I’ve seen you last,” she says. “No, my little one,” he says, “it is you who have grown.”
How do we trust God? Thomas Constable reminds us that it is two-step process: the decision of trust and the habit of trust. First, we make a commitment to follow Jesus in the way of the kingdom and then we start acting like it. The second part doesn’t always come right away, but if in the middle of our fears we can muster the courage to commit our way to God’s, we will grow in our trust.
I think this applies not only to us as individuals but also as a community of faith. After worship today we will be voting on whether to further God’s work by calling a staff person who will lead us in helping to grow in faith and discipleship. It’s a scary time for us, but it was also scary making the changes in our education and worship last fall, changes which have borne incredible fruit so far. This is the next step of living into the future God has for us.
Trust God from the bottom of your heart. … Listen for God’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go; [God is] the one who will keep us on track. Amen.
Pentecost 10 – Narrative Lectionary 3: Summer
July 28, 2013
Proverbs 3.1-8; Luke 12.29-31
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. Proverbs 3.5
When Cindy’s father passed away last month, she did what a number of children do, give a remembrance at his funeral service. I thought it was one of the finest, if not the finest, remembrances I’d heard, and I’ve heard many. She told about the lessons she had learned from her father through her experiences with him. For example, fishing taught her patience, donating blood taught her to give back, bowling taught her to be a part of a team, and so on. Her remembrance was not only a wonderful tribute to her dad, it also exemplifies our Proverbs text for today.
Today we have the second in our six-part Wisdom series, God’s Wisdom for Everyday Living. Last week we discovered that Proverbs is more than just good advice; it’s part of God’s creation, something we’ll explore in greater depth next week. We found that living wisely in fear of the Lord means not only to be in awe of God’s power and obedient to God’s word, is also means to be in right relationship with God. Today’s text casts the conversation about wisdom in terms of a parent’s wise advice to a child. It confirms what we know very well, that parents teaching children is a major building block of society. In less direct way, it also reinforces the fact that parents are the primary faith developers of children.
The main thrust of the passage and the core of parental wisdom and advice are to trust God. When the Bible talks about faith it does so in a wonderfully nuanced and multi-faceted way. There’s certainly head belief, but there is also heart trust and the faithfulness of God that inspires our loyalty and faithfulness. I love the way Eugene Peterson puts this in The Message: “Don’t lose your grip on Love and Loyalty. … Trust God from the bottom of your heart; don’t try to figure everything out on your own. Listen for God’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go; he’s the one who will keep you on track.”
Do you realize how countercultural this trust of God is in a world that constantly advertises that we “can have it our way,” to “be yourself,” “follow your heart,” “live your dreams,” and “I just gotta be me?” There is nothing wrong with dreams, but I’m concerned that we are cultivating the most narcissistic and self-centered society ever. If we stop and think about it, we realize that our hearts don’t always desire the best things, do they? I love this quote of Mark Twain the exposes our naïve self-centeredness: "When I was a boy of 14, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be 21, I was astonished at how much the old man had learned in seven years."
Jesus understands just how difficult trusting God can be for us, so he orients us properly. It’s important to know that Jesus doesn’t make light about what we need or how much we need to work to get it. Jesus wants us to grow in our understanding that God provides for us on God’s terms, including giving us the skills and abilities to do so. We are to see God working in, with, and through us and our lives. I was reminded of a story from CS Lewis’ Prince Caspian, in The Chronicles of Narnia, where the girl, Lucy, encounters the Christ figure in the form of a lion Aslan, whom she hasn’t seen for some time. “Aslan, you’ve grown since I’ve seen you last,” she says. “No, my little one,” he says, “it is you who have grown.”
How do we trust God? Thomas Constable reminds us that it is two-step process: the decision of trust and the habit of trust. First, we make a commitment to follow Jesus in the way of the kingdom and then we start acting like it. The second part doesn’t always come right away, but if in the middle of our fears we can muster the courage to commit our way to God’s, we will grow in our trust.
I think this applies not only to us as individuals but also as a community of faith. After worship today we will be voting on whether to further God’s work by calling a staff person who will lead us in helping to grow in faith and discipleship. It’s a scary time for us, but it was also scary making the changes in our education and worship last fall, changes which have borne incredible fruit so far. This is the next step of living into the future God has for us.
Trust God from the bottom of your heart. … Listen for God’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go; [God is] the one who will keep us on track. Amen.
