The Eighteenth Sunday after Pentecost - September 27

Doing Faith
Proper 21B
James 5:15-20
Mark 9:38-50

For the last several weeks, the lectionary has provided passages from James for the second lesson. We’ve been pretty much working our way through James. Today is the last Sunday of James.

As I said when we started James, it sometimes gets a bad rap. Luther was famously dismissive of it and would have preferred it not be in the Bible. James talks about the “works” of Christian life. Drawing upon Paul’s writings, reformation theology, like Luther’s, stresses salvation through faith alone. God’s favor, salvation, does not come through works; only through faith or belief.

But I think we have taken that reformation perspective to a real extreme. We have become too focused on belief as the be all and end all of being a Christian. If we don’t have pure belief, we assume we can’t be Christians. We expend a lot of anxiety worrying about the status of our belief. On the other hand folks who are confident or secure in their belief sometimes think that is all they need as Christians.

James provides a helpful reminder that faith is also a verb. In addition to being about belief, faith is also a verb. Faith is not just what we believe; it is also what we do. The two perspectives are not in conflict. And I think we would do well to re-energize the idea that faith is action.

And, although my main focus today is James, I think part of what today’s Gospel reminds us is that faith is action… what you do with your hand or foot or eye matters.

It’s also nice to remember that you can “do” faith even when your belief is a little shaky. That’s reassuring. Even on days or weeks or months or years when your belief may be a bit shaky, you can still live faithfully. You can still “do” faith. On the other hand, James reminds us: “So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.”

The verses we hear today are from the very end of James’ letter. These are his parting words to the community to whom he writes.

One scholar writes this about James:

[The] epistle of James seeks to encourage and lead us to the conviction that we are indeed endowed by our creator with a rich bounty of gifts for the living of daily life in this world. It is then an extra benefit if the author can teach us some of the practical insights that human wisdom has discovered about a faithful living… 

We have been given a rich bounty of gifts for faithful living. Faithful living in daily life. One way I would describe what this means for me is: There is a Christian response to every situation we may face in daily life. There is a Christian action possible in the midst of every human experience. There is always something a Christian can do.

James talks about what these Christian actions are. He gives practical advice. In passages we heard in earlier weeks, James stressed the Christian responsibility to act on behalf the marginalized and powerless… widows and orphans in his world… in our world, anyone who has less power than we do through absolutely no fault of their own. It is always our responsibility to do what we can, to act to help people who are powerless or marginalized.

In today’s reading James’ vision turns a bit more inward. Speaking to the community to whom he is writing, he says: Are any among you suffering? And he probably means more than just suffering under oppression or persecution, although those might have been possible for early Christians. He means suffering under any negative life experience, such as sorrow, depression, a bad family or social situation, or economic distress.

What is the practical Christian response when we are suffering? Pray. We know that, but we need to be reminded to do it. Pray.

Are any among you cheerful? Again, he doesn’t just mean smiley face happy, he means aware of the goodness of life. Are any of you experiencing good within your life? What is the practical Christian response to goodness? Praise. We know that, too, but how often do we really do it? How often do we pause to offer words or acts of praise?

Are any among you sick? And here he means literally, physically sick. What is the practical Christian response when we are sick? Call upon the church. It never occurs to James that there would not be a church community to call upon. Christians exist in community. And when we are sick what Christians do is call upon the church community. For the church’s anointing and for the support and help that other Christians offer.

When James mentions people who are suffering, cheerful or sick, he imagines that he has covered everyone. He means to cover the totality of human existence and present a practical and Christian response for every personal situation. There is always a Christian response.

He means to be encouraging. But he also challenges us in our day, I think, to ask ourselves: how often really am I living, responding to the experiences of life, as a Christian? What percentage of my life am I doing faith? I was reflecting on aspects of my life (and maybe yours?) where I’m not generally consciously acting as a Christian.

For example, entertainment choices. An example came to mind, that I share with a bit of trepidation. Tom Ferguson is an Episcopal priest who serves as Academic Dean at Bexley Seabury seminary. He blogs on life in the church. Church, of course, is only thing that happens on Sundays. One other things is the NFL.

