June 22, 2014

Proper 7A

You know C.S. Lewis, author of the Narnia books and lots of great books about Christianity.   He turned to Christianity as an adult, and when asked about it in an interview, he responded, “I didn’t go to religion to make me happy.  I always knew a bottle of Port would do that.  If you want a religion to make you feel really comfortable, I certainly don’t recommend Christianity!”

Today’s reading from Matthew is a longer version  of this quip.  In this reading, Jesus is talking to his disciples about what their discipleship will be like, what they’re likely to encounter.  I liken it to a football coach talking to his team at half time.  The coach has useful insight and perspectives that will help the players deal with what is heading their way in the second half of the game. Part realist, part pep talk.

That’s what Jesus is doing.  He’s telling the disciples what they’ll encounter.   He starts with a pretty simple statement, that I like to think of as expectation management  He’s telling them that the students don’t surpass  the teacher, slave doesn’t exceed the master.  You are where you are.  Be content with where you are.  

He moves on to give the disciples a run down of what the second half of the game will include.   And basically it will include things that Jesus has already experienced, so he knows first hand what it will be like.  To truly follow Jesus has several benchmarks that do not make life more comfortable, as CS Lewis mentions.  In this passage, Christ is telling the disciples that they will experience many of the things Christ has, if they truly follow Christ.

One of those pragmatic pieces of advice is that the disciples may be persecuted.   Not just that general bad things will happen, wrong place wrong time bad things. Precisely because of what discipleship asks, for those things you will be persecuted.  The reality is that martyrdom was a reality for the disciples, as it is in other places in the world today, just for being a Christian.  Our persecution is generally not that dramatic.  But we are made to feel the outcast for wearing a cross, or more importantly for holding a Christian attitude.

Disciples may be divided from their family and friends, and they may cause similar divisions in others.  Christ says, rather starkly, that he didn’t come to bring peace to the world, but rather to bring a sword and divide people.  To set a man against his father and a woman against her mother.  Wow. What’s that about, and why would we want to follow a Christ that’s going to do that, or ask us to do that?  Christ is not saying that we should take up our swords and fight.  Rather, he’s saying that if you stand firm in your Christ-centric life, sometimes that creates a rift between family members.  If the division is because some in the family are following Christ, not just wearing the jewelry, but to their core walking the way of Christ, divisions as a result of that, may happen.  

Christ tells them that disciples are known and loved.  God cares about every sparrow, every creature.  And the disciples are more valued by God than anything.  It would be one thing if that love and knowing was from a place of platitudes and ignorance.  But this isn’t a distant God who doesn’t know them. The disciples are fully known, down to every hair on their head.  Being known that well, warts and all, and still being unconditionally loved could be a challenge.
Disciples may be bullied or physically hurt.   Christ was physically hurt and ultimately killed.  

Disciples may be asked to endure horrible things.  Think about the term, take up your cross.  Christ was asked to carry his cross, the cross on which he died.  He tells the disciples that if they are not willing to take up their cross, they are not worthy of him.   And if they’re not fully Christ Centered, he won’t be fully behind them.  

And after this realistic pragmatic vision of what discipleship will be, I can imagine the locker room was quiet.  Disciples looking at each other wondering if they should even go out on the field.   Now comes the pep talk.  Christ finishes with the best bit of news.   Despite all of this, despite the persecution, bullying and separation, he tells them to not be afraid.  

It is actually what Christ tells the disciples more than anything else.  Do not be afraid.  And if he can tell them to not be afraid, what is he telling us?

I think he’s telling us that as disciples of Christ, we will be persecuted, we will be bullied, we may be separated or cause the separation from family, we are known and loved.  And we should not be afraid.

He offers some insights to the disciples as to why they should not fear that are also relevant to us today.

We should not fear being persecuted because the truth will come out in the end. What is wrong and done in darkness will be illumined and shown for what it is. What is right and forced in darkness will be illumined and shown for what it is. Do not be afraid.

We should not fear being bullied or even physically hurt, because while bullies may be able to hurt our outward physical body, they cannot hurt our soul.  They cannot destroy the indissoluble bond we have with God in baptism.  And martyrs throughout the years, ranging from King Louis the Ninth to Christian martyrs in China, have announced at the end of their lives, “you may kill my body, but you will never kill my soul”.  Luckily we are not facing martyrdom. But we do face inconveniences and discomfort that may affect our body.  It cannot affect our soul.  Do not be afraid.

For Christ’s sake, we may be separated from family.  If we are placing Christ at the center of our life, and others don’t understand, we have two choices.  Either we apologize or change our beliefs and actions, or we stand solid with Christ.   If we stand with Christ, Christ will stand with us.  I’m not suggesting that we ought to go pick fights with doubters or detractors.  Rather, we need to understand and believe to our core that we are first of all Christians, committed to a Christ-centric life. Do not be afraid.  

We are known.  Down to the hairs on our head, the bad habits, and the bad thoughts.  Despite that level of intimacy, we are unconditionally loved by God.  Do not be afraid.

Following Christ does not immunize us from trouble, or prevent us from getting into trouble, or give us a “get out of jail free” card when we get in trouble.  Quite the contrary.  Following Christ puts us right in trouble’s way.

As Christians, we are asked to stand up for the unloved and unlovable.  To defend the underdog.  Speak up against injustice and cruelty. To cease cruel language and jokes. These things we do, that Christ did to us and on our behalf can cause some discomfort.   It can cause us to be separated, to be persecuted, to be bullied or hurt.  And with God, we should not be afraid.

This concept of God assuring us that we should not be afraid wasn’t coined by Christ.  We heard the same words in the reading from Genesis, where we begin a summer-long traipse through the great stories of Old Testament, Torah or Holy Book of Islam.

Today, we join Abraham and Sarah who’ve been promised many offspring.  They were getting old, so they decided Abraham would have a child with Hagar, his female slave. Abraham and Hagar had a son, Ishmael.  Subsequently, Sarah and Abraham have a son, Isaac, and although Sarah was involved in the Hagar plot initially, she got cold feet and decided that Hagar and Ishmael should be turned out, potentially turned out to die.  And so Abraham turned out his son Ishmael and his mother Hagar.   But God interjects here, just as Christ does with the disciples in Matthew, telling Hagar, “do not be afraid”.

Not only that, but God tells Hagar that God will make a great nation of Ishmael, the son she had with Abraham.  And God did.  Ishmael is seen as the father of Islam, with his descendant Mohammed.   Hmm.  

As I said, we are beginning a long sequential reading of these fascinating stories from Genesis and Exodus.  Pay attention, and think about the whole story they tell. By the end of the summer you’ll have heard about some great stories that are the foundation of Islam, Judaism and Christianity.

We are people of God, children of Abraham.  And while we know our Christian story, there are so many other stories of God that we may not know. Stories of other children of Abraham.  But they are stories of God and God’s salvation.  And from Abraham, Hagar and Ishmael, Sarah and Isaac, to Christ’s disciples, to all of us children of God, we are not supposed to be afraid.  We are to put our trust in God. And God will deliver.

What is it that you fear?  Money troubles?  Doubting your faith? Trouble with kids?  Your health?  We follow a Christ who’s been through it all.  Seen it all.  Experienced it all.   He experienced all of that, and more.  He knows his disciples will experience all of that, and more.  And yet, his repeated counsel is - Do not be afraid.

I hate to ruin the ending of your story for you, but it’s going to be all right.  
 Amen