7th Sunday after Pentecost
First Reading: Ezekiel 2:1-5
1 [A voice] said to me: O mortal, stand up on your feet, and I will speak with you.2 And when he spoke to me, a spirit entered into me and set me on my feet; and I heard him speaking to me. 3 He said to me, Mortal, I am sending you to the people of Israel, to a nation of rebels who have rebelled against me; they and their ancestors have transgressed against me to this very day. 4 The descendants are impudent and stubborn. I am sending you to them, and you shall say to them, “Thus says the Lord God.” 5 Whether they hear or refuse to hear (for they are a rebellious house), they shall know that there has been a prophet among them.
Psalm: Psalm 123
Our eyes look to you, O God, until you show us your mercy. (Ps. 123:2)
1 To you I lift up my eyes,
to you enthroned in the heavens.
2 As the eyes of servants look to the hand of their masters, and the eyes of a maid to the hand of her mistress,
so our eyes look to you, O Lord our God, until you show us your mercy.
3 Have mercy upon us, O Lord, have mercy,
for we have had more than enough of contempt,
4 too much of the scorn of the indolent rich,
and of the derision of the proud.
Second Reading: 2 Corinthians 12:2-10
2 I know a person in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know; God knows. 3 And I know that such a person—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know; God knows—4 was caught up into Paradise and heard things that are not to be told, that no mortal is permitted to repeat. 5 On behalf of such a one I will boast, but on my own behalf I will not boast, except of my weaknesses. 6 But if I wish to boast, I will not be a fool, for I will be speaking the truth. But I refrain from it, so that no one may think better of me than what is seen in me or heard from me, 7 even considering the exceptional character of the revelations. Therefore, to keep me from being too elated, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me, to keep me from being too elated. 8 Three times I appealed to the Lord about this, that it would leave me, 9 but he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.” So, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. 10 Therefore I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities for the sake of Christ; for whenever I am weak, then I am strong.
Gospel: Mark 6:1-13
1 [Jesus] came to his hometown, and his disciples followed him.2 On the sabbath he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were astounded. They said, “Where did this man get all this? What is this wisdom that has been given to him? What deeds of power are being done by his hands! 3 Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon, and are not his sisters here with us?” And they took offense at him. 4 Then Jesus said to them, “Prophets are not without honor, except in their hometown, and among their own kin, and in their own house.” 5 And he could do no deed of power there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and cured them. 6 And he was amazed at their unbelief.
Then he went about among the villages teaching. 7 He called the twelve and began to send them out two by two, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits. 8 He ordered them to take nothing for their journey except a staff; no bread, no bag, no money in their belts; 9 but to wear sandals and not to put on two tunics. 10 He said to them, “Wherever you enter a house, stay there until you leave the place. 11 If any place will not welcome you and they refuse to hear you, as you leave, shake off the dust that is on your feet as a testimony against them.” 12 So they went out and proclaimed that all should repent. 13 They cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick and cured them.
CHILDREN’S SERMON: This week we celebrated July 4th. We call it Independence Day. Freedom is one of our big words Americans value. The First Amendment to the Constitution lists five basic freedoms guaranteed to all Americans. Can you list them?
First Amendment protects the right of speech, religion, press, assembly, and petition. Actually, the second amendment protects the right to carry arms.
It is in the Declaration of Independence signed on July 4th that penned those famous words, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed, by their Creator, with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”
Prayer: Lord, may the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable in your sight my Rock and my Redeemer!
SERMON
If we were to share some “high” and “low” moments as we look at the life of Jesus seen through the eyes of Mark, certainly the last two Sundays have been highs. Jesus, calmed a storm on the sea of Galilee. Jesus had been asleep in the disciples’ boat when the disciples had cried, “Don’t you care that we drown?” He did care and he calmed the sea. Last week he healed two women, well, a girl and an elderly lady, who were at the point of death. Jairus had received the news that his daughter had died but Jesus responded, “Don’t be afraid; just believe.” Mark has built our expectations. Our text continues and we read that Jesus next walks into his hometown, Nazareth, and into the synagogue and teaches. But Jesus did not receive the conquering hero welcome. He was not hoisted onto shoulders and cheered. Something blocked his power to care and their faith in him.
“And they took offense at him.”
