Too Cozy and Comfortable

Luke 12:49-56

When I hear the words, "Gentle Jesus, meek and mild ...", I usually roll my eyes and laugh.  From what I know of Jesus, these words don’t tell the whole story.

"Gentle Jesus, meek and mild, look upon a little child ..." are the opening lines of a Charles Wesley hymn, but for painting a word-picture of Jesus, he could hardly have chosen a less applicable word than "mild," especially in light of today's gospel reading. 

How about this instead: "Divisive Jesus, strong and riled ..."? 

If one were to list ten of the hardest sayings in the Gospels, our reading from Luke today would be on the list hands down, perhaps in the top five.  The statements that Jesus came to bring fire, a distressful baptism, and division, even among families, are hardly welcoming words for any congregation.  They are not the first words we think of to promote our congregation and attract new members.   We are happier with Jesus as a peacemaker than as a home breaker. 

Our scripture reading today is a part of a larger section where the talk becomes sober and the reality of judgment is clear.  Following the admonitions to readiness in preparation for the coming of the Son of man (12:35–48) come these forceful words about Jesus’ destiny and the implications for others (vs. 49–53), and a chiding of the crowds for their failure to discern the times (vs. 54–56).  The present is depicted as a time of crisis, demanding repentance and changed lives.

Our greater concern today is about a word Jesus himself used in this passage to describe his ministry: division. "Do you think that I have come to bring peace to the earth?" he asked. "No, I tell you, but rather division!" 

            Division is a troubling word, and as it happens, divisive talk and actions from Jesus or about Jesus can be found throughout the gospels. For example, earlier in Luke, when John the Baptist was announcing Jesus' coming, he said, "His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his granary; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire" (Luke 3:17).  In the early days of Jesus' ministry, when he visited the Nazareth synagogue with his reputation as a preacher and healer preceding him, the congregation initially "spoke well of him" (Luke 4:22).  But Jesus wasn't content to leave it at that, and intentionally provoked them with his "hometown" comments to the point that they wanted to dispatch him over a cliff (Luke 4:16-30).  In the Gospel of John, when Jesus spoke to a crowd at the festival of booths in Jerusalem about rivers of living water, some hearers decided he was the Messiah. Others doubted it, however, and the gospel narrator says, "So there was a division in the crowd because of him" (John 7:43).  When a would-be follower told Jesus he first wanted to bury his father, the sense of Jesus' response was that the man should leave his family obligations behind, which, if the man had done so, would have effectively divided him from his family (Luke 9:57-60).  And let's not forget that in the Matthean parallel to today's reading, Jesus says, "I have not come to bring peace, but a sword" (Matthew 10:34, italics added).  A sword cuts.  A sword divides.

Is this the sort of Jesus we want?  Lord knows we already have enough things that divide us -- politics, nationalism, ethnicity, economic status, social standing, educational level, religion, denominations, cultural issues (such as gun control, abortion, immigration, same-sex marriage) and more -- without also having a divisive Savior. 

Jesus' call today has a divisive element to it.  He still calls us to divide ourselves from those who urge us to morally stray, to not put family loyalty above doing his will, to not believe or follow those who act as if peace and happiness lies in possessions, to stand against societal voices that build up the self at the expense of others. In our individual case, the divisive part of Jesus' call may be quite specific and personally tailored to our lives.

From the beginning of Luke’s story, promises of peace have been central to the presence of Jesus (1:79; 2:14; 8:48; 19:38), and peace is the message the Seventy are commissioned to preach (10:5–6). But disciples, both ancient and modern, are eager for an instant peace, a trouble-free fulfillment of the promised salvation. Jesus’ words are jolting because they make it plain that there is no peace without conflict, no salvation without rejection. Jesus himself faces that at Jerusalem, and the disciples need expect nothing different. But rather than being signs of defeat, rejection and conflict, they are incorporated into the divine plan.

At the same time, let's not forget that Jesus' words here about not bringing peace stand in contrast to his words elsewhere in the Gospels where he said following him does result in one kind of peace. In John 14:27, for example, he said to the disciples, "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid." Yet subsequent to that, the first-century followers of Jesus didn't live very peaceful lives, at least not as we would describe it. Several of the apostles were hounded for their preaching and then martyred. Paul was beaten, arrested, stoned and finally executed. If that's peace, no thank you! And we know that Christians today, like everybody else, go through painful, upsetting times that are anything but peaceful.

