Sunday, June 25, 2023

Fourth Sunday in Pentecost
Jeremiah 20:7-13
Psalm 91:1-10 (11-16)
Romans 6:12-23
Matthew 10:5a, 21-33

Because he has set his love on me, therefore I will deliver him. I will set him on high, because he has known my name. He will call on me, and I will answer him. I will be with him in trouble. I will deliver him, and honor him. I will satisfy him with long life, and show him my salvation.

Our home was a model home when our neighborhood was developed three decades ago. This means our home has some interesting features because the builder wanted to show off as many options as possible for the buyers. I like the floor plan but have to admit that it is a little strange. The fancy fixtures are now old and don’t look as pretty as they did when the house was originally built. We have discovered, as we have done work to update the décor, that some of the hidden aspects, like wiring and plumbing, were haphazardly put together. I dread bringing in a repairman because they always have bad news.

I don’t know about you, but I don’t like bad news. It usually means that the repairman’s trip will cost me more money than I expect. Sometimes it means that the problem is far worse than I expected. We had an issue with a toilet. We had a plumber who found some roots. He cleaned them out and everything worked fine, for a few months, then it was blocked again. We called a different plumber who realized that the roots were so deeply embedded that it required digging under our foundation and replacing the pipes. Thankfully our insurance was able to help, but it still cost us a lot of money. Our sprinkler guy hates when I call because he’s certain hell discover yet another shortcut that they took when they built the house which makes repair today difficult.

As much as we hate to hear that bad news, the messengers rarely like to share it. Even though they will benefit from the work of fixing our problems, the bad news is usually as bad for them as it is for us because the fix is never easy. Instead of a quick trip to unplug a toilet or stop a leak, it becomes an hours long project that is frustrating, dirty, and exhausting. We all grin and bear it, knowing that after the work is done and the money is paid, everything will be better. But not all bad news ends so well.

The reign of King Henry VIII was bad news for too many people, especially those who went to the king with bad news. I love to read historical fiction, particularly British medieval and renaissance history. Writers of historical fiction base their books on extensive research, and though they add fictional events, characters, and conversations, the books generally give a good insight into the people and the era. The Tudor age is fascinating, and I think we all love to hate Henry VIII.

One of the things that has been obvious about Henry VIII is that he liked to hear good news. The people he kept close were never willing to tell him the truth if they thought it might make him angry. Most people learn not to punish the messenger for the unwanted message, but not Henry. Men and women were cast out of his court when he did not like what they had to say. They learned quickly never to say something that he would not like.

It is natural for people to prefer good news. None of us like to hear that our plans have failed or that we have done something wrong. We don’t like to hear that we are going in the wrong direction. Unfortunately, the people of Israel in Jeremiah’s time were much like Henry VIII. They preferred good news. The prophets of the day learned quickly that they would do much better if they gave the people, especially the kings and leaders, words that they wanted to hear. If they thought the king wanted peace, they spoke of peace as if it were coming right from the mouth of God. If they thought the king wanted to go to war, they promised that God was behind the war and that they would be victorious. Sadly, there are “yes men” in our world in every generation, including ours.

Jeremiah had no good news for the people. As a matter of fact, he is known as the weeping prophet because of the gloomy nature of his message and his grief for the people of Israel. The words which God had given him to speak were too hard for the people to hear, so hard that Jeremiah was persecuted. It is impossible for the truth to be heard when there are dozens, perhaps hundreds, of prophets speaking something different. We like to assume that the truth is found in the numbers. Surely the majority would be right? But that is not always true when it comes to God’s word, especially since His judgment comes with the consequences of disobedience. The voice speaking God’s truth has often been a minority throughout the ages.

