Fear and faith
Commentary
Fear is everywhere in our society. We fear for our safety both in our homes and on the highways. We fear for our health because of all the deadly maladies abroad in the country. We fear for our security, because of both the calamities of nature and the scheming of unscrupulous people trying to do us harm or rip us off. The daily news stresses the sensational, so that it contributes to our fear. The so-called television news magazines are dedicated to the same sensationalism and specialize in featuring all the dreadful things that could befall us.
For good reason, North Americans desperately seek some protection against the fearful forces in our society. Much that we do any more is predicated on fear -- security systems in our homes, safety devices in our cars, insurance for almost any imaginable situation, firearms in case of attack. We scramble to make our lives and those of our loved ones safe and secure. All the time we are desperately trying to overcome our fears, deep down most of us know that there is nothing that can protect us against every possible danger.
The lessons for this Sunday all have to do with fear and faith in one way or the other. As we begin the trek through the long series of Propers (that some of us used to call the Sundays After Pentecost), our readings invite us to think about fear and faith and even to feel the difference between them in these lessons.
1 Samuel 17:(1a, 4-11, 19-23) 32-49
Do you remember your Sunday school teacher telling you about David and Goliath? This lesson is one of the favorite stories in the Old Testament which lots of us learned back in our childhood. The story of David and Goliath is so well known that it has become a common expression in our language. (For example, the single citizen who takes the large corporation to court is called David taking on Goliath.) Preaching this story has both advantages and disadvantages. On the one hand, it may be hard to get people to open their minds to the meaning of a story they know so well (or think they know); on the other hand, if there is any biblical passage with which we can assume everyone is familiar, this is it.
The whole story is considerably long even though its message is simple. Its function in the historical 1 and 2 Samuel construct (part of the "Deuteronomic history") is to introduce readers to David and to impress us with his courage and faith. The story-teller informs us of God's rejection of Saul for his lack of faith (1 Samuel 15:10-31) and leaves the reader wondering who will take the king's place. First Samuel actually includes two different stories of David's introduction to Saul and readers. In chapter 16, the first account tells us how David was anointed and served the king in the royal court. The second is this dramatic story of young David's defeat of the Philistine warrior. Of the two, this story introduces David as one who depends entirely on God and is therefore free to act courageously. Moreover, this is just one of a series of stories recalling Israel's long struggle with the Philistines.
The extended reading sketches at least the skeleton of the whole story in chapter 17. The shorter reading (vv. 32-49) focuses on the climax of the story and David's victory. We will make only a few observations about the shorter reading.
Two contrasts of David with other characters in the story provide the plot's structure. Verses 32-37 contrast Saul's fear and doubt with David's faith and confidence. In spite of Saul's doubt, David is able to convince the king that he -- a mere shepherd boy -- is well equipped to do battle with the dreaded Philistine warrior. As a shepherd, David has some skills that one might not immediately think would qualify him as a warrior competent to go up against Goliath. However, all the skills in the world are not adequate for the task, and David expresses the single feature that will win him the victory. "The Lord ... will save me from the hand of this Philistine" (v. 37). Faith produces courage.
The contrast of Saul and David continues in the next episode in verses 38-40. Saul still doesn't get it and supposes the young warrior should be appropriately garbed with armor for his battle. However, unlike Saul, David depends not on the security of armor but on the security of faith in the face of opposition. There's a touch of humor in the story as we picture the boy David stumbling about trying in vain to walk loaded down with all the battle accouterments Saul thinks he should have.
The final verses (41-49) contrast David and the Philistine. Goliath is appropriately shamed when he finds that a mere boy has been chosen to duel with him. David states the contrast vividly in verse 45. Goliath is armed to the teeth, and David is armed with his God. To come "in the name" of God is to come both as one who represents the Lord and as one accompanied by God. That name, "Lord of hosts," fits the situation like a glove. The ancient name "Lord Sebaoth" means the power to recruit others into service. It may have originated to speak of God as a warrior fighting with Israel against its enemies (for example, David's success in battle, 2 Samuel 6-10). While Goliath the Philistine has "defied" the Lord's name, David has honored it. The contrast of these two is expressed again in verse 47, which suggests that God does not accomplish the divine will through the use of force because the Lord is already victor. The reason God seeks victory is in order to provide the "assembly" reason to be confident and to act with courage.
The battle itself is told with surprising brevity (vv. 48-49), so much so that Hollywood would have to rewrite it to make it more suspenseful. However, the image of Goliath's death is vivid and leaves no doubt that David has taken him out. The point is simply that David has all it takes to slay this faithless Philistine.
