Pentecost 22 C - 2 Timothy 3:14 - 4:5

2 Timothy 3:14-4:5

Timothy was gifted with a grandmother and mother who taught him the sacred writings when he was a child which is why the apostle Paul could encourage him to continue in what he had learned and firmly believed from childhood. We live in a time when a large portion of the population do not know the sacred writings but then in Timothy’s time he was the exception to the rule as well so our time is not so different from his. The good news is that the God breathed scripture that has been suffocated in the box of Biblical inerrancy and restrictive human determined doctrine might once again be free to engage those who don’t give a damn about the power structure of the church but care deeply about how mercy and grace might be at work in the world. So I hope the time that is coming has come and gone and the itchy ears that wandered away into the myth of the church vested in power and prestige has returned to the Lord who came to serve not to be served. 

2010 blog

Pentecsot 22 C = Psalm 121

Psalm 121

Sometimes even lifting one’s eyes to the hills to ask the question, “from where is my help to come” is more than we can manage. Worn down and weary of weeping, abandoned by friends and surrounded by foes (real or imagined) the hope of help seems a cruel joke. But it is precisely when we cannot go on and maybe no longer even care that the promise is most present, whether we recognize it or not. That is because the promise does not depend on our asking or our recognition. It depends fully on God’s desire to deliver and the nature of the help that is God always present exists beyond the reality of our sorrow and suffering. That means when our ability to believe is passed out on the floor of doubt God is wide awake and preserving for us the life that endures forever.

Pentecost 22 C - Genesis 32:22-31

Genesis 32:22-31

Jacob knows a thing or two about wrestling having held onto to Esau’s heel long enough to take away his brother’s birthright. And even if Laban thought he had a choke hold on his nephew it was Jacob who pulled a reverse and pinned Laban to the mat. Jacob is no stranger to struggle and so when he gets ready to meet an angry brother he may be more ready than most for the surprise cage match at the Jabbok. We tend to be more polite with God and even if we wrestle by rivers of own decision we cry “uncle” far too soon. So what does it mean to strive with God and not give up? Maybe it means we wrestle with our limited understanding of who God is for us in the face of our own fear and doubt and not let go of until we are blessed. Of course as with most “God things” it turns out the blessing is in the striving itself. 

Pentecost 21 C - Luke 17:11-19

Luke 17:11-19

The ten lepers meet the Lord in the land between religiously unclean Samaria and racially unclean Galilee of the Gentiles. They are nine Jews and one Samaritan bound together by their disease for in leprosy there is neither Jew nor Samaritan for all are equally unclean. Keeping the required distance they cry out for mercy. Jesus does not disappoint, though “Go and show yourselves to the priests” must have seemed premature as they are not healed until they turn and do as they are told. The one who turns back is the hero, of course, the dirty foreigner more clean than the nine Jewish ex lepers and Jesus makes a point of it but not just as a reminder to be thankful and praise God. It has more to do with a plea for mercy when living lost in the land between. The faith that restored the one restored the nine as well because the cry for mercy from Jesus the master was the act of faith and the turning to go and show was obedience even before healing happened. But the turning back one knows it and the nine do not. The benefit in knowing is that even when skin is clean and health restored one can still live lost in the land between. So faith to be made well is not about skin condition but about the condition of one’s soul which is well when the mercy of God is recognized and praised. And when the soul is well the whole body is clean.

Pentecost 21 C - 2 Timothy 2:3-15

(Uncle Ernest at Peace Lutheran, Columbus, Nebraska)

2 Timothy 2:3-15
"Share in suffering like a good soldier of Christ Jesus." (2 Timothy 2:3)
The only solider in our family that I know of is my mother's brother Ernest Smith who was a chaplain in Korea. Uncle Ernest gave me his army cap that had ear flaps because apparently you need ear flaps to suffer like a good solider through the Korean winter. Truth is I don’t know anything about what it means to be a solider but I know a thing or two about suffering and my guess is you do as well. Not that I like sharing it all that much and therein lies the problem for me and for you. We suffer stoically or silently or medicated rather than recognize that suffering is as much a part of life as celebration. But the heart of the Christian message is that the Christ entered fully into the suffering of human history so that we could share in the salvation that will happen when “gladness and joy overtake us and sorrow and sighing flee away”. (Isaiah 35:10) But you cannot have one without the other. No one likes to suffer, or share it for that matter, but if the choice is walk together or go it alone I’m thinking our shared sorrow might just make our ultimate joy more complete. So when life is cold put your ear flaps down by all means but keep your life open to those whose care and concern will keep you warm. 

