Sermon for November 6

The reading Jonah 1:1-17; 3:1-10

Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai, saying, “Go at once to Nineveh, that great city, and cry out against it; for their wickedness has come up before me.” But Jonah set out to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish; so he paid his fare and went on board, to go with them to Tarshish, away from the presence of the Lord.

But the Lord hurled a great wind upon the sea, and such a mighty storm came upon the sea that the ship threatened to break up. Then the mariners were afraid, and each cried to his god. They threw the cargo that was in the ship into the sea, to lighten it for them. Jonah, meanwhile, had gone down into the hold of the ship and had lain down, and was fast asleep. The captain came and said to him, “What are you doing sound asleep? Get up, call on your god! Perhaps the god will spare us a thought so that we do not perish.”

The sailors said to one another, “Come, let us cast lots, so that we may know on whose account this calamity has come upon us.” So they cast lots, and the lot fell on Jonah. Then they said to him, “Tell us why this calamity has come upon us. What is your occupation? Where do you come from? What is your country? And of what people are you?” “I am a Hebrew,” he replied. “I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.” Then the men were even more afraid, and said to him, “What is this that you have done!” For the men knew that he was fleeing from the presence of the Lord, because he had told them so.

Then they said to him, “What shall we do to you, that the sea may quiet down for us?” For the sea was growing more and more tempestuous. He said to them, “Pick me up and throw me into the sea; then the sea will quiet down for you; for I know it is because of me that this great storm has come upon you.” Nevertheless the men rowed hard to bring the ship back to land, but they could not, for the sea grew more and more stormy against them. Then they cried out to the Lord, “Please, O Lord, we pray, do not let us perish on account of this man’s life. Do not make us guilty of innocent blood; for you, O Lord, have done as it pleased you.” So they picked Jonah up and threw him into the sea; and the sea ceased from its raging. Then the men feared the Lord even more, and they offered a sacrifice to the Lord and made vows. But the Lord provided a large fish to swallow up Jonah; and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.

The word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time, saying, “Get up, go to Nineveh, that great city, and proclaim to it the message that I tell you.” So Jonah set out and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the Lord. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly large city, a three days’ walk across. Jonah began to go into the city, going a day’s walk. And he cried out, “Forty days more, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!” And the people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast, and everyone, great and small, put on sackcloth.

When the news reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes.Then he had a proclamation made in Nineveh: “By the decree of the king and his nobles: No human being or animal, no herd or flock, shall taste anything. They shall not feed, nor shall they drink water. Human beings and animals shall be covered with sackcloth, and they shall cry mightily to God. All shall turn from their evil ways and from the violence that is in their hands. Who knows? God may relent and change his mind; he may turn from his fierce anger, so that we do not perish.”

When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil ways, God changed his mind about the calamity that he had said he would bring upon them; and he did not do it.

The Summary

This is the first time I can remember hearing the story of the prophet Jonah, read at church.  It is a large contrast with last week’s reading on the good and faithful prophet Elijah who trusts God’s word.  Jonah is something else entirely.

Like many of the prophets, Jonah is sent by God to a certain place to share a message with the people there.  Jonah is sent to Niveveh, a large and powerful city, He was supposed to tell them God has seen and condemned their wickedness and they will be destroyed.  To this job, Jonah says “Im glad of thought of me for this work, but no thanks”. Actually he does not even do that much, Jonah just sneaks off to the small, friendly town of Tarshish instead.  On the way, there is a Great storm, the people on the boat figure out its Jonah’s fault, and throw him overboard to stop the storm and save the ship.  Once in the water, Jonah is famously swallowed by a large fish and lives inside of it for 3 days.   At that point, he is spit out onto dry land and once again, God says “Go to Nineveh”.  This time, Jonah listens.    

When Jonah arrives, he announces “40 days more and Nineveh will be destroyed”. To Jonah’s shock and disappointment, the people there listen, repent, put on sackcloth and ashes and seek mercy. Even the king of Nineveh listens, repents and commands the people to stop their evil ways,  God decides to spare them. If the story ended there, Jonah would be seen as a heroic prophet, hesitant at first but gets his stuff together.  But it does not end there. Jonah gets upset at God’s mercy, he wanted the destruction of that city, he wanted to show those people.   Jonah is not exactly an all star amongst the good and faithful prophets but then again, neither are we.  A lot of us have more in common with Jonah that we care to admit.

