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Light Has
Dawned---It’s Gonna Be A Great Year!
Matthew 4: 12-23
Tuesday
morning I picked up my Bible and started reading this scripture and I couldn’t
put it down until I got to the end of Chapter 5. I want to read it all to you
this morning and let the gospel speak for itself. And I want you to hear it
as if you were hearing it for the first time. We know know what comes before
this chapter. There was the birth, John the Baptizer appears proclaiming
that the Kingdom of God is near, saying “Repent and believe in the Gospel.”
John is arrested and he’s about to lose his head. It was a dark, dark time.
And maybe that’s why Matthew refers to the prophet Isaiah and announces that
“Light has dawned on a world sitting in the dark. Then Jesus appears and
calls some common working folks to follow and immediately they do. I want
you to hear this because I think the rest of Chapter 4 and through to the end
of Chapter 5 describes the adventure we are gonna have when we sign on to this
Jesus life. It’s great stuff. Light dawns it’s gonna be a great year.
From where we left
off:
And he
went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and preaching the gospel
of the kingdom, healing every disease and every infirmity. So his fame
spread throughout Syria, and they brought him all the sick, those afflicted
with various diseases and pains, demoniacs, epileptics and paralytics, and he
healed them. And great crowds followed him from Galilee and the Decap’olis
and Jerusalem and Judea and from beyond the Jordan.
See
now, this is about what happens when some everyday human beings (some of you
would call them ‘dudes’) get the call to follow and their world stops and time
stops and they drop everything and go. Light has dawned. You’ve got to feel
it. Something beyond you is gonna rock your world this year. Something from
within you is going to stop you in your tracks and you are gonna pay attention
and you are going to turn around, that’s what it means to repent. And your
transformation is going to make alot of noise and crowds are going to gather
and there will be healing. The blind will see and the deaf will hear. And
the whole world together will say “Whatsup.” And those without voice will
find a voice and it will never be the same again. It goes on:
Seeing the
crowds, Jesus went up on the mountain, and when he sat down his disciples came
to him. And he opened his mouth and taught them.
Now if
you’ve been listening to our politicians, Republicans and Democrats are all
saying it’s time for change and they’re right but most of the time they don’t
have a clue for what will truly turn the world around. Listen to the slogans
for a real campaign:
Blessed
are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed
are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
Blessed
are the meek for they shall inherit the Earth
Blessed
are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be
satisfied.
Blessed
are the merciful for they shall obtain mercy.
Blessed
are the pure in heart for they shall see God.
The
world will be changed from within by this beloved community. Change will not
come from the proud or possessive, from those who think they have nothing to
grieve or hunger. It will come from folks in community who know darkness and
vulnerability...who know their need of God...who are free to act because they
know none of us really have anything to lose. And that community will inherit
the earth.
And
that community will sit around in CGroups and Circles and Bible studies and
around the communion table and fan the inner fires of personal peace and then
they will go out through open doors to the living rooms and playgrounds,
cafeterias, streets and prisons where human beings sell their souls to
violence and yes out to the deserts of terror and put themselves in harms way
and say ‘Let’s negotiate.” Yes because it says:
Blessed
are the peacemakers for they shall be called children of God and
Blessed
are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the
kingdom of
heaven
and:
Blessed
are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil
against you falsely on my account.
Rejoice
and be glad, for your reward is great in the kingdom, for so people persecuted
the
prophets
who were before you.
Anyone
who says this will be easy is a liar. True joy is born of struggle and
walking your talk. It’s not going to get easier this year to stand up and say
this is what it means to be a person of faith, to live joyously in a frantic
world, to use your refusal skills to say no to sex when you’re not ready or
live with less in a world that consumes itself to death. If you have faith
you have scar tissue. But see, that’s what gives life its flavor. Because it
goes on to say:
You are
the salt of the earth; but if salt loses its flavor, how can the saltness be
restored? It’s good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled under
foot.
Friends
we must believe this. We must believe that we and our story of forgiveness,
love, justice and hope makes the world taste better.
Hannah,
you must believe that what you have inside could be the flavor of the month.
Jenny,
you must believe that what you know to be true could make a whole new recipe
for how people live. Glenn, you must believe that our story of hope
makes you really hot...but they ain’t tasted nuthin yet!
You are
the light of the world. This talking about our community of faith now.
A city on a hill cannot be hid. Nor do we light a lamp and put it under a
bushel, but on a stand so it gives light to all in the house. Let your light
so shine in the whole community, that everyone can see your good works and
give glory to your God in heaven.
The
Eugene community can see quite clearly some of what happens here in our
building and they often say we give them hope. But we must turn up the light
this year. We must believe that what we have can set the world on fire. In
April we will choose whether to be recognizable as a Reconciling Congregation,
truly open to all. We have a chance to put solar panels on our roof to
demonstrate we really care about God’s amazing Planet. We will march across
Lane County in June to make the increasing hunger among us more visible.
Youth and adults will again travel and serve humanity this summer. And on and
on to adventures we’ve yet to dream. All you have to do is show up! And then
you tell me if the community doesn’t know exactly what our faith means. They
can see it. Light dawns. It’s gonna be a great year.
Think not
that I have come to abolish the law and the prophets; I have come not to
abolish but fulfill them. For truly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass
away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the law until all is
accomplished. Whoever then relaxes one of the least of these commandments and
teaches others so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but any who
do keep them and teach them shall be called great in the kingdom. For I tell
you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you
will never enter it.
You
know as progressive Christians we sometimes act as though it’s just fine for
everyone to think what they will think and do what they will do. Well it’s
not fine. Laws of dynamics keep the Earth in orbit and creatures attached to
the ground and we need boundaries within which to practice our freedom.
