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The Disturbing Gospel
Pastor James Clarke’s sermon for Sunday, July 22, 2018.
The scripture text is Mark 6: 1-13.
I hate the phone!
I have hated the phone long before cell phones came along. Growing up it was like there is this cultural rule that the phone has to be answered – no matter what! We could be in the middle of a serious discussion or having some time with our families – RING, and up we got. If anyone finds out that we didn’t answer the phone even though we were home…it is treated like an offense.
I really love caller ID and voicemail!
But you know, if I really didn’t want to be interrupted I chose the wrong life. I should have been a monk. Then again, monks seem to have cell phones too.
Is there anyone who doesn’t have a cell phone? How do they live?
Lets’ face it one can’t get married and not have a cell phone. Remember how it used to be when we went driving? A time without disturbance. I remember my first trip with a cell phone – huge bulky thing. Sure enough Paula called me. I was fumbling with it trying to figure out how to talk and drive and I knew my life was changed forever.
One should not get married or become a parent if one does not expect disturbance.
In the text from Mark for today Jesus disturbs the home town folks. He’s teaching some pretty radical stuff. He’s healing people – and not just the wealthy leaders. The mayor’s daughter was waiting for him and he stopped to heal a woman who had been bleeding for 12 years! Doesn’t he know how things are supposed to be? What a nut case!
He comes to his home town while people are working hard to make a living – working in the fields, kneading dough all day long and it is hot (anyone?). Or maybe it’s after work and they are trying to relax in the cool of the day.
And Jesus comes along…
“Man, shouldn’t he be working with his father, anyway?
“And where does he come off talking like a know it all?”
“Young whipper snapper – who does he think he is?”
“He’s got issues!”
He was not preaching ‘leave things just the way they are’. ‘Just have faith, and you will have riches beyond your wildest dreams’.
Jesus uses a common saying here: “Prophets are not liked in their home towns.” But Jesus attaches it to his message about the Kin-dom of God. “You know that saying about prophets in their home towns? Well this is it…… You’re it.” They were insulted!
And at the same time he suggests to his disciples and the crowd that to be my disciple you will be disturbed. Your whole life will be interrupted. Paul is accused of “turning the world upside down”. The gospel was counter cultural from the outset. It demands one’s whole life. How can that not disturb us?
In the second part of the lectionary text the disciples are sent out two by two carrying next to nothing. Don’t you know that they disturbed people and were disturbed by them? Jesus tells his disciples to expect to be rejected and not to resist or fight back but simply to go on. He knew that if they were to share the Kin-dom people would be disturbed.
No one wants to be a prophet! Why on earth would anyone want to be a prophet?! There’s a reason we do not see any ‘prophet action figures’…
‘Here goes Jeremiah thrown into the great cistern again’…
‘Stephen is stoned… pop, crunch, pow!’
‘Throw Paul back in prison – the guards whip him… snap!’
“Hey guys, this isn’t any fun, let’s go back to Star Wars – at least they have light sabers!”
In the same light, one must wonder why on earth anyone would want to be a pastor!? Young pastors always come out of seminary so idealistic about how they can help change the world. Little do they know what is about to hit them in the local church.
When I went to my first church in Spokane I made comments about global warming and mentioned SUVs. Honestly, I think I spoke the truth but it wasn’t…. well received. One of Paula’s great prophetic acts was to use the Inclusive Language Lectionary. You’d have thought she asked them to give up hunting!
When Paula got back from the Congo she got all upset about an egg toss at a church picnic. Eggs were so valuable in Africa – how could they be tossed? You can imagine that can’t you?
“No, No… STOP! Those eggs are too valuable!
“I don’t know, they were only $2.99 a dozen.”
Talk about different perspectives…young whipper snappers!
We WANT young people who go away to come home filled with passion and excitement, don’t we? I think we would be sorely lost without young idealists challenging us – disturbing us.
I think we all need to be better “whipper snappers for the gospel” – that is to get back in touch with what impassions us – to look at the world for where God’s love is needed – and be disturbed and prophetic.