So the peace of God has to mean something other than the absence of struggle and discord, something other than what we can acquire because we have the wherewithal to live a comfortable existence. Reading more broadly in the Bible, we read that the peace of God is something like a magnetic center of calm toward which the person who is committed to Christ is drawn back in the midst of or after turmoil. The peace of God is an anchor that keeps us from being swept away in the storms of life. Frederick Buechner says that "for Jesus peace seems to have meant not the absence of struggle, but the presence of love." 

Jesus’ single-minded determination is a passion we do recognize and often admire.  It is like that of the neighborhood activist who goes to work to clean up a block in her city after a child dies in a drive-by shooting.  It is similar to the passion of the senior citizen who single-handedly takes on the state legislature to make it easier for elders to purchase the prescription drugs they need at a reasonable cost.  It is similar to the zeal of the elementary school student who challenges the congregation to go “green” and is relentless in her presentations to all who will listen.  Some things matter so much that only focused attention and strong speech can carry the prophet’s message.

While God demands obedience and calls humanity to repentance, it is ultimately God who will bear the burden of human disobedience and whose gracious turning to humankind makes life possible. The clearest sign of God’s gracious turning is the cross of Jesus Christ. It is also the cross that indicates the radical demand that repentance and discipleship involve, suggesting why repentance is so difficult and why faithfulness so rarely characterizes the life of God’s people (see Luke 12:51–53).

The divisive element in Jesus' call reminds us that Jesus did not come so that we could have a cozy, comfortable life.  It reminds us that Jesus did not come so that we could have a happy family life -- though the peace of God may contribute to that. It reminds us that Jesus did not come so that we could get along with our siblings -- though the peace of God may help us live with the conflict or enable us to make the first move toward reconciliation. It reminds us that Jesus did not come so that we could get along with our coworkers and neighbors, though the peace of God may help us stay afloat during the discord.

No, none of that. But one reason Jesus did come was to call us out from our cozy, comfort zones to come and follow him; “to run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking at Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who endured the cross, disregarded its shame and now sits at the right hand of God. Depending on the circumstances of our lives, that may be a very divisive call; it may be one that promises no peace at all ... except the peace of God.  

Kingdom Economics

Hosea 11:1-11

Colossians 3:1-11

Luke 12:13-21

A month ago today, we, Americans celebrated Independence Day.  No doubt we recalled the key words of the Declaration of Independence: All people are created equal and have certain inalienable rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.  However, a closer look at the American cultural landscape 237 years after the Founders framed those words, reveals to us the pursuit of "happiness" has somehow morphed into the pursuit of decadence.  If happiness is about well-being and contentment, decadent living is about the relentless pursuit of pleasure as the only intrinsic good in life. If happiness is about having enough, decadent living is about never having enough.[i]

The late Henri Nouwen said, “Wealth takes away the sharp edges of our moral sensitivities and allows a comfortable confusion about sin and virtue”.  The relentless pursuit of pleasure and self-interest is evident today more than ever.  Our recent economic crisis was the result of hedonistic financial practices by lenders AND borrowers alike that used debt to pursue personal pleasure.  Our culture’s obsessive pursuit of sex has contributed to a higher divorce rate, more broken families and the objectification of men and women as objects rather than as humans made in God’s image.  We have an obesity rate covering 35% of the population that continues to rise because of our insatiable appetites.  I read this rate is expected to climb to around 44% by the year 2030.  The dulled edges of our moral sensitivities have made it difficult for us to distinguish what we want from what we need. The pursuit of pleasure is leaving us broke, depressed, unfulfilled, numb and broken.  When is enough, enough?

There are few areas in the lives of modern day Christians where help is needed more than in the issues dealing with material possessions.  Many of us want help in discerning how we earn, invest and spend our money generously and faithfully. 

We find ourselves asking:  how are we as Christians to deny the temptations of materialism in our lives while living in a very, very material world?  How are we to live in the world without being of the world?  And what does a life like this look like?

I.

            The rich fool is not a fool simply because he is rich in material wealth.  He’s a fool because of his attitude toward wealth, possessions and material things.  His problem is the misguided illusion that all his prosperity has secured his future.  The rich fool comes up short for two reasons: he never saw beyond himself and he never saw beyond this world.

            He was aggressively self-centered; there was nobody else he cared about, thought about, or talked about.  He lives completely for himself, he talks to himself, he plans for himself, and he congratulates himself.  He wants bigger storage barns for his own ease and not for the community’s security.  He never thought to give any of his wealth away.  It was all about him!  Instead of denying himself in any way, he aggressively affirmed himself; instead of finding his happiness in giving, he tried to conserve it by keeping.

