Epiphany 6<\/p>\n
Year A
\nSirach 15:15-20
\nPsalm 119 1-8
\n1 Corinthians 3:1-9
\nMatthew 5:21-37<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Hello\u2026 my name is Mike\u2026 and I am a sinner\u2026 no matter what I do\u2026 or don\u2019t do\u2026 I am a sinner\u2026 not because I want to be\u2026 not because of Original Sin\u2026 but because I am separated from the full glory of God\u2026 from the mind of God\u2026. and from the heart of God\u2026 and it doesn\u2019t matter if my good deeds are 99% of what I do\u2026 there\u2019s that bothersome 1% to deal with\u2026 and even if I could get rid of that\u2026 get my good deeds up to 99.9%\u2026 there\u2019d still be that mountainous 1% of 1%\u2026<\/p>\n
And because I\u2019m a sinner\u2026 I cause hurt\u2026 and disappointment\u2026 in others\u2026 and in myself\u2026 sometimes by the things I do\u2026 and sometimes by the things I don\u2019t do\u2026 by my sins of commission\u2026 or sins of omission\u2026 and I have hurt hearts that I love\u2026 and my heart has been broken too\u2026 sometimes by the same thing\u2026 like when I told my eleven year old daughter that I was moving ninety miles away\u2026 I don\u2019t know anyone\u2026 whose heart hasn\u2019t been broken\u2026 or bruised\u2026 anyone\u2026 whose heart couldn\u2019t use some healing\u2026<\/p>\n
And its\u2019 interesting that this reading comes to us so soon after Valentine\u2019s Day\u2026 because I\u2019m also reminded of the passage that comes about ten verses later\u2026 in Matthew 15\u2026 in which Jesus reminds us that it\u2019s what comes out of our mouths that defiles us\u2026 because what comes out of them proceeds from the heart\u2026 perhaps from hearts that have also been wounded\u2026 or are hurting\u2026 and Jesus repeats in that verse\u2026 some of the same sins that he names in today\u2019s reading\u2026 which is a continuation of the Sermon on the Mount\u2026 Jesus reflects Moses\u2026 and expands the Ten Commandments\u2026 and what he teaches has everything to do about relationship\u2026<\/p>\n
Jesus reminds us that whoever murders shall be liable to judgment\u2026 and we think\u2026 well\u2026 I\u2019m good\u2026 that lets me off that hook\u2026 <\/i>but then he moves seamlessly\u2026 quickly\u2026 and without interruption\u2026 to being angry with a brother or sister\u2026 in fact\u2026 what he\u2019s doing\u2026 is putting anger on the same level as murder\u2026 because of the way it kills relationships\u2026 and he includes insults\u2026 and judging others in the same breath too\u2026<\/p>\n
Pastor Martin Billmeier writes\u2026 Jesus goes on\u2026 to expand the understanding of the sixth commandment\u2026 and what it means to commit adultery\u2026 and by expanding the understanding of what it means to transgress these commandments\u2026 Jesus is doing two things\u2026 first\u2026 he makes it impossible for any of us to claim that we have kept all of the commandments\u2026 he shows us that the law points its finger at all of us\u2026<\/p>\n
And it does this in two ways\u2026 for example\u2026 there\u2019s a law along M-6\u2026 it\u2019s not called the speed minimum\u2026 but the speed limit\u2026 and most of the people who drive along it\u2026 rationalize\u2026 why it doesn\u2019t apply to them\u2026 and there are other laws\u2026 like the minimum wage\u2026 but very few people feel compelled to exceed it\u2026 and there\u2019s a priest I know\u2026 here in the city\u2026 and when they were redoing the church parking lot\u2026 the law said there had to be at least ten handicapped parking spaces\u2026 the priest said\u2026 let\u2019s have thirty\u2026 and the contractor questioned him\u2026 challenged him on that\u2026 referring to the law which said that only ten were required\u2026 but the priest said\u2026 let\u2019s do better than the law\u2026 and in last week\u2019s Gospel\u2026 we heard Jesus say the same thing\u2026 that unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees\u2026 you will not enter the Kingdom\u2026<\/p>\n
And second\u2026 Jesus gets to the heart of the matter\u2026 by saying that faith is not a matter of commandment keeping\u2026 but faith is a matter of the heart\u2026 now the commandments have their place\u2026 they help preserve order in society\u2026 and show us our sin\u2026 but our focus must be on Jesus\u2026<\/p>\n
The Rev. Josh Bowron\u2026 Rector of St. Martin’s Episcopal Church in Charlotte, N.C. writes\u2026 Jesus\u2019 teaching on the taking of oaths\u2026 is probably the best indicator of the community\u2019s morality that is centered on him\u2026 here\u2026 he tells us not to swear by anything\u2026 and instead to simply let our Yes be Yes\u2026 and our No be No\u2026<\/p>\n
Oaths\u2026 like any oath of office\u2026 are interesting because\u2026 when you think about\u2026 they basically say\u2026 we usually lie a little bit\u2026 or a lot\u2026 but in this case\u2026 I really mean it<\/i>\u2026 taking an oath\u2026 means that lying and deception are the usual workings of things\u2026 but now\u2026 now I\u2019m really telling the truth\u2026 and have you ever been in a situation where someone says something outlandish\u2026 and you responded with\u2026 really? swear to it\u2026<\/i><\/p>\n
