It's Time to Go! A Lectionary Reflection
Exodus
12:1-14
Romans
13:8-14
Matthew
18:15-20
It’s
Time to Go!
Some
of us speak of the life of faith as a journey.
Faith is dynamic rather than static.
A journey involves taking risks, because even if you know the
destination there are many variables that go into the journey. Whether that destination is heaven or union
with God, getting there can be an adventure – what Bruce Epperly calls a “holy
adventure.” There are those who do
believe that every moment of the journey is determined, much like taking a ride
on a train. The tracks are fixed, and
there’s no way of getting off the rails (though even there an accident can
derail you). But what if the journey is
a bit more free range? What if the map
is being developed as we take our journey?
It’s possible you might take a wrong turn or get lost. You might find yourself wandering in
circles. There will be temptations and
dangers, deserts and mountains, streams and perhaps jungles. Perhaps the image that might work best for us
here is that of the explorer – let’s say Lewis and Clark – crossing unknown
terrain, looking for a path to a destination that is plotted, but the pathway
is yet unknown. But remember that the
explorers didn’t go alone. They were
accompanied by guides who knew the terrain, or at least could communicate with
those who did know the terrain. As we
take our journey, we go forth accompanied by the Spirit of God. But the key is getting on the road. We’ll never reach our destination by sitting
on the sofa at home!
The
three texts that the Lectionary presents to the church for consideration offer
us different vantage points to look at this journey of faith. One text speaks of preparation for the
journey, while the other two speak to behavior while on the journey.
As we have considered
the ongoing story of the Exodus, which begins in Egypt where Pharaoh is feeling
threatened by the presence of the Hebrew people in the land, feeling that they
were a threat to the culture and the economic interests of the nation and
therefore Pharaoh hatches a plan to eliminate them as a threat. That plan unintentionally provides the means
by which God will seek to free the people from bondage, for one who was
threatened with death becomes the savior, but first he must hear the voice of
God speak from a burning bush. Now, that
savior, Moses, has returned to his people, and teaming with his brother has engaged
a series of challenges with Pharaoh. Now
is the time, however, for the journey out of bondage to begin. God reveals to Moses that since Pharaoh won’t
relent, God is taking drastic measures.
The first born of every family – human and non-human will die. But, the people of Israel will not only be
spared, but in the midst of this final plague on Egypt, God will free the
people. Once again, if we’ve watched
Charlton Heston’s portrayal of Moses, we know this story, even if we’ve not
read it in the original! Here in Exodus
12 we hear the instructions given to the people to prepare to leave and start
life anew. Yes, this event of liberation
marks the beginning of a people. On the
first day of the first month the people are to choose a lamb and then watch
over it until the 14th day, when at twilight, the Angel of Death
will passes over those homes where a lamb has been slaughtered and its blood
smeared on the door posts and the beam above the door. This marks the beginning of a new era. They are to take this opportunity, on the
night of their liberation, to prepare themselves for the journey. The lamb itself, a male yearling without
blemish, is to be slaughtered and roasted (not boiled). They are to eat their fill of the lamb and of
unleavened bread, and whatever is left is to be burned for there is no need for
leftovers. It is time to go, to clean
house. And so with one’s feet shod with
sandals, and a staff in hand, the people are to eat in observance of God’s act
of liberation. And the journey begins,
but as we know, it is not a quick and easy journey. The people will face many obstacles, both
external and internal. A look at the map
suggests a fairly fast journey along the coast will get them to the Promised
Land, but according to our story, it takes forty years of wandering in the
desert, so that generation that knew Egypt could give way to a new generation
ready to embrace the future.
As any group who
travels together knows – behavior can be a challenge. And as we know from the Exodus story, there
were those who behaved badly and disrupted the journey. The two texts from the New Testament, each in
their own way deals with behavior issues.
Romans suggests that the days are short, so be prepared. Live in a way that is honorable. Matthew’s gospel offers us a method of
reconciling when relationships are broken.
In our text from Romans
13, we are reminded that we should have no obligations in life except to love
one another. The Law is important – the
Law that is received by the people of Israel during their sojourn in the
desert. It offers insight into the ways
of God, but these laws can be summarized in the call to love one another. Commandments such as bans on adultery,
murder, theft, and covetousness, all express a call to live together in love of
one another. All of the ethical
commandments are expressions of the call to love our neighbor as we love
ourselves. This call to love neighbor
leads to a warning – know that the time has come to wake up from your
sleep! The day of the Lord is at hand,
so make sure you are ready, and by ready, Paul means – living with neighbors
honorably.
Having called us to
fulfill the commandments by loving our neighbors, Paul then offers a different
viewpoint. He offers a contrast between
living in the light and living in darkness.
Don’t let the actions of darkness define your life, but instead let your
life reflect the light. I realize that
there is inherent in this metaphor of darkness a dualism, but it is important
to note that when we live our lives in ways that are hypocritical (and we all
have some of this, even we clergy) then we fail to reflect the presence of God
in our lives. So, as we head out on the
journey, walk in the light!
The Gospel reading can
be read in relationship to this call to honorable behavior. It offers a method of correction. If we see a brother or sister in the faith
sinning, then it is our responsibility to offer correction. Go alone, Jesus says, and offer your correction. If that doesn’t work, take a brother or
sister with you. The point of this is to
offer correction, but also to put a stop to gossip, something that can be devastating
to a community of faith. So, if you have
a problem go to the person, and if necessary take someone with you, because
every word needs to be witnessed by two or three persons. It’s a good method, because it solves the
problem of “he said/she said.” And then
if that doesn’t work, then Jesus says take it to the church. Now, it needs to be noted the presence of
anachronism. There was no “church” yet,
when Jesus was speaking, but by the time the gospel is written, the church did
exist and thus we have evidence of the way in which the church sought to
organize itself and deal with behavioral issues in the community. One word here that needs to be noted concerns
the “punishment” for refusing to abide the guidance of the community – what in
some Christian communities is known as shunning. Note that in this passage Jesus suggests that
if one doesn’t abide the ruling of the church they should be treated as one
treats a Gentile or tax collector.
Knowing that Jesus welcomed tax collectors and even Gentiles into his
circle, raises interesting questions for the reader of the text. I would expect that the point is that one
should exclude from the community the one who refuses to receive correction,
but is that the end of the story? Could
we not say that the point of all of this emphasis on behavior is restoration of
persons so that they might experience the love of God and then share that love
with neighbor, so that the journey can proceed toward its destination – union with
God and transformation of the created order to reflect the vision of God.
May the journey begin,
and with the adventure may we learn to love one another in ways that brings
honor to God and healing and wholeness to the world we are invited to
touch.
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