13 Pentecost, Year C

"STRIVE TO ENTER"
(Sermon text: Luke 13: 22 - 30)
Given at Church of the Redeemer, Cairo, IL, Saturday, August 25th, 2007; and at St. Mark’s Church, West Frankfort, IL; and St. James’ Memorial Church, Marion, IL

Yet another disturbing text is set before us this morning….For the past four Sundays, our Gospel texts have challenged us, prodding us into action, asking us to change our ways, spiritually.

Today’s text does the same: “Strive to enter through the narrow door; for many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able”,[1] Jesus says.

As we consider the impact for our lives, in this sermon, let’s look at some of the salient features of Jesus’ teaching as Luke reports it to us. And then, let’s consider what Our Lord’s intent might have been in addressing His original audience. We will follow the original setting’s intent with the meaning for the church to whom Luke was writing, and will conclude with some considerations for our own day.

As we look at the passage, the following key points can be seen:

1. “Lord, will only a few be saved?” (verse 23): Essentially, this question (note that it is posed to Jesus by an anonymous member of the crowd that had been following Jesus on His way to His death and resurrection in Jerusalem – Jesus’ remarks seem destined to be received by a large audience which spans the breadth of time) is one which seeks to understand the big picture. It strikes me that it’s a question which is loaded with expectation, with wanting to know the secrets of God, of wanting to know “who’s in and who’s out”. It is a question which has as its focus the final things of God, God’s eternal and great plan for humanity. It also echoes a common theme which was found in First Century Judaism: the idea that there would only be a small remnant of faithful Jews who would find favor in God’s sight.[2]
   
   
2. “Strive to enter through the narrow door…” (verse 24): Jesus’ answer is indirect and mysterious.[3] Jesus does not answer the question in a manner the questioner seems to want. Instead, Jesus’ answer invites further inquiry and thought. Jesus’ answer asks the listener to “do his/her part” in working out their faith. Jesus’ answer invites an ongoing effort in the life of faith. Jesus’ answer also places limits on the way to salvation….the narrow door’s image signifies an acceptable way, while there are other ways that are not acceptable.
   
   
3. “When once the owner of the house has got up and shut the door…” (verse 25): Jesus’ point here seems to be that there is an urgency which should be a part of our struggle to find the way to God. Jesus’ answer places time limits on our search. “Get up and get going, find the way while you can” seems to be the point in Jesus’ answer.
   
   
4. Indeed, some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last.” (verse 30): Here we have a reversal of roles, which is a very common theme in Luke’s Gospel account. The result of God’s action is unexpected, and is not based on normal human expectations.

Let’s turn our attention now to the meaning and application of Jesus’ teaching, first as it might have applied to Jesus’ original hearers, then to the church to whom Luke was writing, and finally, to us today.[4]

1. Jesus’ original hearers: The Gospels do not paint a very flattering picture of spiritual life in Jesus’ time…..Many Jews of 2,000 years ago seem to have placed a great deal of importance in their status as “God’s chosen people”, which was the result of an accident of birth. The portrait of spiritual life back then shows a people who were consumed with outward religious observance, but who were spiritually poor. People seemed to be following a whole lot of rules, but without a genuine orientation toward the truths of God. Complacency and pride seemed to be commonplace.
   
   
2. The church to whom Luke was writing: Many scholars think Luke penned his Gospel account late in the first century, perhaps in the period of the years 85 – 90 AD. About six decades had elapsed since Jesus’ death, resurrection and ascension. The church had eagerly looked toward the skies, awaiting Jesus’ return. But it’s possible that the church’s gaze had grown weary, waiting for the Second Coming to occur. Perhaps some in the church were beginning to ask themselves the question, “If we (the church) are going to be here for awhile (until the Second Coming), what are we going to do until that happens?”[5] And perhaps some in the church were beginning to focus on the church’s social aspects, or its worship habits. Maybe some were getting complacent with their status as God’s (new) “chosen people”. Jesus’ warnings would have applied directly to those misconceptions, if they were present in the First Century church, I think.
   
