In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people.
The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it. There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. He himself was not the light, but he came to testify to the light. The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world came into being through him; yet the world did not know him. He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him. But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God. And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth.
(John testified to him and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks ahead of me because he was before me.’”) From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. The law indeed was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God. It is God the only Son, who is close to the Father’s heart, who has made him known.
| Centering Prayer |
“In the beginning was the Word.”
The great philosopher John Locke observed
that words are “the sensible marks of ideas.”
In today’s gospel we learn that God has a new idea;
Indeed, God has a history of developing new ideas.
If God has a signature line, it would be
“I have a new idea!”
Experiencing our gospel fresh
Makes us think back to the original idea
From the words,
“In the beginning…”
Our gospel author intentionally calls to mind
The idea of Genesis;
That God was, and is, and will forever be
a God of creation.
Creation is God’s idea.
It is more than a plan.
It is God’s way of doing business;
An essential core of God’s divine nature.
God transformed an idea into action
And six days later the world as we know it
Was birthed and brought into being.
Our gospel author known as John
Tells us that God’s creation was fully God’s own.
God was, and is, responsible for every atom,
And all the space in-between,
in the cosmos.
Our divine Creator has a hand in
– Nature: earth, fire, air, and water
– Life: plants, animals, and humans
– Being: personality, conscience, and soul.
Being a God of new ideas,
Of always being in the business of creating,
Means that God is never stuck in the past,
Content to be a prisoner to what was,
what has been,
or how it was always done before.
And neither should we.
John paints a portrait of a forward leaning God,
Always on the cutting edge
Of transforming today’s dreams and ideas
into tomorrow’s reality.
It was, and is, an evolutionary leap forward
From just creating things
To creating life.
Yes, God evolved.
The idea that carbon-based cells
Can be filled with divine breath
And spring to life is simply astonishing.
God brought together physics and chemistry to create biology;
That the Holy Spirit might breath life into the world.
God has an intimate hand in the creation of each and every life,
– From seed to sperm,
from egg to mitosis,
from blood to every beating heart –
God has, and continues to be,
the one and only source of life.
Left to its own ends,
Life is pretty chaotic, unorganized, and ultimately meaningless.
Life without direction becomes self-centered, self-serving, and self-absorbed.
We live, we work, we procreate, we die.
We create artificial means to gauge success, such as money, property, or things.
But, at the end of the day,
life ends,
the body returns to ashes,
and everything we’ve accumulated is redistributed to the next generation.
Even God is able to see the futility of life lived inside a spinning wheel.
God’s new idea was to call, to covenant, to command, and to provide directive council.
It wasn’t enough to set the world into motion
Only to step back and watch the chaos begin.
God jumped in, made covenant with our father, Abraham,
To forever be our God, and we, God’s people.
God sent Moses,
Gave us Law, a framework for living together in peace, justice, and faithfulness.
Righteousness became our new salvation;
Life lived in complete harmony with our creator.
The Lord gave us direction,
Speaking through the voice of chosen prophets,
in an effort to reveal God’s divine will.
Judgment was quick, but just and fair.
One would think this would be a great plan;
An idea so good it would be
The last idea God would ever have to implement.
Yet, from the beginning,
From the very start,
When humans received the gift of personal will and free choice,
It is as if we’ve been in an eternal struggle with the very one who has given us life.
We are tempted to sin,
drawn to the darkness,
insistent on exercising our will.
We’ve never been able to let it go,
Let it be,
Or to just let God.
What was needed was a new idea.
Life by itself wasn’t sustainable.
God’s new creation,
Reported by John,
Is light, the light of all people.
God’s new idea,
Was to bridge the chasm between heaven and earth,
Directly enter this world through Mary’s womb,
And to become the guiding light;
that will overcome the darkness,
that will save all people.
“And the Word became flesh and lived among us.”
God’s new idea was to send us his son, Jesus.
The Word of God
Became the Flesh of God.
Instead of speaking through others,
God came, was born Jesus, and did the talking himself.
More than just talking, Jesus did the dying and the resurrecting, too!
In doing so,
Life took on new meaning.
Life became fulfilling.
Life took on a new purpose.
No longer are we simply meant to live, to breed, and to die.
We are meant to love, and to be loved
– to love our God, to love our neighbors, to love our enemies.
We are meant to forgive, and be forgiven
– to make things right with those we have crossed, to make things right with our God.
We are meant to save and to be saved
– to live forever redeemed, restored, and perfected eternally giving glory to God.
Moses brought the Law.
Jesus brings grace;
Not a free pass, mind you;
Healing and restoration for all those we have broken
If only we ask for forgiveness
and desire to not sin again.
The light of Jesus reveals truth wherever it shines.
Secrets are no more.
Nothing can hide,
For darkness is no more.
The last vestiges of temptation and sin are conquered.
All is revealed to God
Who stands as our eternal arbitrator.
Grace and truth defines Jesus Christ
Just as creation is the signature of God.
Where does this leave us today?
2023, merely a week away, will be a new year,
filled with new opportunities,
yet, filled with the same old temptations.
The Word didn’t become flesh for us to continue to live in 2022,
1990, or 1965, for that matter.
God’s new idea is made into flesh
To bring love to the new year,
To spread forgiveness of sins and proclaim pardon in 2023,
To be God’s grace revealing God’s eternal saving truth in 2023.
Take a look at the people around you.
They may appear to be the same old family members and friends.
But each is filled with God’s new creation, new ideas, new possibilities for the New Year.
Ask yourself, “how is Christ working though you to bring love, redemption and salvation into the world?”
God is not only creating something new within you,
But something new within each and every one of us.
Take a look at this bread and this wine we are about to consume.
It may appear to be the same old communion served the same old way.
But in this bread and in this wine
– in this body and blood of Christ –
is grace
is the illuminating truth
that will not only sustain you,
but will continue to light your way today, tomorrow, and for the rest of your life.
“But about that day and hour no one knows, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. For as the days of Noah were, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day Noah entered the ark, and they knew nothing until the flood came and swept them all away, so too will be the coming of the Son of Man. Then two will be in the field; one will be taken and one will be left. Two women will be grinding meal together; one will be taken and one will be left. Keep awake therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. But understand this: if the owner of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour.
| Centering Prayer |
Fear is a powerful motivator.
Fear was an effective tactic used by Ms. Eggleston,
my 6th grade teacher.
We called her “Old Eagle Eye”
because of the way she stood at the end of the hall when we passed;
arms folded,
and looking over her cat eyed glasses.