This narrative is about as straightforward and unambiguous as you can ask for. However, the hero stories of the Old Testament, like this one, are never told simply to elevate a person to celebrity status. They always have a moral and religious lesson, as this one does: Trusting God, you need not fear the opposition. Both Saul's and David's falls come when they forget to trust God and begin trusting their own skills or seeking their own will (see 1 Samuel 15:10-31, and 2 Samuel 11:1--12:23). As simple as that lesson is, it still resonates with our lives today when the Goliaths of fear and intimidation surround us for the kill.
2 Corinthians 6:1-13
In this reading Paul makes a case for courage and fearlessness. We have discussed much of this passage (2 Corinthians 5:20b--6:10) in some detail in our column for Ash Wednesday in the March-April issue of Emphasis, and we do not want to repeat ourselves here. Instead, let's mark a few features of the passage in terms of what Paul is trying to do here and how it relates to fearing and believing.
You will remember that much of 2 Corinthians is devoted to Paul's effort to defend himself and his fellow missionaries against some sort of misunderstanding of their ministry and even slandering of their names. In this passage, Paul urges the Corinthian Christians not to lose what they had gained through their faith ("not to accept the grace of God in vain," v. 1). Then he tries to demonstrate how he and his colleagues have worked among the Corinthians with all the sincerity and commitment one could ask for. To that end he lists the dreadful conditions they have experienced (vv. 4-5) and all the virtues they possessed in dealing with these conditions (vv. 6-8). He then sets in opposition the way they have been perceived and their real character (vv. 8-10).
In the last three verses (11-13) Paul appeals to readers to be as open and honest with themselves as the missionaries have been with them. Paul characterizes himself and his colleagues as speaking "frankly" (literally, they have "opened their mouths") -- a free and honest expression of themselves -- and spreading their hearts "wide open." That's how much love they have demonstrated in dealing with the Corinthians. Verse 11 sounds as if Paul is answering a charge that he deprived the readers of some freedom -- that he had somehow "restricted" them. His answer is simply that the Corinthians have confined themselves. "Affections" translates the Greek word for the inner organs which were thought to be the seat of the emotions (what we would call "heart"). All in all, Paul asks his readers to "make room in their lives" for Paul and his companions. The final appeal is sharp and, as Paul confesses, sounds like a parent admonishing a child: We have been open with you; now you open your lives to us.
This is a fascinating passage that shows how Paul deals with a conflict and appeals for cooperation and congeniality. For our purposes we are interested in the way in which he characterizes his missionary work and that of his companions. The list in verses 4b-5 depicts a courageous band willing to endure most anything for their cause. Paul wants to show readers how fearless the missionaries have been. He says, "We have commended ourselves in every way" (v. 4a) but never mentions faith as one of the characteristics the missionaries have tried to communicate. Fearlessness and faith are not articulated in just so many words, but the text invites us to see and to feel with Paul and his associates in their actions. Faith cannot overcome fear unless faith is lived, expressed in behavior, and manifested through actions. Paul is trying to convince the Corinthians that the actions of the missionary team has shown faith and fearlessness.
Mark 4:35-41
Chapter 4 of Mark is devoted in large part to a number of Jesus' parables and his words about how to interpret them. However, the narrative takes a sudden turn at verse 35 and concludes the chapter with Jesus' stilling the storm. Jesus' wondrous power over nature then leads us back to accounts of still more exorcisms and healings (5:1-43). The story of the stilling of the storm is one of only four wondrous stories Mark records in which Jesus acts, not on humans, but on the forces of nature. (The other three are the two accounts of the multiplication of the loaves and fishes in 6:30-42 and 8:1-10 and Jesus' walking on water in 6:45-37.) These stories further manifest Jesus' glory by means of his command over the natural world.
The story of the stilling of the storm is remarkably compact. After describing a setting (vv. 35-36), the story moves simply from problem (or danger) to solution (or rescue) and ends with the disciples' wonderment. Jesus proposes that he and the disciples leave the crowd and go across the Sea of Galilee which would then put them in the region of the Decapolis. The storm stilling is one of four wondrous works Jesus did in that region before he and the disciples returned to Nazareth (6:1). The phrase "just as he was" (v. 36) is obscure in English because it is equally obscure in the Greek. It apparently means that Jesus was already in the boat where he had been teaching (see 4:1-2) or could be simply another way of saying "suddenly." "The other boats" (v. 36b) is another confusing detail in the story. This may be no more than Mark's way of telling us that the group of disciples was too numerous to fit into one boat; however, the story proceeds as if it concerns only one boat.
