Musings: Gun Control and Moral Hypocrisy

The NRA's response to the gun control debate has exposed a deep hypocrisy in our moral discourse from both sides. In their statement, The NRA blamed violence in the media and in video games for events like the shooting in Newtown, CT. This is the same group that has used the argument over and over again that you cannot punish the majority for the acts of a few "crazy" people. They have argued that the government cannot take away or limit guns because the violence is not the fault of the guns but the fault of the individuals. This same group is now attacking the media for its portrayal of violence, taking the responsibility out of the hands of the individual and placing it on movies, TV. and videos games. Is the slogan now guns don't kill people, the media does? Am I the only one who sees the hypocrisy in this?

Before this come across as a pure attack on the NRA, let me point out that the hypocrisy also exists on the other side. Those who know me know that I am fairly liberal. I support gun control and that I am also against the censorship of media and video games etc... My argument, like most people’s, has always been that violence in the media does not cause someone to commit violence, that violent people will already have had some sort of disposition to violence or will have had some stressor in their life to push them over the edge. It is people like me, who hold this view about censorship that so often cry for gun control, and now I see the hypocrisy in this as well. How can we take a hands off approach on one of the issues, and a position of censorship and control on the other. Hypocrisy rests on both sides. I know that both issues are far more complex than this portrayal, and yet we must recognize that there is some hypocrisy there. I do not have the answers on how to respond, I don't even know if the hypocrisy changes my stances, but I feel as though it is something that must be acknowledged before we move forward in discussions on both issues.

Be Prepared

Sermon as Preached 12/9/12 @ Lambs and Evington UMC


Scripture: Luke 3:1-6

 

 

 

Something you may not know about me is that when I was younger I was a boy scout. I remember that as you try to advance through the ranks in boy scouts, one of the first things you had to do was memorize a bunch of different sayings. There was the scout oath, “On my honor, I will do my best  To do my duty to God and my country and to obey the Scout Law; To help other people at all times; To keep myself physically strong, mentally awake and morally straight.” Then there was there was the scout law, “A Scout is: Trustworthy, Loyal, Helpful, Friendly, Courteous, Kind, Obedient, Cheerful, Thrifty, Brave, Clean, and Reverent. There was also the boy scout slogan, “Do a good turn daily” Out of all of them, the easiest one to remember, and yet the most helpful saying was a short two word saying, the scout motto, “Be prepared” This saying taught us a lot. It  taught us if you were going to go before the scoutmaster to try to meet one of your requirements, that you better be prepared, you had better have put the work into learning everything that you needed to know. Most of all it taught us that when there is something happening in the future, whether it was a trip, or a service project, or just a regular meeting, that you need to truly think of everything that you need to do before the event, and also everything that you might need for the event. If the boy scouts taught me anything it taught me to be prepared.

            Our scripture this morning is all about this idea of preparation. In it, we find John the Baptist in the wilderness and in all regions around the Jordan. His message was simple,  Christ is coming, be prepared. He  says, “The voice of the one crying out in the wilderness,  Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and high shall be made low, and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough ways made smooth; and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.” While many times when we read this we think of John the Baptist as some crazy man out shouting something new and radical that the Israelites had never heard before, this is not entirely the case. Now I’m not going to question whether John the Baptist looked crazy, because wild hair and eating bugs sure does give that appearance, but what he was saying was nothing new. John was quoting scripture, Isaiah, something that the Jews had heard so many times before.  John however was taking the message to heart, Christ is coming, and we need to be prepared.

            We are not that much different in our times now. We know the Christmas story, we know that Christ came as a baby in Bethlehem,  we know that Christ died and rose again, and we know that Christ will come again. When we hear it we are either like scrooges, we turn our hearts away from the news, we don’t want to hear it or we just simply don’t care; or we get Christmas fever, we want to sing all of our favorite Christmas tunes, decorate our houses in special ways, and yet how often do we do this and when Christmas passes our lives are not changed at all from the way they were before we celebrated the Christ child? In our  eagerness to celebrate Christmas, we forget to get ready for it. We aren’t prepared, and because of that lack of preparation, Christmas flies by, the joy is short lived, and life continues once again how it has always been. Do we truly take time to prepare for Christmas?

            When people hear the phrase “be prepared” there are usually two different ways of interpreting the statement.  The first is what I will call the bomb shelter mentality. Some will hear the message of be prepared and think that it means brace for impact. It the idea that something devastating is coming and you have to be prepared for all the bad things that might happen.  I call it the bomb shelter mentality, but we see the same reaction to natural disasters. The meteorologist forecasts a huge storm or forecasts tons of snow, and everyone stocks up on the essentials like water and non-perishable food items so that when that storm does come, they are prepared. When many people hear the term be prepared, this is what they think of. Even when applied to the coming of Christ, this is often how we act.  We recognize our sin, accept Christ into our lives, and do nothing about it. We use the church as a bomb shelter to hide in, waiting until it is safe to go back out into the world. But this is not the type of preparation that John the Baptist is calling us to. He says, “Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight his paths.” This is not an invitation to hide in our bomb shelters away from all that scares us in the world, but instead it is a call for us to go out into the world, a prepare the world for the coming of Christ.

            This type of preparation I like to call the special guest, or with my particular situation, the wedding preparation.  As most of you know Heather and I are getting married next October. While that seems like so far away, it is unbelievable the amount of preparation that goes into that day.  First we picked a location, we wanted somewhere that had been special to both of us, and so we decided to pick the church at Randolph-Macon since after all that is where we met. Then we had to pick a date, which seems simple enough until we found there were a lot more factors to consider than we thought. We knew we wanted a fall wedding, but since our wedding was on campus we had to plan the wedding around Parent’s Weekend and Homecoming. Columbus day is also one of the best days for business at my dad’s work, and since he works off of commission we didn’t want to do it on that day either. We found that something so simple as picking was actually quite difficult.  Next we have to make invitations, get bridesmaids dresses, rent tuxedos, find decorations, figure who is participating in what parts of the ceremony, including who is going to officiate. We have to find somewhere to go for premarital counseling, decide where we are going for the honeymoon, and whether or not we can afford it,  find a photographer, find a caterer or someone in our families who will cook for the reception, and it seems as though the list for preparation goes on and on and on. All of this leading to a wonderful day in which we can finally celebrate together in the joy of marriage.

            This is more of the preparation that John is calling us towards, this is more of the preparation that Advent calls us to partake in. Now the keen observer may start to wonder, “wait a minute, I thought Advent was a time of waiting, anticipating, not rushing, I thought Advent taught patience. How can all of this work be part of patience? That is an excellent question to ask, how does all of this preparation fit into the purpose of Advent? It is for this reason that I chose the example of a wedding, I didn’t just choose it because it is on my mind, though that is true as well.

