Letting Go of Control - A sermon

Pentecost 6

Luke 9:51-62

If you were put on trial for being Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you?

This question has been on my mind a lot since I first read it this past week.  It’s a question that hits you square in the chest and forces you to stop and examine your life asking further, “am I living a life that shows others that I am a Christian? Or if folks knew me, would they question my claim to follow Christ?”  And I’ll admit to you that my biggest hurdle in living the Christian life is my desire for control.  As much as I have gotten better at rolling with the punches in the past decade, there’s still part of me that likes to have things planned well in advance and for predictability to be the name of the game.  And I know that I’m not the only one…I’m sure that at one time or another we’ve all found it easier to have a sense of control, especially when the chaos of life hits and spins us in an entirely opposite direction than which we were heading in the first place.

This desire for control is one of the themes that can be found in our Gospel text this morning.  We join Jesus at the very end of Chapter nine of Luke.  At the beginning of Chapter nine, Jesus had sent out the twelve disciples and given them the power to heal the sick and cast out demons.  A little bit after this he went up to the mountain with Peter, James, and John, and was transfigured before them and in the presence of Moses and Elijah.  And now, after having come down from the mountain and speaking about his death for the second time, Jesus has set his face towards Jerusalem.  This means that Jesus is on a mission, a mission to go to Jerusalem and to accomplish what God had sent him to do…and nothing will stop him. 

But he’s got to travel through some towns if he’s going to get there and the first place he stops is a Samaritan town.  And we’re told by Luke that they did not receive him because his face was set towards Jerusalem.  So it seems that the Samaritans know what’s up…that Jesus is on a mission…and, maybe, they want absolutely nothing to do with that mission.  Or maybe, they realize that Jesus is singlemindedly carrying out the mission and won’t have the time to preach or teach or heal or cast out like they would like him to so they just let him pass on through.  Luke doesn’t flat out say they reject him, but it seems like that is the case.  Jesus won’t play according to our plans, so why bother?

And that’s when the disciples come into play. James and John and the rest of the twelve are also aware that Jesus is on a mission and it is their task to help get him to Jerusalem in a timely manner so that Jesus can accomplish what he was sent to do.  But their reaction to the Samaritans not receiving Jesus is shocking…‘Lord, do you want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them?’ It’s not totally surprising considering the relationship between the Jews and the Samaritans, but still, not something you expect to hear from Jesus’ inner circle after he has preached about loving your enemies and praying for those who persecute you.  But again, they had a mission to help Jesus accomplish his mission and you could forget anyone who tried to get in their way. 

But what about the folks who either are asked to follow Jesus or ask Jesus if they can follow?  There’s certainly a “please can I follow, but on my own terms” kind of theme running through this part of the story.  Please let me follow…but after I bury my dad, and it could be years before that happens because we have no idea what state of health his dad is in.  Yes, Lord, I will follow…but after I go and say goodbye to my wife and kids…and my parents…and my siblings…and my in-laws…and my cousins…and give instructions to my servants as to how to continue to run the household…let me take care of what I have planned first, and then I will come and follow.

To be fair, both men make reasonable requests…and it might seem pretty harsh that Jesus responded in the way that he did “let the dead bury their own dead”  “no one who takes to the plow and turns back is fit for the kingdom of God.”  Wow! 

But if you think about it, being the only one who truly understands the scope and ultimate purpose of his mission, Jesus is inviting folks to let go of the control…to realize that life doesn’t always go as planned and that being called to share in the mission of Jesus Christ often means that our hopes and dreams and plans and goals will sometimes be disappointed.  It means knowing that Jesus is going to call us into action at unexpected times and to go to unexpected places and, as disciples, we are expected to go and do, even if our plans don’t match, because the mission that Jesus is on is a mission that makes a difference…and if we’re not willing to let go of some control and let some of our plans be disappointed for the sake of the Gospel, do we really have what it takes to be full fledged disciples?

Professor David Lose from Luther Seminary puts it this way…”Does the grace, mercy, and love of God made incarnate in Jesus trump our plans and shape our lives, or do we shape our faith to fit the lives we’ve already planned?”

