Thoughts going in, Sunday March 2nd

Matthew 17: 1 Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and his brother John and led them up a high mountain, by themselves. 2 And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white. 3 Suddenly there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. 4 Then Peter said to Jesus, "Lord, it is good for us to be here; if you wish, I will make three dwellings here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah." 5 While he was still speaking, suddenly a bright cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud a voice said, "This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him!" 6 When the disciples heard this, they fell to the ground and were overcome by fear. 7 But Jesus came and touched them, saying, "Get up and do not be afraid." 8 And when they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus himself alone. 9 As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus ordered them, "Tell no one about the vision until after the Son of Man has been raised from the dead." (NRSV)

This is obviously Matthew’s version of the event commonly known as the Transfiguration. In the Roman Catholic lectionary, the Transfiguration is celebrated in August. In the Revised Common Lectionary, however, it commemorates the last Sunday before Lent begins—therein forming a “bridge” or “transition” between the Sundays after Epiphany and the Sundays of Lent. I have always thought that Transfiguration is quite at home where the Revised Common Lectionary has put it.

As to the text itself...

Most commentators pull in more verses to help us understand what was going on in Matthew’s thinking. Those verses would be: Matthew 16: 13 Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?" 14 And they said, "Some say John the Baptist, but others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets." 15 He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" 16 Simon Peter answered, "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God." 17 And Jesus answered him, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven. 20 Then he sternly ordered the disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah. 21 From that time on, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and undergo great suffering at the hands of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. 22 And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, "God forbid it, Lord! This must never happen to you." 23 But he turned and said to Peter, "Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; for you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things." 24 Then Jesus told his disciples, "If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 28 Truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom."

In other words, the Transfiguration event is, for the Disciples, what teachers call a “visual aid.” Jesus in chapter 16 engaged in some information overload. He told the disciples that they were RIGHT....he is the Messiah....but then he told them that he’s going to do a whole bunch of stuff that they never equated as Messiah’s activity: He’s going to be BETRAYED; he’s going to SUFFER; he’s going to DIE. What’s more, he invites all of his followers to join him (take up your cross and follow me). Peter can’t have been the only one of the group who doubted that this was true Messiah stuff.

So in the end, whether they understood it fully or not, Jesus gives them a GLIMPSE on the mountain. He uses the “visual aid” of his Transfiguration to show that ALL of what he said is part of the plan; part of the true job of being Messiah; and that it’s all really going to work out ok. The bodily transfiguration of Jesus is a “visual aid” to teach the disciples that in a very short time, what LOOKS like failure; what LOOKS like disaster; what LOOKS like defeat is, in fact, all part of the plan.......part of God’s GLORIOUS PLAN OF VICTORY.

For us, this passage can have a very personal application. Very often it may feel as though following Christ is a matter of walking through all of life’s most painful places--as though it’s always and only about carrying our cross and walking through the valley of the shadow of death. But when we meditate on the Transfiguration story, we’re reminded that what LOOKS like failure; what LOOKS like disaster; and what LOOKS like defeat in our own lives WON’T BE THE LAST WORD. Those who follow Christ will one day shine as he shines.

I like how one commentator sums it up...

Transfiguration Sunday might best be seen as a moment of transition in the liturgical year as we begin to move from our reflection in Epiphany on Christ’s birth and early ministry to that precious season of Easter preparation, the season of Lent. This dramatic and unexpected moment in Christ’s earthly story is too, a turning point for the Savior as he reconciles himself to the coming turbulent journey to Calvary. Somehow he needs a renewing of strength, an experience of blessing from his Father just like his baptism before he turns His head towards the hour of destiny found on Calvary’s Hill. It is a reminder that the very human suffering servant that we will observe at close hand in coming weeks is also the majestic, divine Lord, that we look forward not just to humble sacrifice but also a glorious resurrection, that he is both Son of Man and Son of God.

Cheers,

TM 

Thoughts going in, Sunday February 23rd

38 "You have heard that it was said, 'Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.' 39 But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also. 40 And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well. 41 If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles. 42 Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you. 43 "You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' 44 But I tell you, love (agape) your enemies and pray for those who persecute (lit. to chase after you; to hound you) you, 45 that you may be children (lit sons, aka full inheritors of all the Father has) of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. 46 If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? 47 And if you greet only your own people (lit. your brothers), what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans (the 'ethnikoi, or lit. the Gentiles) do that? 48 Be perfect ('telios', complete... not perfectly sinless), therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

            Well, again we're in the sermon on the mount for this week's Gospel reading. Herein we find some of Jesus' most difficult sayings. He sets up several insulting scenarios: v 39 If anyone slaps you on the right cheek. It's interesting that he's so specific. Most people might not catch the nuance that since the majority of the population are right handed, to be *slapped on the right cheek means you've been back-handed. As if a slap weren't enough, to be backhanded is especially demeaning, both then as now. The frivolous suit for clothing in v40 also seems intensely personal. Regarding the forced travel of v41, this seems more or less limited to Roman soldiers (or Herodian soldiers) who could force civilians to carry their packs.

