A Personal Commitment To God
Sermon
Sermons On The First Readings
Series I, Cycle C
One morning at a missionary church deep in the rain forest of South America, the Sunday worship service was being celebrated. As the scripture readings were being proclaimed, a loud crash interrupted the service as a group of armed guerrillas broke down the side door of the church and, with machine guns in hand, approached the sanctuary. The minister and congregation were horrified and filled with fear. The soldiers dragged the minister outside to be executed. There was a roar of gunfire. The leader of the guerrillas then returned to the church and demanded, "Anyone else who believes in this God stuff come forward!" Everyone was petrified and stood frozen. There was a long silence.
Finally after what seemed several minutes one man came forward, stood before the guerrilla chief, and simply said, "I love Jesus." He was summarily roughed up and taken outside for execution. After this several others came forward and said the same thing. They too were taken outside and the sound of the machine gun was once again heard. When there were no more people left who were willing to identify themselves as Christians, the guerrilla chief returned to the sanctuary and told those remaining, "Get out! You have no right to be here!" And with that he herded them out of the chapel, where they were astonished to see their pastor and the others standing there very much alive.
The minister and those with him were ordered back into the church to continue the service, but the others were angrily warned to stay out. "Until you have the courage to be committed and stand up for your beliefs," said the guerrilla chief, "you have no right to worship." He and his troops then quickly disappeared into the jungle.
This apocryphal story presents us with a challenge of immense proportions. Those in the church who came to worship that Sunday morning were, I am sure, sincere in their commitment to the church, their faith, and the worship of God. If this was not the case they would not have been present. But when the guerrilla chief challenged them to move to the next level, to a personal demonstration of their commitment to God, all hesitated and some completely failed the test. The story provides a good illustration of the challenge God, through the prophet Jeremiah, presented to the Hebrews in Judah at the time of the exile. It is a challenge that we must face and negotiate as Christian people if we are to be true disciples and follow Christ, whose commitment to his mission and his Father were absolute.
The Hebrew Torah, what Christians call the Pentateuch or first five books of the Old Testament, presents two crucial themes: the presentation and the maintenance of the law and covenant. The law was formalized in the book of Exodus when Moses spoke with God on Mount Sinai and was presented with the two stone tablets, the Decalogue, or as it is commonly known, the Ten Commandments. The rest of Exodus and the books of Numbers, Leviticus, and Deuteronomy lay out in detail the many requirements and proscriptions of the Law. While the Law was fundamental to the day-to-day living of the Hebrew faith, this tradition would not have been possible had not God first made a covenant with his people whom the Lord considered "peculiarly his own." God initiated the covenant with the first Patriarch, Abraham. In Genesis (15:5-6) we hear, "God brought him [Abraham] outside and said, 'Look toward the heavens and count the stars, if you are able to count them.' Then he said to him, 'So shall your descendants be.' And he believed the Lord; and the Lord reckoned it to him as righteousness." The Hebrews were to be special to God and would be provided all that they needed.
Over the course of many centuries, the covenant between God and his people was severely tested and broken on numerous occasions. The lack of fealty of the Hebrews to their agreement with Yahweh often placed them in less than desirable circumstances. The judges were sent to Israel because the Hebrews often broke the covenant by their transgressions of the law. Later the prophets were sent, one-by-one, to both the Northern Kingdom of Israel and the Southern Kingdom of Judah, to tell the people, especially the religious leaders, about their failures and to warn them that consequences would arise from their continual failures.
In today's lesson God, through the voice of his servant and prophet Jeremiah, announces a new covenant to the people. In exile in Babylon, the Hebrew community most probably felt estranged from God and at a loss as to what to do or what the future would hold. Jeremiah provides a message of encouragement for the people, saying that although God in the past had brought destruction and evil to the community as a whole, as a consequence of their failures to uphold the covenant, nevertheless God will now build and plant. In other words, God will restore the community. No longer will people fear collective punishment from God, but rather individuals will be responsible for their own transgressions.
Jeremiah then introduces God's new covenant, one that is written on the hearts of the people. No longer will God's agreement with the Hebrews be collective; rather, it will be an individual and personal covenant, with each member of the community. God is telling the people that they must take personal responsibility for their relationship with the Lord. No longer can one hide under the umbrella of the collective whole, but rather, people must be willing to come forward and make a personal commitment to God. While the people can now be assured that God will not judge all because of the errors of a few, nonetheless more is now expected of the individual, who now, like those challenged in the chapel in the rain forest, must overtly step forward, if not physically then psychologically and spiritually, and profess faith and commitment in the Lord. The new covenant which God inaugurated with the Hebrews was the interiorization of their original collective commitment.
