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Here is the homily I preached yesterday. The Saturday snowstorm kept a majority of Grace parishioners at home. It reminded me of the Russian proverb, which I shared with those in attendance, “The church is near, but the road is icy. The bar is far away, but I will be careful.”
The story of Abraham and Isaac is a difficult one. In a strange turn, God orders Abraham to kill his beloved son. This is not how we like to think about God. We are used to a safe, predictable God. He is nothing of the sort in this story. We like our God tamed. This wild, untamed God is unsettling. We would prefer not to think that God would order someone to sacrifice their own son. Such an account challenges the firm, easy categories we have constructed for a deity under our control. But we live in a strange time and in an odd land where most believe in a neutered God who blesses all we do and exists only to give us stuff and make us happy and feel good about ourselves. We live in a world of faith made boring and predictable. People even think they conjure up God like a genie in a bottle with their manipulated emotional appeals; simplistic therapeutic advice; or a good back beat and a guitar riff. The God of Holy Scripture, the True and Living God, however, is nothing of the sort. The twenty-second chapter of Genesis confronts us with a God that is far from safe, tame, and predictable. He is a dangerous. He takes the most unbelievable actions.
This God, YHWH, the Creator of heaven and earth, had called Abraham from his homeland and promised him descendants beyond number. At the time of the call, Abraham was a pagan, a worshiper of idols. He had served other gods, which were not really gods for they had been made by human hands. They were like the gods we make for ourselves. They were the gods that can be manipulated. They were the gods who could be controlled. They were the gods who did what the people wanted. The true God, in His crazy plan to rescue His creation from sin and death, speaks to seventy-five year old Abraham and tells him to pack up and leave home for unknown place. This meant leaving his false gods, his safety and security. Apparently, the Word of YHWH had an impact on Abraham. Abraham packed up, left everything behind, and listened to the Lord. God then promised to make a great nation out of Abraham’s seed. There was a slight problem, however. Sarah, his wife, was barren and past her child-bearing years. This was not a problem. The true God does the wildest, most unpredictable things. He gave Abraham and Sarah a son, a gift beyond all odds and reason. Through the gift of this son, Isaac, all God’s promises to Abraham would be realized. Then, in our text today, the Lord God, the I AM, calls to Abraham and he responds, “Here am I.” Abraham’s wild ride gets a bit wilder when he is then commanded by God to sacrifice the son he loves as a burnt offering. YHWH tells Abraham to kill Isaac, the son of promise. How could God ask such a thing of Abraham? What kind of a wild, restless God is the I AM?
We had a record snowfall today in Tulsa. Tomorrow it will be 60 and sunny. Such is life in this part of the country. Anyway, here is a picture of our daughter Megan and our Elephant Snowman. She is cute and he is ugly. He does have a beer, however. I give my hearty recommendation to Acme IPA by North Coast Brewing, by the way. Now don’t ask about my hop garden. I tried to cover and protect the young rhizomes, but shed a few tears as the snow came down.
I am going to spend time with Det. Kierkegaard in the next couple months. He had a fun way of revealing the boring futility and gross infidelity of the Danish state church. In the course of his attacks upon the state “Christianity” of his day, he responded to his own critics by confessing that he was not a prophet or seer or preacher, but a detective. He just looked at the clues and put together a case for his conclusions. Perhaps if we stepped back and looked at the clues, we might put together a similar case for the general state of American Christianity in its various forms. There is certainly something here for the LCMS, not to mention each of us individually. This excerpt from Judge for Yourself should be read by all our modern church “prophets”-the consultants, growth gurus, emergent leaders, sexual and moral reformers… the list could continue ad nauseum.
The evil in our time is not the established order with its many faults. No, the evil in our time is precisely: this evil penchant for reforming, this flirting with wanting to reform, this sham of wanting to reform without being willing to suffer and to make sacrifices, this frivolous conceitedness of wanting to be able to reform without even having a conception, to say nothing of a lofty conception, of how uncommonly elevated is the idea of “to reform,” this hypocrisy of avoiding the consciousness of one’s own incompetence by being busy with the diversion of wanting to reform the Church, which our age is least of all competent to do (p. 212f.).
I think our age may even be less competent…
Today Luke introduces us to Mary, a poor, young virgin Jewish girl living in first-century Palestine. She is pious, perhaps. Yet there is nothing extraordinary about her, not her heritage or her home. She is simply engaged to be married to Joseph. Then, seemingly out of nowhere, the Angel Gabriel, God’s very own messenger, appears before her of all people. He did not attend to a princess or a lady of privilege, but to an ordinary Jewish girl. He says, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” Favored one? The Lord is with you? This greeting puzzles and confuses young Mary. It would puzzle and confuse anyone. How often does an angel show up and say such things? Understandably, Mary is afraid. She wonders about the meaning of all this. What had she done? Is this going to be trouble?
