Seventh Sunday after Pentecost

Luke 13:1-11

A pastor I knew once told me how he changed the format of the Lord’s Prayer in a congregation where he was serving from the words that we frequently use, with “trespasses” and “temptation” to a version that asks God “to forgive our sins” and “save us from the time of trial”. When someone complained that the new version wasn’t what Jesus prayed, Pastor Ernie explained that neither was the earlier version. None of the versions of the Lord’s Prayer that we use today in worship are exactly like the prayers we find here in Luke or in Matthew.

But both Gospel writers include a phrase near the beginning that is preserved in what we say: “hallowed be thy name”.

“Hallowed” is often translated as an adjective, but in the Greek, in both Matthew and Luke, it is a verb.

“Hallowed be thy name,” is an invitation for God to act in the world. It is not simply praise. It is not to say, “Holy is your name,” it is a request for God to act in the world so that God’s name would be made holy.[i]

In the Common English Bible, the translation is “uphold the holiness of your name”. With our prayer, we are asking God to show God’s presence in the world so that people will know God’s name and know who God is.[ii]

That is a very different prayer posture than coming to God wanting God to fulfill our desires or meet our needs.

In fact, in his explanation of this petition, Martin Luther says that God’s name is hallowed “whenever the word of God is taught clearly and purely and we, as God’s children, also live holy lives according to it.”[iii]

The late Eugene Peterson in his book Working the Angles wrote:

We want life on our conditions, not God’s conditions. Praying puts us at risk of getting involved in God’s conditions... Praying most often doesn’t get us what we want but what God wants….[iv] (emphasis mine)

In prayer, we invite God to include us in God’s work in the world. And commit to live according to God’s design and will, even when it is uncomfortable or unexpected.

Remember this is a continuation of the conversations Jesus has been having with his disciples for the last several Sundays. He began by talking about the kingdom of God and loving our neighbors and he told the story of the Good Samaritan. He taught us to set aside the preconceptions we may have about the strangers we meet and love unconditionally.

Then he dined with Martha and Mary and continued to talk about the hospitality of God’s people and the importance of being present with those who are with us. He reminded us to focus on what’s important, listening to Jesus and knowing how much God loves each of us and our unique gifts.

And now he is talking about God’s own work in the world, and how God listens and responds to us - with more generosity than a loving parent and an invitation to help others see God’s abundant and transforming love in action.

Peterson reminds us,

Prayer is our response to the initiative of God. [God] is always the conversation starter, and we are always the conversation responder.[v]

As we enter the last full month of summer, and we continue to grow as disciples or followers of Jesus, I wonder how we can respond to what we see God doing and how we can participate in God’s invitation to show others who God is.

We have opportunities locally and globally.

We regularly have wooden beams in the reception area that we are invited to sign with prayers for new homeowners participating in programs with Habitat for Humanity. And other times, we have food drives to help hungry neighbors. We often help nearby neighbors with resources or connect them with partners who can help even more.

Many of you are already familiar with our support of Anastasis Baptist Church in Durango, Mexico, and today after worship, some of us will listen and learn more about another church, this one in Madagascar, that we have supported. Their congregation - more than 9,000 miles away and in a different hemisphere - is praying for us even now.

And we covet those prayers because we know God’s ways are not our ways and often, we are called to work that is unexpected. May we always respond with openness and a commitment to hallow God, helping others know and experience the abundant love our Holy God offers us all.  Amen.

---

[i] “Proper 12C” Pulpit Fiction. https://www.pulpitfiction.com/notes/proper12c
[ii] ibid
[iii] Luther’s Small Catechism, Study Edition. 35.
[iv] Eugene Peterson. Working the Angles. 44.
[v] ibid, 45.

