Year A
Ezekiel 33:7-11
Psalm 119:33-40
Romans 13:8-14
Matthew 18:15-20<\/p>\n\n\n\n
May the words of my mouth\u2026 O God\u2026 speak your Truth\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I once attended a gathering of about three-thousand people\u2026 we met in a convention center in Washington DC\u2026 in a large auditorium\u2026 with stadium seating\u2026 sweeping down to a large stage\u2026 and at the end of one particular break\u2026 the speaker was trying to re-establish order\u2026 to herd cats as it were\u2026 and assisted by a very effective sound system\u2026 she called from her podium for everyone\u2026 wherever they were\u2026 to please stop what they were doing\u2026 and settle down\u2026 and be seated\u2026 and be quiet\u2026 so we could continue\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But for many more minutes\u2026 for what seemed like far too long\u2026 from one end of the room to the other\u2026 people kept on chatting\u2026 or walking to wherever they were going\u2026 or doing whatever they were doing\u2026 and it was almost as though I could hear each person thinking to themselves\u2026 Oh\u2026 everyone else should stop chatting\u2026 or walking\u2026 or doing\u2026 what I\u2019m talking about\u2026 where I\u2019m going\u2026 what I\u2019m doing\u2026 is important\u2026 everyone else should listen to her\u2026 everyone else should settle down\u2026 everyone else should fall in line\u2026 what I\u2019m doing won\u2019t take long\u2026 won\u2019t interfere\u2026 won\u2019t disturb<\/em>\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n But the woman at the podium wasn\u2019t in a hurry\u2026 she was patient\u2026 she could wait\u2026 there was an agenda\u2026 but we weren\u2019t bound by an overly strict schedule\u2026 and in some ways\u2026 the conference agenda was less about doing\u2026 and more about being\u2026 so there was patience\u2026 there was grace you might say\u2026 there was only a little bit of interest in imposing the will of the few on the will of the many\u2026 they could wait until the collective energy in that space became more coherent\u2026 and the leaders could discern the right moment to continue\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n I think we might call this God-waiting\u2026 it\u2019s like how God juggles the difference between our free will\u2026 and God\u2019s will\u2026 there\u2019s a tension of sorts\u2026 a push and pull\u2026 a give and take\u2026 between our plans\u2026 and God\u2019s plan for all of creation\u2026 there\u2019s chronos<\/em> and kairos<\/em>\u2026 our time frame and God\u2019s time frame\u2026 and like the woman at the podium\u2026 God has an agenda\u2026 but isn\u2019t necessarily in a hurry\u2026 like the woman at the podium\u2026 God knows that people will sometimes assert their sense of agency\u2026 insist on doing what they want\u2026 even when it\u2019s opposed to what God wants\u2026 because God knows\u2026 that in God\u2019s time\u2026 God\u2019s plan for all of creation will be realized\u2026 and God is not in any kind of hurry\u2026 whatsoever\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the convention center\u2026 the goal was to establish community\u2026 but not everyone was quite ready to be a part of that community\u2026 they would\u2026 in a few minutes\u2026 but in the moment\u2026 they didn\u2019t quite want to be held accountable\u2026 they had their own very good reasons thank you\u2026 to do what was at odds with the consensus of the community\u2026 believed perhaps deep down inside\u2026 that their goals justified what they were doing\u2026 that the ends justified the means\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n I am convinced though\u2026 that we can\u2019t have community\u2026 without some degree of accountability\u2026 we can\u2019t expect predictability\u2026 if too many others think to themselves\u2026 Oh\u2026 everyone else should stop chatting\u2026 or walking\u2026 or doing\u2026 what I\u2019m talking about\u2026 where I\u2019m going\u2026 what I\u2019m doing\u2026 is important<\/em>\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n And then of course\u2026 questions arise\u2026 what kind of community do we want\u2026 what\u2019s the role of grace when it comes to accountability\u2026 the role of forgiveness\u2026 what kind of stressors can the community withstand without dis-integrating\u2026 without falling apart\u2026 how does one community\u2019s expectations integrate into another community\u2019s expectations\u2026 and can you be forgiving and still hold others accountable at the same time\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the three verses immediately preceding today\u2019s Gospel\u2026 Jesus has just told the parable of the Lost Sheep\u2026 he has just talked about the importance of going after the one who is lost\u2026 perhaps who has been misled into going another way\u2026 and today\u2026 Jesus says\u2026 If another member of the church sins against you\u2026 go and point out the fault when the two of you are alone<\/em>\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n Jesus might have added\u2026 I know the idea of contending with someone else really pushes your buttons\u2026 and you didn\u2019t take that workshop on conflict resolution\u2026 but go\u2026 don\u2019t point fingers\u2026 don\u2019t gang up on him\u2026 don\u2019t attack\u2026 the goal is not to win\u2026 to be right\u2026 to prove him wrong\u2026 but to reconcile\u2026 to be restored\u2026 to come together again\u2026 so when you\u2019re alone\u2026 make yourself vulnerable\u2026 tell him how you felt when he did or