And there is no harder thing than seeking forgiveness when you are convinced that you are good\u2026 I mean\u2026 what do you have to be forgiven for\u2026 well\u2026 look at Jesus\u2026 how are you doing by that measure\u2026 and these [so-called rules are not here to make us feel bad\u2026 they\u2019re here to draw us closer to God\u2026 and to our brothers and sisters\u2026 and that doesn\u2019t exclude anyone\u2026 once we realize that we\u2019re are not as good as we thought\u2026 then we can begin to rejoice in God\u2019s goodness towards us\u2026<\/p>\n
That\u2019s why it occurred to me some years ago\u2026 that we can\u2019t have bright\u2026 shining\u2026 glorious Gospel lives\u2026 without first tending to our family of origin woundedness\u2026 to our broken hearts\u2026 to the things which come out of our mouths from them\u2026 and ask ourselves\u2026 where did that come from<\/i>\u2026<\/p>\n
And that may be why some of Jesus\u2019 nuance may be lost on us\u2026 because he doesn\u2019t say\u2026 if when you are offering your gift at the altar\u2026 you remember that you have something against a brother or sister\u2026 but if you remember that a brother or sister has something against you\u2026 and I think it\u2019s easier to seek atonement with God\u2026 easier to offer sacrifice at the altar\u2026 than it is to seek out the ones we have wronged\u2026 or who have wronged us\u2026 and be reconciled\u2026 the only caveat being\u2026 as AA\u2019s ninth step says\u2026 except when to do so would injure them or others\u2026<\/p>\n
Because it\u2019s more much important\u2026 for there to be unity among God\u2019s people\u2026 than it is for sacrifice to be offered at the altar\u2026 and this kind of dynamic is so subtle\u2026 that most people would not even be aware of it\u2026<\/p>\n
I don\u2019t know how we can be unconditionally loving to everyone we meet\u2026 unless we realize how fully\u2026 and how unconditionally\u2026 we are loved by God\u2026 I don\u2019t know how we can forgive others\u2026 unless we realize how fully we are forgiven\u2026 I don\u2019t know how we can begin to heal our family of origin wounds\u2026 unless we re-cognize how worthy of healing we are\u2026 and I don\u2019t think that I\u2019d need God\u2026 if I wasn\u2019t a sinner\u2026 and I need God\u2026 because I miss God\u2019s mark\u2026<\/p>\n
Our hearts are broken\u2026 we all carry some kind of wounds\u2026 some kind of scars\u2026 we all face some kind of battle\u2026 but we are still lovable\u2026 we are able to be loved\u2026 and one of the ways we know that we love someone\u2026 is not wanting to disappoint them\u2026 and God doesn\u2019t disappoint us\u2026 because the light and love of Christ will heal us\u2026 and make us whole\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Epiphany 6 Year A Sirach 15:15-20 Psalm 119 1-8 1 Corinthians 3:1-9 Matthew 5:21-37 Hello\u2026 my name is Mike\u2026 and I am a sinner\u2026 no matter what I do\u2026 or don\u2019t do\u2026 I am a sinner\u2026 not because I want to be\u2026 not because of Original Sin\u2026 but because I am separated from the full glory of God\u2026 from the mind of God\u2026. and from the heart of God\u2026 and it doesn\u2019t matter if my good deeds are 99% of what I do\u2026 there\u2019s that bothersome 1% to deal with\u2026 and even if I could get rid of that\u2026 get my good deeds up to 99.9%\u2026 there\u2019d still be that mountainous 1% of 1%\u2026 And because I\u2019m a sinner\u2026 I cause hurt\u2026 and disappointment\u2026 in others\u2026 and in myself\u2026 sometimes by the things I do\u2026 and sometimes by the things I don\u2019t do\u2026 by my sins of commission\u2026 or sins of omission\u2026 and I have hurt hearts that I love\u2026 and my heart has been broken too\u2026 sometimes by the same thing\u2026 like when I told my eleven year old daughter that I was moving ninety miles away\u2026 I don\u2019t know anyone\u2026 whose heart hasn\u2019t been broken\u2026 or bruised\u2026 anyone\u2026 whose heart couldn\u2019t use some healing\u2026 And its\u2019 interesting that this reading comes to us so soon after Valentine\u2019s Day\u2026 because I\u2019m also reminded of the passage that comes about ten verses later\u2026 in Matthew 15\u2026 in which Jesus reminds us that it\u2019s what comes out of our mouths that defiles us\u2026 because what comes out of them proceeds from the heart\u2026 perhaps from hearts that have also been wounded\u2026 or are hurting\u2026 and Jesus repeats in that verse\u2026 some of the same sins that he names in today\u2019s reading\u2026 which is a continuation of the Sermon on the Mount\u2026 Jesus reflects Moses\u2026 and expands the Ten Commandments\u2026 and what he teaches has everything to do about relationship\u2026 Jesus reminds us that whoever murders shall be liable to judgment\u2026 and we think\u2026 well\u2026 I\u2019m good\u2026 that lets me