By Pastor Linda Dolby
Matthew 22:34-40 Sanctuary – defined as a place of refuge and safety. We all entered this sanctuary – this place of refuge and safety this morning to sing praises to our God, to pray to our God, to hear the word of God. Last Sunday, people just like you and me entered the sanctuary of the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs Texas. Sanctuary – a place of refuge and safety - became to site of a terror attack. 26 people were killed with a Ruger AR-556 rifle. The sanctuary became site of terror. Makes you a little afraid, doesn’t it. Yes, this morning you have overcome your fears and you are here – trusting in the sanctuary of this space. Scripture says perfect love casts out all fear. You see, we have a choice to make: shall we live a life of love or fear? We are here because we know God loves us and we hope to live a life in that love. Responding to a question put to him by the preachers and theologians of his day: "Which command in the law is the greatest, Jesus said “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself." This is known to us as the Golden Rule. Love God. Love your neighbor. But today I want to focus not so much on love - a much overused and abused word: we love our pets, we love ice cream, we love a beautiful day, we love our families. Today I want us to look at Jesus' other words in these verses: "with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind." Or, as Eugene Peterson puts it in his version of the Bible called The Message, "with all your passion, your prayer, your intelligence." You have probably seen and read this overused words: "dance as though no one is watching you, love as though you have never been hurt before, sing as though no one can hear you, live as though heaven is on earth." Passion. That's what these words are talking about. Passion, which causes us to dance, to love, to sing, to live - as though heaven is on earth, which is true on these glorious autumn days. That's what Jesus is talking about in our gospel lesson for this day. If we were to poll people who don't go to church and ask: "What do you think of the church?" they might say a lot of different things. But one answer probably will be quite common - they will answer that it is boring. Christians are boring, church is boring, most sermons are boring, the music is boring. How did this happen? When did Christianity, in the eyes of unbelievers, become boring? If you look at the ministry of Jesus, it was a lot of things, but no one would ever accuse him of being boring! Wherever He went He was ruffling feathers. There was an energy, there was a passion - He was living on the edge. There was a supernatural power that was there. There was passion there. Jesus says this: "here is what the whole sum of my life is about: Take everything that you are about, all of your mind, all of your heart, all of your soul, and all of your strength, in other words, everything that you are, and pour it into loving God, living for God, being invested in God. Live passionately to the glory of God. Give God everything you've got. Don't hold back on anything." This is the opposite of doing religion, going through the motions, just sort of doing something because it just sort of suits you every once in a while. This is pouring your whole being into something - that's what Jesus was saying. That is what life is all about, pour your whole being into loving God, live fully, - for the glory of God. A theologian of the second century, named Irenaeus said, "The glory of God is a human being fully alive." Instead, we try to domesticate Jesus, making him into our own image instead of making ourselves into his image. I got an email this week describing this. It was called the ethnicity of Jesus. Full of stereotypes, it made the case why Jesus was Black, or why Jesus was Californian, and then it said: "There are 3 equally good arguments that Jesus was Italian: he talked with his hands, he had wine with every meal, he used olive oil. There are also arguments that Jesus was Irish: he never got married, he was always telling stories, he loved green pastures. But the most compelling evidence of all - proof that Jesus was a woman: he had to feed a crowd at a moment's notice when there was no food, he kept trying to get a message across to a bunch of men who just didn't get it, and even when