said\u2026 what he did or said\u2026 make “I” statements\u2026 and be open to the possibility that you may have had a role in the conflict\u2026 and if he listens\u2026 you have regained him\u2026 you have maintained\u2026 or restored\u2026 that relationship\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n And if you\u2019re not listened to\u2026 don\u2019t post it on FaceBook\u2026 don\u2019t tweet about it\u2026 take one or two others\u2026 let them simply observe\u2026 let them be silent witnesses to what each of you have to say\u2026 because maybe you need to express yourself more graciously\u2026and because where two or three are gathered together in my name\u2026 I will be there with you\u2026 and I will be a witness too\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n And we must also ask\u2026 what kinds of communities are we talking about\u2026 and how smoothly do we want them to function\u2026 a family is small enough to be somewhat flexible with accountability\u2026 and is small enough to withstand some chaos without falling apart\u2026 a worshipping community\u2026 which is a little bit larger\u2026 which may have more voices vying for prominence needs to be more accountable to it\u2019s members\u2026 and can likely withstand less chaos\u2026 a city or state requires more accountability and less chaos to maintain community\u2026 and on the national level\u2026 there\u2019s less tolerance for chaos and a higher need for accountability\u2026 so it can function in a way that serves all of its communities in the best possible ways\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n Yet on Friday night\u2026 the president said that if people vote by mail\u2026 they should also attempt to vote in person as a way to check that their vote is counted\u2026 which risks causing chaos at the polls and undermining confidence in the election\u2026 and is illegal\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n Valerie Bridgeman\u2026 Professor of Homiletics and Hebrew Bible at the Methodist Theological School in Ohio writes\u2026 it calls us to examine our Christian debt\u2026 to “do no wrong” in a world where wrong stalks so many\u2026 and it means we have to figure out how to “right those wrongs”\u2026 what can it mean to “owe no one anything but love” when this nation robbed Indigenous Peoples of land and livelihood\u2026 it would be easy to say\u2026 that was so long ago<\/em>\u2026 except the effects of that robbery extend into our present time\u2026 what does “love your neighbor as yourself” mean in this Black Lives Matter moment of our culture\u2026 as we grapple with centuries-old sin against black humanity\u2026 if we in fact owe one another love\u2026 then we also owe one another justice\u2026 which includes repairing the damages done\u2026 and that literally means reparation\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n And Christine Chakoian\u2026 Pastor of Westwood Presbyterian Church in Los Angeles writes\u2026 the closer we get to November\u2019s election\u2026 the harder loving your neighbor as yourself seems\u2026 it sounds plausible in a world where everyone sees eye to eye\u2026 and agrees on what\u2019s right and wrong\u2026 but it gets dicey when these presumptions are stripped away\u2026 when one neighbor prioritizes the freedom to bear arms as an inalienable right\u2026 and another neighbor cherishes the freedom to wed their same-sex partner\u2026 they may not see eye to eye\u2026 when one neighbor promotes individual responsibility to earn a living\u2026 and another neighbor advocates minimum wage and health care for all\u2026 they may not see eye to eye\u2026 and it is harder still\u2026 when public leaders stoke the fires of distrust and contempt\u2026 though it helps to remember that in Paul\u2019s time\u2026 Rome was not exactly a homogeneous community\u2026 but what Paul asserts is that the power of love is stronger than the power of hatred\u2026 corruption\u2026 patronage\u2026 and darkness\u2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So if we need reconciliation\u2026 we need it because of division in the body\u2026 and yes\u2026 we know what time it is\u2026 it\u2019s the moment for us to wake from sleep\u2026 like the woman at the podium\u2026 God has an agenda\u2026 which is spoken through the prophet\u2026 I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked\u2026 but that the wicked turn from their ways and live<\/em>\u2026 and God says this because God loves us\u2026 and love does no wrong\u2026 not even to a neighbor\u2026 because love\u2026 is the law fulfilled\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Year A Ezekiel 33:7-11 Psalm 119:33-40 Romans 13:8-14 Matthew 18:15-20 May the words of my mouth\u2026 O God\u2026 speak your Truth\u2026 I once attended a gathering of about three-thousand people\u2026 we met in a convention center in Washington DC\u2026 in a large auditorium\u2026 with stadium seating\u2026 sweeping down to a large stage\u2026 and at the end of one particular break\u2026 the speaker was trying to re-establish order\u2026 to herd cats as it were\u2026 and assisted by a very effective sound system\u2026 she called from her podium for everyone\u2026 wherever they were\u2026 to please stop what they were doing\u2026 and settle down\u2026 and be seated\u2026 and be quiet\u2026 so we could continue\u2026 But for many more minutes\u2026 for what seemed like far too long\u2026 from one end of the room to the other\u2026 people kept on chatting\u2026 or walking to wherever they were going\u2026 or doing whatever they were doing\u2026 and it was almost as though I could hear each person