Jilted in Jerusalem
Commentary
If the lost is lost, it is not found. If it is found, it is no longer lost. It is either in the state of being lost or found, one or the other. At least this is true for a sheep or a coin. But, what about a person, whose life is a bit more complex than that of a sheep or a coin? Martin Luther understood the state of being for the Christian as being simul iustus et peccator ("at the same time saint and sinner" -- simultaneously lost and found). This is a dialectic that reflects the reality of human life coram Deo.
On a timeline, one may be able to "date" one's salvation, whether that be described in terms of one's baptism (even as an infant) or in terms of being born again as an adult convert to the faith. Yet, there is a sense in which we struggle daily with our relationship with God, such that we are in constant need of repentance and forgiveness, confessing our lostness and at the same time rejoicing in our foundness by the grace of God. Luther described this when he asked the question about the significance of baptism into Christ Jesus: "It signifies," he wrote in his Small Catechism, "that the old creature in us with all sins and evil desires is to be drowned and die through daily contrition and repentance, and ... that daily a new person is to come forth and rise up to live before God in righteousness...."
Today, Jeremiah deals with a nation that is lost. Paul reflects upon his own experience of being found by the Lord. Jesus tells two stories that describe the activity of God on our behalf, overcoming our propensity to be lost. Yes, we are lost. Yes, we are found. Thank God his hand is on us in both states of being.
Jeremiah 4:11-12, 22-28
"Jeremiah was a bullfrog." So began a popular song decades ago. The prophet must have sounded much like a bullfrog croaking out the words of judgment that did not set easily in the ears of the people. "Was a good friend of mine," continues the song. No! Not Jeremiah. No friends, except perhaps Baruch, his faithful scribe. Jeremiah had to wear the burdensome prophet's mantel for about four decades, himself ending up in exile in Egypt, subject to the very judgment he pronounced against Judah.
Judah is tagged as "skilled at doing evil" (4:22). Even though they had the example of Israel (the northern kingdom) before them, they did not heed the warning. So, just as Israel was punished for her sins (3:6-8a), so too would Judah be subject to "a hot wind ... out of the bare heights" (4:11). Yet, in an interesting turn, the word of the Lord is still preached to Israel, that if they repent, they could still be forgiven and experience some sense of restoration ("I will bring you to Zion," 3:12-14). Though the people have jilted God, that is not the end of his relationship with them. God's judgment is but another expression of his ongoing hold upon the ones he has chosen.
Now, against Judah, God would unleash his "fierce anger" (4:26). God will be relentless in his pursuit of justice. Babylon, the new power broker on the world stage, will descend from the North (Dan being the northern most tribe will experience their thunder first; 4:15) under Nebuchadnezzar, who like a lion hungry for prey will pillage the land (4:7). However, this judgment will not be as severe as for the northern kingdom under the Assyrian onslaught. "Yet, I will not make a full end" (4:27), God declares. There will be a window of hope, though it will only be cracked open at this time. This demonstrates that God's wrath, as dreadful as it is, is still an expression of his love, which seeks his lost and erring children to bring them back into a right relationship. This "not making a full end" at this time is similar to what Paul refers to in Romans 2:4 when he lifts up the forbearance and patience of God against ungodliness (Romans 1:18--2:11): "Do you not know that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?"
1 Timothy 1:12-17
Paul's memoirs are really written in his letters. They reveal what God has done in the life of Paul personally and what God has done through the life of Paul for others. Paul would never think of writing his own story; leave that to Luke in the book of Acts. But, Paul does not hesitate to take pen in hand and write to others to help their lives shine, just as he does with Timothy.
Paul refers to Timothy as "my loyal child in the faith" (1:2). Paul may not have been a biological parent to anyone, but he was a spiritual parent to many. Timothy has a special place in his heart, for there is no one else we are aware of that Paul refers to in such a compelling, fatherly way. In Philippians 2:20, Paul tells the Philippians regarding Timothy, "I have no one like him." (See also Philippians 2:22.) He uses the same modifier to underscore the specialness of Timothy: he is genuinely concerned for their welfare, just as he is the genuine offspring of Paul's mentoring.
Paul met Timothy in Lystra (Acts 16) while Paul was on his second missionary journey. Timothy became his companion from then on, not only learning and growing in the faith, but also helping to plant the faith. He was with Paul when Paul wrote his letters to the Corinthians, Thessalonians, Philippians and Colossians, as well as to Philemon. His name appearing with Paul's in the heading of the letters indicates that he would be well known among the recipients of the letters.
In the portion of Paul's letter that occupies our attention today, Paul packs several themes, any of which could be the basis of a relevant sermon for any modern-day Timothy. First, the note of thanksgiving is sounded loud and clear. Paul so often writes thankfully in his letters. More times than not, the thanksgiving is directed to God for other Christians (for example, Philippians 1:3-5) and for what God has done through Jesus Christ (for example, 1 Corinthians 15:57). Here, Paul is thankful for the physical, mental and spiritual strength God has given him for his mission work. This thanksgiving begins with his conversion experience, when Jesus called him into service, even though Paul was undeserving.
Second, Paul's conversion was an experience revealing the mercy of God. Jesus' mission was to save the lost, the sinners, among whom Paul admits he was "the foremost" (1:15; the Greek word used here is one from which we derive the word prototype). He cites his persecution of the people of the Way (also in 1 Corinthians 15:9, Galatians 1:13 and Philippians 3:6). One would think this would disqualify him from any consideration by God to be of use in spreading the Gospel. God, however, uses Paul to demonstrate all the more the magnanimity of his mercy.
Third, the purpose of his magnanimous mercy for Paul was to assure others that they could do nothing so horrible as to make God love them less. If God could love the likes of harassing, torturing, murdering Paul, he can certainly love the likes of anyone else. Such a love can virtually change the direction of one's life, just as it did for Paul. So, there is hope for anyone and everyone.
