Sermon for August 31, 2008

Lessons:
Exodus 3:1-15
Psalm 105
Romans 12:9-21
Matthew 16:21-28

Perfectionism. Do any of you suffer from that disorder as I sometimes do? Why do we even tell ourselves that we should be perfect? Well, scripture seems to send confusing messages on the topic of perfection. In Matthew 5:48, during what we have come to call his Sermon on the Mount, Jesus says: “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” And we live in a world where we often feel others expect us to do a perfect job at everything we undertake. Sometimes those we are closest to expect us to fulfill all of their needs and are quick to tell us when we let them down. We can also turn the tables and tell our loved ones when they have failed to meet our expectations. I know I have certainly been guilty of that, and my then-teenage son gave me an important insight into my own behavior when he told me, “Mom, expectations are planned resentments.”

Being perfect is not just a tall order--it is an impossible goal for humans to achieve. As my father used to like to say, “There was only one perfect man, and they crucified him.” The writers of the epistles struggled to determine what the Lord meant by perfection. Remember, in an earlier passage in Romans, Paul says,”For I know that nothing good dwells within me, that is, in my flesh. I can will what is right, but I cannot do it. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do.” We all share that same frustration--it’s only human.
In today’s epistle, Paul has worked his way around to a practical approach to being good, one that we may well take to heart. It seems to be based on the rule of love. He says, “Let love be genuine...Love one another with mutual affection...Extend hospitality to strangers...Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Live in harmony with one another...If it is possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.”

Our attitude toward the tasks we undertake, then, is far more important than the the skill with which we complete them. Even the most mundane chores can be expressions of faith if we do them with a prayerful and loving heart. As 19th century poet and priest Gerard Manley Hopkins put it, “To lift up the hands in prayer gives God glory, but a man with a dung fork in his hand, a woman with a slop pail, give him glory, too. He is so great that all things give him glory if you mean they should.” Perfection and elegance may not be what the Lord expects of us, but I believe love is. The power of love is illustrated in this way: God’s love for us is capable of using and redeeming even our worst mistakes.

The Bible is full of stories of heroes chosen by God who are far from perfect, and today’s lessons present two of them: Moses and Peter. In the long story from Exodus, we see Moses by that famous burning bush. Remember, he fled Egypt as a murderer, however justified that act may have seemed, and he does not want to go back. He had killed an Egyptian overseer for his harsh treatment of some Hebrew slaves. You would think that hearing the Lord speak to him from a burning bush would have made him fall prostrate and plead for mercy, but not Moses. He comes up with every excuse he can think of why he shouldn’t have to be the one to go back to Egypt and lead his people out of slavery. The first is : “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?” When God has an answer for that, Moses then says, “Who shall I tell them sent me?” God then displays the magnificence of his name. Our lesson today ends before the conversation does, and Moses continues his argument with God. Next Moses says, “But suppose they do not believe me or listen to me?” That’s when God shows Moses that he can turn his staff into a snake. Still, Moses has another argument. “Lord, I have never been eloquent, but I am slow of speech and slow of tongue.” At that point, God, who is getting a bit angry, promises to send Moses’ brother Aaron, a better speaker, with Moses to be his helper. Finally Moses relents and agrees to the task, and the rest is, well, history. All along God sees something in Moses he can’t see himself, and God is willing to put up with his imperfections and bad attitude. I wonder how many times God has called me to do something, and I have answered with a “But I can’t do that, Lord.”

Sometimes when I’m feeling guilty and far from perfect, I find it comforting to think of some of the others who were clearly loved by God and chosen for particular roles in spite of their imperfections. I think of some of these guys, including Moses, as the bad boys of the Bible. Think about how Jacob tricked his brother Esau out of his birthright and then deceived his father Isaac into giving him, Jacob, the blessing intended for his brother. Pretty bad stuff--so bad, Jacob had to flee from home. And yet God saw something magnificent in Jacob and renamed him Israel to signify his importance.

Then there’s David--the greatest king of Israel. Remember how he lusted after Bathsheba and had her soldier husband Uriah the Hittite put on the front line of battle so he would be killed? Then David could marry Bathsheba, who was already pregnant with his child. I think what happens next to him gives us the key to how much we are loved and forgiven by God. When the prophet Nathan confronts David with his great sin, he immediately confesses and repents, and the Lord spares him and continues to bless him. Isn’t this good news? Being human, we are all imperfect. We often say and do the very things we know we shouldn’t. But the stories of Moses and Jacob and David, and countless other sinners, show us that a faithful repentance and turning back to God assure us of his forgiveness. I think it is also important to add that, for most of us, this is a process that seems to have to happen over and over again. We have a hard time getting it right. God’s love, it would seem, is infinite.