Sixth Sunday after Pentecost

Luke 10:38-42
 
One of my favorite stories of sisters is the movie The Parent Trap. I loved the original but the one I remember even better is the remake that came out when my children were little. If you don’t know the story, it’s about two girls who meet at summer camp and immediately become bitter enemies. They are polar opposites. They cause enough chaos that eventually they are punished by being put in a solitary cabin together. And that’s where they figure out that they are identical twins who had been separated as babies; one was raised by mom and the other by dad. Together they concoct a scheme to reunite their family, swapping places when the summer camp is over and it’s time to go home. Predictably, things don’t go according to plan and the movie makes us all witnesses to what happens next and all the ways that different personalities, habits and feelings make life and family beautifully messy and complicated.
 
Today’s gospel gives us another sister story, and it’s a story that has been used to divide sisters and women into two camps of their own. In error, it has been used to contrast different ways of being and value one way of being over the other and diminish one in favor of the other.
 
I believe those interpretations miss the point.
 
While Martha provides generous hospitality, and Mary practices devotion, that isn’t what matters in this story.
 
Our relationship with God is not dependent on what we bring to the table. We are beloved by God because God says so, not because we have done anything to earn our salvation, to merit our welcome or to deserve the mercy we are given.
 
While the story compares Martha and her sister Mary, and the ways they are different, God isn’t favoring one or the other. Service is praised in Luke’s gospel. Martha doesn’t turn away the guests at her door, and she doesn’t suggest they come back at a more convenient time. She doesn’t ask for more money or groceries to prepare.  Instead, she gets to work to meet the needs in front of her.
 
What Jesus calls out is Martha’s frustration and distraction. When she becomes anxious and overwhelmed, she turns in on herself and away from her guest who is Christ himself.
 
We know from Scripture and from our life together that, for some, discipleship is lived out in the details of the common life, and for others, in service to the Word.[i] Both are needed. But Jesus reminds us that the center of any discipleship practice is Christ.
 
Anytime we do anything, we are called to do it in Christ’s name and for God’s glory, not for ourselves or not for own recognition. We are called to share the light of God shining from within us and we are called to share God’s abundant love with others.
 
God creates each of us with our unique gifts and abilities and there are many different ways of living our lives of discipleship. “New occasions teach new duties.”[ii] We must identify when we are called to engage in service and when we are called to sit and listen. We aren’t bound by a binary choice of one or the other. We can do both.
 
What the story tells us about God is
that God always meets us where we are.
 
God comes into our lives to be in relationship with us. Not because we make the softest cookies or the most savory barbecue, or even the best coffee. And not because we can recite the name of the books of the Bible or the Apostle’s Creed from memory.
 
God wants us to draw near that we may know God, and experience God’s grace for us.
 
To know we are loved even when we have nothing to offer; in baptism we are brought to the font by parents and we are given the gift of welcome because of what God has done, not us.
 
To know that at the altar, the table we gather around is not mine or yours, but God’s; God is the host, inviting us to be fed and nourished, sustained from one day to the next.
 
Wherever we are, we are in God’ presence, and we are welcomed and loved just as we are.
 
May we always find our place with Jesus, trusting that we are loved because God says so and for no other reason.
Amen.

---

[i] Douglas John Hall. “Proper 11.” Feasting on the Word Commentary: Pentecost and Season after Pentecost 1 (Propers 3-16). Kindle, 662.
[ii] ibid, 661.

Fifth Sunday after Pentecost

I first preached this sermon in Spanish; the English translation is below.

Lucas 10:25-37

Oremos… Que las palabras de mi boca y las meditaciones de nuestros corazónes sean gratas ante ti, oh Señor, nuestra fortaleza y nuestro redentor. Amén.

Jesús a menudo enseña contando historias que llamamos parábolas, y en el evangelio de hoy, Lucas incluye una parábola que Jesús comparte cuando un maestro de la ley le pregunta: "¿Qué debo hacer para heredar la vida eterna?" (10:25). Jesús responde con su propia pregunta y luego el maestro, experto en la Torá, responde, y luego hace una pregunta adicional.