Fourth, in the midst of his letter with all it points, Paul pauses for a doxology (1:17). Paul is telling every reader that anytime is the right time to give praise to God.
Luke 15:1-10
We turn now to the "Lost Chapter of the Bible." We were last here to observe how the lost son was found. Now, we are privileged to see how both a sheep and coin are sought, found and rejoiced over. Together, all three parables pack quite a punch, instructing us on the nature and the activity of God.
Whether one lives in the country or in the city, works outdoors or indoors, these two parables cover familiar ground for both ancients and moderns, even postmoderns and neomoderns. Remembering that a parable is an earthly story with a heavenly meaning, it is not difficult to catch the message here, especially when Jesus provides the explanation himself. When the lost is found, there is much rejoicing. When a sinner (lost, turns from the Lord) repents (found, returns to the Lord ), heaven rejoices.
There are three definitive actions taken by the shepherd in the field and the woman in the house. Discovering that something precious is lost (missing), they immediately seek for it. They do not stop until they find the object of their search. When they do find it, they rejoice -- and not alone, but with friends whom they invite in on the merriment. These actions reflect the nature and activity of God when it comes to God's relationship with the beloved of his heart.
God does not wait for his human creation to solve the problem of being lost. When it comes to our relationship with God, the problem of being lost is that we cannot solve it ourselves; we cannot find God on our own. Using a pastoral image that just begs for Jesus' parable as a follow-up, Isaiah writes, "All we like sheep have gone astray; we have all turned to our own way" (Isaiah 53:6). John, in one of his letters, pens, "In this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins" (1 John 4:10). The initiation of action to restore relationship with God begins with God. It is God who is the seeker of the lost.
Consequently, it is God who finds the one who is lost. The lost may have tried to find the way home; the lost may have desired to be found. But, when indeed found, the lost claims no credit, but is simply thankful for the one who diligently searched. Such is the humility of the lost, who, like Paul, will only boast in weakness that the power of Christ, who came to seek and to save the lost (Luke 19:10), may be manifest (2 Corinthians 11:30--12:10).
There is joy as a result of the reunion between the seeker and the found. This joy is certainly apparent in the One who has been searching, reflected by heaven and the angels celebrating. In addition to this, it does not take much imagination to perceive a joy that would be in the life of the one who is found.
Repentance is the one action that is called forth in the lost. Where there is repentance, there is the willingness to be found. Repentance in this case would simply be to acknowledge one's lostness and to turn toward the One who comes to find the lost and lead them home. Repentance will recognize Jesus as the one who was sent to find the lost sinner, for the sins of the lost sinner will be seen on him, of whom it has been written, "The Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all" (Isaiah 53:6).
Application
The prophets were good at taking catastrophic events and using them as mirrors to reflect the people's sins and to elicit repentance. We use them differently. As we get better at predicting and surviving catastrophic events, they become fodder for new television shows that feed our voyeuristic tendencies. But can we use them to reflect a need to change our behavior? When hard times befall us, can we not ask what God would have us learn through the particular experience?
How would Jeremiah interpret the meaning of such events of this past century as they have affected America? The two world wars, the Great Depression, the Dust Bowl, the Cold War, nuclear weaponry and nuclear accidents, killing pollution in the air and on the land and in the water and in the food chain, devastating hurricanes and tornadoes and earthquakes and volcanic eruptions? We are vulnerable at times like these. We search for meaning, especially when the foundations of life are shaken. Would even the juxtaposition of these events with questions about our relationship with God (even if we do not come up with crystal clear answers!) deepen our understanding of our lives and where we need to grow and go?
As we gain deeper insight into such events vis a vis our relationship with God, we can be better equipped to perceive the movements of God in the ever-changing, present swirl of occasions. Those times can reveal the hand of God judging us, calling us to repentance and shaping us into being the people God wants us to be in the world today.
In contrast to the litanies of innocence that we hear today from people who have been caught with their hands in the cookie jar ("I admit to no wrong-doing."), Paul publicly confesses his sins.
Recent encouraging examples of this kind of courageous forthrightness have been Commander Scott Waddle of the USS Greenville that carelessly sank a Japanese boat killing several youth, and former U.S. Senator Bob Kerrey whose team of Navy Seals slaughtered women and children in Vietnam. God was able to take the likes of Paul and turn him around into an instrument of good for the gospel. So, God can do the same for anyone. There is hope for all who may think that they have done something so horrible that God could never love and forgive them or want them to do something important for him.
There is a little saying that echoes Paul's spirit as revealed in his heart-to-heart letter to Timothy. "I ain't what I ought to be and I ain't what I'm gonna be; but, I sure ain't what I used to be." No wonder Paul interjects a doxology in the midst of this missive. The confidence that Paul expresses in 1 Timothy 1:15, both in understanding the gospel and in applying it to himself, is worth memorizing and repeating as a daily Christian mantra that can keep one centered in the heart of the gospel. Then, in the midst of any activity, the Christian can break forth in doxology, as in 1 Timothy 1:17. Imagine what the work place would be like, the neighborhood, the home, if Christians would be ebullient with such praise and then share the reason when people near enough to notice ask, "What's that all about?"
Every congregation struggles over how to deal with sinners in their midst. Not that the rest are without sin, but that there are those who have publicly and socially "fallen from grace." How to relate to them? For example:
* the person who is convicted of white-collar crime, but since it is a first offense is fined and put on probation
* the father who is guilty of molesting his daughter and will spend the next four years in the state penitentiary
* the youth who is arrested at a party where drugs and sex were readily available
* the neighbor who spreads endless derogatory gossip about everyone such that no one likes to be engaged in conversation with the person for more than a passing "Hello."
Jeremiah's words tell us that there is a judgment that must be endured. Paul's experience tells us that conversion and restoration is a real possibility. And when we are among the found, Jesus' parables model a way for us to relate to those still lost.