Do not
kill, do not steal, do not commit adultery...non-negotiable. Do not take,
buy less than you can afford, clean up after yourself, don’t try to find
happiness in things...all essential. Honor your father and mother, listen to
your children, kiss a frog, say I love you and please forgive me alot,
chocolate always helps, remember whose in charge, rejoice even though you know
the facts...they make the world go round. We are the incarnation of these
laws because we can practice them. Light dawns.
You have
heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not kill; and whoever kills
shall be liable to judgment.’ But I say to you that everyone who is angry
with a sister or brother is liable to judgment and whoever insults a neighbor
shall be liable to the council and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ shall be liable
to the hell of fire. So if you are offering your gift at the altar, and there
remember that your sister, your brother, your neighbor has something against
you, leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to
your community of human beings and then come offer your gift....
Wow.
How different would our neighborhood be, if we all did this. I should dismiss
myself right now and send you out to find reconciliation and we’ll reconvene
in a couple of days. Any alcoholic or drug addict who has done the Steps
knows there is no transformation without making amends to those you have used,
abused and hurt by the way you live. Light dawns. It’s gonna be a great
year.
You have
heard it said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But get this: I say that
every one who looks at another with greed and lust has already committed
adultery in the heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and
throw it away; it is better that you lose one of your members than that your
whole body be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut
off and throw it away.
The
Gospel we follow cares deeply about the loves of our lives. What would we be
without those who make space where we can be ourselves and we don’t have to
hide anymore. This time around we will take drastic measures to deepen those
bonds. We’ll get it!: It’s not just what we do that counts! It’s about our
attitudes and allegiances, lusts and prejudice. It’s how we see each other.
This year we’ll be truthful even when it hurts, we’ll lose some attitudes. We
may even have to amputate if that’s what it takes to remove whatever gets in
the way of giving our whole selves and our complete devotion to our partners,
our parents, our children, friends and mentors. Surgery can be a good
thing! Light dawns. It will be a great year.
Again, you
have heard it was said to those before you: ‘You shall not swear falsely, but
shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn.’ But I say to you, Do not
swear at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, or by the earth,
for it is God’s footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great
King. And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or
black. Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this
comes from evil.
There
are so many gods calling us to swear allegiance. What I say ispretty much a
load o’ crap if it is contradicted by the way I live. And the whole world is
looking at our country, which we swear to be a nation under God. They know
what gods earn our allegiance and they have little resemblance to the God of
Jesus. The time for swearing is past. When it comes to serving more than one
master, when it comes to deciding whether you are going to sign on to this
Jesus campaign or not...a simple Yes or No will do. Light dawns.
You have
heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ But get
this: I say, ‘Do not resist one who is evil. But if anyone strikes you on
the right cheek, turn to him the other also; and if anyone would sue you and
take your coat, let him have your cloak as well; and if any one forces you to
go one mile, go with him two miles. Give to him who begs from you, and do not
refuse him who would borrow from you.
You have
heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’
But I say to you, ‘Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so
that you may be true offspring of your Great Parent; for God makes the sun
rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the just and the unjust.
For if you
love only those who love you, what reward have you? Even the people we most
despise in the world do that. And if you salute only those you like, what
more are you doing than others? Even those who you would say were without
faith love the people who love them back.
Is
there anything more fundamental to our faith than loving those who don’t love
us back? But this is probably the part of the adventure we didn’t count on
when we signed our “following papers.” As I preach this morning a son of our
congregation patrols a neighborhood in Bagdhad. We despise war and our rules
forbid killing. I really believe an eye for an eye leaves everyone blind, but
I know very little about real violence. When (our soldier) Charlie comes home
I will ask him to teach me what he knows about resisting it.
On
going the extra mile, Roman soldiers in Jesus’ time could compell any peasant
any time to carry anything a travelling soldier gave to carry (his pack, armor
etc.). By law they could go one mile but no more. Turning the other cheek is
standing up to violence and refusing to return it for violence no matter
what. Going the 2nd mile is about meeting the oppressive powers of our
Empire with a kind of coniving, almost comical generosity that violence can’t
understand. Think of being forced to carry a soldier’s load for a mile in the
sweltering heat of the desert and, then, at the end of the required mile, you
straighten up and carry on a whole nother mile. These are the gentle as
doves, wise as serpents kind of generosities that disarm hate and terror.
Is
anyone else drawn to a faith like this? Would anyone else like to learn this
faith? I would. The gospel says it’s possible this year. Maybe this year we
could figure out how to create safe places where soldiers in our faith wars in
this country can listen to each other and honor divergent ways of living out
the same allegiances. The clincher of this sermon from Matthew is that God
makes the sun rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the just and
the unjust. The point is, in all this (in all this repenting and choosing and
leaving and following) in all these things we can’t ever tell who’s who. And
arguing about who’s evil and who’s good and who’s best and better is
ultimately a waste of God’s time and a royal insult to the good inside of
every human being that makes us One.
And this is how the chapter ends and so the gospel for today:
You,
therefore, must be perfect as your God is perfect.
Is that
too high a standard? Well I can tell you this faith isn’t for wimps. And
neither would we expect the good news to say “You, therefore, must be mediocre
as your God is mediocre.” Nor would we want to sing the song: they will know
we are Christians by our indifference. The standard has never been nor will
it ever be about how we measure up to anyone or anything. It’s simply the
story of a call to follow and some dudes----some basic everyday people who
dropped everything and took off.
Light
has dawned. It’s gonna be a great year.
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