The Angel Gabriel quickly tells her not to be afraid and then continues, my paraphrase, “Don’t worry, Mary, God has chosen you to conceive in your womb and bear a son named Jesus, God saves. Your son, Jesus, will be the Son of God. He will be the Son of the Most High, the Messiah. He will be the Son of the Father from all eternity. In your womb, Mary, the infinite God will be circumscribed. In your womb, Mary, the eternal God will develop and grow for nine months, like all other human babies. In your womb, Mary, the Creator of humanity will take on the flesh of His own creation. In your womb, Mary, Man’s Maker will be made man.”
Tomorrow we will celebrate the Annunciation of Our Lord with a Divine Service at noon. Two years ago the festival fell on a Sunday morning and I preached the following homily. I will need to be much shorter tomorrow for the lunch crowd, although it will be difficult for I am taken with the profound mystery of Our Lord’s incarnation in the womb of Mary.
Madonna. For many, the mere mention of her name evokes images of scandal and outrage. For others, her name stands as a symbol for liberated human sexuality and freedom from social constraints. Whatever your personal view, there is little doubt that Madonna, born Ms Ciccone, is the pop-culture of the past generation. Her albums have sold tens of millions, making her wealthy beyond measure. Her career has flourished for nearly thirty years as she has repeatedly reinvented herself, time and again pushing the envelope of taste and decency. Through the years she has gone from one scandal to the next, each seeming to fan the flame of her celebrity, influence, and fame. But, if we even cared to pause and reflect on her career, Madonna’s attempts to scandalize our sensibilities are best understood as sophomoric, shallow and foolish when compared to the great scandal surrounding the original Madonna, Mary the Mother of God.
This morning is the Annunciation of Our Lord. It is March 25, nine months before Christmas, the Nativity of Our Lord. Of course we know that nine months is approximately the time it takes for a baby to grow and mature to the stage where it is ready to enter into the world. This morning we commemorate the mystery that Jesus, the Son of the Most High, was conceived by the Holy Spirit to be born of the Virgin Mary. Jesus was a baby boy in the womb of His mother, Mary, the Madonna. Luke tells us how this happened. God commissioned an angel by the name of Gabriel to bring an important message to a girl named Mary. Mary was a virgin. She was not like a virgin, but she was a virgin. She had not had sexual experience. And she was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph. She had obeyed God’s stated command that sex was reserved for matrimony between a man and a woman. Already we get a glimpse that Mary’s life is marked by obedience to the Word of God. Nothing, however, could prepare her for Gabriel’s message.
The people were impressed with Jesus. They had seen Him heal the sick and they were taken by His power and ability. They were not used to seeing such things and so the word about Him spread. A large mob gathered and followed Him. The count, St. John tells us, was five thousand men, not counting women and children. It is safe to say there were about fifteen thousand people clamoring after Jesus. It is no surprise then that Jesus needed some space to breathe and so He headed for the mountain with His disciples.
Interestingly, the Passover was at hand. A good Jew would have been in Jerusalem at the Temple, but our Lord was on the mountain on the other side of Galilee. He had even taken others with Him. Apparently, He was not being a good influence. The truth, however, is that Jesus, the one who instituted the Passover, had more important things to attend. Besides, Jesus would be in Jerusalem for the Passover the next year. On that Passover He Himself would be the unblemished lamb of sacrifice, shedding His holy blood for the sins of the world. This year, however, Jesus is on the mountain, taking a break from the people. Then John tells us that Jesus lifts up his eyes and notices the large crowd, the mob, coming toward Him. They had witnessed His miracles and they wanted more of what Jesus had to offer.
Jesus then turns to Philip. “Philip,” Jesus asks, “where are we going to buy enough bread for this motley crew?” Jesus, of course, knows what is going to happen. He is, after all, God in the flesh. Yet Jesus, it seems, wants to have a bit of fun at Philip’s expense. Philip answers just like we would answer. “Jesus, two hundred days of wages would not be enough.” Or, in modern figures, $35,000 would not buy enough bread for all of these people. It was a big crowd. Panera does not make enough bread in a month for all the people rushing after Jesus. The need of the people is immense. Philip recognizes the impossibility of buying enough bread for all the people. He tells Jesus that even six months of wages would not be sufficient so get that crazy thought out of your head, Jesus. Philip is just being reasonable. We too would have answered in the same way for we too are reasonable. Like Philip, we know how much bread costs. We also know that a crowd of fifteen thousand needs more bread than we can provide. This is just the way the world works. Philip knew it and we know it too.