Not much happened outside of her
all seeing power.
It was as if the hallway was the land of Mordor
and the eye of Sauron was always watching.
Fear is a powerful motivator for changing behavior.
I love trains;
not toy trains, mind you.
The real thing.
I love the railroad industry
and the horsepower, technology, the Surface Transportation Board, and people who make it go.
So I read as much industry information as possible;
I always have.
I’ve learned over the years,
by reading, direct observation, and talking with employees,
just how dangerous the rail industry is;
and it has been this way from the very start.
It is said
the rule book is founded
on the blood of railroad men and women who paid the price.
The result is perhaps the most strict work environment
any place on the planet.
In every American rail company,
rule violations by an employee quickly results
in swift, harsh punishment.
Qualifying for positions is hard, time consuming, and requires a lot of education.
One accident,
one error,
can quickly result in catastrophe.
As a result of decades of intense regulation and an emphasis on safety,
a railroad job today is one that has a very low risk of injury or death
compared to other industries.
If you fear for your job,
you’ll jump through hoops to keep it!
Fear is a powerful motivator.
Consider how fear is, or has been, weld:
Stalin, less your village be deported to the gulag or worse.
The Roman Catholic Church, lest you be sent to hell for your sins.
Putin and his thug army, lest your village be shelled to oblivion.
The school yard bully, lest you have your lunch money pounded out of you.
The SAT test, lest you not get into a good school
Stalin got a slowly simmering society but will no opposition.
The Pope used to (emphasis on past tense) get churches with filled pews.
Putin is destroying power, water, utilities, with the occasional apartment complex.
The school yard bully got two milks instead of one.
And educational tutoring services thrive in the months before each test.
It is hard to hear our Gospel for this morning and not be afraid.
It sounds like Jesus is using fear as a tactic
to keep his followers alert for his return.
Everyone is eating, drinking, and having a good time one day,
and only Noah and his family are left behind the next day.
Everyone else was killed.
(Yes, later-day interpreters
who insert into scripture misaligned rapture theology
get it backwards.
Noah didn’t get it backwards;
Noah and his family were the ones left behind.)
Two people working in the field.
One is taken and one is left.
Two people working the grist mill.
One is taken and one is left.
It all sounds rather arbitrary on the surface
but Jesus knows
that no two workers,
no two disciples,
are alike.
Some are eager to work
and are selected at six in the morning.
Those less eager
don’t get hired until the end of the day.
Jesus knows there is great diversity in the labor pool;
as there would be
great diversity among his followers.
Some will be all in,
other disciples,
will be persistent procrastinators.
Jesus knows the problems of identifying
that day and that hour.
He knows the nature and characteristic of people.
Everyone might stop working,
gather in Times Square
hold hands, and
start singing Kum Ba Yah.
There’d be chaos and pandemonium
if we knew the date and time.
His kingdom would REgress,
as opposed to PROgress,
which is what he desires.
“Better not to tell them,”
Jesus probably thought to himself.
“A little bit of fear is good for them
especially if it keep my disciples alert and awake.”
…
It is easy for us to look around our sanctuary today
and feel pretty smug.
We might feel like we will be the ones spared;
passed over, if you will.
After all, we’ve showed up.
We’ve ponied up.
We’ve dressed up.
We’re the ones who make the effort
week after week
to ensure our faithful presence, prayers, gifts, and service.
Why wouldn’t we be the ones spared by God.
Why wouldn’t we be
left behind to complete God’s kingdom?
Our Gospel for today calls us to self-examination;
are we doing everything possible
to remain alert and awake for imminent return of the Son of Man?
Fear is a powerful motivator;
welcome to Advent!
…
Of course,
Advent is a season of anticipation
and today is the launch.
We take four Sundays to remember the Christ child who came.
We recognize the Christ present and at work in the Body assembled here.
And we anticipate the Christ that is promised yet to come.
Christ has come.
Christ is come.
Christ will come again.
Fear may be a powerful motivator,
but for the faithful follower of Christ,
we are given the confidence to
transform fear into anticipation,
changing our behaviors,
as is God’s will,
into a community preparing for the return of Christ!
Yes, Christ will be coming
like a thief in the night, Jesus teaches us.
So instead of being paralyzed with fear,
begin to prepare a way for him!
Let us bring down the mountains and fill in the valleys.
Let us gather our weapons and recast them into
plows, planters, and harvesters.
Let us complete the transformation of this world
to be God’s kingdom
on earth
as it is in heaven.
…
Beloved, set your hearts and minds about the business of preparation.
This is where the anticipation of Advent is found:
– Staying awake and alert
means loving the Lord our God with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength
and our neighbor as ourselves.
– Staying awake and alert
requires of us a feeling of dissatisfaction with the status quo.
Things have to change!
The poor must be lifted up.
The hungry need fed.
The sick need healed.
Prisoners need reformed and reintroduced into society.
Those mourning need comforted.
Peace makers need to strike new deals.
And the disabled, orphans, and widows need cared for.
When they came to the place that is called The Skull, they crucified Jesus there with the criminals, one on his right and one on his left. Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.” And they cast lots to divide his clothing. And the people stood by, watching; but the leaders scoffed at him, saying, “He saved others; let him save himself if he is the Messiah of God, his chosen one!” The soldiers also mocked him, coming up and offering him sour wine, and saying, “If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!” There was also an inscription over him, “This is the King of the Jews.” One of the criminals who were hanged there kept deriding him and saying, “Are you not the Messiah? Save yourself and us!” But the other rebuked him, saying, “Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? And we indeed have been condemned justly, for we are getting what we deserve for our deeds, but this man has done nothing wrong.” Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” He replied, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”
| Centering Prayer |
Generally, we Americans bristle at the thought of monarchy.
Abusive, totalitarian monarchies drove immigration from every corner of Europe to the Americas.
It was one of our signature characteristics
Won for us in our Revolutionary war;
the idea that we would break from the king and elect our own leaders.
Colonists didn’t like heredity making that decision any more than we appreciated our tea being taxed.
We don’t like privilege.
We don’t like entitlements.
And we don’t like being told what to do by wealthy, privileged, entitled, kings or queens.
Yet, we still have this pathological voyeurism when it comes to royalty.
I admit, I tuned in for the wedding of Charles and Dianna and
was tragically shocked by Dianna’s death.
Most recently, I watched with interest the funerals of Prince Philip and Queen Elizabeth II.