We must never give up hope for anyone, for God does not give up on us. God is never finished with us while we live. Therefore we should never be finished with anyone. As Paul reminds us to imitate God (Ephesians 5:1), Christians should be active in seeking the lost, to find them and restore them to the kingdom. The "action hero" we would emulate is Barnabas, who knew how to embrace those who were faltering and lift them up with encouragement, as he did with Paul (Acts 9:26 ff.) and Mark (Acts 15:36 ff.). When this happens, there should be much celebration, to model to the world how to really party. Such a celebration will exude joy and love, reflected in reconciled relationships. It will be in a communal setting for many to experience, just as the shepherd and the woman called their friends together to rejoice.
THE POLITICAL PULPIT
By Mark Ellingsen
Jeremiah 4:11-12, 22-28: An Augustinian antidote to our educational crisis
When September comes, our young are back in school. As the annual cycle repeats, education may be on the mind of many of our parishioners, making it a good time to address the topic, and the first lesson for today, Jeremiah 4:11-12, 22-28, provides an opportunity to do so.
My sense is that our public schools are a reflection of our society and its values. Consequently, the points we make in the pulpit about our schools have implications for society as a whole, and so can be relevant for all our hearers. If we analyze our educational situation in light of this text and the insights of Augustine, then I think that you will see what I mean.
Public education is under fire. We hear political rhetoric about privatizing it (turning our schools over to businesses to administer it) and about vouchers to permit parents to remove their children from under-performing schools and allow them to attend private schools instead.
Then there is data that seems to indicate the failure of our public school system. Recent results of the Third International Mathematics and Science Study indicate that eighth-grade American children educated in our schools rank 25th worldwide in science and 19th in mathematics. Their peers in Singapore, Czechoslovakia, and Japan head the list, with those from the Netherlands (ranking sixth) leading all the Western nations. Particularly startling is that U.S. numbers go down as students move up through the system. As fourth graders, U.S. students ranked seventh internationally, but as I mentioned, are down to 19th by eighth grade. Thus the American school system seems to be developing inferior students (at least in math). The longer they stay in school the worse they get in relation to their overseas peers.
Why is it happening? This is one of the great mysteries. In his acclaimed book, The Schools We Need: Why We Don't Have Them, University of Virginia scholar E.D. Hirsch claims that for the last 75 years, American education has been in the stranglehold of an educational establishment that has prioritized learning dynamics and development theories over the accumulation of knowledge. Out of this ethos we have witnessed the evolution of such "cutting-edge" developments as whole-language theory (English without grammatical rules) and social promotion.
These approaches are considered psychologically wholesome, attempts to make learning creative and fun and means to avoid damaging self-respect. As such, they are reflections of the general "psychologizing" of American culture and our value systems. Just as we tend to prioritize self-fulfillment and self-respect over ethics and hard work, and just as our main social currents encourage us to look for psychological and sociological reasons for our failures rather than to assume responsibility for them, so similar dynamics show up in our schools.
While not specifically addressing education, Jeremiah 4:11-12, 22-28 does report what happens because of people's sin. And an Augustinian construal of sin sharpens our understanding of the problems faced by our schools and our society. Recall, that Augustine, Paul and many of their Reformation followers taught that sin is essentially rooted in concupiscence of selfishness (Romans 7:14-23; Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, First Series, Vol. 5, pp. 170, 274). It is precisely such self-love that motivates the laziness of many of our students and motivates the unwillingness of parents to see their children pushed or disciplined by school authorities. Augustine's version of original sin even helps explain the general erosion of authority in our society that is plaguing our schools. We don't want anyone, certainly not teachers and their administrators, exercising authority over us or our loved ones. We want the power ourselves. After all, the media tells us we can have it all.
Only when people know that they are forgiven sinners, are confident in a right relationship with God, will they begin to set aside their egocentricity and be comfortable taking guidance from authority figures like teachers. Forgiven sinners know that they do not have all the answers (not even about their children). They will realize, as the U.S. Constitution presupposes, that we need an interplay with others, with teachers, school administrators, and society as a whole, in order to make the system work (The Federalist Papers, No. 10).
Forgiven sinners, affirmed by God, also have received the affirmation that makes true self-confidence possible, a confidence that allows one to respect the authority of others without becoming passive. Such persons are excited enough about the goodness of life to work harder and raise standards. It is evident how America and its schools need this (Augustinian-Reformation) Word.
Mark Ellingsen is on the faculty of the Interdenominational Theological Center in Atlanta, Georgia.
FIRST LESSON FOCUS
By Elizabeth Achtemeier
Jeremiah 4:11-12, 22-28
The committee that designated the texts for the lectionary readings had a strange habit of putting together pieces of separate oracles, with little regard to the concerns of form criticism. Verses 11-12 in our text probably belong with verses 9-10, although possibly they are fragments of another oracle altogether. Verse 22 is certainly the final verse of the vision of verses, 19-22, indicated by the joining word ki, meaning "for," at the beginning of verse 22. That verse gives the reason for the preceding vision. Verses 23-28, on the other hand, form a complete description of the apocalyptic vision given to the prophet Jeremiah.
The time in our text is between 609 and 605 B.C., after the failed Deuteronomic reform carried on by King Josiah of Judah and after his untimely death in a battle with the forces of Egypt. Josiah was succeeded by Shallum/Jehoahaz, who reigned only three months as a vassal of Egypt, before he was deposed and taken captive to that land, where he died (cf. Jeremiah 23:11-12). On the Judean throne, Neco of Egypt placed Eliakim, renamed Jehoiakim, who proved to be one of the most unjust and syncretistic leaders of the covenant people. (For a description of Jehoiakim's rule, cf. Jeremiah 23:13-19).
