Pentecost 5, Year B (2018)

Job 38: 1–11; Psalm 107: 1–3, 23–32; II Corinthians 6: 1–13; Mark 4:  35–41

This is the homily given at St. John’s, Huntingdon, Pennsylvania, by Fr. Gene Tucker on Sunday, June 24, 2018.

“THE CREATOR, IN CHARGE OF THE CREATED ORDER”

(Homily texts: Job 38: 1–11 & Mark 4: 35–41)

During this season of Pentecost, the Revised Common Lectionary (known as the RCL) offers us a choice of Old Testament readings. This preacher’s default position in choosing which of the options offered is to take the one that has something in common with the Gospel text for the day.

So it is, in this morning’s choice, that we have an excellent match for the Gospel’s account of Jesus’ stilling of the storm on the Sea of Galilee in a reading from Job, in which God makes it clear that it is He, the creator of all things, who has set limits for the waters of the sea.

Both readings have to do with the ordering and continuing control of the creation. God sets the boundaries for the sea in our reading from Job, and Jesus exercises control over the unruly waters of the Sea of Galilee in our Mark reading.

There is much more going on in these two passages than meets the eye. (I can’t resist saying that that is often the case with Holy Scripture, for Scripture’s intent is to tell us something about God, and about how God interacts with humankind.)

To be able to dig into the deeper meaning and import of these two passages, we will need to delve into the mindset of the Ancient Near East (ANE).

Evidence of this mindset can be found in the creation account as we find it in Genesis. There, we read that God’s Spirit moved over the face of the waters of the deep. Then, God created light (Genesis 1: 3), and God saw that the light was good. Next, Genesis tells us that God separated the waters that were in the heavens from the waters that were under the heavens (Genesis 1: 6 – 8a). Then, God said, “Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear.” (Genesis 1: 9)

Let’s stop right there, since our two readings for this morning have to do with water.

The worldview of the ANE was that God had ordered the waters to be in their appointed place, while the dry land would appear in the midst of those waters.

So the importance of the account of the Great Flood and of Noah’s ark has to do with the “un-ordering” of this orderly design for the world. The Genesis (Genesis 6: 9 – 7: 24) account of the flood tells us that, not only did it rain for forty days, but that the waters of the deep burst forth as well. The theological truth of the flood account is that God judged the world by allowing His hand of control to be withdrawn for a period of time. Consequently, the waters burst out of their appointed place.

(A related aspect of the understandings of the ANE can be found in the worldview of water springs: Since good quality water came forth from springs (usually), and because that water came in an orderly, usable way, springs were seen as evidence of God’s goodness. In addition, those ancient people of God regarded God’s holy mountain in Jerusalem as being a place where springs of water flowed downward, carrying blessings with them, from the Temple in Jerusalem.)

Now, let’s move to our passage from Mark.

Here, we find the disciples in a boat, attempting to cross the Sea of Galilee. Jesus is fast asleep on a cushion at the back of the boat. But the boat is being beaten by the wind and the waves, and is in danger of being swamped. (Even today, it is common knowledge for people who live around the Sea of Galilee that, due to its location in a basin which is surrounded by hills, that windstorms can arise suddenly.)

So the disciples wake the Lord up, and ask if He doesn’t care that they are about to die. In response, he commands the wind and the sea, saying, “Peace! Be still!”

What’s going on here?

Simply this:  The waters weren’t in their appointed place, they were out-of-control. Jesus exercises the power of God to put this disorder back into order.

The message is that Jesus possesses the power of the Creator over the creation.

In time, the Church will affirm that Jesus is the Son of God, eternally begotten (a word meaning to “flow forth from”) Son of the Father, one in being and substance with the Father, one who is co-eternal with the Father.

Here we have proof of Jesus’ true identity. More proof will be provided until that day when Jesus rose from the dead on Easter Sunday morning. There, in that event, we have the best and most complete proof, for God raised Jesus, the Son, to life again. God, the Creator, renewed His Son, bringing Him back to life.

The early followers of Jesus, many of whom had come to know the truth of God from the witness of those who had seen the risen Jesus on Easter Sunday (and following) came to the knowledge of God through the things that had been done in Jesus.

Our task is that very same task: To come to know God the Father, Creator of all things, through God the Son, who is God with us, Emmanuel.

If these things are true, then Truth in its fullest and deepest form is to be found here in the things God has done in Christ.

