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At the end of last week’s service
and near the beginning of our Bible study I asked: What does unwavering hope and Joy inspired by
the Holy Spirit even look like to us today? Do we really understand what is
being said here as the Good News? Both the terms for Hope and Joy have been
profoundly twisted into meaning entirely earthly, and even transactional things
for us today. For we neither can be
remotely patient enough to be unwavering... yet alone harbor hope with a trust
and confidence that discipleship in Jesus essentially demands.
I don’t know how many of you have
been following the story about the judge who is demanding to review sermons of
Pastors in the Houston area but I recently signed a petition concerning the
rights of expression and opinion. As we
are all too bombarded with in today’s cultural distortion of the Gospel of
Jesus; it’s all become about politics, social agenda and the world of the self.
I didn’t sign this petition to take
sides; I signed it in wondering about the future certainty, integrity and
authority of the Gospel.
Perhaps these pastors may resort to
distorting the Gospel of Jesus by preaching and teaching political opinions
which DO NOT ever belong in the message we are to build disciples with AT ALL! These are the things Satan uses to divide
people and turn people away from God. The formation of a graceless universe is
one devoid of the understanding of unwavering, the reality of hope and the
truth of Joy which is the awareness of GRACE.
There may be many a sermon that my
dear brothers and sisters in Christ may have composed for today that talk about
this situation of censorship, monitoring and “justice...” BUT what about the
Gospel, I ask? What is Jesus REALLY
wanting us to HEAR let alone discern as His Disciples? Over and over during my spiritual formation
journey towards becoming a pastor for the Lord, I was told on many occasions:
You better stop studying the texts daily, you best stop writing sermons
weekly.... I ask for ALL disciples everywhere
who want to GROW in their faith: WHY??
Controlling the Living Word’s work
within the heart of the believer is our human, worldly mistrust in God’s Grace
working in, with and through His freely responsible servants, PERIOD. If I were an aspiring political theologian,
perhaps there would be something to fear... God forbid I influence people
against the agenda of established religion! (YIKES!) Let’s think about the Pharisees again, here
they are in today’s Gospel, plotting cleverly to see if they can ensnare Jesus
into making a political statement. DID He however?
It is interesting that they even
begin their dialogue with Him essentially mocking the reality of the Truth of
who He is and what He represents! BUT
let us remember, he was starting to win over the common folk... threatening the
Pharisaic power and control to their “vision” of righteousness. They were Old Testament scholars, politicians
for the oppressed Israelites to keep the Mosaic Laws and keep that worldly
understanding of God working through rulers. It is human nature, the health-wealth gospel
agenda practitioners of today’s culture are feeding their flocks that God’s Grace
is purely for your “gain.” Gain as a
distorted layer of understanding intellectual power and idolatry of the
transactional world of the self with NO accountability or sacrifice!
The reality and truth of Grace is “Joy.”
The original meaning of the word Joy means to harbor an awareness of God’s
grace favorably disposed. Truth be told,
I have had a very difficult time in spiritually understanding Joy, since there
is so much unhappiness, evil and division in our world these days. How can I be “joyful?” especially when tears
during petitions are flowing!! Ha~ did
you catch the “play” on Words there? Petition—people
of faith recognize that as the Word for prayers—composing prayers to ascend to
the Lord. In a worldly and secular view,
petitions are political “cattle-prods” to “influence” elected officials to do
our bidding.
Again, Jesus is saying to us in the
here and now of our very divided world: 21b... “Give therefore to
the emperor the things that are the emperor’s, and to God the things that are
God’s.” As a future pastoral servant within Christ Jesus’ church in this world
but not of this world; we are to learn from St. Paul’s beautiful encouraging,
empowering and graceful/ Joyous message he delivers to the Thessalonians. He tells them look at the Good work they have
been doing following his, Silvanus and Timothy (the 1st seminarian)’s
example: “8For the Word of the Lord has sounded forth from you not
only in Macedonia and Achaia, but in every place your faith in God has become
known, so that we have no need to speak about it. 9For the people of
those regions report about us what kind of welcome we had among you, and how
you turned to God from idols, to serve a living and true God, 10and
to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead—Jesus, who
rescues us from the wrath that is coming.”
This is living into the lifestyle of
Grace—discipleship joyfully realized through the Christ-centered heart enacted
in our hands and feet as the unified, impartial, unwaveringly hopeful priesthood
of all believers! Amen and Thanks Be to the God and Father through whom we are
called and commissioned! Not to a
worldly evangelism of our own Gospel, but to the only Gospel of Grace, Love and
mercy: Jesus Christ!
Truth be told about our own gospels—how
can we come to know God if we are at the center facing inward? Welcome and diversity are also words that have
become twisted into the language of our new worldly religion: Politics. Care and concern for the world is all
temporal, transactional and not really for the purpose of living into the
reality of Grace. If anything, perhaps
the Pharisees had it all figured out: Control, power, following political
agendas/ plans of action to create a “state” of righteousness is what life is
all about? I certainly hope not! But there is that Word again.... “Hope.” What is Hope?
A warm fuzzies word or the reality
of the challenge of lived faith: discipleship?
Hope is the cost and empowering
factor of discipleship—it is taking up our cross to follow Jesus. It is not just a Sunday-morning or evening
reality but an everyday reality within the lifestyle of Grace. It is at this
point of discerning our discipleship as well, that we need to return to the
cause and mission of Christ Jesus Gospel with urgency and “telling it like it
is....” There may be no horsemen in the
horizon or rivers of blood apparent; but we must face our calling and
commissioning to transform not only inwardly but outwardly as ambassadors of
Christ—agents of Grace. Our “agenda” is Christ
alone in a hurting, and dark world. Through
our unwavering Hope in His living and transforming Word; we can shine, build
and create light in our times today. We
can allow Grace to rebuild this world through our lives lived in imitation of
our servant King, Christ Jesus the Lord.
AMEN
Sunday October 19th,
2014; 19th Sunday after Pentecost; Year A; Lect. 29; SOLA Lectionary
Nicole Collins
Psalm 96:1-13; Isaiah 45:1-7; 1
Thessalonians 1:1-10 & Matthew 22:15-22
Youtube sermon:
http://youtu.be/-mBOpobLfqo
http://youtu.be/-mBOpobLfqo
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