All Saints in the Kingdom...

 

All Saints’ Sunday    Luke 6:20-31

 The world under empire operates in complete opposition to God’s Will.  The Kingdom values that Jesus taught, commanded, and modeled for us in agaph are so revolutionary because they fly in the face of empire’s values of greed, lust for power over others and desire for status above others.  The Law of Love in Jesus calls those who follow His Way to live very different lives from empire’s way, reflecting the very different values of the Kingdom.

 Those who are hurt by empire and whose lives are damaged or destroyed are blessed under the Kingdom of God.  When you are held with disdain or discriminated against or excluded and considered “less than” others, you are blessed and have reason to celebrate.  You are celebrated in the Kingdom.

Those who benefit from empire and its values, who participate in the unequal systems and exploit others or ignore their plight are much to be pitied according to the Kingdom.  When others hold them in high esteem or raise their status among them, they join those who were unjustly privileged in history.  They are about to find themselves in very different situations.

 Those who have gone before us, who have suffered the injustices and immoral practices of empire, are now blissed in their existence.  Some of them have given wonderful examples of how to live and how not to live, as children of God.  We remember them and celebrate their lives today.  We also honor them by how we take their examples of what it means to live Jesus’ Way in the world.

 And those who live within the Kingdom today must see the Love of Jesus differently and live it differently in the world.  We must love even enemies and do good to all people, not because they deserve it but because they need it and because it is the right thing to do for those who follow Jesus’ Way.

 We are commended to resist the evil others do to us and point out the absurdity of their maltreatment of us in defiance of a system that allows them to strike another human being. 

 We are commanded to give to those who beg, whose lives have been destroyed by empire and even to allow others who are desperate enough to take what we have without expecting repayment.  They are desperate and thus they do desperate things.  The circumstances created by the evils of empire make people desperate.  Understanding their need is the call of all who follow Jesus’ Way of agaph.

 According to Matthew (7:12), the “Golden Rule” fulfills the Law and Prophets.  It seems that the author of Luke here agrees.  We are called and commanded to live by a different set of rules as children of God.  Putting ourselves on top in an unjust system does not change the unjust and immoral system. *  Completely countering the ways of empire is the only way – changing the system to make it just is the only way.  Loving Neighbor as Self and doing to others as you would have them do to you is the only way.

 

·     Gustavo Gutierrez, A THEOLOGY OF LIBERATION

Someone's got to tell them about their only hope

 

Luke 19:1-10       Pentecost XXI

 Luke is rough on the wealthy.

In Chapter 12 we have the story of the Rich Fool, who ignores the plight of those in need as he builds bigger barns to store more than he could ever need.  He was completely oblivious to the needs of anyone else as he accrued more for himself.  His life is over, and to what does it all amount?

In Chapter 16 we have the Dishonest Steward who was unscrupulous in his business dealings, with the message that a person cannot serve both God and Wealth. 

We also have the story of the unnamed rich man and Lazarus.  It is another story of wealth ignoring poverty and reversals of fortune, along with warnings about the hubris of entitlement in the Kingdom of God.

Chapter 18 offers the story of the Rich Young Man who goes away sad after calculating the cost of salvation against his wealth, with a lesson on how hard it is for the rich to enter the Kingdom and the question, “Who can be saved?”

And now Zacchaeus.  This is different.  All the others leave those who benefit from empire’s inequities without hope in the end.  Zacchaeus shows us the path to answer the question of salvation differently.  The hope is repentance. 

The predatory practices of those who gain wealth go against the living of agaph commanded by Jesus.  Ignoring the poor who are created by those predatory empire practices and systems goes against Jesus’ Law of Love as well.  Those who benefit from the practices directly, or indirectly from the systems put in place to benefit them are in direct opposition to the Law of agaph, especially if they do not help those who are victimized by it or work to change the systems put in place that victimize them.  There is little hope for those who live this life.

