The Blessed Event

We mark the blessed event of EMMANUEL in 2020.

We remember God being born in human likeness.  We have a very serene picture of this event in our minds and our homes, as we have been fed images of it for generations.  We ignore the fact of the scandal of an unwed mother and father, too poor to bribe an innkeeper, must give birth in a barn and lay their newborn babe, Son of God, in a feeding trough for animals.  We certainly do not mention that this God incarnate is born as we are born, "between feces and urine, in blood."  We don't like to mention such things.

But isn't that exactly the point, that God comes to us to identify with us as WE experience life, and not like royalty, but as one of the lowliest in the world?  It was night shift shepherds who were heralded as they do their menial, dirty and dangerous job in the dark and cold of night.

And Jesus' dedication, full with sacrifice, not of a lamb as people with means do, but with two turtledoves - the sacrifice of the poor.

And Jesus' flight from a country of political oppression of him, and life as a refugee, a resident alien in a foreign land.  Funded by the gifts of the magi who adored him and worshiped him - foreigners who recognized this Son of God as his own King was trying to find and kill him.  

This was for a people who had "walked in darkness" to see light.  It was for a people who "sat in a land of deep darkness" to have light shine.  They had been occupied and oppressed by the Roman Empire for generations.  They had everything taken away from them to feed the insatiable appetites of empire.  They were demoralized, marginalized in their own country, disenfranchised within their own nation, brutalized by a police state, incarcerated, executed and shamefully treated.  And the religious leaders of their time were corrupted by the wealth, power and status of empire, and in collusion with it, just as was the king and prophets of their time.  It was truly a dark place.  They were sitting in it for a long time.  But the prophet's promise of a son who would come and set things right was being fulfilled!  
God is with us!  And not out of the palace or the temple, but among the poorest and most vulnerable!

That was Good News for the people!

It still is Good News for those who are marginalized, disenfranchised, downtrodden and oppressed.  It still is Good News for those who have been held down, back and out by the purveyors of empire.  It is still bad news for those in power, with the wealth and status in the land, who occupy and oppress them.  God identifies with the lowest, with those oppressed.  God takes sides, and is on the side, not of the powerful and wealthy who have status in the world, but on the side of those who have been victimized by them for generations under empire.

To kill the Son of God who has come to "the least of these" today, American Christians have re-invented Jesus and the message of the Gospel.  They have co-opted the story and have made it in the image of empire instead of God and Kingdom of God.  They have replaced the truly morbid with a false serenity and glamour.  They have replaced God's identification with the lowest with a false belief that God honors the wealthy and powerful.  They have replaced the scandal and humility of God in human form and frailty with bold, royal divinity.  We have all been subject to that for years.

But the message of the Gospel is clear:

God is with those who are homeless, cold and hungry.

God is with those who are resident aliens, forced as refugees from their violent homes.

God is with children in cages and their parents who are not allowed to be with them.

God is with those who resist, protesting the injustices imposed upon them and others.

God is with the menial laborers whose toil rewards the wealthy with more than they need.

God is with those who are forced to beg, because all means of living have been taken from them.

God is with those who are sick and dying because only those with means can get healing.

God is with those who are victims of empire and its values.

God is with those who suffer under the inequities and false inequality of empire.

God is with those who resist empire and live the values of the Kingdom of God.

God is with those who refuse to give their devotion to the gods of empire.

God is with those who suffer - the dirty, cold, hungry, afraid and morbid.

God is with us, not in the Palace or Temple, but on the street, in the field.

God is with us and will address those abuses of power, wealth and status with the Good News.

God is with us and will deliver us from the evils of empire in the world.

God is with us, identifies with our frailty, even pain and eventually with our death.

God is with us and will suffer the injustices suffered by so many at the hands of empire.

God is with us to usher in the Kingdom of God in the face of empire, to destroy it.

God is with us to lift up the lowly and bring down the mighty in empire.

When we "clean up the story," we throw out the message of the Good News.  We must look at this narrative in its historic, cultural contexts and understand why it was such Good News to those who first heard it read to them.  We must not clean it up, but understand how it speaks to empire here and now, still an evil of the world that occupies, oppresses and victimizes millions, even billions of people.  We must not clean it up, but look honestly at how the Good News condemns empire and its values, while lifting up the lowest among us according to Kingdom of God values.  We must not clean it up, but rather apply it to how we live in this part of God's Kingdom, here and now - politically, economically, socially and ecclesiastically.  For when we "clean up the story," we render it irrelevant to our lives with God today.  When we look at the Good News honestly and apply Jesus' Way of being children of God to our lives, we live the Good News in the world, and are thus faithful to God.

The Gospel is a call to revolution.  It is about the living of revolutionary Agape Love, applying it as the Word of the Word Made Flesh to the world.  It is about revolting against the greed, lust for power and desire for status that are empire values, which have held God's children down, back and out for generations.  The people have walked in darkness and sat in deep darkness long enough. 

EMMANUEL!

Pastor Jamie

   

The Advent of Love

 As you know, I believe that the active living of Agape Love in the world IS the call of all who would follow Jesus, and THE mission of the church that bears the name of the Christ.  It is the central message in the Good News of Jesus.

It is a revolutionary act.  It is a radical thing to do.  Tragic as it is, this is revolutionary and radical because we have come so far away from making the values of the Kingdom our normative values in this part of the Kingdom, here and now.  It is so revolutionary and radical because our descent into the living of empire values has brought us to a very low point in our life with God, as it has in the past.  We have aligned ourselves with empire instead of God.  We have made normative the values of empire: Greed, lust for Power, Hatred and desire for Status.  This has divided us and has destroyed the lives of many of God's children.  We have given lip service to God while giving our devotion to the god of self by living empire values.  That is our idolatry.  It is our sin.  As a nation, as the church in this nation, we have buried the Good News of Jesus under the evils of empire in our hearts, have created new theologies and ideologies to justify it in our minds and have thus killed our souls and the soul of our nation.

The Good News is that not all have walked that path.  There are prophets and teachers who have not given themselves over to empire and its values, but have remained faithful to Jesus and what Jesus taught, commanded and modeled for us as God's Will.  They have striven to live the Agape Love and Grace that Jesus represents for a world weary of its oppression.  They have done the revolutionary and radical thing in the face of empire - they have actively committed on behalf of the other, even stranger and enemy, and especially the most vulnerable among us.  They have consistently and constantly given the alternative message of the Gospel in a world saturated by the bad news of empire.  Some of the them have been ignored and some silenced, but their message of revolutionary love has been received by many, and is now kindling a fire of radical love across or nation and the world once again.

In the midst of the darkness of injustice, inequities and oppression, the Good News of Agape Love shines, exposes the darkness for what it is and enlightens a different path of truth and life.  It drives those in politics and economics, those in their communities, families and society to work toward the Shalom (completeness, wholeness, well-being) of all around them.  It draws people who are weary of oppression to stand in solidarity with those who have most been hurt by empire's predatory practices.  It guides people to a different, better, more sustainable way of living in this part of God's Kingdom, here and now.  It gathers people as advocates for those who have been held down, back and out for so long because of empire's ways.  It leads us to the living of God's Will as we follow in Jesus' Way of Agape Love and Grace.

We are in the Advent of Love.  We have seen it shine in the darkness of occupied streets, in the dark corridors of legislative corruption and in the dark voids of economic injustice.  People are saying, "NO!" to empire and "YES!" to the living of Agape Love for one another.  

In one of the darkest periods of our nation's life, certainly in our lifetimes, at the darkest time of the year, the light is shining so that the high places (and people) will be brought down as those in low places are raised up, the crooked will be straightened out and the rough and violent places smoothed out in justice, equity and peace.  

Join the movement.  Be a part of this revolution.  Do the radical thing.  Live Agape Love and Grace, and work for the Shalom of all around you.  If we want to be followers of Jesus, we must go where Jesus went.  It is OUR call and OUR mission as children of God and followers of Jesus, in this part of God's Kingdom, here and now!

This is OUR ADVENT OF LOVE.

Pastor Jamie

What I love about Hanukkah - JOY

 It was not after victory that they rededicated the 2nd Temple.

It was in the middle of the Maccabean Revolt (167-160 BCE).

It was during their effort to resist the Seleucid occupation of their faith and culture.

Like Jeremiah buying a piece of property after announcing that they would be going into exile, it was a symbol of hope and a celebration of life in that hope.

The miracle was that.  Oh, having a day's worth of oil last for eight days is not insignificant, to be sure, but it is in the hope of God's continued presence, power and provision that the miracle took place.

Resistance to Occupation and Oppression.

Light in Darkness.

Hope in Uncertainty and perhaps Despair.

Living Life, even celebrating it, even in desperate circumstances.