he was dead, He had to get up because there was more work to do! We want to tame Jesus, to make him like us, when salvation means that we are freed from our sins so that we may become like him - one who lived and loved passionately, with his whole heart, mind, and soul. Once I heard another clergyperson say, "The church is a swimming pool where most of the noise is from the shallow end." The shallow end, where it is safe and secure, where people just dip in their toes. He went on to say, "and people see Jesus as their lifejacket. " Have you ever tried to swim while wearing a life jacket? It's possible, but it's uncomfortable, bulky. Then he said, "I would rather think of Jesus as my life guard, so that when I dive in the deep end, he is there watching, protecting, ready to save me if I get in over my head." As I was thinking about the shooting in Texas, I remembered this story - a true story - that was told by Bishop Will Willimon. He says, “It all started early one morning when Louise Degrafinried's husband Nathan got up from bed in Mason, Tennessee, to let out the cat. The cat stood at the edge of the porch, his hair bristled up on his arched back, and he hissed. Nathan asked, ''What do you see out there, cat? A big man stepped from around the corner of the house and pointed a shotgun at Mr. Degrafinried. "Lord, Honey, open the door, he's got a gun." The man with the gun shoved Nathan inside, pushing him and Louise against the wall. "Don't make me kill you!" he shouted. The couple knew immediately that the intruder was one of the escaped inmates from Fort Pillow State Prison. He and 4 others had been loose since the previous Saturday. Louise Degrafinried, a 73 year old grandmother stood her ground. "Young man," she said, "I'm a Christian and we don't believe in no violence. Put that gun down and you sit down." The man relaxed his grip on the gun, then laid it on the couch. "Lady," he said quietly, "I'm so hungry. I haven't had nothing to eat for 3 days." ''Young man, you just sit down there and I'll fix you breakfast." "Nathan," she said to her husband, "go get this young man some dry socks." With that, Louise went to work. She fixed bacon, eggs, white bread toast, milk and coffee. Then she got out her best napkins and set her kitchen table. She says, “when we sat down, I took that young man by the hand and said, "Let's give thanks that you came here and that you are safe." I said a prayer and then asked him if he would like to say something to the Lord. He didn't say anything, so I said, "Just say, "Jesus wept." Then we all ate breakfast. "After breakfast, we sat there and I began to pray. I held his hand and kept patting him on the leg. He trembled all over. I said, "Young man, I love you and God loves you. God loves us all, every one of us, especially you. Jesus died for you because he loves you so much." "You sound just like my grandmother," he said. "She's dead." One tear fell down his cheek. About that time, we heard police cars coming down the road. "They gonna kill me when they get here," he said. "No, young man, they aren't going to hurt you. You done wrong, but God loves you." Then me and Nathan took him by the arms, and took him out of the kitchen toward the door. "You let me do all the talking," I told him. The police got out of their cars. They had their guns out. I shouted to them, "Y'all put those guns away. I don't allow no violence here This young man wants to go back." Nathan," I said, "you bring the young man out to the car." Then they put the handcuffs on him and took him back to the prison." That afternoon, two of the other escapees entered a backyard where a couple was barbecuing. The husband went into his house and came out with gun. The prisoners shot and killed him and took his wife hostage. They released her the next day. Mrs. Degrafinried lived her faith, which led her to take a risk. She risked loving. I’m sure we afraid, but she lived out of love. She was prepared to do that from a lifetime of following her Savior, someone she loved with all her heart, with all her soul, with all her mind - which led her to love her neighbor as herself. So, my friends, let's dance as though no one is watching, love as though we've never been hurt, sing as though no one can hear, and live as though heaven is on earth." That's passion. That's the Golden Rule. May it be so. Amen.