If you and I come to know these things through the lens of faith, then we will be forever changed, as those first disciples-who-would-become-Apostles came to know them. Their lives were changed as a result of their encounter with Jesus, and our lives will be changed, as well, if we come to know these things as those Apostles came to know them. Then, we will have found our deepest, truest selves and the greatest purpose for living.

AMEN.

Pentecost 4, Year B (2018)

Proper 6 :: Ezekiel 17: 22–24; Psalm 92: 1–4, 11–14; II Corinthians 5: 6–17; Mark 4: 26–34

This is the homily given at St. John’s, Huntingdon, Pennsylvania, by Fr. Gene R. Tucker on Sunday, June 17, 2018.

“OF GROWING THINGS AND A LIVING FAITH”

(Homily texts:  Ezekiel 17: 22–24 & Mark 4: 26–4)

Let’s engage in a bit of free association this morning, using our reading from the Old Testament prophet Ezekiel and our Gospel text, which contains two of Jesus’ parables, as the jumping off point. Both readings have something to do with growing things

Ezekiel’s writing takes the image of a twig, which – when broken off – is planted on a mountain in Israel, where it grows and provides goodness under its boughs. Jesus’ two parables also have to do with growing things: The first parable describes the mystery of the growth of seeds that are planted, while the second parable is the familiar Parable of the Mustard Seed.

Holy Scripture frequently uses the image of plants, planting and agriculture as a way to understand God’s goodness and our relationship with Him. For example, in the Old Testament, Israel is often described as being a vine, planted in a vineyard[1]. In the New Testament, we read many of the Lord’s parables which use an agricultural theme.

God’s people in those ancient times would have been very familiar with the ways of plants, plantings and agriculture. They, perhaps more than we are capable of today (because many of us are removed from living a life which is connected to the ways of farming) could easily identify with the images used. Even though many in today’s culture aren’t engaged in farming or in growing things, we are still capable of understanding and appreciating the imagery.

So, let’s turn our attention to the matters of faith, toward our walk with God, using the imagery of growing things.

Rootedness:  Every plant needs a good root system, which draws nutrients and water up into the plant, allowing for good growth. The roots also support the plant when they are firmly anchored in the soil. So, too, with our life in God, are we dependent upon the foundation for our faith. That foundation rests on the record of God’s interaction with His people in times past. The principle source for this foundation is Holy Scripture, for “God’s word written”, the Bible, consists of the record of God’s moving among the people He has claimed for His own possession. It is our task to become more and more rooted in the pages and in the truth of Holy Scripture, drawing sustenance for our walk of faith today. The foundation that the Bible provides anchors us in the tradition of God’s people.

The stem (or trunk) of faith: Many plants have some way of connecting the leaves of its branches to the root system which provides nutrients. The Christian faith maintains that that connection to God’s interacting with humankind is Jesus Christ. For it is He who came to allow us to dig our roots more deeply into the truths of God as those truths had been received from the prophets and sages of old. In so doing, our Lord had to crowd out the corrosive effects of misguided beliefs and practices as He found them in the time and place in which He came to us: He had to confront the Pharisees with their legalistic outlook on what a proper walk with God should look like; and He had to confront the religious authorities of His day, whose love affair with earthly power and prestige allowed them to collaborate with the Romans to do away with anyone who dared to confront that power. In so doing, our Lord restored to God’s people a proper relationship with His Father. He reminded them of the power of God’s love. He reminded them that God’s deepest desire for His people was that they would follow God’s commandments out of love, not out of fear of punishment.

Light:  It’s no wonder that the creation account we read in the Book of Genesis, chapter one, tells us that the first thing that God created was light. All growing things need light in order to grow. We human beings – along with the animal kingdom – also need light in order to live.[2]  The Bible talks a lot about light. Our Christian walk informs us that the Holy Spirit’s work involves the enlightenment of the Lord’s people. Jesus said to His disciples, “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth…” (John 16: 13b) So the Holy Spirit enlightens and informs us, allowing us to receive God’s truth as we receive it from the pages of Holy Scripture.

These three ingredients of growing things illustrate the ways in which our walk with God is dependent on the rootedness of our faith, which is grounded in the record of God’s dealings with humankind in times past. Our walk with God is also dependent on the strength of the stem or trunk which is Jesus Christ, whose work connects us to God’s truth. And finally, our walk with God is also dependent on the light of the Holy Spirit.