…
On this, the last Sunday of the Liturgical Year,
we celebrate the Reign of Christ, or,
what used to be known as Christ the King.
By removing the word king,
we de-emphasize monarchy;
and by adding reign,
we more properly place the focus on God’s kingdom.
(or so I’m told by liturgical scholars!)
Through the past twelve months,
we’ve walked the pages of the Gospel of Luke,
followed Christ
from manger to ministry,
from passion to death,
and on Easter Sunday, we stepped with Christ out from the empty tomb
as people redeemed, saved, and commissioned for duty.
“Go make disciples,” the resurrected Jesus tells us,
with an authority that can only be described as “Divine.”
Yet, it was only a few days earlier
that Jesus’ broken body,
apparently defeated,
was hanging on the cross.
He was flanked by two opposing criminals like
our altar cross flanked by candles,
his bloodied, dying pulp elevated above the mocking crowd,
even as his followers “stood by, watching.”
One criminal, with one foot in the grave, and the other anchored by Satin,
temps Jesus with blatant self-interest:
“Are you not the Messiah?
Save yourself and us!”
Religious leaders scoffed at him with sarcasm
and with similar temptation,
“He saved others;
let him save himself,
if he is the Messiah of God,
his chosen one!”
They even mock him with twisted sarcasm
by posting a derisive inscription for all to see:
“This is the King of the Jews”
the very title Herod Antipas exclusively reserved for himself.
As if 40 days of dealing with the Devil in the wilderness wasn’t enough.
Saint Luke paints the picture of
hell-bound criminals and religious leaders
sharing the same boat
that is opposed to Christ and
bent on his destruction.
To which Jesus replies,
“Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”
When Jesus makes his cross the symbol of forgiveness
he gives us a taste of his heavenly monarchy,
not one like we have rejected- wielding autocratic brutality,
rather, an eternal reign by a grace wielding King.
…
Many today may view the redemptive grace of Jesus Christ
as Christianity taking a soft approach to crime;
easy on the Law.
As if Christ gives us a get out of jail free card;
so eat, drink, and be merry!
for tomorrow we are forgiven anyway.
Luke’s narrative this morning tells us otherwise.
Forgiveness from the cross defines the eternal, all-inclusive monarchy of Christ!
Only a divine King has the power and authority to rule with such grace.
A judge and jury,
the gallows and the guillotine,
are replace by
“My son” or
“My daughter”
“go and sin no more; your faith has made you well.”
The grace of God,
Through the cross of Jesus Christ,
outdoes bruit force
When it comes to Christ and his Kingdom.
Grace vacates your conviction,
Extends forgiveness, parole, probation, and pardon.
The grace of God,
Through the cross,
Brings healing to repair the damage we have caused because of our sin and offenses.
Listen carefully:
“Go and sin no more.”
…
At the same time, Jesus is not alone.
The passive crowd stood by, watching.
Waiting.
Wondering.
It is easy for us to be critical of their posture,
but it is important to remember how powerless they were to earthly authorities.
Any attempt at intervention would have brought swift, violent reprisals.
Those soldiers,
With their spears and swords
Were formidable deterrents.
Do not underestimate the value of this crowd of witnesses, however.
God apparently had other plans.
These are the people who will soon bear testimony to both the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
They are essential first-person,
eye-witness accounts that will warm people’s hearts and change people’s minds.
Witnesses to the crucifixion of Jesus
are the first people
to become subjects under the new reign of Christ
and to be empowered by the gift of the Holy Spirit
to gather new subjects
into Christ’s heavenly kingdom.
…
Jesus is not alone on the cross, either.
The opposing criminal is balanced by another crucified for his crimes.
Instead of deriding Christ,
This man recognizes his own faults
and takes responsibility for his crimes.
“We have been condemned justly,” he proclaims.
“We are getting what we deserve for our deeds.”
In an attitude of confession, a willingness for repentance, and with an acceptance of the justice imposed upon him
this second crucified criminal expresses
extraordinary faith with his sincere petition:
“Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”
“Truly I tell you,” Jesus assures him,
“today you will be with me in Paradise.”
…
In a similar way to the passive crowd,
today we are called to be faithful witnesses
– paying careful attention to the disciplines of Bible study, prayer, and worship;
not taking our eye off of the cross of Jesus Christ –
while at the same time, we are called and commissioned
to spread Christ’s kingdom by the power of our testimony.
This is how we celebrate the reign of Christ;
by expanding his Kingdom.
In a similar way to the penitent, faithful thief on the cross,
with sincere humility,
petition our King,
“Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”
It doesn’t take much to rebuke the opposing competitors to Christ’s Kingdom,
just faith the size of a mustard seed;
just the faith that has already been given to us from God above.
This preemptive gift of faith,
called “prevenient grace”;
it is what God gives us before we know of it, asked for it, or needed it.
Prevenient grace is unearned, undeserved, without price.
Prevenient grace makes it possible for each of us to directly petition Christ,
“Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”
Keep your eyes on the cross.
It is your forgiveness and mine.
Yet, the cross is more.
Jesus has transformed the cross
And it now has become the symbol for the eternal reign of Christ.
Watch, testify, make your petitions directly to Jesus;
When some were speaking about the temple, how it was adorned with beautiful stones and gifts dedicated to God, he said, “As for these things that you see, the days will come when not one stone will be left upon another; all will be thrown down.” They asked him, “Teacher, when will this be, and what will be the sign that this is about to take place?” And he said, “Beware that you are not led astray; for many will come in my name and say, ‘I am he!’ and, ‘The time is near!’ Do not go after them.“ When you hear of wars and insurrections, do not be terrified; for these things must take place first, but the end will not follow immediately.” Then he said to them, “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there will be great earthquakes, and in various places famines and plagues; and there will be dreadful portents and great signs from heaven. “But before all this occurs, they will arrest you and persecute you; they will hand you over to synagogues and prisons, and you will be brought before kings and governors because of my name. This will give you an opportunity to testify. So make up your minds not to prepare your defense in advance; for I will give you words and a wisdom that none of your opponents will be able to withstand or contradict. You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers, by relatives and friends; and they will put some of you to death. You will be hated by all because of my name. But not a hair of your head will perish. By your endurance you will gain your souls.
| Centering Prayer |
People are gullible.
We want to believe what we believe.
We seek justification for what we believe.
We can look at facts and each draw separate conclusions;
Each according to our personal biases, needs, wants, and motives.
This alone should make us critical of other people’s conclusions.
