When There's Nothing Left To Do But Mourn
Sermon
Sermons on the First Readings
Series III, Cycle C
Object:
When a person is diagnosed with a serious disorder, one that threatens their very existence, life as we know it is turned upside down. There is research to conduct about traditional and alternative treatments. There are specialists with whom to consult. Sometimes there are changes in lifestyle and in priorities to be considered, as Tim McGraw sang in his 2004 hit, "Live Like You Were Dying."
I have watched this process in many parishioners over the years. Quite often everyone, including the person with the terminal diagnosis, is amazed when they outlive their prognosis by months and sometimes even years. Medical science and mental attitude can do amazing things to sustain and extend the quality of life and the number of months a person has to live.
But there comes a point, when treatments can no longer fend off the threat ... or the prospect of death becomes more tolerable than the treatment of the disease. At this point, hospice organizations can be a tremendous resource to a terminally ill person and their family. Hospice care encompasses nearly every aspect of a dying patient's needs so that she and her loved ones can simply be with one another. Hospice's ability to manage pain is a great blessing that enables loved ones to be as present with one another as possible until the end.
It is at this point in a terminally ill person's journey that he and his family often truly begin to mourn. There has been grief work going on since the moment the words of the diagnosis fell upon the ears of those in the physician's office, but the stage of grief that Dr. Elisabeth Kübler-Ross calls "acceptance" is the stage when there's nothing left to do but keep watch and mourn.
From the moment God called Jeremiah to be a prophet to Judah, Jeremiah began to accompany an entire people diagnosed with a serious disorder. No sooner had God pledged to put the words in Jeremiah's mouth, God warned of the grave trouble that was coming:
The word of the Lord came to me, saying, "Jeremiah, what do you see?" And I said, "I see a branch of an almond tree." Then the Lord said to me, "You have seen well, for I am watching over my word to perform it." The word of the Lord came to me a second time, saying, "What do you see?" And I said, "I see a boiling pot, tilted away from the north." Then the Lord said to me: Out of the north disaster shall break out on all the inhabitants of the land. For now I am calling all the tribes of the kingdoms of the north, says the Lord; and they shall come and all of them shall set their thrones at the entrance of the gates of Jerusalem, against all its surrounding walls and against all the cities of Judah. And I will utter my judgments against them, for all their wickedness in forsaking me; they have made offerings to other gods, and worshiped the works of their own hands.
-- Jeremiah 1:11-16
With these words, Jeremiah's life is turned upside down. He knows that he has been called to accompany a rebellious people whose days of freedom and leisure are numbered. As the people of Judah are confronted with their faithless ways, God offers them the remedy that will prolong their days:
If you return, O Israel, says the Lord, if you return to me, if you remove your abominations from my presence, and do not waver, and if you swear, "As the Lord lives!" in truth, in justice, and in uprightness, then nations shall be blessed by him, and by him they shall boast.
For thus says the Lord to the people of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem: Break up your fallow ground, and do not sow among thorns. Circumcise yourselves to the Lord, remove the foreskin of your hearts, O people of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem, or else my wrath will go forth like fire, and burn with no one to quench it, because of the evil of your doings.
-- Jeremiah 4:1-4
Here is the remedy for your ills, Judah -- repent of your worship of idols. Give up your useless covenants and treaties with other nations, and you will be blessed and celebrated as a hale and hearty nation once more.
But as Israel before her, Judah chooses not to adjust her lifestyle, and ignores her sin-sickness. No matter what Jeremiah will say or do as God's mouthpiece, Judah will deny that anything is wrong with her. And her ills will become even more pronounced.
Run to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem, look around and take note! Search its squares and see if you can find one person who acts justly and seeks truth -- so that I may pardon Jerusalem. Although they say, "As the Lord lives," yet they swear falsely. O Lord, do your eyes not look for truth? You have struck them, but they felt no anguish; you have consumed them, but they refused to take correction. They have made their faces harder than rock; they have refused to turn back. Then I said, "These are only the poor, they have no sense; for they do not know the way of the Lord, the law of their God. Let me go to the rich and speak to them; surely they know the way of the Lord, the law of their God." But they all alike had broken the yoke, they had burst the bonds. Therefore a lion from the forest shall kill them, a wolf from the desert shall destroy them. A leopard is watching against their cities; everyone who goes out of them shall be torn in pieces -- because their transgressions are many, their apostasies are great.
-- Jeremiah 5:1-6
God looks for every opportunity possible to offer Judah healing, but the proud nation would neither acknowledge her need nor willingly accept the cure. The physician is ready, but the patient is not willing, The patient is relying on her name and the prestige of her possessions to protect her. And so, once more, God and Jeremiah urge Judah to give up her illusions and face the facts of her illness.