   
3. Twenty First Century Christians: We shouldn’t be too hard on the Judaism of Jesus’ day, nor on those to whom Jesus spoke the words, “Strive to enter through the narrow door.” For all the changes that occur over time in ways of living and in the cultures we create, human beings are still subject to a remarkably unvarying set of spiritual diseases. These diseases include: arrogance, pride, a focus on outward religious practice at the expense of true inner spiritual health, a reliance on our own abilities to perceive and know God’s truth, a sense that “we” are OK, but “they” are not, and so forth.

So, some lessons seem to pop out at us from the pages of Holy Scripture today. They might well include:

• Beware of spiritual arrogance. Because we know something of the truth of God, and have some familiarity with Him, it does not automatically follow that we know all there is to know. Nor can we stop our search for God. “Strive” Jesus commands us, an ongoing, open-ended command to do our part in coming to know God.
  
  
• There are limits to the way in which God can be found: Jesus firmly rejects some ways, while endorsing another. “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life”, Jesus says in John 14: 6. The way we know God is through the person and work of Jesus Christ, as it is revealed in Holy Scripture. For the Christian, the “word of God, written” remains the authoritative source of God’s revelation, the “narrow door” for us today. There are limits to our search for God, and without limits, there can be no community of faith.
  
  
• Be on the lookout for misplaced spiritual emphases: It’s easy to focus on outward religious observances, for that is what is most easily seen and practiced. But true spiritual maturity occurs when we realize that the things we do as part of our Christian worship are merely tools that are meant to enable us to see beyond the immediate realities of life into the mysterious realities of God. All good worship points beyond itself to the God who calls us into relationship with Him.
  
  
• Who’s “in” and who’s “out” might surprise us. Jesus calls us to look beneath the outward appearance into the orientation of the heart, which is the ultimate battleground upon which we strive to enter the narrow door.

May God’s Holy Spirit enable us as we strive to enter through the narrow door.

AMEN.

[1] Verse 24
[2] This theme was quite common among one of the Jewish groups which was extant in the First Century, the Essenes (who were the creators of the Dead Sea Scrolls).
[3] As we read the four Gospels, we can see that Jesus’ answers were quite often just that: indirect and mysterious, open-ended
[4] Such an approach to studying Holy Scripture can be quite helpful. Though we cannot know with certainty what the intended meaning might have been for the original hearers or for the church a writer might have been addressing, the grounds for applicability across the ages is found in the commonality of human experience, which changes little over time in its basic concerns and conditions.
[5] One of my New Testament professors in seminary maintains that this question was very much on the church’s mind late in the First Century.
.

12 Pentecost, Year C

"HYPOCRITES"
(Sermon text: Jeremiah 23: 23-29 & Luke 12: 49-56)
Given at St. Mark’s Church, West Frankfort, IL

Ever met a person who consistently “under judges” things, particularly things about their own beliefs and actions?

People with “under judgment” are hypocrites, a word that has come directly over into English (through Latin) from the Greek. If we take apart the word “hypocrite”, we see that it consists of a prefix “hypo”, which means “under”, and “crite”, which means “to judge”.

Jesus used the word “hypocrite” quite often to describe His opponents (often the Pharisees)….Why?...because their outward actions did not match their professed beliefs. Put more simply, their “insides didn’t match their outsides”.[1]

People whose “insides don’t match their outsides” are people who are under judging themselves. That is to say, they are blind to their own actions and words, seeing themselves, perhaps, as the center of authority for their own lives.

“Hypocrites”, “under judgers”….today’s Gospel text is all about blindness and self-centeredness.

Before we look at the Gospel text for today, and also at our Old Testament reading from the prophet Jeremiah, we might do well to remind ourselves of the setting for today’s Gospel text…For the past two Sundays, we’ve been reading from Luke, chapter 12, encountering tough texts that serve as “wake-up calls” to Jesus’ hearers, and to us….Two weeks ago, we heard Jesus tell the crowds not to “store up treasure for themselves”, while being poor toward God.[2] Then, last Sunday, we heard Jesus tell His disciples that they “must be ready”, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour”.[3]

Luke 12’s texts come crashing in on our little world, calling us to “wake up”! It might be tempting to try to turn the page and ignore Jesus’ warnings, but the lectionary forces us to fix our eyes firmly on Jesus’ words, allowing them to search our hearts, our minds, and our actions.

