Series: “Jesus’ Message: You Are a Participant in the Dream”
“You Cannot Produce What You’re Not”
2 Samuel 5:1-5, 9-10
Psalm 48
2 Corinthians 12:2-10
Mark 6:1-13
Jesus is the real deal when it comes to freedom. On Thursday of last week, we celebrated our 248th anniversary of independence as a country. 1776 was an important year. And then eleven years later, in 1787, our government’s system of democracy was established. A democratic form of government is freeing and challenging…distributive and collective.[1]
Our country is on a journey, currently, which is one of experiencing what democracy is and isn’t. Christians, in the midst of the aforementioned, are on a journey of experiencing what Christianity is and isn’t. We are experiencing ongoing conversion from a life which was lost to one which is more and more informed by the way Jesus’ words and actions transformed life. In all aspects of life, we take measured steps of making the necessary changes in character and attitude to be the best Jesus people see.
This past Monday, the Supreme Court cleared the way for the President of the United States to have unlimited authority and immunity in official acts regarding core constitutional principles without fear of prosecution. It now appears that any President can behave like King George III, the very leader from whom we fought in the American Revolution to be freed. If a President behaves like a king, authoritarianism, not democracy, is the way of our government.
Being a Christian means we only have one king and that is our Triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. But as in the case of the people of God in the Old Testament who wanted rulers like everybody else, some of the kings worked out well and others not so much. In both the Old Testament and New Testament, some of the people of God and Christians exercised civil disobedience to those in power. Those individuals received imprisonment and even death.
Let us not forget the Great Commandment, the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 25, and the Great Commission. The journey of Christian discipleship is one of transformative words and actions. 2 Samuel 5:1 reads, “Then all the tribes of Israel came to David at Hebron, and said, ‘Look, we are your bone and flesh.’” Psalm 48:12-14 reads, “Walk about Zion, go all around it, count its towers, consider well its ramparts; go through its citadels, that you may tell the next generation that this is God, our God forever and ever. He will be our guide forever. Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord. I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word, I hope.” 2 Corinthians 12:10 reads, “Therefore I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities for the sake of Christ; for whenever I am weak, then I am strong.” The Christian journey is a passionate defense of equality and equity full of pathos and gospel truth.
In Mark 6:1-13, Jesus had returned to his hometown. He taught in the synagogues and the people were shocked. Notice the words of Mark 6:1, 3 “On the sabbath he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were astonished…. ‘Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon, and are not his sisters with us?’ Leaders who speak truth with conviction aren’t received in their hometowns. Leaders who commit to a journey of building life for all people, as intended by God, that all humans are created in the image of God and deserve the same rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness as the Constitution asserts, face criticism, and scrutiny.
Like Jesus, we acknowledge that the most significant part of the journey is to rally around unity not division. The authority of Jesus was challenged because it expressed itself in powerlessness, dependency, and relationships. The marginalized and disenfranchised embraced Jesus, but those who held power and position rejected him. Mark 6:3-4 reads, “…And they took offense at him. Then Jesus said to them, ‘Prophets are not without honor, except in their hometown, and among their own kin, and in their own house.’” Jesus’ way of speaking and doing his ministry was difficult to embrace because it did not align with conventional expectations or values.[2]
The freedoms we have in our country should bring us together to accomplish a common vision that is inclusive, not exclusive. This common vision is rooted in the kingship of God not man. The integrity of the gospel demands that the visible transformation Christ provides be demonstrated and modeled by the unity of the one Body of Christ.[3] The Declaration of Independence and the Constitution are loud voices for democracy and the common good!
It appears that Christian Nationalism is a power grab. Jesus led in powerlessness. The mission of Christian Nationalism is about winning. The mission of the church is reaching people with the love of Jesus in words and actions. Polycarp (1st and 2nd centuries) and Perpetua (2nd and 3rd centuries), did not seek martyrdom. However, their faithfulness to God challenged the “royal consciousness” of imperial Rome. In the 20th century, Oscar Romero, Maura Clark, and Jean Donovan did not seek martyrdom. However, their faithfulness to God challenged the “royal consciousness” of the Roman Catholic Church.
Claim the integrity of the gospel in your life. Take a look at the world God has created. Count the blessings. Educate the next generations about the goodness and faithfulness of God. Be strong in Christ, although appearing weak to the world. Cultivate a spirit of humility knowing that God’s grace is sufficient. Confront the evils of injustice. Reject selfishness and embrace self-giving. Demonstrate and model the unity of the Body of Christ in your words and actions. Be an agent of God’s healing and reconciliation. Remember, you cannot produce what you’re not. Amen.
This sermon was preached the Seventh Sunday after Pentecost on Sunday, 7 July 2024
by the Rev. Dr. Steven M. Marsh in the Great Room and Sanctuary
at Grace Presbyterian Church in Wichita, Kansas
Copyright Ó 2024
Steven M. Marsh
All rights reserved.
[1]Adapted from Louis Menand, The Metaphysical Club New York, (New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 2001), ix.
[2]In the two paragraphs of textual analysis above, I have benefited from the thinking of Mark McEntire, Wyndy Corbin Reuschling, Anna George Traynham, Zaida Maldonado Perez, William Yoo, Matthew L. Skinner and Richard W. Voelz in Joel B. Green, Thomas G. Long, Luke A. Powery, Cynthia L. Rigby and Carolyn J. Sharp, editors, Connections, Year B, Volume 3 (Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2020), 127-129, 129-131, 132-134, 135-137, 137-139, 140-142 and 142-143.
[3]Some ideas in this paragraph adapted from Bryan Loritts, ed., Letters To A Birmingham Jail: A Response To The Words And Dreams Of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., 74-92.
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