21, :19-31 (NRSV)

Transcription

1 I m Not Moses The Rev. Dr. Arlene K. Nehring Eden United Church of Christ Hayward, California Fifteenth Sunday after Pentecost September 21, 2014 Exodus 14:19-31 (NRSV) Today s sermon is the fourth in a series that I am offering this fall. Each sermon is associated with the Hebrew people s exodus from Egypt and is based on events described in the Torah, the first five books of the Bible. My first sermon was based on the story of the burning bush. Through the story of Moses call, we reflected on our individual callings. We noted that while there was only one Moses, each of us has a calling and each of us can play a unique role in God s ongoing work of liberation. The second sermon was based on the Feast of Unleavened Bread and the first Passover celebration. Through these verses, we explored the importance of remembering and celebrating our Judeo-Christian heritage, and appreciating the ways that our individual migration stories may be similar to or different from each other s stories, and similar to or different from the biblical story of the Exodus. Last Sunday s sermon was the combined effort of yours truly, and my colleague, Drew Nettinga, who stepped in for me when I called in sick. That sermon was based on the snakebite story from Israel s wilderness experience described in the book of Numbers. The snakebite story serves as a reminder of how icky things can get (even for faith communities) when we are physically, emotionally, or spiritually lost in the wilderness and how poorly we can treat each other when we get scared. This snakebite story also reminds us of God s grace and mercy, and God s power to heal when we face our fears head on, like the Israelites did when they faced Moses snake staff, and when they (and we) treat ourselves and each other well. Today s sermon is from an earlier part of the exodus narrative than the snake story that was read last week. Today s story follows on the heels of the Passover story, featured in the second sermon.

2 I don t know why the lectionary czars placed the Red Sea Crossing later in the lection than the snakebite story. Their decision doesn t make sense in terms of the chronological progression of the narrative that we find in the Torah. Nevertheless, the lectionary czars decision underscores a common motif in the exodus experience. This motif involves Israel wandering in circles, retracing steps and repeating experiences, some of which they seem to learn from and some of which they don t. Sound familiar? Wandering in the wilderness? Walking in circles? Retracing steps? Repeating experiences that you (that I) swore we would never repeat? I bet it does. That s how it is for most of us. Negative experiences repeat themselves until we learn, on a deep level, what we really need to learn, or frankly, we die. That s the grim truth. Now, on to today s text which reminds us that liberation from slavery and other forms of oppression are possible on a personal and corporate level this side of heaven. II The Crossing of the Red Sea is one of the most well-known stories in the Bible. Jews and Christians alike teach this story to our children, and remember it as one of the pivotal moments in our holy histories. Even people who grew up in other religious traditions, and people who do not claim any religious faith at all, often know this story if not from reading the scriptures, then they know of it from hearing about it in popular culture or from watching the Hollywood version of it on TV. I imagine that virtually everyone in the congregation who is my age or older, and many who are younger, either remember watching Cecil B. DeMille s The Ten Commandments in a theater, or watching the TV version at home when we were younger. The last time we hosted the Comida in Oliver Hall, I was comparing notes with my friend Harriet Skelly, the President of Congregation Shir Ami. I told her that I was preaching a sermon series on the Exodus. I went on to tell Harriet that when my sister and I were kids our dad would holler at us from the living room, and tell us to come and watch The Ten Commandments every time it was on TV. This occurrence was memorable for us because our dad was usually trying to chase us away from the TV. I m Not Moses The Rev. Dr. Arlene K. Nehring, 9/21/2014, p. 2 of 6.

3 The only other times when he ordered us in front of the TV was when the Apollo 11 landed on the moon in 1969, and when the Watergate Hearings were on TV in the early 1970s. I can still hear my dad saying as the announcer introduced Cecil B. DeMille, You kids get in here right now and sit down. There s something important on the TV that you need to know about. Harriet and I laughed about the overly dramatic way that the show opened, and then she said to me, Yeah, my dad was the same way. He always made us watch The Ten Commandments. My twin sister, Marlene, and I were in grade school when we first watched the movie on TV. So a good bit of the film went into a level of detail that was beyond our elementary knowledge of Torah, but I still remember five scenes from the 1956 version: 1) the burning bush, 2) the Red Sea Crossing, 3) Moses receiving the Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai, 4) the bronze calf scene where Moses smashed the tablets, and 5) the covenant renewal scene where God forgives Israel and reissues the Commandments. The Red Sea Crossing has always been my favorite scene in the movie. Like the Burning Bush story, the Red Sea Crossing gives us insights into the character and leadership qualities of Moses, who is considered the greatest Israelite prophet. As a child, I had no trouble believing that the God who created the heavens and the earth could part water in a Middle Eastern sea. But I wanted to know how Paramount Pictures could do it. Imagine my disappointment when my father explained to me that the Hollywood version of the Red Sea Crossing was made in a movie studio, using an oversized fish tank, and 360,000 gallons of water. 1 Despite this disappointment, my father s explanation of Hollywood special effects prepared me for Hebrew Bible courses in colleague and seminary, where I was exposed to theories ranging from those that tried to shore up literal interpretations of the Red Sea Crossing to those that sought to debunk them. (For a popular taste of attempts to shore up literal interpretations of miracle stories, see Scientists Explain Red Sea Parting and Other Miracles, which was carried by ABC News on February 12, ) I m Not Moses The Rev. Dr. Arlene K. Nehring, 9/21/2014, p. 3 of 6.