Sunday, July 21, 2013
"God's Wisdom for Everyday Living: the Fear of the Lord" - Sermon for the Ninth Sunday after Pentecost
God’s Wisdom for Everyday Living: the Fear of the Lord
Pentecost 9 (Narrative Lectionary 3 – Summer)
Proverbs 1.1-9; Luke 6.47-49
July 21, 2013
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. (Proverbs 1.7)
I typically disregard the encouragement of “words to live by” through bumper stickers. Once in a while, though, one comes along that grabs my attention, that I say, “That’s pretty good.” Sometimes it’s even pretty good theology. I saw one the other day that I’d seen before: “If you think education is expensive, try ignorance.” That bumper sticker just might sum up a major theme in the Wisdom Literature in the Bible. Did you know that there was such a type of literature in the Bible? Depending on how you categorize the books of the Bible, there are three or four such types: Proverbs, which has an optimistic or positive outlook on wisdom and daily living; and Job and Ecclesiastes, which are more pessimistic or negative in their outlook. As we have seen in our recent study of Psalms, it too, contains elements of wisdom.
Today we begin our six-week sermon series, God’s Wisdom for Everyday Living, during which we’ll explore four passages from Proverbs and two from Ecclesiastes. Today, we begin with Proverbs. The authorship of Proverbs has traditionally been ascribed to King Solomon, but most scholars believe that to be an honorary title given because of his legendary wisdom. The most famous example of his wisdom comes in the story of the women who were arguing over a baby, who Solomon offered to cut in half to satisfy them. However, clearly the book is an edited collection. The collection consists of practical wisdom, much of what could be considered as common sense. However, Proverbs and the other Wisdom Literature claim much more, that these writings show how God and creation work.
The starting point for a life lived wisely rather than foolishly, Proverbs says, is fear of the Lord. When we hear this phrase, we tend to think of God as perpetually angry, needing to be calmed down or appeased. However, although the Bible is clear about God’s power, “fear of the Lord” is meant to reflect that the proper attitude toward God is awe at his power and obedience to God’s sacred word. I am reminded about Mr. Beaver’s response to the children’s question about Aslan in, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe: “He’s not a tame lion at all.” But it goes even further: fear of the Lord means we are to be in right relationship to God.
True wisdom, therefore, begins with a proper appreciation of the God “who created me and all that exists,” as Luther said in his explanation to the 1st article of the Apostles’ Creed in the Small Catechism. This, of course, is in response to Luther’s infamous question, “So what does this mean?” Jesus cranks this up in the gospel reading for today, the ending verses of the “Sermon on the Plain,” where he stresses that following him means coming, hearing, and doing his word. Doing so is like building on a solid foundation that would withstand the storms of life. That’s wisdom.
I want to let you in on a little secret: most preachers agonize over the sermons that they preach. We agonize because we want to proclaim the word of God, one that we believe can make a difference in peoples’ lives. However, we also know that insight doesn’t necessarily lead to transformation. We all know people who are very bright or learned but who can’t seem to make their way in life. We only need to read Dear Abby for proof. Recently there was a column that included a letter from a woman in an abusive relationship who knew what she needed to do but couldn’t do it. Wisdom includes doing what we know what we need to do.
Even so, one of the biggest compliments someone can give me is, “You made me think, Pastor.”
A bigger compliment, though, is when someone says, “I think God is calling me to make some changes in my life.” It is easy for a pastor to shake their finger and say, “Don’t do that” or “Do this.” I think a better way, and the way of Proverbs, is to pose some questions about our life in Christ. So, here’s one for today: “Where is it that God is touching your life today, working in your life as you follow Jesus, to be more of the person God has created and intends for you to be?” This is God’s wisdom for everyday living, to be in a good relationship with God and each other. That may not be bumper sticker material, but it’s pretty good. Amen.
Pentecost 9 (Narrative Lectionary 3 – Summer)
Proverbs 1.1-9; Luke 6.47-49
July 21, 2013
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. (Proverbs 1.7)
I typically disregard the encouragement of “words to live by” through bumper stickers. Once in a while, though, one comes along that grabs my attention, that I say, “That’s pretty good.” Sometimes it’s even pretty good theology. I saw one the other day that I’d seen before: “If you think education is expensive, try ignorance.” That bumper sticker just might sum up a major theme in the Wisdom Literature in the Bible. Did you know that there was such a type of literature in the Bible? Depending on how you categorize the books of the Bible, there are three or four such types: Proverbs, which has an optimistic or positive outlook on wisdom and daily living; and Job and Ecclesiastes, which are more pessimistic or negative in their outlook. As we have seen in our recent study of Psalms, it too, contains elements of wisdom.