The whole of our text is set within chapters 4-6 of Jeremiah, where we find his description of a mysterious Foe from the North, who will come as God's instrument of judgment to destroy sinful Judah. The advance of such a foe is described in 4:13-18, and Jeremiah's vision of the destruction that the Foe will cause is given in 4:19-21.
As verse 22 of our text explains, God will send the Foe against Judah because the ruler and the people have lost all knowledge of their God. Both Hosea (5:4) and Jeremiah sound that note in their prophecies, but they are not speaking simply of intellectual knowledge. All of the prophets are sure that rationalistic learning is not sufficient (cf. Isaiah 29:13-14). Rather, like Hosea, Jeremiah is speaking of knowledge like that of a faithful wife for her husband, or like that of an obedient son for his father (cf. Jeremiah 3:19-20), knowledge that stems from the deepest and most continual relationship of love and loyalty, in day-by-day communion and fellowship.
Because Judah lacks such knowledge, there follows in our text the most awesome and fearful passage in the book of Jeremiah, verses 23-28. In those verses, our prophet is given a vision of God literally taking back his creation. But we must examine the terminology used to understand that. Jeremiah sees the earth returned once again to "waste and void," tohu wabbohu. Those are terms taken from Genesis 1, where it is stated that in the beginning, before God's creation, the earth was tohu wabbohu -- nothing but chaotic waters, into which God's creative word introduced order and light, goodness and all the phenomena of this world, including human beings.
Here in our Jeremiah text, the earth has returned to that pre-creation, chaotic, dark and evil state. God takes back his light (v. 23) and his sustaining order (v. 24). And God takes back human beings and all his creatures of earth, so that there is "no man," and the "birds of the air" have fled. Everything lies in ruins, without fruitfulness, because God has spoken and not relented or turned back (v. 28). To be sure, there is one phrase in verse 27 which says God will not make a full end (as in the story of Noah and the flood). Nevertheless, what is pictured is the apocalyptic end of the world and of human history, and apparently, because of Judah's unfaithfulness, Jeremiah sees God deciding to do away with creation.
I have often thought that modern fears are misplaced. We worry about a hydrogen bomb causing the end of the world, when what we really should worry about is God deciding that it is futile to work further with us and just choosing to do away with everything (cf. Matthew 10:28). He created everything in the beginning, of course. He therefore certainly has the power, as Jeremiah says, to get rid of it all.
Our text for the morning therefore should give us occasion to examine our own knowledge of God. 2 Timothy states, "I know whom I have believed." Can we say the same? Do we know our Lord Jesus Christ, not just as knowledge "learned by rote" (Isaiah 29:13), but intimately, lovingly, because we live with him and in him day by day? Both our epistle and gospel lessons for the morning offer us comforting words that assure us that the Lord rejoices over any who repent and turn to him again in faith and love. But he asks of us not superficial love and knowledge, but the commitment of all our hearts. God offers us mercy rather than wrath, love rather than destruction. Thanks be to him that we have the opportunity once again for his incredible acceptance of us!
Lutheran Option -- Exodus 32:7-14
In our text for the morning, God has delivered the people of Israel out of slavery in Egypt and now they are encamped at the foot of Mt. Sinai in the Arabian peninsula, where they have entered into a covenant with their God and promised to worship and serve him alone (Exodus 24). Their leader, Moses, has gone up Mt. Sinai to receive the covenant commandments from the Lord, which will guide Israel as God's holy nation and kingdom of priests. But Moses has remained on Mt. Sinai for 40 days and nights, and the people have grown impatient. As a result, led by Aaron, they have made a little golden calf from their jewelry, bowed down to worship it, and engaged in orgiastic rituals. To justify such idolatry, Aaron and the people even claim that the golden calf is the God who brought them out of Egypt (Exodus 32:4, 8).
That is a telling identification, because the scriptures know throughout that the identity of God is given by what he did and what he does. In the Old Testament, the one true God could only be the One who delivered Israel from slavery. In the New Testament, he can only further be defined as the God and Father who has revealed himself in our Lord Jesus Christ. Unless a deity has done those things, the deity cannot be identified with the God of the Bible -- a good test of the genuine nature of any deities that we imagine for ourselves.
In our text, the Lord tells Moses to go quickly down Mt. Sinai, because the people have prostituted themselves with the worship of the golden calf. They are, says the Lord, a "stiff-necked people," stubborn, backsliding, sinful, pursuing their own desires, even though they have vowed loyalty to the Lord. And the Lord sees that he has made a mistake in covenanting with such a fickle folk. He therefore tells Moses that he will destroy the Israelites and start his plan all over again to make a people for himself from the descendants of Moses (vv. 7-10).
Moses, however, is a prophet, and indeed, the first and greatest of the prophets. And he exercises the prophetic function of interceding for his sinful people (cf. Deuteronomy 9:18-20; Jeremiah 7:16; Amos 7:1-6). Rather than being pleased or honored by God's willingness to make a new people of his descendants, Moses has only the glory and honor of God in mind. He points out to the Lord that the Egyptians will scorn God's deliverance of the people from slavery, if he then slays them in the wilderness. And he further reminds the Lord of the promise to Abraham of many descendants and a land to call their own. As a result, God heeds Moses' prayer and decides not to give up on his original people, Israel -- one of the many sure signs in the scriptures that God answers heartfelt, intercessory prayer.
Idolatry and sin against God, however, are not ever without their consequences. The Lord of heaven and earth does not wink at sin. In the stories that follow in Exodus, many of the unfaithful Israelites are slain and a plague is visited upon the people (32:25-35). Yet nevertheless -- nevertheless -- God leads the people on toward his Promised Land. But the incident of the golden calf causes a deep rupture in Israel's relation with God, and as a result, from this time on they need mediators between them and their Lord.