Esta parábola, a menudo llamada la parábola del Buen Samaritano, solo se incluye en el evangelio de Lucas, un texto conocido por mostrar cómo seguir a Jesús implica cruzar fronteras.

Sabemos que los discípulos no siempre entendieron las parábolas, y al leer esta parábola, me pregunto qué nos está diciendo Jesús.

El pastor Brian Stoffregen señala que si Jesús solo intentaba enseñar a sus discípulos a ser misericordiosos con una persona necesitada, no habría razón para identificar a los personajes como sacerdote, un levita y un samaritano.

Él explica la animosidad entre Judea y Samaria, escribiendo:

Durante una antigua guerra israelíta, la mayoría de los judíos que vivían en el norte de Samaria fueron asesinados o llevados al exilio. Sin embargo, algunos judíos, tan insignificantes que nadie los quería, fueron dejados en Samaria.

El describe cómo los matrimonios mixtos y la mezcla de creencias y culturas religiosas crearon una división entre los judíos del norte y del sur, y cómo los samaritanos entendían la Torá de manera diferente y adoraban a Dios en el Monte Gerizim, no en Jerusalén.

Stoffregen argumenta que, si Jesús estuviera criticando a los poderosos líderes religiosos, el tercer personaje habría sido un laico común, un “judío regular”.

Y, si la lección hubiera sido amar a nuestros enemigos, entonces el hombre tirado en el camino habría sido el samaritano, cuidado por un bondadoso israelita.

¿Qué opinas tu?

Al escuchar esta parábola, ¿te ves reflejado en la historia?

Al leer esta parábola, recuerdo que lo que nos salva y nos da vida eterna siempre es la acción de Dios por nosotros. Nunca es nuestro propio esfuerzo, méritos ni buenas obras.

Por muy tentador que sea vernos en el papel del bueno u obediente, y asumir que seríamos heroicos y bondadosos, creo que podríamos vernos más verdaderamente en aquel que fue dado por muerto en el camino a Jericó.

El que fue golpeado, asaltado y abandonado.

El que, inerte en el camino, impulsó al levita y luego al sacerdote a cruzar al otro lado para evitarlo. 

La mayoría de nosotros hemos vivido momentos en nuestras vidas y en nuestras historias en los que hemos recibido golpes devastadores, hemos sido abatidos por enemigos o atormentados por el dolor o la enfermedad. Momentos en los que nos hemos sentido invisibles o ignorados por las personas que razonablemente esperaríamos que nos cuidaran. Y podemos identificarnos con el aislamiento y la desesperación de este hombre.

Solo el samaritano se acercó lo suficiente para verlo, para notar si estaba consciente, llorando o gritando, para atender sus heridas, para cuidarlo con compasión y para llevarlo a un lugar seguro.

Solo el samaritano dio de su propia bolsa o bolsillo el dinero necesario para que el posadero cuidara al hombre herido hasta que pudiera regresar.

La enemistad entre enemigos y el orgullo y el desprecio de los israelitas por los samaritanos hacen de esta una historia improbable. Era inimaginable que un israelita aceptara el cuidado de un samaritano. Su división era demasiado profunda y amarga.

Pero la gracia de Dios es imparable.

No conoce nacionalidad ni credo. No se somete a las fronteras humanas.

Como escribe Pablo en Gálatas:

²⁶ …en Cristo Jesús todos son hijos de Dios por la fe. ²⁷ Todos los que han sido bautizados en Cristo, se han revestido de Cristo. ²⁸ Ya no hay judío ni griego; ya no hay esclavo ni libre; ya no hay varón ni mujer, porque todos son uno en Cristo Jesús.

La gracia de Dios va más allá de nuestro entendimiento.