Pentecost 21 C - Psalm 111

Psalm 111
The last verse of Psalm 111 should come first as “the fear of the Lord” or better, the reverence of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. That is not to say it is unwise to be afraid of the Creator of the Universe only that the small g gods have the terror market cornered and truth is any two bit god can make a mortal tremble. But to reverence the Lord with a holy fear is to have a proper perspective on the order of things. God is God and you are not. So the wisdom that comes with reverence, as opposed to terror, is that God does not delight in our being fearful but rather desires us to be in right relationship which in a word is to be faithful. To be afraid of someone, be it God or anyone else for that matter, is not helpful or healthy. But when we stand in awe of the One who is “full of majesty” because the “power of his works” are “faithful, just and trustworthy” we live wisely. Jesus’ baby brother James will say it this way: “Show by your good life that your works are done with gentleness born of wisdom.” And that sort of wisdom “is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without a trace of partiality or hypocrisy.” (James 3:13, 17) Fear of the Lord indeed. I hope I’m shaking in my shoes.

Pentecost 21 C - 2 Kings 5:1-15

2 Kings 5:1-15

She is a minor character, not even named; a little girl stolen from home and made a slave in the house of her enemy. But she has pity on her mighty master afflicted with a skin disease that diminishes all his accomplishments. At her bidding he goes to her little land with big gifts expecting to be greeted royally but the little girl’s prophet sends his servant to give instructions to the mighty man. Insulted, he would leave as he came but his servants convince him to do what he was told; wash and be clean in a dirty, little river. Humbled by his disease, desperate to be clean, he obeys and is made whole. The little girl sends the mighty man to a little country with a mighty prophet so the mighty man might regain the skin of a little boy. It is as Jesus said. “I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it." 

Pentecost 20 C - Luke 17:5-10

Luke 17:1-10

“Increase our faith” is a reasonable request and in the asking the disciples are obviously hoping for an answer in the affirmative. Instead Jesus appears to rebuke them. If you would use the faith you have you wouldn't ask for more. The mulberry tree uprooted and planted in the sea means even the smallest amount of faith can accomplish what otherwise appears impossible, or even foolish, for who would plant a tree in the sea? Luke doesn't record the disciple’s response but I imagine they were disappointed by Jesus’ answer and maybe a little confused as to what Jesus meant by commanding trees to be uprooted and planted in places that trees are not meant to be. Years later with mustard seed faith they would understand that doing what they were commanded to do was not so much about faith as obedience. Speaking the truth by the command of Christ their mustard seed faith would move an empire to be planted in the faith it once tried to uproot. So what might this mean for those of us who are accustomed to compliments for faithful service? It might mean that increasing in faith is not a prerequisite for using what we have and that in the exercise of mustard seed faith we are uprooted from the familiar and safe places and planted in the sea. 

Pentecost 20 C - 2 Timothy 1:1-14

2 Timothy 1:1-14

The sincere faith that first lived in Lois and Eunice might not be the best thing to rekindle in Timothy given the suffering Paul is experiencing. But something about that faith was so compelling that a presumably loving grandmother and mother believed Timothy would be better off confessing the faith even though it might lead to imprisonment or death. The spirit of power and of love and of self discipline was not for cowards in the first century. According to church tradition Timothy was beaten, dragged through the streets of Ephesus and stoned to death for preaching what Lois and Eunice and Paul persuaded him was sound teaching of which one should not be ashamed. In twenty-first century America participation in the sound teaching of faith and love carries no threat of persecution and yet according to a decade worth of polls is in serious decline among those in both the Eunice and Timothy age demographic. A whole generation has been lost to the holy calling of God’s purpose and grace and Lois is wondering why. It could be that the most dangerous threat to the faith was to neuter it by making it mainstream until a majority of people could claim to be Christian without practicing or participating in any communal expression of it. So what do we do? We do what Paul preached to his beloved child Timothy - rekindle the gift of God, the sound teaching of the faith and love that is in Christ Jesus. Move out of the mainstream and into the marketplace. Do not be ashamed to give a reason for the hope that you have and with gentleness and respect be people of persuasion for the good treasure entrusted to us is worth sharing.

Pentecost 20 C - Psalm 37:1-9

Psalm 37:1-9

Waiting patiently for the Lord generally takes more time than we are willing to commit which is why we invest so much effort in fretting. Go figure. Maybe it is because fretting gives us something to do even if we know pacing back and forth is not an effective form of exercise for the body or the soul. It should also be obvious to us that fretting doesn’t fast forward the Lord’s clock or make any difference to anyone unless they happen to live with us in which case it leads to more fretting. But if our soul takes a deep breath before the Lord we might begin to delight in the desire of the kind of heart that longs for the things that do not disappoint. I know the psalm equates that with material things like living in the land and security and while I hesitate to dispute with King David I think the desire that does not disappoint is a rich relationship with the God who prospers us with the peace that passes the world’s understanding. The apostle Paul will say it this way. “The present sufferings are not worth comparing to the glory to be revealed…” (Romans 8:18) Or as Jesus said in his sermon on the hill, “Do not worry…” 