It could be healthcare, children in Africa, a cure for breast cancer, gun control. But it doesn’t have to be big issues either. It could be native plants, tutoring youth, Habitat for Humanity. It could be children – teaching Sunday School. Now that will keep you young!
When we allow ourselves to be disturbed… and become passionate and compassionate (even a little idealistic), we may feel younger… I guarantee it!
I am not saying that we should avail ourselves to every interruption in life or that we must be open to every disturbance. It’s OK to avoid solicitors. It’s OK to hide from the Mormons on your doorstep. I think it’s even OK to turn off the cell phone…. there, I said it…I said it!
There are many, many trivial disturbances every day in life that truly do not warrant attention. And it is our task to discern what is an annoyance and what is holy disturbance. And we all need Sabbath time when we cannot be disturbed…
I am saying that as a stance to life – specifically Christian life – we can’t live it as if we were wearing a DO NO DISTURB sign around our necks.
“Pastor Jim, I really don’t want to disturb you but…”
“Honey, can we take some time to talk?”
“Dad, can you help me with my homework?”
“I don’t want to watch the News, it’s just too disturbing”
“Do you think you would be willing to teach Sunday School?
We must expect disturbances just like the first disciples going out two by two… and for the Holy Spirit to be in those disturbances. Imagine if the phone rang and on the caller ID it said 1-800-4gospel? Would we flinch?
“O God, I’m being called by God!” And it isn’t “Toll Free!”
The gospel of Jesus Christ is grace, freedom, love and assurance. But it isn’t without toll or cost.
The gospel is grace and forgiveness, that’s the first disturbance. When we really, really accept God’s love for us is disturbing…. it kind of upsets everything. It is assurance that God in Christ will never be torn from us. It is freedom from the burden of feeling that we are alone or that we have to do it all by ourselves. It is the understanding that there is something larger than us, that we belong to God, rather than simply to ourselves. And yes, that is all very disturbing.
The gospel is also, as Paul said, the power of God for righteousness and justice and that is even more disturbing. And that is a call to change the world.
I have reconciled to the fact that I will be disturbed every day. It doesn’t mean that I don’t complain and grumble when I am interrupted. It doesn’t mean that I will jump at anything. It doesn’t mean I won’t turn off my cell phone occasionally. It doesn’t mean that I don’t take care of myself by having time alone.
What it means for all of us is to will to live with an Open Heart. To open our hearts to holy disturbances, to be open to the prophetic wherever it may come from:
from the pulpit,
from the youth returning from work camp,
from the foreigner or stranger,
even from a child.
Let us pray…Holy God, fill our souls with your peace and assurance. Then disturb us with your gospel that we may be a part of turning the world upside down. Amen.
Freedom of Simplicity
We’ve had to simplify our lives a bit recently as the result of life circumstance – Paula not working. So, we are looking at what we spend money on… And as I look at the things of our lives and many seem trivial. All the entertainment feels indulgent and in excess. Much of it has lost its appeal and there is a freedom in not being engrossed in all of its mania.
We begin our Stewardship Program this Sunday. Each year during this time we take time focus on stewardship as we make financial plans for the coming year. This year I will be using an old book – published in 1981 – by Richard Foster: Freedom of Simplicity. Foster’s first book became a best seller: The Celebration of Discipline about spiritual disciplines and practices. Foster is a Quaker, and therefore not a part of the Reformation theology that is distrustful of anything that seems like “works”. Foster revived the belief that what we do is important in our spiritual lives – that it isn’t just about what we believe. And one of the things we do; one of the practices is: Simplicity.
Freedom of Simplicity was published after Ronald Reagan was elected president and with that came deregulation of anything that stymied business. The biggest of these was changes that allowed for credit to expand – VISA, Mastercard, American Express. We could now buy on credit!! And we did! Car companies were allowed to turn truck chaises into cars. Viola the SUV was born! In addition to that, many things we created and marketed in the 80’s: Personal computers (do we all remember floppy discs?) cell phones, camcorders, FGAX, Walkmans, CDs, HD TV and big screens. There were so many new things to buy. And we could…. On credit – so we did! The economy expanded; everyone was happy. At least we thought we were happy, but were we? In the midst of all of this Foster starts his book with this: Contemporary culture is plagued by the passion to possess.