            In my example I described a special day, a day of celebration, and that will forever change the lives of not only Heather and me, but our family and close friends as well. With a day like this, the first instinct is to go ahead already and do it. Certainly we could have, we could have gone to the courthouse and eloped so that we could be married today, we could have had a quick, small wedding, and trust me it has been tempting, both of us want that day to be here already, but we know that in order for us to make the wedding as meaningful of possible we have to be patient. In order for us to truly be ready for marriage, there needs to be a time of engagement. But as I said earlier this engagement period has not been a time in which we just sit on our hands waiting for the day in which we are married, it is a time that helps us truly understand and prepare for that special ceremony and what it means for the rest of our lives.

            Christmas and Advent are very similar. Christmas is that wonderful celebration that we all look forward to, it is that feast that will forever change the lives of those who celebrate it. Christmas is like the wedding, but like the wedding there needs to be a time to prepare, and wait, to anticipate what Christmas really means for our lives and to get ready for  that transformation. This time, this engagement period is why we celebrate Advent.  Just as Heather and I are taking time to prepare for marriage, just as we will take premarital classes to help strengthen our relationship, so too during Advent we need to take time to strengthen our relationships not only with each other, but also with God. Advent is a time for us to prepare our hearts and our souls for the gift of Jesus Christ, sometimes that includes confessing our sins and repenting, sometimes that means bringing our burdens before his feet. That may mean that we need to truly reflect on what our relationship with Christ is like. Do we pray, if we do, do we pray enough? Do we pray earnestly and truthfully?  Are following the call that God has put on our lives, or do we keep ignoring it, or putting it off until later?

            Advent is not only a personal preparation, but it is a time in which we are called to prepare others for the good news of Christ’s redeeming love, of Christ’s arrival on Earth. Just as Heather and I prepare to share the joy of our wedding with others, Are we preparing others for Christmas. Are we telling people about the good news? Are we inviting others to church, or to our Christmas programs?  Are we feeding the hungry, healing the sick, visiting those in prison, advocating for the end of oppressive systems in our nation and around the world? When Christmas day comes will we be ready? Will we have done our part? Will people truly believe that Christ has come to Earth  to bring love and justice to all, because they have experienced it through us? When a child opens up their gift on Christmas morning and gives their parents a hug and tells them thank you, will that parent be able to give thanks to God because that gift was only possible through Christians who believe that all should be able to experience the joy of Christmas. Maybe the biggest question is when Christmas passes, when it is time to take down our trees and our lights, when the shops and malls are no longer decorated with the seasonal cheer, when the novelty of whatever gifts we received that year has worn off, will our lives have been transformed, and will we have helped to change the life of someone else. Will Christmas mean anything to us? If in your heart the answer is no, then maybe we need to take this time that we have now, this time of Advent to truly prepare for Christmas. Not hurry or rush the coming of Christmas, but take time to prepare for it. Take time make straight the paths for the Lord, so that when it comes, and rest assured it will come, we will be prepared for Christmas, that the joy of the season will forever transform our hearts, our souls, and our minds.

Long Dark Winter of the Soul

Sermon as Preached 12/2/12 at Lambs and Evington UMC


Scripture- Jeremiah 33:14-16

Last week, we talked a little about the liturgical calendar as we celebrated Christ the King Sunday; the last Sunday of the liturgical year. And so today we turn back to the beginning of the calendar, a time that many of us have loved ever since we were kids, and that is of course the time of Advent, a time where we eagerly anticipate and celebrate the arrival of Christ on Earth. It is a time in the calendar full of joy and hope, the sanctuaries are decorated in anticipation, we light the Advent candles and read the meaning behind each candle, all leading until the time in which we can light the Christ candle, signifying God’s arrival on Earth in the form of a small baby, born in a manger. It is a time of the year that Christians have come to love as the famous song says, “The Most Wonderful Time of the Year.” While there is so much talk about the liturgical season of Advent,  it is rarely mentioned how fitting it is that Advent occurs during this season of the Earth. During Easter the link is almost always made between Spring and Easter, between the new life of plants and trees, and the resurrection. (This does show the Northern hemisphere bias of the liturgical calendar because for those south of the  Equator, Easter is during either fall or winter.) But for us here, there is a clear link between spring and Easter. We should also make a connection between our season now and Advent. Sure it isn’t technically winter yet, but the weather sure is starting to feel like it. The leaves have fallen and trees are now barren. Frost has begun killing our grass and our plants. The temperature has dropped and now with every wind, our bones are chilled and we find places to huddle for warmth. The days have grown shorter, there is more darkness, and even in times of daylight, there is often a hazy overcast that can at times be outright depressing. And this, this is the season in which we begin to anticipate Emmanuel, God with us.

            And yet it is so fitting. Our scripture from today is from Jeremiah, who like many of the prophets, has seen the sad and dark days of Israel. The Babylonians have conquered and destroyed Israel, and the people have been kept in captivity.  It is a time of darkness for the Israelites. It is a time of despair, a time of depression, it truly is a long dark winter of the soul. Even Jeremiah creates the imagery of the  death of vegetation, he paints a picture of a dark, cold, barren wasteland.

And yet he depicts this imagery while presenting an image of hope. Jeremiah says, “In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch to spring up for David; and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land.”  A righteous branch to spring up for David. God gives the Israelites a promise, a hope, that in the middle of all they are going through, in the midst of the despair, the darkness, the cold, a branch is going to up and to bring justice and righteousness to the land. God gives them hope that from the cold and darkness of winter, when everything else has died, there will be new life; life that will restore the land, life from the branch of David.  As Christians we know where and when this hope would come, as Christians we hear the story of the story of Christ’s arrival on a yearly basis, we know the story by heart, we love it and cherish it, but for the Israelites, they did not yet know this good news. All they had was a promise from God, that there would be a Messiah to come and save the people. The Israelites did not know when this would happen, they did not know who the Messiah would be, for the most part their lives were very much the same, they were still in exile, they had still lost their land, their homes, their Temple, and yet now the Israelites had something else; they had hope. Hope that one day, they would be saved, and not by just anyone, but the Messiah would come from the root of David.

            We cannot underestimate the power of this hope. In fact, Matthew even starts his gospel around this hope. The first chapter of Matthew traces the genealogy of Jesus. While many of us today find it to be one of the most boring parts of the Gospel, or it is the one that we pray that the pastor doesn’t ask us to read, (you know how it goes, so and so begat so and so, and difficult to pronounce name begat even stranger name and so on.) but for the Jews who read this genealogy, it was a passage of great hope. Because the gospel traces Jesus’ genealogy back to David, Jews could now see that this truly was the Messiah. This is the one that God has been promising us, and best of all, he is one of us, he knows our hurt and our pain. And he shall be called Emmanuel, God with us. Emmanuel, we use this word a lot around this time of year, but how often do we really stop to think about what it means. God is not only with us in spirit, God is not only with us through prayer, God, Emmanuel, was one of us. Someone who knows our pain, or fears, or hurt, God became human. Out of the darkness, out of the cold, out of our brokenness and despair, sprouted a new branch, a little baby child, who would forever change the world, God with us.

