FOR GOD SO LOVED . . . WEEK 2

Sermon Notes, March 17, 2019

Rev. Garry McGlinchy

Pastor Garry’s sermon, the second in the Lent Series, was titled “For God So LOVED…Week 2.”  The scripture reference was Luke 13:31-35. 

If there’s one thing that is very clear throughout scripture, it’s that prophets have always had a difficult time with powers.  The Old Testament is filled with stories of prophets being chased for fear of their lives.  For example, when Elijah was hunted by Ahab and Jezebel, or the time when the people told Jeremiah that his prophecies are lies.  At times we have mistaken prophets to be future tellers, but what they really are is Truth Tellers, revealing the heart of reality that those in power often don’t want to admit, such as when Nathan the prophet revealed the heart of David by pointing out David’s adultery and murder, urging him to repentance.  Fortunately for Nathan, this story ended well, but for numerous other prophets, the revealing of the heart has been painful and has often caused the death of the prophet rather than repentance from those in power.

It doesn’t take much digging around to find that the harsh resistance many in power have toward prophetic words extends beyond the pages of the Old Testament.  We can recall resistance to words preached by the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and watching as those in power attacked and denigrated others during the American Civil Rights movement for speaking up for justice, truth, and love.  We can see the anger of leaders who were questioned by Dietrich Bonhoeffer during the Nazi regime.  It doesn’t take us long to realize that the powers of this world like to stay in power, and they often react violently when they are pushed to examine their motives.  These are just a few examples of many times, both from scripture and modern history, where people have chosen to speak up for the ways of righteousness, love, and truth and have been forced to fear for their livelihood or their lives.

Jesus is no exception to this type of reaction.  As He travels, He is healing people, casting out demons, preaching freedom for the oppressed and a new kingdom.  As you can imagine, those in control do not like these words.  They react violently to the examinations of their hearts.  They react critically to words that call for justice, peace, and compassion.  They react with anger to words about releasing power and material wealth.  As a result, Jesus is warned to leave, or face death at the hand of Herod. 

However, Jesus doesn’t flee; He keeps moving forward, toward the very seat of power in Jerusalem.  Not only does He move closer to the city, but He also continues to do the things that have angered Herod in the first place, healing others, freeing the oppressed, and preaching a new kingdom.  He doesn’t move away from the threat; rather He seeks to embrace it, saying He longs to gather the people of Jerusalem under His wings like a hen with her chicks even if they wouldn’t listen.  He had passion for those who wanted to kill Him.  Jesus continues to speak truth to power, knowing it will ultimately lead to His death.  He continues forward, knowing it is not death that will have the final word, but resurrection.

Jesus is ushering in the Kingdom of God, and to the powers of this world, that kingdom is a threat.  Jesus is preaching of the Kingdom of God where the last shall be first, where the poor will be fulfilled, where there is rest, where people are not commodified, where there is restoration, peace, and equality.

These prophetic words are not spoken out of superiority, but out of humble compassion.  Know this to be true, Jesus longs to gather the children of Jerusalem under his wings, even though they refuse to listen.  This is a posture of compassion.  He longs to see them repent and return to the bosom of God.  This takes humility.  Jesus knows He is approaching His death, yet He still willingly walks toward the cross, out of compassion for even those who seek to do Him ill.  Jesus makes it clear that the rejection of the kingdom is not because it has not been offered to them.  It is the will of Christ that they be restored, but they are the ones who refuse to listen.

Jesus continues to speak truth, even unto death.  He walks toward Jerusalem with the knowledge of His death waiting.  Yet He continues to walk, He continues to heal, He continues to preach, He continues to help the people imagine a new kingdom where the last will be first and the poor fulfilled.  He references His death when He talks about three days.  He also references His death when talking about how Jerusalem has killed the prophets before.

There is a certain kind of bravery that can walk toward death in confident hope, while preaching the very words that will get you killed, simply because they are the words God would have you speak.  We have seen this type of bravery at various moments in history.  The prophets of the Old Testament who preached, taught, and illustrated prophetic words despite knowing what the consequences could be.  The Rev. Dr. King knew that preaching words of justice, equality, and nonviolent resistance could very well lead to his death, yet he continued to do so.  Dietrich Bonhoeffer spoke against the Nazi regime up until his death as a political prisoner.

The hope of the kingdom wasn’t in the dying, but in the resurrection.  While Jesus continues to allude to His death, He’s always pointing to the resurrection.  The third day is the resurrection day.  The hope of the prophetic modern-day saints has been in the hope of a resurrection.  And when we look throughout history at modern-day saints and prophets, we can see a theme that they do not fear death because they have an abiding hope in the resurrection.

Are we being called to speak prophetic words with bravery?  Lent is a time for confessing and seeking out the Word of God for our lives, but God might also have a difficult and prophetic word for the powers of our world.  The church is called to preach the Kingdom of God in the ways that Jesus was, and the world still doesn’t like it.  Yet we are still called to preach this word.  The Herods and Jerusalems of our world might stand against us, but we are to preach the words anyway, even as we walk in the same direction of Jesus, toward the cross.

We are not so far removed from the prophets of old.  The powers of today still seek control, power, and wealth.  The Kingdom of God still calls for the last to be first, for justice, for love.  And, as citizens of the Kingdom of God, we are called at times to speak prophetic words to all the Herods and Jerusalems of our world.  Lent is a time set aside to re-evaluate our hearts, to see the places where WE have become the Herods, where WE have sought power and control versus the Kingdom of God in our world.  It is also a time for us to listen to the voice of God.  As citizens of the Kingdom of God, we are called to live like Christ, to care for the broken-hearted, to speak for the oppressed, to protect the widow and the orphan, and to declare freedom to the captive.  Can we stand in the same humble courage even in the face of death?  Can we stand in hopeful expectation of the resurrection?  We need to do both regardless of the backlash that will most certainly follow.