We can learn 3 important things from this story

1:  God’s word works.  It was certainly not Jonah’s inspirational example that changes the people of 

Nineveh, It is God’s word that exposes their sinfulness and drives them to God’s mercy.     

2: God’s mercy for the people of Nineveh is full and complete. In Jewish traditions, Jonah is the afternoon reading for Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement.  Jesus refers to the story of Jonah in 2 of the gospels ( Matthew 12:  38 Then some of the Pharisees and teachers of the Law said to Him, “Teacher, we want to see a miraculous sign from you.” He answered, “A wicked and adulterous generation asks for a miraculous sign! But none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.  For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. The men of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and now one greater than Jonah is here.)  There is a similar text in Luke 11:29-32 

3: The people of Nineveh were mere days away from inescapable destruction, the wrath of God that they would be powerless against.   At first Jonah would have simply let them be destroyed.  He did not want to give them another chance (after all they could have repented any time they wanted).  Jonah also felt like God’s word was not something they felt like they needed or wanted.  Jonah does not want to go because the people in that city did not deserve God’s word and he assumed they wouldn’t accept it anyway. 

There are people all around us that are in Nineveh, people on the edge of falling part, people trapped in addiction, anger, anxiety and fear, people who struggle to see ways out of poverty, abuse or violence. There are people who are lost and trying to find joy in bad or stupid places.  We have news for them, good news that changes things, the message of Jonah, that all people are loved by God.  Instead of making Jonah’s excuses, let’s talk to them  

sermon for October 30

The reading 1 Kings 7:1-16

Now Elijah the Tishbite, of Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the Lord the God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.” The word of the Lord came to him, saying, “Go from here and turn eastward, and hide yourself by the Wadi Cherith, which is east of the Jordan. You shall drink from the wadi, and I have commanded the ravens to feed you there.” So he went and did according to the word of the Lord; he went and lived by the Wadi Cherith, which is east of the Jordan. The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning, and bread and meat in the evening; and he drank from the wadi. But after a while the wadi dried up, because there was no rain in the land.

Then the word of the Lord came to him, saying, “Go now to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and live there; for I have commanded a widow there to feed you.” So he set out and went to Zarephath. When he came to the gate of the town, a widow was there gathering sticks; he called to her and said, “Bring me a little water in a vessel, so that I may drink.”As she was going to bring it, he called to her and said, “Bring me a morsel of bread in your hand.” But she said, “As the Lord your God lives, I have nothing baked, only a handful of meal in a jar, and a little oil in a jug; I am now gathering a couple of sticks, so that I may go home and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it, and die.” Elijah said to her, “Do not be afraid; go and do as you have said; but first make me a little cake of it and bring it to me, and afterwards make something for yourself and your son. For thus says the Lord the God of Israel: The jar of meal will not be emptied and the jug of oil will not fail until the day that the Lord sends rain on the earth.” She went and did as Elijah said, so that she as well as he and her household ate for many days. The jar of meal was not emptied, neither did the jug of oil fail, according to the word of the Lord that he spoke by Elijah.

The summary

Happy Reformation Day. This is an unusual reading for the occasion.  In some ways, that is our first lesson.  Luther  saw God’s grace everywhere, all of scripture told the story of God’s saving work through Jesus, every verse, every chapter and every book (expect James, Luther didn’t like that book since it does not clearly proclaim Christ crucified and risen and could be easily manipulated to teach works righteousness. Revelation was also on the not so good list since it was very confusing and could lead people astray).

At church, we are on this journey from creation to Christmas. We are in the time of the prophets, this morning, we meet Elijah, who served the Lord about 8 or 900 years before Jesus birth. Elijah is best known for confronting the prophets of Baal, the god of neighboring people. Elijah is also known for a series of miracles, of feeding many people with a little food and even raising the dead. In each case, Jesus does the same miracle only bigger (Elijah feeds hundreds, Jesus feeds thousands, Elijah raises the newly deceased, Jesus raises someone dead for days and buried).  

