Luke 11:1-13 Not too long ago, I had a conversation with someone about all the funny superstitions our mothers had. Throw a little salt over your shoulder if you accidentally knock over the salt shaker. Never walk under a ladder or step on a sidewalk crack. Be sure to hold your breath when you drive past a cemetery, lift your feet when driving over railroad tracks, and heaven help you if you should break a mirror. To name just a few. We laughed about these things, but of course in some situations, superstitious acts are deadly serious. I remember a man who wore the same pajamas for a whole football season without washing them because he was convinced the mojo was too great for him to dare mess with. People are hardwired to believe in some kind of supernatural power, and are always trying to harness it to meet […]
Continue readingMonth: July 2019
What the Lord Requires, Part 1: To Love Unconditionally
Luke 10:25-37 You have probably heard a dozen sermons on this parable. You know what it’s about, I don’t need to tell you. Maybe we should just skip ahead to our next hymn and get out of here early today. It’s one of the most familiar stories in the Bible. Everyone – whether or not they ever go to church – knows what a Good Samaritan is: a do-gooder; a helpful person. It’s the name of hospitals and counseling centers and homeless shelters and more. Never mind that it once was an oxymoron, as much as “jumbo shrimp” or “boneless ribs” or “entertaining sermon.” We all know that the point of Jesus’ story is that people should be like that – the Good Samaritan – helpful to those in need. It isn’t something I need to tell you today: you know this – and what’s more, the legal expert who approached Jesus knew it. […]
Continue readingGod’s Intervention, Part 4: Working Undercover
2 Kings 5:1-14 Slaves and servants – the ones who are supposed to be invisible – step into the spotlight for a brief moment in this story from Kings. But first, let’s talk about Naaman. Naaman is a great man in the land of Aram; a commander of the king’s army. He is high up on the pyramid. He is respected by all. Everything about Naaman’s life is great, except that he suffers from leprosy. Then one day he learns from an Israelite slave girl about a prophet who can cure him. Naaman knows nothing about prophets, but he knows how to get things done. Naaman is an organization man, so he does what organization men do. He goes up the chain of command. He tells his king about the prophet who can cure him. The king of Aram writes an official letter, on official letterhead, to the king of […]
Continue readingGod’s Intervention, Part 3: New Life in an Old Place
Luke 8:26-39 In the book of Leviticus in the Old Testament, Chapter 16, there is a ritual prescribed for the atonement of sins. Two goats are presented to the Lord. One is offered as a sacrifice. The other goat is taken before the priest, who lays his hands on the head of the goat and recites the whole litany of the sins of the people. Once all the sins have been spoken and transferred onto the head of the goat, it is driven out into the wilderness, far away from the community. It is called the scapegoat. Other ancient cultures had similar rituals. It must have seemed like a good idea at the time, although we don’t think much of it now. Of course, the practice of scapegoating is still quite common, although not usually by conscious intention. The herd of swine in this story from Luke sort of […]
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