In his Parable of the Prodigal Son, Jesus illustrates the eternally forgiving nature of God the Father. After falling into complete dissipation, the wayward son turns toward home, where his father welcomes him with wide-open arms. In this full embrace, the father accepts the son just as he is and enfolds him once more into the family. The son has not fully accepted himself or acknowledged his misdeeds. All he has done is turn back towards home, and Jesus is telling us that the turning back towards God, even in the midst of confusion, is all that is required of us to receive God’s mercy.

Simon Peter in last Sunday’s gospel lesson was blessed by Jesus and called the rock on which the church would be built. When Jesus asked him, “But who do you say I am,” Peter replied, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the Living God.” Peter was the first of the apostles to name Jesus as Messiah, and that is one of the few times he got something right. Peter is highly impulsive--in fact, in today’s world he might be labeled ADHD. He’s a blurter and a blunderer, and there are many times when the Lord has to rebuke him. Today’s gospel gives an account of one of those times Peter is called to task by the Lord. In fact, Jesus is very harsh with him and calls him the Tempter: “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me.”

Yet Jesus’s faith in Peter remains strong in spite of the many times Peter falls short. Remember when the disciples saw Jesus walking towards them across the water, and exuberant Peter asked to join him? At first Peter is able to take a few steps on the waves, but when he becomes frightened, he sinks and has to be saved by the Lord. As one of the three witnesses to the Transfiguration, Peter’s best response to seeing the Lord illuminated and speaking with Elijah and Moses is to blurt out: “If you wish I will make three dwellings here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” As usual, Peter misses the point.

Of course the true test (and failure) of Peter comes at the end of the story. At the Last Supper, when Jesus chooses to demonstrate the Christian attitude toward service by washing the feet of all of the disciples, Peter at first refuses to let the Lord wash his. Then, when Jesus convinces Peter to allow him to wash his feet, Peter overdoes it by saying, “Lord, not my feet only but also my head and my hands.” At the end of the supper, when the Lord predicts that Peter will deny him three times before the cock crows, Peter vehemently objects.

Luke’s version of the events provides us with the most details about Peter’s actions that night. After Jesus is arrested, Peter has just enough courage to follow his master, if from a distance. Considering that Jesus is on trial for his life, I doubt if many of us would have exhibited more courage than Peter. As predicted, when Peter is confronted by three separate people who accuse him of being a follower of Jesus, he denies it. Then Peter hears the cock crow, and in remembering the Lord’s prediction, Peter recognizes what he has done and is filled with shame. In that moment, the Lord turns and looks at him. Can you imagine how excruciatingly painful that look must have been to Peter? Can you feel the guilt and shame he must have felt? Can you believe and take to heart the depth of the Lord’s mercy?

When the Resurrected Lord encounters Peter again, he forgives him and reminds Peter of his mission, telling him, “Feed my lambs.” Peter became a fearless leader among the disciples, and he ultimately brought the message to Rome, where it took hold and spread throughout the world. For this reason, Peter is considered the founder of the church and the first pope by Catholics.

Don’t you wonder how Peter survived the torment of his guilt from the time of his betrayal until he saw the risen Lord? Don’t you wonder how he even had the courage to face the Lord again? Maybe he was sustained by the words the Lord spoke to him at the Last Supper, when he predicted Peter’s betrayal: “Simon, Simon, listen! Satan has demanded to sift all of you like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your own faith may not fail; and you, when once you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.” [Luke 22:31-32] Given a second chance, Peter did not fail the Lord.

What Jesus said to Peter we can take to heart as well. Satan and our own willfulness will always work to lead us astray. As humans, we can only be imperfect. We will always make mistakes, fail to do what we know we should do, and suffer the consequences of our choices. The story of Peter reminds us that Christ loves us, forgives us, and still makes use of us in spite of our failures. The Lord, our intercessor, is constantly praying for us. He is praying that we will turn back, and in that turning back, we receive the mercy of God.

I’d like to share some words with you from one of my favorite spiritual books, Seeking Peace by Johann Christoph Arnold. In this passage, the author is quoting his grandfather, Eberhard Arnold, who was one of the founders of the Bruderhof Christian community. And I quote: “Have the patience and the courage to begin anew each day, and trust in God’s help; his mercy is new every morning.” [end quote]

Do we believe that we can begin again at any moment, that God’s mercy is truly new every morning? I know the human tendency to be fatalistic--to think, well, what the heck...I’m in this far, and there’s no point in turning back. I might just as well keep going now--down whatever wrongheaded path I’ve chosen.But that isn’t the message God had for Moses or Jesus had for Peter. Their message is always “Turn back.” Satan will not have the last word. That is because God is love, and when we turn back toward the warmth of that love, God is capable of taking care of the rest.


Susan Hull