Jeremiah surely had no idea how hard it would be when God called him to be a prophet. It would have been so much easier to be a prophet like all the others, preaching words that tickle the ears of the kings, leaders, and people. Jeremiah was upset with God, even to the point of blaspheme. Some translations suggest that God persuaded or enticed the prophet in the first line of today’s Old Testament lesson. Some versions, however, translate it “O Lord, you have deceived me, and I was deceived,” (ESV) Perhaps Jeremiah was expecting the job of prophet to be painless. Yet, despite Jeremiah’s hard words against God, he still had faith. Despite the persecution he faced by the world to which he was called to speak, Jeremiah still believed in God’s grace. He really hated being a prophet and wanted to give up, but he was compelled to speak God’s word to the world. Jeremiah said, “If I say, I will not make mention of him, or speak any more in his name, then there is in my heart as it were a burning fire shut up in my bones. I am weary with holding it in. I can’t.” In the end, his terror gave way to praise because he knew that whatever God planned would benefit His people.

We identify with Jeremiah’s desire to remain silent. It would be so much easier to live our faith quietly and peacefully. After all, faith is a personal thing, right? In our world of individuality, we all need to let our neighbors believe what they believe. We don’t evangelize because their religious life is none of our business. We know our neighbors do not want to hear that they are sinners in need of a Savior, so we decide not to tell them. We might talk about Jesus, but Jesus is not a Savior unless the people know they are slaves to sin and need His forgiveness. I have often heard it said we should not wear our faith on our sleeves, but the reality is that God calls us all to be prophets, to tell the truth both good and bad so that those who hear will be saved.

The Gospel is good news that you will never hear if you don’t realize that you are a sinner in need of a Savior.

God calls us to be His voice in this world; He sends us to tell people about Jesus and their need for Him. We want to ignore the call, but we can’t. There’s something within us that demands our faithfulness. Can we truly praise God in the privacy of our homes and the comfort of our congregations when He is calling us to go out in the world to speak His Word to those lost in sin and darkness? We might avoid persecution, but are we being faithful and obedient by being silent? We don’t have to be afraid of persecution. Jesus promised that He would be with us wherever we go until the end of the age.

We are in the season of Pentecost. During the first half of the church year, we study the story of God, particularly as manifested in the life of Christ. We experience the birth, ministry, passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus. We see Him complete His work, ascend to heaven, and send the Holy Spirit to the disciples. Now, in Pentecost, we are asked the question, “What are you going to do with this?” What do we do with the gift we have been given? What do we do with the knowledge that has been imparted? Now that the ministry has been handed over to us, where will we go with it?

The answer to that question is sometimes too frightening to hear. We want to live in comfort, to be protected, to avoid anything that might do us harm. I was never what you might call a “helicopter mom” but my kids never had the kind of freedom I had when I was growing up. My mom never knew where I was during summer vacation, and I was lucky if I was close enough to hear her yell when it was time to go home. My friends and I would take off into the woods behind our house or settle into long (very long) games of Monopoly in someone’s basement. I even walked to a friend’s house who lived about a mile away. We didn’t have cell phones. We also did not have the dangers of our modern world. My kids did not have that much freedom, I kept my eyes on them so that they would be safe.

That’s how God is; He always has His eyes on His kids. My kids got hurt every so often. They fell off their bikes. They got into arguments with their friends. They lost their favorite toys. We experience similar troubles even with God watching.

There was once a commercial for some sort of special water that was designed to keep you healthy. The commercial showed a man take a drink of the water and suddenly realize that he was walking on bubble wrap. The voice over said, “It helps protect your body.” So, the man went around the city doing ridiculous things, things you could not do without the bubble wrap, things that you shouldn’t do anyway. He rolled down a huge set of steps. He jumped into a wall. He rode an elevator to the top of a skyscraper and jumped off. No matter how good the water, it would never save a person from the certain harm of leaping from the top of a very tall building. The water probably has some health advantages, but that does not mean that those who drink it will never suffer pain or dis-ease. A bottle of water might help keep us healthy, but we will all still eventually know pain and death.