Well, we need a Mediator, too. If we are honest, we erect one or another of our idols every day and worship them. We are as stubborn and stiff-necked as were the Israelites, and it is only because of the mediation of Jesus Christ that the Lord does not destroy us. But thanks be to God, we have that Mediator, who gave his life for us, who prays before the Father constantly for us (Romans 8:34), and who enables us to approach the throne of grace in confidence, to receive mercy and to find grace to help in time of need (Hebrews 4:16).
On a timeline, one may be able to "date" one's salvation, whether that be described in terms of one's baptism (even as an infant) or in terms of being born again as an adult convert to the faith. Yet, there is a sense in which we struggle daily with our relationship with God, such that we are in constant need of repentance and forgiveness, confessing our lostness and at the same time rejoicing in our foundness by the grace of God. Luther described this when he asked the question about the significance of baptism into Christ Jesus: "It signifies," he wrote in his Small Catechism, "that the old creature in us with all sins and evil desires is to be drowned and die through daily contrition and repentance, and ... that daily a new person is to come forth and rise up to live before God in righteousness...."
Today, Jeremiah deals with a nation that is lost. Paul reflects upon his own experience of being found by the Lord. Jesus tells two stories that describe the activity of God on our behalf, overcoming our propensity to be lost. Yes, we are lost. Yes, we are found. Thank God his hand is on us in both states of being.
Jeremiah 4:11-12, 22-28
"Jeremiah was a bullfrog." So began a popular song decades ago. The prophet must have sounded much like a bullfrog croaking out the words of judgment that did not set easily in the ears of the people. "Was a good friend of mine," continues the song. No! Not Jeremiah. No friends, except perhaps Baruch, his faithful scribe. Jeremiah had to wear the burdensome prophet's mantel for about four decades, himself ending up in exile in Egypt, subject to the very judgment he pronounced against Judah.
Judah is tagged as "skilled at doing evil" (4:22). Even though they had the example of Israel (the northern kingdom) before them, they did not heed the warning. So, just as Israel was punished for her sins (3:6-8a), so too would Judah be subject to "a hot wind ... out of the bare heights" (4:11). Yet, in an interesting turn, the word of the Lord is still preached to Israel, that if they repent, they could still be forgiven and experience some sense of restoration ("I will bring you to Zion," 3:12-14). Though the people have jilted God, that is not the end of his relationship with them. God's judgment is but another expression of his ongoing hold upon the ones he has chosen.
Now, against Judah, God would unleash his "fierce anger" (4:26). God will be relentless in his pursuit of justice. Babylon, the new power broker on the world stage, will descend from the North (Dan being the northern most tribe will experience their thunder first; 4:15) under Nebuchadnezzar, who like a lion hungry for prey will pillage the land (4:7). However, this judgment will not be as severe as for the northern kingdom under the Assyrian onslaught. "Yet, I will not make a full end" (4:27), God declares. There will be a window of hope, though it will only be cracked open at this time. This demonstrates that God's wrath, as dreadful as it is, is still an expression of his love, which seeks his lost and erring children to bring them back into a right relationship. This "not making a full end" at this time is similar to what Paul refers to in Romans 2:4 when he lifts up the forbearance and patience of God against ungodliness (Romans 1:18--2:11): "Do you not know that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?"
1 Timothy 1:12-17
Paul's memoirs are really written in his letters. They reveal what God has done in the life of Paul personally and what God has done through the life of Paul for others. Paul would never think of writing his own story; leave that to Luke in the book of Acts. But, Paul does not hesitate to take pen in hand and write to others to help their lives shine, just as he does with Timothy.
Paul refers to Timothy as "my loyal child in the faith" (1:2). Paul may not have been a biological parent to anyone, but he was a spiritual parent to many. Timothy has a special place in his heart, for there is no one else we are aware of that Paul refers to in such a compelling, fatherly way. In Philippians 2:20, Paul tells the Philippians regarding Timothy, "I have no one like him." (See also Philippians 2:22.) He uses the same modifier to underscore the specialness of Timothy: he is genuinely concerned for their welfare, just as he is the genuine offspring of Paul's mentoring.
Paul met Timothy in Lystra (Acts 16) while Paul was on his second missionary journey. Timothy became his companion from then on, not only learning and growing in the faith, but also helping to plant the faith. He was with Paul when Paul wrote his letters to the Corinthians, Thessalonians, Philippians and Colossians, as well as to Philemon. His name appearing with Paul's in the heading of the letters indicates that he would be well known among the recipients of the letters.
In the portion of Paul's letter that occupies our attention today, Paul packs several themes, any of which could be the basis of a relevant sermon for any modern-day Timothy. First, the note of thanksgiving is sounded loud and clear. Paul so often writes thankfully in his letters. More times than not, the thanksgiving is directed to God for other Christians (for example, Philippians 1:3-5) and for what God has done through Jesus Christ (for example, 1 Corinthians 15:57). Here, Paul is thankful for the physical, mental and spiritual strength God has given him for his mission work. This thanksgiving begins with his conversion experience, when Jesus called him into service, even though Paul was undeserving.
Second, Paul's conversion was an experience revealing the mercy of God. Jesus' mission was to save the lost, the sinners, among whom Paul admits he was "the foremost" (1:15; the Greek word used here is one from which we derive the word prototype). He cites his persecution of the people of the Way (also in 1 Corinthians 15:9, Galatians 1:13 and Philippians 3:6). One would think this would disqualify him from any consideration by God to be of use in spreading the Gospel. God, however, uses Paul to demonstrate all the more the magnanimity of his mercy.
Third, the purpose of his magnanimous mercy for Paul was to assure others that they could do nothing so horrible as to make God love them less. If God could love the likes of harassing, torturing, murdering Paul, he can certainly love the likes of anyone else. Such a love can virtually change the direction of one's life, just as it did for Paul. So, there is hope for anyone and everyone.
Fourth, in the midst of his letter with all it points, Paul pauses for a doxology (1:17). Paul is telling every reader that anytime is the right time to give praise to God.
