tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32172456701872604202024-03-12T22:33:26.593-07:00A Different Drummermusings of an Anabaptist minister, preacher, peacemaker, poet, drummer, musician, songwriter, artist, and iconophileLeo Hartshornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06040456376937046171noreply@blogger.comBlogger360125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217245670187260420.post-54537500222665537412017-01-30T12:04:00.005-08:002017-01-30T12:15:40.455-08:00God is Our Ever Present Help: Psalm 46<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: justify;">
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<i><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">*Sermon at Salem Mennonite Church on Sunday, January 28, 2017</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">Ein feste burg ist unser Gott.</span></i><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">A Mighty Fortress is
our God. In 1529, when the Protestant cause of the Reformation was wavering in
the balance, Martin Luther wrote the hymn<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>A
Mighty Fortress is our God</i>. His song was based upon Psalm 46, a hymn of
God's enduring power. This psalm has provided assurance and comfort for many
from generation to generation who have faced crises and struggles. It is a
psalm that I, in my days as a pastor, often read to people when they were in
the hospital enduring sickness or facing death. In powerful poetic images the
psalm extols confidence in God, our refuge and strength in times of trouble. In
his hymn Luther captured well the psalm's image of God as a mighty fortress, a
bulwark against the surrounding chaos of a world on the brink. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">Psalm 46 is a psalm of Zion, the city where it was believed that
God dwelt and from where God ruled. It was the place of the temple, the
treasury, and Israel's military stronghold. But, this Psalm of Zion doesn’t
extol the security and strength of the city itself. The psalm reminds us that
it is not the king in the palace, nor the priests in the temple, who brings
security, order, and peace to the world. Neither church nor state is our refuge
and strength. God alone is our ever present help.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">The psalm is structured in three parts. Verses 1-3 assure us not
to fear, even when all of creation is collapsing around us. Verses 4-7 proclaim
God's presence in Zion's midst, even when surrounded by conflict and
catastrophe. In verses 8-11 God calls for peace among the nations. Each section
of the psalm contains a confession of confidence in God and a reassuring
refrain reminding us that God is with us and is our refuge and our strength. <b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<b><i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">God is our security when the world quakes.</span></i></b><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"> Psalm 46 opens with the assurance that God is our refuge and our
strength, an ever present help in times of trouble. There is no need to fear,
even in the midst of cosmic cataclysm. The psalmist seems to paint a graphic
picture of a catastrophic earthquake. Earthquakes are so powerful they cause
everyone to fear. I was scared out of my wits during the big earthquake in
California in 1971. It measured 7.1 on the Richter scale. One morning I woke to
a deep rumbling in the earth. My bed was bouncing across the wood floor. I
could hear the house creaking and moaning. Books were flying off the shelf. My
mother was outside banging on my bedroom window yelling at me to get out of the
house. It was like waking up to a nightmare. I prayed to God in fear. It
literally felt like the end of the world. <b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">There are times when the ground beneath us shakes and quakes and
it feels like the end of our world. Metaphorically speaking, the ground on
which we stand are those things which provide us with security: our welcoming
nation, our rock steady church, our clean bill of health, our dependable job,
our home sweet home, our reliable family and friends, our Social Security
payments. These things make us feel safe and secure in the world. Then,
something happens unexpectedly, like an earthshaking election, betrayal by our
leaders, loss of privileges and benefits. And suddenly we feel the insecurity
that many people of color have felt all their lives. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">Or what happens to us to shake our security may not be something
that can be measured on the Richter scale, but it may feel like a 7.1 quake in
the soul. The boss calls you into the office and with eyes to the floor says,
"I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to lay you off." The letter reads,
"Your Medicare benefits have been cut." The doctor walks into the
room with a file and some x-rays and states rather stoically, "The test
says it’s a malignant tumor.” Your sister calls you aside and tells you, “I
overheard mom and dad say they are getting a divorce.” Dark clouds gather
overhead and we shiver. Waves of mortality and breakers of insecurity crash on
our shore and we tremble. The mountains of our strength rock and reel and we
shake in fear. <b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">The psalmist assures
us that God is our refuge and our strength.</span></i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">
God is ever present when our bodies fail us, our years pass into nothingness,
and the vibrancy of life fades into faint memories. God is a mighty fortress
where we can flee when our faith is being attacked by the swords of doubt and
spears of misfortune. God is the Rock upon which we stand when the quicksand of
human troubles would pull us under. God is our strength when life has wrung
from us the last drop of energy we need just to make it through another day. <i>God, that mysterious bedrock of Life, is
with us. God is our refuge and our strength, an ever present help in times of
trouble. <b><o:p></o:p></b></i></span></div>
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<b><i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">God is ever present when cities and nations rage.</span></i></b><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"> The psalmist pictures the nations round about Zion as being in an
uproar. Kingdoms totter. The earth melts like a wax candle. The world of
politics and policies, of economics and ecology is teetering on the brink of
disaster. You don't have to live in ancient land of Jerusalem to understand
what this is like. Those of us old enough to have lived through a World War and
the Depression know how nations and economies can stagger like drunken men. Or
just listen to these recent words from a pessimistic politician painting an
apocalyptic picture of American carnage: </span><i><span style="background: #FEFEFE; color: #262626; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Mothers and children trapped in
poverty in our inner cities; rusted-out factories scattered like tombstones
across the landscape of our nation…and the crime and gangs and drugs that have
stolen too many lives and robbed our country of so much unrealized potential. </span></i><span style="background: #FEFEFE; color: #262626; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">We listen to these dark words from our new
leader and envision an even worse future ahead of us and we quake with fear at
a world on the brink. </span><b><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">We have seen leaders resign, impeached, deposed, assassinated, and
countries go into economic free fall. We have watched as congressional leaders
and even church leaders have stumbled and fallen. We have stood flabbergasted
at wholesale lies whitewashed as “alternative facts” and pulled our hair over
the blatant sexism, racism, xenophobia, islamophobia, and ableism that are
being normalized. We have tasted the bitter waters of broken pipelines from
industry without conscience and smelled the fumes of a world burning up its
resources without limits, while rich CEOs and lucrative corporations line their
pockets. With darkened vision we gaze at a world that seems to be melting into
oblivion. Our hearts long for a better world, a city of God, as it were, whose
foundations are sure. <b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">It was St. Augustine who so eloquently wrote of<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>The City of God</i>. He put in
sharp contrast the divine City of God and the earthly city of humanity. The
psalmist contrasts the world where the "waters roar and foam," with a
peaceful river that makes glad the city of God. God is in the midst of the
city. It is God who makes its streets secure. When all we see are cul de sacs
of injustice and dead end streets of beaurocracy, this vision of the city of
God opens our eyes to God's presence on the highways and byways of our own earthly
cities.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">To look at our world, our nations, our cities, with an eye only on
the earthly, darkened city is to overlook God’s shining presence within the
world. It can only lead to despair. We can catch glimpses of the city of God
within our earthly cities. The city of God is where justice weighs heavy on the
scales, righteousness rules the city council, the weak are made strong, the
wounded are healed, the hungry are fed, and people are not judged by the color
of their skin but by the content of their character. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">We have seen the city of God in the faces of Native Americans fiercely
protecting their sacred waters in North Dakota. We have caught a glimpse of the
city of God in black lives that matter speaking the discomforting truth to
power. We have been overwhelmed by a vision of the city of God in the faces of
women and men and children in countless cities across this land and around the
world speaking with one voice, crying out for dignity and justice and human rights,
longingly marching toward the city of God. <b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">The city of God is governed by what rabbi Michael Lerner calls the
"politics of meaning,” a reconstruction of "the world in a way which
takes seriously the uniqueness and preciousness of every human being and our
connection to a higher ethical and spiritual purpose that gives meaning to our
lives." A river of life flows in the midst of this city. It quenches the
thirst of those panting for purpose, longing for justice and peace, and calling
for the celebration of life in all its shimmering diversity.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">The other day I caught a glimpse of what looked like signs on the
doorway to this heavenly city. These signs are particularly poignant for me in
light of the executive order that led to yesterday’s detention of Muslims at
American airports. These signs were in an unexpected place; my grandson’s
public Middle School. There were signs posted up and down the hallways where
students walked each day. They read: <i>We
welcome <b>all</b> races, <b>all</b> religions, <b>all</b> countries of origin, <b>all</b>
sexual orientations, <b>all </b>genders. We
stand with you. You are safe here.</i><b> <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">The gates of this city are open to everyone. The spires of God's
city reach into the heavens, while its foundation is rooted in the earth. God
is its maker and builder. Each new day which dawns illuminates the presence of
God within this city. God roams its streets with sleeves rolled up. God is hard
at work tearing down the walls that divide us, filling in the potholes of
inequity, and checking the flow of its life giving waters, making sure its
refreshing streams flow to <b><i>all</i></b><i> </i>people. God is working at building a New Jerusalem, a New
Washington D.C., a New Salem. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">So, even though the nations rage and the cities seem to be
crumbling around us, <i>God, that mysterious
bedrock of Life is with us. God is our refuge and our strength, an ever present
help in times of trouble. </i><b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<b><i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">God is our peace when strife and warfare blares its noise. </span></i></b><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">In the final section of the psalm the poet invites us to come and
see the things God has done upon the earth while the nations rage and their
cities crumble. The carcass of buildings in Hiroshima, the flames of the L.A.
riots, ashes at Ground zero in New York City all tell the tale of human folly. Our
flood of handguns and semi-automatic rifles, stockpiles of nuclear weapons, FBI
and CIA surveillance, and reliance upon our omnipresent US military bases
around the world bear witness to our utter insecurity and our trust in <i>human</i> power to save us. Beyond the sands
of Baghdad, above the explosions in Aleppo, and throughout the noisy halls of
the Pentagon, God is shouting, "Be still and know that I am God! It is my
reign of peace which shall rule the nations. I will be exalted above the earth.
It is <i>my</i> kingdom which is to come on
earth as in heaven.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">We have often taken the words "Be still and know that I am
God" out of context and used it as a call to quiet meditation. Be
still….meditate….contemplate. Rather, in its context, the phrase “be still” is
God's command to cease war, to stop the flurry of violence and destruction.
"Be still! Stop the fighting, then you will know <i>I</i> am God." To know God is to end our strife and warfare. “Be
still” is immediately followed by the truth that God is the one “who makes wars
to cease to the ends of the earth.” God snaps the M-1 rifle in two. God disables
the armored tanks. God obliterates the stockpile of nuclear weapons. "Be
still," says God. "Stop your fighting and know <b><i>I </i></b>am God." <b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">The cry for a world without war and violence is not simply the
yelling of some radical protesters with their signs waving in the urban air or
the rural whispers of a minority of pacifist Mennonites. It is the roar of God
above the raging nations. Be still! Stop the war and violence! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">You have heard this voice crying out, haven’t you? You have heard
it in the words of the prophets Isaiah and Micah, who proclaimed a day when
swords will be beaten into plowshares, nation will not lift up sword against
nation, nor will they learn war any more (Isaiah 2:4, Micah 4:3). God's voice
echoed in words of Hosea who spoke of a day when weapons and war will be
abolished from the land (Hosea 2: 18). The advent angels chimed in at the birth
of the Prince of Peace singing, "Peace on earth. Good will to all."
You have heard this same cry in the voice of Jesus, who said, "Blessed are
the peacemakers," and "Love your enemies." God's voice continued
to ring in the words of Anabaptist Conrad Grebel, who reminded us that the
sword and killing had ceased with the true Christian. The call for peace could
be heard in the words of A.J. Muste when he said, "There is no way to
peace. Peace is the way." God still cries out to a warring world, "Be
still, stop the war and violence, and know that <i>I am God</i>." <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">For we, the people….of faith, do not ultimately trust in leaders
who fail us. We do not ultimately trust in nations that teeter on the brink. We
do not ultimately trust in weapons of warfare to keep us safe. <i>We trust in God, that mysterious bedrock of
Life, who with us. <b>God</b> is our refuge
and our strength, an ever present help in times of trouble.</i><b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">This truth is worth singing. The psalmist long ago proclaimed this
truth in a song. Martin Luther penned a hymn so that the truth of this psalm
would ring from the rafters. Let us now sing with our voices and lives these
truths of our God, a mighty fortress.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">A New Psalm 46<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">written by Leo Hartshorn<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">We need not be afraid,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">though oil spills
blacken the seas<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">and volcanoes spit ash
into the skies,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">though the ground
beneath our lives<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">shakes and cracks,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">though tornadoes of
tragedy<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">rip up the roots of
our world,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">though the seas of
chaos<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">engulf us beneath
their waves.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">God is our ever present
help.<br />
God is our refuge and our strength.</span></i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">The peaceful streams
of God's presence<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">water the roots of our
spirits<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">and flood the streets
of our cities with joy.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">God is always with us,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">and comes to us in
hours of darkness<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">as the dawning of a
new day. Presidents and kings may cause<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">their petty
skirmishes.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">Dictators and regimes
may topple<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">to the ground. But,
when God speaks with hot breath the icy world melts.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">God is our ever present
help.<br />
God is our refuge and our strength.<br />
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<!--[endif]--></span></i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">Take a good look<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">off into God's future<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">and see the new world<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">made by divine hands.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">That ol’ Peacemaker<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">has called a halt to
all wars.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">See, the rifles snap
over God's knee.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">Behold, God smashes<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">stockpiles of nuclear
weapons with a mighty fist<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">and puts the match to
a fleet of stealth bombers.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">God shouts over the
noise of battle,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">“Stop the fighting!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">When the world obeys,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">they will know me<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">as the God I am,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">Lover of justice and
peace.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">When the world finally
ceases<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">its warring ways,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">then they will know,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">I am their refuge and
their strength.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">I will be exalted<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">over all the earth.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">God is our ever present
help.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><br />
God is our refuge and our strength.</span></i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Leo Hartshornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06040456376937046171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217245670187260420.post-43680174052293810182016-01-31T15:32:00.001-08:002016-01-31T15:32:31.876-08:00The Spirit of the Lord is upon Us! Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11; Luke 4:16-30<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;">
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<i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">*This sermon was preached at Zion Mennonite Church on
1/24/16 and at Portland Mennonite Church on 1/31/16. Audio of the sermon can be
found at: <a href="http://zionmennoniteoregon.org/worship-services/worship-recordings/">http://zionmennoniteoregon.org/worship-services/worship-recordings/</a><o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our
hearts be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, our Rock and Redeemer.<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">It was just another
normal Sabbath day in Nazareth when ol’ Joe’s boy stood up to read scripture in
his home congregation. It was like any simple Sunday at church when the reader
grabs a Bible, thumbs through the pages and finds the assigned text to read for
that day. There were no angels flitting about willy nilly. No bright star in
the sky. No heavenly visions. No devil offering rocks for bread. No crackling
of straightening limbs. No matted-hair-camel-hide-Jordan-drenched wild man
screaming across a muddy river. Just a bunch of regular church-goin’ folks,
like you and me, sitting in their pews waiting for the scripture to be read.
That’s all they were expecting to hear. The plain, unadorned reading of their Bible.
No big whoop.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">If, as a young man, I
had heard in my home congregation what was read on that routine Sabbath, my
ears probably would have tingled. It seems to me that back in my younger years the
kind of text that Jesus read must have been cut out of our Bible, or at least
the Bible <i>I</i> heard in church. You see,
my home congregation was deep fried in the Southern evangelical tradition. We
knew the Bible from “civer to civer,” could quote chapter and verse. But
strangely enough, rarely, if ever, was anyone assigned to stand on a Sunday
morning and read the text for the day. And the texts that were read and
preached upon were usually chosen randomly by the pastor, that is, if they were
of the John 3:16 or Roman Road variety. And our response to the word was
consistently a long, drawn out plea for sinners to come forward, with every head
bowed and every eye closed and just one more excruciating verse of <i>Just As I Am</i>. You could expect to hear
about how to get to heaven and avoid the scorching heat, and I’m not talking California
desert, on any given Sunday. So, to have heard about good news for the poor,
liberation for the captives, and freedom for the oppressed, would have probably
sounded like Chinese at Pentecost! I mean, it would have been as foreign and as
scary as that ol’ boogey man we called “the social gospel.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">But, these weren’t
Southern evangelicals in Jesus’ home congregation. They were traditional kosher
Jews. But like the evangelicals of my upbringing, they knew their scripture.
And like those evangelicals they considered the scripture holy, sacred, God’s
very word, to be heard and followed. Difference is that most people in Jesus’
day were part of oral cultures where only a few could read. They had to learn
and remember their sacred scripture by heart, through word of mouth. And from
our story today, it appears that Jesus was one of the few in his home
congregation who could read the text on that Sabbath day.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">The synagogue
attendant hands Jesus the scroll of the prophet Isaiah. In our Christian
imaginations we might picture Jesus with a glowing gold halo behind his head as
he semi-floats to the podium to read from the scroll. We would like to imagine
that he had a deep, commanding James Earl Jones voice with a British accent.
But, when he starts reading he sounds like he has a plain ol’ Nazareth twang
like e’rybody else. Most likely what he read was an assigned text in a cycle of
readings for that particular Sabbath, like our lectionary reading for today. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">With prayer shawl over
his head and every eye glued upon him, Jesus begins reading:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">because he has anointed me<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">to bring good news to the poor,<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">to proclaim release to the captives<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">and recovery of sight to the blind, <o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">to let the oppressed go free,<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">There were no
social-gospel gasps, no ears burning at Isaiah’s prophetic message of social
justice. The reading was as welcome as it would be at a progressive Mennonite
Church listening to one of their own preaching on the same text. There was no
noise of protest at such a liberating message. Just the sound of the scroll being
rolled up and Jesus handing it back to the <i>hazzan</i>
or synagogue attendant and sitting down. No big whoop.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">I could expound on
how Jesus cut off his reading right before the verse that speaks of the
“vengeance of our God.” And I could further elucidate on how Jesus creatively interpreted
scripture through a lens of nonviolence, but I would only digress. Instead, I
will turn to the longing eyes that are fixed on Jesus. These eyes are wet with
the hopes of release from their captivity to the occupying forces of the Roman Empire.
These eyes blink bewildered by their own bigotry. These eyes search for signs
of freedom from the impoverishment and sickness of an oppressed people. These
eyes weep for that day when God’s grace and favor will pour down like rain on
parched land. These eyes are fixed upon Jesus as he takes his seat.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">Now, this was no
ordinary sitting, like a 60s “sit in” was no ordinary sitting. In Jesus’
context sitting was the position that the teacher took in the synagogue. Scripture
was read standing. Exposition or explanation was done seated. Their eyes are
fixed upon Jesus because they’re eagerly waiting for him to exegete, expound
upon, and interpret the scripture for them and their day, like a Rabbi or
teacher. Jesus has no long speech. His commentary is short and sweet. He simply
says: <i>Today this scripture has been
fulfilled in your hearing. </i>Hmmm. Now, what in heaven’s name does that mean?
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">Well, <b><i>we</i>
</b>know what it means <b><i>for us</i></b>. We have the advantage of 2000
years of hind sight. We know that Luke placed this story at the opening of his
gospel as a way of encapsulating the whole of Jesus’ ministry. So, we need not resist
the truth that the “social gospel” of justice and human liberation are at the
very heart of Jesus’ mission. We know Luke will focus his gospel and its
sequel, the book of Acts, on the poor, women, outsiders, and the <i>goyim,</i> Gentiles or non-Jews. We know
that this story fits into the larger picture of Luke’s gospel in which the
message and mission of Christ begins among his own people but ends up spreading
out across the whole world among all peoples. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">We also know that
Jesus is taking on the role of the Suffering Servant of Isaiah, as he reads
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon <i>me.</i>” Isn’t
it obvious to us that Jesus is speaking about himself? Well, at least to us. The
text is no longer about the Spirit anointed prophet during the days of Israel’s
exile or some obscure figure who will eventually come to enact these signs of
God’s coming reign. For us, Isaiah’s words are about Jesus. And we, unlike
those who are hearing these words from Jesus’s lips for the first time,
recognize that he is applying Isaiah’s words to himself. Jesus dares to take
the words of scripture and make them about <i>his</i>
life, <i>his</i> mission, <i>his</i> day and time. What a wild and daring
idea Jesus enacts! Taking these ancient words of scripture and applying them to
himself and his mission in his contemporary world. What a revolutionary thought!
I wonder what that would mean for us to do the same. I wonder.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">Through his baptism Jesus
has been anointed as God’s prophet. The Spirit is upon him to bring good news
to the <i>anawim</i>, the poor, up to 90% of
agrarian peasant societies; proclaim liberation to the captives, in Isaiah’s
day those bound in debtor’s prison; sight to the blind, both physically and
spiritually; freedom for the oppressed, economically and politically; and to
proclaim the time of God’s favor, rather than God’s vengeance. God’s new age
begins at that very moment. Jesus’ presence on that day in the synagogue
inaugurates the coming kingdom of liberation for all God’s people! In response
to the words of Jesus we might expect those in the synagogue to shout, “<i>Mine</i> eyes have seen the glory of the
coming of the Lord!” Hallelujah!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">But, there are no
shouts of “Hallelujah!” or “preach it, brother!” not even a “Thank you,
Jesus…for reading the scripture this morning.” The words that describe the
response to Jesus are as plain as an Amish meeting on a Sunday morning: <i>All spoke well of him. </i>Don’t they fathom
the depth of the words that Jesus just spoke? Not only does God bring liberation
and justice for their ancestors in exile, but for them starting right here and
right now! Doesn’t his revolutionary message register?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">I imagine their
response was kind of like the compliments a typical preacher hears on a Sunday
morning after the sermon as church people file out of the building and give the
preacher that obligatory handshake: “Sir, that was a rather interesting interpretation
of scripture, very articulate.” “Pastor, that’s one of my favorite Bible verses.
I could listen to it all day long.” “Nice sermon, preacher. I heard every word.
Boy, you sure know how to stick it to <b>those</b>
people!”<i> And they were all amazed at his
gracious words.<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">There was no “Finally,
the Messiah has come!” or “Justice and liberation are at our doorstep!” or
“God’s reign has now begun!” They simply said…. “Ain’t that ol’ Joe’s boy?” He’s
just one of us local yokels. Why, his pappy done built a crib for my eldest daughter.
He went to school with Ezra’s boy, didn’t he? Ahh, he’s no big whoop! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">Jesus must have
intuited what was on the people’s minds and hearts when he responded: <i>I suspect you will quote to me that old folk
saying, “Doc, cure yourself.” Jesus, why not perform some miracles among your
own people. </i>It’s like they didn’t get a word Jesus said. My mission is
about justice and God’s reign, beginning here and now. And you ask for signs,
miracles? My mission is not about turning stones into bread or being able to leap
off tall buildings with a single bound.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">Doctor heal yourself</span></i><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">. Do some miraculous razzle dazzle among your own people, Jesus, like
you did in Capernaum. Jesus perceives that their concern is more about healing
and signs for themselves, than it is about the reign of God for all people here
and now. They don’t catch what his presence implies or the broader meaning of
God’s reign. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">But, Jesus doesn’t
break out into a fiery, John the Baptist rant against his own people. Jesus
speaks as a prophet, but in a rather oblique way, at an angle. What Jesus does
seems rather innocuous on the surface. And yet, he’s about to explode all their
narrow-minded, parochial views to kingdom come by telling stories. Hidden
inside his storytelling is a Trojan horse, as dangerous and explosive as a
stick of dynamite in a nursery rhyme. He basically tells them treacherous stories,
volatile stories from their own sacred scripture, God’s holy Word, to be heard
and followed. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">Jesus says, “Truly,
I tell you…” Better watch out when Jesus uses those words. I first heard those
words in good old inspired King James English: <i>Verily, verily, I say unto thee…</i> That meant something significant
was about to be said by Jesus, so listen up, people! <i>Truly I tell you, no prophet is accepted in the prophet’s home town. </i>Jesus’
friends, neighbors, community, his own people seem to take him for granted and end
up rejecting him, especially when he speaks as a prophet of God’s inclusive, liberating
reign right here and now. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">Then, Jesus grabs
hold of a couple of tough-as-leather stories from their own holy scriptures, like
two boxing gloves. These were stories they knew by <i>heart</i>, or should I rather say, stories they knew by <i>head</i>. These stories were like a one-two
punch in the gut! Ding. Ding. Round One. Jesus floats like a butterfly and
stings like a bee! He winds up. <i>There
were</i> <i>many in Israel in the time of
Elijah, when the heaven was shut up for three years and six months, and there
was a severe famine in the land; yet Elijah was sent to none of them except to
a widow at Zarephath in Sidon. </i>Holy Jesus, what did you just say? While
God’s own people are hungry, the prophet Elijah shows God’s grace to a woman, a
widow, a foreigner, a non-Jew who lived among the worshippers of Baal?<i> </i>Pow! I imagine the heads of Jesus’
listeners were reeling, wobbling, and spinning, as they hung on the ropes about
to hit the mat. And our heads are spinning trying to think of what this
possibly might mean for us today.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">Without hesitation,
Jesus goes in for the knockout punch. Ding. Ding. Round 2. <i>There were also many lepers in Israel in the time of Elisha, and none
of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian. </i>What did you say, Jesus? Did
you say <i>Syrian</i>? Jesus, are you <i>serious</i>? Is this just some odd
coincidence or do you mean <i>Syrian</i> as
in (gulp) <i>Syrian</i> refugees? O Lord,
show us, what in the world this scripture might possibly mean for us today? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">Let me chew on this
for a minute. Does this mean God’s message may not be welcomed even by God’s
own people? Could people, like me, who call themselves “Christians” not really get
what Jesus is saying, like when he says, “Love your enemies and bless those who
persecute you”? That’s not fair, Lord. I’m on your side. I just want to see you
give those right wing bigots what’s comin’ to them! It’s time for God’s
vengeance! Are we unable to recognize the face of Jesus in the poor and the
prisoner, the unwelcomed and the undocumented? Jesus, are you implying that you
may need to take your healing grace to people who are not your own people? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">Lord, I’m still
searching for what this might mean for us right here and right now. Do you mean
God may favor people from another country over the U.S.? God forbid! Lord,
haven’t you heard that we are exceptional, a Christian nation? Jesus, do you
mean God’s favor might sometimes fall upon another faith other than Christian? No
way! Becoming a Christian is the only way to receive God’s favor. And how about
me, Lord, your servant? I didn’t spend all these many years in Christian
ministry with all its struggles for you to just turn around and say you’re
showing your favor to someone else! That’s not fair! Lord, could this word mean
that today God might be acting for the benefit of another race other than us
white folks? Surely, not! All Lives Matter! And how could that be since it’s mostly
us white folks who are here in this congregation on any given Sunday listening
to Jesus’ message? All the while, do those of us listening to Jesus’ words <i>fully</i> comprehend their meaning for ourselves
and our own context? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">What is the reaction
of God’s people to Jesus’ words? <i>Nice
sermon, preacher. That’s a rather interesting take on that scripture, sir. </i>No.