One of the more interesting features of our model home is that the section that was meant to be a garage was used by the builder for his sales offices. After the development was finished, the builder intended to convert those rooms back to a garage. The people who bought the house wanted those extra rooms, so a separate garage was built. This was the feature that sold the house to me. I use one of those rooms for my art studio, one for my office, and one for storage.

My office has windows that look out in three directions. We have bird feeders that I can see out each. I confess that I spend too much time gazing at the birds and the squirrels, watching them play. I’ve allowed an area outside one window to grow wild with flowers so that the bees and butterflies can visit. We planted milkweed to help the monarchs and we have a birdbath for all the critters to drink and play in the hot weather. When we had cats, they loved to look out the windows, often meowing at the critters nearby. Sometimes the birds came so close to the windows that without the glass, they would have been caught. Unfortunately, the window is also a danger. When the sun is shining and the sky is reflected in the glass, the birds think they can fly in that direction. I hear too many birds fly against the windows, slamming so hard that they leave imprints behinds. They usually fly off to safety in a tree until they recover and quickly come back for more seed.

Jesus said, “Aren’t two sparrows sold for an assarion coin? Not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will.” God knows each time those birds hit my window. He knows their pain and He rejoices when they are able to fly again. Sparrows could be purchased in the marketplace in Jesus’ time for two for a penny. They were used as food, although a sparrow could not make much of a meal. Human beings were created and charged with the rule of all God’s creation. We are His crown. As Jesus says, “Therefore don’t be afraid. You are of more value than many sparrows.” This does not mean that God will cover the entire world with bubble wrap so that we will not suffer the pain of injury. We might even experience the persecution that comes from those who do not believe in our Lord Jesus, but this is not a sign of abandonment. God is with us through the good times and the bad. He knows every hair on our head. He loves those who follow Him as a mom loves her kids.

We have to remember, however, that despite the saving grace of God, we are still slaves to sin. If we could be good without God’s mercy, we would not need Jesus. This is why it is important that we speak the truth to those who are lost and dying in this world. They need Jesus. They need forgiveness and mercy, but they won’t seek God’s grace if they don’t know they need it. The Good News is exciting to tell, but we have to share the bad news first. This is the part no one wants to hear. They don’t want to know that they are sinners. They just want to know that they are loved. And in this day, they want to know that they are loved for who they think they are, not who God intends them to be. We, like Jeremiah, would rather stay silent because we know how they will react to our message.

The worst part is telling them that they are slaves to sin. Our history with slavery is so disturbing that we cringe at Paul’s use of the word. The Romans understood slavery. As a matter of fact, of all the ancient worlds, the Romans held the most slaves. It was a common practice around the world. Many slaves were taken as prisoners of war and since the Romans were fighters and occupiers, they had many prisoners from vanquished nations who could serve in their homes, businesses and even the army. The highly trained and intelligent slaves were worth the most money and often served as singers, scribes, jewelers and doctors.

Slaves were not only prisoners of war. A man, woman, or child could be sold into slavery to pay a debt. Any child born into slavery was automatically a slave. For some, slavery meant a better life than they could ever have lived in freedom. The slaves were usually well cared for, often treated as family. Female slaves were often very close to their mistresses, serving as advisors and confidents as well as servants. Most military men were slaves. Treasurers were often slaves. Slaves served in the mines and in other dangerous jobs. These slaves were often condemned criminals.

Slavery was not a dead-end street for many in Rome. A slave could be freed by the mercy of the master. Some slaves were given a salary of gifts, and he or she could buy their way out of their slavery with money they had saved. Though they had no rights as citizens, they were acceptable witnesses in court. They were not allowed to enter into public buildings such as the bath house but were not held prisoner. They had the freedom to move about the city, especially the domestic servants who went to the market and did other errands for the house. The Roman economy depended on slavery, but most of the slaves were well treated and many were able to get out and live as a citizen again.

