Epiphany 5<\/p>\n
Year A
\nIsaiah 58:1-12
\nPsalm 112:1-9
\n1 Corinthians 2:1-12
\nMatthew 5:13-20<\/p>\n
I don\u2019t like doom and gloom\u2026 or fire and brimstone\u2026 and some of you may not know that I grew up\u2026 believing that TV evangelists like John Hagee\u2026 and Jerry Falwell\u2026 and now Franklin Graham\u2026 represented all of Christendom\u2026 but I\u2019ve come to resonate so much more with the idea of Original Blessing\u2026 than with the idea of Original Sin\u2026 so much more with light than with darkness\u2026 so much more with faith than with doubt\u2026 so much more with order than with chaos\u2026 but we find ourselves in the midst of some chaos at this time in our nation\u2026 don\u2019t we\u2026<\/p>\n
There are choices we make\u2026 and there are consequences to those choices\u2026 to the physical\u2026 emotional\u2026 and spiritual choices we make\u2026 both individually\u2026 and corporately\u2026 and let\u2019s remember that God held Israel as a nation\u2026 much more accountable for its corporate behavior\u2026 than for its individuals\u2019 behavior\u2026 and it seems to me\u2026 that the corporate choices we make\u2026 like whether we hold our leaders accountable or not\u2026 matter much more to God\u2026 than do our minor\u2026 moral foibles\u2026 like ripping up a speech as soon as it\u2019s over\u2026<\/p>\n
There are consequences to the physical things we do\u2026 like running a stop sign and t-boning another car\u2026 to the emotional things we do\u2026 like using other people as emotional washing machines so we can feel better about ourselves\u2026 and to the spiritual things we do\u2026 like seeing what we want to see\u2026 and hearing what we want to hear\u2026 and choosing not to be salt and light\u2026<\/p>\n
And I have to say\u2026 what\u2019s going on\u2026 reminds me yet again\u2026 of the passage in Matthew 16\u2026 when Jesus questions the Pharisees and Sadducees about how it is\u2026 that they know how to interpret the appearance of the sky\u2026 but cannot interpret the signs of the times\u2026 and I wonder if\u2026 like Jonah\u2026 we too have been consumed by that which keeps us from seeing what\u2019s going on around us\u2026 and behaving righteously\u2026<\/p>\n
Verse 2 of today\u2019s reading from Isaiah\u2026 clarifies for us\u2026 that what\u2019s righteous is what\u2019s good for the community\u2026 again\u2026 it says\u2026 day after day they seek me\u2026 and delight to know my ways\u2026 as if they were a nation that practiced righteousness\u2026 and did not forsake the commands of their God<\/i>\u2026<\/p>\n
Even in Ch. 1 of Isaiah\u2026 the prophet spoke God\u2019s words when he wrote\u2026 I have had enough of burnt offerings\u2026 incense is an abomination to me\u2026 my soul hates your appointed festivals\u2026 they have become a burden to me\u2026 when you stretch out your hands\u2026 I will hide my eyes\u2026 when you make prayers\u2026 I will not listen\u2026 remove the evil of your doings from before my eyes\u2026 and learn to do good\u2026 seek justice\u2026 rescue the oppressed\u2026 defend the orphan\u2026 plead for the widow<\/i>\u2026<\/p>\n
John Shea writes\u2026 when we fail to do these things\u2026 we are lost potential\u2026 gifts that may not be developed\u2026 a high calling that may not be heeded\u2026 when this happens\u2026 people lose their flavor<\/i>\u2026 because when Jesus says that we are the salt of the earth\u2026 he is not talking about the kitchen salt shaker\u2026 he is talking about our potential to add flavor to the world\u2026<\/p>\n
And Jesus adds\u2026 Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets\u2026 I have not come to abolish\u2026 but to fulfill<\/i>\u2026 a few days ago\u2026 The Rev. Diane Stier shared an insight that I think can help us understand what Jesus meant\u2026<\/p>\n
When most children learn to color\u2026 they use coloring books\u2026 and they learn to stay within the lines\u2026 it\u2019s a type of formation\u2026 that contains within it\u2026 the possibility of drawing outside of those lines\u2026 because once they become artists\u2026 once they learn the subtleties of light and shadow\u2026 and different color pallets and media\u2026 when they learn how to delicately use the single hair\u2026 of a sable-hair brush\u2026 they no longer need the lines to guide them\u2026<\/p>\n
And after Diane said this\u2026 someone else chimed in\u2026 and when we learn how to cook\u2026 we follow recipes\u2026 and we learn to measure ingredients\u2026 and to time things carefully\u2026 but once we become chefs\u2026 once we become familiar with dry and liquid ingredients\u2026 with how they combine and interact with each other\u2026 and how to use herbs and spices\u2026 we no longer need to follow recipes to the tee\u2026 but can improvise\u2026<\/p>\n
The Law is like that\u2026 it is the paidag\u00f3gos<\/i>\u2026 the guide\u2026 who keeps us in line until we can keep ourselves in line\u2026 as we come into increasing awareness of the Mind of Christ\u2026 and then we can improvise\u2026 color outside the lines\u2026 try new food combinations\u2026 but always remain guided by the basics\u2026 the underlying principles and eternal truths\u2026 that would make it impossible for us to riff in ways\u2026 that would invoke the art critic\u2019s\u2026 or the food critic\u2019s\u2026 or the Prophets\u2019 ire\u2026<\/p>\n