These three things work together, one aspect of them assisting and aiding another, to build us up in our faith walk.

AMEN.

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[1]   Some examples are:  Psalm 80: 8–15, Isaiah 5: 1–7 and Jeremiah 12: 10.

[2]   Not long ago, I toured a cavern. There, those of us who were taking the tour were told that, if we stayed in the total darkness of the cave for a very long period of time (I can’t recall how long that would take), our eye would lose the ability to see. That’s just one example of our need for light.

Pentecost 3, Year B (2018)

PROPER 5:  Genesis 3: 8–15; Psalm 130; II Corinthians 4: 13 – 5: 1; Mark 3: 20–35

(This is the homily that was given at St. John’s, Huntingdon, Pennsylvania by Fr. Gene Tucker on Sunday, June 10, 2018)

“IT’S ALL ABOUT RELATIONSHIPS”

Homily texts:  Genesis 3: 8–15 & Mark 3: 20–35)

Our lectionary cycle of appointed readings sets before us an Old Testament reading and a Gospel reading which, at first glance, don’t seem to have much of anything in common with one another. The Old Testament reading is from Genesis, chapter three, which recounts to us the encounter that Adam and Eve have with God after they have eaten of the tree that was “off limits” to them. Our Gospel reading records Jesus’ encounter with those who ascribe His miraculous acts to the powers of evil, an encounter which then leads to the Lord’s redefinition of what one’s spiritual family will look like.

If we dig into both of these passages a bit, we’ll discover (I think) a common link:  They each have to do with relationships.

In the Genesis reading, relationships are being destroyed…relationships with God, relationships between those first two human beings, Adam and Eve, and the relationship between humankind and the created order.

In the Gospel reading, Jesus is working to build, rebuild and re-establish relationships.

We begin our journey of discovery with Genesis.

(I will confess to you that this passage is one of my favorite passages in all of Holy Scripture. In a very real sense, we might correctly understand this part of Genesis to be a “Primer on the Ways in which Evil Works”. Of course, in considering this text, we would do well to remember that what we are dealing with is Myth….I am using this word not in the sense of something being a myth because it is untrue, but because Myth (with a capital “T”) conveys an ultimate Truth (with a capital “T”) to us; something that is so True that it is often best described in song, in poems, or in stories.)

As we consider the Genesis text, we should back up just a few verses, and begin with the first part of Genesis, chapter three. There, we discover that Eve has been tempted by evil (personified by the serpent or snake). Evil works by prompting us to doubt God’s word, and so the serpent begins his work by asking Eve, “Did God say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden?’” From this starting point, you know what happens next:  Eve takes of the fruit of the tree, eats it, gives some to Adam, and he, too, eats it. Then, Genesis tells us, the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked.

This brief summary brings us to the beginning of our appointed reading for this morning.

As God approaches Adam and Eve, after having found them hiding in the Garden of Eden, He discovers that their eyes have, indeed, been opened. They now know the difference between good and evil.  God asks them to tell Him what happened, and what we read next is a typical “pass the buck” conversation:  Adam blames Eve for inviting him to do what God had said was off-limits, and then Eve, in turn, blames the serpent.

We can draw the following points from this entire episode (which is generally known by the term The Fall):

Doubting the truth of God and of God’s commands: The serpent begins by asking Eve to recount what God had told her. If we go back to the text, we see that she can’t recount God’s instructions exactly. But the serpent begins by asking, “Did God say……?” And then the serpent directly opposes what God said, adding, “You won’t die….you’ll be like God, knowing good and evil”.

Evil separates one human being from another: Notice that the serpent approaches Eve only, even though (apparently) Adam is either right next to her, or is close by. Evil often works in this manner, seeking to separate or to alienate one of us from another. Put into our own cultural context today, we can see evil at work in the various addictions that people fall prey to, for people who become victims of addictions often feel alone or are alienated from others. Instead of having the mutual support and encouragement of others, victims of addictions sometimes feel they are all alone.

So, by succumbing to the temptations that evil places before us, we can conclude from this account that the intent of evil is to destroy our relationship with God, our relationship with one another, and even our relationship with the created order around us (notice the estrangement with the serpent that results from the actions of Adam and Eve).