The narrative problem (or danger) is sketched quickly in two verses (37 and 38). The storm is so mighty that the boat is "already being swamped" -- the water is coming over the sides and accumulating inside the boat. (Compare Jonah 1:4.) It seems incredible that Jesus would sleep through such a storm, and his sleep may be a way of indicating his sovereignty and security in the face of such threatening circumstances. The disciples, however, interpret his napping as an expression of indifference to their situation. Much as many of us have wondered if God is asleep while we are suffering, these disciples feel as if God has abandoned them. Or, as the popular song a number of years ago affirmed, "God is watching us ... (but) from a distance."
Jesus provides the solution to the mess the disciples are in and does so in an astounding way. First, he "rebukes" the wind and then commands that it be silent. It is as if Jesus exorcizes the storm demon, since he rebukes and quiets the storm with the very same words he uses to rebuke and to silence demons (for example, Mark 1:25). Mark presents the stilling of the storm as an exorcism of the storm demon, and then immediately relates the exorcism of a legion of demons (5:1-20). Jesus repeats an ancient tradition that God silenced the chaotic waters of evil (for example, Genesis 8:1 and Psalm 74:13-14). The storm epitomizes the forces of evil, and Jesus' stilling the storm subtly anticipates how he will overthrow those forces in his death.
Having rescued the disciples from what they thought was sure death by drowning, Jesus then poses a double question for the tiny group. In brief, those questions are: Why fear the storm and are you still unwilling to believe? What is the relationship between these two questions? Mark has made it clear that the disciples were slow in comprehending who Jesus is. As recently as 4:13, Jesus asked how they could be so dull in understanding the parables; but now it is not understanding they lack but faith. In Jesus' two questions, faith is the opposite of fear, but what does faith in this case mean? Several answers are possible; however, the simplest and most obvious is that the disciples' fear of the storm overwhelmed their confidence in Jesus and his care for them (see v. 38). Their faith would not necessarily have led them to expect such a wondrous rescue. However, their faith should have assured them that through Christ God was present with them even in such dire circumstances. Fear drowns faith, even as the disciples feared they would drown.
The story closes with the disciples' two reactions to what they have experienced. First, they are overwhelmed with awe; and then they ask, "Who then is this that even the wind and the sea obey him?" Their awe is entirely understandable. However, it is interesting that the Greek word translated "great awe" is more literally "a terrible fear." The word for fear here is different from the one of which Jesus accuses them in the previous verse. Moreover, the word Jesus uses to speak of the disciples' fear of the storm means "cowardice." Now they experience the kind of fear that arises from being in the presence of something or someone extraordinary, of inextricable power, so the English word "awe" is an accurate translation. That translation, however, loses the sense of how the disciples' fear has changed from fear of drowning to fear of standing in the presence of a transcendent power.
The disciples had by this time experienced Jesus' wondrous acts, but this one exceeded even their wildest ideas of what he might be capable of doing. They are forced to wonder who their master might be. With this question, Mark again poses the most important issue in the Gospel, namely, Jesus' true identity. Readers have known Jesus' identity from the very first (see Mark 1:1), but the characters in the story struggle to get it right. For the human characters in the narrative, the answer to the question, "Who then is this ... ?" does not come until the Centurion makes his confession at the foot of the cross (15:39).
Fear threatens to drown faith. In the midst of life's struggles and the seeming absence of God at times, it is easy to allow our fears to overwhelm us and suffocate our trust in God. Like the disciples, when the storms of life are nearly swamping us, we may be tempted to think God doesn't care. We may not be able, as were Paul and his colleagues, to show courage in the midst of troubles and hopelessness. Unlike David, we may not be able to trust that the "Lord of hosts" is with us and battles with us against the giants of life. We cannot avoid those situations in which fear looms so large that faith is diminished, and faith will always be under attack by threats and dangers. The one advantage that Paul and we have over the disciples is that we have witnessed God's supreme care for humanity in the cross and resurrection. We know who this is whom "the wind and the sea obey."
FIRST LESSON FOCUS
By Elizabeth Achtemeier
1 Samuel 17:(1a, 4-11, 19-23) 32-49
Every pupil in Sunday school knows -- or used to know -- this story of David and Goliath. It fits right in with the stories of the heroes in comic books, and very often it is employed in that fashion. But there are no human heroes in the Bible, and anyone who limits the story to that dimension has missed its point.
First the facts related to the chapter: We know that in 1175 B.C., a group of peoples from the island of Crete tried to invade Egypt. They were defeated and pushed back up along the coast of Canaan, where they settled in five city-states. These were the Philistines, from whom we get the name "Palestine." While they had independent city governments, they banded together in times of war, and for two centuries they dominated the life of Israel, threatening her with annihilation. It was not until David became king in 1000 B.C., that the Philistines were subdued -- one of the reasons why David was celebrated as such a great king among the Israelites.