In the midst of it, folk still celebrate with the Hallel prayers and blessings, singing the Ma'oz Tzor, eating the Fried Foods (Latkes), playing the Dreidel games and giving gifts (Gelt).  For eight days, they celebrate, give and live, letting their light shine in the darkness, the light of God in a dark world.

We need that spirit now, in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic.  As numbers of those who have died rise and tensions mount, even with hope of (but not completion of) vaccination is seen, we light the candles or lamps, sing, dance, eat, recite prayers and blessings, play games and give gifts - we live.  We must, as an act of faith and hope.  We must live love and in joy.  It is a revolutionary act.

We don't just celebrate victories as people of faith, we anticipate them in hope and faith.  We celebrate life right here and now, in the midst of the struggle.  We face adversity by living and celebrating life, even in it.

And we do it for those we've lost in it.  We make it a remembrance of them - different this year, than when they were with us in it.  We honor them, and memorialize them.  It becomes a part of how we celebrate life in faith and hope.

For the eight days of Hanukkah, for the 12 days of Christmas, for the 7 days of Kwanzaa, for the 12 days of Epiphany... we will celebrate light in darkness, hope, joy, love, peace, and principles of community living.  I hope you will also.

Have a Safe and Happy Hanukkah, everyone!

Advent of Peace

"I heard the bells on Christmas day, their old familiar carols play, and mild and sweet their songs repeat of peace on earth, good will to all." 

As you know, I believe that until all have Shalom, none truly have it.

Shalom, beyond just peace, is the completeness, wholeness and well-being in one's life that come from the "things that make for peace" - justice, equality, equity and the living of Agape Love with one another.  If we do not have the conditions that make for Shalom in the world, we cannot and will not have peace in the world.

As the prophet Jeremiah lamented, "For from the least to the greatest of them, everyone is greedy for unjust gain; and from prophet to priest, everyone deals falsely.  They have treated the wound of my people carelessly, saying 'Peace, peace,' when there is no peace.  They acted shamefully, they committed abomination; yet they were not ashamed, they did not know how to blush."  (6:13-15; 8:11-12)

It is inequity that has caused for many in the world to have a lack of Shalom.  Some glut themselves with abundance as others starve to death, die of thirst and suffer from curable diseases.  Some have an abundance and hoard more than they will ever need for themselves, as others go without the basic needs to sustain their lives.  Some believe themselves superior to others and thus entitled to more than others have, though the only truly exceptional quality they possess is their ruthlessness, lived out in greed, hatred, lust for power and desire for status.  

It is inequality that has caused many in the world to have a lack of Shalom.  Some believe themselves to be superior and thus entitled to respect, also to have the privilege of disrespecting others in the world around them.  They often actively strive to hold others down, back and out from having what they need, just to prove their superiority.  What they prove is their lack of humanity.  What they prove is that their souls are dead or dying.  There is tension, conflict and even war because others will not be treated shamefully without there being a reaction, resistance and even revolution, as our own history has shown.

It is injustice that has caused many in the world to have a lack of Shalom.  Some have more and gain more because of the unjust economic systems designed for them to gain more at the expense of others.  Some seem to be above the law and others have their lives destroyed by it because the unjust legal system is designed to benefit some and actively hurt others.  Social norms and mores are built on some being pitted against others, which further creates tension, conflict and violence within society, because our unjust political system benefits those already in power who use hatred as the tool by which to keep it.

"And in despair I bowed my head. 'There is no peace on earth," I said.  For hate is strong and mocks the song of Peace on Earth, Goodwill to all."

This Advent, perhaps we can look to the Prophets of old who railed against injustice, and to Jesus and the Gospels as an alternative and resistance to empire, so that all may have Shalom and that we may all have peace.  

This Advent, perhaps we can look to the unjust economic, justice and political systems in our nation that benefit the few at the expense of the many, and strive to live in alignment with Jesus' fulfillment of the Law and Prophets in the Good News of social justice in this part of God's Kingdom, here and now.

This Advent, perhaps we can commit ourselves to welcome Jesus by opening our hearts and minds to those who Jesus loves, the downtrodden, marginalized, disenfranchised and most vulnerable.  Perhaps we can even strive toward the living of Jesus' commanded Agape Love.  Perhaps we can even strive toward making the things that make for Shalom our new norms and social mores, and thus be faithful to God in Christ Jesus.  Perhaps we can get beyond vague concepts and theories, warm thoughts and good prayers to practice - the practice of living Agape Love - committed action on behalf of the other toward their Shalom (completeness, wholeness, well-being) in life.

Perhaps this Advent...

"Then rang the bells more loud and deep, God is not dead, nor does God sleep.  The wrong shall fail, the right prevail with Peace on Earth, Goodwill to all."

Perhaps this Advent...

Pastor Jamie

ADVENT of Hope

 It is the Advent of what for you?

What do you anticipate, what new beginning or the coming of what?  It is no accident that the first text for Advent is an apocalyptic vision by Jesus of the end and His return in Mark (13:24-37).  It is also no accident that we are informed that we are not to prognosticate on just when that might happen.  We are to look to the future with eyes fixed on the promises of God and trust God to deliver in God's time.  We may see the signs, even those offered by scripture, but they are just reminders to always be aware that it will come.  Our focus needs to necessarily be on how we are living Agape Love and Grace TODAY, right now.  If it is, then we need not worry about when or about being prepared, for we will be the wise bridesmaids with all prepared for the Groom's coming.

Regarding next week's text from Mark 1:1-8...

We have a chance for a new beginning, and one finally centered on the Good News of Jesus.  Mark, the first written of its genre, offered an amazing new way of looking at the world.  Empire had run roughshod over God's children for generations, and this Good News was for those oppressed, marginalized and disenfranchised by it.  It is still that today, IF the church that bears the name of Jesus would only apply it to this current iteration of empire under which we have increasingly suffered for generations.  If the church in America, determined to collude with empire and be irrelevant in the lives of those oppressed will not do so, then the movement of followers of Jesus will.  The Good News of Jesus directly addressed, challenges and confronts the values of empire with the Kingdom values of Agape Love and Grace.  It was a new beginning for those in the First Century.  It needs to be OUR New Beginning, here and now.

Our baptism of repentance, like for that of the people of old, must mean that we change our thinking so that our direction will change to be in alignment with the coming of Jesus to us, IN THE GOOD NEWS.  The Holy Spirit of God is driving us to Jesus and Jesus' Way in the Good News.  Our history, distant and recent, has shown us the error of our ways of believing and acting in this part of God's Kingdom.  We are confronted by the Good News and given instruction on how to live faithful lives to God in Jesus.  Those who have been held down, back and out under empire are encouraged by the different vision for life in the Kingdom that the Gospel of Mark offers.  NOW is the time to prepare a way in our hearts and minds for the coming of Jesus to us in a new way, by seeing the Good News of Jesus in a new light and thus seeing our lives with God in a new light - the light of faith in Jesus and Jesus' Way of Agape Love and Grace.

Sisters and brothers, let the age of collusion with empire - the age of prosperity theology, church growth focus, personal salvation and other false beliefs - be in our past as children of God.  Let us be followers of Jesus by living what Jesus taught, commanded and modeled, as we have witness in the Good News.  Let us be faithful to Jesus by being faithful the living of Jesus' Way for us in the world, the way of Agape Love and Grace.

The messenger has come out of the wilderness.  The coming of Jesus is proclaimed.  Let us repent and open our minds and hearts to the Good News of Jesus.  The time is NOW.  Let us prepare for Jesus' coming to us by being faithful to Jesus in the living of Agape Love and Grace, here and now.  It is the wise and faithful thing to do.

Pastor Jamie

Unprecedented

 I am sick of the word, "unprecedented."

I hear it all the time with regard to this "president."  It isn't that we haven't seen this kind of narcissism before, or greed, hatred, lust for power or desire for status.  We have seen it in government, in the church, in society at large and in our own communities.  We have just not seen it supported by so many people who have given their unconditional devotion to a delusional narcissist.  Their willingness to sacrifice all decency, integrity, honor, morality and conscience might be the unprecedented thing, but then again, no.  We have the South before and during the Civil War.  We have the Holy Roman Empire.  We have the Roman Empire.  We have Russia.  We have China.  We have North Korea.  I am not surprised, really.  Evil lurks within these hearts and minds when it comes to greed, hatred, lust for power and desire for status.  That is why empire lives on in one iteration after another.

What would be unprecedented is if all Americans stood on the side of Democracy, even Republicans in office.  What would be unprecedented is if everyone stood and said that empire is not for America, and that we will reform our political (electoral) and economic systems to reflect a deeper value for Democracy, inclusivity, justice and liberty.  We could do that.  We most likely will not.  Isn't that sad?