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By Linda Dolby
Luke 14.15-24 A fried-egg sandwich walks into a bar and orders a drink. The bartender looks him up and down, then says, "Sorry, we don't serve food here," Who gets served? That’s the point of our scripture this morning: all are welcome at the banquet where God is the host. In the parable, a man planned a large banquet and sent out invitations. When the banquet was ready, he sent his servant to contact each of the invited guests, telling them that all was ready and the meal was about to start. One after another, the guests made excuses for not coming. One had just bought a piece of land and said he had to go see it. Another had purchased some oxen and said he was on the way to yoke them up and try them out. Another gave the excuse that he was newly married and therefore could not come. When the master of the house heard these flimsy excuses, he was angry. He told his servant to forget the guest list and go into the back streets and alleyways of the town and invite “the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame.” The servant had already brought in the down-and-out townspeople, and still there was room in the banquet hall. So the master sent his servant on a broader search: “Go out to the roads and country lanes and make them come in, so that my house will be full.” You may not believe this, but when I was younger, I was quite the fiery feminist. I was determined that I could do anything a man could do. Thus, things that were traditionally the female role held no interest for me. In our young marriage, my husband and I attempted to split all the household chores equally. I continued in this mindset until one summer when I was attending a week-long retreat. There the leader made the point that when we receive communion, Jesus is the host at the table. It is Jesus who invites us to eat and drink. “He sets the table before us,” says scripture. Well, that caused me to re-think my stance. I was reminded of my Aunt Lottie. Aunt Lottie is the hostess with mostest. When my sister and I visited her in NorthCarolina, she prepared a fabulous meal. My sister and I wanted to reciprocate, so we said we would take her out to lunch the next day. “Oh, no honey,” she replied. “I have already prepared all of the lunches and all of the dinners for the 3 days you are here.” I began to pattern myself after Aunt Lottie. I learned I loved having guests for dinner, hosting dinner parties. I loved the planning, the preparing, the cleaning, the cooking. Our best friends – people who have been our friends for over 40 years – live in Muncie IN. A few years ago, we invited them, they accepted to come to our house for a few days. I was so excited. I got the house clean. I planned the menus. I went grocery shopping. And then the night before they were to arrive, my friend called to say they weren’t coming. I was crushed. At first, on the phone, all I could says was , “well, alright.” But when I hung up, I realized how angry – very angry – I was. I had done all this preparing and my gift of hospitality was rejected. Don’t you think that is the way the host of the great banquet felt? We feel badly when we are rejected, but what about our God? Think of his grief and broken heart. Think of his anger and mercy. But, anger does not over come him. He keeps on inviting. “Well, if they won’t come,” he tells his servant, “go find someone else.” Jesus ends the parable by relating the master’s determination that “not one of those men who were invited will get a taste of my banquet”. The master of the house is God, and the great banquet is the kingdom, a metaphor that was suggested by the speaker at the table. The invited guests picture the Jewish nation. The kingdom was prepared for them, but when Jesus came preaching that “the kingdom of heaven is near.” He was rejected. The gospel of John says, “He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him.” The excuses for skipping the banquet are laughably bad. No one buys land without seeing it first, and the same can be said for buying oxen. And what, exactly, would keep a newly married couple from attending a social event? All three excuses in the parable reveal insincerity on the part of those invited. The interpretation is that the Jews of Jesus’ day had no valid excuse for spurning Jesus’ message; in fact, they had every reason to accept Him as their Messiah. The detail that the invitation is opened up to society’s maimed and downtrodden is important. These were the types of people that the Pharisees considered “unclean” and under God’s curse. Jesus, however, taught that the kingdom was available even to those considered “unclean.” His involvement with tax collectors and sinners brought condemnation from the Pharisees, yet it showed the extent of God’s grace. The fact that the master in the parable sends the servant far afield to persuade everyone to come indicates that the offer of salvation would be extended to the Gentiles and “to the ends of the earth.” The master is not satisfied with a partially full banquet hall; he wants every place at the table to be filled. Someone once said, “God is more willing to save sinners than sinners are to be saved.” God wants everyone to be a part of the party. I once heard Cecil Williams preach. Cecil was the pastor of Glide Memorial Church in San Francisco, a church that was about to close when he arrived, but he started inviting the least, the last, the lost, the lonely to worship. And the church grew – exponentially. In the sermon I heard, Cecil told this story, “I come from a family of 8 children. And we were all busy, sports practices, extra-curricular activities. And when it was time for supper to be served, mama would look around the table and ask, “who is missing from the table?” Friends, who is missing