            This Sunday, as we begin Advent we are usually so quick, so eager to for the arrival of Christmas, we don’t want to wait to tell that Christmas story, we want it now, but let us stop and learn from our season. This time of year is a great reminder of the purpose of Advent. That from the cold, the frost, the darkness of the shorter days, that in the midst of a season that in all honesty would normally cause depression and despair, we have hope. We must take time to recognize the beauty of this hope.  We have become so accustomed to hearing the good news, that we tend to forget why we need to hear it in the first place. The Israelites did not know when Christ would come, they did not know where, or in what manner he would come, the Israelites did not know the same Gospel story that we know today. What the Israelites had was hope, a hope that God would save his people. This morning let us learn from Israelites, let us not take the good news for granted. Let’s us truly think about the areas in our lives that feel hopeless. If there there are no such areas in your lives, the let us thank the Lord, but then let us be reminded of those whose still today live life with very little hope. Even in our community there are those who feel hopeless. Those who do not see this season as a time of joy, but rather see it as a time of pain. There are those who have lost loved ones, there are those who struggle to even put food on the table let alone a Christmas feast. There are many who see the changing weather not as a sign of cheer, but an obstacle to overcome, of simply staying warm through the winter. And yet, this morning we have lit the first candle of the Advent wreath, the hope candle, a light that signifies that even through the cold and the dark, hope is coming. If you are one who is feeling hopeless today, know that there is hope. If you aren’t, then let this candle remind you to be a bearer of hope to those who are hopeless. Christ is coming to bring life to this dead world… .  there is hope.

The Mystery of Faith

Sermon as preached at Lambs and Evington UMC 11/25/12

Scripture- Revelation 1:4-8

As a kid I used to love mystery novels. I would read the Hardy Boys all the time, in fact I probably read them all, or at least almost all of them. There was also another book series that I used to really like, and that was Encyclopedia Brown. Encyclopedia Brown was a book series about a young boy, whose dad was a police officer, set up his own detective agency and would take random cases, not real cases, but more like schoolyard mysteries. What made the Encyclopedia Brown series so interesting, was that it was written in a way in which you the reader had to piece together the clues, and solve the mystery. Only after you figured it out, then you read the final page to see if you were right. I loved mysteries so much. My sister and I used to play a board game called Crack the Case, which was very similar to Encyclopedia Brown where you were given a scenario and had to solve the case. We played this game so much that we went through all of the scenarios in the game. I just loved mysteries. Or so I thought, but what I really enjoyed was solving mysteries. I loved to see how events that seemed random would fit together, I loved finding the flaws in the logic of the criminals that revealed the truth of what happened. I loved mysteries because out of the chaos, the intrigue, the unknown, came a clear, a logical answer for what had happened.

            But is this a real mystery then? If it is something that can be totally explained and understood by us, is it really a mystery? It’s what we have come to expect out of mysteries, so now when we hear something described as a mystery, we still expect that we should be able to figure it out, that we should be able to understand. More and more we have lost the appreciation for a real mystery, something that we just can’t explain, but know is true. We have even come to believe that if we can’t explain it then it must not be true, but how foolish are we to think that we are supposed to understand everything. As Christians, we must not only accept mysteries, but we must learn to appreciate them, If we were to understand everything about God, everything that God does, has done, or will do, then why would we even need God in the first place. But we know that we are but human, that we are fallible, we make mistakes, we aren’t all knowing, and so as Christians we have learned to embrace the mystery, instead of fighting it.

            In our scripture today  God says, “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.” Alpha is the first letter of the Greek alphabet and Omega is the last, so in other words God is saying I am the A and the Z. I am all things, I am the beginning and the end. And then we have the interesting phrase, “who is, and who was, and who is to come.” This is a true mystery, how is it possible to be the one who is, who was, and who is to come? While many people would hear a statement like this and try  to break it down, dissect it, find the logical flaws within it, try to either prove it right or prove it wrong, but we as Christians do none of that, we simply embrace it. To us this is the mystery of faith, and it is not a mystery that troubles us because we can’t completely understand it, but it is a mystery that we embrace because of the hope that is contained in that mystery. It is a mystery that we partake of when we gather together for Communion, as we even profess it in our Communion liturgy, “Christ has died, Christ is risen, Christ will come again.” It is a mystery that lets us look back and see what Christ has done for us, through his life, death, and resurrection. It is a mystery that allows us to embrace the fact Christ is here present with us, present with us every day through the power of the Holy Spirit. And still it is a mystery that allows us look ahead with hope; hope of a day in which all things are made new, where the lion lies down with the lamb, where people from all tribes, and nations, and languages are gathered together at that heavenly feast. It is a mystery of faith, hope, and love.

            The Christian Calendar even embraces this mystery. The Christian calendar is set in a way that allows us as Christians to live out the Gospel story. We start in advent, preparing for the coming of Christ, which of course we celebrate with Christmas. We then celebrate his revelation to the world through Epiphany, celebrate his baptism, and then journey with him through the wilderness in Lent. We celebrate his entrance into the Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, the Last Supper on Maundy Thursday, his death on Good Friday, and of course his resurrection on Easter. We then celebrate his ascension, and the moment at which the spirit anointed the church at Pentecost. The rest of the calendar after that is a time of celebrating the life of the church, working as the body of Christ until we get to today, the last day of the Christian calendar, which fittingly enough is Christ the King Sunday, celebrating the fact that Christ is King and celebrating the day in which Christ comes in final glory. It is quite a wonderful calendar to follow because we are able throughout the year to celebrate the work of God from the beginning to the end.

            But as I said, this calendar embraces that mystery. How you may ask? Well I’m glad you asked, or I’m glad I assumed you asked.  Think about it today is Christ the King Sunday, a day in which we celebrate when Christ comes in final victory, but what happens next week? We start the calendar all over and begin with Advent, begin anticipating Christ’s coming on Earth. Think about it we celebrate Christ’s coming, we celebrate the final victory, and the very next week we start all over. As they say in the infomercials, but wait there’s more! You see, when we start with Advent preparing for Christmas, it is clear and obvious that what we are celebrating, what we are anticipating, is Christ’s coming as they say in Talladega Nights, “little baby Jesus” but once you run through the calendar once, once we come to the end of the calendar, when we come to Christ the King Sunday, when we celebrate Christ’s coming in final victory, and then the very next Sunday is Advent and move to a time of anticipating Christ’s arrival on  Earth it starts to beg the question of which arrival we are anticipating? When we sing hymns like Come thou Long Expected Jesus, or O Come, O Come Emanuel, are we simply reliving the anticipation of Christ’s coming in Bethlehem, or are we anticipating the future coming of Christ? The answer is yes! But wait that wasn’t a yes or no question, but that is exactly the mystery that we embrace, the celebration that Christ has already come, and the celebration that Christ will come again.