Today we begin our six-week sermon series, God’s Wisdom for Everyday Living, during which we’ll explore four passages from Proverbs and two from Ecclesiastes. Today, we begin with Proverbs. The authorship of Proverbs has traditionally been ascribed to King Solomon, but most scholars believe that to be an honorary title given because of his legendary wisdom. The most famous example of his wisdom comes in the story of the women who were arguing over a baby, who Solomon offered to cut in half to satisfy them. However, clearly the book is an edited collection. The collection consists of practical wisdom, much of what could be considered as common sense. However, Proverbs and the other Wisdom Literature claim much more, that these writings show how God and creation work.
The starting point for a life lived wisely rather than foolishly, Proverbs says, is fear of the Lord. When we hear this phrase, we tend to think of God as perpetually angry, needing to be calmed down or appeased. However, although the Bible is clear about God’s power, “fear of the Lord” is meant to reflect that the proper attitude toward God is awe at his power and obedience to God’s sacred word. I am reminded about Mr. Beaver’s response to the children’s question about Aslan in, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe: “He’s not a tame lion at all.” But it goes even further: fear of the Lord means we are to be in right relationship to God.
True wisdom, therefore, begins with a proper appreciation of the God “who created me and all that exists,” as Luther said in his explanation to the 1st article of the Apostles’ Creed in the Small Catechism. This, of course, is in response to Luther’s infamous question, “So what does this mean?” Jesus cranks this up in the gospel reading for today, the ending verses of the “Sermon on the Plain,” where he stresses that following him means coming, hearing, and doing his word. Doing so is like building on a solid foundation that would withstand the storms of life. That’s wisdom.
I want to let you in on a little secret: most preachers agonize over the sermons that they preach. We agonize because we want to proclaim the word of God, one that we believe can make a difference in peoples’ lives. However, we also know that insight doesn’t necessarily lead to transformation. We all know people who are very bright or learned but who can’t seem to make their way in life. We only need to read Dear Abby for proof. Recently there was a column that included a letter from a woman in an abusive relationship who knew what she needed to do but couldn’t do it. Wisdom includes doing what we know what we need to do.
Even so, one of the biggest compliments someone can give me is, “You made me think, Pastor.”
A bigger compliment, though, is when someone says, “I think God is calling me to make some changes in my life.” It is easy for a pastor to shake their finger and say, “Don’t do that” or “Do this.” I think a better way, and the way of Proverbs, is to pose some questions about our life in Christ. So, here’s one for today: “Where is it that God is touching your life today, working in your life as you follow Jesus, to be more of the person God has created and intends for you to be?” This is God’s wisdom for everyday living, to be in a good relationship with God and each other. That may not be bumper sticker material, but it’s pretty good. Amen.
Sunday, July 7, 2013
"Psalms for Today: A Call to Praise" - Sermon for the Seventh Sunday after Pentecost
Psalms for Today: A Call to Praise
Pentecost 7 (Narrative Lectionary 3 – Summer)
Psalm 150
July 7, 2013
Grace, Mankato, MN
This past Wednesday we committed my father-in-law to the earth and God’s care at Ft. Snelling National Cemetery. Following the service, as Cindy, her sister, and her mom were catching up with some extended family I got into a conversation with the funeral director, Bob, which began with the weather being nice. He told me he was of Serbian descent and belonged to a branch of the Eastern Orthodox Church. I responded how much I value the Orthodox appreciation of mystery, revealed through icons, those pictures that point us toward a larger reality of God. Bob went on to share his concern about the declining morality of our society.
I told Bob that I was more concerned about rampant narcissism, people focusing on themselves, their own needs and wants to the exclusion of others. We went on reflect on how fewer people were having religious funerals and some no services at all. His own father had just recently passed away and we both shared about our experiences of family members dying. We agreed that death is a passage that we cannot ignore, or if we do so, we become wounded. Perhaps it was because I had Psalm 150 on my mind that I mused out loud that it seemed to me that the great religions are great because they take us outside of ourselves, to focus on the profound things in life.
Today we wrap up our series on the Psalms for Today, stating they are more than old church songs or songs of the old church. At the beginning of the series, in Psalm 1, we learned how the Psalms are a resource for life connecting us to the source of life. Then we heard how Psalm 150 as a song of praise orients us to that source of life, similar to a GPS system. Psalm 13 introduced us to the lament, the cry for help we sing during disorienting times of our lives when they take an unpleasant and unexpected turn. The 23rd Psalm gave us the psalm of trust, a way to express faith in God during those times. Last week through Psalm 30 we received the song of thanksgiving, sung on the backside, reorienting us to the new life God has brought us.
If you look at the psalms in a good study Bible, you will see that they are divided into five sections or “books.” Interestingly, the last line of the last psalm in each one of these sections ends in doxology or praise. Psalm 150, as not only the last psalm in Book Five, but also of the whole Psalter is all doxology or praise. “Praise the Lord” or “Hallelujah” is proclaimed 13 times in six verses. It’s praise on steroids. This is like the fireworks and cannon at the end of a July 4th pops concert. Do you think this is important? We are called to sing, dance, and play praises to the very one who gives us our very life and breath to do so.