Luke 15:1-10
We turn now to the "Lost Chapter of the Bible." We were last here to observe how the lost son was found. Now, we are privileged to see how both a sheep and coin are sought, found and rejoiced over. Together, all three parables pack quite a punch, instructing us on the nature and the activity of God.
Whether one lives in the country or in the city, works outdoors or indoors, these two parables cover familiar ground for both ancients and moderns, even postmoderns and neomoderns. Remembering that a parable is an earthly story with a heavenly meaning, it is not difficult to catch the message here, especially when Jesus provides the explanation himself. When the lost is found, there is much rejoicing. When a sinner (lost, turns from the Lord) repents (found, returns to the Lord ), heaven rejoices.
There are three definitive actions taken by the shepherd in the field and the woman in the house. Discovering that something precious is lost (missing), they immediately seek for it. They do not stop until they find the object of their search. When they do find it, they rejoice -- and not alone, but with friends whom they invite in on the merriment. These actions reflect the nature and activity of God when it comes to God's relationship with the beloved of his heart.
God does not wait for his human creation to solve the problem of being lost. When it comes to our relationship with God, the problem of being lost is that we cannot solve it ourselves; we cannot find God on our own. Using a pastoral image that just begs for Jesus' parable as a follow-up, Isaiah writes, "All we like sheep have gone astray; we have all turned to our own way" (Isaiah 53:6). John, in one of his letters, pens, "In this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins" (1 John 4:10). The initiation of action to restore relationship with God begins with God. It is God who is the seeker of the lost.
Consequently, it is God who finds the one who is lost. The lost may have tried to find the way home; the lost may have desired to be found. But, when indeed found, the lost claims no credit, but is simply thankful for the one who diligently searched. Such is the humility of the lost, who, like Paul, will only boast in weakness that the power of Christ, who came to seek and to save the lost (Luke 19:10), may be manifest (2 Corinthians 11:30--12:10).
There is joy as a result of the reunion between the seeker and the found. This joy is certainly apparent in the One who has been searching, reflected by heaven and the angels celebrating. In addition to this, it does not take much imagination to perceive a joy that would be in the life of the one who is found.
Repentance is the one action that is called forth in the lost. Where there is repentance, there is the willingness to be found. Repentance in this case would simply be to acknowledge one's lostness and to turn toward the One who comes to find the lost and lead them home. Repentance will recognize Jesus as the one who was sent to find the lost sinner, for the sins of the lost sinner will be seen on him, of whom it has been written, "The Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all" (Isaiah 53:6).
Application
The prophets were good at taking catastrophic events and using them as mirrors to reflect the people's sins and to elicit repentance. We use them differently. As we get better at predicting and surviving catastrophic events, they become fodder for new television shows that feed our voyeuristic tendencies. But can we use them to reflect a need to change our behavior? When hard times befall us, can we not ask what God would have us learn through the particular experience?
How would Jeremiah interpret the meaning of such events of this past century as they have affected America? The two world wars, the Great Depression, the Dust Bowl, the Cold War, nuclear weaponry and nuclear accidents, killing pollution in the air and on the land and in the water and in the food chain, devastating hurricanes and tornadoes and earthquakes and volcanic eruptions? We are vulnerable at times like these. We search for meaning, especially when the foundations of life are shaken. Would even the juxtaposition of these events with questions about our relationship with God (even if we do not come up with crystal clear answers!) deepen our understanding of our lives and where we need to grow and go?
As we gain deeper insight into such events vis a vis our relationship with God, we can be better equipped to perceive the movements of God in the ever-changing, present swirl of occasions. Those times can reveal the hand of God judging us, calling us to repentance and shaping us into being the people God wants us to be in the world today.
In contrast to the litanies of innocence that we hear today from people who have been caught with their hands in the cookie jar ("I admit to no wrong-doing."), Paul publicly confesses his sins.
Recent encouraging examples of this kind of courageous forthrightness have been Commander Scott Waddle of the USS Greenville that carelessly sank a Japanese boat killing several youth, and former U.S. Senator Bob Kerrey whose team of Navy Seals slaughtered women and children in Vietnam. God was able to take the likes of Paul and turn him around into an instrument of good for the gospel. So, God can do the same for anyone. There is hope for all who may think that they have done something so horrible that God could never love and forgive them or want them to do something important for him.
There is a little saying that echoes Paul's spirit as revealed in his heart-to-heart letter to Timothy. "I ain't what I ought to be and I ain't what I'm gonna be; but, I sure ain't what I used to be." No wonder Paul interjects a doxology in the midst of this missive. The confidence that Paul expresses in 1 Timothy 1:15, both in understanding the gospel and in applying it to himself, is worth memorizing and repeating as a daily Christian mantra that can keep one centered in the heart of the gospel. Then, in the midst of any activity, the Christian can break forth in doxology, as in 1 Timothy 1:17. Imagine what the work place would be like, the neighborhood, the home, if Christians would be ebullient with such praise and then share the reason when people near enough to notice ask, "What's that all about?"
Every congregation struggles over how to deal with sinners in their midst. Not that the rest are without sin, but that there are those who have publicly and socially "fallen from grace." How to relate to them? For example:
* the person who is convicted of white-collar crime, but since it is a first offense is fined and put on probation
* the father who is guilty of molesting his daughter and will spend the next four years in the state penitentiary
* the youth who is arrested at a party where drugs and sex were readily available
* the neighbor who spreads endless derogatory gossip about everyone such that no one likes to be engaged in conversation with the person for more than a passing "Hello."
Jeremiah's words tell us that there is a judgment that must be endured. Paul's experience tells us that conversion and restoration is a real possibility. And when we are among the found, Jesus' parables model a way for us to relate to those still lost.
