civil disobedience or divine obedience

Exodus 1:8-2:10

Matthew 16:13-20

“whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”  Peter is given the keys to the kingdom.  Peter, the rock on which the church is built; there is a word play going on here, as the word for Peter in Greek, is like the word for rock.

one implication is that the church has the keys to the kingdom. just imagine you have the keys, do you use the key to lock the door and guard the entrance? or do you use the key to unlock the door for everyone to enter?

often in the church we talk about heaven and hell as places that exist after death; I think heaven and hell exist, but they exist here, in this dimension of time and space.  it is easy for us to think the keys to the kingdom are for keeping out the ‘wrong’ people; but in doing so at times we make life hell for each other.

during this past week at the retreat we looked at holiness, shame and vulnerability:

how often do you worry about saying something in case people laugh at you?

how often do you worry that you are not enough, not clever enough, or pretty enough, or strong enough,…?

how often do you worry that people won’t like you if they knew what you were really like?

that is shame. guilt is sorry for something you have done, shame is sorry for who you are. many people feel shame, it keeps us small, trying to not get noticed.

shame also makes it hard for us to be vulnerable, yet we need to know vulnerability if we are to feel empathy, if we are to act with courage, if we are to stand alongside people who are hurting. Allowing ourselves to be vulnerable means being honest with ourselves, and with others, about who we are. and yes it can be hard.

..

the Hebrew people were in Egypt because Joseph’s brothers sold him into slavery, and Joseph ended up in Egypt, did a good job and was promoted by the then Pharaoh. then famine hit the homeland and Joseph’s brothers come to Egypt looking for food, and so the whole family moves to Egypt.

years later we pick up the story, there is a new Pharaoh who doesn’t know Joseph, and the Hebrew people are large in number. so Pharaoh does what many in his positon have done throughout history, and continue to do; he got scared. ‘ He said to his people, "Look, the Israelite people are more numerous and more powerful than we. Come, let us deal shrewdly with them, or they will increase and, in the event of war, join our enemies and fight against us and escape from the land."

heard anything like that recently?

Pharaoh not only was worried, but told the people of Egypt to be worried.  there is no suggestion that Hebrews and Egyptians had not lived peacefully until then.

the Pharaoh, the King, was scared, the Hebrew people are made to be slaves, they build cities, they are oppressed and still they breed. the fear increases and the oppression increases.  until finally the King decides that something has to be done; all the baby boys will be killed.

but there are some flaws in his plan:

1. the midwives are about life not death
2. the river that is meant to be the place of death, maintains life
3. and girls/women were more trouble than the king imagined they would be.

 

This story is one with a number of heroines: the midwives who refused to kill, the mother and sister of Moses who refused to give up hope and the Egyptian Princess who refused to ignore a child.  This reminded me of other times when women have been the ones to speak out against injustice and violence.  women like the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo, who met as they looked for their ‘disappeared’ children, during the military dictatorship in 1976 – 1983 in Argentina; women like Betty Williams and Mairead Corrigan form Northern Ireland who received the Noble Peace Prize in 1976. these women were generally in traditional homemaker roles. the Mothers of Plaza de Mayo were demanding their right to care for their children – something they couldn’t do when their children were taken by the secret police.   

Moses grows up and God calls him to free the people from slavery, and leads them out of Egypt, safely through the water that kills the Egyptians. there are a lot more steps in the journey until we get to that point. sometimes it can seem that God saves the people from slavery in one giant amazing miracle, but there are small steps throughout the story of Moses. and each step is necessary for the story as a whole.

“It's a courageous act of civil disobedience that changes history, And it all starts here, with two women willing to say "no" to an act of injustice. I doubt very much they thought they were changing the world. But they were, just by being faithful, by following the dictates of their hearts, by heeding the call of conscience.

The things we do this week -- our actions, decision, choices -- will, in fact, ripple out with consequences foreseen and unforeseen, for good or for ill, for the health or damage of the world. That question isn't whether, but what...what will we do this week to make a difference in the world.” [David Lose, working preacher]

 

the action of the midwives is ‘civil disobedience’, or as one person has put it  ‘divine obedience’. [http://sweetjubilee.tumblr.com/post/79831990907/imagine-a-woman-confronting-injustice-shiphrah-puah]

we can stay out of sight, we can hide, or we can stand up, we can speak out, we can protect life.

here is a  quote from Nelson Mandela:  “ for to be free is not merely to cast off one’s chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others.”

and another quote , this time from Desmond Tutu

”If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor. If an elephant has its foot on the tail of a mouse and you say that you are neutral, the mouse will not appreciate your neutrality.”

 

Jesus told the disciples not to tell anyone he was the Messiah. I wonder if it is because our living speaks louder than our words.

in our world today there are many examples of injustice, poverty and oppression. in our world there is a need for people to act with integrity, compassion and courage.

measuring faith

Another week, and more news of violence and destruction.