The message in today's reading requires significant reflection for all of us. Too often I suspect, if we are honest with ourselves, we hide behind the fabric of many institutions, whether it be our family, business, or faith community, hoping that the work, perseverance, and faith of others will hold the ship together and we will be able to sail rather smoothly and not have to demonstrate our personal effort, persistence, or commitment. Today we are encouraged to come out of the shadows and move into the light which is the level of personal commitment. This may necessitate a more active role as decision maker in our home or it may entail being more pro-active at work and not simply putting in our eight hours and exiting the scene at the stroke of five. Our commitment to God can no longer be simply a peripheral attachment to the parish community. God is asking, even challenging, us to take a more active role and to demonstrate in word and deed one's commitment to God, whom we all know as the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Personal commitment and responsibility must become an endemic part of our day-to-day life. We can see the need in both dramatic and everyday events which can be illustrated by two short but profound stories. During World War II, while the Nazis marched through almost every country on the continent of Europe, King Christian of Denmark stubbornly resisted Hitler's regime. Because Denmark was small and its military resources few, the King realized that his people could never win on the battlefield, but they could fight a valiant moral struggle. One day the King observed a Nazi flag flying atop one of the nation's public buildings. He reminded the German occupation commander that such an action was contrary to the treaty signed between Germany and Denmark, and that the flag had to be removed by twelve noon or a Danish soldier would be sent to remove it. At five minutes to noon the Nazi flag was still flying and, thus, the King informed the military commander that a soldier was being sent to remove it. The Nazi official warned the King that the soldier would be shot, but the King responded, "I think I should tell you that the soldier will be me." King Christian demonstrated his personal commitment.
On a more day-to-day level our personal responsibility can also be shown. One morning, early in his career, a young teacher arrived early at school and found to his surprise a youngster eagerly waiting at the classroom door. The little boy said, "It's locked." The teacher reached into his pocket and pulled forth the key. "You are a teacher!" the boy enthusiastically proclaimed. "How do you know that?" asked the teacher. "You have the key," the child answered. The teacher always remembered that small incident throughout his career, for the event crystallized in his mind the personal responsibility of his vocation.
The Christian life calls us to a personal relationship with Christ and, therefore, a special, personal, and individual commitment to our baptismal promise of service to God and our neighbor. Jesus challenged his followers when he stated, "If any want to be my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me" (Matthew 16:24). It will not always be easy to demonstrate our commitment and faith, for many obstacles seek to impede our progress. When such realities come our way, we must recall the admonition in the pastoral epistles (2 Timothy 4:1c-2), "I solemnly urge you: proclaim the message; be persistent whether the time is favorable or unfavorable; convince, rebuke, and encourage, with the utmost patience in teaching." Let us today renew our relationship with God by making a personal pledge of commitment to our common Christian vocation to holiness and manifest that faith by responding to the needs of our world. God has given us time and opportunity; let us respond in a personal way to the God who created us, Christ who redeemed us, and the Spirit who brings us to sanctification, today and each day of our lives.
Finally after what seemed several minutes one man came forward, stood before the guerrilla chief, and simply said, "I love Jesus." He was summarily roughed up and taken outside for execution. After this several others came forward and said the same thing. They too were taken outside and the sound of the machine gun was once again heard. When there were no more people left who were willing to identify themselves as Christians, the guerrilla chief returned to the sanctuary and told those remaining, "Get out! You have no right to be here!" And with that he herded them out of the chapel, where they were astonished to see their pastor and the others standing there very much alive.
The minister and those with him were ordered back into the church to continue the service, but the others were angrily warned to stay out. "Until you have the courage to be committed and stand up for your beliefs," said the guerrilla chief, "you have no right to worship." He and his troops then quickly disappeared into the jungle.
This apocryphal story presents us with a challenge of immense proportions. Those in the church who came to worship that Sunday morning were, I am sure, sincere in their commitment to the church, their faith, and the worship of God. If this was not the case they would not have been present. But when the guerrilla chief challenged them to move to the next level, to a personal demonstration of their commitment to God, all hesitated and some completely failed the test. The story provides a good illustration of the challenge God, through the prophet Jeremiah, presented to the Hebrews in Judah at the time of the exile. It is a challenge that we must face and negotiate as Christian people if we are to be true disciples and follow Christ, whose commitment to his mission and his Father were absolute.
The Hebrew Torah, what Christians call the Pentateuch or first five books of the Old Testament, presents two crucial themes: the presentation and the maintenance of the law and covenant. The law was formalized in the book of Exodus when Moses spoke with God on Mount Sinai and was presented with the two stone tablets, the Decalogue, or as it is commonly known, the Ten Commandments. The rest of Exodus and the books of Numbers, Leviticus, and Deuteronomy lay out in detail the many requirements and proscriptions of the Law. While the Law was fundamental to the day-to-day living of the Hebrew faith, this tradition would not have been possible had not God first made a covenant with his people whom the Lord considered "peculiarly his own." God initiated the covenant with the first Patriarch, Abraham. In Genesis (15:5-6) we hear, "God brought him [Abraham] outside and said, 'Look toward the heavens and count the stars, if you are able to count them.' Then he said to him, 'So shall your descendants be.' And he believed the Lord; and the Lord reckoned it to him as righteousness." The Hebrews were to be special to God and would be provided all that they needed.