On nights when there\u2019s a full moon\u2026 what we\u2019re actually seeing is sunlight reflected off of the moon\u2026 in John 8:12 Jesus declares\u2026 I am the light of the world<\/i>\u2026 in today\u2019s Gospel\u2026 Jesus says that we are the light of the world\u2026 because we are light reflected off of Jesus\u2026 because the light of our good works gives others light by which to be guided\u2026 the light of our good works will draw others who will see in them\u2026 not the goodness of the human actors themselves\u2026 but the reflection of the Divine source\u2026 so we are salt and light because God\u2026 whose children we are\u2026 is committed to making the earth and creation\u2026 something new\u2026 and last weekend\u2026 Two Churches and Holy Trinity contributed a small part to this righteousness\u2026 when this salt and light reflected off our collective conscience\u2026 and we made note of the 4,278 cans (and units) of soup\u2026 collected for the hungry\u2026<\/p>\n
Now my iPhone has an app called Screen Time\u2026 which is like an electronic conscience\u2026 it records how much time I spend online\u2026 records how much time I spend in every single app\u2026 it calculates daily and weekly averages\u2026 and shows the percentage of time this week compared to last week\u2026 it shows how many times I picked my phone up\u2026 and on which day I picked it up the most\u2026 it even lets me set limits for myself\u2026 like coloring book lines\u2026 app by app\u2026 or by total use\u2026<\/p>\n
I wonder how it would be if we had an app\u2026 that told us how many times we fed the hungry\u2026 or clothed the naked\u2026 or healed the sick\u2026 or welcomed the marginalized\u2026 an app that helps us eliminate partisan labels\u2026 an app that helped us be more nuanced in our discernment\u2026 so that the only label we needed to use\u2026 the only litmus test we needed to apply\u2026 for every practice\u2026 or policy decision\u2026 or law\u2026 was whether it embodied righteousness for all people\u2026 and strove for justice and peace\u2026 and respected everyone\u2019s dignity\u2026 but mostly\u2026 whether it fundamentally reflected the Gospel\u2026 whether it reflected the prophets\u2019 hearts\u2026 and God\u2019s love\u2026<\/p>\n
After all\u2026 when we gather at this altar rail\u2026 we are not exactly the same\u2026 when we gather at this altar rail\u2026 we are not of one mind about every issue\u2026 but when the light of Christ\u2026 in the form of bread and wine\u2026 moves down into the darkness of our bodies\u2026 we are transformed and made new\u2026 and God is at work\u2026 simultaneously directing this process from within us\u2026 and at the same time\u2026 drawing all of us towards divinity\u2026 and the final fulfillment of God\u2019s plan for all of creation\u2026<\/p>\n
Because I can tell you\u2026 electing either a Republican\u2026 or a Democrat in November\u2026 will not save us\u2026 Jesus has already done that\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Epiphany 5 Year A Isaiah 58:1-12 Psalm 112:1-9 1 Corinthians 2:1-12 Matthew 5:13-20 I don\u2019t like doom and gloom\u2026 or fire and brimstone\u2026 and some of you may not know that I grew up\u2026 believing that TV evangelists like John Hagee\u2026 and Jerry Falwell\u2026 and now Franklin Graham\u2026 represented all of Christendom\u2026 but I\u2019ve come to resonate so much more with the idea of Original Blessing\u2026 than with the idea of Original Sin\u2026 so much more with light than with darkness\u2026 so much more with faith than with doubt\u2026 so much more with order than with chaos\u2026 but we find ourselves in the midst of some chaos at this time in our nation\u2026 don\u2019t we\u2026 There are choices we make\u2026 and there are consequences to those choices\u2026 to the physical\u2026 emotional\u2026 and spiritual choices we make\u2026 both individually\u2026 and corporately\u2026 and let\u2019s remember that God held Israel as a nation\u2026 much more accountable for its corporate behavior\u2026 than for its individuals\u2019 behavior\u2026 and it seems to me\u2026 that the corporate choices we make\u2026 like whether we hold our leaders accountable or not\u2026 matter much more to God\u2026 than do our minor\u2026 moral foibles\u2026 like ripping up a speech as soon as it\u2019s over\u2026 There are consequences to the physical things we do\u2026 like running a stop sign and t-boning another car\u2026 to the emotional things we do\u2026 like using other people as emotional washing machines so we can feel better about ourselves\u2026 and to the spiritual things we do\u2026 like seeing what we want to see\u2026 and hearing what we want to hear\u2026 and choosing not to be salt and light\u2026 And I have to say\u2026 what\u2019s going on\u2026 reminds me yet again\u2026 of the passage in Matthew 16\u2026 when Jesus questions the Pharisees and Sadducees about how it is\u2026 that they know how to interpret the appearance of the sky\u2026 but cannot interpret the signs of the times\u2026 and I wonder if\u2026 like Jonah\u2026 we too have been consumed by that which keeps us from seeing what\u2019s going on around us\u2026 and behaving righteously\u2026 Verse 2 of today\u2019s reading from