thinking to themselves\u2026 Oh\u2026 everyone else should stop chatting\u2026 or walking\u2026 or doing\u2026 what I\u2019m talking about\u2026 where I\u2019m going\u2026 what I\u2019m doing\u2026 is important\u2026 everyone else should listen to her\u2026 everyone else should settle down\u2026 everyone else should fall in line\u2026 what I\u2019m doing won\u2019t take long\u2026 won\u2019t interfere\u2026 won\u2019t disturb\u2026 But the woman at the podium wasn\u2019t in a hurry\u2026 she was patient\u2026 she could wait\u2026 there was an agenda\u2026 but we weren\u2019t bound by an overly strict schedule\u2026 and in some ways\u2026 the conference agenda was less about doing\u2026 and more about being\u2026 so there was patience\u2026 there was grace you might say\u2026 there was only a little bit of interest in imposing the will of the few on the will of the many\u2026 they could wait until the collective energy in that space became more coherent\u2026 and the leaders could discern the right moment to continue\u2026 I think we might call this God-waiting\u2026 it\u2019s like how God juggles the difference between our free will\u2026 and God\u2019s will\u2026 there\u2019s a tension of sorts\u2026 a push and pull\u2026 a give and take\u2026 between our plans\u2026 and God\u2019s plan for all of creation\u2026 there\u2019s chronos and kairos\u2026 our time frame and God\u2019s time frame\u2026 and like the woman at the podium\u2026 God has an agenda\u2026 but isn\u2019t necessarily in a hurry\u2026 like the woman at the podium\u2026 God knows that people will sometimes assert their sense of agency\u2026 insist on doing what they want\u2026 even when it\u2019s opposed to what God wants\u2026 because God knows\u2026 that in God\u2019s time\u2026 God\u2019s plan for all of creation will be realized\u2026 and God is not in any kind of hurry\u2026 whatsoever\u2026 In the convention center\u2026 the goal was to establish community\u2026 but not everyone was quite ready to be a part of that community\u2026 they would\u2026 in a few minutes\u2026 but in the moment\u2026 they didn\u2019t quite want to be held accountable\u2026 they had their own very good reasons thank you\u2026 to do what was at odds with the consensus of the community\u2026 believed perhaps deep down inside\u2026 that their goals justified what they were doing\u2026 that the ends justified the means\u2026 I am convinced though\u2026 that we can\u2019t have community\u2026 without some degree of accountability\u2026 we can\u2019t expect predictability\u2026 if too many others think to themselves\u2026 Oh\u2026 everyone else should stop chatting\u2026 or walking\u2026 or doing\u2026 what I\u2019m talking about\u2026 where I\u2019m going\u2026 what I\u2019m doing\u2026 is important\u2026 And then of course\u2026 questions arise\u2026 what kind of community do we want\u2026 what\u2019s the role of grace when it comes to accountability\u2026 the role of forgiveness\u2026 what kind of stressors can the community withstand without dis-integrating\u2026 without falling apart\u2026 how does one community\u2019s expectations integrate into another community\u2019s expectations\u2026 and can you be forgiving and still hold others accountable at the same time\u2026 In the three verses immediately preceding today\u2019s Gospel\u2026 Jesus has just told the parable of the Lost Sheep\u2026 he has just talked about the importance of going after the one who is lost\u2026 perhaps who has been misled into going another way\u2026 and today\u2026 Jesus says\u2026 If another member of the church sins against you\u2026 go and point out the fault when the two of you are alone\u2026 Jesus might have added\u2026 I know the idea of contending with someone else really pushes your buttons\u2026 and you didn\u2019t take that workshop on conflict resolution\u2026 but go\u2026 don\u2019t point fingers\u2026 don\u2019t gang up on him\u2026 don\u2019t attack\u2026 the goal is not to win\u2026 to be right\u2026 to prove him wrong\u2026 but to reconcile\u2026 to be restored\u2026 to come together again\u2026 so when you\u2019re alone\u2026 make yourself vulnerable\u2026 tell him how you felt when he did or said\u2026 what he did or said\u2026 make “I” statements\u2026 and be open to the possibility that you may have had a role in the conflict\u2026 and if he listens\u2026 you have regained him\u2026 you have maintained\u2026 or restored\u2026 that relationship\u2026 And if you\u2019re not listened to\u2026 don\u2019t post it on FaceBook\u2026 don\u2019t tweet about it\u2026 take one or two others\u2026 let them simply observe\u2026 let them be silent witnesses to what each of you have to say\u2026 because maybe you need to express yourself more graciously\u2026and because where two or three are gathered together in my name\u2026 I will be there with you\u2026 and I will be a witness too\u2026 And we must also ask\u2026 what kinds of communities are we talking about\u2026 and how smoothly do we want them to function\u2026 a family is small enough to be somewhat flexible with accountability\u2026 and is small enough to withstand some chaos without falling apart\u2026 a worshipping community\u2026 which is a little bit larger\u2026 which may have more voices vying for prominence needs to be more accountable to it\u2019s members\u2026 and can likely withstand less chaos\u2026 a city or state requires more accountability and less chaos to maintain community\u2026 and on the national level\u2026 there\u2019s less tolerance for chaos and a higher need for accountability\u2026 so it can function in a way that serves all 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