March 8, 2009
(Second Sunday in Lent)
Walk Before Me and be Blameless
By The Very Rev. Terry White, Dean
Genesis 17:1-7, 15-16 • Psalm 22:22-30 •
Romans 4:13-25 • Mark 8:31-38
(From
The Lectionary Page)
Songs children learn tend to stay with us for years and years. From solos and anthems sung in school performances and church services, to favorite commercial jingles and cartoon theme songs. A song helped us learn the alphabet, and carols tell the story of Christmas, and jingles taught us the ingredients that make up the McDonald’s Big Mac and all the essential facts about the modern stone age family the Flintstones.
In vacation bible school, Sunday school, or church camp some of
us first learned about the covenant described in Genesis this way:
Father Abraham had many sons,
Many sons had Father Abraham,
I am one of them, and so are you,
So let’s all praise the Lord!
Today a tweaking for the sake of inclusive language makes the point every stronger: the followers of three great faiths, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are made up of the daughters and sons of Father Abraham and Mother Sarah who all worship the One True God. Indeed, Abraham is the father of a multitude, for the covenant made with Abraham and Sarah will include not only Israel, but all the people of the earth will be invited to enter into this covenant.
God said to Abram, Walk before me and be blameless. You shall no longer be called Abram (which means exalted father,) but Abraham (which means father of a multitude.)
Walk before me and be blameless. That is the same invitation given to every believer, and to each generation of believers. It is the invitation of baptism. It is the invitation of Lent.
What makes one blameless before God? What makes the Church blameless before God?
I ask your permission to use an illustration I have used before on this Sunday.
In Yann Martel’s wonderful novel Life of Pi, twelve-year-old Pi, a Hindu, decides to explore a number of different religions in his native India. He has a rather remarkable reflection on a conversation about the crucifixion he had with a Roman Catholic priest, Father Martin.
Pi thinks to himself:
“That a god should put up with adversity, I could understand. The gods of Hinduism face their fair share of thieves, bullies, kidnappers and usurpers …. But humiliation? Death? I couldn’t imagine Lord Krishna consenting to be stripped naked, whipped, mocked, dragged through the streets and, to top it off, crucified -- and at the hands of mere humans, to boot. I’d never heard of a Hindu god dying. Brahman Revealed did not go for death. Devils and monsters did, as did mortals, by the thousands and millions – that’s what they were there for. But divinity should not be blighted by death. It’s wrong. It was wrong of this Christian God to let His avatar (His Son) die.
“The Son must have the taste of death forever in His mouth. The Trinity must be tainted by it; there must be a certain stench at the right hand of God the Father. The horror must be real. Why would God wish that upon Himself? Why not leave death to the mortals?
“ ‘Why make dirty what is beautiful, spoil what is perfect?’ asked Pi.
“Love. That was Father Martin’s answer.” Love.
Pi sounds a little bit like Peter in today’s Gospel. Neither Pi nor Peter can quite believe that suffering, rejection, and death could be a part of Our Lord’s story. Jesus’ response to Peter is startling. “Get behind me, Satan. For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.” We might actually feel for Peter. It couldn’t have been easy to hear your leader say he was going to suffer and die. “What kind of god would suffer and die for humans?” we hear Pi ask. “Love” was Father Martin’s answer. [from the writings of The Rev’d Suzanne Metz, Sermons That Work, Lent 2, Year B 2005-2006]
What makes us blameless before God? What makes it possible to walk the way of the cross, to endure shame, agony, suffering, rejection, even death, for the sake of being faithful to the one who has made a covenant with us? What makes it possible for us to walk with God, and more to the point: why does God wish to walk with us?
Love.
All who are daughters and sons of Abraham and Sarah know this love, and are to live by it. There are many examples of Abraham’s children doing violence toward each other, but there are also many examples of being obedient to this love. It is no small thing that Jews, Christians, and Muslims in Kansas City will be building our second House Abraham Builds through Habitat for Humanity this spring. Building a house for family is a wonderful thing. But much, much more will be built. Trust, respect, understanding, a model and hope for how Abraham’s children must live together. All of us can join in this holy work in the coming weeks.
God’s covenant with us in Baptism is built upon sacrificial, unconditional love. By Grace, we have been loved, saved, healed, restored, and given gifts for making God’s presence and love known each day. Lent is a special time for us, as individuals, and as the community of faith, to recommit to the primacy of love. The cross Jesus invites us to carry is the ultimate symbol of love triumphing over evil, hate, violence, and sin. By carrying the cross, we proclaim that we will be instruments of divine love. This journey is hard. It requires us to die to self, to live as servants, to give without counting the cost. There is no easier way, indeed, no other way to live if we are in fact disciples of Jesus. What we are promised on this journey is God’s constant presence with us, and the sure and certain hope of the resurrection.
Walk before me and be blameless.
Lose your life for my sake and for the Gospel and you will save it.
Many children has Father Abraham, I am one, and so are you, so let’s all praise the Lord, by being instruments of love.