This morning, we see what makes Elijah one of the great prophets. He trusts God. God sends Elijah to the middle of nowhere, with the promise that ravens will feed him.  Elijah trusts God’s promise and goes.  After this, God sends him to a small city in the midst of a famine.  Again, he goes, Elijah trusts God’s promise for himself and this widow and her family.  For the prophet Elijah, God’s word is enough, he stakes his very life on it.   

That is what this reading has to do with the protestant reformation. In the early 1500’s the Roman Catholic Church had major issues with corruption, greed and seemed unable or unwilling to share the comfort of the Gospel.  Luther was a monk and professor, a respected part of the church. On October 31, 1517, he posts the 95 theses,  a series of complaints and call to debate church practices.  A majority of the theses are on the process of selling indulgences, certificates that take years off your time in purgatory, an intermittent stage believed to exist between dying and heaven.

The Roman Catholic Church was confusing people, adding things to the faith, creating rules, laws, requirements and policies to the experience of God’s grace and forgiveness.  Like Elijah knew God’s promise of food was enough, Luther knew God’s promise of salvation was enough.  All the other things added were at best, unnecessary and at worst, deceitful, misleading practices that put people’s salvation in jeopardy for human power and profit.

Luther taught that scripture was enough, the word of God, inspired and carried down to us, was enough to know what God says.  

Luther taught that we can know our sins are forgiven because Christ died and rose again.  This was enough. The complicated mess of confession and repentance developed by the church could be done away with.   

Luther taught that Jesus was enough. The growing role of Mary and the saints as intercessors could be done away it.  Christ was our way to God, whether or not saints could intercede for us, it was not necessary.  

Luther taught that Baptism and communion were enough. We are claimed as God’s children, we can come back to our baptism every day if we have to for encouragement. In Holy Communion, we encounter the presence of the risen Christ, that was enough to know God is here with us.  

What I know about the reformation is 500 years ago news.  The Roman Catholic Church has changed. Today, we talk about not celebrating but commemorating or marking the Reformation.  We are looking to ways we can work together and serve God together, caring for the poor, educating others and bringing peace.  As we do these things, we must be mindful of Luther’s concern that the word of God be clearly shared.  

sermon for October 23

 Our narrative lectionary reading was 2 Samuel 7:1-17

Now when the king was settled in his house, and the Lord had given him rest from all his enemies around him, the king said to the prophet Nathan, “See now, I am living in a house of cedar, but the ark of God stays in a tent.” Nathan said to the king, “Go, do all that you have in mind; for the Lord is with you.”

But that same night the word of the Lord came to Nathan: Go and tell my servant David: Thus says the Lord: Are you the one to build me a house to live in? I have not lived in a house since the day I brought up the people of Israel from Egypt to this day, but I have been moving about in a tent and a tabernacle. Wherever I have moved about among all the people of Israel, did I ever speak a word with any of the tribal leaders of Israel, whom I commanded to shepherd my people Israel, saying, “Why have you not built me a house of cedar?” Now therefore thus you shall say to my servant David: Thus says the Lord of hosts: I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep to be prince over my people Israel; and I have been with you wherever you went, and have cut off all your enemies from before you; and I will make for you a great name, like the name of the great ones of the earth. And I will appoint a place for my people Israel and will plant them, so that they may live in their own place, and be disturbed no more; and evildoers shall afflict them no more, as formerly, from the time that I appointed judges over my people Israel; and I will give you rest from all your enemies.

Moreover the Lord declares to you that the Lord will make you a house. When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come forth from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be a father to him, and he shall be a son to me. When he commits iniquity, I will punish him with a rod such as mortals use, with blows inflicted by human beings. But I will not take my steadfast love from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away from before you. Your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me; your throne shall be established forever. In accordance with all these words and with all this vision, Nathan spoke to David.

We had some church swapping on this Sunday so I ended up at St James and St Matthew’s where they use the revised common lectionary.  I preached on our second reading:

2 Timothy 4:6-8, 16-18

As for me, I am already being poured out as a libation, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. From now on there is reserved for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will give me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have longed for his appearing. At my first defense no one came to my support, but all deserted me. May it not be counted against them! But the Lord stood by me and gave me strength, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. So I was rescued from the lion's mouth. The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and save me for his heavenly kingdom. To him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

The summary

I focused on our second reading, Paul’s second letter to Timothy. Honestly I only talked about the few short sentences “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith”.  These words were shared  towards the end of Paul’s life. Paul was in prison and is the end of his ministry and mission of sharing the Gospel.  He has escaped many times before and leveraged his Roman citizenship to be set free but this will be it.  