For Jesus is trying to get us to see that there is a source of authority outside of ourselves, telling us what God’s will is for us as believers, telling us what the sources of authority are, telling us how the beliefs which are formed by God’s authority will shape our actions.

Jesus’ words are a call to avoid being an “under judger” of our own beliefs and actions, a “hypocrite”.

If we are to avoid being an “under judger”, a “hypocrite”, what should we try to see clearly, then? (After all, what we believe and how we believe will ultimately shape our actions, so beliefs and the grounds for believing are very important.)

Two areas come to mind, and so here, we turn first to our Gospel reading for today, and then to our reading from Jeremiah:

1. The evidence before us: In addressing the crowds from today’s reading from Luke, Jesus says, “When you see a cloud rising in the west, immediately you say, ‘it’s going to rain,’, and it does. And when the south winds blows, you say, “It’s going to be hot,’ and it is. Hypcrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and the sky. How is it that you don’t know how to interpret this present time?”[4]
   
   Essentially, Jesus’ words boil down to this: interpret the meaning of what you are witnessing by the evidence before you.
   
   The evidence before Jesus’ disciples and the crowds who following Him
   was Jesus Himself! It consisted of the restoration of sight to the blind, the healing of the lame, the curing of those afflicted with leprosy, the healing of the deaf, the raising of the dead, and also the preaching of the Good News of the approach of the Kingdom of God.[5]
   
   
2. Beware of wisdom that comes from our own minds: “I have dreamed, I have dreamed”, the Old Testament prophet Jeremiah says, quoting the false prophets who are spreading their false wisdom, the “delusions of their own minds”.[6]
   
   The human mind is a marvelous creation, capable of ingenious solutions to innumerable problems and situations.
   
   But it is also capable of imagining things that come only from our own imaginations, and that seems to be exactly Jeremiah’s point. For the words of the false prophets of Jeremiah’s time[7] proved to be wrong: God’s chosen people were carried off just as Jeremiah warned they would be. All was not well, after all, as these false prophets had claimed.

Being able to judge the evidence before us, and to avoid falling into the trap of believing the false wisdom of our own imaginations is all about being able to avoid being an “under judger”, a “hypocrite”.

Being able to see ourselves clearly, and to allow our “outsides to match our insides” is essentially a condition in which we admit there is a source of authority that outside of us, and is greater than we are. In other words, that authority is God Himself.

But how can we avoid being “hypocrites”, allowing God’s wisdom and authority to shape our beliefs and our actions? Where can we find the sources of authority that will allow us to shape our lives into God’s plan for the human race?

Three answers come to mind:[8]

1. Holy Scripture: The ultimate source of authority for the believer is “God word, written”, or Holy Scripture, the Bible. Holy Scripture is the source from which we see God’s working in human history and in people’s lives, ultimately working in the person and the work of Jesus Christ.
   
   In order to tap into this source of authority, it’s necessary to spend time reading the Bible, studying it, applying its teachings to our lives, allowing its divine wisdom to shape and mold our knowing and acting.
   
   
2. Reason: Part of our humanity, as it is created by God, is the ability to understand something of the nature and will of God with our minds, and our ability to reason. As I consider this aspect of being “created in God’s image”,[9] I think it’s part of the imprint of God Himself that has been given to each of us.
   
   So, with our minds, we can understand something of the nature of God, and of God’s will for our lives.
   
   
3. Tradition: Tradition essentially consists of the beliefs and actions of the Body of Christ, down through the ages. What has been believed, “generally, by all, in every time” is at the root of what tradition is.
   
   Put another way, tradition is all about consistency of belief and action, God’s people working out their faith and the actions that come from believing, as they apply Holy Scripture to their lives, using reason and the history of God’s people to supplement (but not take the place of) Holy Scripture.[10]

“Hypocrites!” “Under judgers”…..people whose “insides don’t match their outsides”

Jesus warns us today to judge correctly the evidence before us, evidence that is found in the person and work of Jesus Christ. It is a call to recognize that God’s wisdom is greater than our own. It is a call to be on our guard against believing that our own thoughts and actions are the ultimate source of wisdom and authority.