Enmity with the created order: The final outcome of Adam and Eve’s transgression is the building of a wall of separation with the created order. The text conveys this truth to us by establishing the adversarial relationship between Eve (and her seed) and the serpent (and its seed). Moreover, the effects of the sins of these two human beings produces fallout for the animal kingdom, for God kills some animals to make clothing for Adam and Eve. Our relationship, as human beings, with the animal kingdom is forever changed.

In our Gospel text this morning, we find Jesus doing just the opposite:  He is building and rebuilding relationships with God.

In our discovery of the Genesis text, we backed up a few verses in order that we might set the stage for the passage that was read this morning. We need to do the same with the Mark account we hear this morning, and begin with the appointed text from last Sunday.

In Mark 3: 1–6, Jesus heals a man who had a withered hand. He did this on the sabbath, in the synagogue.

To our contemporary senses, this would appear to be simply an act of healing, and nothing more. But, set in the culture of the day, a person with a deformity such as a withered hand would have been cut off from the possibility of having a full relationship with God, for such a person could not enter the temple to offer sacrifices, as the Law of Moses required. Furthermore, such a person might well have been regarded as having done some great offense against God, which had resulted in God’s judgment by causing (or allowing) the man’s hand to wither. Relationship with God is impeded, and relationships with others are also threatened.

Now, in the passage we hear this morning, Jesus is accused of being able to do the things He is doing because the powers of evil reside in Him. He responds by pointing out that evil (Satan) cannot cast evil out.

(In our examination of the relationship-building work the Lord is undertaking in today’s Gospel, we would remiss if we didn’t take notice of the Lord’s solemn warning about the unforgiveable sin: Blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. Since many people often worry about whether or not they are guilty of such a sin, the markers of such sin ought to be explained:  Blasphemy of the Holy Spirit consists of assigning to the powers of evil the powers that belong to God. In today’s passage, then, the Lord condemns those who are claiming that He has the power to heal because He is working through the agency and power of evil. God’s power is most often applied to creating things. The powers of evil are focused on destroying things. Rest assured, the great majority of us have never assigned the powers of evil to the things that God alone does.)

Now, let’s return to our consideration of the nature of the relationship-building that’s going on in the Lord’s work.

Jesus’ family has come to take Him away, for many are beginning to think that He has lost his sensibilities. And so, having dealt with the condemnation of the scribes who have assigned to Him the powers of evil, Jesus then redefines what a person’s family really looks like: That person who has come to be a disciple of Jesus will have a family which will consist of all those who set about doing God’s work.

We draw the following conclusions from these events:

Restoring relationships: Jesus works to restore and to rebuild relationships with God, and with each other. It’s worthwhile noting that much of what Jesus came to do was to unravel the effects of Adam and Eve’s transgressions in the Garden of Eden. (No wonder St. Paul will call Jesus the Second Adam.)[1] Jesus restores the man with the withered hand to a full relationship with God, and He removes any suspicions that the man’s neighbors and family might have harbored about the condition of the man’s holiness.

Expanding the definition of family: Jesus tells us that a person’s family isn’t going to consist of one’s own blood relatives, but that this new family will consist of all who set themselves about the business of doing God’s work in the world. This new family will be made up of people from all different cultures and nations, of all different backgrounds, of all different perspectives. All who have surrendered their wills and their lives to God will make up this new family. Surely, the early Church saw itself in such a way, for the early Church challenged the tribal notions of the culture of the time, which put great emphasis on one’s heritage, place of origin, and blood relationships. We would do well to remember that expanding the idea of relationship with God and with one another was the focus of much of St. Paul’s missionary work to spread the Good News of the Gospel to the Gentiles.

God, in Christ, sets about to restore us to a full and right relationship with God, with each other, and with the created order in the world around us. God, in Christ, seeks to undo the effects of our human rebellion against God and against God’s way and will in the world.

AMEN.       

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[1]   See In Corinthians 15: 42–49.

Pentecost 2, Year B (2018)

I  Samuel 3: 1–20; Psalm 139: 1–5, 12–17; II Corinthians 4: 5–12; Mark 2: 23 – 3: 6

This is the homily given at St. John’s Church; Huntingdon, Pennsylvania by Fr. Gene Tucker on Sunday, June 3, 2018.

“AVOIDING THE EXTREMES: THE ANGLICAN WAY”

(Homily text: Mark 2: 23 – 3: 6)

With the arrival of the season after Pentecost, we return to our journey through the Gospel according to Mark. (It’s been a delight to spend our time in the Easter season in John’s Gospel account.)

