Speak the God You Know

 

It was a really, really rough week for me, personally. I came down with a nasty head cold Monday morning that kept me in bed almost all week. I made myself get up Friday and pound out this sermon, praying that I would actually be well enough to travel to Valdosta to preach it.

And I was and I did. 

See what you think.

Texts: 1Sam 16:1-13; John 9:1-41

 +++

There’s a portion of one of the canticles in Morning Prayer that I’ve been thinking about a lot lately.

It’s from the Second Song of Isaiah…which quotes from the 55^th chapter of the prophet:

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor your ways my ways, says the Lord.

For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways,

And my thoughts than your thoughts.”

In both the first reading from this morning in First Samuel…and in our Gospel…there’s a theme of people thinking they know more about what God wants and what is right with God than what is really true about God and God’s thoughts.

Samuel initially thinks that Eliab…the very tall eldest son of Jesse…is the man God wants as the new king of Israel.

Tall men are important men, right?

Wrong.

Fortunately…Samuel was able to park his own prejudices to follow God’s lead…and he anointed David.

Then in our Gospel…Jesus and the disciples come upon a blind man as they’re travelling.

The disciples…caught up in the cultural beliefs of the time…want to know who sinned to cause this man to be blind.

Thankfully…we are living in times now where we know “sin” isn’t the reason for a physical difference.

Sadly…there are still places and people who profess belief in Jesus…who think that one can be healed of a disability.

I have friends who tell stories of well-meaning family members taking them to tent revivals hoping for a cure.

The experiences not only failed to change them…in many instances…they left my friends angry and embittered toward religion.

While the story of the blind man is one in which this man gains his sight…for the first time in his life…this passage is telling us more about everybody else in the story.

And it’s saying a lot about the way people respond to change.

The blind man is pleased…maybe even a bit overwhelmed.

He has never been able to see his surroundings.

He heard the voices of people…but now he sees faces.

This is a new experience…and he’s just getting used to this reality.

Meanwhile…the people in his village see him and they don’t recognize him…even though he’s been living with them as a beggar his whole life.

But now that he’s not dependent on them…they don’t know who he is.

The religious figures are up in arms when they hear it’s this Jesus character again…and they demand to know more about all of this from the blind man.

Still not satisfied with his answers…they call out his parents. And his parents are like, “Hey…he’s an adult talk to him about it.”

With each new group…with each inquisition…the blind man’s recounting becomes firmer and with more conviction.

And as his faith and trust in the truth of his story grows…everyone else…from his family…to his synagogue…to his community…refuses to see…and will not accept his answers.

It’s as if they have become blind to the light that is glowing through his now opened eyes.

In the end…he’s cast out.

This is a tale familiar to anyone who has dared to speak their truth…to tell their story…only to be faced with hostility and rejection from the hearers.

One might hear the acronym “L-G-B-T-Q-I-A” in place of “blind” and substitute “the Christians” for “the Jews” and get the same idea.

          Too often…faith communities have turned their backs on members when they “come out.” This change in the person’s identity challenges other people’s prejudices…and they are unwilling to accept a new reality.

In our current climate…there’s a real concern about the identity of Christianity.

In an interview a few years ago…Russell Moore…the editor of Christianity Today and former head of the Southern Baptist Convention…talked about a pastor who was confronted after preaching a sermon on the Beatitudes.

The parishioner was angry about “blessed are the peacemakers” and that the preacher had presented Jesus as having empathy.

“Where did you get those liberal talking points?!”

The preacher…a bit stunned…responded…”I’m literally quoting Jesus Christ.”

You’d think the parishioner might apologize at that point but no they did not.

“That doesn’t work anymore. That’s weak!”

As Moore said, “When we get to the point where the teachings of Jesus himself becomes subversive to us, we’re in a crisis.”

I have heard many people say to me that they don’t want to identify as “Christian” because of the growth of the White Nationalism Movement within Christianity.

They don’t want to be seen as having any part of the church that cheers on war…thinks nothing of those who have lost access to healthcare coverage…and demands that women be silent in church and society.

I get that.

I don’t want to be part of that church either…and certainly not that version of Christianity.