No. No. <i>When they heard, all in the
synagogue were filled with red, hot, boiling, rage! </i>Why were his people so
enraged? Was it simply because Jesus implied that his own people aren’t really
grasping the full import of his message and not welcoming him? Yes, but I think
it was more than that. Jesus was proclaiming that God is graciously working in healing
ways that transcend God’s own people by bringing good news, liberation,
freedom, grace and favor to others, like the Canaanite widow and Naaman the
Syrian. Or we could add from Luke’s continuing story, the Ethiopian eunuch (possibly
a gay, black man) or Cornelius the centurian (a Roman military soldier) or Lydia
the business woman (probably a leader of a local synagogue of women). God only
knows where divine healing grace and transforming favor will end up.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">How did Jesus’ home
congregation react to this message? They reacted like a mob of “radicalized Christians”
at a rally of a certain politician when they saw a Muslim woman wearing a hijab
silently standing with this message printed like words of Jesus on her t-shirt
“Salam. I come in peace.” They reacted like the crowd that encountered a black
man at their rally who openly proclaimed the message, “Black Lives Matter!” They
got up and drove Jesus out of town. They took him on a loooooong walk off a
short cliff, a cliff that oddly enough looked like the shadow of a cross, or
should I say, a foreshadow…of the cross that was to come. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">The difference for
us well-mannered, peace-loving Christians today is that we probably wouldn’t
become enraged and try to shove Jesus off a cliff. If you’re like me, you don’t
want to openly offend anyone. So, we might simply clench our teeth, give him a
limp handshake and with a smirk on our face say, “Nice sermon, Jesus,” and go
on our mad and merry way. No crucifixion; at least for this moment. Somehow
Jesus passes through the midst of the angry mob <i>and goes on his way</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">And when he went on
his way, where did he end up? Christ ended up on an old rugged cross, the emblem
of….state torture and terrorism. Christ ended up in a dark Saturday tomb. Christ
ended up on a bright Sunday triumphing over the oppressive forces that snuffed
out the candle of his life. Christ ended up bringing light and life to people
of all races, gender identities, sexual orientations, national origins,<i> </i>political persuasions, and economic circumstances.
Christ ended up within the sacred scriptures of his own people which beckon us to
truly hear and follow his word. Christ ended up inspiring movements of liberation,
freedom, justice, peace, and equality across the globe. Christ ended up
transforming hearers and believers into followers and advocates engaged in the
ways of God’s reign in their own lives. Christ ended up embodied in his forgiven
people, followers of Jesus’ way, who seek to live out his life-giving,
liberating word in the world in which they find themselves. They, like Jesus, dare
to take upon themselves <i>his</i> words for
their own time and context with whatever risk and danger may come their way. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><i><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">We</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;"> are <i>these very followers
of the Risen Christ, baptized by water and Spirit.</i> <i>The Spirit of the Lord is upon <b>us</b>,
because <b>we</b> have been anointed to
bring good news to the poor! Here and now! The Spirit of the Lord is upon <b>us</b>, to proclaim liberation to the captives!
Here and now! The Spirit of the Lord is upon <b>us</b>, to give insight into God’s healing work in the world! Here and
now! The Spirit of the Lord is upon <b>us, </b>to
free the oppressed! Here and now! The Spirit of the Lord is upon <b>us</b>, because <b>we</b> have been anointed to proclaim that <b>now</b> is the time of God’s favor for all of God’s children. Here and
now! Truly, truly I say unto you, my people, the Spirit of the Lord is upon <b>us</b>! Here…. and….now!</i><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">There is more light and truth yet to break forth from
God’s holy Word.<b><o:p></o:p></b></span></i></div>
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Leo Hartshornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06040456376937046171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217245670187260420.post-74897087461506527552014-10-27T09:48:00.001-07:002014-10-27T09:48:38.563-07:00Interpreting the Bible for Discipleship: Matthew 7:21-29; Luke 8:21; James 1:22
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisLFYf8TCPDanO0_rooEIVdviq8Jwz9loECQRXujCUdqXzP_YNFU2P_Tjb4vkpQzFbO79b446LHsDWEgkeEF0HUfFdJtIffo0OnUKzJyom6danxupEHhP6y_XeFG4oJBciotmwCRfomNY/s1600/LAPTOP+-+come-follow-me.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisLFYf8TCPDanO0_rooEIVdviq8Jwz9loECQRXujCUdqXzP_YNFU2P_Tjb4vkpQzFbO79b446LHsDWEgkeEF0HUfFdJtIffo0OnUKzJyom6danxupEHhP6y_XeFG4oJBciotmwCRfomNY/s1600/LAPTOP+-+come-follow-me.jpg" height="452" width="640" /></a></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b> </div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><em>*This was my last sermon at Albany Mennonite Church presented on October 26, 2014</em></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></b><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Sola fide! </span></i><span style="font-size: 14pt;">That
was the cry of Martin Luther and the Reformation. We are justified before God <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">by faith alone</i>, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">sola fide</i>, without works. This doctrine had a profound effect upon
how Luther read the apostle Paul, the book of James, and the rest of the Bible.
His belief in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">sola fide</i> led him to
call the book of James “an epistle of straw.” He felt this scarecrow of a book
contradicted Paul’s teaching of salvation by faith alone. Although Luther once
commented that he would like to “throw Jimmy in the stove,” he didn’t remove the
book of James from his Bible. He did detach it from its usual order and place
it as an appendix at the end of his German Bible translation. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The Anabaptists had
a different understanding of the Bible from Luther and the Reformers. They
appreciated the book of James. Their cry was not <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">sola fide! </i>It was<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> nachfolge
Christi</i>, that is, following Christ or discipleship. Although they believed
in justification by faith through God’s grace, they called for a faith inextricably
tied to good works, as did Jesus and James. And they used James as an argument
against what they viewed as a justification for “cheap grace” by the Reformers,
that is, grace devoid of a life that gives evidence of one’s faith. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The Reformers and
the Anabaptists interpreted the Bible differently, particularly concerning
their understandings of “works” or practicing the faith. How one understands
and practices discipleship can have a profound effect on how one interprets the
Bible.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Each of the
texts we read this morning promotes the priority of practice.</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> If Martin Luther had a hard time with the teaching of
James, he should also have had a hard time with the teaching of Jesus. And I
suspect that most evangelicals will swallow hard at Jesus’ words. In the Sermon
on the Mount Jesus has some strong words for those who simply confess him as
“Lord.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Not everyone who says to me ‘Lord, Lord’ will enter the kingdom of
heaven, but only the one does the will of my Father in heaven. </i>It appears
that Jesus doesn’t put too much stock in confessions of faith devoid of works
or doing God’s will. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">In the book of James
it says that the devil believes the Word so much that he trembles. That’s
“shakeable” faith! Jesus places a priority upon the “unshakeable” faith of
hearing and doing God’s Word, not just believing and confessing it. But, this has
nothing to do with salvation, says Mr. Luther and the evangelicals. Well, then,
what about the part of the text that mentions “entering the kingdom of heaven”?
According to Jesus entering the kingdom of heaven requires more than
confession. Entering the kingdom of heaven requires following God’s will. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Confession also calls for “procession,” that
is, following God’s will. Faith includes faithfulness. This doesn’t mean that
we merit our own salvation, but that real faith is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">proven</i> by faithfulness. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">If we look at the
next paragraph, Jesus goes on to liken the person who hears his words and does
not act upon them as being like someone who builds their house upon the sand,
which crumbles when the rains fall and the winds blow. Hearing the Word of God
and doing nothing with it is not a stable foundation for a spiritual house. Simply
confessing and believing isn’t a strong enough foundation. Hearing the Word
alone<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> </i>is a house built on sand. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Is this some
isolated teaching of Jesus about faith being inextricably tied to practice? Can’t
we just stick this text in the back of our Protestant Bibles and forget it’s
even in there? No. It’s at the heart of Jewish faith and the tradition of
Jesus.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">If you want
to know how important this teaching was for Jesus, just remember what he said
to his own flesh and blood, his mother and brothers.</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> He was surrounded by a crowd of people and his family
wanted to see him, so they asked for him. Now, anyone who promotes supposed “traditional
Christian family values” ought to plug their ears at this point. Okay, are you
ready? Jesus had different values from most of those who spout “traditional family
values.” Traditional family values were not a priority for Jesus. If it was,
why didn’t he have his own family? Jesus was something of an oddball for his
day; a single, unmarried man with no children to carry on his name. And what he
said about his family should gag those who pound the bully pulpit about
traditional family values. By the way, the Bible is crammed full of
non-traditional families. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Jesus said to those
relaying his family’s request to see him, “My mother and my brothers are those
who…have a working father, head of the household, a mother who stays at home,
raises the children, cooks the meals, and is submissive to her husband, and they
have a quiver full of disciplined children from the Lord.” No, Jesus didn’t say
that! This wasn’t even the case for most families during the idealized 1950s. Jesus
said, “My mother and my brothers are those who <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">hear the word of God and</i>…<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">do
it</i>.” I think I just heard James Dobson fall flat on the floor! <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">There it is again.
Practicing the faith. Discipleship. Following Jesus. That’s what makes up
Jesus’ family. Not those who have traditional, nuclear, heterosexual marriages
and families. And not just those who simply hear the word, or who just confess
it and believe it. But, those who are in Jesus family <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">hear the Word of God</i>… <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">and</i>
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">do it</i>! <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Well, let’s
turn to that rather strawy epistle of James.</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> James states the relationship between faith and
action in rather blunt terms. No beating around the bush. James says, “Faith
without works is dead.” For him works of care and compassion are like the
animating spirit in the human body. Without it the body is dead. Without these
kinds of works, faith is as dead as a door nail. James asks, “If you have faith
but do not have works, can faith save you?” Now, Martin Luther would be
yelling, “YES!!” For James faith and works are inseparable. You can’t have one
without the other. But, doesn’t Jesus say the same thing, just with different
images. Hearing the Word alone is like a house built on sand. The person who
confesses Jesus as “Lord,” does not enter the kingdom of God, but the one who
does the will of God. And Jesus’ true family is those who hear the Word of God
and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">do it</i>. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Performing the faith
is essential to what faith means. We should think of faith as more than
believing in the heart and confessing with the mouth. Think of faith in terms
of faithfulness. Faithfulness is action, evidence of life, movement,
discipleship. No one is talking here about saving ourselves by all the things
we do for God. We are saved by God’s grace. That was the case even for Jews in
the OT. They didn’t consider salvation a matter of their observance of the law.
They were saved by God’s grace. Obedience to the law was part of their covenant
with God. What we are talking about here is real faith evidenced by real faithfulness
in real lives in the here and now. Faith that works. New birth evidenced by
living as if we were born again. Salvation evidenced by living a saved life.
Hearing the Word of God and doing it. Discipleship evidenced by following
Jesus.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I grew up in a faith
tradition that emphasized believing over performing the faith. Faith was about
accepting Jesus into your heart, confessing him publicly, with the assurance
that you would go to heaven. Our duty as Christians was to share the good news,
in a type of 4 easy step formula, which led to their “being saved.” In my
congregation there was little talk of discipleship or the ongoing life of
following Jesus. So, when I heard this following story, I immediately
recognized a different perspective that shaped the Anabaptist tradition. As
someone from an evangelical background, who was new to the Anabaptist
tradition, hearing this story was a kind of “aha!” moment for me.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">As the story goes, a
young evangelical meets an Amish man in Lancaster County, PA. The young
evangelical asks the Amish man, “Sir, are you <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">saved</i>?” The Amish man takes off his straw hat, scratches his head,
and then pulls aside his suspenders grabbing a pencil and paper in his pocket.
The young evangelical looks at the Amish man rather oddly as he scratches out
something on his piece of paper. He’s probably thinking to himself, “Why can’t
this man just give me a simple answer?” “Well, sir, are you <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">saved</i>?” the young evangelical asks again
rather impatiently. The Amish man hands the young evangelical the piece of
paper and says rather humbly, “Go ask these people.” Aha!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">For the young
evangelical “being saved” was more about whether or not he had said the
“sinners prayer” or “followed the Roman road” or “confessed Jesus as his
personal Lord and Savior” and was “assured that he was on his way to heaven
after his death.” For the Amish man “being saved” was about whether or not
there was evidence of being saved in the life that he lived day by day. And
that required witnesses. His was a faith that needed to be seen in his life.
Faith confirmed by faithfulness. Hearing the Word and doing it. Following in
the way of Jesus. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Okay, but what does
this have to do with interpreting the Bible?<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> Discipleship is not only the
proper response to hearing the Word, it is a prerequisite for an appropriate
interpretation of scripture.</i></b> Anabaptist scholars refer to this as a
“hermeneutic of obedience.” By that they mean, interpretation of scripture
requires obedience. Not only is obedience a key element for living the
Christian life, but a precondition for rightly interpreting scripture. The
Anabaptists were not proposing any complex, scholarly methodology for biblical
interpretation. For the early Anabaptists interpretation was not about
methodology, but about obedience. They proposed the simple truth that anyone
willing to obey what Christ has said could understand the Bible. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Anabaptists believed
that the Bible was not that hard to understand. The hard part was putting it
into practice. Even the phrase “following Jesus” may sound simple, until we
realize that the way of Jesus leads to the cross! For Anabaptists the
willingness to suffer was an element of rightly interpreting the message of
Christ. Anabaptist Pilgrim Marpeck stressed that interpreters should not
explain the meaning of scripture without taking responsibility to apply it.
Interpretation was not merely the practice of finding the truth in the Bible,
but practicing it. Knowing the Bible backwards and forwards and having the
right doctrine was clearly not as important to the Anabaptists as radically
living by scripture in one’s life. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">This principle of a
“hermeneutics of obedience” is reflected in the popular saying of Anabaptist
Hans Denck: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">No one can truly know Christ
unless they follow him in life. </i>Knowing Christ is not simply a matter of
believing or confessing Christ. Knowing Christ is bound up with following him
in one’s life. So, in like manner, for the Anabaptists no one could truly know
scripture, unless they followed Christ as revealed in scripture. Hearing the
Word and doing it was an essential Anabaptist view of the Bible and what it
meant to know Christ or be a Christian.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">So, I hope you have
heard the Word of God through something I have shared about scripture and
interpretation over these past 8 weeks.<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> But more importantly than hearing the Word
of God, I hope your heart is set on following in the way of Jesus as revealed
in scripture. </i></b>If you remember nothing else, remember this: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Blessed are those who hear the Word of God
and do it. </i>If reading, memorizing, studying, and interpreting scripture
remains in the head or even just the heart, it has not accomplished its ultimate
goal. The purpose and function of the Bible as scripture is to become fully embodied
in our lives. Its role is to shape us as a people into the likeness of Christ.
Its role is to lead us further along the way of following Jesus. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">God’s invitation to
all who have ears to hear is to come and follow Jesus. Confession and
profession are followed by <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">procession</i>.
God invites you who may have not yet committed yourselves to follow in the way
of Jesus to join in the procession. Not just hearing the Word, but doing it in
your daily life. Build your spiritual house with a solid foundation that can
face the storms of life. God’s invitation is to you who have been sidetracked
and gotten off on some side road of focusing upon yourselves, your family, your
friends, or your career to renew your faith and faithfulness by re-joining the
procession of following Jesus. God’s invitation to you who have sought to
faithfully live for Christ is to be encouraged and strengthened to continue on the
long journey of following Jesus. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I would invite each
person here today to respond to God’s invitation with your bodies. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Following Jesus</i> is a metaphor of a
journey through life and it suggests something we do with our bodies. Following
is not static. It involves movement. So, wherever you are on your spiritual
journey, you are invited to affirm your desire to follow Jesus by standing,
singing out with joy, clapping your hands, dancing, embracing one another,
shaking a hand, raising your arms, or following me in a procession around this
sanctuary. You decide how to respond to the invitation with your bodies.
Whatever your response, remember, we are celebrating our commitments to hear
the Word of God and do it, to follow in the costly, but joyful way of Jesus!
Amen? Amen!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span><br />
<br />
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">There is more light and truth yet to break forth from
God’s Holy Word.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
Leo Hartshornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06040456376937046171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217245670187260420.post-49120837268775773652014-10-20T08:28:00.002-07:002014-10-20T08:29:28.192-07:00Interpreting the Bible for Social Transformation: Luke 4:16-30; Matthew 5:38-48; Ephesians 5:21-25, 6:5-9<br />
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<em>*This sermon was presented at Albany Mennonite Church on October 19, 2014 to numerous amens!</em></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b> </div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I was inspired to
read the Bible for social transformation through the influence of, believe it
or not, an atheist. It was the early 80s during the Reagan years when the US
was involved in conflicts in Central America. These conflicts had already been
going on for a long time with the US backing dictators and their oppressive
regimes. To address this political and economic oppression, the Latin American Catholic
church created a new form of theology known as <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">liberation theology</i>. This atheist friend, who worked with my wife
Iris, was interested in what the church was doing in Central America to resist
the injustices and liberate the people from political oppression. An atheist
introduced me to liberation theology. I am forever thankful to God for placing an
atheist in my path.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">One of the first
books I read in liberation theology had a title that grabbed hold of my
imagination: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Thy Will Be Done:</i> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Praying the Our Father as a Subversive
Activity. </i>I was inspired to read Gustavo Guttierrez’ classic <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">A Theology of Liberation </i>and many other
books on liberation theology. My new awareness led me read the Bible with a new
lens and to get involved locally in the resistance movement against the oppressive
US policies toward Latin American during the Reagan years. For me, reading the
Bible for social transformation or liberation is a critical practice of
interpretation of the Bible for the times in which we live.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Did you know
that Jesus interpreted the Bible for social transformation? </span></i></b><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Jesus inaugurated his ministry by going to his hometown
synagogue in Nazareth. Luke places this story at the outset of his ministry so
that it defines the character of Jesus’ mission. Jesus was handed the scroll of
Isaiah by a synagogue attendant. Of all the texts to read from the scroll, he
chose to read from Isaiah 61. He read this: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The
Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to…</i>(anointed=Christ,
Messiah)<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> </i>and the reading goes on to
define the center of Jesus’ ministry as bringing good news to the poor, liberation
to the oppressed, freeing those in debtor’s prison, healing those physically
and spiritually blind, and proclaiming <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>the day of God’s favor. That sounds like a
politically conservative’s nightmare! The social gospel is good news? Lord,
help us! O, but Jesus is not through yet. It gets worse…or better, depending on
your social and political viewpoint. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Jesus also does
something interesting by what he chooses <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">not</i>
to quote from Isaiah. He leaves out the text that immediately follows about the
“vengeance of God.” Jesus doesn’t view the day he inaugurates as a day of
vengeance, but of God’s favor. I believe his omission was intentional. Jesus
was creatively re-interpreting scripture through a non-violent lens. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">So, Jesus read scripture
with a mission and mindset for peace and social justice, the agenda of a
prophet, things that are not on the top of our government’s agenda, and not on
the agenda of most Christians for that matter. But, peace and social justice are
at the heart of Jesus’ mission!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Then, Jesus rolled
up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. That was the
position for interpreting the scripture. Every eye was glued on him, waiting
for his interpretation of the text. Jesus looked around at his people and said:
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Today this scripture has been fulfilled
in your hearing. </i>That’s his interpretation. Short and sweet. The prophet is
speaking about me! Hold on Jesus! This sounds like the age of the messiah has
come. Your fellow Jews are not going to like that. Following his interpretation
there’s a rather surprising response….<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">All
spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his
mouth. </i>What?! Did anyone hear what Jesus just said? Maybe they were just
adjusting their hearing aids or just being nice, like when you shake the
preacher’s hand after a fiery, prophetic sermon and say, “Nice, uh, sermon,
pastor (gulp).”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">But, the tone of
their conversation soon began to change. Maybe what he said began to sink in. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Isn’t this ol’ Joe’s boy. No big whoop. </i>Jesus
read their minds and said: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Well, I’ll bet
you want to quote that old saying “Doctor, cure your own family?” Do right here
what you did in Capernaum. </i>You can tell Jesus is about to get worked up
into a fiery, prophetic sermon. But, instead he simply hands them some
exploding stories from their own scriptures. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">If you don’t like the words of a prophet, then you
won’t like my words either. No prophet is accepted in his hometown.</span></i><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">And here are a
couple of stories of prophets to chew on for a while. </i><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: red;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></b><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">There were many hungry widows in Israel in
the prophet Elijah’s day, but God sent Elijah only to a widow at Zarephath, a
foreigner. And there were a slew of lepers in Israel in the days of the prophet
Elisha, but none were cleansed but Naaman, the Syrian, another foreigner. So,
what makes you think you’re so special? </i>Well, uh, American exceptionalism,
of course? <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">This story of Jesus is
a microcosm of the story of Luke-Acts with the gospel starting in the synagogue
and moving to the nations. Nevertheless, Jesus’ own people had become blinded
by their xenophobia, the fear of the stranger and foreigner. They were supposed
to be <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>exclusively chosen of God. So then,
the smiles and back pats turned into angry scowls and clenched fists. They
decided to take this radical Bible reader on a long walk off a short cliff!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Oddly enough, those
in the synagogue didn’t appear to be bothered by Jesus’ biblical interpretation
in which he seemed to apply messianic ideas to himself. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Today this scripture has been fulfilled. </i>Maybe he wasn’t being
clear enough. But, what he said afterwards was as clear as a bell! <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Talk about God healing and caring for
foreigners and outsiders <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">over us</i>?
That’s blasphemy! (Even though it was there in black and white in their own
scriptures). <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Buddy, that kind of dangerous
talk can get you killed. Saying “God loves strangers and foreigners” right in
the middle of a we’re-proud-to-be-an-American house of worship can get you
strung up! That’s as dangerous as shouting “I have ebola” on a crowded airplane.
It’s like saying “God blesses Buddhists” in a conservative church service. Or
saying “God embraces gays” at a Mennonite convention. It’s as dangerous as saying
out loud at a fourth of July rally, “God loves Muslims!” <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Hey, Mr. Bible interpreter, let me show you the view from this nice
cliff nearby</i>. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Through his
interpretation of scripture Jesus informed his people, right from the get go,
that his mission was going to be about peace, healing, reconciliation, economic
and social justice, inclusion of the stranger, foreigner, and outsider. He
broke down ethnic, social, and cultural walls with God’s inclusive love. Jesus
interpreted the Bible for social transformation. Are you still with me?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Jesus also read his Bible with an eye toward
nonviolent peacemaking. </span></b><span style="font-size: 14pt;">What may seem
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">implicit</i> about peace by leaving out a
part of his quotation from Isaiah, Jesus makes <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">explicit </i>in his so-called “sermon” on the mount. Matthew presents
Jesus as a new Moses, who proclaims a new law on the mountain. Jesus creatively
re-interprets the scripture of his people for peace and social transformation. Again,
he uses scripture to address a social issue. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">You have heard that it was said, “An eye for an eye
and a tooth for a tooth.” </span></i><span style="font-size: 14pt;">We’ve heard
it and we love it. We love this law more than we love Chuck Norris! We love it so
much, we use it in our justice system. Tit for tat justice. It is the law of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">lex talionis</i> or law of retaliation, by
which justice is meted out as the same degree of punishment as the offense. Except,
if you’re a black man in the US, then it’s 10-20 years in the slammer for
smoking a joint.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Believe it or not, this
Mosaic law of an eye for an eye was a step forward from the cultural practice
of unlimited retribution, which goes; <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Yous
knock my tooth out and I’ll make you toothless! Kapeesh!</i> Or you kill
someone you get the chair, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">but no more</i>.