So, as Paul wrote to the Romans, they understood the concept of slavery. Many of the Christians who heard this letter were probably slaves; there were more slaves in Rome than citizens. Slaves were lesser people; they were at the bottom of the class structure. Christians were also looked down upon since they did not follow the Roman faith. For many slaves, the Christian message of equality and grace was one of hope for even them, so slaves found great comfort in Jesus Christ and believed wholeheartedly in the Way.

In some ancient cultures, a freed slave could choose to stay with a master. If such a choice was made, the slave was nailed to the doorway of the master’s house, pierced through his earlobe. This was a testament that the slave chose to stay as part of the household, willingly serving rather than forced to serve. In the freedom of choice, the slave became a servant for life, welcomed by the master as part of his household forever.

Paul tells us that we are slaves. It is a hard concept for most of us to understand, because we never personally experienced any kind of slavery whether in Rome or even our own nation. We are slaves to other things, sometimes foolish things. We are slaves to our jobs, our schedules, our kids’ activities. We are slaves to our habits and our desires. We are slaves to sin, just as those Christians in Rome were slave to their sins.

We, like them, have been set free, however. We no longer need be a slave to sin. We have been given a much better choice, to willingly serve the Lord. We are set free from the bondage of sin and invited to choose to serve a Master that will treat us well. As slaves to sin, we are bound to suffer the consequences of our sin. As slaves to righteousness, we will receive the fruit of His grace. As we live in His household, we grow closer to our Master and are transformed and sanctified into the kind of servant He has ordained us to be.

During the season of Pentecost, we read about the ministry of Jesus in Matthew’s Gospel, watching as Jesus teaches the disciples how to do the work He is calling them to do. In today’s text He told them not to be afraid of those who can cause harm to the body because He can save the soul. Jesus doesn’t wrap us in bubble wrap, but we can go out into the world with the promise that He will not abandon us. As the psalmist says, “He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.” God is with us. Jesus will be at our side wherever we may go. The Holy Spirit will guide us in the right paths and give us the words to speak. We have no reason to fear because God is our refuge and our strength.

We may suffer for speaking God’s Word into the world. Unfortunately, Christians are being persecuted. Some are being beheaded. Others are losing their children to enemies who kidnap them or governments that take them away. Yet others are having their reputations and businesses destroyed. Churches have been burned. Too many Christians have been led down paths that seem faithful but for the sake of tolerance or acceptance; they do not remain true to God’s Word. Too many have become the prophets who preach warm fuzzies into the ears of their listeners. Anyone who speaks against their way of faith supposedly does not understand God’s unconditional love; they are rejected for standing true to God’s unwavering holiness.

They are preaching useless good news because they are ignoring the reality of sin. The Gospel is not simply “God is love,” it is “Jesus loves you, so He died to save you from your sin.” That’s too hard for the world to hear, so they seek a sugarcoated faith. They want to hear the prophets that will tickle their ears. They are willing to believe in the Jesus who is friend and model of good living, but they aren’t willing to accept that they need His forgiveness.

Faith does not guarantee we won’t face difficulty. No matter how much we trust in God, we might find ourselves in a frightening situation that does not end well. However, we can look to the those in the past who trusted God for inspiration and encouragement. When we are in the midst of terrifying situations, we should hold fast to God and speak boldly with compassion and love no matter what the consequences. If we die, we die knowing we stood firm with God to the end. If we die, we know that Jesus will acknowledge us before His Father because we acknowledged Him before the world.

We might just see the miraculous power of God’s Word transform the situation and bring hope out of terror.

Will I have the courage to be like Jeremiah? I don’t think any of us will ever really know until we face the possibility of death. Will we remember that God is with us when we are too afraid to think? I hope I will have the courage if the time comes, but until that day we are all called to walk in faith and continue to build our relationship with God. One way we can do so is to write the words of today’s psalm on our hearts, holding them so close that we will not forget that God has promised to care for us, that He hears us, that He will deliver us, and satisfy us in His eternal Kingdom. Those words won’t protect us from being hurt, but they will always remind us that no matter what happens, God will be there to pick us up and take us home.