This story serves as one of the introductions of David to King Saul. The Philistine army has gathered for battle at Socoh in the hilly region on the western fringe of the territory of Judah. Saul assembles his forces on a hill on the opposite side of a valley. In order to taunt the weaker army of Saul and to strike fear into his soldiers, a giant of a man named Goliath steps forward from the Philistine ranks to heap scorn on the weaker Israelites. The text, verses 4-7, says that Goliath is six feet nine inches tall, fully armed, with a helmet of bronze on his head and bronze shin guards on his legs. He has a coat of mail that weighs 160 pounds, a javelin of bronze on his back, and a long spear whose head alone weighs over nineteen pounds. Goliath challenges the Israelites. Let them send out one man to fight him. If the man is able to kill him, the Philistines will become Israel's slaves. If Goliath wins, Israel will be enslaved to the Philistines. "I defy the ranks of Israel this day!" Goliath shouts. The taunt is full of arrogance. (Cf. its anticipation in 2:3-4.)
David is introduced into the story at this point. He is a smooth-cheeked, ruddy-faced youth, whom his father Jesse just uses as a messenger boy, providing provisions to David's three older brothers who are in Saul's army. Like any child, he loves to talk to the soldiers, and in the course of forty days, he hears about Goliath's taunt. Significantly, he also hears that anyone who kills Goliath will be rewarded by Saul with great riches and marriage to Saul's daughter, Michal (vv. 26, 30). So, perhaps not unselfishly, he bravely exhibits his piety and rashly declares, "Who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?" (v. 26). David's brother, Eliab, can't stomach that rashness (v. 28). But King Saul hears of it and summons David to his royal tent. There David tells the king that he will fight Goliath (v. 32). When the king replies to David that a youth such as he cannot defeat a trained warrior, David assures Saul that he killed lions and bears when he guarded his father's sheep. "The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine" (v. 37). Saul, a religious man, sees a glimmer of hope from the Lord. "Go, and the Lord be with you" (v. 37).
To protect the brave youth, Saul gives David his armor, but David will have none of it. He will be his own man. So he gathers five smooth stones from a brook and goes out with only a sling and a shepherd's bag to meet Goliath, who greets him with scorn and cursing. David nevertheless declares, "This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand" (v. 46). David slings a stone that buries itself in Goliath's forehead. Goliath falls dead, David cuts off Goliath's head with the giant's own sword, and the Philistines flee in terror. What a hero! No. David slays Goliath "that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel, and that all this assembly may know that the Lord saves not with sword and spear; for the battle is the Lord's" (vv. 46-47). It is God who wins the victory.
God chooses what is weak in the world to shame the strong (1 Corinthians 1:27). It is always thus in God's working in this world. God chooses a shepherd boy to defeat a giant. God chooses a fugitive Moses to defy a Pharaoh. God starts with just twelve ordinary men to transform the earth. And a cross of death becomes the defeat of the sin of the world. David, as long as he relied on the Lord, had might that could not be overcome by human strength. "In God I trust without a fear. What can man do to me?" (Psalm 56:11). Is that not also the faith with which you and I can fearlessly live, no matter what happens to us?
Lutheran Option -- Job 38:1-11
Here begins the long speech of God (chs. 38-41) out of the whirlwind to his suffering servant Job. In a sense, it forms a rebuke to Job. Job has demanded that God explain to him why he, a righteous and pious, upright man, is suffering. Let us go to court together, Job declares. Let me see the indictment of God against me (Job. 31:35). "I cry to thee and thou dost not answer me; I stand and thou dost not heed me" (30:20). "Oh, that I knew where I might find him, that I might come even to his seat!" (23:3). Just do two things for me, Job cries out. Do not terrify me with dread and let me speak to you and have you reply (13:20-22). But please, O God, do not hide your face from me (20:24). I suppose many of us in the dark night of our souls or on a bed of fear or pain have directed such petitions to God.
God does, however, speak to Job, not because Job has demanded it, but because God is merciful. And what does he say to suffering Job? Nothing that seems very comforting -- things like, "Behold, the hippopotamus" (40:14), or "Can you hunt the prey for the lion?" (38:39), or "Who has let the wild ass go free?" (39:5) or here in our text, "Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth" (38:4)? Those seem almost laughable answers and certainly no replies at all to suffering.
There are two points to be made, however. First, the Creator and Sustainer of the universe does not abandon any of his creatures. He lowers himself to address even one who has complained against him. And second, when he speaks, God points out to Job that he cares for every living thing that he has made, furnishing them everything that they need and constantly watching over and sustaining their lives. So too, God cares for Job, seeing his every moment, sustaining his breath of life, and ministering to him in all his infirmities.