If we’re 100% honest, I think that there are times when we all fall into the second category.  Living a life that follows our own plans is comfortable…it’s convenient…it’s predictable.  We have a semblance of control when we follow our own plans.  But the life of a disciple isn’t comfortable, it is not always convenient and it’s not always predictable.  Being a disciple means that Jesus is going to demand that his mission come before our plans and that requires us to give up control.  Because it’s not about having control…control is just an illusion anyways, just ask the person battling cancer, the neighbor fighting addition, the friend who lost all their personal belongings in a tornado or a flood.  The truth is that none of us knows what tomorrow is going to bring…or even this afternoon…and even our best laid plans can go awry at any moment.  But it’s not about us having control…or even about letting God take control…it’s about a man who set his face towards Jerusalem and went to the cross, entering into our out of control and chaotic existence and coming out on the other side, bringing us, with him, into a place of peace. 

There’s a rabbi named David Paskin who wrote a song based on the greeting that is shared in the Jewish community when someone dies.  In English it’s translated “May the Place comfort you.”  In the youtube video of this song, he explains that he never understood why, in times of grief, people would refer to God as the Place.  But as he thought about it, he came to the conclusion that what was really being said is that in times where life is out of control and chaos filled, there is sometimes a space…an empty space and may you learn to live in that space and may it become a place of comfort and peace even though right now it’s a place that hurts.  In setting his face to Jerusalem, Jesus calls us to follow…and it’s a mission that demands we live into the reality that we are not into control, that life is full of chaos, and that Jesus’ mission trumps our plans.  But on the cross, Jesus dives head first into our out of control world and brings us out safe on the other side, and brings us peace.  May we all have the courage to live in to the chaos, to let our plans be upset by the mission of Christ, and find peace in his presence with us in the places that are out of control.  Amen

You Can’t Micromanage your way into Heaven - a sermon

Pentecost 4

June 16, 2013 

Galatians 2:15-21

There are a number of platitudes that said throughout this country that speak to the individualistic nature of our society…”if you want something done right, you’ve got to do it yourself”…”you’ve got to pull yourself up by your own bootstraps”…”God helps those who help themselves”…I’ve probably shared this before, but when I was a little kid my own personal platitude of independence was that I wanted to do things “all my by self.”  Sometimes, platitudes like these can inspire folks to work harder, to push that extra mile on a project and strive towards a goal…but more often than not, they simply enslave us to the notion that we need to be able to accomplish certain number of tasks, in a certain way, in a certain time frame if we are going to be deemed successful…and we don’t it we can become enslaved to the accompanying guilt.  

And when it comes to our faith, these same platitudes can be just as dangerous tying us to the notion that if we have the right amount of faith, if we give the right amount of money, if we do just the right amount of good deeds, and ask just the right questions, we will be favored in the sight of God and we will be blessed not only with God’s favor, but also with eternal life.  And so when doubts arise, when faith crises hit, we can become enslaved to accompanying guilt.  When times hit when it isn’t possible to give as much as we’d like, or when we’re too tired at the end of the week to do anything but hit the sheets and catch up on some sleep, we can question if we have done enough and more guilt sets in.  It’s an awful cycle to get caught up in, feeling like you can’t ever do enough to be worthy of salvation.  

This is where Paul comes to our rescue.  

In his letter to the Galatians, Paul was writing to a group of churches full of folks who were living in a society where it was thought that there was an impersonal force controlling the world and so folks did what they could to try and escape whatever “destiny” had set up for them.  Living in an early Christian community, the question had arose among them whether or not they were obligated to follow the Laws of Moses.  The text itself has an frustrated tone to it, particularly if you hear it in the original Greek language, but you can pick up bits and pieces of that from the English, as well. “For if justification comes through the law, then Christ died for nothing.”  

But the message that Paul sends to the churches in Galatia is full of good news.  

Paul writes “Yet we know that a person is justified not by the works of the law but through the faith of Jesus Christ.”

This one line sums up the whole premise.  Our relationship with God is not based upon how well we measure up against the Laws of Moses, how well we do the things we should do and how well we avoid the things that we shouldn’t do…for this is contrary to God’s promises from the beginning.  In the Old Testament we hear over and over again that God is a caring God, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.  