This Mosaic law put a limit on retaliation. Unlimited vengeance was the
practice before the law. It is expressed by Lamech in Genesis. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">If Cain is avenged seven times, then Lamech
seventy-seven times! </i>Sound familiar? “How many times should we <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">forgive</i>, seven times?” asks Peter? Jesus
said, “Seventy-seven times.” In other words, until it becomes a fixed habit! Jesus
transforms unlimited retaliation into unlimited forgiveness. There you go
again, Jesus, taking our violent social practices and turning them on their
heads.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">In this case, Jesus
goes further than the tit-for-tat law, extending the trajectory of its
movement, creatively re-interpreting scripture for the sake of nonviolence and
social transformation. But, at the same time, Jesus is taking some liberties
with sacred scripture in his interpretation. He is definitely not a literalist
when it comes to his approach to interpreting the Hebrew Scriptures. Jesus’ repeated
formula, “The Bible says that…but I say this,” should cause any biblical literalist
to pull out their hair! <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">In essence Jesus is
saying, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Remember Moses’ law about an eye
for an eye? Well, I’ve got a better law. </i>What? A better law than Moses, who
spoke face-to-face with God? Jesus, do you think you’re better than Moses? <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I say to you don’t fight fire with fire, eye
for eye, tooth for tooth, tit for tat. Instead, if someone gives you backhanded
slap on the left cheek to try to put you in a class beneath them, stand up tall
and offer them your other cheek as an equal. If your creditor takes the coat
you have given as security for your loan, give him your clothes down to your
skivvies to expose his injustice. If a Roman soldier forces you to carry his
load for the required mile limit, carry it two miles and make him a little
nervous about his oppressive practices. </i>This doesn’t sound like being a
passive dormat, but more like active nonviolent resistance!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Jesus goes on: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Bible says love you neighbor…and…uh…well
we have interpreted the Bible to say….hate your enemy. But I say unto you,
“Love the Muslims and pray for ISIS”…</i>What? I mean, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you. </i>And if that
wasn’t hard enough to swallow, Jesus turns God into some kind of bleeding-heart
liberal who sends the many blessings of his creation upon both good and bad,
grateful and ungrateful, black, brown, yellow, red, and white people alike. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Do you mean God offers unconditional
universal welfare? </i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And if that still
wasn’t enough, Jesus says that to be like God we need to love those<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> who don’t love us</i> as a sure test of real
love. Why, anyone can love a red-blooded, white American Christian with proper
documents. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Jesus Christ</span></i><span style="font-size: 14pt;">,
what happened to an eye for an eye? Jesus Christ….that’s what happened. Jesus
got hold of the scripture and read it in such a way that if it were truly
practiced the way he read it, it would <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">dramatically</i>
transform the social, religious, and political landscape of this here so-called
“Christian nation” of ours and the world. Are you still with me? Jesus
interpreted scripture with a lens of nonviolent peacemaking. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Today, as followers of Jesus <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u>we</u> </i>can interpret the Bible with a lens for social
transformation. </span></b><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Yeah, but what about those texts we read from
Ephesians about slaves and women being submissive to their masters? Those texts
don’t sound very transformative. They sound socially backward. <o:p></o:p></span></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I can almost hear
some white person saying: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Well, we ended slavery
a long time ago. Today we’ve got a black president and Oprah Winfrey. The
command for slaves to obey their masters with fear and trembling no longer
applies to us. We live in a post-racial society. Besides, slavery in the Bible
was different from US slavery. And slaves in the South didn’t have it so bad.
They were treated well and were happy. Anyway, those texts are from a culture
when slavery was considered okay. We no longer think like that. We can’t take
what the Bible says here literally.<o:p></o:p></i></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Well, folks, we once
did! We once did! These slavery texts were literally used by Christians to
justify enslaving black Africans not that long ago in US history. These texts
were interpreted literally as God’s Word and used to keep slaves docile, submissive,
and obedient to their masters, even the harsh ones! We ended up fighting a
bloody civil war over our differing views on slavery! Thank God, the
anti-slavery position won out and our society was transformed….to a small
degree.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">History and society
may have changed, but did what the Bible say change? No. Those slavery texts
are still in there. What changed was how the Bible was interpreted. Many black
slaves, who had become Christians through their masters, along with white
abolitionists, simply ignored these slavery texts or they interpreted them as
cultural artifacts or they focused on other texts like God freeing Israel from
slavery in Egypt (Go down Moses!). Or they turned to the Golden rule or texts
about how God loves the whole world and is no respecter of persons. They
re-interpreted the Bible for social transformation!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Most Christians
today have taken hold of what were once subversive biblical interpretations by
those who believed in and worked for the end of slavery. Today we nonchalantly
say, “How could Christians back then have ever used the Bible to justify
slavery? Unthinkable.” But, we must remember that these differing
interpretations were once hotly debated. There was no one universal
interpretation of those slavery texts that everyone agreed upon. The church was
split over slavery, kind of like the church is currently split over how to
treat LGBT people, as brothers and sisters or “foreigners”? And yet, today there
are hardly any Christians that would claim that these biblical texts justify
slavery, or even racial discrimination, outside of a few racist bigots. A
social transformation took place that allowed the majority of Christians to
re-read these texts in a new light, like Jesus and early church re-read the OT
law. But, at the time of slavery, to ignore or re-interpret these slave texts
was a subversive act.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Then, we come to the
text in Ephesians about wives submitting to their husbands. I can almost hear
the voice of a young woman saying, “My husband is not <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">my</i> master!” And another older woman thinking to herself, “I just
skip over those texts in the Bible.” Another woman murmurs under her breath, “I
never did like Paul.” And probably some man is thinking, “Well, the text
actually says, right there, Husbands, love your wives like Christ loved the
church. Where does it say anything about submission? Tell me that. Edith, get
over here right now and show me where it says that!” These texts don’t appear
to be very liberating for women. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Remember <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">context</i> from last week? These <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">household codes</i> in Ephesians are set
within a larger context of ancient Mediterranean cultures, when women were not
only to be submissive to husbands, but were considered men’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">property</i>. Ever been to a wedding where
the father “gave away” the bride? This is a symbolic vestige of that old
patriarchal idea. The father owned the daughter and transferred that property
over to the husband in marriage. Otherwise, why would one of the Ten
Commandments forbid coveting of your neighbor’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">property</i>; house, ox, donkey, and….you got it….<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">wife! </i>Ephesians may be a step forward by telling husbands to love
their wives, but the husband is still the head of the wife like Christ is head
over the church. You can’t get around that it still says: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Wives are to be subject to their husbands in <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">everything</b></i>. My wife would <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">disown
</i>me if I quoted this verse to her!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Well, along comes
another historical moment of social transformation. The women’s suffrage
movement in the 1800s, when women <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">fought</i>….I’ll
say it again….<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">fought</i> long and hard
simply for their right to vote. Blacks were free by then, but black men and
women didn’t have the right to vote until very recently. At that time Elizabeth
Cady Stanton and 26 other women re-interpreted the Bible with women in mind by
writing <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Women’s Bible,</i> which was discouraged
by Susan B. Anthony and denounced by other women suffragists. Still, it became
a popular book. Then, a new wave of women’s liberation burst forth in society in
the 1960’s. Women called for full equal rights.<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: red;"> </span></b>Christian women began re-interpreting
the Bible with a women’s liberation lens, that is re-interpreting the Bible for
social transformation, which continues to this day. And I suspect that most
people in this congregation have been shaped to some degree by these movements
and the Christian women who re-interpreted those biblical texts about <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">women not teaching men</i> and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">women keeping silent in the church</i>. How
do I know this happened? You see, I just happen to know the gender of your
pastor. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">So, whether some of
us acknowledge it or not, like Jesus, we have practiced or accepted
re-interpreting the Bible in such a way that it supports social transformation.
While at the same time there are those who will continue to interpret scripture
so that it becomes bad news for the poor, imprisons the captives, blinds the
sighted, supports the oppressor, and proclaims the time of God’s vengeance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I say, let us not wait until society is
transformed around us and then begin to read the Bible through a liberating
lens. I say, let us follow in the way of Jesus and be <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">proactive </i>and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">intentional</i>
in our interpretation of the Bible and read it for liberation, deliverance,
hope, justice, inclusion, peace and social justice, and to break down the walls
of discrimination, inequity, and oppression in our world. Are you still with
me? Let us do this until that moment when we can say with Jesus, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">today this scripture is fulfilled in your
hearing!<o:p></o:p></i></span></span></div>
<br />
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The
Spirit of Christ is upon <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">us</b></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">because
Christ has anointed <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">us</b> </span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">to proclaim good news to the poor</span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">release to the captives</span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">sight to the blind</span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">liberation to the oppressed</span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">and to proclaim the time of God’s favor! Amen and
Amen!<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></i></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">There
is more light and truth yet to break forth from God’s holy Word.</span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></i></div>
Leo Hartshornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06040456376937046171noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217245670187260420.post-24037176991789502372014-10-13T08:47:00.000-07:002014-10-13T09:07:00.500-07:00Interpreting the Bible in Context: Numbers 12:1-16; Mark 12:38-44; Revelation 1:1-3, 9-11<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-JFRxaw6qJ-YS5mFCgFrLdEhOxPHp81EwxiD_EhNUfjwG9HF_S_bATaFRd6SsxZv50ILwU6yKQYV8dBaHeaD4WxD9nGV5DzlNg8WBWjx9jp61agYx3h9i6WbKhmlcFRlEBqUf8R5n3QQ/s1600/06_InterpretBible_Context.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-JFRxaw6qJ-YS5mFCgFrLdEhOxPHp81EwxiD_EhNUfjwG9HF_S_bATaFRd6SsxZv50ILwU6yKQYV8dBaHeaD4WxD9nGV5DzlNg8WBWjx9jp61agYx3h9i6WbKhmlcFRlEBqUf8R5n3QQ/s1600/06_InterpretBible_Context.jpg" height="400" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></b></div>
<em>*This sermon was presented at Albany Mennonite Church on Sunday, October 12, 2014. Below is a list of contexts for biblical interpretation.</em><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Ever notice how
someone’s words can be quoted out of context to make them say the exact opposite
of what they meant? This happens in politics, entertainment, advertising and
even religion. Technically these are called <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">contextomies</i>;
excluding the surrounding words of a text or quote which distorts the meaning.
In 2010 the magazine <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Vanity Fair’s </i>Mike
Ryan, an entertainment writer, described the TV show <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Lost </i>as<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> </i></span><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;">"the most confusing,
asinine, ridiculous —yet somehow addictively awesome — television show of all
time." Looking for blurbs for the show ABC edited the quote a tiny bit.
These words appeared on our TV ads for <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Lost</i>:
“the most addictively awesome show of all times---Vanity Fair.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
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<span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">There is a similar practice in Christianity. It is called <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">proof texting</i>. Texts are yanked out of
context in order to prove a preconceived position. There was an illiterate
Christian, who did not want to learn to read or study the Bible or listen to
anyone else’s opinion. So, he quoted to everyone from 1 John: “You need not any
man teach you, for the Spirit teaches you…” Problem is the context of 1 John lets
us know that this text is about false teachers and not about reading, learning,
or listening to another person’s viewpoint. Context is everything.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span></span><br />
<span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">You can make the Bible mean anything you want it to mean just by taking
verses out of context. For example, a man seeking God’s will used his Bible to
discern what he should do with his life. He opened his Bible and put his finger
on the text “Then, Judas went out and hung himself.” He was a bit shocked.
“Jesus, that can’t be God’s will for me,” he thought to himself. So, he
randomly opened his Bible again to another place, put his finger on the text,
which read: “Jesus said, “Go thou and do likewise!” Out of desperation he tried
again for a different message and to his dismay read this text: “What thou
doest, do quickly!” Context is everything.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Context is a key element of interpretation, particularly
when it comes to the Bible</span></i></b><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;">. I should probably rather say “contexts,” in that there
are numerous contexts to consider in biblical interpretation. I have included
in the church bulletin a list of the various contexts that will assist us in
interpreting scripture. I hope you use them in your study of the Bible. The
first context for interpreting a text is its location within the Bible
beginning with its closest context and moving on to a broader context. Start by
reading the surrounding verses, its location within the chapter, within the
particular book, within the testament it’s located, and finally within the
whole canon of scripture. Each one of these contexts may shed light on the
meaning of the text.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
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<span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Sometimes simply reading a text within its surrounding verses can open up
new interpretations of traditional readings. A good example would be the story
of the widow’s mite in Mark 12. The traditional reading of this story presents
the widow as a model of giving. We drag this poor widow out during Stewardship
campaigns to shame people into giving money. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Poor, poor widow. She had only two small coins, but she gave her all,
like Jesus, who would give his all on the cross. Why can’t we all be like the
poor widow!</i> But, if we would simply read the verses that precede and follow
this story, we might just come to an alternative interpretation. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
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<span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The verses that surround this story should be seriously noted. First, the
story is sandwiched in by stories that reflect Jesus’ condemnation of the
temple system. The temple was not simply a place of worship, as we tend to read
with our Western eyes that separates religion from economics and politics. The
temple represented not just religion, but an economic and political system.
Preceding the story of the widow’s mite Jesus says that he will be handed over
to the “chief priests and the scribes,” who will condemn him to death. This
particular elite class of religious leaders, not representative of all Jewish
leaders, were clients of imperial Rome. This is the context for Jesus
overturning the tables of the moneychangers, a symbolic prophetic act against
the temple as a system of economic exploitation. The temple had become not a
house of prayer, but a “den of thieves,” a place where money stolen from the poor
population was kept. This is followed by Jesus saying that if someone had
enough faith they could say to this mountain, that is the one on which the
temple stood, be cast into the sea. Not too complementary of the temple system!
Jesus is like the prophet Jeremiah who also decried those who trusted in the
temple system, which in his day had also become corrupted.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
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<span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Following the story of the widow is another anti-temple story. The
disciples marvel at the grandeur of the expensive temple buildings, but Jesus
tells them that the temple will be destroyed. There will not be one stone left
on top of another. The temple was destroyed in the year 70. The temple and
those connected to it are portrayed in Mark as an institution that exploits the
poor population and is worthy of destruction. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Second, immediately preceding the story of the widow the scribes are
described as hypocrites. Some of the scribes supported the priestly
aristocracy, who collaborated with Rome. They liked to walk around showing off
their long expensive robes, wanted places of honor and who….get this….“<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">devour widows’ houses</b>.” This is
probably a reference to these scribes being entrusted with widows’ estates and
siphoning off money from them leaving the widows impoverished. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">So, does the context lend itself to another interpretation than being a
story about Jesus commending the widow for giving her last cent to support the
temple? Could this story in its context simply be Jesus pointing out the sad
state of affairs of the widow as she, in her desire to honor God, is
impoverished even further by the temple system and its wealthy leaders by
giving away all that she had? I think this is very possible. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Instead of a tone of cheerful celebration and
a commending smile, imagine a tone of sheer sadness and a concerned frown as
Jesus says, “She gave all that she had.” <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Does the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">context</i> present us with
an alternative interpretation of the story of the widow’s mite? I’ll let you
decide. But if we take the traditional route in interpreting this story, we will
need to put the story into our own context, a context where poor widows today
get behind in their bills, get their heat shut off, don’t have enough food,
because they give their welfare checks to wealthy TV evangelists and their
lucrative ministries! Then, after we have placed this story firmly in our
context we should go out and apologize to all those poor widows for having
rolled our eyes at them or judged them for such generosity. If we think this a
model story of giving by a poor widow, liberal apologies should be forthcoming.
Put that in your context!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Interpreting scripture requires awareness of our own and
the Bible’s social and cultural contexts.</span></i></b><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"> In other words, we need to read
ourselves as we read the Bible. Honestly, we can’t help but read the Bible with
Western eyes. Those are the glasses we have been given in our culture. But, we
can misread the Bible with our own cultural lens. Randolph Richards and Brandon
O’Brien have written an interesting book entitled <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Misreading the Bible with Western Eyes</i>. Their conviction is that
“all Bible reading is necessarily contextual.” We often misread the Bible with the
context of our Western culture while the Bible was written in the context of
ancient Near Eastern cultures. Their social customs, family structures,
religious practices, economic and political situations were different from
ours. If we assume the world of the Bible is basically the same as Western or
American culture, we may misinterpret certain biblical texts. So we must read
ourselves as we read the Bible.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">For instance, take the story of Moses marrying a Cushite woman in Numbers
12. It would be easy for us to interpret this story in light of our contemporary
understanding of race. By doing so, we have interpreted this story through the
lens of modern racism. Moses married a Cushite woman. She was from a land south
of Ethiopia in Africa, and most likely dark skinned. Aaron and Miriam, Moses’
brother and sister, complained against Moses’ wife. What do you think their
problem was with this African woman? If we consider that, according to the
story, God cursed Miriam with <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">white skin</i>
(and why not Aaron as well?), then it would seem like God is being a bit
ironic. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Miriam, you don’t like her blackness,
so you wanna be white? Well then, check out your new skin color, Snow White!</i>
In other words, if Miriam has a problem with the Cushite’s black skin, then God
will make her skin white. So, there does seem to be an issue here with skin
color. But, is it the very same issue as modern racism?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">At first glance the story appears to be a case of racism in a modern sense,
that is, relegating a people to a lower social status based on skin color.
According to this traditional interpretation, Aaron and Miriam don’t like
Moses’ interracial marriage because his wife is black and therefore of lower
social status, which doesn’t seem to bother God. But, does this story fit with
a modern understanding of racism?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The problem is that race is a modern social construction. By that I mean,
race, as we understand it in modern Western culture, was created as a way to
classify human beings by skin color, physical features, and country of origin
beginning in the late 17<sup>th</sup> and early 18<sup>th</sup> centuries. Although
differences in skin color, ethnicity, class, tribe, and nationality were
recognized in ancient cultures, race was not a way people classified one
another. And although they may have had their own prejudices based on skin
color, it was not the same as our modern understanding of racism. Race is not a
biological reality. There is so much difference within the so-called “races”
that classification becomes practically useless. Except that it is used in our
white societies to relegate other races to an inferior status. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Modern racial classification was used to reinforce racism. Within those
classification systems White Europeans were considered higher on the human
value scale than other groups. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Racism</i>
is different from <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">personal</i> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">racial prejudice.</i> Racism is prejudice plus
the power to enforce those prejudices by those who hold the power and privileges
within society. So, racism <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">per se</i> is
not primarily a personal issue, but a systemic issue. It is a modern issue, not
an ancient issue. And because it permeates the systems, institutions, and power
structures of our society, controlled overwhelmingly by a white majority,
racism, in the context of the US, is primarily a white problem! Racism in the
US is designed to maintain white supremacy. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">To read these modern understandings of race and racism into the Bible is to
misread it. We have historically read race into the story of Noah’s curse of Canaan
(not his father Ham, as some have understood it) in Genesis. Read through the
lens of race and racism Noah’s curse was understood to be upon the dark-skinned
African people. Slavery was their assigned lot by God. This is a misreading of
the Bible through our own racial prejudices. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">We read the story of Moses and his African wife through a modern
understanding of racism. So, we assume that in the story Aaron and Miriam are
expressing a problem with Moses’ marriage because his wife is someone of lower
social status because she was a black African, when it has more to do with a
mix of class and color.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
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<span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">From his study of African cultures NT scholar Randall Bailey argues that the
African woman in Numbers 12 would have been considered of a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">higher</i> social status than Moses. In the
Bible Africans are viewed in a positive light; for instance, the Queen of Sheba
and the Ethiopian Eunuch. We might consider what John Kerry said concerning his
wife during his presidential debate as applicable to Moses. Kerry said, “I
married up!” In this view Aaron and Miriam complained because they thought
Moses has gained status <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">before God</i> by
marrying up because she was a black African woman. In essence their complaint
is: “Does Moses think he is better than us by marry up? Does God only speak
through him?” They are exhibiting a prejudice based upon the class or social
status of Moses’ wife as identified through her color and nationality.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The subtle differences are still significant between ancient prejudices
based on skin color coupled with class and nationality and our modern
understandings of racism growing out of a racial classification system based on
skin color, which reinforces white supremacy. We can read our modern
understandings of race and racism back into the Bible, even though they are
really modern Western constructions. We unconsciously interpret the Bible
through the modern lens of race and racism because we forget to read ourselves
and our culture along with reading the Bible and its culture. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Consider how race colors our religious imagination: How many of us were
imagining Moses as a white man marrying a black woman? Moses was a dark-skinned
Semite, probably of Afro-Asiatic descent. How do we imagine Jesus? Just take a
look at all the watercolor Sunday School pictures of Jesus. He’s as white as
Rush Limbaugh! But don’t you dare portray him as a black man! God forbid! And
what race do we imagine God to be? Surely not an old Asian woman! The images we
have created based on race influence our faith formation and interpretation of
the Bible. Modern understandings of race can be easily read back into the Bible
and our religious imaginations. Awareness of our own and the Bible’s social and
cultural contexts are crucial for biblical interpretation.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Reading the Bible with a collective lens can help us
avoid some misinterpretations. </span></i></b><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Western culture has been shaped by the
Enlightenment of the 1700s. This is the period during which our nation was
established. One of the key principles of the Enlightenment was <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">individualism</i>, the focus upon the
autonomous, isolated individual and their inborn rights. This focus on the
individual is reflected in the famous saying of the Enlightenment philosopher
Descartes, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I think therefore I am.</i> It
was <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">personal independence </i>that
spurred the pioneers to move West for gold and farmland. Even the contemporary US
economic concept of “rugged individualism” grew out of Enlightenment
philosophy. This is the idea that individuals can succeed on their own without
government assistance. It is also known as “bootstrap philosophy,” meaning that
individuals can pick themselves up by their own bootstraps. With only a few
resources, a lot of hard work, determination, and stick-to-itiveness, anyone
can succeed in life on their own. We were not suckled on an
“It-takes-a-village-philosophy.” And any political idea that is collective or
for the common good is readily condemned as “socialism” or “communism.” Our
culture has been deeply shaped by individualism. It permeates all aspects of
our mindset, beliefs, and cultural practices.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">So, when it comes to reading and interpreting the scriptures, we tend to
read it through the lens of individualism. Last week I mentioned that the
characteristic American approach to the Bible has been an individual,
devotional approach; studying the Bible on my own and finding out what God has
to say to little ol’ <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">me</i>. Not to say
that this is a bad thing, but to recognize that this is a typical Western, Enlightenment
approach to our sacred writings. The cultural contexts of the Bible were
non-Western and viewed life more through a collective lens. Biblical cultures
thought more in terms of nations, peoplehood, tribes, extended family units,
and “it-takes-a-village.” This is still the case within most non-Western
cultures today.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">For example, an anthropologist studying a tribe in Africa proposed a game
to the children.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He put a basket near a
tree and told them that the first person to reach the fruit would win them all.
When he told them to run, they all took each other’s hands and ran together,
then sat down together and enjoyed the fruits. When the anthropologist asked
why they ran together, since one person could have had all the fruit, they
said, “Ubuntu, how could one of us be happy if the rest of us are sad?” This
collective worldview presents a different slogan than Descartes “I think,
therefore I am.” This Ubuntu mindset of the African tribes can be summed up as
“I am because we are.” It might be helpful for us Westerners to try and read
the Bible through the lens of Ubuntu.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
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<span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">If we read and interpret the Bible through a more corporate, collective,
communal lens, we might be surprised not only how we might misread the Bible,
but how we might gain new insight and illumination in our reading. Let me share
with you a simple illustration. We are all familiar with the verse from the
book of Revelation in which Christ is depicted as standing at the door
knocking. The verse from Revelation 3:20 goes like this: “Behold, I stand at
the door and knock and if anyone hears my voice and opens the door; I will come
in to them and eat with them.” Our Western minds paint a sentimental
evangelistic picture of Jesus gently knocking on the door of our hearts. If we
would only open the door, then Jesus would come into our hearts and save us. Hallelujah!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The problem with this picture is that we have read this verse through a
Western individualistic lens. For whom was the book of Revelation written?
Individual Christians? No. It was written to seven churches in Asia Minor,
modern Turkey. That is the context of this verse within the book. Now, let’s
look at this verse in its more immediate context. It is found within a scathing
indictment of the church of Laodicea. The church is lukewarm, like warm milk
you spit out of your mouth. They are wealthy and independent, but are blind to
their own spiritual poverty. They are in need of repentance and correction.
Then….comes our famous verse….<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Behold, I
stand at the door and knock</i>….Is Christ standing at the door of an
individual’s heart knocking to come in? No! This is an image of Christ standing
outside the door of the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">church</i>
knocking to gain entrance! And church is not a building, but the gathered
community. This is no sentimental picture of the evangelist Jesus softly tapping
on the door of an individual’s heart. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: red;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></b>This is a
startling image of<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> </b>a prophetic<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> </b>Jesus left outside by the church!