God can be trusted. The orderly processes of the universe are one evidence of the Lord's faithfulness. And on our beds of pain, or in our moments of fear and anxiety, or when we think there is no help from any other quarter or even from God, God the faithful Lord of his creation is there, helping, guarding, loving us. Praised be his name!
For good reason, North Americans desperately seek some protection against the fearful forces in our society. Much that we do any more is predicated on fear -- security systems in our homes, safety devices in our cars, insurance for almost any imaginable situation, firearms in case of attack. We scramble to make our lives and those of our loved ones safe and secure. All the time we are desperately trying to overcome our fears, deep down most of us know that there is nothing that can protect us against every possible danger.
The lessons for this Sunday all have to do with fear and faith in one way or the other. As we begin the trek through the long series of Propers (that some of us used to call the Sundays After Pentecost), our readings invite us to think about fear and faith and even to feel the difference between them in these lessons.
1 Samuel 17:(1a, 4-11, 19-23) 32-49
Do you remember your Sunday school teacher telling you about David and Goliath? This lesson is one of the favorite stories in the Old Testament which lots of us learned back in our childhood. The story of David and Goliath is so well known that it has become a common expression in our language. (For example, the single citizen who takes the large corporation to court is called David taking on Goliath.) Preaching this story has both advantages and disadvantages. On the one hand, it may be hard to get people to open their minds to the meaning of a story they know so well (or think they know); on the other hand, if there is any biblical passage with which we can assume everyone is familiar, this is it.
The whole story is considerably long even though its message is simple. Its function in the historical 1 and 2 Samuel construct (part of the "Deuteronomic history") is to introduce readers to David and to impress us with his courage and faith. The story-teller informs us of God's rejection of Saul for his lack of faith (1 Samuel 15:10-31) and leaves the reader wondering who will take the king's place. First Samuel actually includes two different stories of David's introduction to Saul and readers. In chapter 16, the first account tells us how David was anointed and served the king in the royal court. The second is this dramatic story of young David's defeat of the Philistine warrior. Of the two, this story introduces David as one who depends entirely on God and is therefore free to act courageously. Moreover, this is just one of a series of stories recalling Israel's long struggle with the Philistines.
The extended reading sketches at least the skeleton of the whole story in chapter 17. The shorter reading (vv. 32-49) focuses on the climax of the story and David's victory. We will make only a few observations about the shorter reading.
Two contrasts of David with other characters in the story provide the plot's structure. Verses 32-37 contrast Saul's fear and doubt with David's faith and confidence. In spite of Saul's doubt, David is able to convince the king that he -- a mere shepherd boy -- is well equipped to do battle with the dreaded Philistine warrior. As a shepherd, David has some skills that one might not immediately think would qualify him as a warrior competent to go up against Goliath. However, all the skills in the world are not adequate for the task, and David expresses the single feature that will win him the victory. "The Lord ... will save me from the hand of this Philistine" (v. 37). Faith produces courage.
The contrast of Saul and David continues in the next episode in verses 38-40. Saul still doesn't get it and supposes the young warrior should be appropriately garbed with armor for his battle. However, unlike Saul, David depends not on the security of armor but on the security of faith in the face of opposition. There's a touch of humor in the story as we picture the boy David stumbling about trying in vain to walk loaded down with all the battle accouterments Saul thinks he should have.
The final verses (41-49) contrast David and the Philistine. Goliath is appropriately shamed when he finds that a mere boy has been chosen to duel with him. David states the contrast vividly in verse 45. Goliath is armed to the teeth, and David is armed with his God. To come "in the name" of God is to come both as one who represents the Lord and as one accompanied by God. That name, "Lord of hosts," fits the situation like a glove. The ancient name "Lord Sebaoth" means the power to recruit others into service. It may have originated to speak of God as a warrior fighting with Israel against its enemies (for example, David's success in battle, 2 Samuel 6-10). While Goliath the Philistine has "defied" the Lord's name, David has honored it. The contrast of these two is expressed again in verse 47, which suggests that God does not accomplish the divine will through the use of force because the Lord is already victor. The reason God seeks victory is in order to provide the "assembly" reason to be confident and to act with courage.
The battle itself is told with surprising brevity (vv. 48-49), so much so that Hollywood would have to rewrite it to make it more suspenseful. However, the image of Goliath's death is vivid and leaves no doubt that David has taken him out. The point is simply that David has all it takes to slay this faithless Philistine.
This narrative is about as straightforward and unambiguous as you can ask for. However, the hero stories of the Old Testament, like this one, are never told simply to elevate a person to celebrity status. They always have a moral and religious lesson, as this one does: Trusting God, you need not fear the opposition. Both Saul's and David's falls come when they forget to trust God and begin trusting their own skills or seeking their own will (see 1 Samuel 15:10-31, and 2 Samuel 11:1--12:23). As simple as that lesson is, it still resonates with our lives today when the Goliaths of fear and intimidation surround us for the kill.