Personally, I want you suspicious of mine
Because it is a healthy means of self-improvement
And it keeps me honest!
It also means that we should always be examining our own conclusions.
People are persuadable.
Our gullibility makes us vulnerable to the opinions of others.
We like to fit in;
Go with the flow,
Not make any waves.
Sometimes it is good to be persuaded.
We learn, we adapt, we grow.
New information allows us to grow our world view and mature.
Sometimes being persuaded is a liability;
Some call it “being a flip-flopper.”
It can be a sign of indecisiveness,
A lack of confidence,
Or a sign of weakness.
People are naturally paranoid.
A little dose is healthy;
It comes down to self-preservation.
Being suspicious helps keep us alive in an environment filled with danger.
Too much paranoia, however,
Becomes the natural default for those who can’t or won’t make the effort to draw their own conclusions
And if left unchecked
Can lead to unhealthy lifestyles;
Even illness.
People are overconfident.
We think we are smarter than we really are.
I know I am.
In my own mind, I’m downright brilliant.
I’m also sufficiently self-aware to know that this is not true.
We believe we can think our way through any problem,
Solve any puzzle,
Find a solution to any perplexing issue life happens to deliver.
We are confident.
We are can-do type of people.
We have been marinating in self-esteem since childhood.
We believe we can do anything.
We are Americans, after all!
Gullible, persuadable, paranoid, and overconfident.
That’s the human condition.
It is a blessing, and a curse.
People haven’t changed much these past 2,000 years.
In fact, not only was Jesus teaching his disciples about their present circumstances
He is also reaching to the future to speak to us here today.
Jesus is providing us tools with which we can use to make sense of our world.
…
In the time of Jesus,
And in centuries to follow,
There were individuals who claimed to know future events
Based on present circumstances.
“The Temple is destroyed and the nation is defeated;
This must be a sign of the apocalypse.
This must be a sign the end is near.”
“Don’t you believe it!” Jesus clearly states in today’s gospel.
For Luke and his audience in the early first century church
The Temple had been destroyed.
Luke was authored after the destruction of the Temple in 72 AD.
The nation was defeated.
Rome had burned it to the ground.
The few survivors were scattered to the far corners of the world
(known as the “diaspora”).
The people were gullible, persuadable, paranoid, and had a complete loss of confidence.
The end isn’t near,
Jesus reassures his future Apostles and church planters.
Persecution may be a reality.
Death was a certainty.
“Do not fear,” Jesus assures.
“Simply endure.”
“I will give you words.”
“I will save you.”
The curse of being naturally gullible, persuadable, paranoid, and over confident is that we draw similar conclusions about the future
Based on current world circumstances.
Don’t believe one word of it, we hear Jesus echoing today.
“Volcanoes and earthquakes,
War in Ukraine,
North Korea firing off missile left and right,
Car jackings and mass shootings,
Hacked emails, ransomware, and the dark net,
Are all signs the end must be near!”
From Watch Tower tracts to Hollywood movies and music,
We are constantly being tempted to believe in rapture, apocalypse, and the end of the world.
Just stop it.
What makes our generation any more exceptional than the prior 39 going back to Jesus?
“Beware that you are not led astray,” Jesus proclaims.
“Do not go after them …
The end will not follow immediately.”
Though fear monger politicians and snake oil peddling preachers
May be spreading terrifying tall tales,
(Often to pack their pews and fill their bank accounts)
Jesus is crystal clear:
Don’t believe it.
Future events cannot be foretold.
Neither can the will of God be maligned, corrupted, or railroaded
To satisfy human will.
Prophesy means looking at the horizon,
Seeing the storm clouds,
And drawing the conclusion that it is going to rain.
Prophesy does not convince God to put the clouds in the sky.
Prophesy does not predict when it will rain, how much it will rain, or how long it is going to rain.
Neither does prophesy draw conclusions that storm clouds are the result of God’s judgment.
Mostly, it rains just because it rains.
Prophets are not oracles or fortune tellers.
Mostly, prophets simply watch and listen and faithfully report what God wants them to hear.
…
A life lived in fear is a life of missed opportunities.
Fear prevents us from building up the kingdom of God:
Of eliminating barriers that divide us,
From ending poverty that plaques us,
Of establishing justice, mercy and grace throughout the land.
Fear prevents us from placing our trust in God.
We become fearful of placing our dependence in anyone other than our selves.
We don’t want to depend on others, and we don’t want to depend on God.
Fear creates false idols;
We trust our bank accounts, not God.
We build bigger and better barns.
We stockpile our treasures
And justify our hoarding by saying we are just “saving for a rainy day.”
We trust our instincts, not the word of God.
Fear makes us hibernate when we get home, lock our doors, and complain that the world is going to hell in a hand basket.
Fear breeds distrust and causes us to do irrational things.
Fear leads us to distrust people who look or believe differently.
Fear sucks us into get rich quick schemes,
Leads us to invest in swampland,
And opens our wallets to unproven cures.
Don’t drink the cool-aid!
Do not follow those who breed fear and discontent.
Do not be terrified
When you hear threats of terrorism, war, end times, a culture divided.
Do not be afraid.
God is in control.
God’s got this.
God has already saved you.
…
The assurance of Jesus is not always welcomed as good news.
Arrest, persecution, and death await.
Bad things do happen to good and faithful people.
Within two sentences
Jesus says some of you will be put to death,
Then promises “not a hair of your head will perish.”
Indeed, though all will die a mortal death,
Eternal life with God is a gift that can never be taken away.
Instead of fearing trials, temptations, plagues, and famines-
Instead of fearing the pain and suffering that life ultimately serves to everyone,
Jesus gives us another strategy,
Another tool for our faithful living:
Replace fear
With opportunity.
Take the opportunity of pain, suffering, and persecution
To testify to the redemption and salvation of Jesus Christ.
Testify to the dirty world who it was that washed you clean.
Testify to the world who embraces death and destruction
Who it is that has saved and recreated you as Christ’s disciple.
Instead of standing at the grave and fearing death,
Look into the face of death and proclaim
“I believe!”
I believe in both the cross and the empty tomb.
I believe in both death and resurrection.
I believe Jesus both died and was raised
And in doing so,
Won for us victory over the grave
And the gift of eternal life.
Testify your faith when life fails you.
Lift high the cross of Christ
When walking through the valley of the shadow of death.
Proclaim the sweet name of Jesus even when the devil looks you square in the eye.
Fear not..