That’s a powerful image, a shocking indictment of the church at Laodicea or any
church which becomes lukewarm, wealthy, self-sufficient, and spiritually
impoverished; a church that leaves Jesus outside in the cold! <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
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<span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Context is everything. It can free us from interpretations that reinforce
injustice. It can open our eyes to our own preconceptions and prejudices. It
can change a sentimental, evangelistic image of Jesus for individual sinners
into a shocking and potentially transforming image of Jesus for a church community
that has left him outside its doors. But, the same context can create an
invitation for us today to open our church doors to Jesus, in whatever guise he
might come to us, so that he might dine with us and us with him. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">And if you quote anything I have said today, I just hope you keep it in
context!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;">There is more light and
truth yet to break forth from God’s holy word.</span></i><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span><br />
<br />
<em>*This sheet on contexts was included as a bulletin insert</em><br />
<br />
<br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Contexts for Interpreting the Bible<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Leo Hartshorn<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Interpreting
the Bible in the context of...</span></b><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong>1</strong>. <strong>Life, teachings, death, and resurrection of
Jesus Ch</strong>rist- A Jesus-centered interpretation (an Anabaptist perspective)
is an important interpretive stance for the Christian. This approach does not
treat the Bible as a “flat book” with equal authority throughout.</span><br />
<br />
<!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">2. Canon as scripture</b>- A prerequisite for
rightly interpreting the Bible is a recognition that it is scripture, the sacred
texts of the church. </span><br />
<br />
<!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">3. Discipleship</b>- Another prerequisite for
rightly reading the Bible is to be an actual or potential follower of Christ
(an Anabaptist understanding). How can one rightly interpret scripture without
the will or desire to follow in the way of Christ?</span><br />
<br />
<!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">4. Bible</b>- It is very important to
interpret texts within their various contexts within the Bible: a) within the
surrounding texts; b) within the particular book; d) within the Old Testament;
d) within the New Testament; e) within the whole Bible; f) in relation to
similar biblical texts. Look for clues to the text’s meaning within its
biblical contexts.</span><br />
<br />
<!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">5. Literary genre</b>- What is the genre of
literature in which the text is found? Poetry? Wisdom literature? Prophetic?
Apocalyptic? Gospel? Letter? The type of literature may have a bearing on how
it is to be interpreted. Example: Apocalyptic literature, with its own unique
characteristics, is not about predicting the future. Apocalyptic literature
speaks truth about the current situation of the writer through this
fantastical, visionary genre.</span><br />
<br />
<!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">6. Original languages</b>- Without having to
know Hebrew (OT) and Greek (NT) there are commentaries and bible dictionaries
that give insight into words and concepts in the Bible. These help to
illuminate the original meanings.</span><br />
<br />
<!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">7. Historical</b>- Knowing something about the
history of the times in which biblical books were written can illuminate their
meaning.</span><br />
<br />
<!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">8. Political</b>- The books of the Bible were
written during various political reigns that shaped the writings of the Bible (e.g.,
Babylonian, Persian, Greek, Roman). Example: What does the early confession
“Jesus is Lord” mean in the context of Caesar as ruler of the Roman Empire? It
is also important to be aware of our own present political contexts that can
impact our reading (e.g., capitalism, democracy). </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">9. Religious</b>- Knowledge of the beliefs and
practices of ancient Judaism and early Christianity, in their various forms, as
well as the surrounding religions (e.g., Baalism, polytheism, Greco-Roman
religions, Gnosticism, etc.) are helpful in understanding biblical texts.
Example: ancient Hebrews had a different understanding of the afterlife than
the early Christians. </span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong>10. Socio-cultural</strong>- The cultures and
practices of the ancient biblical cultures and social practices help clarify meaning
(e.g., collective vs individual, honor/shame cultures, economics, peasant and
agrarian societies, patron/client relations, benefactors, patriarchy, family
systems, slavery, etc.)</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">11. Worldview</b>- Ancient worldviews (e.g.,
polytheistic, flat earth cosmology, non-scientific, taboos, etc.) is different
from out modern, Western worldview. Reading either one into the other can skew
our biblical interpretation.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">12. Contemporary contexts</b>- Most of these
contexts that help us understand the Bible have contemporary counterparts. Our
own contemporary context can both enhance and hinder proper interpretation of
the Bible. There is no getting around reading the Bible from within our own
current contexts. But, awareness my temper it some. How do my personal
experiences shape the way I read texts? Does my religious tradition override
what the Bible is saying? Am I imposing my worldview, politics, culture,
preferences and biases upon the text?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
Leo Hartshornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06040456376937046171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217245670187260420.post-46168350974241385802014-10-06T10:52:00.002-07:002014-10-06T10:57:55.474-07:00Interpreting the Bible in Community: Acts 2:42-47, 8:26-40, 17:10-12; 1 Cor. 14:26-33<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOtI_U7sl_Fhl8EAcY0YabHIdZ4vTbsf8BFZfXHrwpCyDFl2mYyvDbbyCEA3ngEQJzHtK_HraxBjLJIWCEF89wkar-Dav019sSqdz9OxFEMLxT7DIteRli9jqQfexjyAqsTcHjocgLvec/s1600/world+communion+sunday.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOtI_U7sl_Fhl8EAcY0YabHIdZ4vTbsf8BFZfXHrwpCyDFl2mYyvDbbyCEA3ngEQJzHtK_HraxBjLJIWCEF89wkar-Dav019sSqdz9OxFEMLxT7DIteRli9jqQfexjyAqsTcHjocgLvec/s1600/world+communion+sunday.jpg" height="312" width="640" /></a></div>
<em></em><br />
<em></em><br />
<em>*This sermon was presented in a series "Scripture and Interpretation" for World Communion Sunday, October 5, 2014 at Albany Mennonite Church. The communion service is included below. The focus of communion was upon peace and justice.</em><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">In my seminary study I came
across an interesting tract, written by Reformer Henry Bullinger against the 16<sup>th</sup>
century Anabaptists. It answers the question: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Why don’t Anabaptists attend the state churches?</i> In this 1530 tract
Bullinger notes that the major reason Anabaptists didn’t attend the state
churches was because the state churches didn’t allow the congregation to
respond to the preacher. According to the Anabaptists, the state churches did
not practice the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Rule of Paul </i>in 1
Corinthians 14, that is, they didn’t allow the people to participate in the
worship, preaching, and interpreting of scripture. The Anabaptists said:<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">When someone comes to church and
constantly hears only one person speaking, and all the listeners are silent…
who can ... regard it to be a spiritual congregation?<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The Anabaptists encouraged reading scripture together and discussing the Bible
with one another in discerning its meaning. This 16<sup>th</sup> century tract
is evidence of the practice of communal interpretation of the Bible among the
early Anabaptists.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Interpreting the Bible in community was also
a practice among the Jews and the early disciples of Jesus. </span></i></b><span style="font-size: 14pt;">As we read in the book of Acts the Jews and the early disciples
were directly involved in the study, discussion, and interpretation of their
sacred texts. They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching. They conversed
with one another interpreting texts from the Hebrew Scriptures, as in the case
of Philip and the Ethiopian Eunuch. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Philip, dear Philip. What
kind of Bible study have you gotten yourself involved in? You should have
thought twice about accepting the invitation to interpret the scriptures with
an Ethiopian eunuch. Imagine this; Philip was involved in a Bible study with a
non-Christian foreigner who was an educated banker, Bible-reading Gentile,
well-to-do black slave, personal assistant to a Queen, who had an ambiguous gender,
an atypical sexual identity, and who was thus excluded from the church (or
should I say “temple”)! Talk about your diversity within a Bible study! And all
wrapped up in one person! So, who might we dare include in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">our </i>Bible studies? Who knows, we might end up baptizing some
unexpected, marginalized people! And they might even end up becoming
part of the church! God help us…to do that!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Further on in Acts, Paul
argued in the synagogue from the scriptures concerning a new interpretation of
a suffering Messiah. By the way, a suffering Christ was not the traditional
Jewish way to interpret the Hebrew Scriptures about the Messiah. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Together the Jews at Berea examined the
scriptures to see whether or not what Paul said was so. These instances of
biblical interpretation indicate there wasn’t simply one voice, but a
multi-voiced conversation around the scriptures, discerning their meaning.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Even as the church began
meeting in the homes of some wealthier believers, interpretation of scriptures
was a shared conversation. From the church at Corinth we learn of the informal,
charismatic, conversational, and participatory nature of the worship of the
early church. What some call the “Rule of Paul” in 1 Corinthians 14 are
guidelines for the congregation to share in an orderly manner in the worship,
which was often referenced by early Anabaptists. Some came with a prophecy or a
lesson or a hymn or a tongue or an interpretation. And we know the women were
prophesying like it was no man’s business, because Paul tried to forbid them
from speaking! <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The people, men and women, at
Corinth participated in the hearing and sharing of God’s Word spoken in spirited
prophecy and interpreted together the meaning of the scriptures. Interpreting
the scripture in community was a practice of the early church.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Anabaptists were known for their
emphasis on interpreting the Bible in community.</span></i></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b><span style="font-size: 14pt;">When I first started studying the early Anabaptists
and Mennonite theology I came across this concept of “a hermeneutic of
community.” I understood that to mean that the gathered congregation is the
primary location of biblical interpretation. This understanding was not totally
unique to our tradition, but it stood out as a key element in how our tradition
approaches the interpretation of the Bible. Further study led me to propose
that from an Anabaptist perspective both preaching and interpretation of the
Bible are communal and conversational practices. What I discovered was that the
Anabaptists practiced a congregational form of interpretation by allowing
participation in their informal style of worship, as portrayed in 1 Corinthian
14. Interaction with the preaching or teaching was expected. The words of
Anabaptist leaders were not considered the final word of truth. The leaders
themselves invited the community to correct anything that they taught. Interpreting
the scriptures was not left to the scholars, was not constricted by the church’s
traditions, or primarily an individual discipline. It was a communal and
interactive practice.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Contemporary churches around the world
are recapturing the practice of interpreting the Bible in and for the believing
community.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></i></b><span style="font-size: 14pt;">This is happening in the midst of several trends that
have worked against interpreting in community. Western culture, with its
emphasis on individualism, has tended to place the Bible in the hands of the
isolated reader. Devotional Bible study epitomizes an American approach to scripture.
It emphasizes interpreting the Bible on my own and for myself. To interpret the
Bible within and for the church as a body is a practice that needs to be
recovered not only in the US, but also in the worldwide church.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">This recovery is taking place
in new and exciting ways within the worldwide church. For some time now base
communities in Latin American have been opening the Bible in small groups and
interpreting the Bible for their people and their context. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Gospel of Solentiname</i> includes the transcripts of communal
interpretation of Gospel texts led by Roman Catholic priest Ernesto Cardenal. Gerald
West, a Bible scholar, has instigated dialogical interpretation or “reading
with” strategies in South Africa. Emerging churches in the US, drawing from the
wells of Anabaptism, are practicing more collective approaches to reading
scripture. One of your adult Bible study classes is going through the book
“Free for All,” written by leaders of young emerging churches seeking to read
scripture in community. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">It is my conviction that our
practice of interpreting the Bible in community needs to bring the diversity of
our own communities and the worldwide church into our circle of biblical interpretation.
Like Philip, we need to have someone like the Ethiopian eunuch, or better yet, the
diversity he represents, in our interpretive conversation. Interpreting the
Bible with our ears leaning toward toward the African-American, Latino/a, Asian,
and Native American communities can help us hear what God is saying to us from
these texts today. We definitely need to converse with the poor and homeless,
so that we interpret the Bible rightly, particularly since the Bible was
written from within peasant societies. Living within a culture of relative
wealth can skew our interpretations of the Bible. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">We may not always be able to
literally bring the world into our congregation, but we can include the
diversity of the world in our interpretive conversation through written and
recorded testimonies or biblical interpretations from diverse social,
political, and cultural contexts. The Bible is not bound to one gender,
sexuality, class, race, culture, or nationality. We need to bring the world
into our interpretive conversation. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Praise be to God! There is
the church around the world to converse with around the Bible, so that we may fully
and clearly hear what God is saying to all of God’s diverse people today. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">There is more light and truth yet to break forth from
God’s Holy Word.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span></o:p></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Opening Prayer<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">
</span></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">
</span></span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">God of all nations and peoples,
we gather together as your people today in unity with our brothers and sisters
in Christ around the world. As we share in communion with the global church
this day, may our eyes be opened to realize that all walls and borders between
us have been broken down in Christ. As we break the bread of life in scripture,
may our hearts burn within us with your truth. As we sing our hymns, may we
remember the many tongues that offer you praise in other cultures. As we pray
for one another, may we remember that there is a world of people beyond us that
are in need. As we go from this sacred place today, may our world be a little
larger, our faith a little stronger, our love a little deeper. In the name of
the universal Christ we pray. Amen.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></div>
</span></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">T</span></span></u></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">he Table of Peace<o:p></o:p></span></span></u></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">We gather around the
communion table on this World Communion Sunday with our eyes focused upon the
dimensions of peace and justice within this meal, one among many themes of the
supper. The supper of Jesus finds its origins in political liberation. The Passover
was a ritual meal celebrating God’s liberation of Israel from bondage to the
Egyptian empire. The supper we celebrate is in remembrance of Jesus who lived
and taught the way of peace and God’s reign over all kingdoms and who was
crucified by the powers of the Roman Empire. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus’ supper reminds us of the other meals he
shared. At his open table he welcomed the stranger and outcast and fed the poor
and hungry multitudes. Jesus’ meals foreshadow the final meal of God’s kingdom,
when all tribes, tongues, and nations will dine together at the feast of the
slain Lamb, when peace shall reign over the earth and justice will flow down
like a stream. This is a rather subversive meal! <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Today we celebrate our unity
and peace in Christ by breaking the bread and sharing the cup. Communion is a
ritual of peace in many ways. Through sharing in the bread and cup we remember
and participate in the body and blood of Christ. Rather than lead an armed
rebellion against the forces of Rome or call down an army of angels, Jesus took
the nonviolent way of the cross, even unto death. His life and death offers
liberation from the way of violence by exposing its folly and futility. Through
the resurrection God vindicated Jesus’ proclamation of God’s reign over that of
Caesar and his choice of a nonviolent death over violence. In the bread and cup
we remember and participate in Christ and his way of peace.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Ephesians 2 teaches us that
through the blood of the cross the walls that divide us as differing people and
cultures have been broken down. Jesus is our peace. He came and proclaimed
peace to those far off and those near. We are no longer strangers but citizens
and members of the common household of God. We remember in the bread and cup
that in Christ we are one people, no longer divided by the walls or borders
that separate us as nations. We who are in Christ are no longer Americans or
Iraqis or Mexicans or Africans. We are one in Christ. We are citizens of God’s
new country, one people through the reconciling work of Christ. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">So, in sharing the bread and
cup we feed upon Christ, who took upon himself the nonviolent way that led to
the cross. In sharing the bread and cup we remember that we are a worldwide
church bound together in Christ, a bond that transcends national and political
boundaries and therefore calls us to live in peace with one another.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Communion Prayer</span></span></u></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">May this prayer be our call
to unity and peace. It is a prayer from the Didache or Teaching of the Twelve
Apostles, one of the earliest Christian documents outside the New Testament:<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div align="left" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: left;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Even as this broken bread was scattered
over the hills,<br />
and was gathered together to become one,<br />
so let the church be gathered together<br />
from the ends of the earth into your kingdom<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">For yours is the glory and the power <o:p></o:p></span></span></i><br />
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">through Jesus Christ forever. Amen. <o:p></o:p></span></span></i><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Confession and Reconciliation<o:p></o:p></span></span></u></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">In his instructions on
celebrating communion the apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthian Christians about
not eating the bread and drinking the cup in an unworthy manner. Examine
yourselves and discern the body. We have taken this to mean that we reflect on
our own sins and discern Christ’s body in communion. This is partially true, we
should examine our relationship to Christ symbolized in the bread and cup. But,
also in the context of the divisions and conflicts within the church, Paul was
addressing the need for the church to examine themselves as a collective group
and discern the body of Christ, the church. How can they partake of the one
bread in remembrance of the one body of Christ when they are divided and in
conflict? Therefore, self-examination, confession, and reconciliation is to
precede partaking of the bread and cup. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Jesus said, “If you bring
your gift before the altar and there remember that you have something against a
brother or sister, first go and be reconciled and then come and offer your
gift.” As we share in these gifts of God brought before us, if we need to be
reconciled, even now at this moment, go to that person and be reconciled in
order to partake of the one body and blood of Christ in a manner worthy of our
call to unity and peace.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Silent Prayer<o:p></o:p></span></span></u></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Assurance of Forgiveness<o:p></o:p></span></span></u></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">If we confess our sins, God
is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all
unrighteousness. Amen.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Taking, Blessing, Breaking the Bread<o:p></o:p></span></span></u></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I received from the Lord what
I also passed on to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night Jesus was betrayed he
took bread took bread, and he gave thanks…<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Baruch atah Adonai elohenu, melek ha olam, ha motzi
lehem min ha aretz<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Blessed are you, O Lord our God, Ruler of the universe, who
brings forth bread from the earth.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">And when he had given thanks,
he broke it and said, “This is my body that is broken for you. Do this in
remembrance of me.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Taking, Blessing the Cup<o:p></o:p></span></span></u></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">In the same way he also took
the cup, after supper, and blessed it.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Baruch atah Adonai elohenu, melek ha olam, boray peri
hagaphen<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Blessed are you, O Lord our God, Ruler of the universe, who
creates the fruit of the vine.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Jesus said, “This cup is the
new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of
me.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Invitation to the Table<o:p></o:p></span></span></u></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Come, for everything is now
ready. God calls you to the welcoming table of peace. The gifts of God for the
people of God.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Sharing Communion<o:p></o:p></span></span></u></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><em>*Communion was shared by "intinction" (dipping the bread) between partners at several tables while music and photos of Christians from diverse cultures were projected on the wall.</em></span></span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Communion blessing<o:p></o:p></span></span></u></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">For as often as you eat this
bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><u>The Peacemaker’s Creed- </u>written by Leo Hartshorn</span></span></b></div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;">We believe in God, creator of heaven and earth</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> who
calls us to care for the earth <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>who
is the maker of shalom<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>who
commanded his people not to kill<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>who
shatters the spear <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>and
beats swords into plowshares<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">We believe in Jesus Christ, the Prince
of Peace<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>who
blessed the peacemakers<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">who taught his
disciples to love their enemies<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>who
told Peter to put away the sword<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>who
took the nonviolent way of the cross<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>and
was raised by God to vindicate his way of peace<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">We believe in the Holy Spirit<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>who
breaks down the walls that divide us<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>who
empowers us to overturn the tables of injustice<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>who
lets justice roll down like waters<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>who
liberates the captives <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">and sets the prisoners
free<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">We believe in the church universal<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>which
is God’s beloved community<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">which transcends all
nations, politics, and cultures<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>which
calls us to unity<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>which
follows the nonviolent way of Jesus<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>and
proclaims the gospel of peace <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">We believe in the reign of God<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>when
the lion will lie down with the lamb<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>when
people from every nation, tribe, and tongue will worship the Lamb of God<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>when
everyone will sit at the welcoming table <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>when
the last will be first, the rich will be poor, the outsiders will be insiders<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>and
peace and justice will reign over all the earth<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span></o:p></span></b> </div>
Leo Hartshornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06040456376937046171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217245670187260420.post-27798169260110698232014-09-29T14:10:00.002-07:002014-09-29T14:12:48.892-07:00The Word in Worship: Nehemiah 8:1-12; Luke 24:13-35<br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;"></span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;"></span></em></span> </div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"><em>*This sermon was presented at Albany Mennonite Church on Sunday, September 28, 2014</em></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"><o:p><span style="color: white; font-family: Times New Roman;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: white; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;">Have
you ever cried when scripture was read? I have….and on more than one occasion.
I remember as a pastor going through some deep struggles with family and
congregation. The strain was taking a deep toll on my spirit.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span> A friend had come to my
congregation to preach. Revelation 21 was read. The text spoke of a coming day
when there would be no more mourning and every tear would be dried. The scripture
caused my eyes to flow! I was deeply moved by the promise of scripture.</span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;">When
Ezra read the words from the law, the people wept. But, then again, they also
wept when they saw the foundation of the second temple laid. Maybe they were
just a bunch of crybabies! Hardly. They were deeply moved by these events.
Anyway, this is how the story goes. After Judah had returned home from exile in
Babylon following a decree from Persian Emperor Cyrus, they set out to rebuild
the temple and to restore the community around the Law of Moses. <span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>Ezra brought back from Babylon a copy
of the Torah or Law of Moses. As a priest and scribe of the Law Ezra was intent
on forming the identity of God’s people around the Torah.</span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: white;">It was
the month of the autumn festival, known as the Feast of Tabernacles or Booths,
also known as Sukkot. It was originally an agricultural festival. During Sukkot
the people would live in booths made of palm branches to remember their
temporary dwelling places after their liberation from Egypt. The people
gathered at the Water Gate of Jerusalem. Ezra opened the book and the people
stood up. He blessed the Lord and they responded, “Amen! Amen!” and raised
their hands (It must have been a charismatic church!). Then, Ezra began reading
from the Torah. The people bowed their heads and worshipped. The Levites
present interpreted the meaning of the law, like preachers interpret meaning of
the biblical text so people today can understand it. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: white;">Now,
when<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>we</i><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>read scripture it usually takes a
minute or two at most. Ezra came to a specially constructed wooden pulpit and
read from the Torah from early morning to midday. Even for such a long period,
the people remained attentive.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span> And
when the people heard the words of the law they wept. Not because Ezra read
scripture and interpreted it for around 5-6 hours! <span class="apple-converted-space"> Neither did they</span> weep because they had
to stand the whole time. The people of Judah wept because they understood the
Law and realized they had neglected it. To realize they had neglected the law
cut to their heart and caused them to weep. The next day their leaders came
together to study the words of the law. They discovered the feast of booths and
set out to practice it. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: white;">They
had left aside their sacred texts and ritual celebrations that formed them as a
people. That’s something worth crying about! Similarly, two centuries earlier King
Josiah read from the book of the law that the priest Hilkiah had discovered in
the house of the Lord. Again, they discovered that they had neglected the law
and had not celebrated the Passover, which they reinstated into practice. In
both these cases from the times of Ezra and King Josiah we see how the Word and
worship were tied together. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: white;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;">Word
and worship also come together in the story of the two disciples who encounter
Jesus while walking on the Emmaus road.</span></i></b><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;"> It is a story
reflecting Bread and Bible, Communion and Scripture in worship. New Testament
scholars have noted how Luke’s story of the Emmaus Road is more than a simple
historical account of two disciples’ post-resurrection encounter with the risen
Christ. The story is shaped by Luke to reflect two arenas in the early church’s
worship life where they encountered the risen Christ: in Bread and Bible or
Communion and Scripture. </span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;">Two
disciples, one identified as Cleopas, met Jesus<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>incognito</i><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>on the road to Emmaus. Their eyes were
kept from recognizing him. <span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>When
are our eyes kept from recognizing the risen Christ in our midst when we go
about our life journeys or worship together?</i><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>They talked with the stranger about
what happened to Jesus, how he was a prophet who was condemned to be crucified.
And they had expected him to be the one to redeem Israel. They told the
stranger that a group of women went to Jesus’ tomb, saw the body was missing,
and had a vision of angels. <span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>And
besides….. (a dramatic pause should be inserted here)….besides, it is now the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">third day</i> since these things took place!