            And so it comes down to this striking verse, v44: 44 But I tell you, love (agape) your enemies and pray for those who persecute (lit. to chase after you; to hound you) you. Now and then I hear this verse applied on the national scale, as we Americans are occasionally urged to pray for our enemies in Al Queda. After all, when it comes to the designation of 'enemy,' who better fits that description? But given the intensely personal nature of some of the insults etc. that were mentioned above, I can't help but think that these words of Jesus are much more at home in terms of our own personal enemies. Hmmmm. He wants us to "love" (agape) them, and pray for them. Doesn't that seem rather difficult? They are, after all, OUR ENEMIES!

            Before going further, I do have to take time out to make this one observation. Jesus in this text is assuming that his listeners are living the devout, baptized life. His statements assume that--IF the listener has enemies, it is due to no moral lapse on the listener's part. His assumption is that the listener is an 'innocent party'.... and yet has enemies. I highlight this for a reason. **IF you have enemies because you're a lowdown lying, cheating, stealing, gossiping, muckraking, backstabbing type of person, you can't exactly claim any moral highground. In such a case, you have enemies because your behavior has invited attack. Jesus' statement assumes this not to be the case. His statement assumes that in spite of your best efforts to live as one of his, you've acquired enemies, just as he did.

            So, moving on... he says to love (agape) and pray for them. Maybe I'm slicing a technicality too thin, but I don't think this is as complicated as it initially appears. LOVING someone is not the same thing as liking them. This is especially true of 'agape,' which is all about the other person; agape is self-sacrificing & puts the other's best interests first. If, then... this enemy is persecuting you or I, what Jesus is saying is to cultivate within ourselves the fervent desire that this enemy would obtain what they're lacking/needing most; that this enemy would be healed/cured of what's troubling them most; that this enemy would be open to receiving God's grace in their life. Agape love shown toward an enemy is to see that person as a victim of their own brokenness, and to fervently lament this and wish them better. When understood thus, the pray for them part becomes very simple. Our prayers are outward expressions of these things to God; that God would work in the life of the enemy.

            Now, I never said this would be EASY, I just said it's not as complicated as it initially seems. Also, let's not forget... Jesus modeled for us EVERYTHING he preached, including this part. After all, somehow in looking down from the cross he was able to muster both the strength and the agape to pray Father forgive them for they know not what they do.

Cheers,

T.M.

Thoughts going in, Sunday Feb 16th

Matthew 5:21 "You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'You shall not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.' 22 But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, 'Raca, ' is answerable to the Sanhedrin. And anyone who says, 'You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell. 23 "Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, 24 leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to that person; then come and offer your gift. 25 "Settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still together on the way, or your adversary may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison. 26 Truly I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny. 27 "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall not commit adultery.' 28 But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29 If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. 30 And if your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell. 31 "It has been said, 'Anyone who divorces his wife must give her a certificate of divorce.' 32 But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, causes her to become an adulteress, and anyone who marries the divorced woman commits adultery. 33 "Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not break your oath, but fulfill to the Lord the vows you have made.' 34 But I tell you, do not swear an oath at all: either by heaven, for it is God's throne; 35 or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King. 36 And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black. 37 All you need to say is simply 'Yes' or 'No'; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.

Continuing with the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus now begins talking about individual issues/commands.

To begin with, two things pop out at me right away from this passage. The first is that Jesus (and by extension The Church) calls us to support the IDEAL godly life. We talk a lot about grace, forgiveness, and the fact that God is the God of “second chances.” This is good. Wonderful. In our sinful condition, we need this to be true, otherwise we would despair. However, just because God is the God of second chances doesn’t mean that God has thrown in the towel on the ideal. This is probably most clearly illustrated in our day by what Jesus has to say on divorce.

In our day divorce has become so widespread that—with the exception of Roman Catholics and a few others—it seems hardly even considered to be a sin anymore. It’s just one of life’s little hickups along the way. We trade in our vehicles all the time, so now we also trade in our spouses. This attitude may make life seem easier, but it’s difficult to reconcile with what Jesus says in Matthew 5. Without demonizing either party (or both) in a modern divorce scenario, I think it is safe to say that if SIN=BROKENNESS, then divorce is the **result of sin. Certainly there were broken dreams, broken expectations, broken hopes and broken promises along the way—to say nothing of other potential examples of brokenness. The point I’m trying to make is that it is still possible (even commanded) to apply Jesus’ ideal view about marriage/divorce to our setting today EVEN IF WE HAVE BEEN DIVORCED. The ideal is expressed by Jesus. Perhaps that didn’t work out for you the first time. We are, after all, broken people tainted by the brokenness of sin. Regardless, the call then is to devote yourself to the ideal of making the second marriage (or third, etc.) work. In other words, the fact that God is the God of second chances does NOT negate the fact that we are called to support God’s ideal …and not trivialize that which God has declared to be very important.

The second thing that pops out at me in this passage is very similar to the first, and that is that there is both a LETTER and a SPIRIT of the law, and God is much more concerned about the SPIRIT of the law—as that’s a matter of the heart.

