Still Work To Be Done

Matthew 8:18-27

The story it a familiar one. Jesus is asleep in the boat as a storm rages all around. The disciples, fearful of drowning, waken him and point out the danger. “Then (Jesus) got up,” Matthew tells us, “and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a dead calm” (Matthew 8:26c). The disciples were amazed, Matthew continues, and wondered what sort of man Jesus was.

And then they started rowing. They had to. Jesus’ actions has brought the sea to a “dead calm.” That would mean no wind, which would also mean no sailing. So if the disciples were to get anywhere at that point they were going to have to put their backs into it.

God’s actions in human history often require more than a little follow-up work on the part of God’s people. Moses understand this. In the Exodus the people were led out of Egypt by God’s power but years of effort followed. Pentecost is another good example. The Spirit arrived with the sound of a mighty wind and as divided tongues of flame and the disciples went tumbling into the street. But there was work to be done if the faith was to spread: witnessing to others, building a community, withstanding persecution. To feel blessed by God, to see miracles abound, to find ourselves nurtured and sustained by divine grace is never the end of the story. God calms the storms of our lives. Then it is up to us to put our backs into it.

Prayer: Lord, you bless us in so many ways. Help us to respond with all our strength to the opportunities you give us. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

We Are Witnesses

Deuteronomy 6: 16-25

It may not seem like a particularly important point, but in truth it carries tremendous significance. It’s there in our reading from Deuteronomy for today, and we find it in other sections of scripture as well. It is the sense that there are some events in the history of God’s people that are so transcendent that even now, centuries later, we speak as though we were actually present when they occurred.

“When your children ask you in time to come, ‘What is the meaning of the decrees and the statutes and the ordinances that the Lord our God has commanded you?’ then you shall say to your children, ‘We were Pharaoh’s slaves in Egypt, but the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand’” (Deuteronomy 6:20-21). “WE were Pharaoh’s slaves…but the Lord brought US out of Egypt…”. The exodus then is an event shared by all of God’s people, regardless of when or where they lived. Even we who live millennia later lay claim to the captivity in Egypt and the work of God’s “mighty hand” in leading us to freedom.

We are witnesses. The word for witness shares its root with the word meaning martyr. When we offer our witness to events we do so even at the risk of our lives. So we point to the exodus and say, “yes, we believe that God liberated the people and led them to freedom.” And we who are Christians point to the life of Jesus and say, “yes, we believe that God sent the Messiah into the world to save the lost and to tend the sick.” And when we offer this witness, we take our place among the billions of people who, over the centuries, have given the same testimony, and it is as though each and every one of us have made the journey and seen the ministry and experienced the truth of the resurrection–because, by God’s grace we have! Thanks be to God.

Prayer: Lord give us courage to add our voices to those of the witnesses who have gone before us and of those who will follow after. Amen.

Such An Odd God

Deuteronomy 4:32-40

Who would do such a thing? That’s the underlying question in our reading from Deuteronomy for today. Or rather, what god has done such a thing? “…(H)as any god ever attempted to go and take a nation for himself,” we read, “from the midst of another nation, by trials, by signs and wonders, by war, by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, and by terrifying displays of power, as the Lord your God did for you in Egypt before your very eyes?” (Deuteronomy 4:34). Obviously it’s a rhetorical question, but we know the answer. First of all, what other god is there? And while our God, the God, could have accomplished the divine will in all sorts of ways, why God chose this particular path is unknown and unknowable.

But what we call the Exodus is an event unparalleled in human history. A weak people, enslaved to a mighty nation, were led to freedom by a stammering messenger. Throughout, God used whatever means were necessary to accomplish the task. Was it really necessary to do things this way? Only God could say, but through the events surrounding the Exodus God became known to the Hebrew people and ultimately made covenant with them to be their God as they were God’s people. To this day, Jews and Christians point to this series of events as a turning point in God’s relationship with humanity; the weak have seen a promise of strength; the oppressed have seen hope of justice; the poor and hungry, the homeless and naked have heard the word of God and rejoiced.

My, but don’t we worship an odd God, one who cannot be second-guessed or fully anticipated, one who reveals only as much as God wishes to reveal, one who acts with mighty power one time but in subtlety and gentleness the next? The Exodus was a moment of revelation and of release. It has led to an ongoing relationship of great importance to us all. But don’t try to fully understand it. It can’t be done.

Prayer: Lord, help us to receive your gift of grace without trying to understand or to critique it, so that we may live faithfully as your people. Amen.