August 27, The Truth Is Subjective, P.1 (21st Sunday in Ordinary Time)

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Janis Snow
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There s a fallacy operating in Western culture that it is possible for a human being to achieve objectivity.

1 August 27, 2017 The Truth Is Subjective, P.1 (21st Sunday in Ordinary Time) Romans 12:1-8; Matthew 16:13-20 It matters a great deal who we say Christ is. And it s not just because everyone has a right to their opinion. It matters because it matters to God. There s a fallacy operating in Western culture that it is possible for a human being to achieve objectivity. That a human being can put aside their life experience, perspective and even desire and arrive at a clean, unbiased, impartial conclusion. But we are subjects, not objects. We do have life experience, we do have perspective, we do have desires. A lab test can be objective. A building can be objective. A clock can be objective. The orbit of the planets is objective. A human being is categorically and necessarily subjective. And so how do we deal with the crashing of our varied histories and ways of seeing the world? How do we reconcile our views of religion, politics, even food choices? Jesus is a fact of history. Faith in Jesus is a subjective choice. And God invites us to make that choice every day. God really does want to know what we think. God wants to know who we say Jesus is: in our thoughts, in our actions, in our lives.

2 Romans 12:1-8 1 So, brothers and sisters, because of God s mercies, I encourage you to present your bodies as a living sacrifice that is holy and pleasing to God. This is your appropriate priestly service. 2 Don t be conformed to the patterns of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds so that you can figure out what God s will is what is good and pleasing and mature. 3 Because of the grace that God gave me, I can say to each one of you: don t think of yourself more highly than you ought to think. Instead, be reasonable since God has measured out a portion of faith to each one of you. 4 We have many parts in one body, but the parts don t all have the same function. 5 In the same way, though there are many of us, we are one body in Christ, and individually we belong to each other. 6 We have different gifts that are consistent with God s grace that has been given to us. If your gift is prophecy, you should prophesy in proportion to your faith. 7 If your gift is service, devote yourself to serving. If 2 of 12 your gift is teaching, devote yourself to teaching. 8 If your gift is encouragement, devote yourself to encouraging. The one giving should do it with no strings attached. The leader should lead with passion. The one showing mercy should be cheerful. What do you think of the words living sacrifice? (v.1) What does that look like to you? How would you summarize the advice Paul is giving in this passage? Does get perspective, be humble, serve gratefully work for you? What advice would you write to our church? What kind of example do you think you've been? Matthew 16: Now when Jesus came to the area of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, Who do people say the Human One [a] is? 14 They replied, Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the other prophets. 15 He said, And what about you? Who do you say that I am?

16 Simon Peter said, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God. 17 Then Jesus replied, Happy are you, Simon son of Jonah, because no human has shown this to you.

3 16 Simon Peter said, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God. 17 Then Jesus replied, Happy are you, Simon son of Jonah, because no human has shown this to you. Rather my Father who is in heaven has shown you. 18 I tell you that you are Peter. [b] And I ll build my church on this rock. The gates of the underworld won t be able to stand against it. 19 I ll give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven. Anything you fasten on earth will be fastened in heaven. Anything you loosen on earth will be loosened in heaven. 20 Then he ordered the disciples not to tell anybody that he was the Christ. Footnotes: Matthew 16:13 Or Son of Man Matthew 16:18 Peter means rock. Do you think Jesus is really concerned with what everyone thinks or is he setting the disciples up for this question (vv.13-15)? In v.18, the word being translated underworld is Hades. What do you make of v.19? And are the keys Jesus is describing meant to give access or authority? Why give this order? (v.20) Reflection on Romans passage by Kathryn Matthews worship_samuel_sermon_seeds_aug ust_27_2017 In a culture that seems to encourage, or even to require, spending exorbitant amounts of money and time on our physical comfort, health, and appearance, we still seem to suffer from a severe lack of appreciation for our bodies. As Paul builds on his theology in his Letter to the Romans, he does a "therefore" that exhorts us to consider our bodies as "living sacrifices," living, breathing, dynamic offerings to God (the word "sacrifice" is rooted in words that mean "to make sacred"), not dead offerings but offerings still capable of transformation, of dramatic, life-altering change 3 of 12