May God’s Holy Spirit enable us to see Jesus Christ, and God the Father, clearly.

AMEN.

[1] This quote is attributable to the Rt. Rev. Peter H. Beckwith, Bishop of Springfield.
[2] Luke 12: 13 - 21
[3] Luke 12: 32 - 40
[4] Verses 34 & 35
[5] Luke records Jesus’ list of His good works in 7: 22 – 23.
[6] Jeremiah 23: 26
[7] 6th century, B.C.
[8] These three sources of authority were formulated by the Anglican theologian Richard Hooker (1554 – 1600).
[9] Genesis 1: 27
[10] Hooker maintains that Holy Scripture is the primary source of authority. Reason and Tradition follow it. Hence, there is no “three legged stool” where authority is concerned.

11 Pentecost, Year C

“WILLINGNESS”
(Sermon text: Luke 12: 32 – 40)
Given at Trinity Church, Mt. Vernon, IL, Saturday, August 11th, 2007; and at the Church of the Redeemer, Cairo, IL, Sunday, August 12th, 2007

“Willing hands and a willing heart”….a three-by-five card bears those words in the stack of the prayer cards I use during daily Morning Prayer to guide my prayers.[1] Nearly every day, as I read those words and then form them into a prayer before God, I try to reflect on some aspect of how willing – or unwilling – my hands have been to serve, or my heart has been to listen and to move on God’s behalf.

“Willing hands and a willing heart”…..to be willing to do what, exactly? Well, several things come to mind, including: 1. a willingness to see the big (or bigger) picture of what God is doing in my life, in the lives of the people who are entrusted to my care, and in the life of the church and the world; 2. a willingness to be watchful for the needs of others; and 3. a willingness to work for the spread of God’s kingdom, both now in this world, and for the world to come.

And so, today, we have before us a passage from Luke’s gospel account, and the reading we’ve just heard has a lot to do with willingness and watchfulness.

Let’s turn our attention to Luke’s record of Our Lord’s teaching, then, looking first at some of the images that Jesus uses. Then, we would do well to draw some lessons that apply equally to the late-first-century church to whom Luke was writing, and to us as modern-day Christians.

As we examine the text today, two images merit some clarification:

1. “Be dressed for action, and have your lamps burning”:[2] Here, the Greek literally is “have your loins girded”[3], and the image is of a person who is dressed in an ankle length garment, who has tucked the garment up into the waistbelt so as to be able to move quickly and easily to do the work at hand. The image of the burning lamp has an echo in Matthew 25: 1 – 13 (the Parable of the Bridesmaids), where the burning lamp signifies –as it does here in Luke 12 – a readiness for the return of the master to the house.
   
   
2. “Wedding banquet”: Here, the image of the wedding banquet has eschatological significance. We should pause for a moment and define the word “eschatological”. It means “the last and final things, the Last Judgment”, and is derived from the Greek word eschatois (meaning “last”). The eschatological symbolism of the wedding banquet is probably stronger in Matthew than it is in Luke, since the Parable of the Bridesmaids (Matthew 25: 1 – 13) falls within a lengthy part of Matthew which has to do with the Final Judgment.[4] Nevertheless, for Jesus’ hearers and for Luke’s church, the significance of the image was, no doubt, probably very clear.

In summary, Jesus is talking about “the big picture” of God’s intentions for the world, for the human race, and for God’s people.

And speaking directly to God’s people, the message of Jesus’ teaching seems to be focused squarely on a willingness to work and to see the bigger picture, and on a watchfulness for Our Lord’s coming again in power and with great might, even as He is present with His people in the meantime.

Luke recorded Jesus’ teaching on this matter, perhaps because the church to whom he was writing was getting tired of waiting and watching for Jesus’ return. At least that was one of my seminary professors’ theory, and I think it holds a certain amount of credibility….Perhaps the church of the late first century was beginning to take its eyes off the skies, waiting for the trumpet call to announce the Lord’s return. Perhaps the church of that day was beginning to concern itself with the everyday cares that life – then as now – imposes on us.