The unreasoned boast abounds that the good life is found in accumulation, that more is better. Indeed, we often accept this notion without question, with the result that the lust for affluence in contemporary society has become psychotic: It has completely lost touch with reality. Furthermore, the pace of the modern world accentuates our sense of being fractured and fragmented. We feel strained, hurried, breathless, the complexity of rushing to achieve and accumulate more and more frequently threatens to overwhelm us; it seems there is no escape from the rat race. Christian simplicity frees us from this modern mania.
37 years later this mania has only gotten worse. cell phones are no longer a privilege but a necessity. We still drive large gas guzzling vehicles. And Black Friday has become one of the most important days of the year
Is this who we are supposed to be? According to Foster, Simplicity is not only good for the soul, it is fundamental to the meaning of Christianity.
Starting with the Old Testament, Foster give us the background for Christian Simplicity, the concept of radical dependence on God pervades the Old Testament. The radical dependence of the entire creation upon God is a central teaching…. we have no independent existence, no self-sustainability…. We are not the captains of our souls not the masters of our fate. No independent existence!? Not the captain of myself?!
These ideas are simply un-American! But they are biblical… so get over it. And it’s not only Radical Dependence, it’s also Radical Obedience. The deeper reality of obedience is the kind of spirit it works into us. It is a spirit that crucifies greed and covetousness. It is a spirit of compassion and outreach. It is a spirit of sensitivity and trust. But we’re not done: Do we all know about the Jubilee? This is in Leviticus 25: Every 50 years all the wealth would be thrown into a pot and then redistributed equally. Slaves were set free – all debts were canceled.
This principle of equitable distribution rather than hoarding and managership rather than ownership was as revolutionary then as it is now. The purpose of land is to serve the needs of humanity rather than to provide the means of self-aggrandizement. What often gets me is when some Christians harp about what it says in Leviticus 18 about homosexuality but ignore what it says in Leviticus 25 about sharing the wealth! The New Testament: There’s the Magnificat: Mary’s song:
He has brought down the powerful from their thrones
And lifted up the lowly
He has filled the hungry with good things
And sent the rich away empty
And in Matthew 6, the text read today about where our treasure is you cannot serve God and wealth. In the gospels there is a radical identification of God with the poor. What is wrong with American Christians today? Don’t we get this? In our government today one almost has to be wealthy to be elected! Look at Trump’s Cabinet. They have more wealth than a third of Americans combined. Our problem with democracy is that we are actually a plutocracy.
Jesus Christ and all the writers of the New Testament call us to break free of mammon lust and live in joyous trust. Their radical criticism of wealth is combined with a spirit of unconditional generosity. They point to us
a way of living in which everything we have we receive as a gift. And everything we have is cared for by God, and everything we have is available to others when it is right and good. This reality frames the heart of Christian simplicity. It is the means of liberation and power to do what is right and to overcome the forces of feat and avarice.
Then Foster writes about the Saints. The Desert Fathers who sat on polls – for their whole lives!! The Desert Fathers renounced things in order to know what it meant to have the single eye of simplicity toward God. And let’s not forget St. Francis who owned nothing, walked bare foot and lived for others. All of this is to say again, Simplicity is fundamental to what it means to be Christian. So, are we all supposed to live like the Amish? Do we all know how the Amish live? They do not own cars but use horse and buggy. They cannot adorn themselves in any way. Not only no bling they can’t even have buttons. They have no cell phones – actually, they don’t have any personal phones! They don’t use electricity. Obviously, they don’t have computers or TVs. No video games either. Can our children imagine this? – Life without screens!? The opposite of the Amish is the Prosperity Gospel, who believe that if one has enough faith one will be blessed. In every way – in our relationships, in our work and also materially and financially. Joel Osteen: When you focus on being a blessing God makes sure you are always blessed with abundance. God wants you to be a winner, not a whiner. God wants us to prosper financially, to have plenty of money to fulfill the destiny He has laid out for us.