from our tables? Do we only eat with those who are like us or do we search the highways and byways for those who are hungry and hurting? One of the great problems of this day is how divided we are. We even have gated communities. Communities that are for only those like the residents who live there and no one else. I hate gated communities. What would happen if we would open our hearts and our homes to someone who is a stranger, someone we don’t know very well, someone, who, to be honest, scares us a little bit? Would the world be a happier place? If only we would extend ourselves to others. We live such solitary, individualistic lives. Years ago, my then 8 year old son and I went to Honduras with a mission group from our church. We went specifically to form relationships with a church in the capital city of Tegucigalpa called “Amor, Fe, Vida” – love, faith, and life. With the help of translators, we studied the Bible, shared our lives and prayed together. We painted the church walls. By the end of the week we had become friends. The last night we were there, different members of the church invited us to sleep in their homes. My son and I went to Marianna’s house, on a dirt road with raw sewage on the edge of the street. We got there about 4 p.m. and our hostess was in the kitchen cooking. She was making a treat – a big pot of tomatillas, which is meat and sauce wrapped inside corn husks. Then I noticed that different people from the barrio were coming in, carrying little buckets, and would leave with their buckets filled with tomatillas. You see, these people had next to nothing. They knew they needed their neighbors. They shared, and it was a beautiful community. How many of us like to think of ourselves as self-sufficient? Do we need others? How would we get along without the people in our lives? How much richer would our lives be if we were to set the table for one and all? These are tough days. It’s a hurting world. Storms, earthquakes, shootings. What are we to do? I think I have a clue. A friend posted this on facebook this week – My door is always open. My house is safe. A pot of coffee, bottled water, diet coke, tea, beer or glass of wine can be out of fridge in minutes, and the kitchen table is a place of peace and non-judgment. Anyone who needs to chat is welcome anytime. It's no good suffering in silence. I have food in the fridge, cookies and snacks in cupboards a listening ear, and shoulders to cry on. I will always do my best to be available...you are always welcome! May it be so. Amen. By Pastor Linda Dolby
A READING FROM MATTHEW 15:21-28 Jesus left that place and went away to the district of Tyre and Sidon. {22} Just then a Canaanite woman from that region came out and started shouting, "Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David; my daughter is tormented by a demon." {23} But he did not answer her at all. And his disciples came and urged him, saying, "Send her away, for she keeps shouting after us." {24} He answered, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." {25} But she came and knelt before him, saying, "Lord, help me." {26} He answered, "It is not fair to take the children's food and throw it to the dogs." {27} She said, "Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters' table." {28} Then Jesus answered her, "Woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish." And her daughter was healed instantly. Today I would like to tell you a story. It is a story written by a pastor whose name is Richard Fairchild. I have taken his story and made it into a “Readers Theater.” In doing so I ask myself - and hope that you will ask yourselves - what was the event like? - what were the people in it thinking about? - what happened and why did it happen that way? How is God found in the story? Stories help us to use our imagination, they help us to hear what God is saying to us, and when we listen and wonder - as did our ancestors by their fires and in their temples and synagogues - the Holy Spirit helps us to hear what it is God is saying. Today – we offer to you such a story, and, prayerfully, you will hear in it the word of God for you this day. It is the story called “Crumbs From the Table.” Relax and listen. Matthew She didn't belong there. I knew it and the rest of us knew it. We were just sitting down to dinner when she barged in. The dogs woke up immediately and from their place under the table they began to bark. One of the children started to cry as the woman frantically looked around the room. I was startled and I stood up immediately. I could feel myself beginning to get angry as I looked at this disheveled and dirty woman. John and James, who had been sitting near the door had leapt up at the same time I had - and they were already reaching out to stop from the woman from coming closer to the table when she spotted the master. Woman "Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is sick. She is suffering terribly from demon possession..." Matthew The master must of heard her over the noise of the two dogs and the child, but he never said a word. He didn't even look up from his plate. By this time not only John and James, but I and three others had surrounded the woman and we began to hustle her out the door. She was interrupting not only our meal, but the time that Jesus had specially set aside for teaching us about the Kingdom he was going to establish. We had no intention of letting her get in the way of that. The woman struggled a bit, but she didn't have a chance. Hauling nets gives a person a lot of strength, and she was outnumbered. We got her outside even more quickly than a bouncer gets a drunk out of a tavern. But let me tell you, once outside, she caused just as much trouble as a drunk does. She was loud and insistent. She tried to get by us and to get back inside. She