12th Sunday After Pentecost Proper 15
August 15, 2010
the Rev. Ken Kroohs
(Jeremiah 23:23-29; Ps. 82; Hebrews 11:29-12:2; Luke 12:49-56)
NO LACK OF CONFLICT
St. Christopher’s Episcopal Church, High Point, NC
MAY THE WORDS OF MY MOUTH ... AND THE MEDITATIONS OF ALL OUR HEARTS ... BE ALWAYS ACCEPTABLE TO YOU --- OUR STRENGTH AND OUR REDEEMER AMEN
Tuesday morning I had my annual physical. Knowing how those go with time gaps between procedures I brought along some reading material and found a great article about the changes in church culture. The author compared now, 2010, with a few hundred years ago. He really did not have to go that far back since the comparison works with the 1950's or even later.
He wrote about how ‘back then’ churches were respected, virtually everyone knew the basic Christian story, virtually everyone believed the basic Christian story, most people saw God as being active in their world, and virtually everyone respected Christian thought.
Now churches, and Christians in general are faced with a very different culture. Many people don’t know the basic Christian story. Comedian Bill Cosby tells of having to stop a show and explain the Garden of Eden account so his jokes would make sense.
Twenty years ago, when I was still working for the City of Winston-Salem I was astonished to watch churches go through major zoning battles because neighborhoods saw churches as a negative influence – too much traffic and noise. Any positive aspects of a church were ignored or even denied.
Then this week I responded to an internet post which said that churches should stop objecting to what the general population has already agreed to. Doesn’t matter what the issue was, the writer was suggesting that churches should not lead but go with whatever the common consensus might be. I replied that the churches in Germany did just that and we had the holocaust. The person had not yet replied to me last time I looked.
Can you notice the linkage between these reflections and the gospel for today? Jesus says, “I came to bring fire to the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled! I have a baptism with which to be baptized, and what stress I am under until it is completed” — stop there for a moment because those two statements help us understand the rest. The second is the easiest one: I have a baptism with which to be baptized — almost certainly Jesus is speaking about His crucifixion.
What stress I am under until it is completed. - It seems strange to suggest that Jesus was under stress as we might be under stress in a difficult situation. I believe He is saying there was a great deal He would like to accomplish before His death – and He is frustrated that a lot of that will not be accomplished. Humans will not respond very fully.
That’s why Jesus said I came to bring fire to the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled! — despite what you might have heard it is very unlikely Jesus was asking for a nuclear war! That explanation suggests more a lack of Biblical knowledge than anything else.
“Fire” was the symbol for God’s presence: He lead them by a pillar of fire at night or the burning bush for example. The Pentecost account: tongues as of fire rested on each of them. Jesus is saying He wishes that the ‘fire’ of God’s presence had already been kindled – started — burning in each person. A fire that once started would spread from person to person.
If you have ever known someone who could not stop talking about God, that person may have made you feel uncomfortable but I bet you heard them described as being on fire for the Lord
Jesus knows His earthly ministry will soon end and wishes the fire of God’s presence would sweep through the world. But Jesus knows that will not happen. So He goes on to use a very confusing statement: Do you think I came to bring peace to the earth? No, I tell, but rather division!
What a minute! That’s not the Jesus we know!! Our Jesus keeps telling us “peace be with you” and “be not afraid”. Our Jesus would never suggest families should divide!
Important point ..... OUR Jesus and the real Jesus are often not the same.
Notice that Jesus did not say families SHOULD divide .... Jesus said families WOULD divide.
The key issue here is the one of “peace”. What does Jesus mean by “peace” in this passage and what does He mean when He says “peace” be with you?
I believe in this passage Jesus is saying He did not come to bring a lack of conflict: Do you think that I have come to bring a lack of conflict to the earth? A lack of conflict usually requires that the least objectionable path be followed. Not the best path, just the one which people find too innocuous to object to. Lack of conflict is seldom, if ever, the way to truth.
When Jesus offers “peace be with you” He is speaking about another kind of peace ... about God’s peace which understands that evil exists and therefore there will not be a lack of conflict but that ultimately God rules.
When Jesus healed on the Sabbath, He created both peace and division. He created God’s peace in the healing and division with the religious leaders. THAT is the kind of division Jesus is speaking about here. The division between what matters and what doesn’t.