The third day, the day of Christ’s resurrection, Sunday, the Lord’s Day,<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>the day when the church gathers for
worship.</i><span class="apple-converted-space"> Symbolic</span>ally, the
two disciples are the church retelling the Jesus story. <span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>Isn’t this a significant part of
what the church does at worship….retell the story of Jesus?</i> <span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>And notice Jesus’ response….<i>how
foolish not to see all of this within the Hebrew Scriptures</i>. And beginning
with Moses and the prophets, Jesus interpreted how he is related to the Torah
and the Prophets.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>Isn’t this a
symbol of the church at worship proclaiming and interpreting the Scriptures?</i><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>And didn’t the two disciples say
later, when their eyes were opened to the presence of Christ, “Were not our
hearts burning within us…while he was opening the scriptures to us?”<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>Here is a symbol of the church
encountering the living Christ in the reading and proclamation of the Word.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></i>The scriptures were not dead
history or dry recitation to the early church, but rather a living testimony to
the risen Christ that burned in their hearts.</span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;">The sun
began to set behind the purple hills. The two disciples invite Jesus to their
home<i>, the place</i><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>where
the early church would first meet for worship.</i> Together they sat at
table. Is this a common meal? Who is the host of their table? You would think
it was Cleopas or his friend. No. Jesus is the host at this table,<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>as he is at the church’s communion
table</i>. Note Luke’s wording of Jesus actions at the table meal. It sounds
like a liturgical script. <i>He took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it
to them.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></i>Isn’t this the same
wording used of Jesus’ Last Supper and in Paul’s description of the early
church’s communion (1 Corinthians 11)? And when the bread was broken and
shared….their eyes were opened and they recognized him.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>Isn’t this a description of the
early church’s recognition of Jesus’ presence at Communion?<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></i>Bread and Bible, Communion and
Scripture, the primary places the church encounters the living Christ in
worship. </span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: white;"><b><i><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;">Scripture-shaped
worship can enhance the potential for encountering God and Christ in worship</span></i></b><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;">.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span> Since scripture is a medium for
encountering God, shaping our liturgy around the scripture is essential for
worship. <span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>Let’s survey some
ways in which we can shape our worship through Scripture.</span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 14pt;">·</span><span style="font-size: 7pt;"> <span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><b><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;">The Christian year and the
Lectionary cycle.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;">I grew
up in a church tradition that did not celebrate the entire Christian year or
utilize a lectionary of scripture readings in its worship planning. We
celebrated Easter and Christmas, as did the society around us, and the preacher
chose his own favorite texts throughout the year.</span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;">Over my
years as a pastor I have come to truly appreciate the Christian Year that
begins with Advent and culminates with the season after Pentecost and the Reign
of Christ Sunday. It serves not only as an alternative to the secular calendar,
but is a profound practice for shaping the worship life of a
congregation. <span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>The Christian
Year sets our lives within liturgical time, the seasons of the life of Christ.</span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;">I
didn’t notice how much the Christian Year had shaped my life until I was no
longer in a pastorate. <span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>Working
for our denomination for 7 years I travelled a lot and missed out on
participating in the liturgical cycle of the Christian Year. <span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>There were times when I would come
upon Easter and feel unprepared or Pentecost would come and go and I had done
nothing to celebrate it. And I felt a bit disoriented, out of time, off beat,
missing an important rhythm of my life. The Christian Year is one way we can
shape our lives around scripture within worship.</span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;">The
Christian Year fits into the wider framework of a <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">three year liturgical cycle</b> of scripture readings, known as the
lectionary. <span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>Years A, B, and
C include readings from the four gospels, the Old Testament, the Psalms, and
the Epistles. <span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>By following
the three year cycle and reading each of the assigned scripture texts a
congregation will have heard a good portion of the Bible. <span class="apple-converted-space"> R</span>elying on the preacher’s arbitrary
choice of favorite texts is far less helpful than following the lectionary as a
practice that covers a wide range of scripture. The lectionary is a significant
liturgical tool for shaping the church’s worship life around scripture.</span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 14pt;">·</span><span style="font-size: 7pt;"> <span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><b><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;">The Liturgy.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;">Scripture can be used in
the diverse elements of worship; prayer, praise, preaching, and blessing.
Appropriate biblical texts can be used to call the people to worship, introduce
the offering, or as a benediction. <span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>The
Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make his face shine upon you.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></i>The various elements of the Sunday
order of worship itself can be shaped by scriptural language.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>As we share these first fruits of
our offerings, Lord, we seek to be cheerful givers.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></i>Prayers can reflect biblical
language or allude to specific scriptures. </span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;">In a
post-Christian culture that is becoming more and more biblically illiterate,
the need to share in the stories, language, and images of the Bible becomes
even greater. An important part of being a Christian is to know and understand
the language of our Christian faith, which is drawn from the Bible. The world
around us speaks a different language. We spend most of our time bombarded in
the magazines, on TV, on the internet by the world’s language of success,
power, happiness, self-help, individual rights, cyberspace, networking, and
bootstrap philosophy. If the church doesn’t practice speaking its own language,
it can lose or fail to understand its rhetoric of creation, redemption, sin,
salvation, forgiveness, reconciliation, faith, the body of Christ, and
judgment. The church needs to immerse itself in its own language not only to
understand its own faith, but to understand the world around it.</span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;">There<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>is</i><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>a real sense in which<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>if the church loses its language to
some degree it loses its faith.</i><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>I
say this knowing that we can to some extent translate Christian language into
the language of the world and knowing that translation of biblical and
Christian language is an important task of the church, particularly in mission
and evangelism. And yet, understanding the language of our faith from scripture
is key to shaping our identity within the world. The liturgy of worship is one
place where we can hear, learn, speak, and practice our own language; the
language of scripture.</span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 14pt;">·</span><span style="font-size: 7pt;"> </span><b><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;">Scripture reading.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span> </span></b><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;">It made
me sigh when I recently read this statement:<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>More
time is spent in most congregational worship services making announcements than
in reading scripture.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></i>What
does that say about the role of scripture in worship? I’m afraid that within
the Free Church or non-liturgical traditions scripture reading has not played a
significant role in the church’s worship life. In the congregation I grew up
in, I don’t remember scripture ever being read aloud in the service. Oh, there
were references and allusions to scripture throughout the service and
occasionally read during the sermon, but the public reading of scripture on its
own was not a part of our worship practices. Was the public reading of
scripture part of your church background?</span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;">Scripture
reading is a most important liturgical practice. 1 Timothy advises: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Until I come devote yourself to the public
reading of scripture. </i>The early church did not have printed Bibles or
personal scrolls to read in private. Christianity emerged in an oral culture.
Sacred stories, texts and traditions were passed down orally. Most Christians
were illiterate. What we have as books and epistles of the Bible were read
aloud in the house churches by the few literate members. Reading sacred texts
in worship gatherings was a most significant practice in forming the church’s
identity within the world.</span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
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<span style="color: white; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;">The
public reading of scripture is a sacred task to be soaked in prayer and
practice. Remember, this is a major channel through which the church encounters
God; public reading of scripture in worship.</span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
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<span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 14pt;">·</span><span style="font-size: 7pt;"> <span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><b><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;">Proclamation of the Word.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;">Preaching is an
essential practice of the church’s worship life, particularly among Protestants
and Mennonites. I am convinced that since preaching is a ministry of the church
and not just the pastor, preaching needs to become more of a communal and
conversational practice.</span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;">Preaching
occupies a central place in our worship services. There are different and
legitimate approaches to preaching; topical, pastoral, doctrinal, ethical, and
biblical. I want to focus on biblical preaching, since it clearly reflects one
of the different roles of Scripture in worship.</span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;">Biblical
preaching takes the ancient Word and makes it the modern Word. It translates<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>then</i><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>to<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>now</i><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>with a focus upon applying God’s Word
to our own context today.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span> When
Ezra read for 5 or 6 hours from the Torah, there was<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>interpretation</i>. They explained
the meaning of the words that were read from the Torah “so that the people
understood the reading.” Preaching is an act of interpretation, so that we can
understand the meaning of our sacred texts.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span> When
the people of Judah heard the words and their interpretation, “all the people
wept.” There was an inner experience, a touching of the heart, and encounter
with God through the written Word.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span> Preaching
strives to become that kind of channel through which the people hear the voice
of God speaking to them, they encounter the Spirit of the risen Christ, and
their hearts are touched.</span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;">Shaping
our worship through scripture is not an end in itself. We don’t do it simply so
we<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span> can say “we are a
people of the Bible.” Rather, we shape worship by scripture because scripture
is a primary means of God’s self-revelation to us. <span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>When Ezra read the Torah and the
people wept, they were encountering God. When the two disciples on the road to
Emmaus had the Scriptures opened to them and their hearts burned within them,
they encountered the risen Christ. We seek to shape our worship through
Scripture because it is a most significant means for encountering God.</span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
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<em><span style="color: white; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;">And all
the people answered, “Amen, Amen.”</span></em><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
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Leo Hartshornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06040456376937046171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217245670187260420.post-14313331919682509982014-09-22T10:48:00.002-07:002014-09-22T10:48:42.465-07:00The Wasteful Sower: Mark 4:1-9
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></b> </div>
<em>*This sermon was preached on Sunday, September 21, 2014 at a retreat for Salem and Albany Mennonite Churches at Drift Creek Camp</em><br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span></b> </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The Parable
of the Sower brings to mind the musical <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Godspell</i>,
a frolicking, hippie version of Matthew's gospel. When I was in seminary a
group of us students and church members put on the play at a coffee house Iris
and I started in San Francisco back in the '70's. Dressed up like clowns
we acted out, or should I say ad libbed, the parts of the different seeds in
the parable of sower. The seed that fell along the pathway was eaten up by a
bunch of clucking and arm flapping chickens. The seed that fell on the rocky
soil leaped up to life with a smile, but then going limp she withered and
dropped to the floor from the sun's heat. The seed that fell among the thorns
was grabbed by the neck and choked by a devilish character with a lot of
overacting. The seed that fell on good soil bounced up, flexed her muscles, and
beamed with joy at the applause of everyone. In this goofy version of the parable
the focus was upon the obviously different responses of the seeds. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">There are different angles from which to view the parable of the
sower.</span></i></b><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> Like a
camera scanning the parable, we can zoom in close on the seeds lying scattered
on the ground. We can pull back our shot and capture a view of the different
types of soil. Or with time-lapsed photography we could watch the different
reactions of the seeds. If we were to focus our lens on the different kinds of
soil, which is the way Mark's gospel interprets the parable, we might think
this parable is about us. As the parable unfolds we might begin to ask
ourselves: What kind of soil am I? Am I rocky ground? Do I need to smooth out
some rough places in my character? What are the weeds in my life? What chokes
the life out of me? Am I a shallow person? Do I get all worked up and
enthusiastic only to give up when the thrill is gone or things get tough? How
can I be weedless, fertile soil? If we focus on the different kinds of soil, we
probably end up either feeling guilty or determined to see how we can beat the
three-to-one odds of being poor soil for God's word. By focusing on the soils
we may find ourselves working hard to shape up our lives, so we can be a
fertile field for God.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">But, what if the parable of the sower isn't about us at all?</span></i></b><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> What if this parable was not
about our own personal successes and failures, our flaws of character, or about
birds and rocks and thorns? What if, instead of focusing upon the soil, we
zoomed in on <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">the sower</i>? What if, by
chance, it is a parable about a sower? It is called <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">the parable of the sower</i>, isn't it? The parable would look a bit
different from how we have traditionally viewed it. If the sower is the main
character of the parable, what might it say about life and God?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">One thing we would immediately notice is the sower flings his seed
around rather wastefully.</span></i></b><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> It falls on good and bad soil alike. According to the ancient
practice of the peasant farmer, the sower's method is not so unusual. Most
often seed was first scattered, then it was plowed under. It seems wasteful of
the sower to scatter the seeds willy nilly across the land so it falls along
the road, on rocky ground, among the weeds and thorns, as well as on the
fertile soil. What might seem wasteful to us was the typical method of sowing
for the peasant farmer, who scratched out a living from the dry, rocky
Palestinian soil. In order to produce a harvest a lot of seed had to be
recklessly, or should I say, graciously wasted. In the parable it appears as if
75% of the seed was wasted in order to produce an adequate harvest. In that
case, the odds of failure with that kind of sowing are three-to-one. There
should have been a more efficient and productive way of sowing, don't you
think?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">If I were
sowing the seeds, I would want greater odds of success. I would want to make
sure the seed landed on fertile soil. This wasteful scattering of seeds hither
and thither would have to stop. With this kind of wasteful sowing the
odds of crop failure would be far greater than a fruitful harvest. In my
estimation this is bad farming. Don't we all want to be thrifty and productive?
We have all been told as children, "Don't be wasteful." Our bosses
have encouraged us to be efficient. Those in business try to concentrate their
efforts on what is most productive. Don't we all want to decrease the odds of
failure in whatever we do? This is not only sound business advice, but good
policy for living. Isn't it?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">This is the
kind of business advice churches are being given from the marketing world. If
you want to be a growing, productive church, then being efficient,
concentrating on what is productive, and decreasing the odds of failure will
keep the church from being wasteful of God's resources. And how does the church
increase its growth and productivity? First, by being "market-driven"
rather than "product-driven." That is, our focus should be on the
needs of the customers, more than upon the product we offer. The soil takes
priority over the seed. Second, marketing techniques can help the church be
more efficient and productive. Don't spend a lot of time and energy on
ministries or activities that do not produce. Increase your odds of success
through efficient marketing techniques. One of those marketing techniques is to
focus your outreach on a target group, a certain kind of people, who will be
more likely to join your church. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">One
proponent of such methods of church growth reads the parables as marketing
strategies and tactics. He sees the parable of the sower as portraying a
marketing process "in which there are hot prospects and not-so-hot
prospects." In other words, there are certain kinds of people your church
should target for the best results. Plant your seeds only in the most
productive soil. Finally, according to the market-driven approach to church
growth, success is measured primarily in numerical growth. A hundredfold
harvest is better than a thirtyfold harvest. There you have it all. No
wastefulness, greater efficiency, concentration on what is productive, and
increasing the odds of success. The problem is we end up with a racially,
socially, and economically homogeneous church which is conformed to the world
and more concerned about growth than faithfulness. Contrary to what Henry Ford
once said, what is good for business is not always good for religion. Success
may not be the name of the church's game.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Come to think about it, in real life it seems like there are more
failures than successes, more waste than growth.</span></i></b><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> Doesn't life reflect the odds of
this parable? The odds are against us. Odds are against all those people who
grew up in angry, abusive, distant, or neglectful families that they will avoid
bringing those issues into their new relationships. Why waste energy and invest
time on people with a lot of personal problems? There are some people out there
who are just not worth our efforts. Haven't you heard we shouldn't cast our
pearls before swine? How many people have you seen who really changed their
lives in a positive way from something you said or did compared to those who
went on producing the same old negative garbage from their lives? Don't waste
good seed on unproductive soil. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">There is
more unproductive soil than productive and a lot of good seed gets wasted, even
in our own lives. We all throw away more time than we spend on nourishing
personal growth. We waste more energy on trivial pursuits than on productive,
meaningful activities. There is a lot of unproductive ground in our
lives. Someone right now is probably thinking, "Yeah, you're right.
A lot of my life seems to have been wasted. After all these years, what have I
really accomplished?" Another listener could be thinking, "I know
what you mean. I've been a Christian for a number of years, but my life is
still rocky and full of weeds." What a waste!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Consider our
society. It is bad soil which produces more problems than solutions. Racism,
sexism, heterosexism, classism, consumerism, and violence choke the life out of
our communities. These are perennial problems that never seem to go away. It's
a waste trying to produce good fruit from the bad soil of our society. So, why
waste good seed on unproductive soil? This seems to be the way life is. More
seeds land on rocky, thorny, weed-infested soil than on fertile ground. The
odds are against us. So, why waste good seeds by tossing them to the
wind? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Waste seems
to be sewn into the fabric of life from the wide expanse of the universe to the
tiniest of seeds. Just look out in space through the lens of the Hubble
telescope. There appears to be a lot of waste. The universe is filled with
billions upon billions of stars, but there’s only one we know of which is
suitable for human life. Looks like an awful waste of space to me! Or bend down
and pick a dandelion puff. It is filled with hundreds of seeds with perfect
little parachutes designed within them that take the seeds on streams of wind
to reproduce their kind. And yet, only a few seeds perchance find soil to grow.
Seems like such an amazing design to waste so much seed. Whoever created this
universe should have been more efficient when flinging the stars. And a
designer that uses the wind and chance to reproduce a plant seems wasteful,
doesn’t it! It often appears that it takes a lot of wasted seed in order to be
productive.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">If we focus
on the seed or the soil in Jesus’ parable things do look pretty grim.
Productivity has a slim chance. The odds seem to be against us. But, before
things start to look too hopeless, let's turn our lens back on the sower in our
parable. The sower pays little attention to the condition of soil, or the
pathway with human footprints. He seems to ignore the weeds, the thorns, and
the hungry birds. He doesn’t seem to be worrying about the odds of success or
failure. The sower tosses the seeds everywhere on good soil and bad soil alike.
He appears to be oblivious to the types of soil on which the seeds land. And
the sower isn't stingy with the seed. With wild abandon he throws handfuls of
seed across the field like stars flung across the sky. To us the sower appears
to be recklessly inefficient and extravagantly wasteful. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Well folks, God is the sower</span></i></b><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">. God is reckless with goodness and
wondrously wasteful with grace. God tosses the life giving Word upon the fields
of our lives, landing on saint and sinner alike. God sends the rain on the just
and unjust alike. God wildly sows the seeds of the kingdom without an eye to
the nature of the soil. God is recklessly, extravagantly, graciously wasteful
with good news, scattering it upon productive and unproductive soil. And odds
are God can turn the odds around. God isn't worried about success or failure.
God sows the seeds knowing that even though the patches of good earth may be
small the harvest will be plentiful. The sowing will bear fruit thirty, sixty,
and a hundredfold! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Once upon a time a certain farmer went out into his field to sow
seeds.</span></i></b><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> A servant
had previously plowed neat rows in which to plant the seeds. As he tossed the
seeds into the furrows, some of the seeds fell outside the lines. This didn't
seem to bother the farmer. As a matter of fact, the farmer rather enjoyed
throwing the seeds willy nilly across the straight furrows. The farmer got so
caught up in the sheer joy of tossing the seeds hither and yon he hadn't
noticed that he had walked right off the boundaries of the field. The farmer
walked out onto the roadway leading to the city, grabbing handfuls of seeds
from his burlap sack, flinging them here and there and everywhere, laughing as
he walked along. Some of the seeds landed on the asphalt and were run over by
passing cars or were eaten by crows. Other seeds fell among the weeds or onto
the chip bags, cans, and other garbage strewn along the roadside. But, the
farmer paid no mind to where the seeds landed. He just kept on tossing his
seeds across the wide landscape.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Even when the
farmer entered the city streets, it didn't stop him from sowing his seeds. Cars
late for work would honk at him. Drivers with their ear to cell phones would
yell out their windows, "Get outta the street you crazy old farmer!"
But, the farmer kept on gleefully sowing his seeds. Some seeds fell on the drug
dealers on the corner and they tried to smoke them. Others fell on the steps of
the church and the minister came out and swept them off. A few seeds fell on a
homeless man sleeping on a park bench and he picked them off his worn clothes
and ate them for lunch. Still other seeds fell between the thin cracks in the
sidewalk and they sprouted into flowers. Others fell in a community garden and
sprang up a hundredfold. The farmer sowed his seeds wherever his feet took him
until the sun finally set behind the rolling hills. Throughout the season the
farmer's bag was never empty of seeds right up until the time of the harvest. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Whoever has two ears on their head, listen
to this parable.</i><o:p></o:p></span></div>
Leo Hartshornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06040456376937046171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217245670187260420.post-70942355068980648982014-09-15T09:41:00.000-07:002014-09-15T09:41:25.584-07:00On the Inspiration and Authority of the Bible: 2 Timothy 3:16-17; Luke 20:1-7<br />
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: white; font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><em>*<span style="color: white;">This sermon was delivered at Albany Mennonite Church, September 14, 2014</span></em></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: white;">When I say the word “authority,” what images come to
mind? A cop with a night stick? A judge with a gavel? A teacher with a ruler?
For many people <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">authority</i> means
“authoritarian,” ruling with an iron fist. Authority has gotten a bad rap. In
our age and culture we no longer respect someone who simply asserts their
authority. We have recently seen in the news the abuse of judicial,
educational, police, and male authority from African-American men being killed
by the police to abusive husbands violently asserting their will upon their
wives. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: white;">The same could be said of the term “authority” when
used in reference to the Bible. It has gotten a bad name. We have seen the
“authority” of the Bible used to justify slavery, submission of women, homophobia,
violence, and war. NT scholar William Countryman calls this abuse of scriptural
authority “biblical tyranny.” In such a context, is there any sense in which we
can still speak of the “authority” of the Bible?<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
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</span></span></span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Some would say that the Bible is authoritative because
it is inspired.</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> The Bible is
authoritative because its words are inspired by the Supreme authority of the
universe, God. This view comes from a particular, or should I say “peculiar,”
reading of 2 Timothy 3:16-17.<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> </b>The biblical text begins: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">All scripture is inspired by God. </i>There it is in black and white.
Every single scripture comes directly from God, as some might say. This text is
the centerpiece of the doctrine known as “biblical inerrancy.” This teaching
proposes that the Bible is infallible and without error because it is literally
the words of God. And since God does not make errors, neither does the Bible. But,
to use this text from Timothy to prove the Bible contains the infallible words
of God raises numerous questions.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: white;">Let’s take a closer look at this brief text. First,
focus your mental lens on the words “all scripture.” What is the scripture to
which the author of Second Timothy is referring? Does it refer to our modern
Protestant Bible with its 66 books divided into Old and New Testaments? Well,
then what about the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox canon of scripture? They
include the books of the Apocrypha. Are Sirach and Bel and the Dragon also the
very words of God? <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
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</span></span></span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">The fact is, our contemporary Bible didn’t exist at
the time of the writing of this pastoral letter in the 1st century. The full
canon of the Bible was not officially finalized until the 4<sup>th </sup>century
or some would even say the 16<sup>th</sup> century. So, what books are included
in “all scripture”? We know that the New Testament was not yet complete at the
time 2 Timothy was written and at that time it was simply a letter, not
scripture. Is 2 Timothy itself therefore excluded from “all scripture is
inspired”? <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: white;">The reference “all scripture” is no clearer even if it
only includes the Hebrew Scriptures. Does “all scripture” mean the Torah, the
Five Books of Moses? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or is it the Tanakh,
which includes the psalms, prophets and wisdom literature? Could Timothy be
referring to the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures
used by early Gentile Christians, which is somewhat different from the Tanakh? The
Hebrew Bible canon was probably not fixed until the 2<sup>nd</sup> century or much
later. So then, what is “all scripture”? It would seem to be important to know
exactly which scriptures were included and which were excluded if inspiration only
applies to particular books. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
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</span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Before it
gets too complicated, maybe it’s time to turn to the word “inspired.”</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> But, understanding what we mean by “inspiration”
becomes just as complicated an issue as figuring out what “all scripture”
means! Does inspiration refer to the Spirit’s influence on the writer, the
product of that influence, that is, the book itself, or the reader and their
reading of the scripture? What inspiration exactly means in 2 Timothy is not
clear upon first reading.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: white;">What is the breadth
of inspiration? Is it only about the final product of the written text? Modern
biblical scholarship recognizes that stories and sayings of the Bible first
circulated as oral tradition. Did God inspire and safeguard his words in this
process of oral transmission? It may be new to many of us, but for over 150
years it has been recognized that the synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke)
are similar (synoptic=see alike) and quite different from John. Matthew and
Luke are dependent upon Mark, the earliest gospel, and also rely upon another
source identified as Q (Quelle=source). If this is true, then the question is:
Was this process of selecting, editing, and shaping these sources for their own
audiences also inspired and safeguarded by God? <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: white;">And in the end,
wouldn’t it also be necessary to speak of the inspiration of the people
involved and the long, contested process of collecting and canonizing the books
finally considered scripture? Or how about the process of painstakingly hand
copying the early manuscripts of the Bible, as well as the process of
translating them into modern languages? Then, which interpretation of these
texts should be considered inspired, because having inspired words without a
particular meaning is pointless? And finally, we don’t approach interpretation
with a blank slate. Every interpretation is couched in some church tradition or
theology. Is this also an element to consider when searching for the meaning of
the Bible as inspired? These are all questions I think one must seriously
ponder as they consider what 2 Timothy means by saying that <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">all scripture is inspired</i>. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: white;">For many fundamentalists and some evangelicals inspiration
means God dictated his very words to the writers, overriding their human
inadequacies and cultural limitations. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For
them God’s error-free words are in the original manuscripts of the Bible. The
claim of inerrancy for the original manuscripts is problematic in that we have
no original manuscripts of the Bible, only copies. Realizing that there are
some errors present in the manuscripts we do have, some other Christians have proposed
a modified form of inspiration that claims that there are no errors of
substance or no errors of doctrine or no errors related to our salvation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
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</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Still other Christians understand inspiration to mean
God inspired the ideas or theology of the Bible, while it is historically and
culturally conditioned.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Others would say
that the broad salvation history of the Bible is what is inspired. There are
even those who would say the Bible is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">inspired
</i>in the same way all great literature is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">inspired</i>.
