Courageous, Pentecost 3, June 25, 2017

Third Sunday of Pentecost (Year A)

Sunday, June 25, 2017

In our own families and churches, when we begin to embrace beliefs and values that are different from the “norm” we may be disowned or excommunicated. Yet, if we fail to stand up for our convictions, we lose something of our own souls, and we contribute to making the world an unsafe and threatening place for anyone who is “different” in any way. While it may hurt to live out the welcoming, forgiving, serving, peaceful and justice-seeking values of God’s Reign, to fail to do so hurts us and our world far more.

– John van de Laar

“Tell me, what else should I have done?

Doesn't everything die at last, and too soon?

Tell me, what is it you plan to do

With your one wild and precious life?”

― Mary Oliver

Theme: Courageous

Reflection: Fear.

If there is one word in the Bible that makes me stop and take notice, it is fear. I haven’t checked by looking them all up, but several times I’ve read that the Bible contains the words “do not be afraid” 365 times. Not a day goes by without us needing to hear God’s encouraging “I have your back, no matter what happens today.”

In more than 60 countries nationwide, being a Christian subjects a person to punishments like beatings, rape, imprisonment and/or death. https://www.opendoorsusa.org/christian-persecution/world-watch-list

It would be an overstatement for me to say no Christians are persecuted for their faith in America in 2017. Christianity is such a diverse grouping. Churches of color, churches with very conservative or liberal leanings, even churches with certain faith practices find intolerance rampant.

Yet most Americans are free to practice their Christian faith and worship without peril, a privilege we easily can take for granted, especially considering the attacks and threats against, say, Muslims or Jews.

So, we can easily read today’s lessons and think “This doesn’t apply to me at all in American in 2017.” Prophet Jeremiah and the Psalmist faced recalcitrant audiences – it’s like the two lessons could be talking about the same hard-hearted people. Paul encouraged first-century churches in and around Rome to resist with grace the tremendous governmental pressure to conform.

And Jesus acknowledged that fear was a reasonable response for his followers. It’s ironic that Jesus’ healing, justice-seeking, compassion-showing, peace-making ways would lead to strife. But, he said, that’s what happens when you choose to live counterculturally, when you give up safety, comfort and conformity – when you take up a cross.

Following Jesus is not a one-time decision, but daily hard choices to live set apart. And when I spend time meditating, I realize I make poor choices, again and again. I should have spoken out against that unfair or cruel statement, taken more time to listen to his needs, presented my response more compassionately. I should have researched the way that product is made, invested with a firm whose business practices are more in line with my values, or purchased a more environmentally sensitive vehicle.

Did anything I do today cause someone pain? If I’m honest, most days, the answer still is yes.

And when I do so, not only do I hurt someone else, but I also create cracks in my own heart and spirit, divisions between myself and other people of God. Call it what it is -- Sin. When I take resources that prevent others from having their fair share, I perpetuate inequity. I am a persecutor.

Ouch. I had to let that last paragraph sink in for a while. I don’t like to think of myself as the evil-doer.

And as I become aware of the ways I perpetuate divisions, I can’t stay there. As Paul said, “How can we who died to sin go on living in it?” We can confess our part of injustice, know that God’s grace is broad enough to cover us, but as people of God, we would be remiss if we stayed in our sin.

Perhaps rather than being grateful that I don’t face persecution, I need to stay focused on the ways my life creates hardships for others. Address my daily actions and lifestyle choices. And regularly try to reduce my “oppression footprint.”

(You always are welcome to respond with your thoughts and reflections in the comments section at the bottom of this post.) 

Faith App:  We have two ears but only one mouth: listen twice, speak once. Listen not only to someone’s words, but also to the situation and what prompted the emotion. It’s so natural to respond in kind – instead, try to respond in kindness.

HYMN/SONG SUGGESTIONS

In All Our Grief, ELW 615

Healer of Our Every Ill, ELW 612

When Pain of the World Surrounds Us, ELW 704

The Lord Now Send Us Forth, ELW 538

Lord, Dismiss Us with Your Blessing, ELW 545

To Be Your Presence, ELW 546

God, When Human Bonds Are Broken, ELW 603

From the Inside Out, Seventh Day Slumber

Live Like That, Sidewalk Prophets

Sparrows, Jason Gray

The River, Jordan Feliz

Love Come to Life, Big Daddy Weave

LESSONS

Jeremiah 20:7-13 Jeremiah asks God for help against his persecutors.

Psalm 69:7-10 (11-15) 16-18 It is for your sake that I have borne reproach.

Romans 6:1b-11 If we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him.

Matthew 10:24-39 Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul

Summary of the Lessons:  Every time we let the world drag us down so we deny God or minimize God’s significance in our lives, it's a hit against our soul, a broken place inside us, a division. If we become hardened against God, deny him or turn away, there's something in our DNA that pulls us back into relationship because we are God’s, and God’s Spirit is in us. Don't let the world drag you down – no easy feat.

OPENING LITANY based on Psalm 69:7-10, 16-18

L:  God, you have seen the strange looks I get,

C:  When I tell them you come first in my life.

L:  Everyone whispers I’ve gone out of my mind –

C:  I’ve been erased from my family tree!

L:  I’ve shrugged it off – it means nothing to me,

C:  Because my heart is all wrapped up in you.

L:  I stay focused on your word, I pray and I fast,

C:  Staying faithful to you is my highest goal.

L:  Give me a word of encouragement, O Lord,

C:  In your great mercy, stay by my side.

L:  Some days the pressure is harder to take –

C:  Stay near and don’t let fear overwhelm me.

CONFESSION

L:  Lord, we come before you today, our egos out of place,

C:  Knowing we would rather get our way than follow you,

L:  Mindful that we crave power rather than serving others,

C:  Teach us how to humble ourselves and become disciples.