But notice that there is one word in the reading that we heard this morning that is different from what I just read. There is a debate among scholars whether the text should read “through faith in Jesus Christ” or “through the faith OF Jesus Christ.”   Both translations are correct, but if you look at this text as a whole, the translation “through the faith of Jesus Christ” is a better reading.  And this is not because our faith in Jesus Christ is trivial.  It’s not, it’s important. But when our salvation depends solely on our faith in Jesus Christ, questions arise.  

What happens when we hit low faith moments in our lives?

What happens when we the circumstances of our lives lead us in to faith crises where, if we are honest, we say in those moments that we don’t know if we believe or not?

Is it possible that we can turn faith, which is a gift from God, into a work?  

I think the answer is yes…because if it relies solely on us and the nature of faith is to ebb and to flow and to grow and be renewed…then we are lost…and as Paul says, if our salvation relies upon us and what we do…if we can achieve salvation on our own…then Christ died for nothing.     

But if, in fact, we are justified…made right in the eyes of the lord, through the faith of Jesus Christ, then Christ isn’t relegated to playing a passive role in our justification but rather he is that one taking the lead and playing a very active role in our salvation.   

In the explanation to the third article of the apostle’s creed, Martin Luther wrote “I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or call to him. But the Holy Spirit has called me by the Gospel, enlightened me with her gifts, sanctified and kept me in the one true faith.”  

When it comes to being saved, there is no amount of to-do listing or micromanaging our own salvation.  Because we cannot do it of our own will.  By nature we are sinful beings and prone to straying, even if our faith is strong.  

Rather it is through the faithfulness of Jesus Christ who died on the cross and rose again, and the work of the Holy Spirit who calls us to the waters of baptism and, in that act, joins us to Christ in his death and resurrection, that makes us right in the eyes of God.  

It’s not about us…it’s about the faithfulness of Christ and thanks be to God for that.  

So does that mean that Christ’s work, through the Holy Spirit is a proverbial get out of good deeds free card?  

By no means.  It may not be by our good works that we are saved, but it is because of our faith in Jesus Christ that we respond to the knowledge that through the faith of Christ we are joined to him in his death and resurrection…and thorough our baptism it is no longer we who live but Christ who lives in us by committing good and loving deeds, deeds which serve God and serve our neighbor.  Our good works are not done in order to be saved but because we are already saved.

So the moral of the story is this…when it comes to our being made right in the eyes of God, it’s not about us…it’s not about what we do or fail to do…it’s not about climbing the proverbial ladder of success into heaven based on our works…it’s not about how much money we give to the church.  Rather, it IS about Jesus Christ, who was faithful to God to the point of death on a cross so that we could be made right in the eyes of God and joined to Christ in his death and resurrection in the waters of baptism.  So when we do good works, when we give, when we live lives according to the example of Jesus Christ, it’s not in order to secure our spot in heaven…instead it is in celebration of the gift that we were given through the faith of Jesus Christ. Amen.

In the Midst of Change, there is Life - A sermon for Pentecost 3

June 9, 2013

Luke 7:11-17

In January 1988, three Lutheran church bodies merged to form one united church body, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.  In the past twenty five years, the ELCA has become the largest of the Lutheran church bodies in the nation and as we, as a church body, celebrate the 25^th anniversary of the ELCA, we do so under the banner “Always being made new.”  Things in the ELCA are not as they were 25 years ago.  They couldn’t be or the ELCA would have died long ago.  Instead, as a church body, we have allowed the Holy Spirit to work through the ELCA, which has left room for God’s creative chaos to do its thing…and, to paraphrase the Rev. Stephen Bouman, though the ELCA is a flawed church, it is an awesome church. 

This weekend, we got to see a part of the church in action as the central states synod assembly took place.  Representatives from the ELCA congregations in Kansas and Missouri gathered in Overland Park to take part in the business end of being church.  We spent time considering amendments to the synod’s bylaws and talking about budgets and funding for Lutheran Campus Ministry in the synod. We spent time in bible study led by the Rev. Dr. Barbara Rossing, a Revelation scholar who spoke from a biblical perspective about healing and salvation and creation care from the perspective of living in a place where God’s abundance rules.  And we discerned where God was leading us in the election of a bishop.  It took five ballots but yesterday afternoon, a new bishop was elected to lead the synod, the Rev. Roger Gustafson, who is currently serving as one of the pastors at Advent Lutheran church in Olathe, Kansas. 