But for those who repent like Zacchaeus, there is hope.  Changing their thinking to make things right and positively affect those held down, back and out by empire’s system built on greed, power and status is their hope.  Making amends as one transformed by an encounter with Jesus makes one right with God.  Faithful action that saves lives saves the life of those engaged in the faithful action.  Zacchaeus was lost.  He had no hope.  Until he changed how he looked at it and changed his actions (metanoia) regarding wealth and the practices around wealth that benefitted him at the expense of others, he had no hope.  His encounter with Jesus changed that because it changed him.  Jesus came to save the lost.

Someone needs to tell the lost who intentionally gain at the expense of others and those who indirectly benefit from the systems put in place by them and for them, that their hope is in transformation through encountering Jesus and His Good News with repentance.  They need to know that Jesus wants them to know salvation through repentance, according to Luke.

Re-formation Sunday

 

Reformation Sunday        John 15:1-17

 The Reformation was centered on re-capturing a love for and adherence to God’s Word as the authority of the body of Christ Jesus.  The corruptions experienced in that time and place under the Holy Roman Empire added to the zeal for getting back to living the Good News of Jesus as the way of being the church in the world.  Jesus’ Good News came in a similar context under empire centuries before.  For me, it is reminiscent of Josiah’s reform before that, at a time when the Torah had been walled up and disregarded for a long time by the leaders of the people.  When we get away from the Word, we get away from the Will of God and therefore faithfulness to God.

 I believe that as we have sunk evermore deeply into empire as a nation over the past forty-two years (since the desolating sacrilege of Reagan and Falwell), we have set up similar circumstances around the Gospel of Jesus for followers today.  The church has been corrupted by false teachings that undergird the agenda of empire in our nation and in the world.   As one preacher recently put it in a revival for clergy, “You are either a chaplain for empire or a prophet of the resistance.”  Jesus was all about resisting empire.  Those who follow Jesus must be all about resisting empire in order to be following Jesus.

 I chose this text because it is a call to arms for Jesus’ disciples, as witnessed in the Gospel of John.  We are connected to Jesus, our lifeline.  We are called to bear good fruit in the world, having been cleansed by the Word that Jesus gave us.  We cannot bear that good fruit if we do not abide in Jesus.  We must live, breath and move within Jesus in order to bear fruit and change the world.  If we abide in Jesus, we abide in Jesus’ Word, the Good News of agaph that is to transform the world.  Being Jesus’ disciples means that we glorify God because of the good that we DO in the world.  In order to be faithful to Jesus, we must keep HIS commandments of living agaph for God and Neighbor as self, which fulfill all the Law and Prophets.  THAT is our faithfulness.  It gives Jesus great joy when we do that, and fills us with joy – the joy of faithfulness.  We must love one another as Jesus has loved us.  That is deeply personal.  We have been chosen to follow Jesus, and appointed therefore to put good fruit out in the world around us.  Jesus’ commandment is to love one another. (agaph- committed action on behalf of the other, even stranger and enemy, and especially the most vulnerable among us.)

 Is the church that bears Jesus’ name heeding this call to arms?  Are we putting this love out in the world of empire to resist its way and offer a sustainable alternative for the children of God?  Are we faithful to the Gospel of Jesus as our authority on how to live faithfully with God and Neighbor?  If so, then we are transforming the world and the fruits of that transformation are evident.  If not, then we need to be pruned, cleansed by the Word, re-formed to be the movement of followers of Jesus again, instead of institutions that represent empire in the world.  The leaders of the church are either prophets of the resistance to empire and its evil and destructive ways who are faithful to the Gospel of Jesus, or chaplains of empire who are promoting the false teachings that prop up the destruction of lives under it.

 Reformation Sunday.  Reformation Sunday.  Reformation Sunday.  It’s been 505 years since it was started.  Where has it gone?

Hubris or Humility? What is at stake?

 

Luke 18:9-14       Pentecost XX

 Humility is resistance to Empire.  Empire values more wealth than others, power over others and status above others.  Empire values appearing to be the best, the most and being right.  The Kingdom of God values what Jesus taught, commanded, and modeled - sincere humility.