Pentecost 20 C - Habakkuk 1:1-4; 2:1-4

Habakkuk 1:1-4; 2:1-4

Habakkuk cries out his complaint into the silence of God and wonders “what’s the point?” I wonder the same thing when evil events paint a cruel caricature of the human race. But the truth is I know more decent people than the depraved ones that dominate the news and even though good people do not make the headlines they make the world a better place simply by being in it. Even so Habakkuk’s complaint is that God is not doing enough to see that the wicked are diminished and the decent flourish. God’s response is to give Habakkuk something to do. “Write a vision on tablets a runner can see.” Our “make a sign a runner can see” means we speak God’s “wait and see” in the face of all that troubles us and put all our effort and energy into transforming this world to look more like the world God promises is coming. In that way we act out the hope that God’s deliverance does not delay whenever decent people act decently.

The Feast of St. Michael and All Angels - Luke 10:17-20

Luke 10:17-20
I wish my demons submitted to me but I’ll confess it’s more often the other way around. My guess is there are times you might make the same confession as well. It is not so much a question of if but when, even for the best of us. That’s because demons aren't as obvious as snakes and scorpions waiting to be stepped on. (Not that they sit still mind you – shiver!) Rather those things done to us and those things we've done to ourselves and those things we've done to others hunker down in the recesses of our mind and work their will quite unnoticed doing their dirty deeds in secret so that we fail to see we act out of the injury of our past as if it were our only option in the present. But when someone gifts us through friendship or insightful wisdom or enduring love with what is our God given authority to name the damaging darkness within us and expose it in the light we return to our true self with joy. It’s not as easy as all that of course. We still have to be willing to listen to the friend or counselor or lover and act on what they can see which unfortunately is our blind spot. I hate that but at the same time thank God because I know I am better for it. So rejoice even if your demons have you in a death grip because in the end we have a Friend, Counselor, Lover, and Savior who has given us to each other for better or for worse in the here and now and in the forever future has written our names in heaven in the indelible ink of His own blood.

The Feast of St. Michael and All Angels - Revelation 12:7-12

Revelation 12:7-12

Why doesn't God just dispatch the dragon? I mean if God is God and there is no other then the dragon is just another lizard and God could squash it like a bug, if you’ll pardon the mixed zoological metaphors. And if there is no room in heaven once the battle is won why not cast the dragon somewhere where no further harm can be done instead of just making him really, really angry and setting him loose on the earth? And by the way even a short time on a planet with a pissed off dragon is way too much time. But then this is Christian mythology and as such not meant to make sense in a literal fashion. The point of these few verses and indeed the whole book of Revelation is that the cosmic battle of the pre-creation past anticipated the cosmic battle on Calvary which insured that in the final future good triumphs over evil because love is stronger hate. That means in the present we do not live in fear of the Dragon but by faith in Jesus who did not cling to life even in the face of death on a cross. 

The Feast of Saint Michael and all the angels - Psalm 103:1-5, 20-22

Psalm 103:1-5, 20-22

Saint Michael and all the angels “bless the Lord” because they obey God’s spoken word and do whatever God tells them. We are reminded to bless the Lord for all the benefits God gives us even though we do not obey God’s spoken word and resist doing whatever God tells us. But God still satisfies us with good things like forgiveness and healing and redemption and love and mercy and ultimately life beyond the boundaries of this temporal existence. That is because God is mindful of us, made a little lower than the angels, (Psalm 8) and has crowned us with the glory and honor of being called children of God. When we remember that benefit the voices of our souls and all that is within us joins the vast angelic host to bless the Lord and the Lord is blessed indeed.

The Feast of St. Michael and All Angels - Daniel 10:10-14; 12:1-3

Daniel 10:10-14; 12:1-3

My favorite angel movie is “Michael” starring John Travolta and rightly so since it was filmed in Texas. (Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Corn Hill, county roads near Walburg and the iconic Gruene Hall no less!) Michael, the Great Prince and protector of God’s people in Daniel’s vision has nothing in common with the vacationing come to earth one last time Travolta version but then most of our imaginings take liberties with whatever God had in mind when angelic beings were created. Close proximity to the real deal causes fear and trembling while Travolta’s less than angelic Michael smokes cigarettes, smells like fresh baked cookies and drives women wild. On the other hand he gives up the last of his allotted miracles to bring a dead dog back to life and what’s not angelic about that? Truth is we lose sight of God’s purpose when we focus on the details (how many angels can dance on the head of a pin?) or try to figure out from Daniel’s dream what time the end time will begin. I dare say the world has experienced times of anguish “such has never occurred” a thousand times over with no end in sight and some are experiencing “such has never occurred” even as I type these words. But the chief of princes is not dispatched for a last hurrah on earth or to deliver a message of doom and gloom. No. Michael is sent to proclaim the good news of deliverance to desperate people in the same way the angelic chorus sang over a barn in Bethlehem, “Peace on earth. Good will to those with whom God is pleased.” But because I've loved and lost multiple dogs I choose to believe God might also like the version of Michael where Sparky barks again as much as I do.