There’s a belief that you’re supposed to be poor, suffering and show your humility. I just don’t see the Bible that way. I see that God came and Jesus died so that we might live an abundant life and a blessing to others. What translation is he reading, I wonder? This reminds me of Jeremiah 29:11: (which I’m sure is a Prosperity Gospel favorite) For surely, I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for welfare and not for harm, to give you a future and a hope.
When asked people often choose this verse as a favorite and these can be inspiring words. But it isn’t truthful to be taken out of the whole of Jeremiah. Have we read Jeremiah? It is chapter after chapter of warning and indictment, of the Wrath of God, and exile and how people will have to suffer, and then there are these few verses of hope: Then when you call upon me and come to pray to me, I will hear you… I will let you find me…. And I will restore your fortunes. … But only AFTER the Exile.
This is how Joel Osteen reads the Bible: The Prosperity Gospel was born out of the power of positive thinking specifically, Norman Vincent Peale, who was a pastor in New York, and guess who went to his church? The Trumps. Paula White, another Prosperity Gospel preacher, is considered President Trump’s personal pastor. A pastor on retainer? Imagine Trump hearing these words in a sermon: Champions have courage to keep turning the pages because They know a better chapter lies ahead. You are on the verge of complete breakthrough in every area of your life. Spiritually, financially, and relationally God has shown me that this is a season of victory for His people. As I went deeper in the Spirit the Lord Revealed that before the breakthrough comes certain things must be dealt with. Specifically, there must be a complete defeat of your enemies. Don’t we know how much Trump would eat that up! A Champion, a Season of victory, a complete defeat of your enemies. Once again, what Bible translation is she reading?
Kenneth Copeland who not only has a jet he has an airport and numerous jets, and when asked why he needed them he said because when up in the sky he felt closer to God. What?! That can’t work in coach? Which of these, the Amish or the Prosperity Gospel fits better with American culture? If we met with a devotee of the Prosperity Gospel and an Amish person in Fred Meyer, which one would stand out? Easy answer: The Amish. Meaning that the Prosperity Gospel devotee fits better Into American culture. The Amish would be considered as the anomaly; the weird one, and which one would be closer to the Bible? Easy answer: The Amish.
John Wesley gave a powerful witness to simplicity in his life and fortunately he was OK with buttons… And would be OK with cell phones and digital cameras too. Richard Foster says this of Wesley: Examples abound of Christian simplicity in the task of evangelism, in the service of the poor, and in the cause of social justice. The vigorous evangelistic efforts of John Wesley and the early Methodists are well known. The simplicity of their lifestyle gave integrity to the Gospel they preached. Wesley told everyone that, if at his death he had more than 10 pounds ($23) in his possession people had the privilege of calling him a robber.” Near the end of his life he wrote in his journal very simply, “I left no money to anyone in my will, because I had none.”
Our own heritage includes valuing simplicity. Not to the extent of the Amish, but also in stark contrast with the Prosperity Gospel.
We believe simplicity is foundational to the Gospel. In our last Vision Team meeting, we set out to identify our core values and we came up with what I believe are some good words; like compassion and inclusion (I won’t spill all the beans). But simplicity never came up, part of the reason it didn’t come up is because it wasn’t on the list of words we were using as examples. Why wasn’t it on the list? Efficiency was on the list, forward looking, hard work, physical vitality were on the list, accomplishment, self-esteem and success were on the list. What’s worse, why didn’t I think of it? Here I am preparing for Stewardship and the theme of Simplicity and I didn’t think of it. We may have to rethink this….
Here’s the bottom line in the words of Richard Foster: The witness of simplicity is profoundly rooted in the biblical tradition, and most perfectly exemplified in the life of Jesus Christ. In one form or another, all the devotional masters have stressed its essential nature. It is a natural and necessary outflow of the Good News of the Gospel having taken root in our lives. One cannot serve God and money at the same time. So basic to Jesus. So fundamental to the Way. So, look around our world and tell me we see?
Amen.
Pastor James Clarke