Some would go so far as to say that parts of the Bible are inspired by God,
while other parts are not. Figuring out just how inspiration operates with the
Bible is a difficult issue.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: white;">So, rather than trying to figure out how inspiration
works, it might be helpful to look at the meaning of the word “inspiration.” In
Greek the word is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">theopneustos</i>, a
combination of God and spirit or breath. It literally means “God-breathed.” Where
do we find the image of God’s breath? Two prominent places are the creation of
Adam and Ezekiel’s vision of a valley of dry bones. In Genesis God breathed
into Adam and he became a living being. God gives life to humans. In Ezekiel’s
vision God breathed life on a valley of bones, representing the gift of new
life for the despondent and dying people of Israel. God breathes life on the
dead. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
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</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">In light of this meaning, let me suggest that rather
than trying to figure out just how inspiration worked between God and the
original writers, let us focus more on the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">impact</i>
of scripture as being God-breathed, that is, as God’s life-giving and
life-renewing Word to God’s people. In this sense, those texts we recognize as bearing
God’s Word to us, are those we consider scripture, as “inspired.” It is through
the sacred texts of the church that<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> </i>God
breathes life into and renews the people of God. It is the same breath that God
breathed upon the original writers. Exactly how God was involved in the original
writing is not fully clear.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: white;">But, what it means <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">for
us</i> is much clearer. Through the words of scripture God breathes life upon
those who inhale the Word of God. Scripture gives life to the Christian
community. They fire our imaginations and inspire us to boldly follow Jesus in
our world. Through scripture God breathes new life upon the dry bones of God’s
people.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
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</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">We can better <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">see </i></b>the inspiration of scripture in
its function or its use. As your pastor Meghan has said "Scripture is known, by its own account, not so much by what it is as by what it does. We trust it first not because we've untangled its essense but because we've encountered its accomplishments."</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That is the
point of the conclusion of our text. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">All
scripture is inspired by God and is <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">useful</b>
for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,
so that everyone who belongs to God may be proficient, equipped for every good
work. </i>Scripture is a companion for learning how to live a godly life. It
shapes the believing community through teaching, correction, training for
righteous living, so that the church may be prepared to live ethically, justly,
and to do good works of kindness and compassion. Understood as how the Bible
functions, inspiration has to do with God breathing resurrection life upon
God’s people through these sacred texts.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">If you
thought the idea of inspiration of scripture was problematic, so is the idea of
biblical authority. </span></i></b><span style="font-size: 14pt;">For some
Christians the Bible carries an unquestioned, absolute, final authority. Recently
I was approaching Albany in my car when I spotted a billboard that advertised
this view of the Bible. It read: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Holy
Bible, inspired, absolute, final. </i>Those who produced the billboard further
commented on this sign on their website: <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-themecolor: text1;"><span style="color: white;">This
book reveals the mind of God…Its doctrines are holy, its precepts are binding,
its histories are true, and its decisions are immutable.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-themecolor: text1;">In this view “authority” is similar to
“authoritarian.” The Bible has a coercive authority and is to be obeyed without
question. It is to be believed and obeyed absolutely in everything it says. We
see evidence of this perspective of biblical authority in the daily news: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Creation scientist claims the earth is 6,000
years old</i>/ <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Conservative conference
refuses to ordain women as pastors/ Spiritual advisor to this political party
believes that everything in our society---the government, the judiciary, the
economy, the family---should be governed by the Bible. </i></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span><span style="font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-themecolor: text1;">Daily we see the Bible being used and abused
as the infallible, absolute, final authority. And some of the things that the
Bible <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">supposedly</i> “authorizes” some Christians
to do, like protest at funerals, practice racism, and spout homophobic
nonsense, is not an authority I want to obey! <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-themecolor: text1;"><span style="color: white;">Maybe it’s because I grew up in the 60’s. Our
generation’s motto was “Question authority!” But today, questioning authority
is not just a part of the younger generation. It’s part of our culture. Recognition
of the authority of parents, teachers, police, politicians, Supreme Court
judges is no longer assumed, even though that authority may be forced upon
people. In the same way, people will not recognize the authority of the Bible
simply by declaring it to be so, even when it is announced in big, bold letters
on a public billboard!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To recognize
something as <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">authoritative</i> requires a
certain kind of respect for the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">author </i>behind
the authority. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-themecolor: text1;">The Bible is not an authority in and of itself. Its authority is
derivative or secondary. The Bible does not bear the same authority as God. New
Testament scholar N.T. Wright puts it this way: “The authority of scripture is
shorthand for God’s authority exercised through scripture.” God is the ultimate
authority. God transcends the Bible. God is not limited to the story of God. The
Bible testifies to the God who is beyond the Bible. T</span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">heologian
</span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Karl Barth once remarked about this view of the
Bible as a witness to God, "A real witness is not identical with that to
which it witnesses, but it sets it before us." The scripture is not itself
God, that would make it an idol, a golden calf. That’s bibliolatry. Rather, scripture</span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">witnesses to God through the limitations of human words and culture. And
through scripture we recognize the authority of God.<b> </b></span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-themecolor: text1;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
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</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-themecolor: text1;"><span style="color: white;">When Jesus taught in the temple, the chief priests and elders wanted to
know by what authority he did these things. Was his authority from God? As was
often the case with these religious leaders, they probably were trying to
spring a trap for him. Rather than answer directly, Jesus sets his own trap
with a question: “Did the baptism of John come from heaven, or was it of human
origin?” Snap! If they say John’s baptism is from heaven, then Jesus could say,
“Then, why didn’t you believe him?” If they say his authority is of human
origin, the people might stone them because they recognized God’s voice in
John. So, the chief priests played it safe by saying “We do not know.” Jesus
said, “Well then, I won’t tell you by what authority I am doing these things.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
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</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-themecolor: text1;"><span style="color: white;">The chief priests did not recognize the authority of God in the words
and acts of Jesus, nor in those of John the Baptist. Their words did not bear
authority for the chief priests because their words were not recognized and
accepted as being from God. In the same way, for the Bible to be authoritative,
it is first required that it be recognized and accepted as God’s Word to us. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
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</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-themecolor: text1;"><span style="color: white;">For Christians God’s Word and authority are ultimately revealed in the
person of Jesus Christ. The scriptures witness to Jesus the Christ and thus
their authority is centered in his life, teachings, death, and resurrection. We
recognize in Jesus the authority of God. For this reason Christ becomes the standard
of biblical authority.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All scripture
does not bear equal authority for Christians. Christ is the plumb line for the
authority of particular biblical texts. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-themecolor: text1;"><span style="color: white;">The Bible is authoritative to those who hear the voice of God through
these texts and recognize the authority of God in their lives. In other words, Christian
scripture is authoritative for <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">the church</i>,
those who recognize the authority of Jesus Christ. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-themecolor: text1;">The very act of calling the Bible “scripture” is to recognize it as authoritative
for the church</span></i></b><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-themecolor: text1;">. In and of
itself the Bible is simply religious literature. To call the Bible <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">scripture </i>is to recognize that it is
more than classic literature. To call the Bible <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">scripture</i> is to recognize its authority, not simply as individuals,
but as the church. The church recognizes the authority of scripture because we
recognize the authority of God. This may sound strange, but hear me out: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">There is no biblical authority outside the
believing community</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-themecolor: text1;"><span style="color: white;">Within his tribe an African tribal chief is well
respected and considered an absolute authority. His word is truth and is to be
followed. His word can mean life or death, inclusion or exclusion from the
community. Take him out of his tribe and place him smack dab in the middle of
New York City and his authority means nothing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>What he says will have no weight with passersby on the street. His
authority is defined and understood within the context of his community. So, in
like manner, the authority of scripture is defined and understood within the
context of the believing community. It holds no authority for those who have
not heard the voice of God within the church’s book. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span><span style="font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-themecolor: text1;">You can’t mean that, pastor! The authority of the Bible,
because it is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">God’s</i> authority, is
over everyone, regardless of whether or not it is acknowledged. But, does that
really make any sense in the real world? How can the Bible be an authority to
someone who does not acknowledge it and live by it? If that were the case, it
would be a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">coercive authority. </i>As we
see in Jesus encounter with those who questioned his authority, he did not
force his authority upon them. They had to recognize it on their own.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-themecolor: text1;"><span style="color: white;">I believe it is more helpful to understand
the authority of scripture in functional terms, by what they do. Scripture is
authoritative for the church because it functions to shape the life and
identity of the church. The texts that we call “scripture” are authoritative
because in them we hear God’s Word and find them useful for teaching and
instruction in order to shape our identity into the likeness of Christ. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span><span style="font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-themecolor: text1;">So, recognizing the
inspiration of scripture is not simply a matter of knowing exactly how God and
the writers collaborated in the writing of our sacred texts. It may be more
helpful to consider inspiration in terms of the impact of our sacred texts being
God-breathed, life-giving, life-renewing to God’s people. And maybe we should
think of the authority of scripture not so much as commanding obedience because
it contains the exact words of God. Scripture’s authority is in their being the
essential texts that tell us who we are and shape us into God’s people for our
day and time. Their authority is in being the essential writings through which
we hear the voice of God and the Word made flesh in Jesus. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: white;">To recognize the inspiration and authority of
scripture is not simply a matter of what we believe, but how we let scripture inspire
us and shape our lives as a community of faith. So, read it, study it, memorize
it, wrestle with it, question it, argue with it, but make sure to allow its
life-giving, life-renewing words to transform you and make you into God’s
people. Only then will we write a new chapter in God’s story in our day and
time; a continuing story that was first written down long ago by those inspired
by God.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-themecolor: text1;"><span style="color: white;">There is more light and
truth yet to break forth from God’s Holy Word.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></span></span></div>
Leo Hartshornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06040456376937046171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217245670187260420.post-11777106611277385792014-09-08T09:21:00.003-07:002014-09-08T09:22:35.722-07:00Word of God: Written, Spoken, Cosmic, Inner, Incarnate: Acts 4:31; John 5:39-40; Psalm 19:1-4; 1 Cor. 2:9-16; Hebrews 1:1-3<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_ddePVclq_hF6pwmNievjJi4HYAXxkvwcEfVnBrBP6jur-vo9JVSrxAK7T7_IrmhRI8Ah63IDLE3mnHCjD8dfKbD6sXJZuTgSIJOUquKrzv5IF3Ha_5Etg0RL2LckWSsFUZFw8NawEJQ/s1600/collage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_ddePVclq_hF6pwmNievjJi4HYAXxkvwcEfVnBrBP6jur-vo9JVSrxAK7T7_IrmhRI8Ah63IDLE3mnHCjD8dfKbD6sXJZuTgSIJOUquKrzv5IF3Ha_5Etg0RL2LckWSsFUZFw8NawEJQ/s1600/collage.jpg" height="101" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><o:p></o:p></i></span></span> </div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">I grew up in
a southern fundamentalist church tradition that believed that the Bible is the
very Word of Gaawd, in capital letters. That was understood to mean that the
Bible, preferably in the King James version, came to us unencumbered by human
error, dictated by God into the minds of those who first penned its words. The “Word
of God” was shorthand for the Bible. This idea was made visible when the
preacher held up his large floppy, leather-bound Bible and said, “The Word of
God says...” And those of us who listened knew he meant we must believe every word
jot and tittle.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">But, this
notion of the Bible being the Word of God is not exclusive to fundamentalists.
In liberal, mainline liturgical traditions you will hear the Bible read on a
Sunday morning followed by the congregation antiphonally responding with this
traditional litany: This is the Word of the Lord/<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Thanks be to God. </i>Admittedly, the texts that are read are from a three
year lectionary cycle, which does a bit of censoring, or should I say
“editing,” of some of the more problematic biblical texts. That part of Psalm
137 about dashing babies’ heads against the rocks doesn’t seem to “cut the
mustard.” Ironically, the lectionary also excludes these words from Revelation:
</span><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">“if anyone takes away from the words of the book of
this prophecy, God will take away that person’s share in the tree of life”? Holy
Shibboleth, Batman! And an old voice echoes in my head, “You cain’t take
anything away from the Word o’ Gaaawd!” But, is the Bible all we mean by the
“Word of God”?<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="color: white; font-family: Calibri;">Understanding the meaning of the “Word of God” is key
to placing the Bible in its broader context of God’s diverse and delightful
forms of communication with humanity.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="color: white; font-family: Calibri;"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">One of the primary forms by which God communicates
with us is through the written Word. </span></i></b><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">When we
refer to the Bible as “the Word of God,” we mean something other than its words
come directly from the mouth of God. The old self-assured saying, “God said it.
I believe it. That settles it,” reflects this understanding of the Bible as the
literal words of God. Everything in the Book, God said it. In this view the
Word of God and the words of the Bible are equated.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Truthfully, the Word of God is a metaphor that refers to
something much broader and deeper than the Bible. </span></i><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Like every statement about God the phrase, “Word of God,” is
metaphorical and not literal language. As a metaphor, the “Word of God” has
within it a creative tension by being both like and unlike that which it seeks
to describe. God’s Word is both like and unlike human words. The metaphor
“God’s Word” attempts to depict God’s communication with us as being <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">like</i> the way in which we communicate
with one another. At the same time it is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">unlike</i>
human communication. Words are part of human speech that is created through our
physicality; brain, breath, mouth, tongue, lips, and body. Words are audible.
They are human creations used to communicate our inner thoughts with one
another. Speech, voice, words, language are terms that represent this unique
form of communication between humans. Words represent human interaction. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">Since God is Spirit, metaphors like <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Word of God, God’s voice, God speaking</i>,
cannot be taken literally. God has no mouth or tongue with which to speak.
God’s voice is not audible, though it may be depicted as such in scripture. And
yet, we believe God communicates with humanity. The “Word of God” is a rich
metaphor that points to the diverse forms of communication by which the unseen
God reveals or communicates God’s self to us. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">Scripture is one of those mediums of communication. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">God speaks through the scriptures.</i> Again,
this is a metaphor. As NT Scholar Marcus Borg says, “The Bible is the Word of
God, not the words of God.” By that I think he means that the Bible is a conduit
of God’s self-revelation, not the literal words of God. To understand the Bible
as the literal Word of God is to destroy the metaphor and its creative tension
between “like and unlike.” It also tends to destroy sound theology! The real
danger with religious metaphors is to literalize them by forgetting the
“unlike” part of the metaphor. This happens with such a metaphor as “God, our
Father.” The very shock when hearing the metaphor “God, our Mother” indicates
we have thought of “God, our Father” much too literally. Remember, God is not a
male with a human body and…and…all those “things” that make a male and a father.
God is like and unlike a human male and father. As well, God is like and unlike
a human female and mother. The Bible as the Word of God is like and unlike the
human Word.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">To say that God speaks through scriptures means that
God, the sacred Mystery of Being, communicates to us through the broken and
beautiful stories, parables, texts, images and words in that collection of
books we call “the Bible.” The Word of God rides upon the frail human words of
the biblical texts. The divine Word is within and yet distinct from the human
words. It is a transcendent Word alongside, beneath, and emerging through our
common words. A Word different from and yet like our words. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">In one sense, we might understand the Bible as Roman
Catholics understand the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">sacraments</i></b>. A sacrament is a symbol
or ritual which mediates the divine presence to us. As a sacrament the holy
Eucharist mediates the grace of God. Sacraments are not in and of themselves
that grace, but its channel. Understood sacramentally, the Bible mediates to us
the Word of God. Through partaking of the scriptures we receive the grace-full
Word of God. Or we might think of the Bible as the finger in the story of
Buddha pointing to the moon. The Buddha wanted his disciples to see the moon,
not his finger. In the same way, the Buddha’s teachings pointed to the truth,
but were not to be equated with it. So, the Bible is the finger that points to
God. As the Word of God the Bible becomes a channel of God’s voice.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">An elderly woman sits in her rocking chair wearing her
blue apron. As she knits she looks out the window as the morning sun shines off
the hood of the old Chevy her late husband used to work on, then stares off in
space. He’s been gone only four months. The pain of her loss is palpable. She
misses him fiercely and wishes she could join him. Family and friends come by
less often. Her days are spent alone, lost in memories. How she longs to hear
his voice, to be reassured by his presence. Depression often sets in like a
cold morning fog. She picks up her husband’s worn leather Bible. It falls open
to a passage he had underlined. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Behold, I
am with you always, even unto the end of the earth. </i>The human words become
a divine Word, a finger pointing to a deeper truth. An inner sun breaks through
the fog in her heart. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Another form through which God communicates to us is the
spoken Word. </span></i></b><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Before the Word was written, it
was spoken. The written word of the Bible was produced within oral cultures.
The greater majority of the populations within these biblical cultures were
illiterate. Writing and reading were the privilege of a few of the upper class.
The primary means of communication of the general population was by word of
mouth. Even the written words of the Old Testament and Gospels were first circulated
as oral tradition. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">So, the Word of God, that is God’s self-revelation,
came first through the spoken word. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">God
speaks through the human voice. </i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
Bible itself witnesses to us that God’s Word came though the voices and words
of prophets, sages, teachers, preachers, evangelists, and believers moved by the
Holy Spirit. A familiar formula pronounced by the prophets was, “Thus says the
Lord.” They spoke as if a mouthpiece of God. Through the human words of these
messengers God’s voice was heard, while remaining human words. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">Did not the prophetic words of Martin Luther King, Jr.
sound like the voice of God for our day and time? In the midst of Jim Crow
segregation and rampant racism he spoke a word that cut like a two edged sword
to the heart and soul of our society. In King’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I Have a Dream</i> speech he quotes the very words of the prophet
Isaiah: <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be
made low. </i>He intoned the hopes of an oppressed people longing for the day
when the crooked road of racism would be straightened; the rough places of
discrimination would be made smooth. A word from another time and context and
from another human voice became the Word of God for us, here and now. Was it
not God who was calling our nation to equality for all through Martin’s voice?<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">On a more common level, on a weekly basis preachers
dare to take on the role of allowing their words to become the vehicle by which
God communicates to the people. Their words may not have the power or tone of a
Martin King, but they seek to speak the Word of God for our time and place. And
preachers are not the only voices God uses to speak the Word. God can speak
through <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>our own common voices as we each
proclaim the good news of Christ, liberty to the captive, call for justice and
equity, comfort the bereaved, teach the faithful, or share our faith. God’s
voice rides upon our words. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">Harold hadn’t been to church since he was a kid. After
he left home for college, church was the last thing on his mind. He got married,
settled into a small home in the suburbs with his new bride, and they had their
first child, a son. When their son was about a year old they started thinking
about his moral instruction. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Harold’s
own childhood in the church came flooding back to him; weekly worship, Sunday
School, church camps, Vacation Bible School. He remembered it as a good
childhood experience. The orange and brown leaves were falling on the driveway
as he pulled out to go to the local church that Sunday with his wife and son. After
so many years away, Harold didn’t know what to expect.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">They were warmly greeted by members as they were
ushered to a pew. He fumbled with the bulletin and rubbed his son’s head as he
lay on his lap. Some of the hymns were familiar from his youthful days. The
robed preacher made his way to the pulpit for the sermon. He opened his Bible and
stood there silent for a moment. For Harold it seemed an eternity. When the
preacher spoke there was something about his voice, his tone, or was it his
words that seemed to penetrate deep inside Harold? And when the preacher
invited the listeners to renew their faith in God, Harold knew someone else was
speaking through the preacher’s words. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">God
speaks through the human voice.<o:p></o:p></i></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"></span></i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">God also communicates to us through the cosmic Word</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">. No, I’m not talking about some hippie-dippie, New Age cosmic
consciousness, man. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Cosmic </i>is that
which pertains to the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">cosmos</i>, the
Greek word for <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">world</i>. We have all
experienced the wonder and majesty of creation. The sunset paints the sky with
a palette that pales Picasso. A lonely wolf cries on a moonlit desert night
that makes the hair on the back of your neck stand up. A waterfall sprays the
rock mountain like a white bridal veil at spring’s wedding. Bluebonnets babble
on the hills as if bragging of their beauty. The scent of pine in the air makes
you drunk on nature. The glimmering stars spangle the heavens with the jewelry
of angels.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">But, nature has no voice, or does it? The written Word
has no tongue or mouth, but its voice can be heard in reading. Can we read
nature? Some would say creation can be read and that it even has its own voice.
The psalmist (19:1-3) believed that creation has a voice and words which
witness to the glory of God:<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">The heavens are telling the glory of God; and the firmament
proclaims his handiwork. Day to day pours forth speech, and night to night
declares knowledge. There is no speech, nor are there words; their voice is not
heard; yet their voice goes through all the earth, and their words to the end
of the cosmos or world.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></i><br />
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">The psalmist goes on to talk about the law, or Torah,
the central scriptures of the Hebrew people. Creation and scripture are voices
through which God speaks. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">The poet Gerard Manley Hopkins expressed the language
of creation as God’s revelation in his poem <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">God’s
Grandeur. </i>Creation is like an electrical current that flashes forth the
power of God.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">The world is charged with the
grandeur of God.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></i></div>
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">It will flame out like shining
from shook foil.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></i><br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="color: white; font-family: Calibri;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">And in spite of human trampling and the stain of toil and trade,
God, like a mother hen, incubates the world with the promise of rebirth.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><o:p><span style="color: white; font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span><br />
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">Oh, morning, at the brown brink
eastward, springs---<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></i></div>
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">Because the Holy Ghost over the
bent world broods<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></i><br />
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">With warm breath and ah! Bright
wings.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></i><br />
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">But, it doesn’t take a poet to recognize that God
speaks through creation.<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> </i>In theology
it is referred to as <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">natural revelation. </i>It
is the common and natural revealing of God in all that surrounds us. In liturgy
we sing it, as in one of our hymns: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">This
is my Father’s world, and to my listening ear, All nature sings and round me
rings the music of the spheres. </i><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Then again, God communicates to us an inner Word. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></i></b><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">As one who grew out
of a context where the Bible was understood to be the very Word of God, I was
delighted when I came upon this quote from Anabaptist Hans Denck:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">I value the Scriptures above all human treasures, but not as
highly as the Word of God which is alive, strong (Heb. 4:12), eternal, and
free. The Word of God is free from the elements of the world. It is God
himself. It is Spirit and not letter, written with pen and paper, so that it
can never be erased.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></i></div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">Denck makes a clear distinction between the scriptures
and the Word of God. Scripture is written with pen and paper. The Word of God
is free of those material elements. For Denck, and other spiritualist
Anabaptists, the Word of God was both an <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">inner
Word </i>and an <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">outer Word. </i>But, the
scriptures were considered secondary to the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">inner
Word, </i>the living and active Word, the Word of the Spirit, the voice of God
within. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="color: white; font-family: Calibri;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">Another Anabaptist in Bavaria wrote:<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">The Scriptures are merely
the witness of the inner Word of God. A man can well be saved without the
preaching or the reading of the Scriptures. (Otherwise, what should happen with
those who are deaf or cannot read?) We understand God our Redeemer, not through
the lifeless letter, but through the indwelling of Christ.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></i></div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">The
Word of scripture is inanimate until it is given life through the voice of the
Spirit within. </span><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">God must speak to the heart for
the Word to be a living Word. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">God speaks
to the heart.<o:p></o:p></i></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"></span></i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">In the end, the ultimate Word of God is Jesus Christ,
the incarnate Word. </span></i></b><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">The prologue of John’s
gospel begins:<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="color: white; font-family: Calibri;"></span></span></i><br />
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">In the beginning was the Word (logos). And the Word was with God
and the Word was God. The Word became flesh (incarnate) and dwelled among us.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></i><br />
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">The language, speech, voice, word, God’s
self-communication became human in the person of Yeshua ben Yoseph, Jesus of
Nazareth. For the Christian the Word of God proclaimed in the life, teachings,
death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ is unparalleled. It is a Word that is
clearer and more central to hearing God than the Bible, human speech, creation,
and the inner voice. Christ is the measuring rod for the truthfulness and
authenticity of the Word that comes through all of these channels. Jesus is the
lens through which we read and understand the Bible. We do not preach our own
wisdom, but proclaim with our voices the living and liberating Christ. Creation
is subservient to the cosmic Christ, The Word through whom all things were
made. The inner voice is judged by the Spirit of Christ. The Word became flesh
and dwelt among us. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Jesus Christ is the
ultimate Word of God to humanity.<o:p></o:p></i></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">As the author of Hebrews puts it:<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">Long ago God spoke to our ancestors in many and various ways…but
in these last days he has spoken to us by a Son…<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></i></div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Conclusion- </span></b><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">So, the Word of God is not
to be equated with the Bible. It is much broader than that. God communicates to
us through the Bible, but also through the human voice, creation, the inner
Word, and most essentially and definitively through Jesus Christ. That is not
to say some of these channels of God’s self-communication are totally flawless
and unobstructed. The Bible has its errors in transmission and ethically
problematic texts. The human tongue is tangled and tainted and cannot be
equated with God. Creation brings death and destruction as well as beauty and
wonder. The inner voice can be self-centered or silent. Jesus Christ was a 1st
century Mediterranean Jew separated from us by time, culture, religion, and
worldview. Through the racket of human ego and error, class and culture, time
and distance, it’s any wonder that we can hear God’s voice at all. And yet….<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">The trademark image of RCA Victor Records is of a dog
sitting near a gramophone record player with his ear cocked to the side as if
listening carefully. It was taken from a painting by English artist Francis
Barraud. The fox terrier in the painting, named Nipper, was originally owned by
the artist’s brother Mark. Mark died and his brother Frank inherited the dog,
along with a belled phonograph and some recordings of Mark’s voice. When Frank
would play the recordings of his brother’s voice, Nipper would come close,
listen carefully, and recognize his master’s voice. Frank put the image to
canvas, which eventually became RCA’s logo with the title <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">His Master’s Voice.<o:p></o:p></i></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">God speaks to us across the pops and hisses, the warp
and wobble, the distance and distractions that might distort or drown out the
divine voice. And yet…. through written Bible, spoken language, wondrous
creation, inner voice, and <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>most
definitively through the earthly life of Jesus the Christ, the Master’s voice
can still be heard. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">There is more light and truth yet to break forth from God’s Holy
Word.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></i></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
Leo Hartshornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06040456376937046171noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217245670187260420.post-75242449635409630222014-09-05T20:02:00.000-07:002014-09-08T09:31:05.963-07:00Is Our God Still Too Small?<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVD2wGkuWWuErkmMYsrJyDA3quIqMHCz5Kz5zDELlIgvL2jDm_1SkZyH6wDl1vWNd_SeDWVF2gjAENyJqxvyizE1UyKAtBrwgi0P-GlLoKx5RqmhB05wnO3LwjQUxmkOfpTZp6hM-w8rc/s1600/g3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVD2wGkuWWuErkmMYsrJyDA3quIqMHCz5Kz5zDELlIgvL2jDm_1SkZyH6wDl1vWNd_SeDWVF2gjAENyJqxvyizE1UyKAtBrwgi0P-GlLoKx5RqmhB05wnO3LwjQUxmkOfpTZp6hM-w8rc/s1600/g3.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></div>
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span></span></b><br />
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The
trouble with many people today is that they have not found a God big enough for
modern needs. While their experience of life has grown in a score of
directions, and their mental horizons have been expanded to the point of bewilderment
by world events and by scientific discoveries, their ideas of God have remained
largely static. It is obviously impossible for an adult to worship the
conception of God that exists in the mind of a child of Sunday-school age,
unless he is prepared to deny his own experience of life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>J.B. Phillips, Your God is Too Small.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">I first read J.B. Phillips book Your God is too Small back in the 70s. As
a young Christian and student of the Bible Phillip’s book resonated with my
experience of what I saw in many Christians’ narrow understanding of God.