And the Corona Virus - Covid 19.  It is not unprecedented.  Neither is the reaction to it.  The Flu Pandemic of 1918 had riotous crowds hell bent on self destruction for the sake of drinking together, and people demonstrating that wearing masks and curfews were an infringement on their civil liberties, thus spreading the disease and killing millions.  

What would be unprecedented would be if we would do the right thing for the right reasons - for the sake of other, isolating ourselves, wearing masks, washing hands, keeping distance and giving of our abundance for others in need.  We do have the advantage of social media, telephones and other tools for staying in touch, which they never had.  It would also be unprecedented if the government would actually govern for the sake of the people and give every household that makes under $100,000 per year $18,000 for the three months of isolation it will take, give money to small businesses with 200 or fewer employees so that their closing is temporary for the sake of the nation, and make healthcare free for all during this crisis.  That which is clearly necessary is not being done right now because of greed, hatred, lust for power and desire for status, though millions are in need in our own nation.  Isn't that just sad, though?

Wouldn't it be unprecedented, though, for Christians to stand up and say that we will not give our devotion to empire yet again, in this way?  Wouldn't it be unprecedented for us to say that we will live what Jesus taught, commanded and modeled for us as we have witness in the Gospels?  Wouldn't it be unprecedented for us to live the Agape Love and Grace of Jesus in this part of God's Kingdom, here and now?  Yes, with the exception of a hundred years or so immediately after Christ, it would be unprecedented.  I fear we will still not live Jesus' Kingdom values.  Isn't that just sad, though?

Pastor Jamie

Instability and Pandemic

 My sisters and brothers,

In addition to the political instability caused by those who would twist our social institutions for their own gains in wealth and power, we are now seeing an upsurge in Corona virus cases and deaths.  The two are linked.  Instead of using their influence, the resources of the nation and power to unify the nation and mount a unified attack on the pandemic and economic losses associated with it, those who choose to divide us have ignored the rise in cases of this virus, the science of fighting it and the dire economic needs of our nation, especially among the most vulnerable in it.

That is not new.  In spite of the needs for all people to have enough on which to live, for decades they have ignored the minimum wage needing to be a living wage.  They have ignored the need for ALL people to have adequate, affordable and available healthcare.  They have ignored the need for all children to have EQUAL access to a GOOD education.  They have ignored the needs of the black and brown, LGBTQ+, female and religiously diverse populations within this nation to have EQUAL rights and opportunities for a life of well-being.  While depriving folk of what they have needed, they have vilified, devalued, dehumanized and scapegoated some to divide us and thus keep their positions of power and wealth, from which to abuse and oppress the rest of us.  Clearly one political party has had this as their central platform for decades, but the other party has done little to change it because of its benefits for its elites as well.  Our political system is corrupt.  Our economic system is immoral and unconscionable.  Our soul is dying.

"Most Merciful God, we confess that we are by nature sinful.  We have sinned against you in thought, word and deed by what we have done and by what we have left undone.  We have not loved you with our whole heart, soul, MIND and strength.  We have not loved our Neighbors as ourselves.  For the sake of Jesus Christ and by His Grace, please forgive us, lead us to repentance and to establish and/or restore Shalom for all those who have been disenfranchised, marginalized and oppressed by our actions in the world."

If you are a politician, a corporate executive, the owner of a business, clergy, believer or citizen, please pray this prayer with me.  It may be your/my/our only hope as individuals and a nation.  We have fallen so far from God's Way for us because of our living of empire values (greed, lust for power, hatred, desire for status), that we must solely rely on God's Grace and repent, out of Agape Love, to advocate on behalf of those we have hurt.  

Praying it is one thing.

Meaning it is another.

Repentance is yet another, and one even more difficult, for it means changing our thinking and thus our words and actions.  Our soul, your soul and my soul are all at stake.  

For the sake of the most vulnerable, the nation and the world we must confess, ask for forgiveness from God and Neighbor, and Repent.  It is our only hope RIGHT HERE and RIGHT NOW.

Pastor Jamie

Fight the Good Fight of the Faith

 Many are experiencing a cautious relief.  Jacqui and I attended a "Count Every Vote" Rally yesterday that turned into a Victory Celebration as the announcement came through the crowd.  We cried and laughed and drove to do our errands, beeping our horn and yelling, fists raised in solidarity with people all up and down Germantown Ave.  Then we went home and talked throughout the day about what this means and what it does not.

It means that the people have said, "NO" to Fascism, at least for now.  The colluders and sympathizers with Fascism will still do all they can to ignore, refute and reverse this, but a majority of the people have spoken in this "Relative" Democracy.

It means that they are still out there, now angered and determined to win, even as their mouthpiece continues to claim fraud and the stealing of this election, something he and his cronies tried to do themselves, but failed.

It means that the nation is deeply divided.  It will remain so because of our national sin of giving our devotion to Greed, Hatred, Lust for Power and Desire for Status.  Some will be people of love and grace and others of empire, always.  For right now, the majority of people (Dems, some Republicans and many Independents) have come together to thwart this threat to our Democracy and decency in our nation.  To think that maybe 31 million Independents and around 7 million or so Republicans helped do this is heartening and frightening at the same time.  With perhaps 37 million Democrats, this coalition of folk who were not thrilled with Joe Biden did what they did because of the extreme threat of Donald Trump and his colluders in the Republican Party to our very Democracy.  We are not going to be holding hands and singing "Kum Ba Yah" with each other, which is sad but true.  We did come together to avoid a repeat of 1933-39 and its aftermath in Germany and across the world.  

We have a long road ahead of us.  This was not a great victory for the Agape Love and Grace in Kingdom Values, but a repudiation of the extreme ignorance, arrogance and hatefulness of empire, for now.  Those folk are still out there, still angry and now more determined than ever.  Those more moderate but still destructive of others are still there also.  So must we be determined, strategic and focused on what is best for ALL of God's children in this nation and around the world.

Our work is just beginning.  If we as followers of Jesus want to see the day when God's Kingdom is come and God's Will is done on earth as in heaven, then we must take back the Word and the Flag.  We must stand for the Good News of Jesus, live it and proclaim it as a better way for the world.  We must fight for a REAL Democracy of, by and for the people - ALL the people, equally.  We must strive for the Shalom of ALL, putting in place the things that make for Shalom for All, or truly none of us will have it.

We must learn the lessons of how close we have come to the brink of destruction, truly something that is still possible in the days and weeks ahead, and repent - change our thinking so that our direction changes - to avoid similar pitfalls in the future.  They will come.  

We must be willing to face the consequences of being people who follow Jesus in the face of empire.  We must go to the Cross, as did Jesus, in order to follow Jesus.  We also must live and teach what Jesus taught, commanded and modeled for us, as we have that in the Gospels, as the better, indeed, only sustainable way to be together in this part of God's Kingdom, here and now.

We must fight the beautiful fight of the faith.  We must keep doing it. 

I love Jesus and Jesus' Good News of Agape Love, Grace and Justice through liberation from empire for ALL of God's children.

I love Democracy, REAL Democracy, equality, equitable treatment for all and equal justice for ALL.

Do you?

If so, please know that this has been a good and necessary start, but our work has just begun.

Pastor Jamie

12 Imperatives of Jesus VII: your sword...

 

VII. “Put your sword back in its place…”  Matthew 26:52

 

From the Law:

“Anyone who kills a human being shall be put to death.”  Leviticus 24:17

“Anyone who maims another shall suffer the same injury in return: fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth; the injury inflicted is the injury to be suffered.”   Leviticus 24:19, 20

 

“Vengeance is mine, and recompense, for the time when their foot shall slip; because the day of their calamity is at hand, their doom comes swiftly.”    Deuteronomy 32:35

 

 

From the Prophets:

 

“He shall judge between the nations, and shall arbitrate for many peoples; they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.”  Isaiah 2:4

 

 

Jesus always took the Law to a new level.  Jesus fulfilled the Law under the New Covenant of Agape Love and Grace.  So, the Old Covenant Laws were either negated by the New Law or they were enhanced by it.  Murder was never acceptable to God (see Cain and Abel).  Violence is never advocated by Jesus:

“You have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, ‘You shall not murder,’; and ‘whoever murders shall be liable to judgment.’  But I say to you that if you are angry with a brother or sister, you will be liable to judgment; and if you insult a brother or sister, you will be liable to the council; and if you say, ‘You fool,’ you will be liable to the hell of fire.”  Matthew 5:21-26

 

and

 

“You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’  But I say to you, do not resist an evildoer.  But if anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other also…”

Matthew 5:38-42

 

Even under the oppression of empire, Jesus calls for resistance instead of violence.  If we value

the New Covenant Law of Agape and Grace, we will live Agape and Grace even in conflict.  We will take steps to re-establish relationships, forgive sins and renew our unity in the body of Christ.  Violence does not heal divisions.  It broadens them.  If violence done to anyone is wrong, then violence done to ANYONE is wrong.  It is never the answer.  As Doctor King said, “Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars.  Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that.  Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that.”  And a mentor of Dr. King, Mahatma Gandhi is widely reported as saying, “An eye for an eye ends up making the whole world blind.”  We are either people of the Old Covenant or the Old one, followers of Jesus or not followers of Jesus.