            So that begs the question what are we supposed to do now? How do we live in a kingdom that has already been established by Christ, that at the same time when look around it is quite obvious that the Kingdom is not how it supposed to be, or how it is going to be in the end? Are we simply made to play the waiting game? Unfortunately too many Christians would say yes to that question, too many people believe that life is all about being saved, and then waiting until we are able to go to heaven. That idea, however leaves out one important factor of Christian life, and that is how we are supposed to live in the meantime. We do have a promise of salvation that all of us can receive through the death and resurrection of Christ, and we all do have a hope of eternal life that we can eagerly anticipate, but to leave out our role as Christians in the meantime to serve the Lord our God, is well, quite frankly selfish.

 Listen again to what our scripture says, “Grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne, and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To him who loves us and freed us from our sins by his blood,  and made us to be a kingdom, priests serving his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.” We once again see that mystery of faith that I was talking about, “who is, who was, and who is to come, but we also see John telling us what our role as Christians is. It is very subtle and easy to overlook but he says, “and made us to be a kingdom, priests serving his God and Father.” We are called to be the Kingdom! The same Kingdom that Christ established on Earth over 2000 years ago, and the same Kingdom that we place our hope in at the end of times, this Kingdom is the kingdom we are called to be now! We are called to live out what Christ has established and we are called to  strive towards that glorious vision of the full glory of the Kingdom of God. We are not called to sit on our hands and wait, we are called, to be the kingdom.

            But what does this mean, if we are the kingdom now, does that mean we have full reign, does that mean we are in charge? The answer is of course no. Christ is King, the one who is, who was, and who is to come. So then what is our role? Once again that passage from Revelation tells us, but it is also again easy to overlook. The passage tells us that we are to be, “priests serving his father and God.” We are called to be priests in this kingdom. Now the understanding of the term priest has been lost over the years. Now when we think of priests we normally think of Catholic or Episcopal clergy persons, we think of priest, to mean someone who is ordained to lead the church. And while this understanding of the term priest is not necessarily a wrong one, when the term priest is used here in the Bible, it is simply meaning someone who acts as a mediator between God and the people. This, is something that all of us are called to do. As Christians we are called to be God’s agents, God’s servants to all those who do not know God. As Paul puts it, we are called to be the body of Christ. We are called to be the arms and the hands of Christ, reaching out to world. We are called to be the kingdom of God.     

             When I was serving at an internship down near Myrtle Beach, the pastor at the church gave me a gift. It was a glass pyramid, and though I thought it was a beautiful gift, I had no idea what it was, until he explained it to me. He told me that these glass pyramids used to be used on ships. They would hang them upside down leading down below the deck. He told me that the were used as lights, the would take the light of the sun and reflect it into below the deck and it would light up the ship and allow them to see. This is what we are called to be, we are called to be like those glass pyramids. We are called to reflect God’s like into the darkness. We ourselves do not produce the light, we really have no power, but when God’s light shines through us, then we can shine that light into the darkness. So to go back to the original question, how do we live into this mystery of faith where Christ has died, Christ is risen, and where Christ will come again? How do we live a Christians in a Kingdom that has already been established and yet has not come in its full glory? We do it by shining God’s light into the darkness, guiding others in Christ love, and guiding the world towards that wonderful day in where Christ comes in final victory and we all can feast at his heavenly banquet.

It's The End of The World As We Know It

Sermon as Preached at Lambs and Evington UMC 11/18/12

 

Scripture- Mark 13:1-8

 

It's the end of the world as we know it. It's the end of the world as we know it.It's the end of the world as we know it and I feel fine. I remember this song by R.E.M fondly because of New Year’s Eve Celebration when I was still in school. This was no ordinary New Years Eve however, this was December 31, 1999, The night we moved into the new Millennium. We all remember that New Years Eve, because the whole year prior to it the world had been hearing about Y2K. There was a scare that computers had not been programed to be able to switch into the New Millennium, and so when the clock struck midnight, they would revert back to 1900 and all chaos would ensue. There were rumors that all bank data would be lost causing wall street to crumble. Rumors flew around that transportation systems would be knocked offline and trains and airplanes would all crash. There was even rumors that we would lose control of our nuclear weapons and that they would randomly fire when the clock struck midnight. In essence, the new millennium would cause the destruction of the world. And so I sat with friends at a New Years celebration waiting and anticipating, and I remember as the ball was about to drop, that song, “It’s the end of the world as we know it was playing.” Tempting fate.  But the song ended, the ball dropped in New York City, and nothing happened.

            Predictions of the end of the world are nothing new. This year in particular we are hearing over and over again new predictions of the world ending.  Well actually the aren’t new at all, they come from predictions from the Mayans, because December 21, 2012 is when the Mayan calendar will end. While many of us laugh at this prediction, seeing it as a fun cultural reference to talk about, many people are also taking this very seriously. The see wars in other countries or the threat of nuclear weapons in Iran and say that it points towards this prediction being true. Others who are displeased with the results of the elections claim that it shows that the end of the world must be coming. Most troubling however, is that many Christians are using their beliefs to support a Mayan prediction.

            This is nothing new either. Even last year, Christianity and numerology in the Bible was used to predict that Christ was coming back on May 21. I remember this clearly as well, because it was the day that I was flying from America to South Africa. The joke was that we’d be stuck in the air because there was going to be nowhere to land. Sadly though, many people took this extremely seriously. People quit their jobs to spend more time with their families. People sold all they had, some even took advantage of the hysteria and collected money on “fire insurance.” May 21 passed, and once again nothing happened. These people who had thrown away their lives because they were so sure the time had come, were now left with nothing, nothing except humiliation.

            In our scripture for today, Jesus does talk about the end of times, but listen to what he has to say. He tells the disciples. “Beware that no one leads you astray. 13:6 Many will come in my name and say, 'I am he!' and they will lead many astray.13:7 When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed; this must take place, but the end is still to come.13:8 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. This is but the beginning of the birthpangs.”  This is but the beginning of the birthpangs.

            In our passage Jesus is warning us, warning us against many of the things I have just talked about. He tells us that there will be wars and rumors of wars, but that does not mean that the end is necessarily near. He tells us that nations will rise against other nations, kingdoms against kingdoms, but that the end is still to come. He even tells us that there will be earthquakes and famines and we can imagine other natural disasters around the world, and yet these are but the beginning of the birthpangs. Maybe most importantly, Jesus tells his disciples to beware of false prophets, those who claim to be Jesus, those who claim that they know the end is coming. In this passage Jesus is telling us, do not get caught up in every prediction of the end of times.