2 Corinthians 6:1-13
In this reading Paul makes a case for courage and fearlessness. We have discussed much of this passage (2 Corinthians 5:20b--6:10) in some detail in our column for Ash Wednesday in the March-April issue of Emphasis, and we do not want to repeat ourselves here. Instead, let's mark a few features of the passage in terms of what Paul is trying to do here and how it relates to fearing and believing.
You will remember that much of 2 Corinthians is devoted to Paul's effort to defend himself and his fellow missionaries against some sort of misunderstanding of their ministry and even slandering of their names. In this passage, Paul urges the Corinthian Christians not to lose what they had gained through their faith ("not to accept the grace of God in vain," v. 1). Then he tries to demonstrate how he and his colleagues have worked among the Corinthians with all the sincerity and commitment one could ask for. To that end he lists the dreadful conditions they have experienced (vv. 4-5) and all the virtues they possessed in dealing with these conditions (vv. 6-8). He then sets in opposition the way they have been perceived and their real character (vv. 8-10).
In the last three verses (11-13) Paul appeals to readers to be as open and honest with themselves as the missionaries have been with them. Paul characterizes himself and his colleagues as speaking "frankly" (literally, they have "opened their mouths") -- a free and honest expression of themselves -- and spreading their hearts "wide open." That's how much love they have demonstrated in dealing with the Corinthians. Verse 11 sounds as if Paul is answering a charge that he deprived the readers of some freedom -- that he had somehow "restricted" them. His answer is simply that the Corinthians have confined themselves. "Affections" translates the Greek word for the inner organs which were thought to be the seat of the emotions (what we would call "heart"). All in all, Paul asks his readers to "make room in their lives" for Paul and his companions. The final appeal is sharp and, as Paul confesses, sounds like a parent admonishing a child: We have been open with you; now you open your lives to us.
This is a fascinating passage that shows how Paul deals with a conflict and appeals for cooperation and congeniality. For our purposes we are interested in the way in which he characterizes his missionary work and that of his companions. The list in verses 4b-5 depicts a courageous band willing to endure most anything for their cause. Paul wants to show readers how fearless the missionaries have been. He says, "We have commended ourselves in every way" (v. 4a) but never mentions faith as one of the characteristics the missionaries have tried to communicate. Fearlessness and faith are not articulated in just so many words, but the text invites us to see and to feel with Paul and his associates in their actions. Faith cannot overcome fear unless faith is lived, expressed in behavior, and manifested through actions. Paul is trying to convince the Corinthians that the actions of the missionary team has shown faith and fearlessness.
Mark 4:35-41
Chapter 4 of Mark is devoted in large part to a number of Jesus' parables and his words about how to interpret them. However, the narrative takes a sudden turn at verse 35 and concludes the chapter with Jesus' stilling the storm. Jesus' wondrous power over nature then leads us back to accounts of still more exorcisms and healings (5:1-43). The story of the stilling of the storm is one of only four wondrous stories Mark records in which Jesus acts, not on humans, but on the forces of nature. (The other three are the two accounts of the multiplication of the loaves and fishes in 6:30-42 and 8:1-10 and Jesus' walking on water in 6:45-37.) These stories further manifest Jesus' glory by means of his command over the natural world.
The story of the stilling of the storm is remarkably compact. After describing a setting (vv. 35-36), the story moves simply from problem (or danger) to solution (or rescue) and ends with the disciples' wonderment. Jesus proposes that he and the disciples leave the crowd and go across the Sea of Galilee which would then put them in the region of the Decapolis. The storm stilling is one of four wondrous works Jesus did in that region before he and the disciples returned to Nazareth (6:1). The phrase "just as he was" (v. 36) is obscure in English because it is equally obscure in the Greek. It apparently means that Jesus was already in the boat where he had been teaching (see 4:1-2) or could be simply another way of saying "suddenly." "The other boats" (v. 36b) is another confusing detail in the story. This may be no more than Mark's way of telling us that the group of disciples was too numerous to fit into one boat; however, the story proceeds as if it concerns only one boat.
The narrative problem (or danger) is sketched quickly in two verses (37 and 38). The storm is so mighty that the boat is "already being swamped" -- the water is coming over the sides and accumulating inside the boat. (Compare Jonah 1:4.) It seems incredible that Jesus would sleep through such a storm, and his sleep may be a way of indicating his sovereignty and security in the face of such threatening circumstances. The disciples, however, interpret his napping as an expression of indifference to their situation. Much as many of us have wondered if God is asleep while we are suffering, these disciples feel as if God has abandoned them. Or, as the popular song a number of years ago affirmed, "God is watching us ... (but) from a distance."