L:  Lord, we come here weary, consumed by the world’s ways,

C:  Distressed from hearing violence and terror all around us,

L:  Grieved that our fears turn people into friends and foes

C:  Guide us to be faithful in modeling your love and grace.

L:  And Lord, we come here in pain, ready to exact revenge,

C:  Maligned by the neighbors we trusted to have our backs,

L:  Misunderstood by those to whom we opened our hearts.

C:  Help us to listen, be gentle, and set each other free.

(Silent reflection)

L:  In our confession, we pray together,

C:  Most Merciful God … Stay beside us through the challenging times of our lives. Give us courage and faithfulness to live as our Savior Jesus lived, answering insults and persecution with mercy and love. May a fire burn within us for justice and peace in the face of those who injure, enslave or exclude any of your children. Free us from sin and fill us with hope so that through our words and actions, we would build God’s kingdom here on earth.

Here is Good News: Our Lord Jesus Christ lived among us and knew what it was like to be wounded, insulted and eventually betrayed and killed. In his ministry and even on the cross, Jesus spoke words of forgiveness and healing. By the life, death and resurrection of Jesus the Christ, you are forgiven and freed from all that torments you, so you may walk in newness of life.  Amen.

PRAYER OF THE DAY

L:  We pray together, 

C:  God of the Distressed … You call us beloved and know everything about us – what we cherish and what we fear. Everything that happens in our lives is important and known to you. Guide us through every test, every difficult choice, every conflict that we would not only endure, but also bring glory to your name. Teach us that we can trust in your steadfast love and protection.  Amen.

COMMUNION BLESSING

L:  We pray together,

C:  We give you thanks, most gracious God, for the steadfast love in this bread, the abundant mercy in this cup and your hand of protection over us, everywhere we go. Remind us again and again that we are precious to you – we are not just one person in billions of people, but you call us by name and know everything about us, down to the hairs on our heads. Draw near to us, that we can proclaim your goodness without fear, your love without any doubt. Amen. 

SENDING

L:  Let us answer harshness with mercy

C:  Let us respond to violence with peace,

L:  Transforming our world with compassion,

C:  Building God’s kingdom, one loving act at a time.

L:  Go now, courageous and faithful, to love and to serve the Lord.

C: Thanks be to God!

First Reading Jeremiah 20:7-13 (NRSV)

Setting the Scene: Jeremiah was a young prophet tasked with speaking truth to the recalcitrant people of Israel. He was rejected and run off on many occasions, so his prayers reflect his doubts and hurt.

⁷ O Lord, you have enticed me,
    and I was enticed;
you have overpowered me,
    and you have prevailed.
I have become a laughingstock all day long;
    everyone mocks me.
⁸ For whenever I speak, I must cry out,
    I must shout, “Violence and destruction!”
For the word of the Lord has become for me
    a reproach and derision all day long.
⁹ If I say, “I will not mention him,
    or speak any more in his name,”
then within me there is something like a burning fire
    shut up in my bones;
I am weary with holding it in,
    and I cannot.
¹⁰ For I hear many whispering:
    “Terror is all around!
Denounce him! Let us denounce him!”
    All my close friends
    are watching for me to stumble.
“Perhaps he can be enticed,
    and we can prevail against him,
    and take our revenge on him.”
¹¹ But the Lord is with me like a dread warrior;
    therefore my persecutors will stumble,
    and they will not prevail.
They will be greatly shamed,
    for they will not succeed.
Their eternal dishonor
    will never be forgotten.
¹² O Lord of hosts, you test the righteous,
    you see the heart and the mind;
let me see your retribution upon them,
    for to you I have committed my cause.

¹³ Sing to the Lord;
    praise the Lord!
For he has delivered the life of the needy
    from the hands of evildoers.

Second Reading Romans 6:1b-11 (NRSV)

Setting the Scene: Paul’s letter to churches in Rome that he didn’t start covers a lot of theological ground, including this section on Paul’s belief that baptism isn’t just a once-and-done act, but something that lasts all of a believer’s life, and then some.

6 Should we continue in sin in order that grace may abound? ² By no means! How can we who died to sin go on living in it? ³ Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? ⁴ Therefore we have been buried with him by baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.

⁵ For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. ⁶ We know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be destroyed, and we might no longer be enslaved to sin. ⁷ For whoever has died is freed from sin. ⁸ But if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. ⁹ We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. ¹⁰ The death he died, he died to sin, once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God. ¹¹ So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.

Gospel Matthew 10:24-39 (NRSV)

Setting the Scene: The Gospel of Matthew was written for Jewish Christians. Thus, they were persecuted by Romans, by Jewish leaders and by their own families. Persecution would continue until Christianity became the state religion in A.D. 315 under Roman Emperor Constantine.

²⁴ “A disciple is not above the teacher, nor a slave above the master; ²⁵ it is enough for the disciple to be like the teacher, and the slave like the master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign those of his household!

²⁶ “So have no fear of them; for nothing is covered up that will not be uncovered, and nothing secret that will not become known. ²⁷ What I say to you in the dark, tell in the light; and what you hear whispered, proclaim from the housetops. ²⁸ Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. ²⁹ Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. ³⁰ And even the hairs of your head are all counted. ³¹ So do not be afraid; you are of more value than many sparrows.

³² “Everyone therefore who acknowledges me before others, I also will acknowledge before my Father in heaven; ³³ but whoever denies me before others, I also will deny before my Father in heaven.

³⁴ “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth; I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.

³⁵ For I have come to set a man against his father,
and a daughter against her mother,
and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law;
³⁶ and one’s foes will be members of one’s own household.

³⁷ Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; ³⁸ and whoever does not take up the cross and follow me is not worthy of me. ³⁹ Those who find their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it.