 

Jesus also commanded His disciples, “And the one who has no sword must sell his cloak and buy one,” still, when it came to using the sword, even in His own defense, Jesus condemned it (Luke 22:36 and then 22:47-53.  Jesus’ hyperbolic statement about selling the useful and valuable cloak to obtain a sword was symbolic of the urgency of crisis they were about to face, and the dangerous nature of it.  But when it came down to it, Jesus rebuked those who geared up for a fight like a mob, and those who pulled their swords to defend Him, and warned, “for all who take the sword will perish by the sword,” and then informing that God’s power could do violence if that was God’s Will, and rebuking those who came out geared up for a violent clash to unjustly arrest Him.  (please read Matthew 26:47-56)   Gearing up for a fight and inciting a fight are not Kingdom values.

 

Given that, those who gear up to oppress and force their will on others are not living Jesus’ Kingdom values.  Certainly, those who build up arms to impose their will on others are not.  Having a weapon for defense of one’s person or household is one thing.  Stocking up arms to attack others in their homes, cars or on public streets is another.  It is never justified.

 

Jesus, after gathering His army in the face of Rome in one day, even outnumbering the Centurions who controlled the area, did not hand out weapons as they gathered in their battle groups of Centuries and Half Centuries, but instead gave out the Good News and food.  (please read Mark 6:30- 44)  In the face of oppressive force, it is much more powerful to restore to the people what has been taken away.  Rome weaponized sustenance.  Jesus restored it.  Empire takes away from those exploited and oppressed under it.  As we have learned from Jesus and the First Century believers who followed Him, the Black Panthers, Dr. King and other resistance fighters and groups, arming the people with wisdom, understanding, daily provisions of food and healthcare, establishing community and focusing on a common cause is much more powerful toward the restoration of justice than is the retaliation of violence for violence.  Oppressed people becoming like their oppressors toward the end of taking their place does not end oppression; it promotes it.

 

Paul advocated on behalf of fellow slaves being transported, who escaped because of the shipwreck they all survived.  When the Centurions would have killed them, which was their sworn duty under empire, a Centurion influenced by Paul kept them from doing it and thus spared the lives of all those on board.  Even when it is one’s duty to take a life under the rules of empire, it goes against the Law of the New Covenant of Agape and Grace.  (Acts 27)

 

This same Paul would write to the believers in Rome, the center of empire and its values, “Do not repay anyone evil for evil, but take thought for what is noble in the sight of all.  If it is possible, so far as it depends upon you, live peaceably with all.  Beloved, never avenge yourselves but leave room for the wrath of God; for it is written, ‘Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.’  No, ‘if your enemies are hungry, feed them; if they are thirsty, give them something to drink; for by doing this you will heap burning coals on their heads.’  Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” (Romans 12:17-21)

 

Violence is not warranted for those who would be followers of Jesus, who aspire to live what Jesus taught, commanded and modeled for us.  We cannot be violent AND be following Jesus.  With due respect to Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Malcolm X and others who by whatever means possible sought to end the horrendous violence done by oppressors in the world, and acknowledging that I would most probably even be persuaded to follow suit under certain circumstances, I believe that active, non-violent resistance is still the better way for those who would resist the evils of empire, its ruthless and vicious oppression over children of God in the world.  Joining in the evil activity does not end it, but rather perpetuates it in the world in which we live.  “If it is possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.”

 

This is Good News for a world weary of bloodshed.  It is Good News for those who struggle within themselves with the questions of whether or not to pick up a sword or gun.  It is Good News for those who have been victims of violence and who have seen, firsthand, what horrible cost it exacts from so many, especially to the souls of those who perpetrate it.  If violence is off the table, then we are forced as people of faith and integrity in our faith to look at alternative avenues for the restoration of peace.  We must “sit at the table, prepared by God in the presence of our enemies.”  We are commanded by God to work toward the things that make for Shalom and the peace that comes from all people having it.  We are forced to value all people having Shalom (completeness, wholeness and well-being.)  We are forced to “make justice roll down like waters and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.”  We are also called to be advocates for justice on behalf of others around us in the world.  We are forced to heed God’s Will for us that there be peace and Shalom for ALL.  If we want peace, we must strive for justice and the things that make for peace.”  That could be Good News indeed!  We are given the parameters that are acceptable to God!  We need only commit to them and live within God’s Will for us in conflicts and, indeed, every other part of life.  We need only be witness to them in the world around us and be the salt that flavors that world and light that illumines that world to the way of peace!  Then, as Jesus promised in His first sermon ever recorded for us, we peacemakers will be blessed.

 

This is also Good News for us as stewards of God’s gifts!  The implements of war, the instruments of violent death have swallowed up the resources of this nation for a few generations, despite the warnings of Eisenhower and others.  We cannot find funding for the equal education of every child in our nation, for healthcare for all, for food and clothing and shelter for all, for a living wage for all workers and for so many other things necessary for all of God’s children to have Shalom, but we always find trillions of dollars to spend on wars and the implements of war, tax breaks for billionaires and “incentives” for corporations.  These do not make for Shalom for all, but rather deepen the divides that destroy it and push us toward more violence with one another in the world.  War chosen, even provoked by any nation instead of developed diplomatic efforts has no value in the Kingdom of God.  Weaponized Police, informal militias and weapons of mass destruction that can shoot thirty-three people in as many seconds are not of God.   Any corporation or nation that promotes the creation of such things and puts them in the hands of people on the streets is not of God.  But isn’t it the Good News for children of God to know that we must do the work to put away war, violence to individuals and groups and the implements of violence, and use our resources to instead restore lives of Shalom to all of God’s children?  I know it is not good news for those who give lip service to God but their devotion to empire for their own gain under it, but it is Good News for all who look for guidance on how to be faithful to God!  We have God’s Will!  It is clear!  In order to be in alignment with God’s Will, we must put away violence and the implements of violence, because violence lies outside the Kingdom of God, even this part of it, here and now!  The tools of violence are not acceptable in the Kingdom of God, even this part of it, here and now!  God’s Kingdom is come, God’s Will is to be done in “swords into plowshares and spears into pruning hooks!”  The resources of violence and death must be repurposed into the things that sustain life because we live in the Kingdom of God!  Ain’t that Good News, though?

 

“The time is fulfilled.  The Kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the Good News.”  “Put your sword back in its place.”

Woe... Whoa!

 Matthew 23:1-12 is the lectionary text for Sunday, November 1.  I will look at all of Chpt. 23.

For the sake of the people and his followers, Jesus clearly exposed the corrupt religious leaders of His time for who they were and what values they lived.  They were in positions of power in the church, so the people had to adhere to what they said, but Jesus admonished the people not to adopt the empire values that the religious leaders had adopted.  The religious leaders were all about the empire values of wealth, power and status.  Jesus called for humility, promising that these corrupt leaders would be eventually deflated.

The lectionary stops there, but the rest of this chapter is crucial for understanding that against which we must stand.

Jesus addressed the corrupt religious leaders directly.

Jesus exposed them for not being of the Kingdom, and leading others away from the Kingdom, converting people to live their devotion for the gods of empire, and thus putting them in Hell.

Jesus pointed out their greed and love for all that glitters, rather than what the church stands for and what God intended it to be about.

Jesus rebuked them for their displays of opulent wealth in their tithes, while ignoring justice, mercy and faith for the children of God!

Jesus called them out on their outward appearances which are facades designed to hide evil within.

Jesus accused them of giving lip service to the messengers of God from old, but ignoring, silencing, punishing and killing the prophets God has sent to them now.

Jesus in utter frustration, wept over Jerusalem because of what the center of God's covenant community had become.  It was not as God wanted.  

Jesus declared their institution desolate.

Jesus said they would not have another chance until they welcomed Him and His Good News.

This is the text for the day after Reformation.  It echoes the corruptions of the religious leaders over the centuries -

The Temple Cult leadership in Jesus' time,

the growing corruptions that came with the institutionalization of the church under Rome, 

their culmination in the Holy Roman Empire under Pope Leo X,

and now with the Desolating Sacrilege of 1981 and following in the U.S., during which the Religious "Right" and Political "Right" got together to corrupt the church and society with their devotion to the false gods of empire once again.

Jesus still weeps over the institutions that now bear His name, for we are again desolate.