kept on saying to us that she had to see the miracle worker, that her daughter was in terrible shape, that she needed help. She must of clutched at and grabbed each and every one of us as she pleaded. I tell you, she was a real pain. I just wanted to get back inside for dinner. James tried to reason with her. James "Look, you have no right to be here. You've got no right to bother the teacher. You are a foreigner, you don't believe in anything we believe in, your people are gentiles, they are heathens, and your behavior shows that you are too. There is no way the master is going to help you, so please go away." Woman "I've got to see him, I know he can help me. He has done so much for others." James "That may be, but he's not going to do anything for you. You are not only a woman, you are a Canaanite, You don't go to the synagogue, You don't obey the law of Moses, you are unclean, you eat forbidden food. To make matters worse, you have absolutely no respect. Jesus is trying to eat. He is a guest in another man's home, and this is supposed to be a special time for us all, and you just barge in and start demanding help! Listen! Please! Go away! You are not going to get help here." Matthew You know what she did? That wretched woman just shook her head and said: Woman "I know he will help me, he's got to help me!" John "Look, go away. We've told you that you’re not welcome here. We've told you that Jesus isn't going to have anything to do with your type. So why don't you just get lost." Matthew I tell you she was a crazy woman. She didn't know her place, that's for sure. The more we said to her, the louder and more persistent she was. She cried, she begged, she screamed. There was no reasoning with her. After a few minutes of this I got the idea of asking Jesus to tell her to go away. I figured that if he said something to her she'd get the picture and stop her infernal racket. I mentioned the idea to a couple of the others and they agreed that it was the only thing to do if we were going to have any peace. As soon as I opened the door to go in the dogs began barking again. Someone hissed at them to be quiet as I went over to Jesus. He was sitting with the child who had cried earlier and eating and talking with our host. Our host looked a little embarrassed. He was trying to pretend that nothing was going on - but the woman was standing just outside the open door where my two mates were waiting for the word and the noise level was none too low. " Matthew Excuse me, could you please tell that woman to go away. She is really pestering us with all her crying and carrying on." Jesus looked at his host, then at me, and said – Jesus "I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel." Matthew I tell you, Jesus was really frustrating at times. He never seemed to give a straight answer to a simple question. But even so, this time he was backing us up. It was like he had heard everything we had said to the woman, so I turned to tell the wretched woman that the master had told her to go away. Just as I was turning around, she squeezed by the guys at the door and ran over to right beside the master, and fell on down on her knees at his feet. Woman "Lord, help me.” Matthew I didn't do a thing. I was tired. I figured after what he had said Jesus would handle it just fine. And he did. Jesus looked at her at his feet. She bowed her head and looked down. Then he looked around the room for a moment. The child beside him was busy eating a piece of bread as if nothing untoward had happened. The dogs were nuzzling around under the table. Our host was staring at him, no doubt wondering what Jesus was going to do to get rid of this problem. John and James and the others were all inside by this point. They were still standing, waiting to see if they were going to be needed again. It became very quiet in the room as the master looked around - the only sounds were those of the flies and of the child eating. Then Jesus looked down at the woman and said to her Jesus "It is not right to take the children's bread and to toss it to their dogs." Matthew A couple of the disciples smiled. I must confess that I grinned too. It was such a well-turned phrase. The kind that only Jesus seemed to be able to come up with. It made the point well. As far as I was concerned, it certainly disposed of her and all of her kind. I caught James looking at me and began to nod my head at him. As I did so the woman looked up at Jesus and stared him in the eyes. Woman – (with a calm and clear voice, and a little smile on her face) "Yes Lord" "Yes Lord, but even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master's table." Matthew I was stunned. The woman really was too much. Lippy, rude, obnoxious, unclean, disrespectful, I could go on! Anyway - do you know what Jesus did? He smiled at her, as if it was all some great contest of wits and he said to her: Jesus "Woman, you have great faith, For your reply, your request is granted. Go home, you daughter is healed." Matthew I just could not understand it. I mean why in the world did Jesus do that? She did not belong there. She was not one of us. She was nothing but a Canaanite Jesus knew it, I knew it, and the rest of us knew it. I just don't understand Jesus sometimes. I just don't understand, and so this is my prayer… Holy God, help us to understand. Loving Lord, help us to understand that there is not one of us who deserves even the crumbs that fall from Your table -- yet you grant to us all: Jew and Gentile - young and old - rich and poor - black white sinner and saint - the bread of life. Loving God, help us to not only understand, but to pass your love on to others. Give us eyes to see you, ears to hear you, hearts to love you, lips to proclaim you, and hands to serve you. |
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