Isaiah\u2026 clarifies for us\u2026 that what\u2019s righteous is what\u2019s good for the community\u2026 again\u2026 it says\u2026 day after day they seek me\u2026 and delight to know my ways\u2026 as if they were a nation that practiced righteousness\u2026 and did not forsake the commands of their God\u2026 Even in Ch. 1 of Isaiah\u2026 the prophet spoke God\u2019s words when he wrote\u2026 I have had enough of burnt offerings\u2026 incense is an abomination to me\u2026 my soul hates your appointed festivals\u2026 they have become a burden to me\u2026 when you stretch out your hands\u2026 I will hide my eyes\u2026 when you make prayers\u2026 I will not listen\u2026 remove the evil of your doings from before my eyes\u2026 and learn to do good\u2026 seek justice\u2026 rescue the oppressed\u2026 defend the orphan\u2026 plead for the widow\u2026 John Shea writes\u2026 when we fail to do these things\u2026 we are lost potential\u2026 gifts that may not be developed\u2026 a high calling that may not be heeded\u2026 when this happens\u2026 people lose their flavor\u2026 because when Jesus says that we are the salt of the earth\u2026 he is not talking about the kitchen salt shaker\u2026 he is talking about our potential to add flavor to the world\u2026 And Jesus adds\u2026 Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets\u2026 I have not come to abolish\u2026 but to fulfill\u2026 a few days ago\u2026 The Rev. Diane Stier shared an insight that I think can help us understand what Jesus meant\u2026 When most children learn to color\u2026 they use coloring books\u2026 and they learn to stay within the lines\u2026 it\u2019s a type of formation\u2026 that contains within it\u2026 the possibility of drawing outside of those lines\u2026 because once they become artists\u2026 once they learn the subtleties of light and shadow\u2026 and different color pallets and media\u2026 when they learn how to delicately use the single hair\u2026 of a sable-hair brush\u2026 they no longer need the lines to guide them\u2026 And after Diane said this\u2026 someone else chimed in\u2026 and when we learn how to cook\u2026 we follow recipes\u2026 and we learn to measure ingredients\u2026 and to time things carefully\u2026 but once we become chefs\u2026 once we become familiar with dry and liquid ingredients\u2026 with how they combine and interact with each other\u2026 and how to use herbs and spices\u2026 we no longer need to follow recipes to the tee\u2026 but can improvise\u2026 The Law is like that\u2026 it is the paidag\u00f3gos\u2026 the guide\u2026 who keeps us in line until we can keep ourselves in line\u2026 as we come into increasing awareness of the Mind of Christ\u2026 and then we can improvise\u2026 color outside the lines\u2026 try new food combinations\u2026 but always remain guided by the basics\u2026 the underlying principles and eternal truths\u2026 that would make it impossible for us to riff in ways\u2026 that would invoke the art critic\u2019s\u2026 or the food critic\u2019s\u2026 or the Prophets\u2019 ire\u2026 On nights when there\u2019s a full moon\u2026 what we\u2019re actually seeing is sunlight reflected off of the moon\u2026 in John 8:12 Jesus declares\u2026 I am the light of the world\u2026 in today\u2019s Gospel\u2026 Jesus says that we are the light of the world\u2026 because we are light reflected off of Jesus\u2026 because the light of our good works gives others light by which to be guided\u2026 the light of our good works will draw others who will see in them\u2026 not the goodness of the human actors themselves\u2026 but the reflection of the Divine source\u2026 so we are salt and light because God\u2026 whose children we are\u2026 is committed to making the earth and creation\u2026 something new\u2026 and last weekend\u2026 Two Churches and Holy Trinity contributed a small part to this righteousness\u2026 when this salt and light reflected off our collective conscience\u2026 and we made note of the 4,278 cans (and units) of soup\u2026 collected for the hungry\u2026 Now my iPhone has an app called Screen […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-485","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sermons"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/twochurches.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/485","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/twochurches.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/twochurches.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/twochurches.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/twochurches.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=485"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/twochurches.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/485\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":487,"href":"https:\/\/twochurches.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/485\/revisions\/487"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/twochurches.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=485"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/twochurches.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=485"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/twochurches.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=485"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}