If we look back at the Gospel lesson for a moment…the thing that we see is that as this poor blind man is being interrogated by everyone…Jesus is nowhere to be found.

It’s when the man has been turned away by his community that Jesus comes back to seek him out.

This is when the man makes his confession that he does believe in Jesus…”The Son of Man.”

He believes in the Jesus who heals.

He believes in the Jesus who sees.

He believes in the Jesus who sought him out and did not cast him away by telling him:

“Go figure out how to get through life, buddy.”

This is the Jesus who…like with Nicodemus…tells us he didn’t come to condemn the world…

But he is going to judge it.

He’s going to look for those of us who will profess our love of God…and demonstrate that love of God by the way we love our neighbors.

He’s searching for…and calling into service the people who see the needs in their community and find ways to meet them.

The ones who don’t let our human differences of skin color…ethnicity…language…gender… ability…orientation…or identity get in the way of extending kindness… especially in times of anxiety and uncertainty.

We know a Jesus who loves…deeply and unconditionally.

If this is the Jesus we know…we have nothing to fear in asserting that truth in the face of a culture or even a church that is blind to that Jesus.

Because even if we face rejection by others…we can have confidence that Jesus will be there to whisper,

“Well done, good and faithful one.

Keep the faith. And keep going!”

In the name of Our One Holy and Undivided Trinity.

 

 

 

 

The Apostle to the Samaritans

As our country has decided to upend everything in the Middle East by bombing Iran, killing schoolchildren and teachers at an elementary school, and blowing through a billion dollars a day in munitions...it is a grim reminder to me that the world would likely look a whole lot different if we had elected a Hilary Clinton or a Kamala Harris instead of this mad old man as our president. 

And Christianity in the United States would probably be a lot better off if the loudest mouthpieces for the faith weren't the ones who have mistaken the flag for the cross.

I don't dive into all of that in this sermon. However I couldn't help but delight in the realization that the Gospel story of the Samaritan woman at the well happened to fall on International Women's Day this year. And that the multiple symbolic elements in this story spoke to a story of how women are at the center of reconciliation.

See what you think.
 

Text: John 4: 5-42

 +++

It’s not every time that the Gospel assigned for a given Sunday pairs so nicely with the celebrations happening in the secular world.

But this is one time where all things fell into alignment so that we in the church experience this long dialogue between Jesus and the Samaritan woman on the same day that people throughout the world are marking International Women’s Day.

And wouldn’t you know the theme of this year’s International Women’s Day…Give to Gain… is about “sustainability.”

And we just heard about “living water.”

Isn’t that an amazing occurrence?!

God never seems to waste a moment to remind us that the spiritual and the secular live in the same world.

Time to prick up our ears and pay attention.

And we have a lot to think about here in this reading.

 As I told the people in the Midrash class the other night…this exchange between Jesus and the Samaritan woman is the longest…and deepest…conversations Jesus has with anyone in all of the Gospels.

That it happens between Jesus…a Jew of the Jerusalem Temple sect…and this Samaritan Jew adds a whole other layer to what John is wanting us to see.

The Jews and the Samaritans are not friends.

The bitter rift happened centuries earlier with the conquest of the Assyrians…the various exiles…and disagreements over the rebuilding of the Jerusalem Temple.

When Assyria took over an area…they were known for bringing a bunch of other tribes into it.

As a result…Samaria had a mix of various pagan groups who then became enmeshed with the remnant of Jews who were not carried off to foreign lands.

Because of this syncretism…they adopted a type of Judaism that was foreign to the Jews who returned to Jerusalem…and tensions frequently stayed at the boiling point between the two groups.

Jesus and the disciples had been out in the Judean countryside and were going north toward Galilee.

Now…they could have taken a longer route around…but the direct path to Galilee went through Samaria…so off they went.

This trek was tiresome…and Jesus decides to send the disciples off to find food while he takes a break in the middle of the day at Jacob’s well.

Along comes this woman with her water jug.

Most women would have gone to the well earlier when it wasn’t so hot…but she’s by herself.

