Revised Common Lectionary: Proper 7 Readings Romans 6:1b-11; Psalm 86:1-10, 16-17; Matthew 10: Canon Simon Butler

Transcription

1 Sermon for 1 st Sunday After Trinity 22 nd June 2014 Revised Common Lectionary: Proper 7 Readings Romans 6:1b-11; Psalm 86:1-10, 16-17; Matthew 10:24-39 Canon Simon Butler Have you ever thought that having a relationship with God would make your life easier? That with God on your side, you ll slide through life with no problems, right? That faith is all about a warm inner glow and an extra gloss on your path through life? Well, if you ve ever thought that, today s readings should disabuse you of that notion. In our Epistle reading, Paul talks about our baptism into the death of Jesus, about our being united with Christ in his death and being crucified with him so that the body of sin might be destroyed. The Psalm laments a life which is poor and in misery, despite the psalmists clear faith and trust in God. And in our gospel reading, Jesus tells his disciples, If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign those of his household. Jesus is himself the master of the house and we are the members of his household, so if Jesus was called Beelzebul, a name for Satan, then how can we who follow him expect to be treated? 1

2 And all this is the Good News? So much for getting comfort from scripture for the week ahead. Yet, for those who would follow Jesus, perhaps the question is not, Why do things go wrong for those of us with a relationship with God? The questions may well be, Why are things going so well? Why aren t we having more problems? or for any follower of Jesus, Why am I not being persecuted? The psalmist tried to follow God s will and grew weary with crying for justice. Jesus was put to death, and after his resurrection, Jesus disciples went on to preach, teach and with the exception of John, the disciples were killed for their faith in Jesus. So where did we go wrong? Why don t people laugh at us more? Make fun of us more? Why are our lives going so well, assuming of course, that they are? There s no doubt that we are fortunate to live in a time and place when those who proclaim faith in Jesus Christ may do so without risking their lives. Baptism into the church no longer puts a death sentence on you as has been true in some times and places. But we still can t expect that following Jesus will lead to a life of no problems. Your relationship with God will not remove all the obstacles from your path. You aren t guaranteed a perfect marriage, perfect kids, a perfect job or a perfect boss. Faith is not the path to a life of no worries. Jesus promised the victory, but he never taught of a life with no battles. 2

3 So what, then, is the point? Why believe? Well, for one, believe because the gospel is true. There is a God who loves us and wants a relationship with us. That God is best known to us through the second person of the Trinity, Jesus Christ. As God made man, Jesus not only showed us how we should live, but his death and resurrection bring us into a reconciled relationship with God. Knowing the truth of Christianity is at the core of our faith. One believes, not because this is the easy path to a good life, but because the faith we profess is true. The Bible warns that problems can and will follow. In fact, the 16 th -century spiritual writer and mystic Teresa of Avilla wrote to God, If this is the way you treat your friends, it s no wonder you have so few! Often a problem is that the faith we were given in Sunday school of Jesus Loves Me This I Know, while true, may not be realistic or even welldeveloped enough to handle a cancer diagnosis, the decline of a parent, the death of a friend or the end of a marriage. But when we read further in our texts for this week, we find a confidence in God s presence and mercy. The psalmist says, despite his troubles, a confident For you O Lord, are good and forgiving, abounding in steadfast love to all who call upon you. Towards the end of the psalm he says, Show me a token of your favour, that those who hate me may see it and be ashamed. In other words he grabs hold of the conviction that God is the firm ground on which he stands. For the psalmist never loses the conviction that God s love and compassion will get the last word. The psalmist refers to God s faihtfulness, God s kind love and God s great compassion. If you or I face trouble, opposition or even persecution, like 3

4 the psalmist, it is God s faithful love that remains there, all the more real because of what we face. St Paul, in Romans, acknowledges the struggle that baptism represents. It is a putting to death of the old self. How painful it is to have to acknowledge that God still has so much to do with us, broken and damaged as we are. And yet, in the midst of this ongoing process of dying, Paul recognises that the resurrection is more powerfully at work, bringing the renewal and transformation that comes by the Holy Spirit. If you or I face an ongoing struggle to deal with addiction, patterns of behaviour that shame us, or even the ghosts of our upbringing ever holding us back, it is God s resurrection power that brings the spark of hope, the energy that reveals that God s power can overcome, and all the more real because of the challenges of growth we face. And, finally, Jesus tells his followers, Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. And even the hairs of your head are all counted. So do not be afraid; you are of more value than many sparrows. Not only does he not promise smooth sailing, Jesus warns that storms will besiege the faithful. But in the tempests of life, we are not to be fearful. The question is not Why are things going wrong? Maybe we should ask, Why is no one bothering me? Perhaps your faith has not so changed your life that anyone else can notice. So if you or I wonder if faith is just this lovely religious gloss on top of what we mistakenly call real life, it is opposition, it is fear and it is even persecution that reveals to us the mystery of the kingdom, that faith is there for the real life of betrayal, disappointment and conflict. And yet, says Jesus, it is in these moments that the Gospel s power is most clearly revealed, where our precious worth to God is 4

5 most clearly known, and where our worthiness as disciples is most obviously demonstrated. What matters is not what you believe. What matters is the difference it makes. So when your faith leads you to make public stands that are not popular (and notice I say when not if), when your faith leads you to make public stands that are not popular, opposition will come. Problems will arise. This is to be expected. But we also know that we do not face these problems alone. The anchor has long been a symbol in Christian art for the hope that we have in Jesus Christ. Though storms may come, we have a sure and certain hope that gives us purchase on the rock. Hold fast to the faith that is in you, knowing that Jesus said, Even the hairs of your head are counted. Do not be afraid. Or to borrow the imagery of the psalmist, when all around begins to seems to be collapsing, count on God s faithful love and the relationship with him it brings, to provide the firm ground on which you can stand. Jesus did not promise you a life of no battles, but he did promise the victory. Amen. 5