The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord: Stand in the gate of the Lord's house, and proclaim there this word, and say, Hear the word of the Lord, all you people of Judah, you that enter these gates to worship the Lord. Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Amend your ways and your doings, and let me dwell with you in this place. Do not trust in these deceptive words: "This is the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord." For if you truly amend your ways and your doings, if you truly act justly one with another, if you do not oppress the alien, the orphan, and the widow, or shed innocent blood in this place, and if you do not go after other gods to your own hurt, then I will dwell with you in this place, in the land that I gave of old to your ancestors forever and ever.
-- Jeremiah 7:1-7
And now, for the first time, the prophet Jeremiah acknowledges that there is nothing left for him to do but mourn. Although his ministry with the people of Judah will continue on for several years, he knows that no matter what he says or what he does, Judah will not listen. Judah will not own up to her condition. Judah will not seek healing. No, Judah will be destroyed, or at the very least, she will be severely debilitated. She will eventually fall to the forces of Babylon. The treaties previously forged with neighboring nations will do her no good. Even her claim of holiness as the place that is home to the temple of the Lord will mean nothing to the Lord. The Lord can raise up another temple in three days.
All of this is not to say that Jeremiah won't continue to warn the people of Judah, won't continue to call them to repent. Jeremiah will continue to serve God's purposes, even as it causes him pain and anguish and grief to do so. His life will be threatened. He will forego the joys of marriage and family. He will face ridicule and despair, but Jeremiah has been called of God, called to a ministry for which he would never have asked. And he cannot help but fulfill it.
O Lord, you have enticed me, and I was enticed; you have overpowered me, and you have prevailed. I have become a laughingstock all day long; everyone mocks me. For whenever I speak, I must cry out, I must shout, "Violence and destruction!" For the word of the Lord has become for me a reproach and derision all day long. If I say, "I will not mention him, or speak any more in his name," then within me there is something like a burning fire shut up in my bones; I am weary with holding it in, and I cannot.
-- Jeremiah 20:7-9
We are getting ahead of ourselves in the amazing story that is Jeremiah's life and ministry. In today's reading from chapter 8, we hear the anguish and the grief of a man of God who truly loves his people. That's one of the most important things we pastors are called to do -- to love you. It's not about becoming friends with you, enjoying "a cold one" in your backyard, or writing letters of reference for your children. Ours is a call to love you as the people entrusted to our care -- to love you through thick and thin -- to love you with "tough love" when you get out a bit ahead of your "high-beams," so to speak, and to love you with compassion when you stumble and fall.
Can you hear Jeremiah's pain for the people of Judah? Can you hear his pleading for something by which they might be restored?
Is there no balm in Gilead? Is there no physician there? Why then has the health of my poor people not been restored? O that my head were a spring of water, and my eyes a fountain of tears, so that I might weep day and night for the slain of my poor people!
-- Jeremiah 8:22--9:1
The balm of Gilead for which Jeremiah pleads is the healing salve carefully extracted and refined from the resin of balsam trees of the territory of Gad. This balm was revered far and wide for its healing powers. The balm of Gilead is first mentioned in Genesis 37, as the cargo being carried by the caravan of Ishmaelites who bought Joseph from his brothers. Then Joseph became like that healing balm for the sake of the line of Abraham who may have been snuffed out by famine, had Joseph not attained a position of authority in Egypt and resettled them there.
When there is nothing left but to grieve, what do we do? We love those who are suffering; we keep vigil with them. And we pray for their complete healing. It is a healing that comes from beyond exile, from beyond the grave. It is a healing that is born in the very heart of God. A beloved African-American spiritual sings of this healing:
Refrain
There is a balm in Gilead
to make the wounded whole;
there is a balm in Gilead
to heal the sin-sick soul.
Sometimes I feel discouraged,
and think my work's in vain,
but then the Holy Spirit
revives my soul again. Refrain
If you can't preach like Peter,
if you can't pray like Paul,
just tell the love of Jesus,
and say He died for all. Refrain1
The true balm of Gilead that would deliver Judah and all God's people flows from the heart of God. It is the precious blood of Jesus, God's Son. As Jeremiah walks through the valley of the shadow of death with his "poor people," he points them toward God and promises them that they will not suffer forever. He testifies that God will be compassionate and will lead them back home in time.
When there is nothing left but to grieve, as Christians our call is to accompany the suffering through their grief. We love them through their journey and grieve with them -- but we grieve as a people who have hope. We grieve as a people who know that there is "a balm in Gilead" to make us all whole. We know that the Holy Spirit has the power to revive our discouraged souls. We know that the love of God shown us in the death and resurrection of Jesus will carry us through -- through suffering and even through death to life and to peace.