Phillips debunked a number of popular, but erroneous, images of God as ‘Resident
Policeman,” “Parental Hangover,” and “God-in-a-Box.” Even after more than 40 years since I read that
book, I continue to be amazed at some rather narrow, but popular views floating
around not only about God, but about the Spirit, Jesus, Scripture, and the
church. If “our God is too small,” it is probably because our theology is too
small.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">It seems like many of us Christians need
a bite size theology, a narrower and constricted theology that we can swallow;
a happy pill to make us feel good. The immensity of our God and the
earthshaking implications of our gospel have been shrunken down to a size where
they can be placed in our front pockets for safe keeping. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">God has become an old, white haired
European man that looks and sounds like he grew up next door to us. The Spirit
is not so much an uncontrollable, blazing fire as a small spark from the match
we strike to warm our hearts every now and then. The Jewish Jesus, a
revolutionary prophet that turned the world upside down has been turned into a
middle class white American that jumps onto our particular political bandwagon.
The Bible has become an infallible, devotional idol that reinforces our current
worldviews and practices. The gospel has become a packaged formula that
guarantees our ticket to heaven. And the church has become a comfy social club
where “birds of a feather flock together.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The tribalization of God turns God into a god of our people, our
nation, our denomination, our religion. It is a “downsizing” of God that fits
the divine into the box of the familiar and within the boundaries of our group
identities. This is the god of civil
religion, the god “in whom we trust” on our dollar bills, who we invoke in
nationalistic fervor, in war, and at baseball games with national anthems, and
who we swear oaths to in secular courts. The god of our tribe is worshipped in
churches that see themselves alone as the gatekeepers of the gospel, the right
interpreters of Scripture, the true and holy church of God, or should we say
“god.” <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">This is the god who was praised in
segregated churches, who justified apartheid, and buttressed white supremacy. This is the tribal god who excludes women
from sharing their gifts in the pulpit and church and is called upon by those
who curse small children crossing our borders fleeing violence and poverty.
This shrunken god is trapped within our conservative or liberal perspectives
and is willing to be used as a hammer against those who disagree with us. This
tribal god is too small to transcend nation, culture, race, gender, and
ideology. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The bottling of the Spirit is an effort to keep the dynamic presence of
God under our control. Pulitzer Prize winning writer Annie Dillard once
described in Teaching a Stone to Talk our
worship services as “children playing on the floor with chemistry sets mixing
up a batch of TNT.” We have forgotten the power of the Spirit that we
nonchalantly invoke on a Sunday morning. Dillard suggests we should all be
wearing crash helmets! <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Too often we enter the realm of the
Spirit, particularly in worship, with the casualness of shopping at Walmart.
Instead of taking our shoes off before the flaming presence of God’s Spirit,
we, as it were, roast weenies on the dying embers of the spirit. Our lack of expectancy, dependence on scripted
worship, and general patterns of being unmoved from where we presently stand is
evidence that we have bottled up the wind of the Spirit. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The domestication of Jesus has practically become a characteristic of
American Christianity. The church has created a Jesus in its own image. Dr.
Albert Schweitzer recognized the “strangeness of Jesus.” But, we have filtered
out the oddness of someone from an ancient religion and culture with a
different worldview in favor of either a divine figure floating above the earth
or a “buddy Jesus” who thinks, believes, and acts just like our people. God
forbid that we should portray Jesus as a black man, or take him at his word
when he says things that run against our societal norms, like “It’s easier for
a camel to pass through the eye of a needle….” Jesus is supposed to be one of
us. He us supposed to support our political party, our ethical viewpoints, our
lifestyles, and sit in our pews and go along with the consensus without
disturbing our “peace.” <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The taming of Scripture is an accepted practice in many of our churches.
It starts with the instruction of our children in Sunday School. We take a
story of the destruction of all humanity in an all-out apocalypse and turn it
into a timid tale about a little thunderstorm, rainbows, and a floating zoo
with the bobbing heads of giraffes sticking out the boat windows! As adults we still
try to avoid those “texts of terror” that denigrate women, sidestep the
implications of texts which justify slavery, whistle in the dark at apparent
contradictions, and soften into pabulum the “hard sayings” of Jesus. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The rough places of the Bible are
smoothed out and the valleys that depress us are lifted up, to borrow images
from Isaiah. The strangeness of the Bible, like the strangeness of Jesus, is
domesticated and tamed for consumption by white, middle class Americans. We
have forgotten how to struggle with muscular texts of the Bible that seek to
throw our faith into a headlock. Our
Bibles have become tame and limp. There is a need relearn how to wrestle, like
Jacob, with the angels of these difficult texts until we receive a blessing. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The shrinking of the gospel can only lead to stunted Christians. Salvation
has been shrink wrapped into a simple formula that can be encapsulated into
four easy steps, printed on a tract and can be easily handed out to strangers
like sugary candy. Forget about the ecological dimensions of the liberation of
the cosmos. Never mind those people captive to capitalism, consumed by consumerism,
and think only materialism matters. Sorry, but the gospel has nothing to say to
racism, sexism, classism, ableism, homophobia, and xenophobia. It’s all about
getting me and mine through the pearly gates when we die. And that’s the gospel
truth?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The parochialization of the church happens when we lose sight of the universal
body of believers. We are not the totality of the church. Our race and culture
does not define the nature of the church. Our way of worshipping is not sacred
and written in stone tablets. Our images of God and Christ and the church are
not universal. The church in all its delightful diversity is the universal
church. There is a reason Sunday morning has been called the most segregated
hour of the week. We are still hung up on that idea that “birds of a feather
flock together.” It has been baptized into an evangelism strategy! Seek those
who are like you! Here’s the church and here’s the steeple and open the doors
and see how much they are alike!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">A theology as big as the gospel is not an easy one to swallow, even for
myself. I would rather worship a manageable God that fits into my neat categories and conceptions. I would prefer
a Spirit contained within comfortable expressions of a dignified religion. A
Jesus who fits my social, religious, ethical, and political agenda is, in the
words of the Doobie Brothers, “just alright with me.” My preference is for a
Bible free of those problematic texts, embarrassing stories, and hard sayings. Give
me a gospel that is simple and ready to plug into the wall socket of any
context. And I’m just fine being around those who look and think like me, thank
you very much.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Except, our God is bigger than that!
Our gospel is cosmic! Our Spirit is a burning flame! Our Christ is universal!
Our church is worldwide! If that doesn’t expand your mind, your heart, your
theology, and your actions, then your God is
still too small. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<o:p><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p><br />
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Leo Hartshornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06040456376937046171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217245670187260420.post-29406031529586236832014-09-05T13:56:00.001-07:002014-09-05T13:56:39.067-07:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Yesterday I did a recorded interview with Evan Pollack for his Experience Drums website. It will included in his section called "Community Saints" about drummers bring wholeness to their communities through rhythm. I talk about my life in drumming and my work with Drumming for Peace.<br />
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I will make a post when the interview is on the website.Leo Hartshornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06040456376937046171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217245670187260420.post-32126320454184122062014-09-05T12:02:00.000-07:002014-09-05T13:45:59.271-07:00My 10 most Influential Theology Books
I limited my list of influential books to "theology" books (including biblical studies and homiletics) since a list that would include my interests in peace studies, literature, art, and music/drumming would be much too long. These books span four decades of reading and study and mark different degrees of shifts in my theological formation. <br />
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<strong>1. Worthy is the Lamb, Ray Summers</strong><br />
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I read this book around 1974 not long after discerning a call to ministry and entering California Baptist University. It opened up an alternative eschatology (historical/amillenial) from my fundamentalist, premillennial indoctrination.<br />
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<strong>2. The Social Setting of Pauline Christianity, Gerd Thiessen</strong><br />
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I spotted this book in a seminary friend's library around 1977 and had to read it. It opened up the world of the social-science approach to reading of biblical texts.</div>
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<strong>3. Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger</strong></div>
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I came across this book after seminary and my eyes were opened to the enormous problem of hunger and the disparity of poverty and wealth. I led me to get involved in Project Understanding, a community-based social justice project in Ventura County, CA, and to do hunger education.</div>
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<strong>4. Thy Will Be Done: Praying the Our Father as a Subversive Activity, Michael Crosby</strong></div>
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I was introduced to liberation theology in the early 80s by an atheist that worked with my wife, Iris. For some strange reason, he had an interest in the movement of liberation among Catholics in Latin America. This book, along with Gustavo Guttierez' classic <em>Theology of Liberation, </em>were a doorway into liberation theology and emancipatory readings of the Bible.</div>
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<strong><span style="color: white;">5. Black Theology of Liberation, James Cone</span></strong></div>
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Being a pastor near Berkeley, CA I had access to the Graduate Theological Union bookstore, where I encountered more radical readings in the early 80s (I visited there recently and it had been closed for 5 years!). Cone's book was another dimension of liberation theology that connected me to issues of race and its impact on theological construction. I have to mention Delores Williams <em>Sisters in the Wilderness </em>as my later intro to womanist theology.</div>
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<strong>6. Sexism and God-Talk, Rosemary Radford Reuther</strong></div>
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With a path opened into liberation theology in the early 80s, I stepped into feminist theology. This book was not my introduction to feminist theology. That was from a reading of Mary Daly's radical <em>Beyond God the Father</em>. What struck me about this book was its comprehensive look at traditional Christian theology through a new lens. A similar book for biblical study was Elizabeth Schussler Fiorenza's <em>In Memory of Her.</em></div>
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<strong>6. Christianity and Revolution, Lowell Zuck</strong></div>
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I was introduced to Anabaptism through the influence of James Wm. McClendon, Jr., an (ana)baptist theologian who was a member of a congregation in Alameda, CA where I was pastor (1983-87). He taught a class on Anabaptist history at the Episcopal Divinity School at GTU Berkeley. He used this book in his GTU class. The social justice elements of Anabaptists involved in the Peasant's War and their pacifism drew my attention. </div>
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<strong>7. The Nature of Doctrine, George Lindbeck</strong></div>
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Another book from one of Jim's classes at GTU that gave me a handle on understanding various approaches to theology was this seminal book by Lindbeck. It was my introduction to a cultural-linguistic approach and post-liberal theology, which I saw as having connections to Anabaptism.</div>
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<strong>8. Homiletic: Moves and Structures, David Buttrick</strong></div>
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With my experience, study, and writing focused on homiletics, I had to include something on homiletics. I plowed through this massive book in the 90s. Although highly theoretical it also gave me a practical and structural way to approach constructing my sermons at that time. </div>
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<strong>9. Jesus and the Spiral of Violence, Richard Horsley</strong></div>
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Horsley is one of my favorite socio-political readers of the Bible (along with my friend, Ched Myers). This book introduced me to his work by connecting the themes of peace, politics, and empire in biblical studies (an area I continue to delve into). Can't get enough of Horsley.</div>
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<strong>10.</strong> <strong>Asian Biblical Hermeneutics and Postcolonialism, R.S. Sugirthirajah</strong></div>
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This book from 1998 was one of my first introductions to postcolonial theology and biblical studies. It was a move beyond liberation theology, a well I was deeply drinking from, and in some ways a critique of that project.</div>
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This list takes me up to near 2000. It is but a small slice of my readings, but reflects major influences on my present theology and hermeneutical interests. </div>
Leo Hartshornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06040456376937046171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217245670187260420.post-26463400638449812682014-03-11T15:31:00.001-07:002014-03-11T15:31:09.655-07:00Getting ready for my first art show as a RAW artist for Spectrum on April 17, 7 pm at the Bassanova Ballroom, Portland, Oregon. I welcome sponsors to purchase a ticket at the site below.<br />
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<br />Leo Hartshornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06040456376937046171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217245670187260420.post-5868074451845822302013-10-27T10:44:00.001-07:002013-10-27T10:44:17.724-07:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Just finished this pencil drawing of a 1920s Australian criminal. For more of my art see my website: leosart.wordpress.com or my facebook page, Leosart</div>
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<br />Leo Hartshornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06040456376937046171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217245670187260420.post-73251771058584102802013-10-07T14:44:00.002-07:002013-10-07T14:50:09.548-07:00The Politics of Communion: 1 Corinthians 11:17-34<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<i><br /></i>
<i>*This sermon was presented on World Communion Sunday, October 6, 2013, at Zion Mennonite Church, Hubbard, Oregon </i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<b> </b>World Communion Sunday began
in 1933 as a celebration of a local Presbyterian church and then spread throughout
the Presbyterian Church. It was observed on the first Sunday of October. It
began in the context of a world of political strife and strong nationalism. In
1940 it was adopted by the Federal Council of Churches and was promoted as a
celebration to churches worldwide. It is a day to celebrate, through sharing in
communion, Christian unity and ecumenical cooperation.<br />
<br />
Do we really need a special
Sunday set aside to celebrate communion? Is it really important to have a
special day to recognize within our isolated congregations our connection to
the Christian church throughout the world by celebrating communion? Is this
just another innocuous day that means very little in practice, but allows the
church to symbolically join hands around the globe, sway and sing “We are the world”?
So, why bother with celebrating World Communion Sunday? A pinch of bread, a thimble
of juice. Remember Christ’s death. Remember the church is in other countries.
Ho-hum. Is that all this is about? What’s the big deal with celebrating World
Communion?<br />
<br />
<i>The church in Corinth didn’t quite understand the
significance of celebrating communion for the unity of the church.</i> The Apostle Paul’s primary text on communion is set
within the context of an extremely divided church. The church at Corinth was
divided over leadership, economics, spiritual gifts, and theology. If there
were Democrats and Republicans back then, they probably would have been as
divided as our Congress.<br />
<o:p></o:p><br />
Paul used communion theology
to address the issue of church politics. I’m speaking of “politics” not in the
sense of partisan politics, or a secular government, but rather how we govern
our lives together as a people. In other words, the politics of the church is
how we seek, in all our diversity, to live together and share at a common table
as citizens of God’s kingdom governed by our primary allegiance to Christ. The
problem Paul addressed in his letter had to do with bringing the old separations
of the divided table of the world into the celebration of Christ’s unifying
table of communion.<br />
<br />
<i>When you come together <b>as a church</b>, I hear there are divisions among you. </i>For Paul, coming to the Lord’s Table as a divided
congregation was not only a spiritual and moral problem; it was a theological
problem. To be the church and to be divided is a contradiction. To share at
Christ’s table and to be divided is inconsistent with who we are and <i>whose</i> we are. Communion is not only a
ritual of remembrance; it is an identity-marking ceremony that proclaims our
allegiance to the one crucified Lord Jesus Christ. As those who share in
communion with Christ, we are no longer divided by those things that mark off
individuals and groups within the world. Using another identity-marking ritual,
Paul said to the divided Galatians: <i>As
many of you as were <b>baptized </b>into
Christ, have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is no longer Jew or Greek,
slave or free, male or female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus</i>.
Being in Christ, symbolized in both baptism and Eucharist, means human
divisions and boundaries are no longer a priority in identifying who we are as
a people.<br />
<o:p></o:p><br />
The church is one in
communion as it partakes in the one body and blood of Christ. Christ’s body is
not divided. So, to partake of the bread and cup as one body, while still being
divided, is to nullify the very meaning of the Lord’s Supper.<i> </i><b><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><i>When you come together it is really not to
eat the Lord’s Supper.</i> To eat bread and drink wine as a divided people is
simply a supper. It is not the Lord’s Supper. I wonder if the church today has
ever come to share the bread and the cup and it was simply a meager meal.<br />
<i> </i>Paul points particularly to
the economic division within the church that was manifest when the Lord’s
Supper was celebrated. In the early church communion was not a separate
liturgical practice within a worship service. It was a natural part of a shared
meal, known as an <i>agape or love feast, </i>during
which special prayers and blessings were offered over the bread and wine as
part of the meal<i>.</i> It appears that at
the church of Corinth the wealthier members would bring lots of food and wine
to this common meal, which was not “common” in the true sense of the word. They
would eat, drink, and be merry, while the poorer members went hungry and
thirsty. They considered their food a private possession and not something to
be offered up as a common possession of the one body of Christ, the church.
It’s kind of like when a church member withholds their regular offerings to the
church because they disagree with the pastor or a leader believing that what
they have brought as an offering to Christ’s church is really their own private
possession. Withholding money that is meant to benefit a body of people because
of disagreements is not something we see happening today (House), is it?<br />
<br />
The rich at Corinth
considered what they brought to be a private meal and not a common meal and
therefore, it was not the Lord’s Supper. <i>For
when the time comes to eat, each of you goes ahead with your own supper, and
one goes hungry and another becomes drunk. What! Do you not have homes to eat
and drink in? Do you show contempt for the church of God? </i>Leave your
divisions at the church door; the divisions of economics, class, race, gender, ideology,
nationality, and partisan politics. In its essence, the church is undivided.
Communion re-presents the church as one. It is a ritual of remembrance of our
one Lord, who gave his body and blood to be our peace, as Ephesians says,
“breaking down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us” (Ephesians
2:14). To celebrate the body and blood
of Christ, our peace, with our divisions still on display and active is to turn
the Eucharist into an empty and meaningless ritual.<br />
<br />
It is for this reason that
Paul admonishes the church not to eat the bread or drink the cup in an “unworthy
manner,” that is, without first “examining yourselves” and “discerning the
body.” Traditionally we have thought this means examining our personal lives
for unconfessed sins<i> </i>before eating
the elements. And “discerning the body” means understanding that the bread and
cup represent Christ’s body and blood, which takes away our personal sins. In
the context of Paul’s argument “the body” is primarily referring to the church
as the body of Christ. To eat the supper in an “unworthy manner” is to eat and
drink without discerning the one body of Christ, the church. For the rich
members of the church to eat from their abundance, while the poor members went
hungry, was to violate the essential unity of the body of Christ; to not
“discern the body.” We do not partake of the Lord’s table when we come with our
divisions still intact and intractable; clinging to my own possessions, holding
to my own grudges, marking my own borders, affirming my group’s ethnic or
racial privilege, excluding the gifts and calling of a certain gender, and
asserting our own national boundaries. That’s what it means to partake of the Lord’s
Supper in an “unworthy manner” and to not “discern the body,” the one body of
Christ. This bread represents Christ’s one body, broken on the cross, but also
signifies Christ’s one body, the church, spread like seed scattered across the
hills and valleys, borders and boundaries, across nations and races, languages
and political persuasions. Through this <b><i>common</i></b> meal we get a taste of the
politics of communion.<br />
<br />
Discerning the body is our
difficult and delightful task in the midst of a diverse, global church and a
divided, warring world. Communion has some rather radical implications, if we
are to partake of it in a meaning-full manner. The church needs to explore the
imaginative and practical consequences of a politics of communion. If communion
celebrates one church united by its allegiance to one Lord, what does that mean
for me and for the church today in the communities, nation, and world in which
we live? What would a politics of communion look like for us today?<br />
<br />
<b><i>A politics of communion cultivates the
unity of the local church. </i></b>Conflict
and divisions within a congregation are painful and disorienting, as we all
know well. They are often based upon our differences, preferences, and personal
convictions. And those differences are part of what it means to be human. But,
sometimes those differences can rub up against each other until they cause
divisions. What we must remember is that the differences in our family
backgrounds, life experiences, ethnicity, race, class, age, gender, doctrinal perspectives,
personal musical styles, or who leads our congregation are not the essence of
what it means to be the church that celebrates communion. Those things are not
what unite us. We are essentially and fundamentally united in Christ Jesus. In
communion we remember the one body of Christ and celebrate the unity of the
church.<br />
<o:p></o:p><br />
At the same time, to be one
in Christ, to cultivate unity, is not the same as enforcing uniformity. We
don’t necessarily always have to agree with one another. And that’s okay. To
expect the church to be a place where everybody thinks and acts like me is to
be a church of one! We are not looking to make cookie cutter Christians, but
diverse disciples of the one Lord Jesus Christ. The one bread of our communion
can be “multigrain.” Our unity is not grounded in all our diverse and
delightful differences, but rather in our one common Lord. Like a hundred different
pianos tuned by one pitch fork are in tune with one another, so the church
tuned to the one Christ is united.<i> A
politics of communion would cultivate the unity of the local church</i><b><i> </i></b><b><i>A politics of communion celebrates
ecumenicity. </i></b>Our unity as
Christ’s church extends beyond our local congregation to other Christian
congregations. The history of Christianity and the emergence of denominations
seem to witness to the disunity of the church. Our differences have divided us
into Catholics, Protestants, Reformed, Charismatic, Pentecostal, Baptist,
non-denominational, Nazarene, and on and on we could go, <i>ad infinitum,</i> <i>ad nauseum</i>.<br />
<o:p></o:p><br />
With a history of
denominational divisions the work of the church in our day is to continue the
tough work of unity of the church across denominations. By that I do not mean
organizational unity, as if Christ calls us to be one huge denomination. Rather,
the church can be in unity even with our differences. Church<span lang="EN"> unity through ecumenical
cooperation does not mean we all become the same and lose our differences. We
have to learn the difficult dance of affirming our unity amid our diversity. Why
not think of the different Christian churches as the diverse hands, feet, eyes
and ears of the body of Christ, each bringing its uniquely different gifts into
one people?<br /> <o:p></o:p></span><span lang="EN"> </span><span lang="EN">Several</span><span lang="EN"> </span>hundred years ago, Augustine spoke of church unity
when he said; "In faith unity. In doubtful things, liberty. In all things
love". At the inception of the General Conference Mennonite Church it adapted
and adopted this slogan to address their differences and diversity as they came
together: “In essentials unity, in nonessentials liberty, in all things
love.” Herein lays a potential for unity
not only among our own churches, but an ecumenical unity across denominations.<br />
<o:p></o:p><br />
One place where ecumenical
cooperation seems to happen naturally is on the mission field. It appears that
when the church finds itself in an environment where it is in the minority and
not at the center of society, it tends to focus less on its differences and to
cooperate more.<br />
<br />
As the church is decentered
and becomes more marginal in a post-modern, post-Christian society, denominationalism
will wane and be off less importance. There was a time when staunch
denominational identity ran through generations of families. A real change
regarding denominationalism started with the baby boom generation and has become
even more the case with Generation X and the millennials. They have little
concern for differences in denominations and denominational identity. Maybe
this is an opportunity, like on the mission field, for the church to
de-emphasize its non-essential differences and work at ecumenical cooperation. I
wonder, is this move toward a more postmodern, post-Christian society God <i>in cognito</i> working through the world to
force the church to reconsider its essential unity and its vocation of mission?<br />
<span lang="EN"> </span><span lang="EN">Jesus’ prayer to God in John 17 was that his followers “may be one, as we
are one.” <i>The politics of communion
celebrates ecumenicity.<br /><o:p></o:p></i></span><br />
<span lang="EN"><i><br /></i></span>
<b><i>A politics of communion upholds the
global church. </i></b>The word
“ecumenical” literally means “the whole world.” So, true ecumenicity transcends
both our local and national boundaries to include the global church. We
celebrate World Communion Sunday as a reminder that the church in its unity
transcends the human boundaries of gender, race, economic class, language, and
nationality. Those are nice words, but when the rubber hits the road in
practice, the church may find itself having a hard time “discerning the body,” that
is, the global body of Christ.<br />
<o:p></o:p><b><i> </i></b>One ideology that blinds us
to “discerning the body” is <i>nationalism</i>.