 By God’s Grace we are counted as worthy of redemption and salvation.  It is not by works of Law.  This is well established in the best of Pauline theology as commentary on Jesus’ teachings.  Self-righteousness does not exist.  Believing oneself to be righteous creates division among people.  It falsely makes some believe that they are superior to others, and it creates divisions.  Status above others is not faithfulness to God or Neighbor as self.  Gratitude for God’s Grace and the redemption of Jesus comes from a realization of need – the need for God’s mercy.  Self-righteousness presumes a lack of need for God’s Grace, sets up a false superiority of spirit and creates contempt for others who do not “measure up.”  This is not faithfulness to God or Neighbor.

 The ridiculous scene of one person lifting himself up as superior to others as an argument for his own virtue with God is absurdity.  Pointing the finger at others in order to make oneself appear to be better comes from a very low view of self.  It is reminiscent of Luther’s teaching about the absurdity of one beggar at the foot of God’s throne pointing out that another one kneeling next to him is a beggar.  The need to be “better than” someone else, anyone else is a desperate attempt from a place of self-loathing to elevate the self in one’s own eyes and in the eyes of others.  This false superiority leads to division, discrimination and disdain for others, and not agaph.  This is not faithfulness to God or Neighbor.

 The genuine humility of the other person, requesting mercy because of his unworthiness, is counted as righteousness, for it is a recognition that our only righteousness is the righteousness of Christ Jesus.  We are in the need of Grace and redemption, and God gives it freely.  It is insane for one who has free access to that Grace of God to pretend to be so good as not to need it.  That is nature of hubris, of arrogant pride.  This is not faithfulness to God or Neighbor.

 “Those who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted.”  This is all about the recognition that we are no better or worse than any other human being, and that we need to treat each other with the mercy we need from God.  It is about the understanding that we are all in need of God’s Grace and redemption, and that we are to give that to others around us who we may consider unworthy, just as God does with us.  It is about obedience to the one who has demonstrated agaph with us to show us how to live with one another.  Active commitment on behalf of the other, even stranger or enemy, and especially the most vulnerable among us takes humility, even as Empire demands hubris.

 Paul’s theological exposition on agaph witnessed to in Philippians 2:1-11 commands followers of Jesus to have the same mind in themselves that was in Him, when He humbled Himself though He was God, even to humiliate Himself to the point of giving His life for unworthy people.  It is in this indescribable gift of Grace that the recipients are counted as worthy, elevated to worthy by God.  In our living of agaph we must pass on that humbling love to others by lifting them up – to be Christ Jesus for them.  Why?  Because they need it, just as we need it.  It is not about worthiness, but about need.  In order to us to have Shalom (completeness, wholeness and well-being that lead to peace), we must know that we are valued, loved and worthy in the eyes of God and others.

 Though Empire values strip that away systemically, intentionally, and insidiously, and destroy lives, the Kingdom of God values lift-up, build up, and bring us home.  We are worthy because Christ Jesus makes us worthy.

"When the Son of Man returns..."

 

Luke 18:1-8      Pentecost XIX

 “When the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on earth?”

 The unjust Judge has lost all respect for God and for humanity.  He judged from that perspective on the world.  The widow demanded justice.  She was relentless at demanding justice.  Even this scoundrel gave her justice because of her persistence.

 Jesus claims that God will give justice for the same reason.  We are called to cry out to God for justice day and night.  Jesus also claims that God will not delay, but will give justice quickly to those who call upon God day and night. 

 But I have heard that “the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.”  It takes a long time, but it will come, according to Dr. King.

 Are we THAT IMMORAL, that God would have justice come quickly but we delay its coming?

Are we that lax in prayer that our prayers for justice are not answered?

Do we fail to see that prayer is action and action is prayer?  The widow WENT TO HIM REPEATEDLY.  She demanded justice.

 Like Moses with Pharaoh, she did not relent with “No.”  She kept coming back.  Like the church reformers, she would not let go of her pursuit of justice.  Like Harriet Tubman, she kept going back for justice for all.  Like Dr. King, she kept demanding justice for all.  Like Elizabeth Warren, “nevertheless, she persisted,” when the powers that be would silence her instead of hearing her considered opinion toward equal justice for all.  Like President Zelensky.  Like Stacey Abrams in Georgia.  So, we are called to be persistent toward bringing equal justice for all, even or especially working against those who were appointed to bring justice, but who are reticent to provide it.  