She sees Jesus…not one of her kinfolk…sitting there without a bucket.

I want to take a pause here…because even this small detail of the story is an interesting set up…for what’s going to happen.

When I pray our Eucharistic Prayer C…I intentionally…and with the bishop’s permission…I expand the language in the Prayer Book to not just list the God of our Fathers…as written in the Prayer Book…but I say the names of the God of our Mothers.

And when I do…I note that Jacob has two women who were his wives….and technically also had two more women.

And where did he first meet his wife Rachel?

At a well.

And this well…. out in the Samarian countryside…. is on land that holds special meaning for those who first heard John’s Gospel.

Because this is the land where Jacob…who had stolen his twin brother Esau’s birthright…came in great fear and worry to meet his brother…the big red-headed hunter… after so many years of separation.

Jacob was ready for the worst.

But Esau surprised him with a hug and a kiss.

And the two men were reconciled at this spot where Jacob would then place this well.

So here we are again….this time…a Jewish man and a Samaritan woman…two people from opposing sides…meeting in this place of forgiveness.

Jesus looks at her.

Sweat is dripping from his brow…and he’s feeling his tongue sticking to the roof of his mouth.

“Give me a drink?”

We can imagine the shock on her face.

First…he’s a Jew.

Second…he just talked to her like he knew her.

And third…where’s his bucket?

She probably looked at him with suspicion.

But soon suspicion turns to curiosity as this conversation goes from, “Give me a drink from this well water” to “Let’s talk about living water.”

Now…just like Nicodemus last week…this Samaritan woman is thinking Jesus is talking about living water…as in… flowing water…y’know…like what’s in the well.

She could have walked away…but instead…she wants to know what he’s talking about?

“Living water?

This is our ancestor Jacob’s well here.

What living water are you talking about?”

“Oh, my dear woman. This water only quenches the thirst of the mouth. But there’s a much deeper well…a stream of living water…that once you drink from it…you’ll have water that will change your life forever!”

The way Jesus presents this living water…that idea of a never-ending spring that bubbles and flows so abundantly that one never thinks about thirst again…this was intriguing.

Of course she wants some of this water.

“Go, call your husband,” says Jesus.

Ahem.

Here the truth comes out.

She doesn’t have a husband.

In fact…she’s had five husbands.

And right now…the one she’s hanging with…isn’t even really her husband.

We might imagine that this is why she’s not joining other women to fetch water in the morning.

Perhaps she’s one that others whisper and gossip about.

But Jesus isn’t hung up on her personal life…and most scholars agree that the reason we learn this factoid about her is to highlight his prophetic wisdom.

But for her…the fact that he knows this…and doesn’t shame her…but remains in conversation and community opens her up.

She is now even more curious about this Jewish man.

For centuries…her people and his people haven’t seen eye to eye on anything…even though they both have religious roots that sprung from the same tree.

And yet…he has said things to her that clearly means he sees her…he knows her…he accepts her.

Is this the Messiah?

Is this guy really him?

The barriers between these two cultures have crumbled.

Ancient hatreds no longer matter.

This man has met her…in her perfect imperfection…and she has met him in his tired yet unconditional love.

And this conversation has filled them both up so much that neither Jesus nor this Samaritan woman have any need for water out of the well…or that food brought back by the disciples.

In fact…she’s so over this need for well water that she left her water jar behind!

She rushes back to her people…her fellow Samaritans…her mind and her heart overflowing with amazement at this stranger…this Jew…that she met at Jacob’s well.

She wants others to know what just happened to her.

This Samaritan woman is telling her people “Come and see!”

“Come and see this man, this man who met me at our well…and met me as I am without harsh judgment. This man whose words are like living water.”

The Samaritan woman is as much an apostle to this group as Mary Magdalene will be later in the story to the disciples.

Both of these women…having had an experience of Jesus…are moved to share this incredible encounter with others.

Both having met… and been met by Jesus in their own circumstances…these women have been changed in profound and invisible ways to help sustain them through their difficulties.

He has given them a taste of that drink of wisdom that will never leave them thirsty again.

 

Through their testimony… that wisdom of God…the living water…begins to spread.