Maybe some in the church were beginning to get sloppy with their prayer life, with their worship life, and with their works of charity by which the church distinguished itself from the dog-eat-dog world of the Roman Empire. Maybe some in the church began to be concerned only with their own welfare, content to be God’s new Chosen People in Jesus Christ, receivers only of God’s goodness and love without a corresponding requirement to share that goodness and love beyond themselves. Maybe they were beginning to think it was “all about them”, and that they could play an ecclesiastical version of “while the Cat’s away, the mice will play”, behaving as though the lives they were leading had no significance or consequence outside of their own existence, as if God wasn’t watching their actions and their attitudes.

For “willing hands and a willing heart”, we pray….Why?

Because, if left to our own devices (and I speak personally here, but in the hopes that what I confess here will prompt you to examine your own hearts and consciences), isn’t it true that we can become fully trained practitioners of the art of “making it all about me”? Won’t we try to get away doing as little as possible for the welfare of our spiritual life, and for the betterment of others? Couldn’t we fritter away enormous amounts of precious, God-given time on personal pleasure and pursuits? (Note that I am not saying personal pleasures and pursuits aren’t valuable parts of our lives – only that an inordinant focus on them can easily crowd out the more important – and enduring – things of God all too easily.) Can’t the everyday concerns of living life crash in and crowd out the things of God?

The answer to all of these questions is probably “yes”. I know am entirely too proficient at being lazy, of trying to just “get by” spiritually, of wasting a good deal of time on personal pursuits and pleasures, and of fixing my eyes squarely on the “stuff” of everyday life.

I suspect the church of Luke’s day was capable of all of those things, as well.

So what corrective does Our Lord’s teaching offer us for these ills today?

Notice that Jesus uses the image of master[5] and slave (or servant). And Jesus paints a picture of the master (or Lord) who, as he goes away:

• Trusts his servants to be ready to work and to be watching for his return.
  
  
• Motivates his servants with love, not force.
  
  
• Provides (through his provision of a house and all that goes with it) for his servants during his absence (denoting a continuing presence through the provisions made for the servants).
  
  
• Seeks to serve them (which is a sharp reversal of roles).[6]

“The more things change, the more they stay the same”, the old saying goes….For
Christians down through the ages, the ability to be watchful, to be willing to do God’s work in the world, and to see the bigger picture of God’s acting in the world, the “unseen-yet-present” presence of God in the world and in our lives, remains a daunting challenge.

For the “stuff” of life too easily crowds the things of God out. Personal pleasures and pursuits too easily take a higher priority than our spiritual welfare. Watching for God’s working in the world, and for His coming to us in the people and the needs He places before us becomes a seemingly impossible task for us to maintain.

So, for “willing hands and a willing heart” O God, we pray.

AMEN.


[1] Using 3 X 5 cards to guide and shape one’s prayer life isn’t a novel – or even original – idea. I commend it to you as a means of remembering those persons and things which should be remembered in prayer. It also enables us believers to remember the thanks we should be giving to God, and particularly the singular events that grace our lives.
[2] Verse 35
[3] Which is the way the Authorized Version (King James) translates it.
[4] The entire sequence of Jesus’ teaching on the Final Judgment is found in Matthew 23: 1 – 25: 46.
[5] The Greek word Jesus uses is “Lord” (kyrios).
[6] Reversal of roles is a consistently found theme in Luke’s gospel account.

10 Pentecost, Year C

"FOCUS"
Proper 13: Ecclesiastes 1: 12 – 14; 2: 18 – 23; Psalm 49; Colossians 3: 5 – 17; Luke 12: 13 – 21
Given at St. Mark’s Church, West Frankfort, IL; and at St James’ Memorial Church, Marion, IL

“I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.’”[1]

Many Bibles apply the title of “The Parable of the Rich Fool” to today’s Gospel reading. Essentially, the parable before us today is a story of self-centeredness and greed. It is the story of a man who is fully dedicated to the principle of “me, myself, and I!” It is the story of a man who is so self-centered that he can’t even remember that his hired hands probably helped him gather the great harvest that was now his.[2] It is a story of a man who is wise in the ways of the world, but foolish toward the things of God.

