10th Sunday After Pentecost Year C August 18, 2019
Luther Memorial Church Seattle, WA
The Rev. Julie Hutson
Jeremiah 23: 23-29 + Psalm 82 + Hebrews 11: 29-12: Luke 12: 49-56
Beloved, grace, mercy, and peace are yours from the Triune God. Amen.
For the first twelve days of this month, Bruce and I were traveling around the Deep South visiting family. We went to family member’s homes and lake houses and family reunions and met them for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. We ate way too much good southern cooking while catching up. But families are complicated. They just are. And in these days, that seems especially so. It’s become far too easy to let divergent views divide us. And that’s a shame. Truly.
And Jesus has something to say about that in today’s Gospel reading. Jesus seems to understand that in following him, we WILL find ourselves disagreeing with our family members. Jesus said he’s NOT here to bring peace….he’s here to bring division. Father against son, son against father, mother against daughter, daughter against mother, mother in law against daughter in law, daughter in law against mother in law.
Hold on there, just a minute Jesus. Throughout the Gospel of Luke, you’ve placed significant value on peace. At your birth the angels sang of Peace on Earth and goodwill to all people. Throughout your ministry you’ve brought healing and restoration to people and communities. And after your resurrection, you walked into the room where the disciples were hiding and your first words were Peace be with you.
So, what’s this business about not being here to bring peace? I suspect that Jesus was, as he often did, reflecting on the world around him. That he was observing what was happening as some tried to follow him and others tried to hold on to old ways and still others tried to oppress the very ones Jesus said we were to love. He was observing the division that comes when people, with all of our flaws and all of our failings, say we are following Jesus. Because I have family members who see that differently than I do. And in some of those relationships, that is a painful and difficult divider.
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if following Jesus, being his disciple, meant that we would always be happy, safe, and satisfied? But that’s never been the case. Throughout history that’s never been the case. That’s why the disciples were hiding in that upper room after he died. That’s why most of them were martyred anyway for their faith. That’s why Jesus also talks about laying aside our lives to follow him. Taking up our crosses. I don’t know where we got the idea that this would be all unicorns and smiley faces.
Maybe it was because the “gods” of this world offer us another story…that if we look after ourselves and just welcome people like us and don’t concern ourselves with outcasts and strangers we will win our heavenly crown. First of all, Jesus already did that. There’s no earning our way into eternal life.
But there is an expectation that, now that we are freed and forgiven, we will walk in the way that God has called us to walk. That we will, as the Psalmist says this morning, defend the lowly and the orphaned, render justice to the oppressed and the destitute, rescue the weak and the poor, and save them from the hand of violence.
That, dear ones, is probably going to bring about a fair amount of division among those we love. Maybe they won’t want us to march in a protest because we might get arrested or hurt. Maybe they won’t want us to speak up against gun violence because Uncle Joe or Aunt Sally has always been a member of the NRA. Maybe they don’t want us to rehome refugees because of their property values. Or maybe it’s all of the above.
But if any pastor or person of faith, including this one, ever tells you that following Jesus will be easy and if you just do it right you’ll be blessed with prosperity and you’ll be shielded from harm on this earth….they are lying to you. They are the false prophets that Jeremiah speaks against in the reading from the older testament. Prophets telling the people lies and delusions that are their own dreams. There are more than a few of those in the world today. Some of them preach to arenas full of people. Because who wants to choose to follow a difficult path? But the truth is, that the stories of Jesus are stories of struggle and loss and hardship and division. Because they are also stories about humanity. They are our stories.
When we were on the yellow school bus going up the very steep mountain toward Holden Village last month, we noticed along the way that the landscape out our windows was just scorched wilderness. The Wolverine Creek fire in 2015 had consumed trees and brush. Some were still dark with evidence of the fire’s presence. Our guide, who also doubled as our bus driver, said this about the fire: “We live in a forest and every forest needs a fire.”
That seemed counter-intuitive from where I was sitting. Aren’t forest fires bad? I mean, according to Smokey Bear it’s my job to prevent them. But here’s what I learned: Fire acts as the primary change agent in a forest. Fire is as crucial to forest renewal as sun and rain. Forest fires release valuable nutrients stored in the litter on the forest floor. They open the forest canopy to sunlight, which stimulates new growth. They allow some tree species to reproduce, opening their cones and freeing their seeds.
Jesus said I’ve come to light a fire on the earth. How I wish the blaze were ignited already!
Jesus didn’t come to light a fire that destroys. Jesus came to light the fire that refines. That is the primary change agent in our world. A fire of love for all people. A fire of courage in the face of injustice.
But he saved the real zinger for the end of our reading from Luke today. He asked: if you can tell when it’s going to rain and when it’s going to be hot, why can’t you interpret the present time? Why can’t we interpret the present time? What stands in the way of our naming, out right and boldly, the evils and injustices that exist in our world today? I know what stands in our way….or maybe just in mine. Fear. I’m afraid that if I say that we have to take action against gun violence or racism or xenophobia or misogyny or economic injustice people I love will turn against me. I’m afraid if I march in protest or speak out in favor of prison reform or welcome the refugee that people I love will object. Or worse yet, that they’ll stop speaking to me altogether. I’m afraid if I say that the hate filled rhetoric coming from the top elected leaders in our nation has no place in the work of the kingdom that YOU…who I love….might also say that there’s no place for that in church. Even though this is exactly the place for it. And even though this is exactly what Jesus was calling out. Indeed, following him has the potential to bring about this division.
Following Jesus is not for the faint of heart, Dear Ones. But oh, what examples of faithfulness we have. We stand on the shoulders of those who did not flinch in their response to God’s call. Who did not hesitate to speak out against injustice. The writer of Hebrews names some of them for us: the people of Israel, Rahab, Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, the prophets. And we can name them too….Martin Luther King, Jr., Jane Addams, John Lewis, Eleanor Roosevelt, Harvey Milk, Desmond Tutu, Nelson Mandela, Mother Theresa, Sister Helen Prejean, Malala Yousafzai, Rosa Parks. Friends we are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses. They are all around us. They are walking through the fire today to be change agents in the world. They are following Jesus into places scorched by oppression, injustice, poverty, racism, xenophobia, and fear. So, let us lay aside everything that impedes us and the sin that so easily entangles us. Let us run with perseverance the race laid out for us. Let us not lose sight of Jesus who leads us in our faith and brings it to perfection.
Thanks be to God and let the Church say…Amen.