 Prayer is action; action is prayer.  We must be relentless in our pursuit of what is right, loving, equitable and just for all people.  In our prayers and in our actions.

 For there are those who not only will not lift a finger to provide equal justice for all, but who are actively working to deny equal justice for all in the world.  We must actively persist in demanding it together.  We must actively work to bring it about.

 God loves justice.  God demands justice.  When the church of God demands equal justice for all, then we are on the side of God.  When we respect neither God nor the humanity that God loves in how we live, then we are not on the side of God, but on the side of those who oppose God.

 Will the arc of the moral universe bend toward justice in our future?  Will we pray for it to be done and ACT toward it being done?  It is long delayed.  Is that because we have not yet been persistent enough in our prayers and actions?

 Will Jesus, when He returns, find faith on earth?  In us?

Faithfulness beyond Tribe

 

Luke 17:11-19    Pentecost XVIII

 Lepers were not supposed to be anywhere near a Rabbi.  These ten, between Samaria and Galilea, approached Jesus, and called Him Master.  They recognized Him as being beyond just a Rabbi.  They asked for mercy, not healing, which is a spiritual request.  Jesus talked with them, again against every normative and acceptable practice for a Rabbi.  He ordered them to go and show themselves to the priests, so that they could be restored to their community and be now considered not to have sinned against God, thus bringing on their leprosy.  They went.  But one came back when he realized that he was healed, praising God and coming to submit himself to Jesus and thank Him.  Jesus recognized that no one else came back to Him to give thanks, and then recognized the faith of this foreigner.

 This leper was a Samaritan.  The Greek word for him, here translated as “foreigner”, actually means “one born of a different race.” (allo-genhs)

 Those who settled in Samaria were the ones who had returned from the Assyrian exile, who had married Babylonians, so they were considered other than Israelites.  These were also people who suffered under empire, who were exiled from their lands, and who were just trying to survive just as they were.  Upon their return, they were considered “half breeds” and were shunned by those who married within their own nationality, so they settled in another region, set up their own worship of God and Temple, and were at the very least rivals to Israel, and most accurately enemies.

 This is not the first time Jesus used a Samaritan as an example of faithfulness in this Gospel of Luke.  Here, of course the leper did not show himself to a priest.  He did not recognize the priests of the Temple in Jerusalem.  Instead, he returned to the source of his mercy and healing, truly recognizing Jesus as being something more than just a Rabbi, but indeed “master.”  Jesus here also refers to Himself as God, incidentally, something that this newly healed leper alone recognized. 

 Jesus sent him on his way to live his newly restored life, after recognizing his faith(fulness).

 Those who are on the inside of the majority often believe themselves to be entitled to all the best, even from God, and even when they find themselves in the plight of those downtrodden in society.   Lacking any strong sense of gratitude because of their entitlement, they fall short of faithfulness when they are given new life.  Those who are marginalized are used to being disenfranchised, rejected, and held in contempt.  They often genuinely pray to God for deliverance with great earnestness, and when they are delivered offer a depth of praise, thanksgiving, and gratitude that it makes all others seem to be lacking. 

 Those who were thankless were still healed.  There is Grace in that.  They were also not recognized as being faithful to God by Jesus.  This genuine covenantal relationship calls for humility and a genuine appreciation of God in our lives, especially when our lives are turned around.  Faithfulness to God requires us, not to earn our restoration or redemption, but to acknowledged with gratitude that God gives it to us.  Our lives are saved by God HERE AND NOW, in THIS PART of God’s Reign, a salvation that we dare not overlook because of some idea of our entitlement to eternal life.  The lives of others are saved by God HERE AND NOW, in THIS PART of God’s Reign, the salvation toward which we all must work in order to be faithful to God here and now.  And we must recognized that salvation of God with thankfulness.