BUT — one more linguistic fine point — if is very possible to be divided without being in conflict. I have no desire to be in conflict with a Moslem. If they want to hear I would be happy to tell them what I believe about Jesus Christ and why. And if they want to tell me I would be happy, and interested to hear about their beliefs. But that does not have to lead to conflict.
Unfortunately too often our divisions do lead to conflicts over essentially unimportant things. You want conflict? Suggest one college basketball team is better than another!! We will go to war over our basketball team but never say anything about God.
I know, bring up religion in a conversation about religion and you will get gently, or not so gently, removed. True, there are people with loud voices and big microphones who make mighty statements. But as a general rule: “don’t talk politics or religion” remains the most important social rule! Today in many places talking politics is OK but stay away from religion.
AND JESUS TELLS US THAT IS WRONG! We should be willing, even anxious to talk about God. Remember, we are attempting to speak about division – disagreements and not conflicts. Yet, we understand full well that the other person might be perfectly happy to move to conflict.
Which brings us to the last section. This entire chapter in Luke is sometimes understood as being about the end of times and that is not terribly unreasonable. I believe it is a wrong understanding but it is not crazy. Part of the reason I don’t believe it is about the end of times is that the phrase: “do you not know how to interpret the present time?” has been used literally hundreds if not thousands of times to say that it means that day ... the year 300, or the year 511, or the year 1000, etc. etc.
I believe Jesus is talking about today — and all other today’s when He says understanding the culture is important. We are living in this today so what matters is it applies to the USA in the year 2010. How? How does it apply?
The term used by many scholars is that we are living in a “post Christian age”. What makes that fun is every scholar means it in a different sense! But largely it refers to what I began with – a time when God is no longer at the center of many people’s lives, when Christianity does not automatically receive respect, when churches are not always thought of as good things.
We are in a time when God, Christianity, and church are in competition with the rest of culture. Saint Paul suggests that was true in the first century so it is not totally new. And I do not believe for a moment it is because blue laws ended or school lead prayers were stopped. (As they say, as long as there are exams there will be prayer in school!)
I believe instead that those actions were the result of a post Christian attitude and not the cause of it. AND I believe in many ways those actions, and the post Christian attitude are good things because they challenge us to either live as Christians, or stop pretending. If the school is no longer teaching the Lord’s Prayer than who is? If over half the young adults, those who grew up without the Lord’s Prayer in school, cannot come close to saying it — whose fault is that?
If the churches are seen as, at best, a neutral group – not good or bad – and only for a few people — whose fault is that? .... And frankly that is a common viewpoint which is too often accurate.
If God is seen, at best, as a distant creating force with little impact on our lives — who says differently? And I don’t mean saying differently within our own cliques but who says differently to the world at large? And to our next door neighbor?
If our culture says that Christian ethical teachings are of little or no importance, who is saying differently? I frequently — usually! — disagree when the Bible is used in political debates but primarily because those using it are doing so as hypocrites. They pick out a few words and focus on them while ignoring all the others.
Where are the Bible quotes when medical assistance to the poor is cut back? I can guarantee to you that Jesus said a lot about that and nothing explicit about homosexuality or abortion. The problem is not that the Bible is being OVER used. The problem is that we are allowing it to be UNDER used!
I have no desire to be in a conflict with a Moslem over Jesus Christ. I personally believe John 3:16-17 which says Jesus came for the WHOLE world and not a third or less. I will not pretend Jesus does not matter. I love the comment made by my theology professor, a world renown Biblical scholar who said: “I can testify that Jesus works. If you want to depend on another approach that is your decision. I can testify that Jesus works.” He testified without condemning which permits a conversation that could lead to agreement. I have used that often enough I owe him royalties!
I believe Jesus was speaking to us, today, and specifically to the Episcopal church when He expressed the frustration “How I wish the fire were already kindled!” because we share our material goods and so seldom share our spiritual lives. It is not an either - or, it should be both - and. Yes, we can do more sharing with material goods, and we SHOULD do more sharing of our spiritual lives.
I pray we may properly interpret OUR present time and find the match that lights our fire again.
AMEN
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CLICK HERE TO RESPOND: I would enjoy reading your comments about this sermon. Please feel free to discuss content or presentation. (If you wish to use another email system send your comments to: ken@st-christopher.com)