Today we as American Christians live in tension. Last Thursday we celebrated Independence Day, July 4th, and honored the signing of the Declaration of Independence that declared our separation from Great Britain. Every year we celebrate our freedoms and our right to not be bossed around by a distant authority. But today’s Gospel text seems to contradict independence cries and calls us to the reality of a life of faith, dependence on a God, whom many experience as distant and unseen, just like King George III back in the day. While we, as Christians, celebrate independence in our country, we also come here today to acknowledge our total dependence on our God.
We read that Jesus, after the amazing miracles, returned to his hometown but there were no parades, no fireworks, no parties, and no holiday. It would seem the hometown folks were willing to reject Jesus. What was the problem? Their past experience with Jesus and their expectations of what a Messiah would look like stood in the way. They knew Jesus as a carpenter, son of Mary, an illegitimate child. He did not fit their idea of a Messiah. Only a few begged him for help. Perhaps we like the people of Nazareth have some blinder that blocks our faith and that we need to remove.
The people of Nazareth may well have remembered the circumstances around Jesus’ birth. We think of beautiful creche scenes but they may well have thought about all the questions being gossiped when Mary became pregnant. Jesus is called the son of Mary and Joseph is conspicuously missing. I wonder if King George III did not also scorn the pilgrims who rejected his authority and who had formed a new identity in the new world. Perhaps he questioned how they could have any understanding of government and how could they question his kingly authority from way over in the New World. I would guess that King George III felt the people in the New World had forgotten who they were and were rejecting their roots and him!
Jesus, the carpenter, the son of Mary, returned home but the town-folks closed their hearts to his “wisdom” and power. Jesus had grown up and become a known healer and teacher but they could not let go of the past. Overcoming our past stereotypes, modifying the way we have always experienced someone is more than challenging. It is sometimes impossible to break down those walls. Nazareth was unable to hear Jesus. King George III was unable to work with the Colonies. In both cases, leaders of both sides thought they knew “the other” based on old experiences.
We might ask ourselves, “How are we closed to new works of the Holy Spirit?” Is our faith the same as when we finished confirmation — are we growing in our relationship with God? Are we locked in the past or are we walking into the future? Often we have ideas on how we think God ought to be handling situations and miss seeing how he is working.
This text today warns us about becoming inflexible in our relationship with God. We are also reminded today by our own historical equivalent. The pilgrims and England grew further and further apart. The relationship with England needed to transform and grow as the pilgrims transformed and grew in their new reality in the new world. The colonies came to the point of fighting for independence as they demanded adulthood. Ouch. We are in the same danger spiritually as we can grow socially, economically, or physically and outgrow confirmation vows. We can deceive ourselves into thinking we no longer need Jesus. It is true. We don’t need childhood faith; we need adult faith. Jesus is not the little babe in the manger and we are no longer children in the Christmas play. Pentecost is talking about that growth. Clinging to the past can blind us to our future.
“Prophets are not without honor, except in their hometown,
and among their own kin, and in their own house.”
Jesus tries to revise the homefolk’s understanding. He is not the illegitimate son of Mary but is actually walking in the steps of the Prophets of the Old Testament. Prophets arose in Israel with a message from God that confronted culture and called for a return to God. That is different from a return to religion. Prophets call people back to relationship with God and away from empty rituals. Just going to church achieves nothing if our hearts are not right with God. Jesus “could do no deed of power there.” Being frozen in the past blocked the faith to allow Jesus to work in the present. Relationship with God is a partnership. We are not his drones. In the same way, King George III clung to old ideas about government and was unable to forge a new working relationship with his new colonies. War became inevitable. Spiritual struggles are inevitable as we outgrow old disciplines that don’t serve us any more. Hopefully as we mature our faith matures.
Historically the colonies called the result of that war “independence.” For the people of Nazareth, the outcome of the lack of faith was that Jesus could only do a few miracles. They rejected this grownup Jesus and faith in him that acknowledges dependence on him. And here the analogy breaks down. We do not know what would have happened if the colonies had stayed a protectorate of England. It was a changing point in the history of the world. When we choose dependence on God, we change our history and the history of the world changes. Faith connects us to God and when we declare independence, we become disconnected from our power source.
7 He called the twelve and began to send them out two by two,
and gave them authority over the unclean spirits.
