23 September 2018 – 18th Sunday of Pentecost
Psalm
51:10-17; Deuteronomy 30:1-5, 11-14; John 7:1-8
September 23, 1857: Layman-turned-evangelist Jeremiah C.
Lanphier held a lunchtime prayer meeting for businessmen on Fulton Street in
New York City. At first, no one showed
up, but by the program's third week the 40 participants requested daily
meetings. Other cities began similar
programs, and a revival—sometimes called "The Third Great Awakening"—caught
fire across America.
For our Jewish friends, today at sundown marks the
beginning of Sukkot, the Festival of Booths. Some English
Bible translations have rendered the meaning Festival of Tabernacles,
but this cannot be so because the Tabernacle was the dwelling place of The Lord
among His people in the wilderness. The booths, or tents,
were the dwelling places of the people of The Lord.
Sukkot is an ordained festival to remind the people of
The Lord of their dependence on The Lord as they journeyed through the
wilderness. In a manner of speaking, these festivals are annual opportunities
for renewal and revival if approached in the right way. That is, like
Communion itself, the festival cannot be just a “thing” to do; the Story must
be engaged in a meaningful way. Only then can there be any sense of
revival and, ultimately, a transformation of life and living. And that is
what we must always be seeking, sanctification – “going on to perfection” (Hebrews
6:1) being the bedrock of Methodism.
The Jewish remembrances of the major festivals –
Passover (Feast of Unleavened Bread), Shavu’ot (Festival of Weeks, Pentecost),
and Sukkot (Festival of booths) – come by commandment of The Lord. As it
is written in Deuteronomy 16:16, Moses instructed the
people according to the Word of The Lord: “Three times a year [you]
shall appear before The Lord your God at the place He will choose: at the
festival of unleavened bread, at the festival of weeks, and at the festival of
booths”.
This commandment does not preclude regular weekly
Sabbath worship, but they serve as reminders of who they are and where they
come from. These Festivals came at key times during Israel’s exodus from
Egypt and journey to the Promised Land. Each Festival has special meaning
and important practices that must be remembered and diligently observed not for
“legalistic” reasons but for practical remembrances, lest the people of The
Lord forget who they are.
When the First Great Awakening happened, beginning in
Great Britain in the 18th century and spreading to the American
colonies, it was a time of revival and renewal. Though there were
certainly new souls added to the Book of Life by their conversion, there was
also a push to “awaken” the souls of a sleeping Church, a people who had
forgotten who they really are and who had fallen into an almost mechanical
state of doing rather than living into a spiritual
state of being and growing.
John Wesley was a key figure in this Awakening.
Yet I cannot help but to think the first REAL “Great
Awakening” was that blessed Pentecost (Shavu’ot) as recorded in the second
chapter of Acts, that time when the Spirit of The Lord came
upon so great a gathering. Peter called upon the Israelites and recalled
to them the Scriptures leading to this moment, which is to say this Moment did
not happen in the void. And there were
surely some Gentiles who were awakened for the very first time.
Part of the Festival of Shavu’ot (Pentecost, Acts
2:1) is remembering the giving of Torah (law) from Mt.
Sinai. It was that time when The Lord not only revealed Himself but also
revealed the kind of people they must become as they journeyed to the Promised
Land. They were not to be like all the other nations, and they would not
be identified strictly by their ancestral connection to Abraham.
By their living and their worship – all connected to
the extent of their willingness to trust and obey The Lord - they would be
distinguished from all other peoples. Much in the same way Jesus teaches
that our love for one another is the measure of our discipleship (John 13:35),
He also teaches that our love for Him is measured by our willingness to obey
His commandments (John 14:15). And we must not try to
distinguish between the commandments of The Father and the commandments of
Jesus because they are one and the same.
However, there are many – too many, in fact – who do
try to distinguish between OT law and NT teachings, loosely quoting St. Paul
while overlooking the teachings of Jesus who affirms the commandments of Torah.
Yet because we seem more inclined to believe Paul than to obey Christ, these
many centuries later (it is the year 5779 by the Jewish calendar), I wonder if
we Christians know - really know – who we are as a people.
As individual persons, we might be quick
to point out our baptism or confirmation or justification – or even our
denomination affiliation even if we’ve become inactive in the Faith Community.
As a people, as a Christian people, as THE Church, the Body of Christ, I think
it is safe (and sad) to say we have no real concept of ourselves as a people. Thus we do not know who we really are.
The disconnect between what is traditionally called “Old
Testament” and the New did not happen in Jesus’ time and it did not happen at
Pentecost after the Resurrection. I will
never forget a discussion in one of my classes in which a classmate boldly
claimed, “Jesus only told us to love our neighbors as ourselves”. While the instructor was nodding in approval,
I created a snot-storm (I’m apparently pretty good at that) when I pointed out
that Jesus was quoting from Torah (Leviticus
19:18); that collection of books referred to as “the Scriptures” in the New
Testament writings.
And because we seem to be pretty good at making things
up as we go, pretty much designing a religion around our feelings and our impulses,
yet another schism is upon us as United Methodists try to decide what it is we really
believe. And never mind the overwhelming
number of Republicans and Democrats who describe themselves as “Christian” but
who deliberately distort numbers and other information to political ends!
Look at who we have become! As a people, we are hateful, spiteful, vindictive,
and determined to destroy any who disagree with us!
It does not have to be this way. In fact, our Lord, our God prohibits it. Our newfound freedom in Christ and the New
Covenant does not preclude the commandments our Lord insisted upon to His
people in the wilderness and in the Promised Land; it includes us
Gentiles. Jesus told the Samaritan woman
that “salvation
is from the Jews” (John 4:22),
and St. Paul taught that the Jews are “entrusted with the oracles of God”
(Romans 3:22).
What it means to us, then, is what you’ve likely seen
on billboards and social media: “That ‘love
your neighbor’ thing? I meant that” –
God
It will not come here, but it can begin here. The community entrusted to our care are
counting on the “oracles of God” delivered by the faithful of God. As Moses encouraged the Israelites in the
wilderness, “The Word is very near to you; it is in your mouth and in your heart to
observe” (Dt 30:14).
Let this be the Day of New Beginnings. Let this be the Day when we renew ourselves
in The Word and repent of our worldly habits and cares. Let this be our Day to remember who we really
are, who we are called to be, and let us become that once again. For the Time is short, and the Kingdom of
Heaven is upon us. Glory to The Father,
the Son, the Holy Spirit. Amen.
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