Let’s be clear though, Jesus doesn’t tell us that there won’t be a time in which he returns, in fact it is quite the contrary. After all that is something that is crucial to our Christian belief, we even celebrate it during communion when we say, “By your spirit make us one with Christ, one with each other, and one in ministry to all the world until Christ comes in final victory, and we feast at his heavenly banquet.” As Christians we have a vision of that day of when Christ will fully reign over the Earth. Revelation tells us that Christ will make all things new, and that in the end people from every tribe, nation, tongue and so forth will gather around the throne in praise and celebration of our Lord Jesus Christ. As Christians it is important to hold on to this vision, but at the same time Jesus warns us about listening to the false prophets, he warns us about getting swept up in all of the end of the world talk. Even in this passage let’s look at what Jesus actually says.

After leaving the temple, the disciples say to Jesus, “Look Teacher, what large stones and what large buildings.” To which Jesus replies, “Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left here upon another, all will be thrown down.” It is to this statement that the disciples ask him, “Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign that all these things are about to be accomplished.” And it is to this question by the disciples that Jesus begins his discussion about not listening to the false prophets and that all of it is only the birthpangs. So what does this teach us. It teaches us that first and foremost, this discussion is far less about the destruction of the world and much more about the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem. That’s what sparked the conversation after all, the disciples were amazed by the size of the Temple, and Jesus tells them that one day it will be destroyed. We must remember that in those times the Temple was the center of both commerce and religion. The temple was revered, cherished, I would dare to say even idolized, because it was viewed as the place where God resided. When the first Temple was destroyed by the Babylonians the Israelites went into great despair, as we hear in Ezekiel God tells the Israelites, : “I will take the Israelites out of the nations where they have gone. I will gather them from all around and bring them back into their own land. ²² I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel. There will be one king over all of them and they will never again be two nations or be divided into two kingdoms. ²³ They will no longer defile themselves with their idols and vile images or with any of their offenses, for I will save them from all their sinful backsliding,^[b] and I will cleanse them. They will be my people, and I will be their God.”

            God fulfilled his promise to the Israelites, Jerusalem was restored, and a new Temple was built. But now we have Jesus, looking at this newly created Temple, this symbol of God’s presence and promise to the Israelites, and he is prophesying that this soon will be destroyed. Why? It is because here Jesus is showing us the beauty of our vision of the end of times, and that is a vision of hope, and vision of unity, and a vision of love. What Jesus is saying is that this Temple, this holy monument that symbolizes God presence with the Israelites will be fall, because there is a new king. God’s presence is no longer only with the Israelites, God does not reside in Jerusalem, The Lord is Lord of all, Jesus Christ is King and now Jews and Gentiles, men and women, slave and free are all part of this new kingdom, the Kingdom of God.  God fulfilled his promise to unite Israel under one king, and now Jesus is taking it one step further, now the whole world will be united under one king, and the King is Jesus Christ.

            So Jesus tells his disciples when you hear rumors about war and battles between nations, and when it comes to pass that the Temple is destroyed, don’t listen to those who claim that this is the end of the world, but know this is only the start. The destruction of the Temple was a sign a new kingdom has been established through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, but Christ reminds us that it was only the beginning. That we now have a hope of a time where all people around the world are united by Christ, that we now live in a kingdom that has already been established but has not yet come into fruition.

            And so we hear this message of Christ, a vision of the kingdom of God, a kingdom where all are united in love, where Christ and king, and we compare them to all of the talk of the end of times that we are used to hearing and it sounds drastically different. We are so used to hearing about doom and gloom, about the destruction of the world, but if we read the Bible the world is not going to be destroyed, in fact quite the opposite, the world is going to be made new! All things will be one day restored to the way God originally intended before we perverted with sin. Our vision is that we and all the Earth will be perfected through Christ. So beware of those who come in the name of Christ claiming the end of the world, for we believe in something far more spectacular than that, we believe in a world made new by Christ.

            Next week we will see what it means for us as Christians to live in the midst of a kingdom that has already been established, but has not yet arrived, but as we conclude for today, let me give a little advice on how to interpret what I have said today, I know that what I have said has gone against what many have learned since they were children, I have possibly even angered some of you, and for others it is simply a lot of information to process, so let me with just one word of advice. In the midst of the Nazi attacks on Britain in World War II, in the middle of the fear of invasion, the seeming doom that would come to the nation, an ad was placed all around the nation with the simple phrase, “Keep Calm, And Carry On.”  If there is one take away from this message today it is to keep calm and carry on. That doesn’t mean live however you want, but it means continue to live your Christian life; praying, worshiping, loving each other, and serving the community and the world. Christ doesn’t tell us when he will return, but through the gospels he tell us how we should live now. So in the midst of all of the speculations of war, and economic destruction, when so many once again claim that the world is ending,  keep calm and carry on. Carry on living the life that Christ has called you to live.

Sympathy for the Scribes

Sermon as Preached 11/11/12 at Lambs & Evington UMC

Scripture- Mark 12:38-44

 

As he taught, Jesus said, “Watch out for the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and be greeted with respect in the marketplaces, ³⁹ and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. ⁴⁰ They devour widows’ houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. These men will be punished most severely.” As I read this passage for the first time and as I began to work on this sermon, the first thing that popped into my mind was, I’m glad that this isn’t a communion Sunday. Can you imagine how awkward that would be, with me in my robe talking about the teachers who walk around in flowing robes. I caught a break there. But in all seriousness, our passage for today did cause me to do some deep self-reflection, it forced me to really challenge some of the ways that I think and act about my role as a Christian. As difficult as it may be, I pray that as we explore this text together today, that it may be as challenging to you as well.

            In our passage for today we really have two different things going on. There is first Jesus’ warning about the scribes, and then there is secondly Jesus’ observation of the poor widows giving. Both of these stories teach us a similar lesson, but it is important that we recognize that they are in fact two different stories. So with that being the case, let us examine each story separately and then later we will see what they have in common.

            As mentioned, the first story is of the scribes in the synagogue, and as we see in our passage, Jesus does not look upon these men very favorably.  Throughout the Gospels many of the Jewish leaders such as the Pharisees and the Sadducees are constantly and continuously portrayed as being the villains. They are portrayed as being corrupt, greedy, snotty, arrogant, and misguided. We have been so accustomed to these portrayals of the Jewish leaders, that now when we read about these people in the Bible that our minds automatically cast these men in a dark light. Jesus and the disciples for sure had valid reasons for their disapproval of the Jewish leaders, but before we write them off altogether as being evil, let us show a little sympathy for these leaders, and if we do we might find that we are not that different from them at all.