We must never give up hope for anyone, for God does not give up on us. God is never finished with us while we live. Therefore we should never be finished with anyone. As Paul reminds us to imitate God (Ephesians 5:1), Christians should be active in seeking the lost, to find them and restore them to the kingdom. The "action hero" we would emulate is Barnabas, who knew how to embrace those who were faltering and lift them up with encouragement, as he did with Paul (Acts 9:26 ff.) and Mark (Acts 15:36 ff.). When this happens, there should be much celebration, to model to the world how to really party. Such a celebration will exude joy and love, reflected in reconciled relationships. It will be in a communal setting for many to experience, just as the shepherd and the woman called their friends together to rejoice.
THE POLITICAL PULPIT
By Mark Ellingsen
Jeremiah 4:11-12, 22-28: An Augustinian antidote to our educational crisis
When September comes, our young are back in school. As the annual cycle repeats, education may be on the mind of many of our parishioners, making it a good time to address the topic, and the first lesson for today, Jeremiah 4:11-12, 22-28, provides an opportunity to do so.
My sense is that our public schools are a reflection of our society and its values. Consequently, the points we make in the pulpit about our schools have implications for society as a whole, and so can be relevant for all our hearers. If we analyze our educational situation in light of this text and the insights of Augustine, then I think that you will see what I mean.
Public education is under fire. We hear political rhetoric about privatizing it (turning our schools over to businesses to administer it) and about vouchers to permit parents to remove their children from under-performing schools and allow them to attend private schools instead.
Then there is data that seems to indicate the failure of our public school system. Recent results of the Third International Mathematics and Science Study indicate that eighth-grade American children educated in our schools rank 25th worldwide in science and 19th in mathematics. Their peers in Singapore, Czechoslovakia, and Japan head the list, with those from the Netherlands (ranking sixth) leading all the Western nations. Particularly startling is that U.S. numbers go down as students move up through the system. As fourth graders, U.S. students ranked seventh internationally, but as I mentioned, are down to 19th by eighth grade. Thus the American school system seems to be developing inferior students (at least in math). The longer they stay in school the worse they get in relation to their overseas peers.
Why is it happening? This is one of the great mysteries. In his acclaimed book, The Schools We Need: Why We Don't Have Them, University of Virginia scholar E.D. Hirsch claims that for the last 75 years, American education has been in the stranglehold of an educational establishment that has prioritized learning dynamics and development theories over the accumulation of knowledge. Out of this ethos we have witnessed the evolution of such "cutting-edge" developments as whole-language theory (English without grammatical rules) and social promotion.
These approaches are considered psychologically wholesome, attempts to make learning creative and fun and means to avoid damaging self-respect. As such, they are reflections of the general "psychologizing" of American culture and our value systems. Just as we tend to prioritize self-fulfillment and self-respect over ethics and hard work, and just as our main social currents encourage us to look for psychological and sociological reasons for our failures rather than to assume responsibility for them, so similar dynamics show up in our schools.
While not specifically addressing education, Jeremiah 4:11-12, 22-28 does report what happens because of people's sin. And an Augustinian construal of sin sharpens our understanding of the problems faced by our schools and our society. Recall, that Augustine, Paul and many of their Reformation followers taught that sin is essentially rooted in concupiscence of selfishness (Romans 7:14-23; Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, First Series, Vol. 5, pp. 170, 274). It is precisely such self-love that motivates the laziness of many of our students and motivates the unwillingness of parents to see their children pushed or disciplined by school authorities. Augustine's version of original sin even helps explain the general erosion of authority in our society that is plaguing our schools. We don't want anyone, certainly not teachers and their administrators, exercising authority over us or our loved ones. We want the power ourselves. After all, the media tells us we can have it all.
Only when people know that they are forgiven sinners, are confident in a right relationship with God, will they begin to set aside their egocentricity and be comfortable taking guidance from authority figures like teachers. Forgiven sinners know that they do not have all the answers (not even about their children). They will realize, as the U.S. Constitution presupposes, that we need an interplay with others, with teachers, school administrators, and society as a whole, in order to make the system work (The Federalist Papers, No. 10).
Forgiven sinners, affirmed by God, also have received the affirmation that makes true self-confidence possible, a confidence that allows one to respect the authority of others without becoming passive. Such persons are excited enough about the goodness of life to work harder and raise standards. It is evident how America and its schools need this (Augustinian-Reformation) Word.
Mark Ellingsen is on the faculty of the Interdenominational Theological Center in Atlanta, Georgia.
FIRST LESSON FOCUS
By Elizabeth Achtemeier
Jeremiah 4:11-12, 22-28
The committee that designated the texts for the lectionary readings had a strange habit of putting together pieces of separate oracles, with little regard to the concerns of form criticism. Verses 11-12 in our text probably belong with verses 9-10, although possibly they are fragments of another oracle altogether. Verse 22 is certainly the final verse of the vision of verses, 19-22, indicated by the joining word ki, meaning "for," at the beginning of verse 22. That verse gives the reason for the preceding vision. Verses 23-28, on the other hand, form a complete description of the apocalyptic vision given to the prophet Jeremiah.
The time in our text is between 609 and 605 B.C., after the failed Deuteronomic reform carried on by King Josiah of Judah and after his untimely death in a battle with the forces of Egypt. Josiah was succeeded by Shallum/Jehoahaz, who reigned only three months as a vassal of Egypt, before he was deposed and taken captive to that land, where he died (cf. Jeremiah 23:11-12). On the Judean throne, Neco of Egypt placed Eliakim, renamed Jehoiakim, who proved to be one of the most unjust and syncretistic leaders of the covenant people. (For a description of Jehoiakim's rule, cf. Jeremiah 23:13-19).
The whole of our text is set within chapters 4-6 of Jeremiah, where we find his description of a mysterious Foe from the North, who will come as God's instrument of judgment to destroy sinful Judah. The advance of such a foe is described in 4:13-18, and Jeremiah's vision of the destruction that the Foe will cause is given in 4:19-21.