As the results of the fifth ballot were read, it was a moment of pure emotion, excitement for Roger as bishop elect, sadness that Bishop Mansholt will no longer serve as bishop of the synod, knowledge that things in the synod are about to change as the transition from Bishop Mansholt’s tenure to Bishop elect Gustafson’s tenure occurs.  And we were reminded that in God we are always being made new. The church is always being made new. 

As we officially enter into the season of summer and move closer and closer towards August 1, we, my friends, are also entering into a time of change.  As we prepare to bid God’s blessings and Godspeed to Pastor Gary and move into a transition time with an interim senior pastor, we do so as a people who need to be open to where God and the Holy Spirit are leading us.  And as we move into that time, we have some work to do….the work of examining ourselves and asking the question “who are we as the people of God at Trinity Lutheran church?” and to look at where God has brought us and where God is calling us to now and in the future.  If we do this hard work intentionally, we may find some answers that we do not like…for instance, if we are going to continue to meet the needs of our ministries in this place, in the community and in the world, we need to reconsider what good stewardship is all about and allow ourselves to be challenged by what God is saying to us through our neighbors and through our study of scripture.

Change is hard, transition is hard, the work of examining ourselves closely to discern who God has made us and where God is leading us is not without pain and grief as we face the reality that things are not going to be the way they used to be and things might not turn out just the way that we would like them too.  Times of transition may feel almost as if a death is taking place as we say goodbye to one era in the life of a congregation or a synod and enter into a new era.  

And in our time of mourning, we look to Jesus for the answer to the question of “what next?” “where do we go from here?”

It’s in these moments that Jesus meets us in the same spot that he met the widow of Nain.  Now, to be sure, when we face situations of change, they are not literal death situations…but they do involve grief and, often times, some emotional pain.  When Stephen ministers are taught their lesson on grief, they are taught that even happy changes, like marriage or graduations, can be times of grief because it can feel like an old self has died.  The old ways of doing things can no longer continue.  Life as we know it is over…it’s time for new life.

For the widow that Jesus met in Nain, life as she knew it was over.  As a widow, she had to rely on her son to provide for her both a means of staying alive and status in the community.  In the death of her son, she didn’t just lose a child…the widow also lost any social standing and any means of providing for her needs.  And though a large crowd of folks from the town accompanied her as she journeyed outside the walls of the city to bury her son, I’m sure she was asking herself “what do I do now?” “what is going to become of me?”

And it is at the point of transition from inside the town to outside of town that she meets Jesus and the large crowd following him.  At the gate, Jesus sees the widow and he has compassion on her, he joins her in her pain, and in bringing her son back to life Jesus not only gives the widows child back to her, she also gives her back her own life. 

Jesus is funny like that, bringing life in places where death is thought to linger…bringing light to places where it is believed that darkness prevails.  And it is because of Jesus’ compassion.  As Jesus traveled and ministered, he did so with a heart full of compassion. Compassion for the lost, compassion for the hungry, the sick, and the dying.  The word compassion means to suffer with, and that’s what Jesus did in his life and his ministry…he suffered with the poor, the outcast, those in mourning and whose lives were in transition.  And even on the cross, Jesus had compassion for the criminal next to him when Jesus promised that on that day, the criminal would be with him in paradise. 

A man full of compassion, living a life as a representative of a God full of compassion…a God who works to make all things new but who understands that in order for things to be made new, change has to happen and when change happens it is often accompanied by grief and pain, and when the grief and mourning accompany the change, God heart is there with us in the transition points to guide us out of grief and into a new day and a new life.

Yesterday a new bishop was elected for the synod…the same thing could happen at the church wide level in August as Bishop Hanson may be up for re-election…as Bishop Mansholt said in his speech before the 4^th ballot of the bishops election, these are times of change.  And here at home, we will bid farewell to Pastor Gary and send him off to the next chapter in his life at the end of July and we ourselves will enter into a time of change.  But we do not go into this time alone. Instead we are accompanied by a God who meets us in those moments of transition, full of compassion, who bids us not to weep and who shows us just how much life there is to be found. Amen