This comes out most clearly in what Jesus has to say about murder/anger and adultery/lust. The point that Jesus is making here is that God is not fooled by mere outward compliance to the rules. I may THINK that I can be a “good Christian” AND nurse a hateful grudge against someone else, but Jesus corrects that thinking. Just as murder is the ultimate breaking of a relationship, hatred is relationship-killing, and Jesus came to HEAL BROKEN RELATIONSHIPS (first between us & God, and second, between each other). Just as adultery most often breaks the marital relationship, lust burning in the heart breaks the bond of affection that should exist between spouses. 

In the end, this is much more than simply a compliance issue. This is not God, the Big Brother, telling us that in addition to expecting full compliance to the rules He also constitutes the Divine Thought Police. Rather, what he is saying is that we cannot be WHOLE individuals by mere outward compliance. Wholeness comes when the outward compliance emanates from a CHANGED HEART; a heart that doesn’t want to commit adultery because it’s not lusting; a heart that would never condone murder because it has hatred under control.

Cheers,

™

Thoughts going in, Sunday Feb 9th

Matthew 5:13 "You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot. 14 "You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven. 17 "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 Truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. 19 Anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.

            This Sunday we get back on track with looking at the readings for the weeks after Epiphany (the 5th). In that regard, we continue to concentrate on the *early ministry of Jesus, and whatever "shining forth" (aka Epiphany-ish) elements that we can detect in what's going on.

            The readings themselves are now coming from what is commonly called "The Sermon on the Mount." This is one of the most studied, and most debated passages of Scripture. What is Jesus talking about in this lecture series, and who is he addressing? Is he, for instance, telling a lost & fallen world that if they would all just get their moral act together this would be a better place to live? Certainly, to the extent that a lost and fallen world might listen to anyone for advice on moral conduct.... one could do no better than to listen to and appropriate the words of the Savior. In other words, we in the Church often get upset when Jesus is thought of as merely a "good moral teacher," but the fact of the matter is that civil society needs moral norms... and if they want to get them from The Savior, then so be it.

            Having said that, it seems clear from the context that Jesus is not addressing humanity as a whole. Verses 1 & 2 of the chapter tells us: And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain; and when he was set, his disciples came unto him; 2 and he opened his mouth and taught them..(KJV).  In other words, whatever else we may want to say about the Sermon on the Mount, it is intended for 'insiders.' It is instruction for living within the baptized community.

            For me, it seems that in order to choose a thought process and stay on track with this reading, one must either go with the 1st half about salt and light (vss 13-16) or the latter half about the Law and righteousness. Having said that, I feel drawn to the first half.

            And it's here that I see important IDENTITY STATEMENTS made by Jesus to his followers (disciples then, us today). In the old KJV these are "ye are" statements. As I frequently tell my bible classes, one of the great useful features of hanging on to the old KJV is that you can tell when Jesus is addressing a group of people (ye) vs just a single person (you). So, in a passage such as this one, Jesus looks out at his congregation and he says emphatically "YE are the salt of the earth, ...and... YE are the light of the world.

            Perhaps the 1st point to note is the "already done" nature of these statements. Whether being salt & light are good things or not, Jesus says they're already accomplished facts. He's not speaking to people who *aspire to be salt & light; he is not speaking to *applicants for the position of being salt & light; he's not saying that with hard work & study we can maybe be salt & light *someday... he's STATING A PRESENT REALITY. YE ARE.

            The other thing that seems evident is that Jesus is using incredibly practical metaphors. He, for instance, does not say 'Ye are the clouds of the sky,' or 'Ye are the foamy stuff on top of the water at the beach.' SALT & LIGHT are incredibly practical, life-sustaining things. There's another interesting aspect from the text that comes to us from the Greek. When he says "ye are the salt of the earth," the word used there is 'gēs.' It could just as easily be translated as 'land.' In other words,  ye are the salt of the land. In the Semitic context, there's an immediacy to what's being said, as in, where you are right now... this hunk of ground where you're standing, the places you can see/feel/touch now... ye are the salt of that.

            But the other statement doesn't say they/we are the 'light' of the earth, land or 'gēs.' The light statement is much more broad. In the Greek it says ye are the light of the 'kosmos.' The world; but, specifically including its unseen/unknown parts.

            In other words, besides telling his disciples that they have this designation already, Jesus is specifying how these things apply. They're to be the SALT of where they are right now; preserving the good; preserving life in the faith where they are; staying true and truly occupied in terms of their internal focus. But in addition to that, they are also light for the outsiders, the kosmos.

            Jesus is taking the Old Testament ideal of what Israel was supposed to be, a called-out people in covenant relationship with God, having the preserving element of 'salt' within themselves, staying true to the covenant internally, at home, among themselves, but also being a "light to the Gentiles," a beacon of hope calling others in.... and he is applying that now in the narrow sense to his own disciples. We who bear the baptismal mark have been given this privilege and responsibility.

Cheers,

T.M.