            For all of the downfalls of the Jewish leaders, on thing can and should be said of these men, and that is that they were very devout and dedicated to their beliefs. These leaders would constantly study the law (remember that law and religion were tied together in those days), they would devote themselves to studying the scripture. They were diligent in their discussions of the texts and what they meant, and which laws were most important. If you remember our passage from last week, Jesus’ discussion of the great commandments started with the scribes discussing which law was the most important. These leaders for the most part acknowledged that there was a level of respect that accompanied their position, and many tried to do their best to follow the laws such as cleanliness and dietary laws in the scriptures in order to keep their position respectable.

            In our passage for today were are told to beware of the scribes. When we hear the word scribe we often think of them being wealthy leaders such as the Pharisees and the Sadducees, and some were. However, many of the scribes were also actually rather poor, and it was seen as an act of piety to give money in order to support these scribes. These are the scribes that it seems Jesus is talking about today in our scripture. They were probably just as devout and pious as any other Jewish leader, but let’s not confuse these scribes with the wealthy givers that we see in the next part of our passage.  After looking at the scribes, and other Jewish leaders in a more sympathetic way we then may start to ask, what is it that they did wrong? If they were so devout, why are they always being chastised by Christ? That is the question that is at the heart of our passage for today.

So let’s look at what Jesus says about the scribes in our passage for today. He’s says to beware of them for they like to wear long robes around and be respected in the marketplaces. He also says that they like to say long prayers. As mentioned earlier, it is likely that the scribes that Jesus is talking are not actually that wealthy, and that they depend on the generosity of others to sustain their living. Jesus seems to be indicating that these scribes are saying long prayers, that they are walking around the marketplaces in their robes, because they are trying to earn more gifts. They think that if they say longer prayers they will be more respected, that if all the people in the area know that they are scribes then more people will be willing to give. The problem with these scribes is that  though they may be devout in their practices, that though they may be diligent in studying the law, that though they may do their best to earn the respect that comes with their position; their beliefs and their practice of their beliefs have become focused on themselves and not focused on God.

            Before we jump to judge these scribes, let us remember the title of this sermon, “sympathy for the scribes.” And why exactly are we being so sympathetic to the scribes? Well, it is for the simple fact that far too often we are the scribes. When we think about worship what is our expectation? Do we ask ourselves how can I participate to the best of my abilities in worshiping our Lord Jesus Christ this morning? Or are we more likely to ask what am I going to get out of worship this morning?  A lot of this comes to the forefront of our church, especially now in this time of charge conference. We become so rushed, so focused on getting everything done, making sure it is done right, and finding ways to present it in a way that makes the church look good, that we too often forget what is really at the heart of what we are doing. Let me be the first to say that I have been one of the biggest culprits of this type of thinking. I know that there is the phrase preaching to the choir, but there should also be a phrase preaching to the preacher, because this for sure is an instance of it. We as a church, as Christians, and as individuals far too often miss the mark when it comes to our understanding of what it means to be a Christian.

            This brings us to the second story of our passage for today. In this section of the passage Jesus observes the giving of a particular synagogue and sees many rich men who come and give large sums of money, but to them it is only a drop in the hat of what they have, and then there is a poor widow who gives just a small offering, but it is all that she has. Jesus tells us that she has put in more than all the others. While this story focuses on money and financial donations, it is about more than money, it is about how we think and act on our faith.  The rich men who donated were probably pretty nice people. Let’s not demonize them like we far too often do. After all they are coming to the synagogue, and they are donating a good amount of money; that shows some commitment to their faith. But what separates these rich men from the poor widow? It is the way that they think about their faith and more importantly it is the way they act upon their faith. For the rich men in our story, their faith was a part, a segment of their life. Their faith and their beliefs were something that contributed to their growth. Their giving indicates that that they care, and so they gave some of what they had to the synagogue. What makes the poor widow different is that her faith was not a part or a segment of her life, but her faith was her life. Her faith wasn’t something that she simply used to contributed to the growth of her life; her faith was her life. This does not mean that we do not get anything out of our faith, for we through Christ there is eternal life, but it means that the primary purpose of our faith is not what is in it for us, but what can I do for God. We get so inundated with things in our lives, in the church, with ideas, and new directions, old traditions, respect and duty, that we lose sight of the purpose of our faith and the purpose of the church. Like our scripture told us last week, love God and love each other. Or as the United Methodist church puts it in our mission statement, “Making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.”

            There is a commercial on TV now, that can unintentionally teach us a lot. It’s a KFC commercial for their new snackers, smaller chicken sandwiches, and the goal of the commercial is to make us rethink how we view fast food. In it a manager in the office comes out to all the people working at their cubicles and says, “Little news everyone, the little wigs at corporate are coming in so I want everyone to think little.” Think little. This is what our passage for today teaches us.  Not to think little in the sense of don’t dream big, but to think little meaning we need to be reminded of what our faith really means and how we should really live it out. Think little like the poor widow, that through her little offering she offered more than those who gave more money, because her focus was on Christ. Think little meaning not thinking about ourselves like the scribes, but thinking about the good news of Christ and the great commission that he gave us. Love the Lord your God with all of your heart, all of your mind, all of your soul, and all of your strength, and love your neighbor as yourself.

            What if we as a church dared to think little? Finance meetings would no longer be meetings simply to go over figures and numbers, crunching them to see if we have the money for the upcoming year, but instead they could become a time to envision and plan a way for this church to transform the community around us. Recording attendance numbers in worship would not just be the sake of butts in the pews, or so that the church won’t die, but it can be a way for us to encourage new ways of inviting back those who have not been in a while, reaching out to the community to bring in those who have never heard the good news of Jesus Christ or have heard it and for one reason or another have left. It could be a way in which we can imagine new and creative ideas in how we can glorify the Lord through worship, or it can be a time for the Holy Spirit to work through us in reinvigorating and reviving traditions of this church that started with good purposes but have been forgotten over the years. Looking at our participation in mission, both local and overseas can help us rejoice in the great work the Lord has done through us, but can force us to sees the ways we have failed each other and our community. And charge conference, especially the way we do it in our cluster, can be transformed from a mere formality from the book of Discipline, into a time in which we can encourage other brothers and sisters of Christ in their ministry, and a time in which we can learn from each other for our own future ministries. All of this is possible if we are brave enough to think little. To think about what is at the heart of all we do, and that is as Christ told us, to love God with all of our being, and to love each other.

The Royal Law

Sermon as preached 11/4/12 at Lambs and Evington UMC

 

Scripture- Mark 12: 28-34

 

For those of you who have ever wondered how I determine which scripture I’m going to use each week,  I don’t just randomly choose them myself. I actually follow what is called the lectionary, which is a weekly list of  Old Testament, Psalm, Gospel, and Epistle writings that Christians have put together to fit with the seasons of the Christian calendar, like Advent, Christmas, Lent and so on. The lectionary is on a three year rotation so that after three years almost all of the Bible would have been read. I then read them all pray about them, and usually choose my text a least a month in advance so that I am not reacting to some personal feelings or situations in the church when I choose the scripture, and instead can try to stay faithful to what the text is really trying to say to us. And yet, with the lectionary texts being determined years ago, and with me selecting this text about two months ago, I am astonished by how relevant this text is for this week; that this text comes the Sunday before elections.

