For Sunday, February
9, 2020, Readings: Isaiah 58:1-12, Ps
112:1-10, 1 Cor 2:1-16, Mt 5:13-20
Shout out, do not hold back! Lift up your
voice like a trumpet!...Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds
of injustice, to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free...to
share your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into your
house...Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer...
[Isaiah 58:1a, 6-7, 9a]
[Isaiah 58:1a, 6-7, 9a]
Light shines in the darkness for the upright;
the righteous are merciful and full of compassion...They have freely given to
the poor...they will hold up their heads with honor. The wicked will see it and
be angry, they will gnash their teeth and pine away; the desires of the wicked
will perish. [Psalm 112:4, 9-10]
I decided to know nothing among you except
Jesus Christ and him crucified. And I came to you in weakness and in fear and
in much trembling. My speech and my proclamation were not with plausible words
of wisdom, but with a demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your
faith might not rest on human wisdom but on the power of God. [1
Corinthians 2:2-5]
Jesus said, "You are the salt of the
earth; but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored. It is
no longer good for anything...You are the light of the world...No one lighting
a lamp puts it under a bushel basket, but on the lampstand and it gives light
to all in the house. [Matthew 5:13a, 14-15]
This
week we pick up on the second installment of The Sermon on the Mount. Last week the feast of The
Presentation of
Jesus fell unusually on Sunday so we missed the first part of the Sermon, in Matthew 5:1-12, which is a recitation of the Beatitudes. It is always
worth re-reading and re-examining what they mean to us individually. One way to
approach them is as “Be Attitudes” as there are blessings for each stage along
our faith journey. With an attitude of being Christ’s disciples, we aren’t
seeking fame and fortune or success by some earthly measure, but rather we change our thinking, adjust our expectations of “life” for a brief sojourn
on this earthly plain to the rewards of eternal life in God’s Kingdom. The
readings appointed for this Sunday are a good primer on ways to start to think again about how to live this human time as God wants.
Isaiah tells us that just showing up
to do a few good acts and a bit of fasting without the right intention isn’t
enough, especially if we’re still pointing fingers and judging others. God sees
through our waving of hands and cries of “Look at Me” when self-interest is our
prime motivator in helping another. Paul carries us along by saying that those who are not
spiritually inclined don’t care about what is or isn’t of God and are more
likely to get caught up in following the "wisdom" that is merely
human. But if we truly seek the wisdom and spirit of God, we will be given more
ways to understand.
Jesus takes us further by giving us a few particulars on the responsibilities of discipleship. He starts by telling us we are the “salt of the
earth.” Salt in his time was a commodity of great importance far beyond a condiment, it was currency. Soldiers’ wages were paid in salt – salarium
in Latin, from where we get the word salary.
Everyone used salt as we use money in our own time. If salt loses its taste, its
value as currency drops; it becomes worthless, good only to throw on the street. A serious financial problem arises with tasteless salt ~ imagine your paycheck bouncing.
Today good salt enhances the flavors of our food, and the yeast in bread will not rise without
it. An appropriate amount of salt is vital to our physical health in digestive
and other body processes. In being so identified as the salt of
the earth, we are called to realize our own worth and potential
in God's sight and to let our good works reflect the Glory of God as a pathway to
eternal life.
Jesus also tells us we are the light
of the world, a light on the lampstand of life, filling God’s House with
spirit-filled light for everyone, unhidden as a city built on a hill, reflecting and refracting God's glory through us as a prism.
These rich images, along with the blessings
from the Beatitudes, are a guide for how we choose to live in discipleship. Jesus is clear that he has come to fulfill, not abolish, the Law of God ~ the Commandments ~ and that we are to follow even the least of these to the letter and to teach others to do the same. He doesn't think well of the scribes and Pharisees and while we are challenged
to go much farther, the bar is set rather low with them as examples.
It is important to remember that Jesus gave us a summary of the Law: You shall
love the Lord your God with all you heart, and with all your soul, and with all
your mind…You shall love your neighbor as yourself [Matthew 22:37-39b]. If
you do those you will have well fulfilled all the Commandments
as God gave them to Moses. Love God; Love your neighbor as yourself. After all, if you
truly love God and love your neighbor as yourself you won’t steal, kill, covet, commit,
etc. The as yourself part is a very specific clarification that often goes unheard or dismissed. It is to love your neighbor as if your neighbor is yourself; you are your neighbor/your neighbor is you. Not so easy to dismiss one neighbor for another if it is dismissing yourself!
When we follow these instructions, we will receive the blessings outlined in the Beatitudes
and our light shall rise in the darkness to shine God’s glory to others.
Stay tuned, this week was a mere introduction to the rest of the Sermon. Let us go forth salt-ed and light-ly by, in, and with God's everlasting remembrance.
In the meantime, let us look at another
Summary of God’s wishes, this from John Wesley:
LET US, GOD’S PEOPLE, PRAY
Leader: ~ O God
of Power and Wisdom, infuse our souls with the deep desire to move from the self-indulgence
of limitless distractions, to being the upright salt of the earth, preserving
and enhancing the freshness of Christ’s call to a life of trust in You.
O
Lord, our Guide
RESPONSE:
Keep
our hearts right and unafraid
~ O God of Power and
Wisdom, free us from fear and trembling to be Your beacon as a city on a
hill, shining Your Light in the darkness. Let us lift our voices to implore all
who lead governments on this Planet, in this Country, and in our Community to be
just, merciful, compassionate, and honorable in their lives and work. We pray
especially for: add your own petitions
O
Lord, our Guide
Keep our
hearts right and unafraid
~ O God of Power and
Wisdom, comfort the spirits of all who are stricken with chronic illness, addiction,
or desperation, and grant strength to those who give them care. We now join our
voices to pray aloud for those in need…
O
Lord, our Guide
Keep our
hearts right and unafraid
~ O God of Power and
Wisdom, console those who grieve with new or freshly remembered loss. May they
know that those we love, now live again where joy and peace abound forever with
You. We pray especially for…
O
Lord, our Guide
Keep our
hearts right and unafraid
~ O God of Power and Wisdom, we pause in this moment to offer You our
other heartfelt thanksgivings, intercessions, petitions, and memorials, aloud
or silently…
O
Lord, our Guide
Keep our
hearts right and unafraid
~ O God of Power and Wisdom, grant delight in Your ways to those
who lead Your Church and minister in the name of Christ, gift them with the
ability to teach us by word and example and shepherd our path to spiritual discernment. We
pray especially for: add your own petitions
O
Lord, our Guide
Keep our
hearts right and unafraid
The Celebrant adds: O God
of Love Abundant, satisfy our needs and strengthen us in parched places that we
may make each day of our lives acceptable in Your sight, radiating Your glory to
others through all of our good works. We ask through Jesus the Christ, our Lord
of Glory; and the Holy Spirit, Fount of Divine Wisdom, who together with You
are One God, forever and ever. Amen.
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