off that hook\u2026 but then he moves seamlessly\u2026 quickly\u2026 and without interruption\u2026 to being angry with a brother or sister\u2026 in fact\u2026 what he\u2019s doing\u2026 is putting anger on the same level as murder\u2026 because of the way it kills relationships\u2026 and he includes insults\u2026 and judging others in the same breath too\u2026 Pastor Martin Billmeier writes\u2026 Jesus goes on\u2026 to expand the understanding of the sixth commandment\u2026 and what it means to commit adultery\u2026 and by expanding the understanding of what it means to transgress these commandments\u2026 Jesus is doing two things\u2026 first\u2026 he makes it impossible for any of us to claim that we have kept all of the commandments\u2026 he shows us that the law points its finger at all of us\u2026 And it does this in two ways\u2026 for example\u2026 there\u2019s a law along M-6\u2026 it\u2019s not called the speed minimum\u2026 but the speed limit\u2026 and most of the people who drive along it\u2026 rationalize\u2026 why it doesn\u2019t apply to them\u2026 and there are other laws\u2026 like the minimum wage\u2026 but very few people feel compelled to exceed it\u2026 and there\u2019s a priest I know\u2026 here in the city\u2026 and when they were redoing the church parking lot\u2026 the law said there had to be at least ten handicapped parking spaces\u2026 the priest said\u2026 let\u2019s have thirty\u2026 and the contractor questioned him\u2026 challenged him on that\u2026 referring to the law which said that only ten were required\u2026 but the priest said\u2026 let\u2019s do better than the law\u2026 and in last week\u2019s Gospel\u2026 we heard Jesus say the same thing\u2026 that unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees\u2026 you will not enter the Kingdom\u2026 And second\u2026 Jesus gets to the heart of the matter\u2026 by saying that faith is not a matter of commandment keeping\u2026 but faith is a matter of the heart\u2026 now the commandments have their place\u2026 they help preserve order in society\u2026 and show us our sin\u2026 but our focus must be on Jesus\u2026 The Rev. Josh Bowron\u2026 Rector of St. Martin’s Episcopal Church in Charlotte, N.C. writes\u2026 Jesus\u2019 teaching on the taking of oaths\u2026 is probably the best indicator of the community\u2019s morality that is centered on him\u2026 here\u2026 he tells us not to swear by anything\u2026 and instead to simply let our Yes be Yes\u2026 and our No be No\u2026 Oaths\u2026 like any oath of office\u2026 are interesting because\u2026 when you think about\u2026 they basically say\u2026 we usually lie a little bit\u2026 or a lot\u2026 but in this case\u2026 I really mean it\u2026 taking an oath\u2026 means that lying and deception are the usual workings of things\u2026 but now\u2026 now I\u2019m really telling the truth\u2026 and have you ever been in a situation where someone says something outlandish\u2026 and you responded with\u2026 really? swear to it\u2026 And there is no harder thing than seeking forgiveness when you are convinced that you are good\u2026 I mean\u2026 what do you have to be forgiven for\u2026 well\u2026 look at Jesus\u2026 how are you doing by that measure\u2026 and these [so-called rules are not here to make us feel bad\u2026 they\u2019re here to draw us closer to God\u2026 and to our brothers and sisters\u2026 and that doesn\u2019t exclude anyone\u2026 once we realize that we\u2019re are not as good as we thought\u2026 then we can begin to rejoice in God\u2019s goodness towards us\u2026 That\u2019s why it occurred to me some years ago\u2026 that we can\u2019t have bright\u2026 shining\u2026 glorious Gospel lives\u2026 without first tending to our family of origin woundedness\u2026 to our broken hearts\u2026 to the things which come out of our mouths from them\u2026 and ask ourselves\u2026 where did that come from\u2026 And that may be why some of Jesus\u2019 nuance may be lost on us\u2026 because he doesn\u2019t say\u2026 if when you are offering your gift at the altar\u2026 you remember that you have something against a brother or sister\u2026 but if you remember that a brother or sister has something against you\u2026 […]<\/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-527","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\/527","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=527"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/twochurches.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/527\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":529,"href":"https:\/\/twochurches.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/527\/revisions\/529"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/twochurches.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=527"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/twochurches.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=527"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/twochurches.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=527"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}