In today’s passage, Jesus is confronted by the Pharisees, who take issue with the behavior of Jesus’ disciples, who were seen plucking grain in the field on the Sabbath day.

At the root of this encounter is a question which has to do with what’s essential and what’s not. To the Pharisees, even a small violation of the sanctity of the Sabbath was a major offense.

Perhaps one of the hardest issues for God’s people to wrestle with is the matter of what’s acceptable and what’s not. Put another way, the question has to do with what’s essential and what’s not.[1]

In the situation before us this morning, the matter of violating the Sabbath by plucking grain was an essential matter, a matter not subject to any variation of understanding or interpretation. Obviously, Jesus takes issue with the legalistic approach that we often see in the Pharisees’ behavior, declaring that “the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.” To buttress His response, Jesus cites the example of King David’s eating of the Bread of the Presence in the Tabernacle, and act that violated the provision that such bread was reserved for the use of the priests.

The Pharisees’ approach to a walk with God represents an extreme: An extreme of legalistic, rigid application of the Law of Moses. Jesus’ response refuses to take the opposite extreme, one in which there are no rules and no expected norms of behavior. Instead, Jesus’ response seems to put the relationship between human beings and the rules by which human beings are expected to live in a more nuanced and balanced environment. (I can’t resist adding:  Could it be that Jesus was really an Anglican, valuing a balanced view such as this?)

This last point brings us back to the matter of avoiding extremes. One way we can determine how best to live is by looking at the extremes in any situation that comes our way as we walk the walk of faith.

On the one hand, there is the legalistic, rigid approach that we see in the Pharisees. That approach to faith and life is alive and well in the age in which we live. Some Christians, for example, have a set of rules that proscribes certain behaviors. (I’ll let you fill in the blanks with examples.) Other rules might dictate certain norms of dress. Often the harsh and hasty judgment of the Pharisees is present in contemporary Christians who behave in such ways.

But allow me to say the opposite extreme is just a bad….Some who claim the name of Christ feel free to act as if there are no boundaries to the faith, no rules beyond which one may go and still be a disciple of Jesus. (Again, I’ll allow your imagination to fill in the blanks.)

A mature way to life as a disciple of Jesus Christ lies somewhere in the middle of these two extremes. Such a balanced way of living will allow for people to fall short of God’s high standards without harsh condemnation. Instead, the mature Christian will recognize times in which God’s forgiveness and mercy have been present in their own lives, and will extend that same forgiving and merciful approach to those who’ve lost their way. In such a way, the wandering believer can be restored to a wholesome relationship with God and with others.

We ought to be honest and say, at this point, that determining what is the best way to be faithful to the Lord’s desires for us can be a daunting task, one which is filled with the need to weigh one good against another. It won’t be easy for us to determine what’s the best route to take in order to be faithful to God’s desires for us. Yes, there is a blueprint for our Christian walk, one that involves a study of Holy Scripture, one that involves an active prayer life, one that seeks to know the Lord more and more. And as all of that encounters the complexity of contemporary life, sticky situations will arise which will test our ability to make the most faithful, yet compassionate decisions.

So, yes, some things about our Christian walk aren’t essential, even if they are wonderfully rich ways with which to adorn our worship of God. We could say, looking at our own Anglican tradition, that having a Prayer Book, or a liturgy, isn’t essential to being a Christian. Lots of Christians live faithful lives without those things, as wonderfully rich as they are in our tradition.

Yet other things are absolutely essential, aren’t they? One example might be the witness of Holy Scripture. Another would be the central tenets of the Christian faith as we find them stated in the Nicene and Apostles’ Creeds.

The Anglican approach to the Christian life and walk is quite pragmatic. The Anglican way seeks to determine how it is that we might live faithfully in God’s sight in this present age and time. The Anglican way seeks to determine what is a rational and measured approach to the life of the Spirit, one which avoids extremes on both ends of the spectrum.

So perhaps the Lord was, really, an Anglican. (OK, that’s supposed to be a joke.) But, all joking aside, the Lord’s approach to the extremism of the Pharisees shows that He had high regard for the truths of God as they are contained in the Law of Moses, all the while realizing that the Law was given for the benefit of humankind, not the other way around.

AMEN.

       

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[1]   The technical terms which deals with what’s not essential is adiaphora, coming from the Greek.