The followers of Jesus were watching all this take place. They saw the truth that not all people will want to listen to Jesus and not all sharing ends in faith and trust in Jesus. Not all people will choose to be part of the kingdom of heaven. The disciples also see that the rejection of Jesus by his hometown people does not stop Jesus from sharing. Jesus is not trying to build popularity but is trying to build a kingdom. I suspect there is a lesson here for those of us who like to be liked. Popularity and success are not necessarily good criteria of whether we are in God’s will. We tend to think that the big popular churches have the right message with the right programs and indeed that may help many but there is also a place for the small church. People in Nazareth were not open to Jesus but Jesus did not quit but moved on to the surrounding villages and sent his disciples out to share.
The colonies did not want to stay connected to England. War and soldiers could not resolve that split. Sometimes we need to honor that it is not the right time nor the right place and perhaps we are not the right person to be sharing truth with another. It does not mean we must stop loving, stop reaching out, or stop praying for those resistant to the message of Christ. It makes me think of our saying, “It takes a village to raise a child.” I may not be the person who can reach my child as the child struggles with my authority and faith but my sister, her aunt might, or a person at church. Jesus may not be accepted in his hometown but perhaps a disciple would be listened to.
Jesus then moved on to the surrounding villages teaching and did not waste emotional energy on this rejection, as painful as it may have been. We see a shift in Jesus’ approach now. Jesus starts sending out the disciples two by two. Jesus now is teaching his disciples to disciple! They are sent out, not as independent from him, but as his representatives, dependent on him and each other. We are making a subtle shift today from stories that involve Jesus as a key figure to a community that represents him. God is laying the seeds for the Book of Acts.
Jesus gives the disciples authority over unclean spirits and tells them not to worry about provisions for the journey. The colonies too came to a point where they stopped trying to develop relationship with England for their needs and stepped into their future. They would no longer be tied to England. Of course we see ourselves as the good guys and identify with the disciples and the colonies. That may be stretching this analogy too far but Jesus changes his approach and the colonies change their approach. They gradually become willing to face the challenges before them. Perhaps this is not spiritual truth but the colonists chose to forge a new future. As we accept our dependence on Jesus we choose to forge a future shaped by that relationship. The colonies would forge a nation but the disciples would forge a church eventually. And we are charged to continue reaching out beyond our comfort zone, using new skills and being the means of growing the Kingdom of Heaven.
“8 He ordered them to take nothing for their journey except a staff”
Our text this morning now becomes a lesson about dependence, not independence. Faith grows when we depend on God. I do not think that means we should all stop working and go door to door sharing the Gospel. For us I think dependence on God means not needing to worry about my daily needs because God will provide. It speaks to the priorities of our values. Jesus sends the disciples out with instructions about not worrying about shoes, cloaks, food and money. They are not to worry if they are rejected. This is easier said than done for us. We love our “stuff” and we worry about our security. All we need to do is listen to commercials about insurance for all the unpredictable events of life! Finding the emotional balance between independence and dependence is a continual battle. We need wisdom to find the right balance.
In the Sermon on the Mount, the example of the lilies of the valley that neither toil nor work but are clothed in glory, encourages us. Worry cannot add a minute to our lives for our lives are in God’s hands. We can depend on God. Likewise, when people reject us or our faith we can shake the dust from our feet and move on because our security does not depend on their approval of us. Our dependency on God changes our whole approach to life and our relationships. That does not mean we can be arrogant and not care about people but it does mean our security is in God and our concerns for the other. We are dependent on him for our life and our security.
So where does this leave us today? We celebrate our independence and freedoms as Americans and we can thank God for the many blessing we have from living in the United States. We celebrate our dependence as Christians on a God who is trustworthy and aware of our needs. We are not bound to unfair laws imposed by authorities that do not know us and respect us, at least theoretically. We are bound to a God who travels with us unseen but caring. May we never forget that we are dependent on the God who incarnated, who walked in our shoes and who knows our world and our weaknesses and challenges. God is not sitting across an ocean or far away up in the heavenlies. He is present and he sees us. God is not working for the economic profit of his empire but for the good of his church. We must never think we can be independent of his love, his guidance, and his care. Our country celebrated independence today but our church celebrates a God we can depend on. We are dependent and proud of it!
Let the people of God say, “AMEN.”
On the Way to Wonder 