Our only hope is transformation in repentance - changing our thinking so that our direction will change.

Our only hope is transformation in coming to live what Jesus taught, commanded and modeled for us as faithfulness, as we have in the Gospels of Agape and Grace.  The Good News is, as Jesus pointed out, that we who follow Jesus can still do so, in spite of what "the church" as institution does.  The transformation must therefore start with us.  

Without that, we will remain desolate - the church and the nation.  We have seen what that looks like, and we know it can get much, much worse.

Pastor Jamie

It's about Love. Genuine Love. Agape Love. Period.

 Matthew 22:34-46 is the lectionary text for Sunday, October 25th.

It was 1980 when I started being politically minded.  Jimmy Carter was running for his second term and had faced a lot of hardships as President.  He was a good, decent and truly generously loving man.  He was genuine in his love for country and humanity.  He was being bashed by the Reagan campaign over gas shortages, Iran hostages and other recession-oriented issues.  It was a volatile time, and Reagan and his cronies threw fuel on the flames in order to get elected.  I was completely unaware, as were most Americans, that Reagan had promised arms to Iran in exchange for a delay in the freeing of the hostages, denying Carter the fruits of his diligent labors and thus a second term.  On his inauguration day, being a dramatic actor (OK, having played co-star to a chimp for a few movies), Reagan stole the election at the expense of the hostages and the truth, for dramatic effect.  After that, Reagan changed government toward oligarchy by appointing agency and ministry heads who represented corporations.  The age of blatant empire values in America had come.  Greed was good, lust for Power was justified and desire for Status was lifted up as the new, normal American values.  He claimed to love America through his hokey, grandfatherly and wholesome veneer.  He was anything but genuine.

I also had no idea that Jerry Falwell and the "moral majority", with their emphasis on purity and holiness, did not form out of a deep love for all life as sacred (mostly fetal life) and thus in opposition to abortion, but out of a desire to keep their schools segregated.  They claimed morality, but behind the scenes worked on the values of very immoral racism, homophobia and misogyny.  They claimed morality, but worked to further the immorality of greed, hatred and intolerance, lust for power over others and desire for status above others.  They were anything but genuine.

I call it our Desolating Sacrilege, when the political and religious "right" conspired to have power over the people, impose their will and ways on the people and destroy Christianity in America along with her Democracy.  Clearly they were successful, partly due to the intentional, systematic and sustained efforts of Newt Gingrich, the Bush's, Limbaugh, Beck, Pat Robertson and others.  

It was during this time that this passage from Matthew 22 took on new meaning for me, partly because I heard it mentioned by Carter in the context of our society and our relationship with others in the world, and partly because I saw it being LIVED by Carter in government, and the striving to live it in economics as a faithful way to live in Jesus.  I started applying Agape Love to every aspect of life, even before my "born from above" experience in 1995.  I have grieved the loss of sanity, morality, civility, justice, equity, inclusivity, equality in increments since then.  I have grown in the conviction that Agape Love and Grace are the imperatives God gives us for the living of these days in this part of the Kingdom, here and now.

The legalists will look for loopholes in the law (see Luke's version in 10:25-37).  Fundamentalists do that.  They will find exceptions for themselves in morality while abusing others for a perceived lack thereof within them.  The Temple Cult Leaders of Jesus' time were like that.  Jesus addressed it often.  Claiming (self) righteousness, they do not follow Jesus, Jesus' teachings, commands or examples, and do not therefore walk in Jesus' Way.

We are currently in a national, moral, ecclesiastical, political, economic and pandemic crisis because of their steady work since 1981.  We live under empire values and practice American Civil Religion instead of Democracy or Christianity, because of their intentional, systematic and sustained efforts.  Their unfaithful devotion to the unholy trinity of greed, lust for power and desire for status has driven them to strive for a fascist oligarchy disguised as American-style Theocracy.  It is not faithful to Jesus. 

If we want to follow Jesus, we must love God with Agape Love - active commitment on behalf of the other.  We must love God for God's sake, actively committing our lives to pleasing and obeying God, as we have been shown by the Jesus of the Gospels, who has all authority in our lives as children of God.

If we want to follow Jesus, we must love Neighbor as we love ourselves with Agape Love.  We must actively commit to the well-being, completeness and wholeness (Shalom) of our Neighbor, who Jesus defines as stranger, enemy and the most vulnerable among us (again, see Luke 10).  Loving Neighbor as self means that we no more want harm or lack to come to neighbor than we want that for ourselves - that we in fact want Shalom for our Neighbor as much as we want that for ourselves.  Jesus taught this.  Jesus commanded this.  Jesus modeled this.  If we are to be followers of Jesus, we must live this.

The time for lip service, for serving two masters, for duplicitous words and practices is over if we want to survive.  Not all who claim the name are faithful followers of Jesus.  American Civil Religion is not Christianity.  The "moral majority" was not a majority in America and was certainly not based on any morality that resembled what Jesus taught, commanded and modeled for us.  The religious right is wrong.  The political right is wrong.  If Jesus is Lord of your life, then living what Jesus taught, commanded and modeled for us in how to live in this part of God's Kingdom here and now is the only faithful way.  

It's all about Love, genuine Love, Agape Love.  Period.

Incidentally, Jimmy Carter is still living his faith and citizenship in truly genuinely (Agape) loving ways.  I wonder how life would be different for us now had he not been cheated out of a second term. 

Pastor Jamie

To whom do YOU belong?

 Matthew 22:15-22 is the lectionary text for Sunday, October 18th.

They gave Him a question to test Him and trick Jesus into verbally being disloyal to empire and the emperor or to God.  He gave them a trick answer.

Graven images were anathema to faithful believers.  Jesus was being set up by the Pharisees to either be disloyal to God or to Caesar.  Either way, they would try to entrap Him and hasten His demise.

Meanwhile, the Pharisees, Sadducees, Chief Priests, Scribes and Elders benefitted from the lucrative trade of changing Roman coins into Shekels in the Temple, so that faithful believers could make their offerings without being unfaithful to God.  They exploited and cheated the people for their own personal gain.  It did not matter that the coins were kosher in the Temple.  Their real devotion was to the empire and emperor on the "real" money.  Jesus had already dealt with them in Chapter 21 of Matthew.  That is why Jesus called them hypocrites.

The point is this.  It all belongs to God.  If you are a faithful believer, it ALL belongs to God.  Money, government, economics, social engagement, worship, work, family, church, community, marriage, parenting, sex, education, healthcare, employment, the environment, politics, public safety, how you handle Covid19 - ALL of it belongs to God.  We are either faithful in everything or we are not faithful.  We are faithful in these things or not.  

And how are we faithful?  Not by giving our lip service, piety, rituals, tithes, worship and praise to God while giving everything else to empire.  No.  That is the stuff of hypocrites.

We are faithful by applying what Jesus taught, commanded and modeled for us in the living of Agape Love and Grace to every aspect of life, in every arena of life.  We are faithful when we work toward the Shalom of all around us (completeness, wholeness and well-being).  Are you using what God has given you in Agape Love for God and Neighbor?  The creation, are you honoring and preserving this gift of God?  Are you aligning yourself with those who most exhibit Kingdom values in Politics and Economics?  Are you participating in the world around you in Agape Love and Grace?  If you are trying to give lip service by saying, "Amen" to the Good News of Jesus, while living the values of Greed, lust for Power and desire for Status, you are not.  If you are about getting what you can for yourself to the neglect of others around you, by the chosen ignorance to their plight or at their expense, you are not being faithful.  If you are actively committed to the well-being of others around you, then you are following Jesus.

Give to empire what belongs to empire - NOTHING.  Fight for a Democracy in this nation, vote for those who will strive to establish it, and then use your vote to make sure your tax dollars go to preserving and sustaining the well-being of others around you in the nation and the world.  Fascist Oligarchy is evil.  It is empire.  Social Democracy is the closest political and economic system to Kingdom values that exists in the world today.  Laissez-faire Capitalism is the furthest from it, is of empire and is evil by its nature.  It is based on the empire values of Greed, lust for Power and desire for Status, and not on Agape Love or Grace.  Vote for humanity, for civility, for the environment, for justice, for peace, for equity and equality.  Do work that does not mean gain for you at the expense of others.  Vote not only for your own interests, but for the interest of others, ALL others, and especially the most vulnerable.  That is the Agape way.  End Empire.  That is Jesus' Good News way to be in the world, this part of God's Kingdom, here and now.

Give to God what belongs to God - EVERYTHING.  Love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength by loving your Neighbor as yourself, in every aspect of your life.

We cannot serve two masters.  (I read that somewhere.)

It is a choice.  It is YOUR choice.  Put down your money, take your choice and live with it.

The question is -

         Will you be a person of the Good News of Jesus in this part of the Kingdom, here and now?

         or...