In the name of Jesus. Amen.
_____________________
1. "There Is A Balm In Gilead," words from an African-American spiritual. Words in the public domain.
I have watched this process in many parishioners over the years. Quite often everyone, including the person with the terminal diagnosis, is amazed when they outlive their prognosis by months and sometimes even years. Medical science and mental attitude can do amazing things to sustain and extend the quality of life and the number of months a person has to live.
But there comes a point, when treatments can no longer fend off the threat ... or the prospect of death becomes more tolerable than the treatment of the disease. At this point, hospice organizations can be a tremendous resource to a terminally ill person and their family. Hospice care encompasses nearly every aspect of a dying patient's needs so that she and her loved ones can simply be with one another. Hospice's ability to manage pain is a great blessing that enables loved ones to be as present with one another as possible until the end.
It is at this point in a terminally ill person's journey that he and his family often truly begin to mourn. There has been grief work going on since the moment the words of the diagnosis fell upon the ears of those in the physician's office, but the stage of grief that Dr. Elisabeth Kübler-Ross calls "acceptance" is the stage when there's nothing left to do but keep watch and mourn.
From the moment God called Jeremiah to be a prophet to Judah, Jeremiah began to accompany an entire people diagnosed with a serious disorder. No sooner had God pledged to put the words in Jeremiah's mouth, God warned of the grave trouble that was coming:
The word of the Lord came to me, saying, "Jeremiah, what do you see?" And I said, "I see a branch of an almond tree." Then the Lord said to me, "You have seen well, for I am watching over my word to perform it." The word of the Lord came to me a second time, saying, "What do you see?" And I said, "I see a boiling pot, tilted away from the north." Then the Lord said to me: Out of the north disaster shall break out on all the inhabitants of the land. For now I am calling all the tribes of the kingdoms of the north, says the Lord; and they shall come and all of them shall set their thrones at the entrance of the gates of Jerusalem, against all its surrounding walls and against all the cities of Judah. And I will utter my judgments against them, for all their wickedness in forsaking me; they have made offerings to other gods, and worshiped the works of their own hands.
-- Jeremiah 1:11-16
With these words, Jeremiah's life is turned upside down. He knows that he has been called to accompany a rebellious people whose days of freedom and leisure are numbered. As the people of Judah are confronted with their faithless ways, God offers them the remedy that will prolong their days:
If you return, O Israel, says the Lord, if you return to me, if you remove your abominations from my presence, and do not waver, and if you swear, "As the Lord lives!" in truth, in justice, and in uprightness, then nations shall be blessed by him, and by him they shall boast.
For thus says the Lord to the people of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem: Break up your fallow ground, and do not sow among thorns. Circumcise yourselves to the Lord, remove the foreskin of your hearts, O people of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem, or else my wrath will go forth like fire, and burn with no one to quench it, because of the evil of your doings.
-- Jeremiah 4:1-4
Here is the remedy for your ills, Judah -- repent of your worship of idols. Give up your useless covenants and treaties with other nations, and you will be blessed and celebrated as a hale and hearty nation once more.
But as Israel before her, Judah chooses not to adjust her lifestyle, and ignores her sin-sickness. No matter what Jeremiah will say or do as God's mouthpiece, Judah will deny that anything is wrong with her. And her ills will become even more pronounced.
Run to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem, look around and take note! Search its squares and see if you can find one person who acts justly and seeks truth -- so that I may pardon Jerusalem. Although they say, "As the Lord lives," yet they swear falsely. O Lord, do your eyes not look for truth? You have struck them, but they felt no anguish; you have consumed them, but they refused to take correction. They have made their faces harder than rock; they have refused to turn back. Then I said, "These are only the poor, they have no sense; for they do not know the way of the Lord, the law of their God. Let me go to the rich and speak to them; surely they know the way of the Lord, the law of their God." But they all alike had broken the yoke, they had burst the bonds. Therefore a lion from the forest shall kill them, a wolf from the desert shall destroy them. A leopard is watching against their cities; everyone who goes out of them shall be torn in pieces -- because their transgressions are many, their apostasies are great.
-- Jeremiah 5:1-6
God looks for every opportunity possible to offer Judah healing, but the proud nation would neither acknowledge her need nor willingly accept the cure. The physician is ready, but the patient is not willing, The patient is relying on her name and the prestige of her possessions to protect her. And so, once more, God and Jeremiah urge Judah to give up her illusions and face the facts of her illness.