Pentecost 18 C - Luke 16:1-13

Luke 16:1-13

I don’t know what Jesus was thinking as friends made by dishonest wealth are more than likely “friends in low places” (Garth Brooks) and one wonders what sort of eternal home they own. But that’s the problem with this parable. It doesn’t fit any of the familiar parable patterns where the characters are clearly defined and the conclusions to be drawn are obvious. In this case compound cheating with interest is commended and the children of light are encouraged to imitate the children of this age. But maybe we are not to put much stock in the master’s admiration of the dishonest steward, after all the steward is still without employment and there is no guarantee that the friends gained by dishonesty will prove trustworthy. What if we are not meant to put this story into a neat parable package that can be filed away and forgotten? Maybe the point of the parable is in the unsettling nature of it and the lesson to be learned is that it reveals the truth about our attempt to serve two masters by neither hating wealth nor fully loving God.

Pentecost 18 C - 1 Timothy 2:1-7

1 Timothy 2:1-7

Can we make supplication, prayers, intercessions and thanksgivings for a king, or in our time elected officials, while at the same time engaging in the time honored American tradition of treating those voted into high positions with disdain or outright contempt? The first Christians had no such choice. The kings and people in high places for whom they were urged to make supplication, prayers, intercessions and thanksgivings were actively seeking to put them into the low place of the grave and frankly their most ardent prayer was simply to be left alone. The wisdom of this pastoral letter is not about temporal politics but eternal destiny. God’s most ardent desire is for everyone to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth. If our practice of politics contradicts a quiet and peaceable life then we are to choose godliness and dignity above partisan positions for the sake of the One who gave himself as a ransom for all. Even so this text does not prohibit passionate engagement in the political process. It just reminds us that what is right and acceptable is to make supplication, prayers, intercessions and thanksgivings for the ones we want out of high places, keeping in mind that God passionately loves the person we might disagree with as a politician.

Pentecost 18 C - Psalm 113

Psalm 113

It is hard to sing this psalm if your home is still on the ash heap. That is the reality we dare not discuss when praising the Lord depends on the Lord providing because truthfully the poor vastly outnumber the princes and “the prince and the pauper” only happens in Hollywood movies. That is not to say God does not provide only that psalms such as this state the hope of the future in present terms as if “this time on” and “forevermore” were the same thing. So what does that mean for princes and the poor in the here and now? If God’s plan for the future is that the poor and princes dine together then praising the Lord depends on what we do as much as what God provides.

Pentecost 18 C - Amos 8:4-7

Amos 8:4-7

How you hear this text depends on which side of the bed you rise as some who lie on beds of ease truly care about those who never will. But Amos has harsh words for those who consider their place of privilege a right and sing idle songs without considering the songs of lament sung by others. So what you have is not as important as what you do with it or as Jesus will say, to those whom much is given much is required. That is not to say there is something God pleasing about being poor or that pleasing God makes one rich. God exists beyond the economic, racial, and gender lines we draw. “In Christ there is neither Jew nor Gentile, slave nor free, male nor female.” (Galatians 3:28) Rather God cares about everyone in the human family and will do whatever it takes for us to do the same.

Pentecost 17 C - Luke 15:1-10

Luke 15:1-10

I wonder if there was someone in the grumbling crowd who thought the carpenter from Nazareth would make a lousy shepherd. No one leaves the ninety-nine to fend for themselves in the wilderness to search for the one who is lost unless you don’t mind losing at least a few of the ninety-nine. But then with Jesus the point is always in the punch line. There is rejoicing in finding the one who is lost. So Jesus will lose more than a few Pharisees and scribes in order to find a lost tax collector or sinner. But that isn't the point either is it? I don’t believe Jesus is being sarcastic when he refers to Pharisees and scribes as righteous. No. If he meant to criticize he’d call them a brood of vipers or white washed tombs. Here he acknowledges the hard work of righteous piety that requires no repentance but in typical Jesus fashion I think it is a set up for what comes next. The story that follows the lost sheep and the coin is the one about two lost sons and a waiting father. The hard working stay at home first son who doesn't realize all the father has is already his and the lost and found younger son who didn't know what he had until he’d left it all behind. It is for these two lost children that Jesus comes. The righteous Pharisee who works so hard for what is free and the tax collector who gives away everything of value to get what is worthless. But of course the point is in the punch line and when the righteous ninety-nine find the lost sinner and the lost sinner finds the righteous ninety-nine then both are found by God because there is as much joy in being found as in finding.