Seems women might be important players in shaping and moving the world toward mercy…compassion…and justice.

Both Mary Magdalene and this Samaritan woman have brought many others…both then and now…to taste and see that there is something nourishing and sustaining…loving…life-giving and liberating in this One who was sent to teach us to care for ourselves and each other and the resources all around us.

Come and see.

Go and share.

In the name of Our One Holy and Undivided Trinity.

 

 

 

 

 

The Dawning of Nicodemus

 

As seems to be the case now every weekend, our government at the direction of the president does something monumental and catastrophic to shake up the world. This time it was a coordinated bombing of Tehran igniting a war with Iran. They're calling it "Operation Epic Fury." I'm calling it "Operation Distraction from the Epstein Files." 

Many priests were posting on Facebook that they were scrambling to re-write their sermons...again. I did not re-write mine but did include "war" in my discussion points about the "dark side" of human nature.

Meanwhile...I hope that what I was inspired to say in my sermon not only gave pause for reflection, but also gave reason to hope for a better future. 

See what you think.

Text: John 3:1-17

 +++

 I remember many years ago having a discussion with my mentor about this passage we heard this morning from the Gospel of John.

I was interested in Nicodemus and what I quickly realized as we talked that there wasn’t much love for this Pharisee…largely because Nicodemus didn’t “get” what Jesus was talking about.

Come to find out…there are a lot of Christians who look down their noses at Nicodemus...for any number of reasons.

But chiefly…it seems…they don’t like his questions of Jesus and his failure to understand the importance of being “born from above”…which is where we get the idea of being “born again.”

For some…that phrase “born again” raises the spirit.

For others…it raises eyebrows.

And for too many…it is the only thing they see in this exchange with Nicodemus…and since he doesn’t “get it”…he’s not a true believer and therefore “boo hiss” on him.

But I think if we rush to such quick judgment…we’re not “getting” it either.

And I think it’s a way for us to avoid the truth about ourselves when it comes to what it means to journey with Jesus.

Because…if we were honest…we’d acknowledge that we are a lot more like Nicodemus than we’d like to think.

So let’s think through what’s happening here and the way John uses Nicodemus to illustrate what the journey of faith…and possible conversion looks like...and why Nicodemus is an important player in this story.

First…we need context for this scene…which means we need to know what happens right before this exchange Jesus has with Nicodemus…and I’m also going to get to the rest of Jesus’s words to him because those matter too.

In the chapter before our reading from this morning…two big things happen.

One: Jesus has performed his first miracle of turning water into wine at the wedding in Cana.

And then two: He then heads to Jerusalem…goes to the Temple…where he makes a whip of cords and flips over the tables of the moneychangers.

Mark…Matthew and Luke have that incident happening later. But in John’s Gospel…we meet the provocative Jesus here. The chapter ends with Jesus in Jerusalem at the time of Passover…with many people believing in him because of the signs he was doing.

But…even though they were interested in him…and were wowed by that water turned into wine…Jesus knew better than to get caught up in their excitement.

John tells us that Jesus didn’t “trust himself to them…because he knew human nature too well.”(see the CEB translation).

Yeah…their impressed with him…but are they prepared to do what it takes to follow him?

Did they understand that despite that disruption in the Temple…Jesus is a Prince of Peace?

So that’s the set up for today’s Gospel reading where we meet Nicodemus…a Pharisee…a respected member of the Sanhedrin…the Jewish Council…who comes out to see Jesus at night.

In the dark.

Undercover as it were.

This makes sense…given that scene in the Temple right before a major Jewish festival.

The Pharisees wouldn’t have been too keen on all of that.

There was all that buzz about the wedding at Cana.

So who is this guy?

Nicodemus…a learned man of the law…decides he wants to find out.

But he doesn’t want others to know that he’s going to talk to this troublemaker.

So he goes at night.

This is also significant because John uses the imagery of darkness and light as an analogy for moving from unbelief to belief.

And if we read all the way through the Gospel of John…we will see Nicodemus making that journey from darkness to light.