This may be obvious, but it is not trivial. We all probably know some well-meaning Christians whose every other sentence is, “Praise the Lord,” almost like, “Have a nice day” or “No problem.” Yet, we need to ask ourselves, what gets in the way of praising God, of doing sincerely what is breathed into our soul? I have some ideas, and I’ve already suggested some, but I think I’m going to leave it for you to think about that on your own. Meanwhile, I do know that there is nothing in this world—not even death—that prevents us from praising God. Do you remember the story about Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem, where the religious leaders order him to tell his disciples to be quiet? Jesus responds, “I tell you, if these were silent, the stones would shout out.” All creation praises the Lord.
Praising God is not a silent endeavor. Our hallelujahs are the response of ones who know the power of death, but also know a great God who has conquered death, who holds each of us loving hands. We are not called to praise God to appease God or pay lip service to a petty tyrant. We are called to praise God because God is indeed good and great and loves us steadfastly. God through Jesus Christ has restored us to himself and invites us to share that good news with others. “Let everything that breathes praise the Lord!” Amen.
Pentecost 7 (Narrative Lectionary 3 – Summer)
Psalm 150
July 7, 2013
Grace, Mankato, MN
Let everything that breaths praise the Lord! (Psalm 150.6)
This past Wednesday we committed my father-in-law to the earth and God’s care at Ft. Snelling National Cemetery. Following the service, as Cindy, her sister, and her mom were catching up with some extended family I got into a conversation with the funeral director, Bob, which began with the weather being nice. He told me he was of Serbian descent and belonged to a branch of the Eastern Orthodox Church. I responded how much I value the Orthodox appreciation of mystery, revealed through icons, those pictures that point us toward a larger reality of God. Bob went on to share his concern about the declining morality of our society.
I told Bob that I was more concerned about rampant narcissism, people focusing on themselves, their own needs and wants to the exclusion of others. We went on reflect on how fewer people were having religious funerals and some no services at all. His own father had just recently passed away and we both shared about our experiences of family members dying. We agreed that death is a passage that we cannot ignore, or if we do so, we become wounded. Perhaps it was because I had Psalm 150 on my mind that I mused out loud that it seemed to me that the great religions are great because they take us outside of ourselves, to focus on the profound things in life.
Today we wrap up our series on the Psalms for Today, stating they are more than old church songs or songs of the old church. At the beginning of the series, in Psalm 1, we learned how the Psalms are a resource for life connecting us to the source of life. Then we heard how Psalm 150 as a song of praise orients us to that source of life, similar to a GPS system. Psalm 13 introduced us to the lament, the cry for help we sing during disorienting times of our lives when they take an unpleasant and unexpected turn. The 23rd Psalm gave us the psalm of trust, a way to express faith in God during those times. Last week through Psalm 30 we received the song of thanksgiving, sung on the backside, reorienting us to the new life God has brought us.
If you look at the psalms in a good study Bible, you will see that they are divided into five sections or “books.” Interestingly, the last line of the last psalm in each one of these sections ends in doxology or praise. Psalm 150, as not only the last psalm in Book Five, but also of the whole Psalter is all doxology or praise. “Praise the Lord” or “Hallelujah” is proclaimed 13 times in six verses. It’s praise on steroids. This is like the fireworks and cannon at the end of a July 4th pops concert. Do you think this is important? We are called to sing, dance, and play praises to the very one who gives us our very life and breath to do so.
This may be obvious, but it is not trivial. We all probably know some well-meaning Christians whose every other sentence is, “Praise the Lord,” almost like, “Have a nice day” or “No problem.” Yet, we need to ask ourselves, what gets in the way of praising God, of doing sincerely what is breathed into our soul? I have some ideas, and I’ve already suggested some, but I think I’m going to leave it for you to think about that on your own. Meanwhile, I do know that there is nothing in this world—not even death—that prevents us from praising God. Do you remember the story about Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem, where the religious leaders order him to tell his disciples to be quiet? Jesus responds, “I tell you, if these were silent, the stones would shout out.” All creation praises the Lord.
Praising God is not a silent endeavor. Our hallelujahs are the response of ones who know the power of death, but also know a great God who has conquered death, who holds each of us loving hands. We are not called to praise God to appease God or pay lip service to a petty tyrant. We are called to praise God because God is indeed good and great and loves us steadfastly. God through Jesus Christ has restored us to himself and invites us to share that good news with others. “Let everything that breathes praise the Lord!” Amen.
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