Place your trust in God.
Refuse to succumb to fear.
When given the opportunity to witness, speak up and speak out!
Sharing your personal testimony repeatedly builds confidence.
“Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.
“Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you will be filled.
“Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh.
“Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you, revile you, and defame you on account of the Son of Man. Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, for surely your reward is great in heaven; for that is what their ancestors did to the prophets.
“But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation.
“Woe to you who are full now, for you will be hungry.
“Woe to you who are laughing now, for you will mourn and weep.
“Woe to you when all speak well of you, for that is what their ancestors did to the false prophets.
“But I say to you that listen, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.
If anyone strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also; and from anyone who takes away your coat do not withhold even your shirt.
Give to everyone who begs from you; and if anyone takes away your goods, do not ask for them again.
Do to others as you would have them do to you.
| Centering Prayer |
Our hope is in Jesus Christ.
Our hope is in Christ crucified and risen from the dead.
On this sacred Sunday
We celebrate
the saints from our church family and community
Who have died in the Lord this past year
And who now have received the fulfillment of hope;
The forgiveness and absolution of every sin,
and, the gift of eternal life.
Jesus Christ is what unites us.
He holds us together as one.
Our beloved saints
Were baptized by the same water that flowed over the Lord
When he was baptized in the chilly Jordan;
The same water that we were baptized with
Before our own font,
or in our own stream or lake.
Our beloved saints lived as sinners,
Much as we do,
Yet, returned to God’s house of prayer
To seek forgiveness and absolution of sins.
Our beloved saints
Sat in these same pews and chairs,
And experienced the Word proclaimed
That gave the foundation for hope.
Our beloved saints
Came humbly before this same altar table,
And celebrated the sacrament of the Eucharist,
Bread and wine,
The Body and Blood of Christ,
Broken and shed for each and every one of us.
Indeed, Jesus Christ is what unites us.
From Ephesians 1:11-23 we read:
In Christ we have also obtained an inheritance, having been destined according to the purpose of him who accomplishes all things according to his counsel and will, so that we, who were the first to set our hope on Christ, might live for the praise of his glory. In him you also, when you had heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and had believed in him, were marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit; this is the pledge of our inheritance toward redemption as God’s own people, to the praise of his glory.
I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, and for this reason I do not cease to give thanks for you as I remember you in my prayers. I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him, so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe, according to the working of his great power.
God put this power to work in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the age to come. And he has put all things under his feet and has made him the head over all things for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.
Today, we join with the saints
For the praise of Jesus Christ, and his glory,
As the Apostle Paul so eloquently wrote to the church in Ephesus.
Praise God from whom all blessings fall!
As the heavenly host sang
Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace among those whom he favors!
Give thanks to Jesus Christ for his inheritance,
His gifts of grace
To each of his disciples.
To know Christ,
To grow deeper in love with Christ,
To develop an understanding of the inheritance Jesus has given to us,
Like the saints before us,
We’ve been given a Spirit of wisdom and revelation.
Wisdom and revelation opens the eyes of our hearts
To know the hope to which saints are called.
Allow me for a moment,
To use the Gospel to bring our celebration of saints
Into the context of our current state of affairs.
Wisdom and revelation are in short supply this (and every) election cycle.
It appears “truth” has been the first casualty.
There are as many truths as there are news channels on cable television.
Without wisdom,
Without discernment that leads to God’s revelation,
There can be no truth,
Only half-truths, lies, and damn lies.
Jesus people, do not despair!
Jesus gives his disciples, you and me, our politic,
If only we choose to listen, to think, and to open our hearts.
The politic of the Christian are not Republican or Democrat,
Liberal or Conservative.
The Spirit has given to us the inheritance of Jesus;
His grace and
His word.
Today’s word comes from his “Sermon on the Plane.”
With saints who have gone before us,
We are united with Jesus Christ and his Gospel politic.
What say you about the poor?
“Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God, … But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation.” Jesus responds.
Wisdom comes when we discern God’s will
To wipe poverty off the face of the earth.
Poverty is the result of greed, theft, embezzlement.
Christ calls us to love our neighbor,
Not to swindle or steal from our neighbors.
Disciples of Jesus are called to teach the world,
By word and example,
How to love our neighbors, especially the poor.
What say you about the hungry?
“Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you will be filled.” Jesus responds.
Like at a restaurant when more friends arrive,
Is not God calling us to add another table?
To pull up more chairs?
Extend the table and add more chairs
Such that everyone who is hungry might be fed.
And, oh yeah, for those who have the means,
Pick up the check for those who don’t.
The weaponizing of food,
As is being done in the Russian Ukraine war,
Is an ghastly politic
That is contrary to the politic of the Gospel.
There is no reason for anyone to go hungry in the world today,
Either in North Korea, South Africa, Guatemala, or under the Court Street bridge.
It’s up to us, as Christ’s disciples, to ensure everyone is fed.
What say you about those who weep?
“Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh.” Jesus proclaims.
Saints who have gone before us tasted death and grief,
For many, numerous times in their lives.
Much of death and grief in our experience
Is at the natural conclusion of the life cycle.
Yet, there is also a secular politic of death
Being played out on battlefields
With horrific civilian casualties and
Refugees fleeing the violence.
Ideological politics
Grip global adversaries in war, or near war,
Leaving unintended, collateral damage spewing in every direction.
There is even a death politic in American culture
Where schools fail, crime roams, and families divide.
America cries with death and grief.
The world moans in travail with senseless murder and mayhem.
Yet, know this to be TRUE:
The politics of death have no rule over
Our Savior who triumphs over the grave!
Disciples of Jesus are called to stop the violence,
Stop the murder,
To heal and restore humanity
Such that every life is valued,
And only natural causes lead one home to eternal glory.
Comfort those who mourn in every circumstance.
God blesses, and calls us to open our hearts to those who weep.
Hold the world tenderly in the loving embrace of Jesus.
Dry the tears with assurance of faith,
Spoken in the language of love.
What say you about those who hate you?
“But I say to you that listen, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.” Jesus taught.
Certainly saints who have gone before us have tasted hatred,
Just as we have.
Hatred goes both ways;
Hatred that grows from envy or resentment,
Hatred that festers from discrimination or exclusion,
Hatred that is deeply rooted in our history or original sin.
Christ’s Gospel politic
Is a call for every disciple of Jesus to love enemies,
To do good to those who hate,
To bless those who curse,
To pray for those who abuse.
This is a far different politic than what is espoused by the world today.