My hop garden has been planted and now I can only water, wait, and pray. I planted two Cascade rhizomes, two Centennial rhizomes, and a jumbo Mt. Hood rhizome. This is my first foray into gardening and I must admit that it has been an enjoyable, relaxing experience. Lisa is not too crazy about the PVC piping employed for the trellis system. If all goes well, then I should be able to provide enough hops to brew pale ales and IPAs for an entire year. We’ll see. I have tilled, used mushroom compost, manure, soaker hoses, mulch, etc. in an effort to work the land. I think my prayers for the harvest will take on a new urgency.
I was privileged to offer a lecture today, March 11, for the 2009 Lenten Wiseman Series. These lectures are offered during Wednesdays in both Advent and Lent and have been running for some decades. Dr. Jim Miller, the pastor of First Presbyterian in Tulsa, is the host and a good friend. He was kind enough to invite this swarthy little Lutheran to speak this year. It was a real honor. Here is the lecture…
Wiseman Lecture-2009
St. Luke 24:44-48
Then he said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.” Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, and said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things.
Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
I bring warmest greetings to all of you from your brothers and sisters in Christ at Grace Lutheran Church.
It is a distinct honor and privilege for me to be with you today for the Wisemen Lecture Series. I consider your pastor, Dr. Miller, to be a friend and I value his leadership in the Christian community of Tulsa and deeply respect his unwavering commitment to Jesus Christ. Thank you for having me share with you today.
When one of my parishioners saw in the newspaper that I was on the schedule for this series, she came to me after church and said, “Just like Ozzie Hoffman.” I almost choked. For those of you who don’t know the name, Dr. Oswald Hoffman was the speaker on the Lutheran Hour radio program for 33 years, from 1955 to 1988. Dr. Hoffman was an evangelist in countries all over the world, a confidant to presidents of the United States, a role-model to Billy Graham, a scholar, an author, and an icon among Lutherans for nearly 70 years. He was also a regular contributor to these Wiseman Lectures. So when my parishioner made the comparison, I suspect she was either being exceedingly kind or especially cruel. I am no Ozzie Hoffman. And it is my sincere hope that none of you remember Dr. Hoffman so as not to be too disappointed. Please temper your expectations.
My wife, Lisa, and I have been blessed with two children. Our son, Owen, is six and our daughter, Megan, is four. They are both delightful and challenging in their own ways, as children tend to be. Megan, though, is one of those kids, if you know what I mean. She has these big cheeks and lovely, big bluish-green eyes with a head full of curls. She is beautiful and confident and fun. She is also an evil sinner. The force is strong in that one, I like to say. She is calculating, selfish, aggressive, and domineering. After her first week of school, my wife started collecting her daily behavior reports, saving them for some future embarrassment. Every day we take her to school, we speak to her about “making good choices.” Her invariable and inevitable response is, “But it is hard to make good choices.” I can only agree with her. “Yes, Megan, it is hard to make good choices.” She is right. After all, we are descendants of Adam, diseased with sin and, so, we sin, or we make bad choices. She doesn’t quite understand this theological truth about original sin and its effects yet, although she certainly bears witness to it every day. Megan sins because she is a sinner. You and I sin because we are sinners. Sin brings death. This is the way it is. So what do we do about it? What do I tell Megan about her sin? This is the real question. Humans have a problem so what is the solution. The answer, I believe, is rather quite simple, although not so popular. This answer is what I would like to offer you today. The answer is Lutheran, but also Christian. The answer is Lenten, but also essential for every day of the Christian life. It is the answer offered by the prophets, by John the Baptist, by our Lord Jesus Christ, by St. Peter at Pentecost, by the apostolic witness, and by all the great saints of the church. I am responsible to teach Megan this answer as her father. It is the answer that I am to offer to the parishioners under my pastoral care. It is the answer I must keep always in my heart. So what can we do in the face of sin and death? What is the solution to our problem? Repentance. Repentance is all we can do, which really means we cannot do anything.