Another week, and more news of corruption by politicians and others

another week, and it seems like life is just getting stranger all the time.

And on a personal level there are people who are ill, grieving, lonely and in pain.

 

And yet we meet each week, we are here again this morning.

 

Often in looking at the Matthew passage I think about the social context and the religious context. Today I want us to think what it would be like to be this woman. As a parent, grandparent, and friend what would you be prepared to do to help a child in need? And not just any child, for those of you with children and grandchildren what would you do for your child, for your grandchild?

 

The current events in the USA, where another young black man has been killed by a police officer, some of the comments that I have been reading have surprised me. One person, who has black skin,  talks about how she was taught by her parents to always have her hands out in the open while they were shopping, so people would not accuse her of stealing. Always have receipts in view so people knew that you had paid for what you had in your hand. Growing up in the United States with black or brown skin meant being constantly on guard.

 

And mother of a white child writes of all the things she didn't have to tell her son, to keep him out of trouble, the way black mothers have had to.

 

And I think of the situation with surrogacy and the baby Gammie.

And stories of women in detention centres, thinking that if they let their children be adopted by Australians then their child will be safe.

 

Parents and grandparents  would do almost anything for their child to be healed, to be safe, to be free. And the woman we hear about in Matthews gospel is doing exactly that. Somehow or other she has heard about Jesus and she is not going to take no for an answer.

 

This woman talks of only wanting the crumbs, yet she is talking to Jesus, who is the one who fed over 5000 people and had food leftover. She is willing to accept a scrap, knowing that just the tiniest piece of God's grace can heal her daughter.

We are told that this woman's faith is great enough for her daughter to be healed. Yet just last week we were hearing about how little faith the disciples had.

 

I wonder how do we measure faith?

Having been a science student I am familiar with metres and gallons, light years, and nanometres, amps, and decibels. We know how to measure noise and distance, volume and light intensity; but how do you measure faith?

 

How much faith is enough? What does that mean that she is a person of great faith?

What is it about her faith, that it would be described as great faith?

She is persistent, she is honest about her situation, she asks for help, she recognises who Jesus is. Are these the things that make for having a great faith?

This woman does not accept Jesus initial response, she answers back, she does not let the standard boundaries stop her from getting what she wants, and she gets Jesus to act. Maybe this is what makes her faith great.

 

The woman wanted her daughter healed.

I wonder, what is it that we want?

Do we have enough faith?

 

What is enough faith?

the disciples are told they have little faith.

Peter had enough faith to get out of the boat, but not enough to stay on top of the water.

The woman had enough faith that her daughter was healed.

 

 

With all the bad news we see each night on the TV, with the pain and brokenness in our own lives, still we come together to hear God's Word, to confess our brokenness, to sing praise to God, to pray for ourselves and others. One of the ways we talk about the church is as a community of faith, a community that comes together so that we are reminded of who we are and to whom we belong. We are a community of faith that cares for each other, that seeks to follow in the way of Jesus.

Do we have faith that the world can change?

Do we have faith that people will no longer be oppressed?

Do we have faith that people can change?

 

It seems to me that faith is not measured in the quantity that we hold for ourselves, faith is not something that we can store away for a rainy day. Faith, enough faith, is when we act.

 

Where is God calling you to put your faith into action today?

lived out vision

Yesterday I was at the Social Justice Expo that was organised by the UCA. It was an amazing day.

 

There was a choice of sessions looking at a number of different issues. Issues such as modern-day slavery, climate change, and the recognition of indigenous people in the Australian Constitution. Along with issues we looked at different ways of being active in working for social justice for all people; some people are involved in direct action, such as people who are up in the Leard Forest in northern New South Wales, trying to protect the land, plants, animals and indigenous history from another large coalmine. Other people work through community organising, peacemaking activities, prayer and contemplation.

 

While each person there is committed to living out the gospel call to follow Jesus, which means to feed the hungry, to clothe the naked, and to welcome the stranger; we each do this in a different way.

 

As I drove home last night thinking about this gospel passage from Matthew that we would be hearing this morning, it occurred to me that only one person stepped out of the boat. With the other stories we have of Peter it may not be much of a surprise that it is Peter, rather than one of the other disciples. Yet Matthew records all of them in the boat believed.

 

And it isn't like Peter was all that successful at walking on water.

 

In the beautiful story of the three trees that we heard, each tree had a dream, a vision, of what their life would be like. And each of them was disheartened when their dream did not come to fruition as they were being shaped into something different to their expectation.

 

We have a vision of what church will be like, a vision of what our family will be like, our society, our country, how our life will pan out. Sometimes our visions are flawed, they are not the visions that God gives us. But sometimes the vision that God gives us is lived out very differently to our expectation.