         Will you be a person of the Bad News of Empire, and walk away from the Kingdom?

Pastor Jamie

Coming to the Banquet

 Matthew 22:1-14 is the lectionary text for next Sunday, October 11.

The King is always God, and of course Jesus is the Son.  A wedding banquet?  Hmmm... I am of the mind that, while speculation may be fun at times, there are vital lessons to be learned for life in focusing on what is actually the center of the message.  

People are invited to be in the Kingdom of God, the banquet, the feast that has no time or place, for all time and in all places - the Kingdom lived here and now, as well as there, then.

Some folk got no use for it, even belittle the idea.  Others are too busy making money.  Some are even hostile toward the Kingdom and its values, in light of empire and what they would lose by living Kingdom values, so they mistreat the messengers of Kingdom values by ignoring, silencing or even killing them.  Labels such as "communist" and "socialist" come in very handy in 'muriKKKa's iteration of empire, but it is the same as it has been for generations and two thousand years.  The Kingdom values of Agape Love, Grace, Community and Shalom for all are not convenient for the devotees of empire and its values of greed, lust for power and desire for status.  

So, Jesus in Matthew is signaling to those who have been invited, the religious leaders, civic leaders and others who have professed to be Kingdom people, that now those who will respond will look differently from the traditional folk who have been marginally a part of the Kingdom, both the good and the bad.  They are ALL invited.

And the banquet, the Kingdom is filled with guests.

The next part is tricky, and has been used for every manner of manipulation, particularly about what people wear to church.  I believe it is much deeper than that.  My understanding is that hosts provided wedding garments for those who had none in that time and place.  That may be a myth or a true custom of the time.  

Regardless, I believe it is about being clothed in the righteousness of the Christ.  I believe that we are covered by the redemption of Jesus by Grace in the Kingdom.  I believe that coming wrongly attired to the Kingdom means trying to participate in the Kingdom and its values while donning the facade of opulent wealth, the demeanor of power over others and air of superiority in status above others - which are not Kingdom values.  I believe it is the white-washed tomb syndrome of those who believe that they can be clothed in their OWN righteousness.  To come to this banquet, the feast that has no end, we must come right - humble, equal, valuing equity and generous, aware of our need for Grace and Agape Love and willing to live it with others.

The consequences suffered for not coming are dire.  The consequences from coming wrong are devastating.

Refusing to live the Agape Love and Grace of God in Jesus has dire consequences for those in the world around us.  To live in the Kingdom necessarily means giving up the falsehoods and values of empire.  When we come right, it is truly Good News.  We feast for eternity, basking in the Agape and Grace of God with one another.  We know what is true, what is uplifting and life-affirming.  We know what is joyous and gracious and loving.  We know Shalom in the Kingdom, because ALL know Shalom.

Come to the banquet which is the Kingdom of God, here and now.  Come, clothed in Christ's righteousness, by Grace, which is a sufficient covering- indeed, the only appropriate attire.  Come and live God's Will being done on earth as in heaven.  Come to the feast which is lived out now, and has no end.

Pastor Jamie

Taken Away

 Isaiah 5:1-7 and Matthew 21:33-46 for next week's lectionary.

They tried to take the vineyard away from the one who owned it.  They suffered the consequences of killing the Son in order to take what belongs to Him.

The Chief Priests and Pharisees knew it was about them.  They had been colluding with empire in order to get the trinkets that they could by serving empire.  They had twisted the Word, overstepped their authority and believed that they were the church of God, and therefore could do whatever they wanted with it.

It was the same under Pope Leo X in the 16th Century.  Thus the Reformation of the church.

It is the same in America since our Desolating Sacrilege in 1981 and following, when the Religious "Right" joined the Political "Right" to fleece God's children in America and across the world, in order that they might have power, wealth and status.  We are still waiting for the new Reformation to begin.  The false teachers and prophets of Prosperity and Church Growth and Personal Salvation, theologies designed to dupe, coerce and manipulate the desperate, greedy, power hungry and status driven in our nation, have had their way with God's children for far too long.  The political and religious leaders who represent empire here and now have taken their toll on the children of God.  It is time.  To this date, the prophets like Jeremiah Wright and Cornell West, among others, have been largely silenced or ignored, even by the "faithful."  The civil rights leaders of our past are dying, and the Rev. Barbers, Nadia Bolz-Webers and others are striving to bring people to see a faith that is faithful to the Gospel of Jesus, and are thus being vilified and devalued by many.  But folk still have itching ears to hear what they want to hear, and blow about in every wind of doctrine that will get them what they want as devotees to empire.

Miserable death, Jesus promised.

Destruction of the Temple, Jesus promised.

The Kingdom of God taken away from the false leaders and given to the people who produce the fruits of the Kingdom, Jesus promised.

The dashing of false teachings and those who promote them upon the solid rock of Jesus' Good News, Jesus promised.

I eagerly await.  I eagerly await.

Come, Lord Jesus.

Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as in heaven.

The Reagans and Falwells, Grahams and Grahams, Whites and Trumps, Robertsons and McConnells, Copelands and Millers, Dollars and Barrs, Osteens and Pences, Oyedepos and Pompeos have been promoting empire through this desolating sacrilege long enough.  They have tried to steal the Kingdom from you.  They continue to kill your Son in hearts and minds of many who are gullible, desperate and duplicitous, out of devotion to the gods of empire.

Oh, Stone that the builders rejected, be our cornerstone, here and now.  Make it amazing in our eyes!

Take it away from them and give it to those who produce the good fruit of Agape Love and Grace!

AMEN

Pastor Jamie

Is it of God or of humans?

 Matthew 21:23-32 is the lectionary text for Sunday, September 27.

The Temple Cult leaders of that time were corrupt and in collusion with Rome.  They questioned Jesus' authority because they were screwed up about authority.  Rome was their authority, but they had to give appearances to be serving God, while serving Rome.  They were heartless and cruel, forcing sacrifices of the people (sin offerings), stealing their lands and condemning them with harsh judgments over things that they, themselves were doing.  Does any of this sound familiar, yet?

So, when they demanded to know of what authority Jesus spoke, because He and His teachings were a threat to their absolute control over the people, Jesus played them and exposed their hypocrisy.  I had a similar experience with an assistant to the Bishop of a church body I was leaving years ago.  In anger, he said that if he could, he would take away my ordination.  I asked the question about whether our ordinations were of God or of a church body.  It did not quell his anger.

Jesus then gave the parable, the teaching, to these religious leaders who settled for an appearance of faithfulness to God while serving themselves and empire.  People genuinely struggle at times to live what God calls us to live, and sometimes folk blatantly walk away from the rigors of the faithful walk.  Others give lip service to God, pretend to be righteous and give their true devotion to themselves and empire.  There is hope for those who are genuine.  There is hope for those who truly struggle with their faith.  There is little hope at all for the duplicitous who try to serve two masters, those who believe that they are entitled to whatever they can get, to ruthlessly steal position and power, and the wealth that comes with them.  There is little hope for those who would beat others down with false expectations, and who themselves do whatever they want to others in order to get what they want.  There is little hope for religious leaders who claim to represent God, but serve themselves and empire at the expense of children of God.

Yet, there are those church leaders yet today, appearing righteous and having hearts far from God.  There are those church leaders today who look and sound like the real deal, but whose god is the belly, and who spin all manner of false teachings to make others blow in the winds of false doctrine in order that they, themselves might exploit them.  There are those church leaders today whose values are in alignment with empire instead of Kingdom, empire instead of God.  And there are plenty of folk with itching ears to hear what they want to in order that they might get some prestige above others, power over others and/or greater wealth for themselves by associating with them.

There are those political leaders who give lip service to Jesus and Kingdom, but who do not at all follower what Jesus taught, commanded and modeled because there is too much power and prestige to be gained, and too much money to be made by living empire values.  There are political leaders who say the right things about love for country, patriotism and Democracy, and who give their true devotion to the principles of oligarchy or even fascism that will help them get what they want, at the expense of their fellow citizens and others in the world.  Since our desolating sacrilege of 1981, when the Religious "Right" and Political "Right" joined in collusion to promote empire, their god has been their bellies at the expense of EVERYONE else.  Yet, appearing to be upright, righteous and even reasonable has worked for them in duping the gullible, the desperate and the hateful who love those empire values for which they stand.

Israel was devastated under empire.  Much of our nation and many across the world have been devastated by empire again/still.  The Greed, Hatred, lust for Power and desire for Status of a few has meant struggle for the rest, even as it is now.  It is getting worse.  In the midst, we have Jesus, who confronts the disingenuous appearances of those who claim uprightness and faithfulness, and who lifts up those who they have disenfranchised and marginalized.  The Good News of Jesus still exposes the evils of empire and reveals the truth, light and hope of the Kingdom.  