I have shared these words many times at the graveside of people who have gone before us in faith. With sadness, comfort and hope I have the chance to remind those gathered there that their loved one fought the good fight, finished the race, and kept the faith. Here in this community, we can say that Christ Lutheran, St Phillips, and St Luke’s Lutheran Churches have all fought the good fight, finished the race, and kept the faith.

In his letters, Paul occasional turns to this metaphor of a race or an athletic competition.  I am not not much of a runner (but I do have two stories)

First, I Grew up in Brooklyn a few blocks from where the nyc marathon route passes after crossing the bridge from Staten Island. I never had much interest in watching it but one year my brother and I went down to see what was happening.  I was surprised by the number of people, there to watch, to cheer on loved ones, or just to cheer on everyone. People were clapping and encouraging the runners.  This was only mile 2 or 3 of more than 26.  I wondered “they had 22 plus miles to go, do they really need encouragement now”. As I thought about it, I realized people need encouragement at all stages of the race (and of life).  We as church, need encouragement as we run the race of faith.

We receive that encouragement in many ways. 

In Baptism when we are killed to sin and first claimed by God. We can go back to this moment, to God’s promises in that water, whenever we need.

In the gift of Holy Communion, our sacred meal, where we come to experience God’s presence with 

us with.

In the big holidays. In Christmas when Christ is born and we see that God is in the world,  In Easter, Christ’s death and resurrection,  when we see our sins are forgiven and that there is something better God has prepared for us

My Second story is also from a long time ago, going back to JHS (or elementary school, I don’t really remember).  We had our gym class and were getting ready for a citywide track and field competition.  Most of us had no idea what events made up real track and field.  I ended up trying hurdles and had the best time in class and was selected for the competition.  As the day approached, I stayed after school and practiced jumping over the hurdles.   I was getting faster and stronger each day.  When the competition day arrived, we took the bus to another school and I went to the hurdles area.  Things were not right though.  The hurdles they set up were closer together and higher than the ones I did all that practice with, than the ones I was comfortable with. I did terrible and got the insignificant medal for showing up. It turns out I wasn’t preparing for the competition, I was only preparing to jump the familiar hurdles at my school.   

This is a reminder that as people of God we are invited to be open to God’s spirit and call, the work may not always be what we expect. As we fight the good fight, finish the race, and keep the faith, we need to remember things change.   We focus on what does not, on God’s word and God’s gifts.  No matter where we are, our work is the same, to go and tell the others God cares for them, God forgives them and God saves them.  

sermon for October 16

October 16

The reading: .1 Samuel 1:9-11, 19-20

After they had eaten and drunk at Shiloh, Hannah rose and presented herself before the Lord. Now Eli the priest was sitting on the seat beside the doorpost of the temple of the Lord. She was deeply distressed and prayed to the Lord, and wept bitterly. She made this vow: “O Lord of hosts, if only you will look on the misery of your servant, and remember me, and not forget your servant, but will give to your servant a male child, then I will set him before you as a nazirite until the day of his death. He shall drink neither wine nor intoxicants, and no razor shall touch his head.”

They rose early in the morning and worshiped before theLord; then they went back to their house at Ramah. Elkanah knew his wife Hannah, and the Lord remembered her. In due time Hannah conceived and bore a son. She named him Samuel, for she said, “I have asked him of the Lord.”

After this Hannah prayed:  “My heart exults in the Lord;

    my strength is exalted in my God

My mouth derides my enemies,  because I rejoice in my victory.

“There is no Holy One like the Lord, no one besides you;

    there is no Rock like our God. Talk no more so very proudly,

    let not arrogance come from your mouth; for the Lord is a God of knowledge,

    and by him actions are weighed. The bows of the mighty are broken,

    but the feeble gird on strength.

Those who were full have hired themselves out for bread,   

but those who were hungry are fat with spoil.