Jesus provides the solution to the mess the disciples are in and does so in an astounding way. First, he "rebukes" the wind and then commands that it be silent. It is as if Jesus exorcizes the storm demon, since he rebukes and quiets the storm with the very same words he uses to rebuke and to silence demons (for example, Mark 1:25). Mark presents the stilling of the storm as an exorcism of the storm demon, and then immediately relates the exorcism of a legion of demons (5:1-20). Jesus repeats an ancient tradition that God silenced the chaotic waters of evil (for example, Genesis 8:1 and Psalm 74:13-14). The storm epitomizes the forces of evil, and Jesus' stilling the storm subtly anticipates how he will overthrow those forces in his death.
Having rescued the disciples from what they thought was sure death by drowning, Jesus then poses a double question for the tiny group. In brief, those questions are: Why fear the storm and are you still unwilling to believe? What is the relationship between these two questions? Mark has made it clear that the disciples were slow in comprehending who Jesus is. As recently as 4:13, Jesus asked how they could be so dull in understanding the parables; but now it is not understanding they lack but faith. In Jesus' two questions, faith is the opposite of fear, but what does faith in this case mean? Several answers are possible; however, the simplest and most obvious is that the disciples' fear of the storm overwhelmed their confidence in Jesus and his care for them (see v. 38). Their faith would not necessarily have led them to expect such a wondrous rescue. However, their faith should have assured them that through Christ God was present with them even in such dire circumstances. Fear drowns faith, even as the disciples feared they would drown.
The story closes with the disciples' two reactions to what they have experienced. First, they are overwhelmed with awe; and then they ask, "Who then is this that even the wind and the sea obey him?" Their awe is entirely understandable. However, it is interesting that the Greek word translated "great awe" is more literally "a terrible fear." The word for fear here is different from the one of which Jesus accuses them in the previous verse. Moreover, the word Jesus uses to speak of the disciples' fear of the storm means "cowardice." Now they experience the kind of fear that arises from being in the presence of something or someone extraordinary, of inextricable power, so the English word "awe" is an accurate translation. That translation, however, loses the sense of how the disciples' fear has changed from fear of drowning to fear of standing in the presence of a transcendent power.
The disciples had by this time experienced Jesus' wondrous acts, but this one exceeded even their wildest ideas of what he might be capable of doing. They are forced to wonder who their master might be. With this question, Mark again poses the most important issue in the Gospel, namely, Jesus' true identity. Readers have known Jesus' identity from the very first (see Mark 1:1), but the characters in the story struggle to get it right. For the human characters in the narrative, the answer to the question, "Who then is this ... ?" does not come until the Centurion makes his confession at the foot of the cross (15:39).
Fear threatens to drown faith. In the midst of life's struggles and the seeming absence of God at times, it is easy to allow our fears to overwhelm us and suffocate our trust in God. Like the disciples, when the storms of life are nearly swamping us, we may be tempted to think God doesn't care. We may not be able, as were Paul and his colleagues, to show courage in the midst of troubles and hopelessness. Unlike David, we may not be able to trust that the "Lord of hosts" is with us and battles with us against the giants of life. We cannot avoid those situations in which fear looms so large that faith is diminished, and faith will always be under attack by threats and dangers. The one advantage that Paul and we have over the disciples is that we have witnessed God's supreme care for humanity in the cross and resurrection. We know who this is whom "the wind and the sea obey."
FIRST LESSON FOCUS
By Elizabeth Achtemeier
1 Samuel 17:(1a, 4-11, 19-23) 32-49
Every pupil in Sunday school knows -- or used to know -- this story of David and Goliath. It fits right in with the stories of the heroes in comic books, and very often it is employed in that fashion. But there are no human heroes in the Bible, and anyone who limits the story to that dimension has missed its point.
First the facts related to the chapter: We know that in 1175 B.C., a group of peoples from the island of Crete tried to invade Egypt. They were defeated and pushed back up along the coast of Canaan, where they settled in five city-states. These were the Philistines, from whom we get the name "Palestine." While they had independent city governments, they banded together in times of war, and for two centuries they dominated the life of Israel, threatening her with annihilation. It was not until David became king in 1000 B.C., that the Philistines were subdued -- one of the reasons why David was celebrated as such a great king among the Israelites.