As long as the people are willing to live under the oppression and occupation of empire, they will.  Liberation will come when folk who know Jesus and love Jesus begin to follow Jesus in resisting empire's oppressive systems that are built on the few having all the wealth, power and status, and the hatred that fuels those systems by dividing the people.  We have the Good News of Jesus in the midst.  My prayer is that we will genuinely learn it, apply it and normalize it in the world around us, so that the children of God are liberated from this evil.

Your Kingdom come, Your Will be done on earth as it is in heaven... For Yours is the Kingdom, the Power and the Glory forever.  Amen

Pastor Jamie

Working for God's Good Pleasure

 Philippians 2:1-13 is the lectionary text for September 17.

This is what the Gospel is all about.  Paul here offered a theological treatise on Agape Love as taught, commanded and modeled by Jesus.

We are to be of the same mind and heart, unified in faith and Agape Love.

It is not about individuals being above or against one another, some over and above and some held down, back and out.  It is about community coming together for the benefit of all, and not a few over the many.  That is what distinguishes God's Kingdom values from empire values, against which the Gospels are an indictment and in spite of which the Gospels are a Way, God's Way in Jesus.

Agape Love is active commitment on behalf of the other, even stranger and enemy, and especially the most vulnerable (best described by the Jesus of Luke in 10:25-37).

If we would like to be in a alignment with God's Kingdom values, we must live what Jesus taught, commanded and modeled for the living of faith, as we have witness in the Gospels.

If we would like to be right with God, we must have the same mind in us that was in Christ Jesus as He gave it all away for the sake of humanity, rather than live in glory or seek more for Himself.  

If we would like to walk with God, we must give up the hubris, arrogance and prideful ignorance that is living within empire - the greed, lust for power and desire for status that is life within empire - in order to humbly lift up one another AS OUR EXPRESSION OF LOVE FOR GOD.  

If we would like to work out our own salvation, we must be receptive to the Holy Spirit of God working within us to bring us to follow Jesus - what Jesus taught, commanded and modeled as God's Way for us.  It is about pleasing God by loving neighbor, and not pleasing self by loving self.

It is about giving of any abundance we have, submitting our power to God and sharing any power we have with one another for our mutual benefit and lifting each other up in mutual love with equal value.

Jesus taught and commanded it.  The First Century believers lived it.  Paul theologically developed it and clarified it.  When, O when, will we live it?  In the church?  In the world?  When?

Pastor Jamie

Forgiveness and Privilege

Matthew 18:21-35 is the lectionary text for next Sunday, September 13.

Forgiveness is required of Jesus.  It is a command. (Luke 6:37, 38)  If you forgive, you will be forgiven.  We even pray that in the Lord's Prayer - "Forgive us our trespasses AS WE forgive those who trespass against us."  Please, Lord, please - if I do not forgive them, please do not forgive me.  Our relationship is all tied up in our relationships with sisters and brothers.

Jesus gave a parable, as usual, to drive this lesson home.

The one who owed the King 10,000 talents owed big because he had big bucks.  That is how the world of empire worked then and still works.  The one who owed that one a hundred denarii was deep in debt for him, because he was struggling.  Empire rules say that it is a "gentlemen's agreement" over large debt owed, that those in the game are afforded certain considerations.  He was forgiven the debt.  The poorer one who could not pay, however, would have the book thrown at him, thrown in jail, where inability to pay one's debt gets you more time, still today.  The difference from today?  The King.

These are Kingdom of GOD values.  God forgives and expects US to forgive.  It is not about merit, status, standing, position, prestige, privilege or entitlement.  It is about need.  Those who need forgiveness need it.  We are ALL in need of it and must ALL be willing to share it.  Whether it is about debt, offenses, inability to pay bills or desperate acts out of desperation, we ALL need forgiveness.  For some to get that or slaps on the wrist penalties and others to get long sentences, lengthened by inability to pay fees and court costs, is unjust.  For some to get different sentences for the same crimes because of their wealth, position, race, gender, religion or sexual orientation is unjust.  For some to be profiled, entrapped and hunted down for the profit of prison corporations, or executed in the streets because their race is unjust.

Kingdom values are different.  Forgiveness is given because we need it.  Mercy is given because we need it.  It is given equally, equitably and graciously out of Agape Love. 

Last time I checked, I believe that we as followers of Jesus are supposed to live what Jesus taught, commanded and modeled for us as Kingdom values in this part of the Kingdom, here and now. 

Until we do, we are promised torture until WE can pay what we owe to God, which of course we can never repay.  Jesus' karma, baby.  Let the torture begin until empire ends.

Pastor Jamie

I wonder what would happen if...

Matthew 18:15-20 is the lectionary text for Sunday, September 6

I wonder what would happen if this were practiced.

Individuals do not seem to have a stomach for it.  Instead of confronting that which is hurtful or harmful, folk gather forces and talk ABOUT the person who did it to them, rather than talk to them.

Churches don't get involved in disputes among their members, sometimes to their demise.  Pastors generally play politics and side with those who represent power for them, or try to be "Switzerland", and thus maintain their "friend to all" image, again benefitting from their "neutrality."  And churches often live in underlying tension over factions, and sometimes divide over them or dwindle down to a few folk who are "like minded", until they turn on each other and dissolve.

What would happen if people who are treated unfairly in society addressed it in church with the folk sitting in the pews and breathing in the sanctuary air, soaking in the holy atmosphere who have helped to perpetrate injustices against them?  What would happen if pastors encouraged those in politics in their churches to follow what Jesus taught, commanded and modeled for us, and confronted them when they did not?  What would happen if pastors and church leaders encouraged those in business in their churches to follow what Jesus taught, commanded and modeled for us regarding the poor, and confronted folk when they did not?  What would  happen if pastors, church leaders and parishioners directly confronted folk in the church who live out their hatred, greed, lust for power and desire for status at the expense of other folk in the same sanctuary?  What would happen if we actually followed what Jesus taught us regarding conflict, justice, Shalom, Agape Love and Grace?  Hmmm... I wonder.  I guess because I am left to wonder what if...

Instead of straddling the fence, trying to serve two masters, giving lip service to God while giving devotion to empire, I wonder what would happen?

The problem, you see, is that Jesus directs folk to confront the person who oppresses them directly, then take another person with them and then take it to the church.  The problem is that the church often represents the oppressors, those who have exploited, marginalized and disenfranchised the people.  The problem is that the pastors and church leaders often support them, because they know where their power, wealth and status comes from in their devotion to empire.

Jesus said, "Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven."  This is for us both a promise and a warning, I believe.

Jesus said, "What you give is what you will get."  That too, is promise and warning.

Jesus said, "Do to others as you would have them do to you."  That is Agape and Grace.

Jesus is with those who are gathered, even two or three, a true witness, IN HIS NAME.
Jesus is with those who are gathered, even two or three, a true witness, who are faithful to Jesus, Jesus' teachings, commands and examples for living Agape and Grace.

I wonder what would happen if those in the church would put out in the world what Jesus taught, commanded and modeled for us?  I wonder what would happen if...

Pastor Jamie

Setting our minds on the divine things, or on human things?

Matthew 16:21-28 is the lectionary text for next Sunday.  I offer it for your consideration in preparation of next Sunday's Worship.

Jesus announced what being Messiah/the Christ meant, after Peter rightly identified Jesus as that.
It meant suffering and sacrificial death for the sake of others, even at the hands of the leaders of the church in that time and place, who were in collusion with empire.

Peter wanted the glory for Jesus (and, ultimately for himself, I believe).
We all want a long life, prosperity, power and status in the world, don't we?
We've been taught that as the "American Way" all our lives.  It is about getting more for ourselves and our own.  It is about more wealth, more power and more status.  It is empire's way.
Achievement, acquiring more things, monetary security beyond any doubt, having control over our own lives and those "under" us, being recognized as a cut above the rest is hammered into our hearts and minds from youth.  That is empire.  It is what empire would have us pursue as values for life in these here United States of 'muriKKKa.

For Jesus, and given Jesus' rebuke of Peter, for the followers of Jesus, it is about fulfilling what God wants for humanity, even if that means the sacrifice of some to change the status of the many.

Empire values a few over the many.
Kingdom values the sacrifice of the many for each other.

Empire values the extreme wealth, power and status of a few at the expense of the many.
Kingdom values enough for all people.

Empire values division, exploitation, ruthlessness, exclusion, oppression in its devotion to its gods of Wealth, Power and Status.
Kingdom values unity, community, generosity, advocacy, the empowerment of all equally, inclusion and solidarity out of Agape Love and Grace.

Peter was rebuked for putting selfish desires above the needs of all.
So are we being rebuked by God for our collusion with empire values.

