Epiphany 6A
February 19, 2017
Deuteronomy 30:15-20
Matthew 5:21-37
The Israelites have been wandering in the
wilderness for 40 years. Finally, finally,
they are about to enter the Promised Land, to begin a new phase of their lives
as God’s people. Though he has traveled with them this far, Moses knows he will
not, in the end, enter that Promised Land with them, so he offers them this
sermon, part of which we heard a moment ago, to instruct and prepare them for
this new life.
The stark
contrasts and choices he lays out for them seem pretty obvious: you can choose
life and prosperity, he says, or death and adversity. Hmmm, tough call… I think
I’ll go with life! No-brainer, right?
And yes,
that’s what Moses tells them to choose: “Choose life,” he says, “so that you
and your descendants may live.” Seems simple enough, until you start to realize
what choosing life really looks like, what it implies: following all of God’s
commands, not being swayed to look toward other gods, listening to God’s word….
Okay, well, that can’t be too hard, right? I mean, the 10 Commandments aren’t so
hard to follow: I have never murdered someone, for example, I don’t steal, I go
to church, I don’t commit adultery, and I can’t think of one time when I’ve
coveted my neighbor’s ox or donkey! Sure, we all slip up now and then, but by
and large we’re pretty good at following the rules, right?
I’ll venture
to say that we have lured ourselves into a false sense of security regarding
our obedience to God’s laws. And the part of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount that we
heard today blows that security to pieces, as he hits all the topics that make
us the most uncomfortable. I joked to my colleagues this week that I should
start this sermon by saying, “People are tired of hearing about politics, so
today, let’s follow Jesus’ lead and talk instead about sex, money, and divorce.”
Indeed, Jesus has some tough words on
all those taboo topics today! And even things we
thought we were immune to,
like murder, are suddenly, in Jesus’ interpretation, very real risks for us.
Jesus says we have murdered anyone whom we insult, or anyone about whom we hold
a grudge, or any relationship in which we haven’t actively tried to reconcile.
Looking at adultery – for Jesus, you don’t have to have committed the act, you
only have to have felt lust for someone other than your spouse. While Moses was
a little soft on divorce, Jesus seems to have no tolerance for it except in the
case of infidelity. And finally, any sort of swearing or false promises are
“from the evil one.” Wow… I don’t think there is a person alive who hasn’t
fallen into these traps – probably multiple times a day!
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| Sermon on the mount by Laura James http://www.laurajamesart.com/bio.htm |
But before we fall into a pit of
hopelessness over the very high bar Jesus has set for obedience, let’s look at
all of these a little differently, through the lens of Moses’ imperative to
“choose life.” Regarding murder, and anger, and grudges: in my experience, and
perhaps in yours as well, insulting others and holding onto anger and grudges
does not bring life. In fact, it is the opposite – it eats away at my heart,
tainting everything, even that which would have, otherwise, been life-giving.
What is far more life-giving is when we work hard with someone to reconcile, or
at least to understand one another, to have honest conversation, to work to see
in one another God’s own image, to see one another as children of God. Choosing
relationship over anger is, indeed,
choosing life.
Regarding Jesus’ words on adultery: he
urges us not to see other people merely as objects for our pleasure. Anyone who
has been either victim or perpetrator in a case of adultery knows what
brokenness it leaves in its wake. That brokenness is not life. Being
objectified by someone’s lustful eyes and heart is not life. Faithfulness to
one another, dedication to one another – this is what is fulfilling. This is
what brings life.
And divorce – this is a tough one, as
more people than not have been touched by divorce, and the pain it brings. For
this one, it is helpful to consider Jesus’ words contextually. In the first
century, a woman had no rights; her identity and livelihood were wrapped up in
her husband. Men could discard their wives on a whim, for any reason at all –
then leaving the woman completely helpless, and now that she was divorced, she
was damaged goods, and no other man would want her. Where today a divorced
woman is able to move on to have a fruitful life, a career, maybe even get
married again, in the first century a divorced woman had nothing but the
generosity of strangers. For Jesus to bring this up is to stand with a
marginalized, vulnerable population, to stand up for the safety and well-being
of women. In this case, divorce was choosing death, in some cases, quite literally.
Choosing relationship, and care for the under-privileged, is choosing life.
Do you see a theme here? Over and
over again, Jesus’ tough interpretations of the law, interpretations that
convict every last one us, point us toward the importance of relationship. They
point us toward that essential Christian command to love your neighbor, and
care for his or her needs. In other words, choosing life means: choosing the
life of your neighbor, choosing what will allow your neighbor to thrive.
This is also very clearly expressed
in Luther’s Small Catechism. In his explanation of the 10 commandments, Luther
says they are not just about what we should not
do, but also what we should do instead.
For example, the fifth commandment is you shall not murder, but instead,
“Choose life,” says Deuteronomy, “so
that you and your family may live.” And as we reflect on this as Christians,
and especially as Christians today, we see our “family” as extending to all the
children of God. Choose neighbor life, choose downtrodden life, choose black
life, choose poor life, choose refugee life, choose Native life, choose Muslim
life, choose child life, choose elderly life, choose veteran life, choose
addicted life, choose prisoner life, choose
fill-in-the-blank-with-whomever-you-find-it-difficult-to-love life… so that you
and your descendants may live. For when we choose the life of all of these
members of God’s family, when we choose relationship over seclusion, isolation,
or self-interest, that is when we truly follow God’s commands.
It isn’t easy, that’s for sure, and I
know that in framing it this way, I personally am no less convicted by Moses’
or Jesus’ outlining of the law. Every single day, we fall short of obedience to
God’s commands. That is why we come here each week, to be fed by the Word of
God, to be reminded that in all the ways we fall short of God’s commands, we
are forgiven. The law convicts us, to be sure, but just as quickly, Jesus, in
all his grace and love, redeems us, calling us back into life-giving
relationship with one another and with him.
Let us pray… God of life, we would sometimes choose selfishness and isolation over
the hard work of being in life-giving relationships with our neighbors. Help us
to look beyond ourselves, and toward the ways our choices can bring life to our
neighbors, your children, no matter who they are. In the name of the Father and
the Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.
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