            In our passage for today, we find scribes debating about commandments, or in other terms there is a debate about law. The whole debate centered around who was right, and who had the best understanding of which law or laws were the most important. Sounds familiar right? We as Americans are in the middle of  multiple battles between politicians at all levels arguing that they have the best understanding of the law, that they know what is best for the country. We cannot turn on the tv, or the radio, or open up a newspaper without seeing an add that demonizes and portrays the other candidate as a villain, and then the very next add is the other candidate doing the same thing. This election has caused communities, families, and even churches to be divided based upon who they support. But what if, what if in the middle of all, we like the scribes stopped our bickering, stopped the anger and the hate,  stop the division, and took the time to ask Jesus, What is the greatest co mmandment? What would we hear? Well we would hear the very same thing that we hear in our scripture today. “The first is, 'Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one;  you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.'The second is this, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no other commandment greater than these."  Love God, and love each other. In our Bible study on James at Evington, we ran across this commandment, and James had an interesting title for the commandment. He called it the “royal law” But what does he mean when he says the royal law. Well this could have two meanings, and as I read both James and our text for today, I believe that both meanings are true. The first understanding of the term royal law, is that the law is royal because all other laws are encompassed by them. At first glance the law of loving God and loving each seems easy, especially compared to the long list of hundreds of laws that we find in the Old Testament. Many read this and think that it simply replaces the laws in the Old Testament. The Ten Commandments become no longer relevant, we don’t have to keep the Sabbath holy, we don’t have to be as concerned with murder, stealing, or even lying. But when you really think about it, though the royal law seems shorter and easier, it doesn’t nullify these other laws. If we are supposed to love the Lord with all of our mind, and all of our heart, and all of our strength, then doesn’t that mean we do need to take at least a day of to keep holy and spend time with God. If we are supposed to love our neighbor as our self, then doesn’t that mean that theft, and murder, and lying is out of the question? You see the royal law, is actually harder than all of these others. It is no longer just a list of things that we should avoid doing to avoid sin, but now it is a commandment on how we live our lives. It’s no longer good enough to just avoid evil, but the royal law tells us to go further, that in everything we do we must love God with all of our hearts, minds, and strength, and that in every encounter that we have with another, in every thought that we have about someone else, we should do it love. You see, the reason that this commandment is the royal law, is because whoever is following this law is living a Christ like life.

            And still there is another reason that this commandment by Jesus is called the royal law, and it is something that we need to be reminded of often. In these times of debates, of elections, there is so much hope put into our nation, and some of it rightfully so. America has done and continues to do great things among the world. We are the land of freedom and of opportunity, and yet the hope we have begun to put into our nation has quite frankly become problematic.

Both politicians have campaigned using this idea that America is going to be bringing hope to all. Hope is one of the buzzwords of the Obama campaign and in the latest presidential debate Romney said that “America is the hope of the future” The problem is that Americans have taken this message to heart so much that they feel as if the world is going to end if their candidate isn’t elected. That all hope will be lost if the other guy wins. And yet as Christians we know our hope does not rest in either Obama or Romney, that even our wonderful country is not what saves us. We are only saved by the one who died and rose again for the forgiveness of our sins. This scripture for today, this royal law reminds us that our hope rests in God!  It reminds us that though we are citizens of the wonderful nation that we live in, that we along with Christians around the world are also citizens of the Kingdom of God, A kingdom established by Christ. Our country and the future of our country is important,  and debates and elections about it are important as well, but we must be reminded that there is still a higher law, a royal law, a law that all Christians no matter their race, gender, age, political affiliation, or even our nationality, that all of us are called to follow. Follow God with all of your heart, all of your soul, and all of your mind, and love your neighbor as yourself.  Now there is hope in that Kingdom, because there is hope in God.

            Do not take this as me claiming the elections are not important, they are and I encourage everyone to take them seriously, but we must keep it all in perspective. John Wesley’s advice for voting in his day still is good advice for us today. He told those voting to, “To vote, without fee or reward, for the person they judged most worthy. 2) To speak no evil of the person they voted against. 3) To take care their spirits were not sharpened against those that voted on the other side.” This reminds us that though we need to take who we vote for seriously, voting for the one we judge as most worthy, that we must not let it damage the way we think and speak about others. We  must hold fast to that royal law, loving God and loving each other, knowing that no matter what happens, God is ruler of all.

 

Happily Ever After

Sermon as preached at Lambs and Evington UMC 10/28/12

 

Scripture Job 42

 

Once upon a time, there was a beautiful step-daughter named Cinderella who lived with her step sisters and evil step-mother. Cinderella was treated badly and forced to do all of the labor in the house while her step-sisters prepared for a extravagant ball in which they hoped the prince would ask for their hand in marriage. With the help of her fairy God-mother, Cinderella was able to go to the ball, swept the prince off of his feet, but as the clock struck midnight she had to flee because all of the fairy God mother’s magic would wear off. In her dash she left her glass slipper, so the prince went around the village looking for the owner of that slipper. We all know that the prince found Cinderella they got married and the lived happily ever after.

            Or how about another one.  Once upon a time there lived a beautiful girl named Snow White. One day the queen of the kingdom asked her magic mirror who was the fairest of all the land. Expecting to have her name uttered by the mirror, the queen was horrified when the mirror said it was Snow White and not her.  Bitter and angry the queen set out to get rid of Snow White and tricked her into eating a poison apple that put her into a deep sleep. The prince found Snow White in her deep trance and kissed her, and Snow White was healed because of the kiss from her one true love, and they lived happily ever after.

            Or one final one, one that is more to my liking. Once upon a time, In a galaxy far far away there was a young man whose family was killed by the evil empire. This young studied in the art of being a jedi and went to fight the evil empire and in particular one of the leaders of the empire Darth Vader. This young man, Luke, fought Darth Vader only to find out that Darth was his father. Craziness ensues, there’s a huge space station built to destroy the rebels and the Emperor of the Empire comes to oversee its completion. As the Emperor fights Luke, Darth Vader sacrifices himself to save his son, the Death Star was destroyed and they all lived happily ever  after.

             Happily ever after; if fairy tales taught us anything, or in my case if Star Wars taught me anything, it is that in the end everyone is supposed to live happily ever after.  There is a flow to the stories, starting with Once upon a time, where we are introduced to the main characters. Then there is some sort of conflict. Cinderella wants to go to the ball but can’t, Snow White is put into a deep sleep, and Luke Skywalker’s family is killed and a battle ensues between the Rebel forces and the Evil Empire. And then we know that in every fairy tale there is supposed to be a Happily ever after. The conflict gets resolved. Cinderella marries the prince, Snow White is awoken by the kiss of the prince, and the emperor is killed and the Death Star is destroyed. This natural flow of stories has been ingrained in us. So much so that it is not only what we expect from fairy tales, but it is what we expect in real life as well.