The barren has borne seven,  but she who has many children is forlorn.

The Lord kills and brings to life;  he brings down to Sheol and raises up.

The Lord makes poor and makes rich;  he brings low, he also exalts.

He raises up the poor from the dust;  he lifts the needy from the ash heap,

to make them sit with princes and inherit a seat of honor

For the pillars of the earth are the Lord’s, and on them he has set the world.

“He will guard the feet of his faithful ones, but the wicked shall be cut off in darkness;

    for not by might does one prevail. The Lord! His adversaries shall be shattered;

    the Most High will thunder in heaven. The Lord will judge the ends of the earth;

    he will give strength to his king,  and exalt the power of his anointed.

The summary

We have skipped a lot of years between last week’s reading on The Golden Calf and this morning’s reading on the birth of Samuel.  Between these events, it was a time of great anxiety in the wilderness. The people had to rebuild everything, including the social order, laws and political system.  As the people wandered, fought and settled, they struggled with questions about  “who will lead us”.  There was no pharaoh, no master, no director, no high priest, no king.  For a time, the people of Israel were led by judges, men and women like Deborah who organized society, delegated work, divided lands, arranged services, and made legal judgments.  They were part prophet, president and priest.  Samuel, whose birth we hear about today, is the last of the judges.  The people demand a king (like their neighbors). Samuel leads Israel from the time of the judges to the time of the kings. God instructs Samuel to anoint Saul as king,  When it turns out that he is not really up for the work,  Saul is removed and David is anointed as king.

Samuel’s birth story is filled with the impossible. Hannah should not be able to bear a child. After her faithful prayer, constant petition and promise to dedicate the child to God, she conceives and gives birth.  This is one of five times in the bible where the main wife is barren and cannot have children  (the other four are Sarah and Isaac, Rebeakh and Jacob, Rachel and Joseph, and Elizabeth and John the Baptist).   In each story there are similar details about constant prayer, not giving up hope, being dedicated to the Lord and the suspension of natural laws that allow each birth.  Each child is born at a time of great anxiety, change and transition, when the people were struggling with the questions:  “who will lead us, who will help us, who will save us” . These questions are answered,  “you will be led by people who are committed to God, people who are raised in faith and hope, and  people who know God can act mightily in the world”.   For us today, this story is a reminder of the importance of raising people in faith, surrounded by and seeing examples of God’s power and God’s care.  

sermon for October 9

October 9

The reading: Exodus 32:1-14

When the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain, the people gathered around Aaron, and said to him, “Come, make gods for us, who shall go before us; as for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.” Aaron said to them, “Take off the gold rings that are on the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me.” So all the people took off the gold rings from their ears, and brought them to Aaron. He took the gold from them, formed it in a mold, and cast an image of a calf; and they said, “These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!” When Aaron saw this, he built an altar before it; and Aaron made proclamation and said, “Tomorrow shall be a festival to the Lord.” They rose early the next day, and offered burnt offerings and brought sacrifices of well-being; and the people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to revel.

The Lord said to Moses, “Go down at once! Your people, whom you brought up out of the land of Egypt, have acted perversely; they have been quick to turn aside from the way that I commanded them; they have cast for themselves an image of a calf, and have worshiped it and sacrificed to it, and said, ‘These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt! The Lord said to Moses, “I have seen this people, how stiff-necked they are. Now let me alone, so that my wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them; and of you I will make a great nation.” But Moses implored the Lord his God, and said, “OLord, why does your wrath burn hot against your people, whom you brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? Why should the Egyptians say, ‘It was with evil intent that he brought them out to kill them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth’? Turn from your fierce wrath; change your mind and do not bring disaster on your people. Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, your servants, how you swore to them by your own self, saying to them, ‘I will multiply your descendants like the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have promised I will give to your descendants, and they shall inherit it forever.’“ And the Lord changed his mind about the disaster that he planned to bring on his people

Summary

After sharing this sermon on Sunday, I became aware that I made some historical mistakes with the 

details and time line of this event.   This was mainly due to the fact that there are two different versions of the Golden Calf story in the Old Testament (this one and Deuteronomy 9:6-29).  There are also many different and diverse perspectives on these texts.  I wasn’t sure what to do so I started my sermon the next week by telling everyone I messed up and clarified the details. 