4 IV Some of you may be wondering what my thoughts are about the parting of the Red Sea: Was this an historical event that can be verified by scientific proof or was it a legend passed on through the ages intended to reinforce the authority of Moses? Was it live or was it Memorex? Was it real or imagined? You ll have to answer these questions for yourself, but, for those who may be wondering what my answer is, I ll share that my faith in God and the liberating work of God are not dependent upon scientific proofs of the literal interpretations of the Bible. The significance of the Red Sea Crossing for me lies in the interpretation of what God did through Moses and through Israel s experience not whether the Red Sea parting can be proven using scientific methodologies. If you give Exodus 14:19-31 a close read, you will discover that this story isn t ultimately about Moses. It s about God. Reread these verses and note that it was God who parted the waters, not Moses. It was God, not Moses, who caused the Egyptians to panic. It was God, not Moses, who clogged the Egyptian s chariot wheels. It was God, not Moses, who caused the water to return to its normal level and sweep the Egyptians up in its currents. And finally, it was God, not Moses, who kept the Egyptians from capturing the Israelites and returning them to slavery under Pharaoh. The narrative truth about who is doing what in Exodus 14 is that God is the director and star of this show. Moses was no more than a supporting actor. This news may come as a surprise to us, because the popular way that the story is told and remembered is that Moses was the star and God was the one who inspired his acting. Furthermore, the idealized way that many perceive those who serve in archetypal roles such as parent, teacher, pastor, doctor, lawyer and the like are supposed to be able to part seas, walk on water, and perform a half-dozen garden variety miracles before noon every day. Giving the Red Sea Crossing story a close read is important, because this approach helps us notice and remember that God is the director and star of this show not the prophet Moses or us or someone we idealize. This truth reminds those of us who play leading roles archetypal roles in the lives of others are not called and expected to be like Moses, much less like God. We are not called and expected to part seas. And even if we were, it would not be up to us to perform the miracles that others might expect of us; because miracles are God s work; and our work is to trust God and to experience and participate in God s liberating work, in our own lives and in the wider world. I m Not Moses The Rev. Dr. Arlene K. Nehring, 9/21/2014, p. 4 of 6.

5 V Sometimes persons in whose lives we play starring roles generate unrealistic expectations of us. Some may expect that we are perfect, even though we know that we are not. Others may expect that we part seas, or walk on water, even though we cannot. Still others may expect that we can perform miracles and oh, how we wish we could but we cannot. In times like these, it s especially helpful for all of us to give a close read to the Red Sea Crossing, because this story illustrates that it is God, not Moses, who is the star of this show. So then, even when we are expected or when we expect someone else to play the part of Moses, our part in the show is at most to play a supporting role in relationship to God. Last week, I was reminded of this important lesson about who plays what role while I was home trying to recover from what my doctor called a textbook case of exhaustion. I ll spare you the details of what brought this on, and simply say that I love you all and that being your pastor is my dream job, and my dream job is anything but a cake walk. I had a lot of time to reflect on my call last week, and a lot of time to reflect on today s scripture, because I was so tired and discouraged that I seriously doubted for nearly a day whether I would regain the energy and imagination necessary to return to work. As you can see, I did. Part of how I regained my perspective and strength was remembering that even though some may expect pastors to part the Red Sea and walk on water, God does not. The other part of how I regained my perspective and strength is that I have great doctors, an amazing spouse, and wonderful friends, who helped me get reoriented and find my way through the wilderness. One of the gifts that I received from my health-imposed spiritual retreat last week was a poem that came to me when I was sitting in front of my blank computer screen. The working title is Not Moses. It goes like this: Not Moses I am not Moses. I cannot part the Red Sea. I am not Jesus. I do not walk on water. I am me. I can learn from Moses how to trust in God s guidance, And I can receive from Jesus the healing that I need. So then I am free to go where God sends me, And free to receive the blessings that have been promised to me. I m Not Moses The Rev. Dr. Arlene K. Nehring, 9/21/2014, p. 5 of 6.

6 I commend these words and this thought to you: God can and God will lead you and me across the Red Sea and through the wilderness, so that we may be free free of our chains, free of our fears, and free of others idealistic expectations of us. Amen. I m Not Moses The Rev. Dr. Arlene K. Nehring, 9/21/2014, p. 6 of 6.