As verse 22 of our text explains, God will send the Foe against Judah because the ruler and the people have lost all knowledge of their God. Both Hosea (5:4) and Jeremiah sound that note in their prophecies, but they are not speaking simply of intellectual knowledge. All of the prophets are sure that rationalistic learning is not sufficient (cf. Isaiah 29:13-14). Rather, like Hosea, Jeremiah is speaking of knowledge like that of a faithful wife for her husband, or like that of an obedient son for his father (cf. Jeremiah 3:19-20), knowledge that stems from the deepest and most continual relationship of love and loyalty, in day-by-day communion and fellowship.
Because Judah lacks such knowledge, there follows in our text the most awesome and fearful passage in the book of Jeremiah, verses 23-28. In those verses, our prophet is given a vision of God literally taking back his creation. But we must examine the terminology used to understand that. Jeremiah sees the earth returned once again to "waste and void," tohu wabbohu. Those are terms taken from Genesis 1, where it is stated that in the beginning, before God's creation, the earth was tohu wabbohu -- nothing but chaotic waters, into which God's creative word introduced order and light, goodness and all the phenomena of this world, including human beings.
Here in our Jeremiah text, the earth has returned to that pre-creation, chaotic, dark and evil state. God takes back his light (v. 23) and his sustaining order (v. 24). And God takes back human beings and all his creatures of earth, so that there is "no man," and the "birds of the air" have fled. Everything lies in ruins, without fruitfulness, because God has spoken and not relented or turned back (v. 28). To be sure, there is one phrase in verse 27 which says God will not make a full end (as in the story of Noah and the flood). Nevertheless, what is pictured is the apocalyptic end of the world and of human history, and apparently, because of Judah's unfaithfulness, Jeremiah sees God deciding to do away with creation.
I have often thought that modern fears are misplaced. We worry about a hydrogen bomb causing the end of the world, when what we really should worry about is God deciding that it is futile to work further with us and just choosing to do away with everything (cf. Matthew 10:28). He created everything in the beginning, of course. He therefore certainly has the power, as Jeremiah says, to get rid of it all.
Our text for the morning therefore should give us occasion to examine our own knowledge of God. 2 Timothy states, "I know whom I have believed." Can we say the same? Do we know our Lord Jesus Christ, not just as knowledge "learned by rote" (Isaiah 29:13), but intimately, lovingly, because we live with him and in him day by day? Both our epistle and gospel lessons for the morning offer us comforting words that assure us that the Lord rejoices over any who repent and turn to him again in faith and love. But he asks of us not superficial love and knowledge, but the commitment of all our hearts. God offers us mercy rather than wrath, love rather than destruction. Thanks be to him that we have the opportunity once again for his incredible acceptance of us!
Lutheran Option -- Exodus 32:7-14
In our text for the morning, God has delivered the people of Israel out of slavery in Egypt and now they are encamped at the foot of Mt. Sinai in the Arabian peninsula, where they have entered into a covenant with their God and promised to worship and serve him alone (Exodus 24). Their leader, Moses, has gone up Mt. Sinai to receive the covenant commandments from the Lord, which will guide Israel as God's holy nation and kingdom of priests. But Moses has remained on Mt. Sinai for 40 days and nights, and the people have grown impatient. As a result, led by Aaron, they have made a little golden calf from their jewelry, bowed down to worship it, and engaged in orgiastic rituals. To justify such idolatry, Aaron and the people even claim that the golden calf is the God who brought them out of Egypt (Exodus 32:4, 8).
That is a telling identification, because the scriptures know throughout that the identity of God is given by what he did and what he does. In the Old Testament, the one true God could only be the One who delivered Israel from slavery. In the New Testament, he can only further be defined as the God and Father who has revealed himself in our Lord Jesus Christ. Unless a deity has done those things, the deity cannot be identified with the God of the Bible -- a good test of the genuine nature of any deities that we imagine for ourselves.
In our text, the Lord tells Moses to go quickly down Mt. Sinai, because the people have prostituted themselves with the worship of the golden calf. They are, says the Lord, a "stiff-necked people," stubborn, backsliding, sinful, pursuing their own desires, even though they have vowed loyalty to the Lord. And the Lord sees that he has made a mistake in covenanting with such a fickle folk. He therefore tells Moses that he will destroy the Israelites and start his plan all over again to make a people for himself from the descendants of Moses (vv. 7-10).
Moses, however, is a prophet, and indeed, the first and greatest of the prophets. And he exercises the prophetic function of interceding for his sinful people (cf. Deuteronomy 9:18-20; Jeremiah 7:16; Amos 7:1-6). Rather than being pleased or honored by God's willingness to make a new people of his descendants, Moses has only the glory and honor of God in mind. He points out to the Lord that the Egyptians will scorn God's deliverance of the people from slavery, if he then slays them in the wilderness. And he further reminds the Lord of the promise to Abraham of many descendants and a land to call their own. As a result, God heeds Moses' prayer and decides not to give up on his original people, Israel -- one of the many sure signs in the scriptures that God answers heartfelt, intercessory prayer.
Idolatry and sin against God, however, are not ever without their consequences. The Lord of heaven and earth does not wink at sin. In the stories that follow in Exodus, many of the unfaithful Israelites are slain and a plague is visited upon the people (32:25-35). Yet nevertheless -- nevertheless -- God leads the people on toward his Promised Land. But the incident of the golden calf causes a deep rupture in Israel's relation with God, and as a result, from this time on they need mediators between them and their Lord.
Well, we need a Mediator, too. If we are honest, we erect one or another of our idols every day and worship them. We are as stubborn and stiff-necked as were the Israelites, and it is only because of the mediation of Jesus Christ that the Lord does not destroy us. But thanks be to God, we have that Mediator, who gave his life for us, who prays before the Father constantly for us (Romans 8:34), and who enables us to approach the throne of grace in confidence, to receive mercy and to find grace to help in time of need (Hebrews 4:16).