This story serves as one of the introductions of David to King Saul. The Philistine army has gathered for battle at Socoh in the hilly region on the western fringe of the territory of Judah. Saul assembles his forces on a hill on the opposite side of a valley. In order to taunt the weaker army of Saul and to strike fear into his soldiers, a giant of a man named Goliath steps forward from the Philistine ranks to heap scorn on the weaker Israelites. The text, verses 4-7, says that Goliath is six feet nine inches tall, fully armed, with a helmet of bronze on his head and bronze shin guards on his legs. He has a coat of mail that weighs 160 pounds, a javelin of bronze on his back, and a long spear whose head alone weighs over nineteen pounds. Goliath challenges the Israelites. Let them send out one man to fight him. If the man is able to kill him, the Philistines will become Israel's slaves. If Goliath wins, Israel will be enslaved to the Philistines. "I defy the ranks of Israel this day!" Goliath shouts. The taunt is full of arrogance. (Cf. its anticipation in 2:3-4.)
David is introduced into the story at this point. He is a smooth-cheeked, ruddy-faced youth, whom his father Jesse just uses as a messenger boy, providing provisions to David's three older brothers who are in Saul's army. Like any child, he loves to talk to the soldiers, and in the course of forty days, he hears about Goliath's taunt. Significantly, he also hears that anyone who kills Goliath will be rewarded by Saul with great riches and marriage to Saul's daughter, Michal (vv. 26, 30). So, perhaps not unselfishly, he bravely exhibits his piety and rashly declares, "Who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?" (v. 26). David's brother, Eliab, can't stomach that rashness (v. 28). But King Saul hears of it and summons David to his royal tent. There David tells the king that he will fight Goliath (v. 32). When the king replies to David that a youth such as he cannot defeat a trained warrior, David assures Saul that he killed lions and bears when he guarded his father's sheep. "The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine" (v. 37). Saul, a religious man, sees a glimmer of hope from the Lord. "Go, and the Lord be with you" (v. 37).
To protect the brave youth, Saul gives David his armor, but David will have none of it. He will be his own man. So he gathers five smooth stones from a brook and goes out with only a sling and a shepherd's bag to meet Goliath, who greets him with scorn and cursing. David nevertheless declares, "This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand" (v. 46). David slings a stone that buries itself in Goliath's forehead. Goliath falls dead, David cuts off Goliath's head with the giant's own sword, and the Philistines flee in terror. What a hero! No. David slays Goliath "that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel, and that all this assembly may know that the Lord saves not with sword and spear; for the battle is the Lord's" (vv. 46-47). It is God who wins the victory.
God chooses what is weak in the world to shame the strong (1 Corinthians 1:27). It is always thus in God's working in this world. God chooses a shepherd boy to defeat a giant. God chooses a fugitive Moses to defy a Pharaoh. God starts with just twelve ordinary men to transform the earth. And a cross of death becomes the defeat of the sin of the world. David, as long as he relied on the Lord, had might that could not be overcome by human strength. "In God I trust without a fear. What can man do to me?" (Psalm 56:11). Is that not also the faith with which you and I can fearlessly live, no matter what happens to us?
Lutheran Option -- Job 38:1-11
Here begins the long speech of God (chs. 38-41) out of the whirlwind to his suffering servant Job. In a sense, it forms a rebuke to Job. Job has demanded that God explain to him why he, a righteous and pious, upright man, is suffering. Let us go to court together, Job declares. Let me see the indictment of God against me (Job. 31:35). "I cry to thee and thou dost not answer me; I stand and thou dost not heed me" (30:20). "Oh, that I knew where I might find him, that I might come even to his seat!" (23:3). Just do two things for me, Job cries out. Do not terrify me with dread and let me speak to you and have you reply (13:20-22). But please, O God, do not hide your face from me (20:24). I suppose many of us in the dark night of our souls or on a bed of fear or pain have directed such petitions to God.
God does, however, speak to Job, not because Job has demanded it, but because God is merciful. And what does he say to suffering Job? Nothing that seems very comforting -- things like, "Behold, the hippopotamus" (40:14), or "Can you hunt the prey for the lion?" (38:39), or "Who has let the wild ass go free?" (39:5) or here in our text, "Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth" (38:4)? Those seem almost laughable answers and certainly no replies at all to suffering.
There are two points to be made, however. First, the Creator and Sustainer of the universe does not abandon any of his creatures. He lowers himself to address even one who has complained against him. And second, when he speaks, God points out to Job that he cares for every living thing that he has made, furnishing them everything that they need and constantly watching over and sustaining their lives. So too, God cares for Job, seeing his every moment, sustaining his breath of life, and ministering to him in all his infirmities.
God can be trusted. The orderly processes of the universe are one evidence of the Lord's faithfulness. And on our beds of pain, or in our moments of fear and anxiety, or when we think there is no help from any other quarter or even from God, God the faithful Lord of his creation is there, helping, guarding, loving us. Praised be his name!