4 that brings into being God's vision for us, God's intention for us, God's hope for us. But Paul means more than our bodies; he refers to our entire being, all of us, being transformed by the power of God. Today, if we conform to the values of the world around us, we think we need to expend a lot of effort (and time and money) into "making something" of ourselves, improving our looks, our minds, our habits, but Paul exhorts us to remember who it is who is really at work in our lives and by what power we are truly transformed. So we can read all the self-help books we want, watch Dr. Phil, join health clubs, and search the Internet for valuable tips on selfimprovement, but it is the same God who put the stars in the sky and called the planets into being, the same God who shaped us in secret, in our mother's womb. What makes us "special"? WHAT DO YOU THINK? I really want to challenge the notion that, when Jesus asks, And who do you say that I am? he is issuing a pop quiz for the disciples to answer on the spot. My feeling is that he is asking them to give an account for what they have been saying about him, not to cough up what they think. Mark Davis The words "self esteem" in our culture (the empire, John Dominic Crossan suggests, that we live in) have taken on a distorted importance, even 4 of 12 though many have sincerely sought to overcome the effects of childhood neglect and emotional deprivation. (One

5 comedian has reassured us that each one of us is "special, just like everyone else.") It's refreshing to read Eugene Peterson's version of this familiar passage and to hear its meaning leap to life: "The only accurate way to understand ourselves is by what God is and by what [God] does for us, not by what we are and what we do for [God]" (The Message). We also live in an age of individualism, in which the needs and the power for good that the community holds have been diminished in favor of each individual person's value, role, needs and wants. How do we find a balance then that respects and honors the worth of each individual, but lifts up the common good, too? Think, for example, of our public school system or our health system, both suffering from rampant disparity between what the poor receive and what the rich enjoy. Just imagine how these systems could be transformed if we sought what was best for the whole community, not just for the individuals we care (most) about. Our gifts, for the sake of others Again, Paul calls us to a profound appreciation for the beauty and workings of a body whose parts function together, each with its own role and importance. In the same way, we are all part of the Body of Christ, each bringing our own gifts and abilities to the larger Body, each playing our own important role in the unfolding of the Realm of God. John Dominic Crossan has written extensively about Paul's contrast between the Roman Empire and the Realm of God, the former staking its glory on peace through victory, the latter holding out the dream of peace through justice. Instead of being consumed with one's own interests and needs, as one pastor has said, "Put yourself out there for the sake of something else and someone else, and lay your gifts on the altar of justice." (I wish I could remember who said that, but in any case I am grateful for their words.) It is a different way of thinking of sacrifice than the ancient cultures had, but Paul is urging his readers, then and today, not 5 of 12

6 to conform to the thoughts and ways around them. What about transformation? How do the folks in your church see themselves not only as gifted, but as gifts themselves? Do people come to your congregation in search of transformation, or better, do they articulate a hunger for transformation? How have you experienced transformation because of the gospel? What great heroes and heroines of your church, of the United Church of Christ, of the church in all times and places, do you think of when you read this passage? How is the Stillspeaking God calling your church to new life, to a renewed and transformed existence? Perhaps most people hear the word "sacrifice" as "giving something up" rather than as an offering to God of something living and joy-filled. Do the people of your church think of their lives as offerings, not just the things they "sacrifice," but every joy and accomplishment, every ordinary act? Again, as Peterson renders this text: "Take your everyday, ordinary life--your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life--and place it before God as an offering" (The Message). How might this be a sacrifice, a "making sacred" of our lives, very different from a painful "giving up" but much more likely to lead us to a wholly different way of being, a transformation of our whole lives? Commentary on Matthew passage by Mitzi J. Smith preaching.aspx? commentary_id=3361 How we identify Jesus will impact the way we interact with one another and with the earth. Jesus asks the disciples who others think he, the Son of Man, is. We might view this question as an invitation to engage in critical dialogue with other perspectives. What do others say? The disciples answer that some people say that he is John the Baptist; others declare that he is Elijah; and still others claim that Jesus is Jeremiah or 6 of 12

7 some other prophet. In other words, people don t agree. People identify the Son of Man with dead prophets sent by God who did miraculously deeds, who stood toe-to-toe with kings and delivered to them words of doom, opposition, and hope from Yahweh. So in the eyes of the people John the Baptist was the last powerful man of God but others had to reach all the way back to Jeremiah. Still they are all dead men! Did the people believe that God could not out do God s self? Did they believe like Jesus that no greater human being born had been born from a woman than John (Matthew 11:11)? What 7 of 12 kind of human being is Jesus in light of the many powerful deeds he has performed and the many people who follow him? The people believe that Jesus is an incarnation or perhaps a specter or ghost of powerful male prophets who no longer walk the earth. It is Elijah and Moses that appear with Jesus on the mountain of transfiguration (Matthew 17:1-13). Peter, James and John were there on the mountain of transfiguration with Jesus, so they knew Jesus was not Elijah (or Moses). Those who witnessed John the Baptist baptize Jesus knew that Jesus was not John the Baptist (3:13-17). The disciples are silent. With the exception of Simon Peter, they don t seem to have an opinion of their own. Peter emerges as spokesperson for the Twelve: You are the Messiah, the son of the living God (Matthew 16:16). Jesus blesses Simon Bar Jonah, presumably for being the courageous student with the correct answer. Jesus states that Peter s answer did not come from human beings; it is not based on rumor or the hearsay