 

Yet just as the trees eventually did live out their dream, their God given vocation if you like, in a different way to their expectation; at times we to find that we wonder about our call. It is easy to begin to doubt because just as the waves became too much for Peter, just as Peter became aware of what was happening and focused on himself; at times we to find ourselves overwhelmed, focusing on ourselves and doubting our ability, our giftedness, to follow where God is calling us as individuals and as a community.

 

In the midst of the storm, with what they thought was a ghost walking towards them, and then Peter stepping out of the boat, Jesus was with the disciples.

Peter did not drown.

The wind and the waves were still.

And the disciples believed.

Miracle of Life

the story of the feeding of the 5000 appears in all four Gospels, and it is the only one of the miracles of Jesus that all four gospel writers include, I wonder why?

 

Even people who never have been to church will probably have heard of the story of the feeding of the 5000. In Matthews version there is no little boy, but there are still five loaves and two fish. There are some traditional ways of looking at this reading, one is that there were five loaves and two fish and somehow there was a miracle and those five loaves and two fish fed the multitude. Another way of looking at it is that everybody would have had some food with them, and seeing someone willing to hand over their food to Jesus to share meant others were also willing to share what they had. For Matthew the one who made the world out of nothing was more than capable of multiplying some food, but whether this was a miracle of supply or of sharing, the people who first heard and read the story would have seen something different.

 

Let's think about where this happens, where Matthew has placed this in his gospel. The section just before this is about a birthday party for Herod; the daughter of Herodias danced for him, earning his praise, and led to the death of John the Baptist. Not only was John the Baptist killed, but his head was bought on a platter into the party.

 

At the time, people like Herod had lots of food,  but for most people there was the daily struggle to find enough to eat. Food inequality has been happening for centuries, and food inequality continues to happen today.

The feast of Herod brings about death; yet the fish and bread – subsistence food – is a life giving feast for many.

 

So beyond the bread and fish what might this story have to tell us?

The miracles of Jesus tell us about the nature of God. [i]

remember in chapter 1, Matthew names Jesus, Emmanuel – God is with us.

what do we notice about God in this story?

 

In verse 14 Matthew writes ‘when he went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion for them and cured their sick.’ [NRSV] Jesus had gone off to find a quiet place to grieve for his cousin, but the crowds followed. Jesus did not send them away, but spent time with them and healed the sick. And then in the evening he made sure they had something to eat.

 

One thing we hear in this story is of the compassion of God for people. By contrast in the two stories of feasting, the feast of the rich which is life denying, and the food of Jesus which offers compassion, is healing and life-filled.

 

People were used to the idea that the gods looked after the rich, or people who was special in some way; but not ordinary people, not slaves, not the oppressed, and not the hungry. Maybe one reason this miracle is in all four Gospels is to remind people that the God of Jesus, the God of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob, is not like the gods of Rome or Greece. The God of Jesus does not want human sacrifice. The God of Jesus is not on the side of the rich and powerful, ignoring the needs of the poor and oppressed.

 

In a culture where the Roman Emperor was considered a god, in a time when it was considered subversive not to bow down to the Roman Emperor, a time when gods were seen as harsh and fickle; along comes Jesus, showing that God is compassionate, compassionate to the sick and the poor, the God who is very essence is compassion.

 

Jesus provided food and healing to these people, we live in our society where we have access to food and medical care, some people struggle, but I doubt anyone in this room does not have enough food in a cupboard for a least the next day or two.

 

I wonder what we need from Jesus?

If one of the things that we here in this story is about the compassion of God, what's story would we need to tell today to get that same message across that God is compassionate, not just to some people, but to all people.

 

…….

 

I love this passage from Isaiah, and in thinking about the Matthew reading today I wondered about the questions that are asked:

Why do you spend your money on food that doesn’t nourish?

Why do you spend your hard-earned wages on things that will never satisfy you?

 

what is it that we spend our money on.? Not just food but in general, do we spend our money on that which nourishes our own life, the lives of the people who produce it, and the whole of creation?

Are we like Herod, whose feasting and lifestyle meant death and hunger to other people?

 

Another thing we hear in the story from Matthew, is how Jesus uses the disciples even when they thought they had nothing to give. The disciples saw only five loaves and two fish and a large crowd, and said we can't do anything for all these people send them away.

I wonder when do we see scarcity,

when do we hold on to that which we have, not being willing to share?

 

Sometimes we are called on to give when we don't know if we have any to spare,

sometimes we are called to act when we feel unequipped,

sometimes we are called to speak out and we don't know the words to say. This miracle is for those times. Sometimes we are like the disciples, we doubt our ability, we are pre-occupied with our own concerns, and just like the disciples Jesus comes and shows us that there is more to us and more to life than we ever imagined.

I wonder what we need from Jesus?

Where are we being called to live out a miracle?

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[i] David Lose In the Meantime