The standards for Jesus’ politics
Are set extraordinarily high.
Many would call them naive;
That’s okay,
Bless those who call you naïve,
Who hate you,
Who exclude and revile you
And who defame you on account of the Son of Man.
Go ahead,
Turn to them, Jesus tells us,
And give them your blessing.
Jesus Christ unites us,
Joining with us,
Together with every Christian
Upon whose shoulders we now stand.
Our inherited gifts are forgiveness of sins
And the salvation of our souls.
Make faith our body politic.
Unlike social politics
Faith in Jesus Christ will never fail you.
Faith in Jesus Christ will always lead to an inner transformation from sinner to saint, to God healing and blessing the world.
He entered Jericho and was passing through it. A man was there named Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was rich. He was trying to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was short in stature. So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree to see him, because he was going to pass that way.
When Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down; for I must stay at your house today.”
So he hurried down and was happy to welcome him. All who saw it began to grumble and said, “He has gone to be the guest of one who is a sinner.”
Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, “Look, half of my possessions, Lord, I will give to the poor; and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will pay back four times as much.”
Then Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because he too is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek out and to save the lost.”
| Centering Prayer |
There are occasions
For all serious students of scripture
When something new appears
That so alters the way we think about a passage
That shakes faith and challenges us to the core.
Could this “something new”
Be a gift from God?
On many occasions, in my experience, it is.
Behold, the Spirit makes all things new.
I recently read an academic article suggesting that Zacchaeus’ stature may have
Entailed more than just being short.
There are linguistic hints that the author of Luke
Is suggesting that Zacchaeus was,
In fact, someone who looked like this:
An individual with dwarfism;
Most probably, a genetic disorder
That limited his height to under 4 feet 10 inches.
The proper term today is short stature,
Defined as a height with the lowest 2.3% of the general population.
The most common type of this condition is called achondroplasia
(A-chon-dro-pla-sia) and is
exhibited with disproportionate body features.
As is all too common even today,
Zacchaeus was one who almost certainly
Suffered from ridicule and social discrimination all his life.
Consider the implications of Zacchaeus being disabled;
Or, as I like to say it,
He was a person with different abilities, or, differently abled.
How does this alter the way
We experience the Gospel this morning?
What if that song of old
We learned in Sunday School
Or in Vacation Bible School
Would be rewritten like this?
Zacchaeus was a discriminated man,
an ostracized man was he,
And he climbed up in a sycamore tree,
for he wanted the Lord to see,
for he wanted the Lord to see.
And as the Savior passed that way,
he looked up in the tree.
And he said, “Zacchaeus! you come down,
for I’m going to your house to stay.”
“For I’m going to your house to stay.”
As opposed to other encounters
Jesus has with people of different abilities,
Here, today,
Jesus does not make an attempt to cure Zacchaeus.
Jesus doesn’t try to “stretch him out,”
“lengthen him up,”
Or “right size him,” as it were.
Today’s encounter with Jesus
Requires a deeper contemplation of faith, ability,
And our relationship with God.
Behold, the Spirit makes all things new.
…
Let’s take a closer look at Luke 19:1-10.
The Zacchaeus story immediately follows the
Story of the rich young ruler
(Who desired to follow Jesus,
Found the requirements too difficult,
And decided to walk away disappointed).
It also follows the story
Of Jesus restoring sight to a blind beggar
Who loudly asked to have his sight back.
Once his sight was restored,
The former blind man followed Jesus,
Glorified God,
Becoming a recognized celebrity.
The newly healed man became a catalyst for faith:
“and all the people,
When they saw it,
Praised God.”
– Luke 18:43b
Jesus entered Jericho
And was passing through it,
Down the north / south main thoroughfare.
Jericho was, and is, known as a City of Palms,
An oasis in the gravel desert
Watered by Elisha’s Spring;
Carefully channeled via aqueducts
From the surrounding mountains to the west.
The palm trees that line the streets are beautiful.
In the center of Jericho today is a small park
With a Zacchaeus tree in it,
An overgrown fig palm tree that is thousands of years old.
(Let that sink in for a moment).
Jesus is en-route from Galilee in the north,
To Jerusalem, straight uphill to the west, as the crow flies
14 miles away,
Or 30 miles by the treacherous, switch back, serpentine road.
People who are “short in stature”
(as Luke reports it)
Get picked on all the time;
Probably discriminate against
Just as many are today.
Offensive words today
Would have ancient counterparts.
I’m jumping to an assumption here,
But my guess is that a lifetime
Of trauma, ridicule, bullying, exclusion, and discrimination
Had probably left emotional scars on Zacchaeus
Leaving him bitter;
Which would be ironic,
Because his name, from the Greek, means “pure” and “innocent.”
This would be like the grumpiest person you know
Being named “Joy.”
Luke describes Zacchaeus as being
Not only a tax collector,
But the Chief Tax Collector.
Remember from last Sunday’s Gospel,
Tax collectors were hated as traitors and as extortionists?
Zacchaeus was the boss;
The head of them all.
This tells us that he was rich,
For he skimmed off the top of all his subordinates,
And, being a public figure,
That he was universally despised by his neighbors.
Zacchaeus was ambitious with his career.
He was at the top of his pay scale.
And he was rich.
For a moment
Hold in dynamic tension
The wealth of Zacchaeus
With that of the rich man and Lazarus (16:19-31).
With the same determination
That overcame a lifetime of almost certain ridicule,
That propelled him to the top of his corporate ladder,
Zacchaeus ran ahead of the crowd
That had come out to see Jesus with
His traveling
healing tour and
salvation show.
He ran ahead.
He climbed into an overgrown fig palm
And perched himself above the road in the branches.
Consider how ridiculous he must has looked.
He didn’t care what other people thought.
His emotional calluses were much too thick.
He had power and money
And he’d come to see Jesus.
Talk about creative and expedient!
There is no wonder Jesus was stopped dead in his tracks.
He looked up,
Calls Zachaeus by name
(by the way, how did Jesus know his name?),
And invites himself over to his house
Right in front of a certainly flabbergasted crowd.
The crowd knows the sinful trade of the tax collecting community.
They would have been scandalized
That Jesus invites himself
To the home of the chief sinner.
As an uncomfortable hush descended upon the crowd,
Zacchaeus “hurried down and was happy to welcome him.”
Wow.
This is the third-time Jesus
Has chosen to eat with a tax collector
And the third time people have grumbled about it.