8 of others. How we identify Jesus should be based on personal encounters with God, even though informed by our (re)readings of the sacred text and in dialogue with others. How we identify Jesus should be grounded in a lifelong conversation with God whereby we adjust what we think we know as necessary (16:17). Our denomination, our church, our pastors, our mothers or fathers, our siblings, our Sunday or Sabbath school teachers and others will have their opinions, but in the end we have to decide for ourselves in conversation with God how we will identify Jesus. A living God is a dynamic God and not a static God whose clearest communication happened in the past. Jesus is the Messiah of the living God. Jesus, as Son of Man, means that God continues to speak and to act. God does not have to resurrect John the Baptist, Elijah, Jeremiah, or any other prophet to speak. God never ceases to exist and to create and to anoint. God can resurrect the dead, but resurrection is never God s only option. Jesus continues the dialogue with Peter: I say to you Peter (Petros) that on this rock (petra) I shall build my ekklesia (assembly; usually translated church) and the gates of Hades shall not overpower her (Matthew 16:18, author s translation). The word petra translated as rock is grammatically feminine and it agrees with the Greek word ekklesia, which is also grammatically feminine. Thus, the noun petra does not refer to Peter. Perhaps Jesus is speaking of the physical place or space in which his identity was correctly named. Or perhaps it is the revelation itself that is the theological foundation on which Jesus will erect God s ekklesia. It will be an assembly founded on Jesus identity as the Messiah of the living God. A living God is a relevant God, a contextual God. As with John the Baptist, Elijah, Jeremiah and other prophets and prophetesses, God speaks a relevant word that reflects the contexts in which we live and the challenges the people face. A living God is not bound to or by the written page, even in a sacred text. 8 of 12

Further, Jesus said to Peter, I shall give the keys of the kingdom of the heavens to you, and whatever you should imprison on the earth will be bound in the heavens, and whatever you should set free

9 Further, Jesus said to Peter, I shall give the keys of the kingdom of the heavens to you, and whatever you should imprison on the earth will be bound in the heavens, and whatever you should set free on earth will be released in the heavens, (Matthew 16:20, author s translation). The heavens are witnesses of the people and things that we imprison and the people and things that we set free. When we restrict justice to the dominant and powerful and release or enact unjust laws that impact the most vulnerable among us and in the earth, heaven knows and is impacted too. Matthew s Jesus said when you have treated the most vulnerable -- the stranger/ foreigner, the imprisoned, 9 of 12 those with no homes, the hungry, and those without clean, affordable water -- with compassion, justice, and human care, you have done so to me (Matthew 25:44-45). What we do on earth matters and it has an impact in the heavens and in the atmosphere around us. Finally, Jesus commanded his disciples that they should tell no one that he is the Christos (Messiah or anointed one) of the living God. Well then, how shall they build an ekklesia on the truth of his identity, one that even the gates of Hades will not overpower? Their lives will speak louder, more truthfully, and more effectively than their words. The answer is by the life they live, a life of love for God, a life that loves the other as much

10 as one loves herself, and a life in pursuit of justice and peace. On this rock, thou shall not build a prison nation. On this rock, thou shall not build a nation where millions of children are homeless and hungry. On this rock, thou shall not build churches that oppress the poor and women and turn a blind eye toward sexual violence within its gates and in the streets. On this rock, let us build assemblies that demonstrate belief in a living, speaking, incarnating God, a God of freedom and not of oppression, a God of justice, love, and peace. Additional Thoughts What have you told other folks about Jesus (your family, friends, co-workers, classmates, etc.)? Who do you say that he is? Given all of the words, actions, and monuments, what does our church say about Jesus? Whose opinion holds the most sway with you? Why? 10 of 12

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Here are the songs we sang this Sunday. This shows the song name, the artist who performed the song, and the cd that contains the song.

Here are the songs we sang this Sunday. This shows the song name, the artist who performed the song, and the cd that contains the song. I Lift My Hands Chris Tomlin And If Our God Is For Us Victor s Crown