In August Ferguson, who blogs as Crusty Old Dean, posted about his decision, as a Christian, to boycott professional football. I’m not here to pass judgment on those of you who invest your time or resources on professional football as entertainment. I don’t enjoy it that much, so I’m in no position to cast stones. But it is probably a conversation that for some of you is worth having. Start by reading his piece (HERE). It’s four pages long. It’s not a casual or capricious decision. It’s a thoughtful and faithful one.

But I mention it as an example. An example of faithful living. An example of acting as a Christian in the midst of the experiences of daily life.

There is always a Christian action possible just ahead of us in any situation or experience of daily life. In the choice of food that we purchase or consume. In the choice of vehicle we drive. In the sorts of entertainment we participate in. In the way we relate to friends, coworkers, or people on the train. In the work we do. In the ways we spend our time and our money.

James reminds us to live as Christians. There is always a Christian response or a Christian action before us.

James' final words are worth noting. He says that the bestest Christian action we can ever do is to help others in their faith. And doing that covers a host of other sins or Christian shortcomings. (That’s not the best theology; God doesn’t keep score or assign points.) But James’ priority is good. The absolute best thing we can faithfully do as Christians is to help sustain others in their efforts to live faithfully.

The Sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost - September 13

Misguided Expectations
Proper 19
Mark 8:27 - 38

The first part of the Gospel reading appointed for today is an event known as “The Confession of Peter.” Not confession in the needing forgiveness sense, but in the sense of professing. Peter professes, or confesses, that Jesus is the Messiah. Peter names Jesus as the Christ, the Messiah.

It’s an important event in the Gospel accounts of Jesus’ life and ministry. It occurs in all three synoptic Gospels, Matthew, Mark and Luke. It even has a holy day on the calendar for its commemoration: January 18.

At first glance it seems like a miracle. Peter actually gets something right. “You are the Messiah.” Peter correctly names Jesus as the Messiah. In Matthew Peter says: You are the Messiah, the Son of the Living God. In Luke Peter names Jesus as “the Messiah of God.” The Messiah.

What does it mean to you to name Jesus as the Messiah? We know the right answer. We know what to name Jesus. But what does the name mean to you? What does it say about Jesus to confess him as Messiah?

Maybe you know it means something about being God’s anointed. The one who was promised. But what does that mean in terms of who Jesus is, what Jesus does???

If you’re not sure, take heart. Peter didn’t know either. Peter got the name right, but he got pretty much everything else wrong. And, in the end, I think what he got wrong is more instructive to us than what he got right.

Peter confessed Jesus as Messiah, but Peter’s expectations of what the Messiah would do were totally off. We might do better to call this passage not the Confession of Peter, but rather “Peter’s Misguided Expectations.”

You’ve probably heard before that in Jesus’ day there was widespread expectation among the Jews that a big part of what the Messiah would be would be a powerful political leader, one who would fight for their cause and overcome those who opposed them.

Beyond that, and I’m definitely speculating here, I wonder if Peter wanted his Messiah to be a winner, a God of glory and power. Peter wanted to be associated with a Messiah who was acclaimed, not scorned, by the religious authorities. Peter expected his God to do him proud.

Peter clearly does not expect the Messiah to undergo suffering, to be rejected by the important religious leaders, to be killed…

Peter had strong expectations of God’s Messiah. Whether those expectations grew out of the religio/social expectations of his day for a Messiah who was a strong political leader and/or whether Peter’s expectations grew out of his own needs and hopes for who God would be in his life.

Wherever they came from, Peter’s expectations were his expectations and they were way off.

What are your expectations of Jesus or of God? In your own life, or in the world? What do you expect of God?

If God’s not meeting those expectations, then we need to question the expectations. That’s what this passage teaches me.

The problem wasn’t that God was absent or passive in Peter’s life. He was right there!! Jesus was as close to Peter and as active in his life as it’s possible to be. The disconnect was caused by Peter’s misguided expectations of “his” Messiah.

What are your expectations of your Messiah? That he will fight for your cause? Help you shine in the world? Affirm you desires?

If God’s not meeting your expectations, you need to challenge those expectations. And be open to God’s action in your life in unexpected places and ways. God is present; God is acting. But maybe not how you expect. Be open to God’s presence and care in unexpected places and ways.

