Saturday Night Theologian
8 August 2004

Isaiah 1:1, 10-20

What Christians believe has been the center of debate and controversy from the first century to the present day. Should Gentile converts be circumcised? Did the divine Christ descend on the human Jesus at baptism? Was Christ "of the same nature" as God the Father? Does Christ have two natures (divine and human) or one (divine-human)? Does the bishop of Rome have authority over other sees? Are the body and blood of Christ literally present in the eucharist? Which has greater authority, the Bible or the traditions of the Church? Does God call women to positions of leadership within the church? Can homosexuals be faithful leaders in the church? Creeds and statements of faith are recited by many Christians on a regular basis, and some see them as a means of separating faithful (or true) from unfaithful (or false) Christians. Interestingly, Jesus never gave a list of doctrines that the world could look at to determine who were really his followers. Instead, he said, "You will know them by their fruit." In so doing, he was following the example of prophets like Isaiah, who understood God to be more concerned with treatment of others than with beliefs and rituals. The people of Isaiah's day were diligent about bringing the correct sacrifices to the temple, and they worshiped God at all the appropriate times. However, their behavior toward their fellow human beings invalidated all their religious practices. "I hate your sacrifices!" God said. "I'm tired of your festivals!" "Even though you make many prayers, I will not listen; your hands are full of blood." This statement is ironic, because someone performing a sacrifice would naturally have bloody hands, but the prophet is speaking figuratively about the human blood that stains the hands of the worshipers. Instead of empty ritual, this is what God demands: "Cease to do evil; learn to do good; seek justice; rescue the oppressed; defend the orphan; plead for the widow." Does our Christianity consist of doing good to those in need, or are we content merely to congratulate ourselves for our orthodoxy? As we approach the campaign season in the United States, will we support candidates who stand for justice and protection of the poor, or will we blindly kowtow to those who proclaim the loudest that they are good Christians? Will we vote for candidates with blood on their hands? Once we've made our political choice, will we hold our candidates accountable for their actions, or will we give them a free ride, excusing their violations of divine principle in the name of political expediency? Some people say that Christianity isn't about what you do, it's about who you know. I believe that who you know doesn't really matter if you don't do anything about it.

Psalm 50:1-8, 22-23

A little boy was fidgeting in his seat as the minister preached the sermon. He did his best to stay still, but the pew was hard, he was hungry, and it seemed like he had been there forever. He stared at the ceiling, he stared at the floor, he stared at the walls, and suddenly his eyes fell on a plaque that held the names of many different people. "Who are the people whose names are on the wall?" he asked his mother. "Those are the names of people from our church who died in the service," his mother whispered. The boy thought about it for a minute then asked, "Was it the morning or the evening service?" Sometimes our worship experience as adults is like that. We go through the motions, but there's no real worship taking place. In today's reading from the Psalms, God calls heaven and earth to witness against the people of God, accusing them of perfunctory worship. It's not that they didn't show up for worship. In fact, God admits that the people's sacrifices are continual. "Not for your sacrifices do I rebuke you," God says, "but for the emptiness of your ritual." Sometimes we just don't feel like worshiping God. Maybe we're tired, or we're worried, or maybe we just have other things on our minds that interfere with our focus on God. "The problem," some would say, "is that worship is too boring. It needs to be jazzed up!" So they sing upbeat choruses (often over, and over, and over), and they encourage the congregation to clap and shout and raise their hands. Even in these types of services--some would say, especially in these types of services--many people do not worship. Their focus may be on the music rather than on God. There is no perfect style of worship. Some people find it easier to worship in a quieter setting, while others believe they can encounter God more readily in the midst of joyful noise. Some people find God in the beauty of a liturgical service, while others find God more readily in a more spontaneous worship experience. Regardless of the style of the service, it is important for worship leaders to do their best to create an atmosphere in which people can focus on God. I had a worship experience recently in which, while the offering was being taken and the choir was singing, almost everyone in the pews in front of me and behind me was talking rather loudly. My daughter turned to me and asked, "Is the service over?" No, technically it wasn't, but it was for those people, and consequently it was for me as well. I know that ministers of music struggle constantly to create and maintain an atmosphere in which worship can happen, often with little support from the congregation. This sort of problem doesn't seem as frequent in the Catholic churches I've visited, perhaps because of the reverence that congregants have for the sanctuary itself. Regardless of whether the things that prevent us from proper worship are internal or external, the psalmist reminds us that God desires true communion with us, not just external ritual. True worship, he says, will be characterized by a sacrifice of thanksgiving and by "going the right way," that is, living a life consistent with the spirit of God.