Over the course of many centuries, the covenant between God and his people was severely tested and broken on numerous occasions. The lack of fealty of the Hebrews to their agreement with Yahweh often placed them in less than desirable circumstances. The judges were sent to Israel because the Hebrews often broke the covenant by their transgressions of the law. Later the prophets were sent, one-by-one, to both the Northern Kingdom of Israel and the Southern Kingdom of Judah, to tell the people, especially the religious leaders, about their failures and to warn them that consequences would arise from their continual failures.
In today's lesson God, through the voice of his servant and prophet Jeremiah, announces a new covenant to the people. In exile in Babylon, the Hebrew community most probably felt estranged from God and at a loss as to what to do or what the future would hold. Jeremiah provides a message of encouragement for the people, saying that although God in the past had brought destruction and evil to the community as a whole, as a consequence of their failures to uphold the covenant, nevertheless God will now build and plant. In other words, God will restore the community. No longer will people fear collective punishment from God, but rather individuals will be responsible for their own transgressions.
Jeremiah then introduces God's new covenant, one that is written on the hearts of the people. No longer will God's agreement with the Hebrews be collective; rather, it will be an individual and personal covenant, with each member of the community. God is telling the people that they must take personal responsibility for their relationship with the Lord. No longer can one hide under the umbrella of the collective whole, but rather, people must be willing to come forward and make a personal commitment to God. While the people can now be assured that God will not judge all because of the errors of a few, nonetheless more is now expected of the individual, who now, like those challenged in the chapel in the rain forest, must overtly step forward, if not physically then psychologically and spiritually, and profess faith and commitment in the Lord. The new covenant which God inaugurated with the Hebrews was the interiorization of their original collective commitment.
The message in today's reading requires significant reflection for all of us. Too often I suspect, if we are honest with ourselves, we hide behind the fabric of many institutions, whether it be our family, business, or faith community, hoping that the work, perseverance, and faith of others will hold the ship together and we will be able to sail rather smoothly and not have to demonstrate our personal effort, persistence, or commitment. Today we are encouraged to come out of the shadows and move into the light which is the level of personal commitment. This may necessitate a more active role as decision maker in our home or it may entail being more pro-active at work and not simply putting in our eight hours and exiting the scene at the stroke of five. Our commitment to God can no longer be simply a peripheral attachment to the parish community. God is asking, even challenging, us to take a more active role and to demonstrate in word and deed one's commitment to God, whom we all know as the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Personal commitment and responsibility must become an endemic part of our day-to-day life. We can see the need in both dramatic and everyday events which can be illustrated by two short but profound stories. During World War II, while the Nazis marched through almost every country on the continent of Europe, King Christian of Denmark stubbornly resisted Hitler's regime. Because Denmark was small and its military resources few, the King realized that his people could never win on the battlefield, but they could fight a valiant moral struggle. One day the King observed a Nazi flag flying atop one of the nation's public buildings. He reminded the German occupation commander that such an action was contrary to the treaty signed between Germany and Denmark, and that the flag had to be removed by twelve noon or a Danish soldier would be sent to remove it. At five minutes to noon the Nazi flag was still flying and, thus, the King informed the military commander that a soldier was being sent to remove it. The Nazi official warned the King that the soldier would be shot, but the King responded, "I think I should tell you that the soldier will be me." King Christian demonstrated his personal commitment.
On a more day-to-day level our personal responsibility can also be shown. One morning, early in his career, a young teacher arrived early at school and found to his surprise a youngster eagerly waiting at the classroom door. The little boy said, "It's locked." The teacher reached into his pocket and pulled forth the key. "You are a teacher!" the boy enthusiastically proclaimed. "How do you know that?" asked the teacher. "You have the key," the child answered. The teacher always remembered that small incident throughout his career, for the event crystallized in his mind the personal responsibility of his vocation.
The Christian life calls us to a personal relationship with Christ and, therefore, a special, personal, and individual commitment to our baptismal promise of service to God and our neighbor. Jesus challenged his followers when he stated, "If any want to be my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me" (Matthew 16:24). It will not always be easy to demonstrate our commitment and faith, for many obstacles seek to impede our progress. When such realities come our way, we must recall the admonition in the pastoral epistles (2 Timothy 4:1c-2), "I solemnly urge you: proclaim the message; be persistent whether the time is favorable or unfavorable; convince, rebuke, and encourage, with the utmost patience in teaching." Let us today renew our relationship with God by making a personal pledge of commitment to our common Christian vocation to holiness and manifest that faith by responding to the needs of our world. God has given us time and opportunity; let us respond in a personal way to the God who created us, Christ who redeemed us, and the Spirit who brings us to sanctification, today and each day of our lives.