One would think,
Jesus of all people,
Would want to separate himself from sinners,
Wouldn’t you?
Apparently,
Jesus was sent to the world to eat with
And relate to sinners.
Oh, the scandal of the Gospel!
Instead of walking away sad,
Zacchaeus responds with exuberance!
I will give away half of my possessions to the poor, he promises.
On top of that,
Zacchaeus vows to pay back four times
Anyone who he had defrauded,
Which is double the requirement of Jewish Law.
In essence,
Zacchaeus is eagerly willing to work to overcome poverty
(Much of which Zacchaeus is personally responsible for creating).
And he is willing to make reparations
To everyone who he has treated unjustly.
That would be … everyone.
Zacchaeus is willing to give up nearly everything
To be saved from his sin,
To be reunited to his family as a child of Abraham, and
To be found by God.
Jesus’ mission has been fulfilled,
“to seek out and to save the lost.” (19:10)
… to seek and to save.
Are you willing to give up nearly everything?
I don’t know about you,
But I am.
…
What can we learn from Zacchaeus
That can be applied to our lives today?
First, Zacchaeus was determined.
Dare we exercise our discipleship
With the same amount of determination?
Can we race ahead of the crowd?
Can we risk the embarrassment of climbing up over the crowd?
Can we deploy the same amount of determination to lift Jesus up
For all the world to see and learn from Him?
Where is the Lord in today’s world?
The fact is
Most of the world has never seen Jesus
And wouldn’t know him if they bumped into one of his disciples.
Be determined to produce Jesus
And to wear Him on your sleeve.
Secondly, Zacchaeus was expedient.
One of my favorite lines from the movie Gettysburg
Is by Robert E. Lee confronting the overdue General Jeb Stuart.
When Jeb Stuart sees that his delay
May have very well cost Lee the battle
He offers to step down from his command.
“There is no time!!!” Lee thunders.
Zacchaeus knew there was precious little time to see the Savior;
That’s why he ran ahead.
There is no time for us to waste, either.
We must offer Christ to the world
With all his grace, love, forgiveness, and salvation
– a world desperately searching for what Christ has to offer –
– before it is too late
And even one is lost before we had a chance.
Thirdly, Zacchaeus is amazingly creative.
He broke the social standard,
Made a fool of himself;
Yet, his creativity stopped the Lord dead in his tracks.
So too, we need to be just as creative.
What new ways can we use to present Christ to the world?
How can we better share the Good News
Of his redemption and salvation?
Technologically? theatrically? artistically? with audio-visuals?
I do not like rap music;
However, look at what has happened
When rap was set to a Broadway show named “Hamilton”.
The creative genius of a writer
Turned Broadway upside down
And pulled the Arts from the Culture section of the paper
To the front page.
Fourthly, Zacchaeus was willing to repent
And so, too, should we;
On an ongoing, regular basis.
Although the story doesn’t specifically mention it,
It is quite easy for us to make the assumption that Zacchaeus,
By his actions,
Came to repentance:
Acknowledging his sin and
Swearing to make a 180-degree change in his life.
We, like Zacchaeus,
Are invited to acknowledge before God
The instances we have sinned,
And to make every attempt to correct our behavior
Such that we don’t sin again.
Lastly, Zacchaeus teaches us about the value of reparation.
Reparation is not a popular topic
Especially when spoken of in the context
Of U.S. politics,
Of American slavery,
Or Native American resettlement.
The Gospel suggests that we listen to Zacchaeus carefully.
Pay attention to Zacchaeus, what he says and what he does.
He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and regarded others with contempt: “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, was praying thus, ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all my income.’ But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even look up to heaven, but was beating his breast and saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ I tell you, this man went down to his home justified rather than the other; for all who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted.”
| Centering Prayer |
Our Gospel lesson
Follows last Sunday’s
“Parable of the Widow and the Unjust Judge.”
Jesus taught about the importance of prayer,
Persistent prayer.
Unrelenting prayer.
Praying for justice.
Praying, knowing God answers our prayers.
Today, Jesus immediately follows on with a second parable,
Often called “The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector.”
This is not a story about the virtues of righteous living.
This is a story about were one plants and grows their faith.
…
Jesus uses role reversal as a literary technique in this parable.
The status,
the values
of contrasting people
are exchanged
so that listeners are taken by surprise.
The good man goes away disappointed,
while the bad one leaves forgiven.
The angel is made into a devil,
And the devil is made into an angel.
In a way,
Jesus is painting a picture for us
of what the new age will be like.
The present, evil age will be brought down
and Christ’s new kingdom will take its place.
…
Take note of Jesus’ immediate audience.
They are described as
“some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous
and regarded others with contempt.” (18:9)
The practice of placing trust in yourself
and in your righteousness
is a type of
arrogant, self-assured piety.
Jesus is asking
Do you really think you don’t need to trust God?
Do you believe you are capable of such righteous behavior that you are without sin or blemish?
He is also making a statement about how one treats others.
Are we to despise others?
To regard others with contempt?
Clearly, Jesus is commenting that such behavior
it is a form of spiritual condescension.
Together, Jesus describes his audience
as being exactly like the character of the Pharisee
in his story: people filled with pride and arrogance.
The audience and the Pharisee are as one.
Brilliant!
…
This fictional Pharisee is an interesting guy.
Not all Pharisees were like this fella;
in fact, he was probably an exception.
There are many examples in the Bible and elsewhere
of Pharisees behaving better,
who were humble and compassionate.
Judaism placed a theological emphasis on legalism,
Righteous living, and merit.
In this environment
there was always the danger of spiritual pride.
This Pharisee did have some good attributes.
1. He attends temple and prays silently.
If they handed out perfect attendance pins,
He would have had oodles of them.
2. His prayer follows the Jewish liturgy of the day:
“Blessed art Thou, O Lord our God, King of the Universe
who …”
But then his prayer takes an unexpected turn and flies off the rails.
He thanks God that he was not like others in the crowd:
Thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like that tax collector.
Thank God he wasn’t
Made a Gentile, a slave, a woman.
Thank God he wasn’t made … (you fill in the blank).
3. The Pharisee lives a righteous life, and
He makes it a point to remind God about it.
4. The Pharisee engages in the spiritual discipline of fasting.
He is proud to exceed expectations.
Instead of fasting once a week, he fasts twice.
5. The Pharisee is generous.
He gives tithes of everything he gets;
not just giving ten percent of his income
from agricultural products
as required by Jewish law.
He parses the language like a lawyer.