I want to set today’s reading in context.  This event surrounding the Golden Calf happens after the exodus, after the people of Israel are freed from slavery in Egypt.  They go out to wilderness where they set up camp and try to figure out what’s next.  Moses goes up the mountain where he will receive the law, 10 commandments and instructions on building the tabernacle directly from God.  Moses is on the mountain for 40 days.  During this time, the people get anxious, think Moses left them, perished or was taken into heaven. (If Moses had facebook, instagram or twitter perhaps this story would not have happened. He could have kept everyone up to date, shared photos of the new 10 commandments, put up an awesome video of God writing them on stone and commented  “coming to you soon”).   None of this exists at the time . The people need a leader and something to center their lives and worship around.  They demand a Golden Calf. 

Now the Golden Calf is either an idol, a false god that the people create to worship, praise and obey or it is a symbol of the living God, who set them free from slavery in Egypt.  Even if this act was one of worshiping the living God, it is still sin.  It was done without God’s word, without God’s command, without God’s promise.   Ironically,  while the people where creating the Golden Calf as this visible sign of God among them,  God is instructing Moses on the construction of the tabernacle, the real, visible sign of God in the community.  This is the place where the word of God will be kept and carried before them.  

The lesson from this story for us is simply to remember we are grounded, guided and given meaning through God’s word.  Baptism matters because it combined with God’s promise and instruction, Communion matters because it is combined with God’s promise and instruction, welcoming the stranger into relationship with God matters because it is combined with God’s promise and instruction, loving our neighbors matters because it is combined with God’s promise and instruction.  

Sunday, October 3

The reading

Exodus 12:1-13, 13:1-8    

The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt: This month shall mark for you the beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year for you. Tell the whole congregation of Israel that on the tenth of this month they are to take a lamb for each family, a lamb for each household. If a household is too small for a whole lamb, it shall join its closest neighbor in obtaining one; the lamb shall be divided in proportion to the number of people who eat of it. Your lamb shall be without blemish, a year-old male; you may take it from the sheep or from the goats. You shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month; then the whole assembled congregation of Israel shall slaughter it at twilight.They shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which they eat it. They shall eat the lamb that same night; they shall eat it roasted over the fire with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. Do not eat any of it raw or boiled in water, but roasted over the fire, with its head, legs, and inner organs. You shall let none of it remain until the morning; anything that remains until the morning you shall burn. This is how you shall eat it: your loins girded, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and you shall eat it hurriedly. It is the passover of the Lord. For I will pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I will strike down every firstborn in the land of Egypt, both human beings and animals; on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am the Lord. The blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you live: when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague shall destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt         

The Lord said to Moses: Consecrate to me all the firstborn; whatever is the first to open the womb among the Israelites, of human beings and animals, is mine.

Moses said to the people, “Remember this day on which you came out of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, because the Lord brought you out from there by strength of hand; no leavened bread shall be eaten.Today, in the month of Abib, you are going out. When the Lord brings you into the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, which he swore to your ancestors to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey, you shall keep this observance in this month. Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day there shall be a festival to the Lord. Unleavened bread shall be eaten for seven days; no leavened bread shall be seen in your possession, and no leaven shall be seen among you in all your territory.You shall tell your child on that day, ‘It is because of what the Lord did for me when I came out of Egypt.’ It shall serve for you as a sign on your hand and as a reminder on your forehead, so that the teaching of the Lord may be on your lips; for with a strong hand the Lord brought you out of Egypt. You shall keep this ordinance at its proper time from year to year.

Reflection

1- A lot of things happen between the story of Joseph (last Sunday) and the Passover.  One of the most challenging and relevant for us today is the enslavement of the Israelites.  After Joseph establishes his family in Egypt, they grow in number, power, influence and wealth.  After several generations, the people of Egypt start to protest that the Israelites are becoming too numerous, too strong, too influential, too powerful, too much a burden and too rich. They are not assimilating into Egyptian culture and not practicing the Egyptian religions. In response, the Egyptian authorities enslave the people of Israel.  (if these arguments sound familiar, that's because we hear them every day about refugees and immigrants).  The other issue is that during the time of slavery all but a few people give up on God and God's promises (it makes today's decline in faith seem like no big deal). God never gives up on people though.  