It is also the story of a sharp and swift reversal of roles….the rich man, surrounded by the rich harvest of his fields and his goods, loses them all as God’s voice rings out, saying, “You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?”

As we’ve been doing with many of our readings from Luke’s gospel (which we are making our way through during this third year – Year C – of our cycle of readings), let’s approach today’s text by looking first at some of the features of our reading that are common to Luke, and then let’s attempt to draw some conclusions for the church to whom Luke was writing. Finally, the lessons that are applicable to the church of the first century are also applicable to us in many ways, so we will do well to consider those, as well.

We should begin by looking at some of the features of today’s story that are common to Luke’s writing style….

The first thing we notice is something we’ve already mentioned in passing, and that would be the reversal of roles for the rich – but foolish – farmer. Even as he is thinking to himself, “take it easy….eat, drink and be merry”, God’s voice breaks in to tell the man that that very night his soul will be demanded of him, with the result that he will lose everything he currently has. Luke spends a good bit of his writing time describing such role reversals…Consider the passage from the Song of Mary (the Magnificat)[3] which says, “He has brought down the rulers from their thrones, but has lifted up the humble, He has filled the hungry with good things, but the rich He has sent away empty.”[4]

The other feature of Jesus’ teaching before us today is the presence of eating and drinking….There’s lots of “eating and drinking” in Luke….Luke often uses the image in two ways: 1. Table fellowship, which signifies acceptance and which is able to form community,[5] and 2. excessive, self-centered consumption.[6]

What might Jesus’ parable have meant to the first century church that Luke was addressing as he wrote his gospel account?

If, as one of my seminary professors maintained, Luke was writing to a church that was grappling with the realization that Jesus might not come back again as soon as had been expected, a church that perhaps was becoming a little too comfortable in the late-first-century Roman world, Jesus’ teaching would come as a wake-up call….

“Don’t get too comfortable!” He seems to be saying.

“Consider the bigger picture, change your focus” seems to be the message….

Unlike the Rich Fool, who forgot that the abundance of the creation that God provided made possible the huge harvest he had gathered, you first-century Christians need to remember that it is God who sustains you, Luke might be reminding them. “Just who makes possible everything that you have?” Jesus’ teaching seems to be asking.

“Remember that the abundance of God’s creation is meant as an occasion for sharing with others, not to indulge yourself” might be Our Lord’s call to Luke’s church.

Above all, remember that God’s call to us is immediate….”This very night” shows the immediacy and the urgency of God’s call to “wake up”.

And what about us, 21st century believers? What implications are there in Jesus’ teaching for us?

Not surprisingly, the message to us is remarkably similar to the message Luke meant to convey to his readers:

“Don’t get too comfortable.”

“Consider the bigger picture, change your focus.”

“Remember that God is the provider of everything we have.”

“This very night” rings out to us, as well, its call to remember the urgency of God’s call day-by-day.

But, as similar as our situation might be to those early, first-century Christians, we would do well to remember that we are living in a culture that encourages self-centeredness. We live in a society that celebrates “conspicuous consumption” of all sorts. We are surrounded by a world that wants to forget that God is the origin of all things that are necessary for sustaining life.

We can easily forget that “there are no U Hauls in heaven”, and that all those good things we now enjoy, we enjoy because of God’s goodness and providence.

But, in the final analysis, our relationship with God is the only thing we will take away from this world.

AMEN.



[1] Luke 12: 19 (NIV)
[2] Jesus does not explicitly provide this detail in his parable, but it seems possible to assume, given that Jesus does tell us that the man was rich, and that he had a great harvest. Presumably, the man could not have done all the work necessary to gain such a harvest by himself.
[3] Luke 1: 46 - 55
[4] Verses 52 & 53
[5] Luke 7: 33 & 34 provides an example of table fellowship, where dining together denotes acceptance of the other diners. In this passage, Jesus is accused of being a drunkard and a glutton, following incidents where he has eaten with tax collectors and sinners.
[6] The Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus is an example of self-centered consumption (Luke 16: 19 – 31).