Nationalism has become a religion that rivals Christianity, or should I say,
takes over Christianity, its narrative, and symbols. American nationalism,
sometimes hiding under the guise of “patriotism,” is a particularly pernicious
religion. It pledges allegiance to “one nation under god,” a tribal god of a
particular people. This parochial god has a divine mission for his favored child,
America. That mission first emerged during the American Revolution from the
Puritan John Winthrop in a 1630 sermon that imaged New England as a “City upon
a Hill,” a shining example for everyone to see. This same image was used by President
Reagan to speak of our nation. Unfortunately, this image from Jesus’s Sermon on
the Mount refers to his disciples. It has been misappropriated by politicians
and applied to America. The mission of America was couched in sacred language and
envisioned as a <i>Manifest Destiny, </i>a
term coined by political writer John Sullivan in 1845<i>. </i>It was our divine destiny to conquer and settle this new land. Although,
it was <i>manifestly </i>clear to the Native
Americans, who lived in this land, that it was not their divine destiny to be
victims of genocidal slaughter, displacement, and cultural robbery.<br />
<br />
Our nation came to see itself
as the “New Israel,” an image used of the church, whom God has chosen to be the
emissary of freedom and democracy to the world. Our mission is to remake the
world in our own image. Although the idea goes back to the early 1800’s, in
modern politics and the sentiments of most Americans we see our role in the
world defined by the idea of “American exceptionalism.” This doctrine holds
that our nation, our “democracy,” has a special, and one might say “saving,”
role to play in the world. We are not bound by international law or the
interests of the global community. We are bound only by American interests.<br />
<br />
Most recently President Obama
intoned this doctrine of “American exceptionalism” to justify bombing Syria,
which is a sovereign nation, and where, I might add, 10% of the population is
part of the body of Christ. If we are “a city set on a hill” how could we bomb
Syria for using chemical weapons, when we decimated the cities of Hiroshima and
Nagasaki and turned a blind eye to Saddam Hussein when he used chemical weapons
we supplied on his own people, just to name two brief examples? That’s because
those situations involved “America’s interests.” America is excluded from
hypocrisy and moral judgment, because we are “exceptional” within world
history. The problem with “American exceptionalism” is that many nations have held
to some form of “exceptionalism” and have justified all kinds of evil using it.
Besides, everyone wants to think that their people, their culture, their form
of government, are somehow special. The real difference is that America is an
empire with the power to enforce its supposed “exceptionalism” onto others.<br />
<br />
Like many religions, the
nationalistic religion of “Americanism” calls for blood sacrifice; the bodies
and blood of our young men and women sacrificed on the nation’s altar of freedom,
or should we rather say, “America’s global interests.” It is this sacrifice
that binds our nation together as one. The death of those offered for our
nation abolishes our differences and brings us unity. The flag becomes a symbol
of our blood sacrifices, as the cross is a symbol of Christ’s sacrifice. We unite
around the flag like Christians gather around the communion table. And yet, for
Christians it is the final and ultimate sacrifice of the body and blood of
Christ remembered in communion, which binds the global church together as one.<br />
<br />
At the conclusion of his book
<i>Between Babel and </i>Beast, theologian
Peter Leithart suggests:<br />
<span style="letter-spacing: 0.75pt;"> </span><i>American churches need to commemorate the
final sacrifice of Jesus in regular eucharistic celebrations, and they need to
work out the practicalities of a eucharistic politics—the end of sacred
warfare, the formation of an international ecclesial <em><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">imperium </span></em>that
includes </i><em><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-style: normal;">all </span></em><i>Christians, the cultivation of the virtues of
martyrs, the forging of bonds of brotherhood (and sisterhood) that would
inhibit Christians from shedding Christian blood (152).<br /> </i><br />
<i><br /></i>
Communion presents us with an
alternative politics. Our politics of communion is shaped by a cosmic God and
an international community of believers, over against a parochial god of a solitary
nation state. As citizens of God’s realm we bear allegiance to Christ alone,
which does not mean that we have no responsibility toward the state or that the
state has no positive role to play or that we must hate everything about
America. Nor does it mean that every expression of church in the world is
faultless. It does mean that our allegiance to Christ and love for God’s global
church takes precedence over allegiance to the state. So, when the state seeks
our support to bomb places where our Christian brothers and sisters live, how
can we in good conscience violate the body of Christ?<br />
<br />
How ironic that it an Air
Force chaplain shared communion with the crew of the Enola Gay before they
bombed Hiroshima. How blind to the body were those Christians who used the
Bible and just war theory to justify dropping the atomic bomb, a weapon of mass
destruction? How tragic it was that an “all Christian” bomb crew dropped the bomb
that decimated Nagasaki, which was not only targeted on innocent civilians, but
ground zero was the largest Christian cathedral (Urakami) in Asia! Nagasaki had
the largest concentration of baptized Christians in all of Japan! With those
two bombs alone we sacrificed over 220,000 innocent civilians in the name of
our nation, while still today we claim it was <i>necessary</i> to end the war. Allegiance to a nation took precedence
over allegiance to Christ and his global church. Where was the “discernment of
the body?”<br />
<br />
Communion is a place for us
to begin to rethink our politics. My old friend John Stoner said it well. His proposal
became a popular Mennonite Central Committee poster, which reads: <i>A modest proposal for peace; Let the
Christians of the world agree that they will not kill each other. </i>This is
only a first step. But, that simple proposal has radical and political
implications. It’s as radical as the simple truth that our communion with
Christ, remembered and celebrated in the bread and cup, makes the church one.<br />
<br />
Simply put, our communion in
Christ binds us together with Christians worldwide. The one church of Christ
takes priority over our particular nations. That is what we celebrate on World
Communion Sunday. The love of God has no boundaries. The gift of Christ’s body and blood is
transnational. It cannot be contained within one nation. The Spirit of the
church is universal. And so, with the second century Christians, we pray to God:
<i>As this broken bread was scattered over
the mountains, and when brought together becomes one, so let your Church be
brought together from the ends of the earth into your kingdom (Didache, 2<sup>nd</sup>
century).</i><br />
<i><br /><o:p></o:p></i><b><span lang="EN"> </span></b><span lang="EN">Like the church at Corinth, the community of Waxahachie, Texas of 1935, as
depicted in the movie <i>Places in the Heart</i>,
was divided. The story begins with death and desperation. Sheriff Royce
Spalding is accidentally killed by a young black boy, Wylie, who has been
drinking at the railway yards. White vigilantes drag Wylie through the streets with
their truck and display his broken body in the view of Edna, the sheriff’s wife,
and her children as the community’s blood sacrifice.</span><span lang="EN"> </span><span lang="EN">Edna does not project her pain onto every black person she meets. She even covers
for Moze, a black drifter and handyman, when he is caught by the law for stealing
her silverware after asking her for work. She ends up hiring Moze to help her
grow and market cotton in order to save her home from being repossessed. The
banker, who holds the deed to her place, negotiates with Edna to also take in
his blind brother-in-law, Will. Eventually after Moze is beaten by the Klan and
defended by Will, he leaves this new makeshift family he has grown to love. A
woman, her small children, a black man, and a man who was blind, see clearly what
caring across their differences can mean. It created a diverse, loving
community, sharing in the bread of peace and the wine of hope. </span><span lang="EN"> </span><br />
<span lang="EN"><br /></span>
<span lang="EN">The final scene of the movie is a rather strange scene of communion. It is
a service of communion taking place inside a small country church. The pastor
reads 1 Corinthians 13, the love chapter. <i>Love
is patient and kind…Love believes all things, hopes all things, endures all
things. </i>The elements of communion are passed down the pews from one member
to the next. It looks like a regular communion service until….after Edna’s
sister and brother-in-law take the cup, you see the men who dragged Wylie with
the truck, then Klan members, the banker, then there is Will, Moze, Edna, her
children, and oddly enough her dead husband, Royce, sharing in communion. Royce
finally turns to the young Wylie, who shot him, and passes to him the cup of
Christ’s blood. The final words of the movie are Wylie’s words to Royce….”Peace
of God.” It is one of the most striking and thought-provoking depictions of
communion I have ever seen.</span><span lang="EN"> </span><br />
<span lang="EN"><br /></span>
<span lang="EN">Some interpret this final communion scene as an image of heaven, with
everyone forgiven symbolized in Christ’s shed blood. That may be part of this
final scene. But, it may also be a vision of what the church can be here and
now: reconciled, at one, undivided by race, class, age, disability, gender, politics,
ideology, nationality, and living in the peace of God.</span><span lang="EN"> </span>Leo Hartshornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06040456376937046171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217245670187260420.post-7108790715586701212013-08-11T16:27:00.003-07:002013-08-11T16:29:40.699-07:00Lydia: Formed by Communities- Acts 16:13-15, 40<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh05vIk9c0vMx8smJBcSEFkS1u37gVZUGL_nmjJa5538IlExpE9GCWCIfTcm_fU8wZoH_3EfKo1YMSxe08TPMq3sFCgAHHJrM4fzDsUE_e73R_kvVylYtzroqJ2O7IZm59UeNDBn9QAI58/s1600/lydia%5B1%5D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh05vIk9c0vMx8smJBcSEFkS1u37gVZUGL_nmjJa5538IlExpE9GCWCIfTcm_fU8wZoH_3EfKo1YMSxe08TPMq3sFCgAHHJrM4fzDsUE_e73R_kvVylYtzroqJ2O7IZm59UeNDBn9QAI58/s400/lydia%5B1%5D.jpg" width="297" /></a></div>
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<em>* This dialogue sermon was presented this morning at Albany Mennonite Church, Albany, Oregon, where Meghan Good is pastor. The congregation sat around table and discussed the questions during the sermon. See my book "Interpretation and Preaching as Communal and Dialogical Practices: An Anabaptist Perspective" (Edwin Mellen Press, 2006) for my theory on communal and dialogical preaching.</em><br />
<em></em><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -2.7pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Introduction<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -2.9pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Most often we
think of heroes or heroines as persons who singularly stand out and apart from
others in their community through their courage or moral example. And there is
a place for recognizing the singularity of exemplary lives. Hebrews 11 is such
a list of biblical “heroes of the faith.” This summer your faith community has
been looking at such heroes of faith. But, the truth is, we can only understand
heroes or heroines in connection with their communities. No hero or heroine
stands alone and apart from their community. We cannot fully understand Dorothy
Day apart from her Roman Catholic community and particularly the Catholic Worker
movement. We cannot fully understand Martin Luther King Jr. without also
understanding the black community of which he was a part; its traditions,
practices, music, style, struggles, hopes, dreams, and religious expression. The
story of a hero or heroine is also the story of a particular community or
communities. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">The story of “Lydia”
in the book of Acts is not only a story about a unique individual, although “Lydia”
is not a personal name. In reality her name is a province of Thyatira, possibly
indicating she was a former slave without a given Roman name. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Her story is also a story about her own communities.
In only a few verses of chapter 16 in the Acts of the Apostles, we learn
something about Lydia and the communities of which she was a part. First, we
will examine three of her communities to better understand Lydia as a
distinctive person. With each identified community we will dialogue around one
reflective question to connect her story with our own story and that of our own
communities.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -2.7pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The Synagogue<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -2.7pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">The first
community we encounter in the story of Lydia is <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">the synagogue</i></b><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">.</i> According to Acts, the missionary
practice of Paul was to find a synagogue in the cities to which he travelled as
the first place to preach and teach the message of Jesus as Messiah. I don’t
think his travels to Philippi were any exception, though it has been disputed.
On the Sabbath Paul and his missionary companions went outside the city gate to
a river, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">where they supposed there was a
“place of prayer.” </i>If their custom was to look for a synagogue on the
Sabbath, then it would seem that what they were expecting to find alongside the
river was a synagogue. The word translated “place of prayer” (<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">προσευχη</span>)
is a synonym for “synagogue.” The reason it has not been translated as
“synagogue”? First and foremost, because it was an assembly of women! How can
you have formal worship when it’s just a bunch of women? Also, there must not
have been any Jewish males in Philippi, goes the reasoning, to form a
synagogue. It must simply have been a cozy women’s prayer group meeting in a
bucolic setting down by the riverside. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -2.7pt;">
<o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;">All evidence
points to this being<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> </i>a synagogue
community located by the river; 1) the fact that this whole scene was parallel to
Paul’s other city encounters; 2) the language of “gathering,” “sitting” and
“speaking” indicating teaching and preaching; 3) that 10 men were not required
to form a synagogue, and 3) the preponderance of evidence that the word for
“place of prayer” refers to a synagogue. That being the case, Lydia was
involved in a Jewish synagogue in Philippi composed primarily of women! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">What do we
learn about Lydia from this community?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Lydia is described as a “worshipper of God” or “god-fearer,” a term for
a Gentile proselyte to Jewish faith. Gentile women were particularly attracted
to the Jewish faith. There must have been something in the faith that affirmed
their identity as women. There were in the ancient world women who were even
heads of synagogues. In Philippi, we have what was probably an exceptional case
of a synagogue primarily made up of women. Imagine how this unique community
shaped and formed Lydia as a person of faith and as a woman!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -2.7pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Reflective
Question:<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></div>
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span></i><br />
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">What might someone learn about you as a
person and a Christian from understanding your community of faith?<o:p></o:p></span></i><br />
<br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The Household<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -2.7pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">The second
community we encounter in Lydia’s story is <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">the household</i></b><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">. </i>Lydia listened eagerly and her heart was open to hear the good
news of Jesus proclaimed to the women of the synagogue. This led to the baptism
of her <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">whole household</i>. This ancient
Mediterranean household was not the same as a modern household, understood as a
nuclear family, although ancient and modern households have both been typically
understood as ruled and owned by the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">paterfamilia</i>s,
or father of the family, until most recently. This ancient household was the
basic economic unit of society, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">economia </i>(literally
“household management”) being derived from the word for household (<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">οικοσ)</span>.
As well, the household was a place of worship. The household was not based
solely on blood kinship, but also included slaves and freed persons, who
assisted in the family work. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">No “partriarchal
family” structure is mentioned in the text, no male head of the household. It
appears that Lydia was the head of her own household, which does not
necessarily mean she was a widow. It does mean she was the leader of her
household; its work, economics, and worship life. Although untypical, there
were households ruled by <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">mater familias, </i>or
mother of the family. It is possible that Lydia’s household was composed
primarily of women. The production of cloth was the work of women. She must
have transferred her business to Phillipi from Thyatira, which was known for
the manufacture of dyed cloth. Some of the women gathered at the synagogue may
have been part of Lydia’s household and business. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -2.7pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">It is not
necessary to conceive of Lydia as an “independently wealthy business woman” or
“rich cloth merchant,” as has been the traditional interpretation. Production
and sale of purple dyed cloth was not necessarily a lucrative business for all
persons in the industry. It’s production was a rather disgusting, smelly process.
It’s possible that Lydia and those who worked with her together made a
subsistence living. In this picture Lydia must have relied upon the communal
work of her household to maintain economic sustainability. Only through shared
work was the household community economically sustainable in a peasant society
with very small elite upper class and no middle class. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Reflective
Questions: <o:p></o:p></span></i></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-add-space: auto; text-align: justify;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">How might households in the church
work together collectively to address the economic sustainability of persons within
the household of faith (the church) and in the larger household (economy) of
our communities?<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The Church<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -2.7pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">The third and
final community we encounter in the story of Lydia is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">the church. </i>Upon the baptism of her household Lydia urged Paul and
his companions to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">come and stay at her
home</i>. Her invitation is a sign of hospitality. Not only was hospitality a
customary and expected practice in the ancient world, it was the means by which
the early church was established and grew. Churches were not buildings, but the
people who assembled together (ekklesia=called out, a political term). And
their first meeting places were in the household of converts, such as Lydia,
the first European convert to Christianity. By the time we get to verse 40 of
Acts 16, Lydia’s home appears to have become a house church, the center of
Christian life in Philippi. Directly out of prison Paul and Silas come to
Lydia’s household and encouraged the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">brothers
and sisters, </i>familial titles given to members of the Christian community<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">. </i>Lydia is the patron, and even possibly
the leader, of the Philippian house church.<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">
</i><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -2.7pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Lydia’s initial
invitation to Paul was prefaced with these words:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">if you
have judged me to be faithful to the Lord</i>, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">come to my home. And she prevailed upon us.</i>” The indication is that
she has indeed been accounted faithful in her baptism. Her baptism and fidelity
to “the Lord Jesus Christ” places her and the other converts in a new
community, in an alternative society that stands over against the society and
those faithful to Lord Caesar and the Roman imperial order. There is a hint of
danger in Lydia’s compelling appeal “prevailing” upon Paul to come to her home.
The possible danger is narrated in the story of the imprisonment of Paul and
Silas. Lydia practices risky hospitality. A person entered this new community at
Philippi at some risk and danger. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -2.7pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Reflective
Question:<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><span style="color: white;">Describe what the church
today would look like as an "alternative community" or "contrast
society" (e.g., living in faithfulness to Jesus as Lord) to our
surrounding communities and society.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Conclusion<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -2.7pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Lydia’s three
communities---synagogue, household, and church---help us understand what made
her a distinctive person. Here was a unique woman who was shaped by these three
different communities. A Gentile worshipper of the Jewish God among a community
of strong women forming a synagogue, the head of her own household, leader of a
business which was sustained economically by a solidarity in work, the first
European convert to Christianity, a patron and possibly leader of the Christian
house church in Philippi, a community that shaped a new people together
resisting the empire of another Lord. Here was a woman formed by her distinctive
communities. As we have listened eagerly to Lydia’s story may these words be the
call of her life to radical faithfulness for each of us and our communities …<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">and she prevailed upon <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">us</b>. </i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
Leo Hartshornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06040456376937046171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217245670187260420.post-26822501068656650642013-06-23T21:59:00.005-07:002013-06-23T21:59:53.294-07:00Celtic Designs on Frame DrumsRecently I painted Celtic designs on the heads of a number of my frame drums.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix1V_gM6xS3Ih5J6Km7PL1BRxjPQiQzfxNoanuOKAnFyhS9M_9AfNMF2_Cj7tt5vzZLFOg9CMQZSVGJr9gOG6eUPjeFIj5UICWqSCzj6QO9SkhE2Gkg1YgELU6EAt1CUgItYcPScrSmYs/s1600/2013-06-05+23.18.24.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix1V_gM6xS3Ih5J6Km7PL1BRxjPQiQzfxNoanuOKAnFyhS9M_9AfNMF2_Cj7tt5vzZLFOg9CMQZSVGJr9gOG6eUPjeFIj5UICWqSCzj6QO9SkhE2Gkg1YgELU6EAt1CUgItYcPScrSmYs/s400/2013-06-05+23.18.24.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Leo Hartshornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06040456376937046171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217245670187260420.post-26231090182625832632013-06-23T21:12:00.002-07:002013-06-23T21:12:52.556-07:00Rock and Roll Icons<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Over the past few months I have been painting a series of Rock and Roll Icons, mostly from my era of music. These are musicians I have greatly admired for their creativity, musicianship, and for being counter to the wider culture. I hope to paint more of these portraits in the near fuure.</div>
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<br />Leo Hartshornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06040456376937046171noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217245670187260420.post-74025605938175897272013-05-19T15:45:00.002-07:002013-05-19T16:11:43.975-07:00Johnny Ace and Kali Verra: In the spirit of Ed "Big Daddy" Roth<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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During my pre-adolescent and adolescent years (early 60s) in the surf-drenched, Kustom Kulture of Southern California, my counter-cultural hero was Ed "Big Daddy" Roth. I had a fever for monsters and hot cars and Roth was the cure. I sent for his free catalogs, order several of his shirts and prints, assembled his Outlaw car and Mr. Gasser by Revell, wore a Rat Fink "crash helmet" and even spray painted my own monster t-shirts in high school. Roth faded from the scene and I moved on to the hippie and psychedlelic culture of the late 60s.</div>
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In the succeeding decades not much was heard of Roth and his Kustom Kulture, until it all re-emerged in the public eye in the 80s (The first Rat Fink Reunion was in December 1977). Roth returned to my personal vision in the 90s and beyond through the whole re-emergence of Kustom Culture and Roth influenced artists. I could see Roth in such artists as the Pizz, Todd Schorr, Dirty Donny, and Jim Phillips. The Roth influence, and the further development of the Roth-image, was obvious in artists like Ed Newton and Robert Williams, who worked for Roth. Some artists took the Roth influence into a new time. Not many kept the look and feel of those early Roth years of custom airbrushed t-shirts.</div>
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Another artist who worked for Roth, Johnny Ace, has produced, along with his partner Kali Verra, the classic look of the Roth I remember from my adolescent years. Other artists have done Roth-style work, but not like the work of Johnny Ace and Kali Verra. The airbrush work, bright colors, and traditional Roth images of monster and rods of Ace and Verra reflect the spirit of Ed "Big Daddy" Roth like no other. Their work evokes images and feelings of the early emergence of my counter-cultural sentiments.</div>
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<br />Leo Hartshornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06040456376937046171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217245670187260420.post-81236738379580153452013-04-18T13:36:00.001-07:002013-04-18T13:36:16.054-07:00These are not photos: The Pencil Photorealism of Paul Cadden<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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Paul Caden, Scotland born, is a hyperrealist artist who works primarily in pencil, but sometimes in charcoal. Each drawing takes 3-6 weeks each. His detail is amazing!</div>
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<br />Leo Hartshornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06040456376937046171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217245670187260420.post-32346876495178418492013-02-21T15:33:00.001-08:002013-02-21T15:33:25.312-08:00Dirk Dzimirsky: Photorealist Graphite Artist<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
I have appreciated the tehnical skills of photorealist (or hyperrealist) artists going back to the beginnings of the movement in the 60s. I stood amazed before the large paintings of Chuck Close at a gallery on La Cienega in LA in 1968. My appreciation has grown over the years as photorealist artists have continued to exhibit techical skills that are almost unimaginable. </div>
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Artists are producing mind blowing pieces simply using graphite as a medium.The detail goes down to reproducing the very pores on human skin! Sometimes it sems like they use subjects that are an even greater challenge than a simple portrait, such as people covered with water! </div>
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I would like to feature a number of these artists in some upcoming posts. One such artist is Dirk Dzimirsky, a German freelance illustrator. Of his work he says: "<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">I
work in a style that most people refer to as photorealism or hyperrealism. I use
photos as references for my hyperrealistic drawings and paintings but I am not
after a perfect reproduction at all. I use a photo very loosely once the
proportions are established. I usually work as if I were drawing from a live
model actually. I work with movement and expression, working fast on larger,
more unimportant areas, and slowing down on parts that need more attention. I am
actually improvising a lot. My main concern is to capture the essence and
substance of forms in order to get close to a perceptible presence of the
subject."</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times;">Disks blog and website: <a href="http://dzimirsky.blogspot.com/">http://dzimirsky.blogspot.com/</a> <a href="http://www.dzimirsky.com/">http://www.dzimirsky.com/</a></span></div>
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Leo Hartshornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06040456376937046171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217245670187260420.post-68477445502951186302013-01-29T18:04:00.006-08:002013-01-29T18:04:59.987-08:00Barry Moser: Book Illustrator<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Barry Moser is an illustrator known for his print work. His prints are recognizable for their technical detail. He illustrated <em>Alice's Adventures in Wonderland</em> and <em>Through the Looking-Glass</em> and over 300 other titles! Moser was awarded the Doctor of Fine Arts degree by Westfield State College,
Westfield, Massachusetts (1999), the Doctor of Humanities degree by Anna Maria
College, Paxton, Massachusetts (2001), and the Doctor of Fine Arts degree from
Massachusetts College of Art, Boston, Massachusetts (2003). His most exquisite work are his illustrations of <span class="goog_qs-tidbit-0">The Holy Bible, the first illustrator to do so, solo, since Gustave Dore in 1865. His magnum opus, THE PENNYROYAL CAXTON</span> BIBLE. was published in October 1999.<br />
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<br />Leo Hartshornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06040456376937046171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217245670187260420.post-69522664020669511892013-01-13T21:42:00.001-08:002013-01-13T21:42:48.824-08:00M.U.S.I.C. Musicians Undermining Social Injustice Creatively: Stevie Wonder<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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A scratchboard I finished today for my M.U.S.I.C series. The series is posted on my art blog at: <a href="http://leosart.wordpress.com/">http://leosart.wordpress.com/</a>Leo Hartshornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06040456376937046171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217245670187260420.post-17095531598498836692013-01-12T16:44:00.003-08:002013-01-12T16:50:04.410-08:00Jason D'Aquino: Miniaturist Illustrator<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<em>*Note- My posts over the past year and 4 months have been my weekly sermons while I was interim pastor at Zion Mennonite Church in Hubbard, Oregon. I some ways my sermons were my regular expressions of my artwork in words. Now that I have completed my verbal art I want to return to sharing my passion for the visual arts by posting more of my exploration into the world of art.</em><br />
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The other day I came across an artist that inrigued me with his style, medium, technique, and subject matter. <strong>Jason D'Aquino</strong> refers to himself as a miniaturist. He draws primarily using graphite and creates highly detailed renderings of icons of pop culture, common objects, and his own weird creations inhabited by smiling cartoonish children on old paper, ledgers, and pages from antique books. Most amazing are his detailed drawings on matchbook covers that are only a inch or so in size that he creates with high powered magnifiers. <br />
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