The scene in our Gospel is rather quite embarrassing to today’s sensibilities, a grown woman groveling in front of a man, even if it is Jesus. Our culture’s new class of prophets, the secular psychologists and self-help gurus, would straighten out this poor women. These prophets would tell her to get off her knees and quit begging. They would tell her to look inside herself and know she is special, a champion. They would tell her she is good enough and smart enough and has endless potential. She does not need anyone’s approval. They would talk about having more self-esteem. They would encourage her to love herself. They would give her some principles to follow; some exercises to practice; and lists to check. If she would only listen to them, then she would be strong enough to not be dependent on another. She would be confident, self-assured, well-adjusted, self-satisfied, and more assertive. She would also have a daughter still severely possessed by a demon.
Fortunately for that poor woman, there were no Norman Vincent Peales or Dr. Phils in the district of Tyre and Sidon on that day. Instead, it was Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the only one who could truly help her. The Canaanite woman was desperate as her daughter was possessed by a demon. This should not be a surprise considering the demonic practices of the Canaanites. They were the most wicked of people. Their religious rituals were so filthy they would even shock and scandalize the desensitized minds of our culture. They sacrificed children in the fire, believing their gods could be manipulated by such devotion. They had fertility rituals that would make the seediest shows in Las Vegas seem like a VBS opening. Their practices were dark and utterly evil. They belonged to the realm of the demonic. As such, the Canaanites were abhorred by YHWH and He told His people when they entered the Promised Land, “But you shall utterly destroy them… as the Lord your God has commanded you, in order that they may not teach you to do according to all their detestable things which they have done for their gods, so that you would sin against the Lord your God” (Dt. 20:16-18). The Canaanites were the sworn enemies of YHWH and Israel. So when a Canaanite woman approaches Jesus it is a shock. It is no surprise that her family is afflicted by demons. The surprise is she approaches a Jewish man for help. Even more, it is no ordinary Jewish man. It is the Son of YHWH, the Messiah, in the flesh. Behold, a Canaanite woman!
She starts right after Jesus. “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David.” With the use of the title, “Son of David,” she acknowledges Jesus as the one who came to rescue the people of Israel. Even though she is a born enemy of Israel as a Canaanite, she still makes the request. There is nowhere else for her to go. She is at the end of the line. The Canaanite gods have been useless. She cannot wish the demon away. The self-help books, three-step programs, Dionne Warwicks, horoscopes, and Dr. Lauras have all failed. So she begs Jesus for help.
I envy David. His enemy, the Philistine warrior Goliath, stood right in front of him on the battlefield. There was the large Philistine, girded for battle with a shield and a sword and a spear and a javelin. Then there was David, straight from the sheep pasture with a sling and a few stones. There they stood, face-to-face on the verge of a hand-to-hand struggle for life and death. The Philistine roared, mocked and cursed. David replied with a rebuke. Goliath advanced, David rushed toward him and they engaged in combat. David took a stone in his hand and loaded it into the sling. He cast the stone and it struck his enemy in the forehead, striking a fatal blow. David then takes the sword of his enemy and cuts of the head of the Philistine, striking fear into the Philistine army as he showed forth his bloody, gory trophy of victory.
David had little problem identifying his enemy. David and Israel against Goliath and the Philistines. They might as well have worn jerseys. Jesus Christ did not have any trouble knowing His enemy either. In our Gospel, Jesus enters the wilderness for forty days, praying and fasting in the Spirit, to be tempted by Satan. The lines for battle were clearly drawn. Satan and his kingdom in opposition to Jesus and His Kingdom.
As Christians, we also are engaged in combat, a war, a violent struggle against an enemy. Yet we often forget this is the case. After all, we don’t see Goliath standing across from us on the field. Nor do we have Satan in his little red costume, horns, pitchfork and tail whispering temptations in our ear. Our Christian struggle would be so much clearer if we had a big, stinking Philistine right in front of our faces, or if Satan really did parade around like Jon Lovitz from Saturday Night Live, wearing red spandex tights with all the accessories.
In 1941, C.S. Lewis, the brilliant Oxford don and Christian apologist, wrote a piece of satire, The Screwtape Letters. The story is a collection of letters from Screwtape, a senior demon, to his nephew, Wormwood, a demon just starting his career. Screwtape instructs Wormwood on securing the damnation of a certain person. In one of the letters, Screwtape writes, “My Dear Wormwood, I wonder you should ask me whether it is essential to keep the patient in ignorance of your own existence…. Our policy, for the moment is to conceal ourselves…. I do not think you will have much difficult in keeping the patient in the dark. The fact that ‘devils’ are predominantly comic figures in the modern imagination will help you. If any faint suspicion of your existence begins to arise in his mind, suggest to him a picture of something in red tights, and persuade him that since he cannot believe in that (it is an old textbook method of confusing them) he therefore cannot believe in you.”