2- I am struck by the importance and value of ritual in the reading. Each step of the celebration is done with obedience and packed with meaning.  In the same way our worship is packed with obedience and meaning, we do not go to church because its fun or interesting, we go to encounter God through word and ritual.  (reading this is okay but really people need to be part of a church, community and practice).

3- So much of the Passover is about urgency.  The bread is unleavened (since its much faster to prepare), people eat standing with sandals and staff (ready to run at any minute) and you need to eat fast (not exactly healthy for you but time is running out).  As a church we are called to ask what is urgent for us.  

Sunday, September 25th

The reading

Genesis 37:3-8, 17b-22, 26-34; 50:15-21

Now Israel loved Joseph more than any other of his children, because he was the son of his old age; and he had made him a long robe with sleeves. But when his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they hated him, and could not speak peaceably to him.

Once Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him even more. He said to them, “Listen to this dream that I dreamed.  There we were, binding sheaves in the field. Suddenly my sheaf rose and stood upright; then your sheaves gathered around it, and bowed down to my sheaf.”  His brothers said to him, “Are you indeed to reign over us? Are you indeed to have dominion over us?” So they hated him even more because of his dreams and his words.

” So Joseph went after his brothers, and found them at Dothan. They saw him from a distance, and before he came near to them, they conspired to kill him.  They said to one another, “Here comes this dreamer. Come now, let us kill him and throw him into one of the pits; then we shall say that a wild animal has devoured him, and we shall see what will become of his dreams.” But when Reuben heard it, he delivered him out of their hands, saying, “Let us not take his life.” Reuben said to them, “Shed no blood; throw him into this pit here in the wilderness, but lay no hand on him”—that he might rescue him out of their hand and restore him to his father.  Then Judah said to his brothers, “What profit is it if we kill our brother and conceal his blood? Come, let us sell him to the Ishmaelites, and not lay our hands on him, for he is our brother, our own flesh.” And his brothers agreed. When some Midianite traders passed by, they drew Joseph up, lifting him out of the pit, and sold him to the Ishmaelites for twenty pieces of silver. And they took Joseph to Egypt.

When Reuben returned to the pit and saw that Joseph was not in the pit, he tore his clothes. He returned to his brothers, and said, “The boy is gone; and I, where can I turn?” Then they took Joseph’s robe, slaughtered a goat, and dipped the robe in the blood. They had the long robe with sleeves taken to their father, and they said, “This we have found; see now whether it is your son’s robe or not.” He recognized it, and said, “It is my son’s robe! A wild animal has devoured him; Joseph is without doubt torn to pieces.” 34 Then Jacob tore his garments, and put sackcloth on his loins, and mourned for his son many days.

Realizing that their father was dead, Joseph’s brothers said, “What if Joseph still bears a grudge against us and pays us back in full for all the wrong that we did to him?” So they approached Joseph, saying, “Your father gave this instruction before he died, ‘Say to Joseph: I beg you, forgive the crime of your brothers and the wrong they did in harming you.’ Now therefore please forgive the crime of the servants of the God of your father.” Joseph wept when they spoke to him. Then his brothers also wept, fell down before him, and said, “We are here as your slaves.” But Joseph said to them, “Do not be afraid! Am I in the place of God? Even though you intended to do harm to me, God intended it for good, in order to preserve a numerous people, as he is doing today. So have no fear; I myself will provide for you and your little ones.” In this way he reassured them, speaking kindly to them.

 Reflection

I was away this Sunday and did not prepare a sermon.  I did want to share a few thoughts on this reading since it has been a very important part of how I understand the world, especially in terms of suffering,  Joseph (who I also share a name with) endures suffering. There is the betrayal by his brothers, being left for dead in a pit, being rescued then enslaved in Egypt, being falsely accused of a crime and his subsequent imprisonment. From prison Joseph becomes a powerful authority in Egypt (since being in prison gives him the opportunity to interpret the pharaohs dream).  Joseph looks at all this as part of God's providence or plan, which goes beyond our knowing.  All these things had to happen for Joseph to be able to rescue Israel from famine (although no one had any idea when it was all going on)