The Messiah comes to us, not in power, but in weakness and suffering. Not in flashy glory, but in quiet hope. Not to meet our expectations, but to meet our deepest needs… the need for meaning, for joy, for soul-freedom…

If God is not meeting your expectations, put aside those expectations and look for him in new and unexpected places in your life.

The Fifteenth Sunday after Pentecost - September 6

What's Our Excuse?
Proverbs 22:1-2, 8-9, 22-23
Mark 7:24-37

The woman came up to Jesus bowing in supplication; she was “a Gentile,” not a Jew, “of Syrophoenician origin,” a foreigner. “She begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter. [Jesus] said to her, "Let the children,” our people, “be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children's food and throw it to the dogs" such as you (Mark 7:26-27).

I’m not a Greek scholar, but I gather a literal translation of Jesus’ words is tricky. But there seems to be no doubt that his words were a dismissive insult. An ethnic slur. Any number of contemporary examples come to mind.

I can’t imagine there are any preachers who look forward to this Gospel passage as it shows up every three years.

There seem to be two primary approaches to interpreting Jesus’ rudeness.

The first, and most common, is that Jesus was testing her faith. He pushed her away, insulted her, to test how sincere and persistent her faith really was. This interpretation is supported a bit, at least, when Jesus says that because of how she answers—with persistent faith—her child will be healed.

But there are big problems with this interpretation (David Lose, here).  Nothing like it occurs anywhere else in the Gospel of Mark. Jesus doesn’t test people before he heals them. Also, there isn’t any clear mention of testing, as there is, for example, in Job. And, finally, this portrays a cold-hearted and cruel God who taunts and tests us in our deepest moments of need. Not the Jesus of the New Testament or our experience.

The second interpretation focuses on the human Jesus. And, of course, Jesus was fully human. 100% human, just like us. And, also, we assert 100% divine, fully God. In this interpretation, it is the human Jesus who speaks, who hasn’t completely figured out God’s purpose or the fullness of God’s kingdom and its rich inclusiveness. In speaking to the woman who comes before him Jesus reflects the cultural norms of his time. Without a doubt his words convey how fellow Jews of his day felt about Syrophoenician scum.

Picking between these two interpretations, I favor the second one. Although there are significant theological problems with it. Like where was the divine Jesus at the time?  But one nice teaching point from this interpretation (which I think I stressed in an earlier sermon) is that Jesus embodies or models the journey from bigotry to compassion. A very important and faithful journey that all of us humans need to make over and over again.

Ultimately, for me there is no satisfactory or “comfortable” explanation of this passage. That’s an important note.  Holy Scripture isn't always comfortable.  And I’m a bit wary of anyone who does have a comfortable interpretation of Jesus’ words.

But this year, as I read this passage again, a different piece of it caught my eye. Just a phrase, but maybe worth looking at.

Mark says that after Jesus came to the foreign region of Tyre, “He entered a house and did not want anyone to know he was there. Yet he could not escape notice” (Mark 7:24).

He entered a house and did not want anyone to know that he was there.  One commentator I read kindly suggested that Jesus was tired. After all, he’d been doing a lot of healing of folks who’d come to him in need. A lot of healing.  He’d been teaching and debating in a setting fraught with stress and complexity as he challenged the religious leaders of his day. Just a little while back he had fed people who were hungry, five thousand of them! Surely he deserved a little down time from the work of bringing God’s kingdom into the world… Surely he needed a bit of Sabbath time from bringing God’s love into the world.

But.  What’s our excuse? For retreating from Christian mission?

What’s our excuse? For wanting to escape notice as Christians?

Why do we hide and remain passive?

Jesus could not escape notice. He was not capable of remaining quiet or inactive in the face of human need.

Oh, that it might be said of us that we cannot escape notice in the face of human need. That we are inescapably noticeable for the work we are doing to bring God’s kingdom, God’s love into the world!

People are hungry, starving, without food, in our world.  Who will feed them?

Who will shelter the homeless, including refugees whatever their ethnicity, in our world?

Who will fight injustice, and its roots in bigotry? And its roots in poverty? Proverbs reminds us to do what we can to redress poverty.

And those who are in distress… Sick in body and soul… Who will offer them hope?

Jesus didn’t do these things to earn notoriety in the society of his day or to earn God’s favor. He did them because it was God’s work. It needed to be done. And he was there to do it.

We are here to do it now.