            There is an old Roman proverb that says, “Money is like sea-water; the more a person drinks it, the thirstier they became”.  When we do not deny and limit our desires, this is the dangerous road we ride.  This is the opposite of the life we are called to live as Christ’s disciples.

            Since he was unable to see what existed beyond this world, the rich fool lived for today and for the hopes and dreams of the human world.  His “investments” were made in treasures stored up on earth rather than in treasures stored up in heaven.  His focus was on his time on earth.  His hoarding smacks of a person only trusting his own skill to supply his need.  By grounding his life in his material success, he makes an idol of himself.  He doesn’t need God.  He’s turned away from the true source of his being and integrity.  He becomes disoriented, lost and it leads to his demise. 

           

II.

            The great temptation we face daily in our lives is idolatry.  Jesus’ parable of the Rich Fool implies that anything that replaces God as a person’s ultimate concern in life thrusts that individual into idolatry.  Let’s not kid ourselves money has certainly become a god we worship in our modern culture.  Seeking to be faithful stewards nonetheless helps us overcome the temptation to become possessed by material possessions.  Money is a god that does not satisfy.

            Let’s look at it this way: saving for future material needs is one component of proper stewardship of God’s gifts to us.  It must be balanced with the purpose of giving glory to God and to care for one’s neighbor, to provide for the poor and the marginalized, for those without access to the world’s wealth or even to basic needs to survival.  The rich fool has forgotten both the God who caused the healthy annual crops to grow and the neighbor without access to that bounty.  What the man fails to realize is that the "harvest" he enjoys doesn't come from his own efforts. Only God makes the crops grow! The man is so focused on his own greed that he can't see that God is the one who blessed him in the first place. 

Anyone who has grown up here in Kilgore and/or in this church has at one time or another heard the name Lou Della Crim.  Mrs. Crim was a humble woman who attended our church for many years.  She never missed a Sunday.  From what I’ve read, on December 27, 1931, Mrs. Crim was in worship when someone from her farm came running into the sanctuary to tell her that oil was discovered on her property and she should come home at once.  She didn’t go anywhere.  She remained in worship for the rest of the morning because she knew what was important in her life.  The oil could wait!  Her time with God was far more important, meaningful and powerful.  The oil could wait!  Her moral compass pointed true north adhering to the words of Jesus, “Be on your guard against all kinds of greed: for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of possessions.” (v.15)  She was rich toward God and free to live in the goodness of God.

III.

            Mrs. Lou Della Crim and so many others like her knew that the new life we accept to be a Christian is not merely a matter of putting away vices and picking up virtues.  Rather in Christ, we come to live life differently.  This is a renewal of the whole self, not just the slight improvement of our parts.  The author of Colossians writes about the freedom of the baptized life.  The passage points us beyond the “things that are on earth” to “things that are above”.  It is in this spiritual freedom that we are able to reject what harms us, surrender what possesses us and relinquish what we idolize and be clothed with a new self, renewed in the image of the Creator of the universe.

            If there's any place that the church can begin to be countercultural, it's here in the realm of kingdom economics. It's clear, however, that we have to reconsider what it means to be a church that pleases God. It's interesting that the recent financial crisis happened in a country where, according to a poll by the Pew Forum, 92 percent of Americans believe in God or a higher power. And yet, it was in this country of God-fearers that self-focused self-indulgence got the ball rolling on a worldwide economic meltdown. People love to claim that we are a "Christian nation," but the reality is that while we might cognitively believe in God, our financial practices don't reflect that belief. We consume more and more of the world's resources and give less and less of our abundance to people and issues that matter to God. Instead of the biblical standard of tithing, 10 percent of income, the percentage of income that people in U.S. churches give is 2.56 percent on average. If we're going to change the world, then we need to be the first ones to open up the barns!

How can our churches begin to challenge the decadence of our communities? Can we stop building bigger houses and worship "barns" and instead offer the bounty of God's blessing on us to our hurting neighbors? Are there ways that we can provide opportunities for people to learn how to use their money to please God and, as a result, to live happier lives themselves? I want to challenge the prevailing assumptions of our culture and invite every one of us into new ways of thinking and being that reflect God's kingdom economics. 

It's clear that the pursuit of pleasure doesn't lead to happiness.  The old adage, "He who dies with the most toys, wins," is a great lie.  The rich fool found out that, in the end, you can’t take it with you. 

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[i] Bob Kaylor, Senior Writer @ www.homileticsonline.com, and Senior Minister of the Park City United Methodist Church in Park City, Utah.