The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord: Stand in the gate of the Lord's house, and proclaim there this word, and say, Hear the word of the Lord, all you people of Judah, you that enter these gates to worship the Lord. Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Amend your ways and your doings, and let me dwell with you in this place. Do not trust in these deceptive words: "This is the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord." For if you truly amend your ways and your doings, if you truly act justly one with another, if you do not oppress the alien, the orphan, and the widow, or shed innocent blood in this place, and if you do not go after other gods to your own hurt, then I will dwell with you in this place, in the land that I gave of old to your ancestors forever and ever.
-- Jeremiah 7:1-7
And now, for the first time, the prophet Jeremiah acknowledges that there is nothing left for him to do but mourn. Although his ministry with the people of Judah will continue on for several years, he knows that no matter what he says or what he does, Judah will not listen. Judah will not own up to her condition. Judah will not seek healing. No, Judah will be destroyed, or at the very least, she will be severely debilitated. She will eventually fall to the forces of Babylon. The treaties previously forged with neighboring nations will do her no good. Even her claim of holiness as the place that is home to the temple of the Lord will mean nothing to the Lord. The Lord can raise up another temple in three days.
All of this is not to say that Jeremiah won't continue to warn the people of Judah, won't continue to call them to repent. Jeremiah will continue to serve God's purposes, even as it causes him pain and anguish and grief to do so. His life will be threatened. He will forego the joys of marriage and family. He will face ridicule and despair, but Jeremiah has been called of God, called to a ministry for which he would never have asked. And he cannot help but fulfill it.
O Lord, you have enticed me, and I was enticed; you have overpowered me, and you have prevailed. I have become a laughingstock all day long; everyone mocks me. For whenever I speak, I must cry out, I must shout, "Violence and destruction!" For the word of the Lord has become for me a reproach and derision all day long. If I say, "I will not mention him, or speak any more in his name," then within me there is something like a burning fire shut up in my bones; I am weary with holding it in, and I cannot.
-- Jeremiah 20:7-9
We are getting ahead of ourselves in the amazing story that is Jeremiah's life and ministry. In today's reading from chapter 8, we hear the anguish and the grief of a man of God who truly loves his people. That's one of the most important things we pastors are called to do -- to love you. It's not about becoming friends with you, enjoying "a cold one" in your backyard, or writing letters of reference for your children. Ours is a call to love you as the people entrusted to our care -- to love you through thick and thin -- to love you with "tough love" when you get out a bit ahead of your "high-beams," so to speak, and to love you with compassion when you stumble and fall.
Can you hear Jeremiah's pain for the people of Judah? Can you hear his pleading for something by which they might be restored?
Is there no balm in Gilead? Is there no physician there? Why then has the health of my poor people not been restored? O that my head were a spring of water, and my eyes a fountain of tears, so that I might weep day and night for the slain of my poor people!
-- Jeremiah 8:22--9:1
The balm of Gilead for which Jeremiah pleads is the healing salve carefully extracted and refined from the resin of balsam trees of the territory of Gad. This balm was revered far and wide for its healing powers. The balm of Gilead is first mentioned in Genesis 37, as the cargo being carried by the caravan of Ishmaelites who bought Joseph from his brothers. Then Joseph became like that healing balm for the sake of the line of Abraham who may have been snuffed out by famine, had Joseph not attained a position of authority in Egypt and resettled them there.
When there is nothing left but to grieve, what do we do? We love those who are suffering; we keep vigil with them. And we pray for their complete healing. It is a healing that comes from beyond exile, from beyond the grave. It is a healing that is born in the very heart of God. A beloved African-American spiritual sings of this healing:
Refrain
There is a balm in Gilead
to make the wounded whole;
there is a balm in Gilead
to heal the sin-sick soul.
Sometimes I feel discouraged,
and think my work's in vain,
but then the Holy Spirit
revives my soul again. Refrain
If you can't preach like Peter,
if you can't pray like Paul,
just tell the love of Jesus,
and say He died for all. Refrain1
The true balm of Gilead that would deliver Judah and all God's people flows from the heart of God. It is the precious blood of Jesus, God's Son. As Jeremiah walks through the valley of the shadow of death with his "poor people," he points them toward God and promises them that they will not suffer forever. He testifies that God will be compassionate and will lead them back home in time.
When there is nothing left but to grieve, as Christians our call is to accompany the suffering through their grief. We love them through their journey and grieve with them -- but we grieve as a people who have hope. We grieve as a people who know that there is "a balm in Gilead" to make us all whole. We know that the Holy Spirit has the power to revive our discouraged souls. We know that the love of God shown us in the death and resurrection of Jesus will carry us through -- through suffering and even through death to life and to peace.
In the name of Jesus. Amen.
_____________________
1. "There Is A Balm In Gilead," words from an African-American spiritual. Words in the public domain.