6. The Pharisee is a praying man.
In his prayer,
he recognizes that God is the source of his lot in life;
extending to him blessings of favor and prosperity.
He thanks God in his prayer,
(thanking God is always a good thing)
and he doesn’t ask God for anything in return.
There is no doubt about it,
this man was leading a life of exemplary righteousness.
That, nobody could deny.
Life was about to be turned upside down.
…
Then Jesus introduces to the audience the tax collector.
A number of years ago I received
One of those wonderful love letters from the IRS.
It was everything I imagined,
And worse.
It might be more desirable to get a call
From your accountant telling you you’re broke
Or a call from your doctor informing you
that you have cancer.
Tax collectors in biblical times
Were loved even less than today’s tax collectors.
Rome set the tax rate;
often between 80 and 90 percent of people’s total income.
Such high taxes were required
to pay for very expensive Roman Legions
expanding the empire
and maintaining newly won territories.
Rome made the rules for collecting taxes.
They hired only willing collaborators.
The tax collector’s wage would be earned by commission,
on anything that could be collected above and beyond
the government tax.
(And we think that taxes are high today!)
No wonder tax collectors
were often hated and thought of as extortionists.
To be a tax collector meant
they would have to profess their faith and allegiance
solely to Rome.
Besides being thought of as a dishonest extortionist,
the Jewish community
considered tax collectors disloyal to the people.
They were viewed as traitors.
Temple authorities would consider
A traitorous tax collector as “unclean”.
It appears that the tax collector in Jesus’ parable
Knew that he was unclean, too,
because we find him described in the story
“standing far off” away from the altar.
So here we have two people
on the hill of Zion in the temple praying;
two people who were
as different as black and white,
oil and vinegar,
day and night.
The audience to whom Jesus was speaking
probably began to believe at this point
that they understood how this parable concluded:
that Jesus was lifting up the virtues of righteousness.
(Perhaps you may have thought of this yourself.)
…
Instead, Jesus turns the world upside down.
The better characteristics of the Pharisee begin to tarnish.
Jesus knew that
“the proud are always most provoked by pride,”
because like the audience to whom Jesus was speaking,
Jesus paints the picture of this Pharisee
as one who trusts in his own righteousness,
despised others,
and was proud of who he was.
He lists all those who he is glad he is not like,
then he starts to make the case for himself.
Let’s be honest.
His prayer was never directed to God.
It’s focus is solely upon himself: I, I, I, …
look how righteous I am.
The worst part about the Pharisee
is that his idolatry is revealed.
He attempts to replace himself for God;
tries to take God’s place as the judge of other people’s soul:
“thank you that I am not like other people
– thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like
THAT tax collector.”
…
Thank God I’m Not Like YOU!
And oh, how easy this is to do!
“America is adrift.”
“We need to turn back to God.”
“Those people are what’s wrong with our country.”
“What’s wrong with all those people
who don’t come to church?”
It is so easy to yield to the temptation
to use a broad paint brush to blame others,
to judge others:
their lifestyles,
values,
upbringing,
or economic status.
This is the pride
which makes us a fallen angel,
St. Augustine proclaimed.
Judging others puts us in the position of spiritual arrogance,
of thinking that we are superior to others.
But arrogance and thinking more of oneself than of others
is completely contrary to the grace of God.
Being better,
or more righteous,
or leading a more clean life
doesn’t make us more acceptable to God.
Only a life of faith does.
Only a life of faith makes us acceptable to God.
A life of faith gives God pleasure;
A life of faith like the sinful tax collector was leading.
He, on the other hand,
recognizes his own sinfulness
and throws himself upon the mercy of the Lord.
The tax collector places his trust in the Lord,
Not in himself.
Both the tax collector and the Pharisee
are perceptive enough to confront the issue of righteousness,
or the lack thereof.
But it was only the tax collector
who moved beyond the issue of righteousness
to that of faith.
It takes faith and a whole lot of courage
to present yourself wholly and submissively
at the feet of Jesus.
Whereas the Pharisee trusted in himself
for his righteousness to save him,
the tax collector rightly recognized
that it was not righteousness that provides salvation.
He trusted not in who he was but in who God is.
God is merciful.
He hoped not in what he had
but in what he might receive:
mercy and forgiveness.
It is when one can extend faith and trust beyond the self,
to call upon the mercy of the Lord,
that one can expect to be justified,
to be made whole and perfect,
by Jesus Christ, our Savior.
…
This passage is the core of our Wesleyan / Methodist ethos:
We are justified, or made complete with God,
by our faith, not by what we say or do.
This is the stumbling point that I mentioned earlier.
Too many times down through the centuries,
Christians have failed to see this parable
as one whose purpose was little more
than to address the issue of doing good works
and humbly seeking forgiveness.
This is a parable that addresses
the deeper issue of what it means
to place one’s faith and trust in the Lord;
how to enter into relationship with Jesus Christ,
and how to grow that relationship
through lifelong discipleship.
The first step is to appeal to the mercy of Jesus.
Fall submissively at his feet.
Confess your sins.
Try praying repeatedly the Jesus Prayer:
“Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”
This is true faith:
to trust in God,
and in God’s mercy,
instead of trusting in yourself.
…
When the Jews in the crowd
Understood the deeper meaning of this parable
They were outraged.
They lived, breath, and died by the Law.
It was the Law that saved you,
or so the Jewish mind thought.
Jesus’s teachings, therefore, were revolutionary:
that, what is important is faith,
not the actions of an individual.
Likewise, Jesus’s actions were revolutionary:
Justification comes at the foot of the cross
and salvation is a gift
left at the door of the empty tomb.
Jesus embodied a new covenant,
a new covenant that we celebrate with Eucharist,
that we remember by breaking, pouring and sharing
the body and blood of Jesus Christ.
This is not to say
that Jesus was unconcerned with people’s behavior.
Not at all!
Rather, Jesus is frying other fish.
Jesus was and is primarily concerned with faithfulness;
fidelity and trust in the mercy of the Lord.
While good works and righteous living
are always the evidence of faithfulness
it is possible to lead a good and moral life
outside of faith.
…
“What does this imply for us today?” you may ask.
“How is God speaking to me through our Gospel?”
We are all sinful.
Period.
Given this fact
Don’t try to fix problems of sinfulness by yourself.
Begin by seeking the mercy of God.
Go to the feet of Jesus and ask for his assistance.
Peter says it quite plainly,
“God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”
Breaking Yokes 