Hebrews 11:1-3, 8-16

Acting on faith is scary, but it's also exciting. My family recently packed up and moved 1000 miles, so we've experienced some of the feeling that the author of Hebrews describes when discussing the faith of Abraham. Like Abraham, we decided to move without knowing exactly what lay before us. Although I was assured of one income stream that might best be described as sporadic, I had no guarantees, and my wife had to quit her job a couple of months early in order to finish her college degree during summer school, and there were no definite prospects awaiting her. Despite the uncertainties, we were sure that the move was what God wanted us to do. Within a couple of months of deciding to move, two part-time teaching jobs opened up for me, and after six weeks in our new location, my wife starts her new job on Monday. "By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to set out for a place that he was to receive as an inheritance; and he set out, not knowing where he was going." Conventional wisdom says, "Plan ahead; look before you leap." Faith says, "Follow God--period." Faith should not be confused with impulsiveness. Before we moved, we spent several months thinking and praying and talking about it, and we were convinced that if we wanted to follow God, it was time to go. Abraham was similarly convinced that God was leading him and his family into an unfamiliar land. It's hard to describe to people who haven't ever make a decision based purely on faith why we did what we did, but when we meet others who have stepped out on faith themselves, no explanation is necessary. The opening verse of the chapter says, "Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen." Living by faith can be nerve-rattling, and at times it's difficult, but faith gives meaning and excitement and joy to life. As Christians we can choose to play it safe and live by sight rather than by faith, but why would we want to?

Luke 12:32-40

In my Jeep, I carry the following items: a spare pocketknife (in addition to the one in my pocket), a compass, a full canteen, a poncho, a flashlight, extra batteries, a Q-beam lantern, a hammer, two or three screwdrivers, wire, string, rope, matches, a lighter, a book, a pen, a pencil, paper, two hats, duct tape, and WD-40, among other things (including a spare tire and a jack, of course!). I was an Eagle Scout, and I've never forgotten the Boy Scout motto: Be Prepared! Jesus also urged his disciples to be prepared for life as his followers. Some people think hoarding wealth is the way to prepare themselves for the unknown eventualities of life, but Jesus taught just the opposite: "Sell what you have and give it to the poor." His reasoning was simple: "Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." The world today is so materialistic, particularly in the West, that we have a hard time understanding this teaching, much less putting it into practice. Westerners, particularly Protestants and Evangelicals, often either ridicule those in the Catholic and Orthodox traditions who have chosen the monastic life, or maybe they just shake their heads in condescension. "Monks are just trying to escape from the world," they say. They rarely even try to come to grips with the tremendous sacrifice and discipline that is required to live such a life, and there is little attempt to emulate it. Have you ever wondered why there are no Protestant monastic orders, with the exception of such experiments as the Koinonia Farm? Jesus told his disciples to be ready for action, like a servant anxiously awaiting his master's return. While the specific illustration in the gospel suggests the early Christian belief in an immanent Parousia, the thrust of the parable is still relevant. Maybe Jesus won't return tomorrow, but God just might call us tomorrow to go on mission for the kingdom. If we have too many ties to the world, how will we accomplish what God has called us to do? Ties to the world are something that I continue to struggle with. I want to provide for my family, and I want my children to have educational opportunities and life experiences that will mold them and prepare them for what lies ahead. At the same time, I want to teach them to rely on God rather than on their possessions. There is a tension in life between self-reliance and relying on God, between planning ahead and living by faith, between living in the world and living in the kingdom of God. As we tread these lines and do our best to be faithful to God's call on our lives, let us always be led by Jesus' exhortation: "Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."