Jesus then makes it very clear in Matthew's Gospel about what Discipleship means -
Denying self, sacrificing self as Jesus did.
Where empire values the arrogant indulgence of self above or at the expense of others, Jesus calls for humble self denial in order that all may have enough of what they need for Shalom in their lives.

"You put down your money, you take your choice, and then you live with it."
Jesus informs us in this Gospel message, that for any who live under empire -
If you want to preserve your own life, save the life of obtaining the perks of empire, you will lose your life with God.
If you lose your life heaped in the values of empire for Jesus' sake, because of your belief in Jesus' Good News way of living of Agape Love and Grace being God's Way for you and a more sustainable way for the world, then you will gain life with God, now and forever.
That's pretty clear, right?

We are not supposed to gain the whole world for ourselves out of greed, lust for power or desire for status.  If we do that, we have lost our souls.
We are called by Jesus to have our lives restored in the living of Agape Love and Grace, in loving neighbor as self, in denying ourselves and even sacrificing for the sake of ALL people.

So, gain the world empire has to offer and lose your soul, the soul of our nation?
Live in advocacy and even sacrifice for the sake of ALL people around us, including ourselves, in order that ALL may have ENOUGH of what they need for SHALOM (completeness, wholeness, well-being) in their lives out of real justice and toward peace?

Jesus promises to return and repay us all for what we have done in this part of God's Kingdom, here and now.
That is either a promise or a threat.
Which is it for you?

Who is Jesus to you?

 Matthew 16:13-20 is the lectionary text for next Sunday, August 23.

Peter got it!  Even before the transfiguration of Jesus, recorded in the next Chapter, Peter got that Jesus is the one sent, the deliverer from sin and death, occupation and oppression.

Some thought it was still about the old way, the old prophets and the Old Covenant.  Peter got that Jesus is the fulfiller of Law and Prophets with the promised Messiah.

Jesus is the one sent to deliver us from empire rules and values, and Jesus offered the Kingdom values of the New Covenant in response, to counter those of empire.

Jesus is the one sent to bring God's Kingdom values to life among a people who have been marginalized, exploited, disenfranchised, tortured and killed for the greed, lust for power and desire for status of a few.  Jesus is the one who calls for New Rules based on Agape and Grace, so that Shalom may be re-established and maintained in the world.  Jesus is the one who teaches, commands and models Kingdom values in the face of empire values, Kingdom of God Law in the face of the laws of empire.  Jesus still does.

There are people who are again (still) held down, back and out by our political and economic systems.

There are people who are again (still) marginalized, disenfranchised and exploited by empire.

There are people who are again (still) misled by corrupt religious and political leaders.

There are people who are again (still) occupied and oppressed by powers and principalities.

The rampant greed, lust for power and desire for status above others has again dominated the political, economic and social systems in the world, and particularly in this nation.  The Gospel has been ignored and false teachings designed to normalize the greed, lust for power and desire for personal status above others have replaced the Kingdom values of Agape and Grace.  Empire values are pervasive in every aspect of life today.

It is time, as in the days of Josiah, for us to unbury the Word from the church coffers and apply the Gospel of Jesus to the mission of the church in the world.

It is time, as in the days of Luther, for us to recognized the abject corruption of this age in the church and strive to repent toward faithfulness to the Gospel of Jesus.

It is time, as in the days of Jesus, for us to stop worrying about our own, personal salvation and live the Kingdom values of Agape and Grace in every aspect of our society.  The church's mission is to follow Jesus - what Jesus taught, commanded and modeled for us, as we have that in the Gospels, in every aspect of of life, in the face of empire values.

We cannot serve two masters.

Jesus, Jesus is Savior.  But Jesus is also Messiah, the one sent, Christ, to deliver us from sin and death, and the occupation and oppression of empire values, here and now in this part of God's Kingdom.  It is time to proclaim Jesus as deliverer from empire and follow Jesus.  Now.  Clearly, now.

Pastor Jamie

What defiles you?

 Matthew 15: (10-20), 21-28 is the lectionary text for next Sunday.

After a pointed rebuke of the Pharisees whose theology of purity and holiness falsified God's will, in which Jesus also took a shot at empire's value of status over others, Jesus taught his disciples a further lesson about worthiness and God's Grace.

Pietistic rituals that offer appearances of uprightness, purity and holiness are based on a belief in self-righteousness or earned merit for those who practice them.  Jesus' message is about Agape Love and Grace.

Jesus in particularly graphic terms, destroyed any notion of ritualistic purity by pointing out that it is what is in one's heart, soul and mind that is pure or impure, and that it is in bringing out impure motives, attitudes, ideologies and beliefs through our words and actions that we are defiled.

Agape Love does not allow us to hide our greed, lust for power, desire for status or hatred through pietistic practices.  Those rituals do not cleanse us from evil intentions or actions.  Agape Love transcends our impurities because it is ACTION, COMMITTED ACTION on behalf of the other.  Grace is in it.  The Grace of undeserved loving mercy for the object of the Agape Love and the Grace of undeserved loving mercy for the one living Agape Love.  Make no mistake, we are not working our way to salvation through the living of Agape Love, either.  No.  Quite to the contrary, we live Agape Love as a response to receiving it, live Grace out of gratitude for being recipients of it, as a response to the originator of it in our lives.  Furthermore, we are transformed in the living of Agape Love and Grace, so that what defiles from within us is challenged and then neutralized by the obedient living of Agape Love toward the Shalom of others around us.  Sanctification is happening, by the Holy Spirit of God who drives us to the living of what Jesus taught, commanded and modeled for us in Agape Love and Grace, as we have witness in the Gospels.  The sanctification is not completed until we return to God or Jesus returns to us.  Until then, the living of Agape counters the things that defile within us, and helps to transform the world, this part of God's Kingdom, here and now.

Collusion by religious leaders with empire leads to false beliefs in prosperity, church power, superiority, purity and holiness and the like.  Empire is built on the few above the many, and counts on the many aspiring to be the few.  False piety elevates some over others in the eyes of believers.  A false sense of being more worthy than others of blessing and favor, of being entitled to monetary wealth as a blessing of God, of the church's mission being to grow in influence, power or wealth and of being more pure or holy than others in the Kingdom come directly from empire and not Kingdom values.  Jesus rebuked pietistic rituals, blessed the most marginalized and disenfranchised, taught that having enough is enough and made the mission of His followers self-sacrifice in humility.  Jesus taught, commanded and modeled committed action on behalf of stranger and enemy, and especially the most vulnerable in the world as the practice of true believers.  Jesus' Kingdom values unified and built community.  Empire values divide and destroy individual lives and community.

The application of Jesus' teaching regarding what defiles or what is considered "unclean" came swiftly in Matthew's Gospel.  The Syrophoenician woman represented what was unclean in ethnicity, religion and culture.  She represented the enemy and not just stranger, and she and her daughter were most vulnerable.  Jesus, in baiting her, was baiting his disciples who were watching the encounter and encouraging Jesus to abandon her in her distress.  Jesus said what He knew His disciples wanted to hear about "us vs. them" and being among the "chosen."  Jesus insulted her with an air of superiority, thus pointing out her unworthiness.  But she persisted.  Even recognizing her "place" in the hierarchy presented her, she acknowledged her need and Jesus' ability to make her and her daughter more complete and whole.  And Jesus, in front of His disciples, claims her as an example of real faith.  Let me be clear - Jesus, for the benefit of His disciples and their learning, declared this "unclean" woman to be faithful.  Matthew set the drama up beautifully.  Did they get it?

Do we get it?

Worthiness is for God to decide.  Blessings are for God to decide.

God does not value wealth, power or status.  God does not call us to live those empire values and thus be divided and hateful with one another.  Instead, God calls us to be beneficiaries of Agape and Grace, and benefactors of it with one another. 

God does not call us to strive for self-righteousness through pietistic rituals or practices, and does not call us to try and merit or earn our salvation through works, even works of Agape Love.  God is not concerned with purity or holiness on our part.  God wants obedient faithfulness in the living of Agape Love and Grace.  Just as God has given us that Agape and Grace, as we have witness in the Gospels, so as a response in gratitude, faithfulness to God is the living of that Agape and Grace with those in the world around us, this part of God's Kingdom, here and now.  

So, what actually defiles us?  Our attitudes, ideologies, beliefs, words and actions that run contrary to the living of Agape and Grace in the world.  Empire defiles, and the embrace of empire values defiles us.  And who can save us, wretched fools that we are?  Not our own merit or status, pietistic rituals and practices, purity or holiness, power or wealth.   Out of Agape and Grace, Jesus.  

Want to be faithful?  Follow Jesus - Jesus' teachings, commands and examples for how to live in this part of God's Kingdom, here and now.

Pastor Jamie