            For this reason when we read the book of Job we expect to find the very same pattern to the story, and for the most part we find it to be true. First we are introduced to Job, there is that moment of Once upon a time, and listen to the first chapter of the book and hear how similar it is. “There was once a man in the land of Uz whose name was Job. That man was blameless and upright, one who feared God and turned away from evil.”  This sounds almost exactly like beginning of fairy tales, where we are introduced to Job, and we are told that Job is the good guy. Then we know that there is supposed to be conflict, and is there ever for Job. We have the wager between the devil and God. We have Job losing his livestock, servants, and even his children. We have Job covered with painful sores all over his body, and we have Job’s wife and friends not believing that Job is an innocent man.  We find Job in an utter state of despair questioning God, and we have God responding to Job putting Job in his place. Yet through it all, when we read the book of Job we read it expecting and anticipating the moment when all is made right in the life of Job and he is able to live happily ever after.

            And so we come to that moment in our passage today.  After being scolded by the Lord, after  being put in his place, Job submits himself to the will of God. Job humbles himself, and says , “I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.³‘Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?’ Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.⁴‘Hear, and I will speak; I will question you, and you declare to me.’⁵I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you;⁶therefore I despise myself, and repent in dust and ashes.” Job even went on to pray for his friends, the same friends that had betrayed him. Job prays to God asking God not to punish them, And after this Job has his fortune restored to him. His brothers and sisters come and have a meal with him and comfort him, and in the midst of this each one of them gave Job money and gold. The Lord gave back to more livestock than Job had ever had before. Job had more children both sons and daughters, and we are told that his daughters were the most beautiful in the land. And then the scripture says, “After this Job lived one hundred and forty years, and saw his children, and his children’s children, four generations.¹⁷And Job died, old and full of days.”  And Job died old and full of days. That phrase alone sounds eerily familiar to and he lived happily ever after. So this is! We have the introduction, the conflict, and now finally here in the final chapter we have that happily ever after moment, right?   Well yes, but…….

            But what, you may be asking yourself.  This for sure is an instance of happily ever after; but if we only read the end of Job on this superficial level, then we set ourselves up for a very dangerous interpretation of the text. The temptation is to read this and to say that if we just endure any hardship that happens in our lives, then in the end God is going to bless us and help us prosper in this lifetime. Unfortunately this theology has been used for decades, especially by many televangelists. We know how it goes, a story will be told about a sweet, God fearing woman who was struggling and all she had left was $25, and she gave that to the televangelist’s church and then God blesses the woman with hundreds of thousands of dollars, a new house and a new car.  Then they ask you to send in your money and see how the God is going to bless your life. You may still be wondering, what’s wrong with that, but let us consider all of the people who are also in utter despair, who send in their money, who trust and believe in God, who continuously pray for God to bless their life, and yet they remain in poverty for the rest of their lives. How must they feel? They probably say to themselves if only I prayed more, I must not have believed hard enough, or I must have done something wrong to deserve this. After all this is the same theology that Job is fighting against throughout the whole book. It is his friends and wife who tell him that he must have doing something wrong. It is his friends and wife that tell him that he is being punished for not having enough faith. It is this type of theology that makes Job feel as though God is nowhere to be found, because Job has done everything right, and yet bad things are still happening to him. The danger in reading Job as a book that tells us to just endure the pain and God will make us prosper, is that we are able to see instances in which that simply is not the case.  We see people like Martin Luther King Jr., and we expect the story to play out the same way. Once upon a time there was a man, and because of the color of his skin his was discriminated against. This man stood up to the injustice and led a peaceful movement that spread the message that no matter the color of your skin we are all children of God. We know that the next section of the story is supposed to be the happily ever after, but as we know King was shot and killed. In the Bible we have instances of great Christian leaders killed for their beliefs as well. All of this throws a wrench into this understanding of happily ever after.

            And yet, the story of Job is a story of joy and peace in the end for Job. It is a story of happily ever after. But let us look more closely at where this joy comes from. We look at the end of Job and we are of course first drawn to the fact that he is given riches, that he is given more livestock than he had ever had, that he has more beautiful and wonderful children, and that he lives on for quite some time. Yet at the same time we are quick to forget that Job had other children that he lost, are these children supposed to simply be a replacement for them? We forget that his wife and his friends had questioned him and abandoned him in his greatest moment of need; does all of this wealth help heal those emotional wounds?

And yet, Job does live happily ever after, so what is it that really brought peace, resolve, and joy to the life of Job? In our expectation of happily ever after, in our experience of fairy tale endings, we jump right to the end and forget to look at the beginning of this chapter. What is it that really resolves the conflict. When we look closely at the beginning of this chapter we see two things happen. First after being rebuked by God for acting as if he were God, Job humbles himself, confesses that it really isn’t about him, and puts his full trust in the Lord. The second thing that happens, is that Job once again acts selflessly, and asks God not to punish his friends, even though they had abandoned him and spoken falsely about God. It is only after these acts that we read about Job’s fortunes being restored and it seems as if it is through these acts that Job truly finds joy. Remember as we read through the book of Job most of what was troubling Job, most of his complaints, were not about the loss of his family or fortunes, not even the abandonment of friends and his wife, but Job’s biggest struggle was why was God doing this, and why was it happening to him. Finally in the end, Job realizes that God is greater than he could understand, that God is merciful and that God is just, and that even though Job may not have understood why these things were happening to him, he realized that God had never left him. And then Job realized that everything is not about him. The whole time Job was wallowing in his self-pity, and all of us have to admit it was for good reason, but in the end Job humbles himself, becomes selfless, and despite everything his friends said to him, asks for God to forgive them. The joy for Job seems to come from the fact that the burden was off of his shoulders. God’s mercy and justice was no longer something he had to struggle with trying to figure out, because Job put his full trust in God. Job’s joy seems to stem from the fact that life is no longer a struggle of trying to figure out God, the primary goal of life was no longer to “do the right things” so that God will bless you, but instead it became about a true relationship with God. A relationship that involves trust, and not a trust that God will bless you with riches, but a trust that God truly loves you and looks out for you. A trust that that though you may not understand what is going on in your life, God does. This is the joy that Job experiences. A relationship that is founded on a principle of I will trust you if you will bless me in the future is not a good relationship, but a relationship founded on the principle of I will trust you because of who you are, is a relationship that brings joy.  The true love story, fairy tale ending starts with that commitment of for better or for worse, and when we make that commitment to God not even death can do us part. When we make that commitment, when we put that trust in the Lord, no matter what happens in our lives, even through good or bad, we truly can live happily ever after.