Y, sin embargo, es evidente en el mundo en el que vivió Jesús y en nuestro mundo actual. En las maneras en que la compasión habla más fuerte que el odio o el prejuicio. Y en las maneras en que lo que nos une como un solo Cuerpo de Cristo es más grande que lo que nos separa.

Como en aquel camino a Jericó hace siglos, somos nosotros los que clamamos necesitados de la misericordia, el perdón, el cuidado y el amor de Dios.

Y nadie más que Dios nos dará el bálsamo sanador que nos restaura ala plenitud de vida que Dios nos promete como sus hijos amados. 

Amén.

Luke 10:25-37

Jesus often teaches by telling stories that we call parables, and in today’s gospel, Luke includes a parable that Jesus shares when a teacher of the law asks him, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” (10:25) Jesus answers with his own question and then the teacher, an expert in the Torah, answers, and then asks a follow-up question.

This parable - often called the parable of the Good Samaritan - is only included in Luke’s gospel, a text known for the ways that it shows how following Jesus means crossing boundaries.

We know the disciples didn’t always understand the parables, and reading this parable, I wonder what Jesus is saying to us.

Pastor Brian Stoffregen notices that if Jesus were only trying to teach his disciples to be merciful to a person in need, there’d be no reason to label the characters as a priest, a Levite and a Samaritan.

He explains the animosity between Judea and Samaria, writing:

During an ancient Israeli war, most of the Jews living up north in Samaria were killed or taken into exile. However, a few Jews, who were so unimportant that nobody wanted them, were left in Samaria.

He describes how the intermarriage and mixing of religious beliefs and cultures created a schism between the northern and southern Jews, and how the Samaritans understood Torah differently and worshiped God at Mt. Gerizim, not Jerusalem.

Stoffregen argues that if Jesus were disparaging the powerful religious leaders, the third character would have been an ordinary lay person, a ‘regular’ Jew.

And, if the lesson was to love our enemies, then the man in the ditch would have been the Samaritan, cared for by a kind Israelite.

What do you think?

When you listen to this parable, do you see yourself in the story?

Reading this parable, I remember that what saves us and gives us eternal life is always God’s action for us. It is never our own effort, merits or good works.

As tempting as it is to see ourselves in the role of the one who is good, or obedient, and to assume we would be heroic and kind,

I think we might see ourselves more truly in the one who is left for dead on the road to Jericho.

The one who was beaten and robbed and abandoned.

The one whose limp form on the road prompted the Levite and then the priest to cross to the other side in order to avoid him.

Most of us have experienced times in our lives and our stories when we have been punched in the gut, run down by enemies, or tormented by grief or illness. Times when we have felt invisible or ignored by the people we could reasonably expect would care for us. And we can relate to this man’s isolation and despair.

Only the Samaritan came close enough to see him, to notice whether he was conscious, weeping or crying out,

to tend to his injuries,

to care for him with compassion

and to carry him to safety.

Only the Samaritan gave from his own purse or pocket the money for the innkeeper to watch over the injured man until he could return.

The animosity between enemies, and the pride and disdain of Israelites for Samaritans make it an unlikely story. It was unimaginable that an Israelite would accept the care of a Samaritan. Their division was too deep and bitter.

But God’s grace is unstoppable. It doesn’t know nationality or creed. It doesn’t adhere to human boundaries.

As Paul writes in Galatians,

²⁶ …in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith. ²⁷ As many of you as were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. ²⁸ There is no longer Jew or Greek; there is no longer slave or free; there is no longer male and female, for all of you are one in Christ Jesus.

God’s grace is beyond our understanding.

And yet, it is evident in the world Jesus lived in, and in our world today. In the ways that compassion speaks louder than hatred or prejudice. And in the ways that what connects us in one Body of Christ is greater than what separates us.

As on that road to Jericho all those centuries ago, we are the ones crying out in need of God’s mercy and forgiveness, care and love. And no one but God will provide us with the healing balm that restores us to the fullness of life that God promises to us as God’s beloved children.

Amen.