Sermon - Father Jerry - June 6, 2010

 

            Two powerful stories today provide the warp and woof of a tapestry presenting the Good News of God. The ministries of the 8^th c. prophet Elijah and of Jesus speak to us of God’s never ending practice of giving life in the midst of death; of visiting the poor, the outcast and widow to create a new order of righteousness and justice; of raising the dead to make it clear that the word of God is active in the world.

As the long post Pentecost season gets underway, these two narratives impress us with the practical work of the gospel. They may appear to be miracle stories whose inclusion in the scriptures is a way of boosting the pedigree of these luminaries. More is at stake here, for they contain the gospel in a nutshell.

In the 8^th c. God sent Elijah to announce that King Ahab’s stubborn idolatry was leading the people away from the worship of the One who rescued them from slavery and gave them a land of their own-- the only God worthy of the name. Ahab was responsible for spreading death through his kingdom, socially, politically, religiously, economically, and environmentally. Yet if he would repent God would forgive and raise up the dead. Now kings frown on such pronouncements. Elijah fled for his life. A three year famine began to waste away the land and its inhabitants. But the prophet’s food was brought by ravens; water flowed for him in the desert. Crossing Israel’s northern border into foreign territory, in his hunger Elijah begs food from a widow only to hear her story of woe. Yet he still claimed the first portion of her last meal. Compelled by hospitality she offered her meager resources. Incredibly her storage jars were never quite empty. Because of her compassion and mercy toward a stranger, she, her son and Elijah were sustained throughout the famine.

But this is more than a story about the virtue of hospitality. God’s purpose is so much greater. The widow’s son suddenly dies. The child was her only hope, for a widow’s life was in jeopardy in the absence of a male protector. In her grief she beats upon the man who was the sole remaining sign of security in her life. What a failure he and his God have become! Her future is wiped away. It’s as though she never existed!

Elijah appealed to God’s compassion already shown in protecting and providing for him while fleeing King Ahab’s wrath, shown in the gracious hospitality of the widow, in feeding the three during the famine, in providing a dwelling place. Together these were evidence of the gift of life. Then his prayer took a human form. Like an adult holding up a hand to measure against a child’s outstretched hand, Elijah covers the child’s whole body with his own and breathes his own breath into the boy. The child begins to breathe again and is restored to his mother who receives not only a living son but new life for herself. You see, it is not just the boy who is raised from the dead; the mother is resurrected as well. What was dead is alive filled with hope and joy! In response the widow might have called in the neighbors to celebrate with her. Instead the scripture proclaims an even deeper truth, for she says, Now I know that you are a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in your mouth is truth (1 Kings 17:24).

Were this part of Elijah’s story not wonderful enough, the prophet goes forward to show God’s life giving power over all comers and finally defeated the idolatrous plans of King Ahab. That is the larger strategic design of God but it is never accomplished at the expense of the core values of the kingdom. Mary’s Song, the Magnificat, earlier in Luke’s gospel proclaims those values well:

[God] has shown the strength of his arm, he has scattered the proud in their conceit. He has cast down the mighty from their thrones, and has lifted up the lowly. He has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty (Lk 1:51-53).

Turning to Jesus’ ministry we heard a similar story of God’s compassion and mercy leading to resurrection. As Jesus, surrounded by a crowd seeking to hear the word of God, comes upon the village of Nain he encounters another crowd of mourners carrying the dead body of a mother’s only son, herself a widow. Then Jesus did astonishing things. He approached the widow urging her to stop crying. Mourning the dead is good, but life and healing are present in Jesus and will over power this moment. Contact with the dead was taboo; an offense against the law which protected life. But Jesus stepped up to grasp the bier, halting its progress to the grave. Then speaking to the corpse, he had the man get up. He rose from the dead. Jesus gave the man to his mother and the combined crowds praise God saying, A great prophet has risen among us! And God has looked favorably on his people (Lk 7:16). A great prophet indeed, in whose mouth is the word of truth, just as was said of Elijah.

What is proclaimed about Jesus here? What is the gospel message in a nutshell? Four true values arise. First, that compassion and mercy lead the list of God’s gracious acts. God is life from beginning to end, and in the face of all that is death-dealing God is intent on restoring life.

Second, God’s mercy is shown toward those who cry out for justice, which in this context is the restoration of relationships that are life-giving, the rebuilding of a society     where everyone has dignity. There is a three-fold pattern in biblical phraseology for the forgotten in the land that deserves the care and blessing of God’s people: the list invariably includes widows along with the stranger and the fatherless (Deut 14:29). They are the forgotten ones, like the street corner pan handlers whose eyes we dare not meet for fear of engaging their need, because their presence is an inconvenience and contrary to more productive uses of a community’s time and money. The widow’s cry can be self-pity for her personal plight--having no son to stand up and declare her cause, or it may be one of justice to assure her and other widows of the respect due every human being. Either way God remembers and stands by the widow.

The third truth is the triumph of life in the midst of death. Jesus speaks life into being, speaking life into the dead body of the widow’s son. Much like the Spirit of God brooding over the waters brings forth life of all kinds (Gen 1:2), or Jesus’ calling forth Lazarus from the tomb (Jn 11:43-44), the Savior’s voice stirred up life in the young man. The dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother (Lk 7:15). Raising the dead is a mystery, and the mystery has broad implications. As in the Elijah story the young man was given to his mother; given to bring about a resurrection in her, to release her from the living death of rejection and loneliness; given for life.

Giving one person to another is a common enough occurrence, though we may not notice the profound act undertaken. At a wedding, parents give their child into the care of another for life and well-being. Sponsors in baptism give their candidates into God’s care with a promise to collaborate with God in the new Christian’s growth in faith, hope and love.

A fourth truth concerns something fundamental to prophets like Elijah and Jesus. Their message is a sign of God’s promise to not forget the most vulnerable. The prophet’s task is to interrupt business as usual, speak the truth about what is contrary to God’s design, and proclaim life in the face of death. The prophetic task continues in the life of the church today, for Christians are called to witness to God’s life saving purpose. We too are prophets. We too are to raise the dead.

Our ministry of resurrection is attentive to life and how to birth it wherever this truth must be spoken. It takes many forms as need demands. Perhaps it is standing up against gang violence and senseless killings among our youth, or offering to those without a home a safe place to sleep at night though a neighbor might object. The ministry of resurrection may encourage both Planned Parenthood and adoption services, expanding foster care homes, making adequate provision to rehabilitate juvenile offenders, advocating for compassionate treatment for the mentally ill and the disabled. Giving birth to life is the overriding concern. Conflicts are inevitable.

The ministry of resurrection engages us all as we prepare to vote for candidates for public office and initiatives on the ballot, as we address the systemic problems of immigration, energy resources, the distribution of water in California, and the economic and environmental challenges involved. These are some of the conditions of human society where the gospel of Jesus Christ must be spoken. The issues are complex, as are the solutions, but the underlying concern remains. Any who is vulnerable, whose life is at risk, is the apple of God’s eye and deserving of our gaze as well. “Resurrection reveals the prophets among us, those who say no to death and yes to life.”[1]

Herein is the gospel of Jesus Christ in a nutshell:

1.    Compassion and mercy head God’s list of gracious acts.

2.    God seeks justice for the forgotten ones.

3.    In the midst of death life will triumph.

4.    Resurrection is the ongoing work of every Christian.

Praise God!