He’ll show up again in the middle of the Gospel…seeming to raise a defense to the Jewish Council to hear Jesus out…rather than arrest him for his teachings and talking in his “I am” statements.

And then he appears at the end…with Joseph of Arimathea…to help bury Jesus.

Did he come to believe in Jesus as the Son of God?

That’s not clear.

But he’s willing to take the risk of being seen as caring for the one killed by Rome who had become a problem for those religious authorities who were happy to keep the status quo.

And it all began with his desire to talk with Jesus one night in Jerusalem.

We might imagine what it was like for him to engage with Jesus…thinking he was going to have a typical rabbi-to-rabbi exchange…and then Jesus hits him with talk of being “born from above.”

“Born from above?

But how is this possible if I’m already here in the flesh?”

Now I know they didn’t have things like the Myers-Briggs test back in the days of Jesus…but if they did…my guess is that Nicodemus would have been one of those very logical…rational types…the ISTJ or ESTJ…that knows how to keep the hours and follow the rules.

And while one might read Jesus as scolding Nicodemus for not understanding him…we can also make room to think of this as Jesus teasing him in a humorous way,

“Aw c’mon man…you’re a teacher of Israel!”

We might see Jesus smiling wryly, as he pushes his conversation partner.

 “Think of this like the wind. You’ve heard the things I have done and you’ve come out here looking for me.

Now I’m challenging you to get out of your head…your intellect…and realize that I’m about changing hearts.

I’m here to help you and the people see that you can free yourself  from the rules of the oppressor by tapping into the deep well of the One who sent me here.

Listen to what I’m saying and live in Love.

I’m not here to condemn the world but I am here to save it from its own condemnation.”

Now…unfortunately…the diviners of our lectionary decided not to let you hear the conclusion of this conversation.

I don’t know why they chose to stop here…because Jesus had some more to say. The next few verses…were important for Nicodemus to take in as he wrestled to understand and journey with Jesus.

They are also vital to our own need to ponder what it means to follow Jesus in our time of conflict and war.

So here is the rest of this section from John’s Gospel.

Jesus has said he’s not condemning the world…but he is passing judgment. Hear what he says:

“…the light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil. 

For all who do evil hate the light and do not come to the light…so that their deeds may not be exposed. But those who do what is true come to the light…so that it may be clearly seen that their deeds have been done in God.” (John 3:19-21).

That had to be hard for Nicodemus to hear…given that he chose to approach Jesus in the dark.

I am not saying he approached Jesus at night because he was evil.

But because of the culture and circumstances…a corrupt Roman Empire…he had to wait until it was dark to seek out the light.

And in this darkness…he was given some food for thought as he left that conversation.

And his journey toward enlightenment could now begin…as he contemplated the words of Jesus against the backdrop of his world.

We too are now given these sobering words of truth to consider in our own circumstances.

We live in a world where there are so many things that get swept under the proverbial rug…hidden from the public by our leaders and a corporate media that no longer serves as the watchdogs of democracy.

Lawmakers in state legislatures keep passing bills to stop children from learning the hard and sometimes ugly truths about our past…which only compounds the anger and divisions in our present and jeopardizes our future.

We have secret police grabbing people at work sites and in court houses…and disappearing them into a maze of private for-profit prisons.

There are decades old crimes against girls and boys buried to protect the wealthy perpetrators of such evils as sex slavery and human trafficking.

And we start wars based on half-truths or falsehoods…putting both civilian and military lives at risk.

These are the dark things in human nature that made Jesus leery of trusting those who claimed to be interested in his miracles and ministry.

The people who speak a good game about God…yet their actions don’t follow a path of mercy…justice…and walking humbly with God.

We have an opportunity at Lent to recognize our own tendencies to run back into the dark…hiding our true selves…seeking power over others.

This is our time to consider how we prefer comfort and acceptance instead of realizing that to follow Christ means to not stay silent while others suffer…but to speak up for the vulnerable at the risk of not being popular.

Now is the time to follow the lead of a Nicodemus…and do that work of transformation…chiseling away at those stony parts of our hearts…so that the light of Christ might shine through us in bigger and brighter ways.

In the name of our One Holy and Undivided Trinity.