Sermons

Philippians 2:1-13; Matthew 21:23-32 – Rev. Rebecca Littlejohn

Vista La Mesa Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), La Mesa, California – September 28, 2014

Holy God, bless the speaking and the hearing of these words that your transformative spirit might come alive in our hearts, our lives and our world, and ancient wounds begin to heal.  We pray it in the name of Jesus, Amen.

Reflect upon these verses from Matthew.  Which brother are you?  I have to admit that I’ve been both of them at different times.  There are things I just don’t want to do that simply have to be done.  And there are situations in which I don’t feel like I can say “No” in the moment, but manage to pull it off later through my incredible powers of procrastination.  Part of being a grown-up is doing what needs to be done, and even doing things just because they’re good for us, even when we don’t feel like it.  But as we all know, doing something and doing something willingly are two different things.  Sometimes the internal struggle can be quite intense.

I believe this resistance is a spiritual issue.  I’m not very clear anymore on what it was that made me so passionate about not going to Vacation Bible School when I was young.  But I’m guessing it was something along the lines of thinking VBS was dorky, combined with a general aversion to being told what to do.  Both of which, when you get right down to it, are spiritual issues, even in a nine-year-old.  Our scriptures today, both the reading from Philippians and the gospel passage, speak to us about the gap between doing what is faithful and actually wanting to do it. Paul goes so far as to hint there at the end that it’s only by God’s power that our hearts are made pliable and soft enough to actually shift our wills so that we eventually want what God wants.  I am convinced that is true.

This is one of two major reasons I give thanks for Reconciliation Ministry and the annual call for us to lift it up in worship.  There are those who have told me, after I’ve preached about racism in our country and our lives because we were lifting up this special offering, that I need to stop bringing politics into church.  And I understand why it might seem like that’s what we’re doing here.  But that is not my goal.  Our church has created the ministry of Reconciliation – big “R” Reconciliation – not to get political, but because racism is a spiritual issue.  Racism is a not just a societal problem; it’s a sin, which is precisely why it’s so important that we talk about it in church.  And this question of the gap between what needs to be done and what we feel like doing is a huge part of that conversation.

Over the course of my lifetime, it has become increasingly taboo to say obviously racist things in public.  But this is not necessarily a good measure of what is going on in people’s hearts.  Not saying racist things does usually mean that our children are learning to be racist to a lesser degree, and going along with programs at work or at church that push us into interactions with people we might have avoided otherwise can shift our perspectives.  When it comes to the issue of racism, we are likely – especially those of us who benefit from the systems of racial privilege built into our society – to behave like the first brother who said he would do the work but didn’t.  This is what we call lip service.  It doesn’t change much, even if we believe that we want to change.  The deep recesses of our hearts, the parts that were formed early on, where sub-conscious prejudice lives, can only be re-formed if we truly confess their existence and ask for God’s help in changing them.  This deformity of our souls is a spiritual issue, and it calls for a spiritual solution.

This is risky business, digging out the ugly parts of our souls.  And that brings me to the other major reason I’m so glad we’re called to talk about racism in church.  It’s right there in Philippians 2.  We are called to empty ourselves out, to relinquish our own will, and look to the interests of others, not for the purpose of humiliating ourselves, but precisely because that is how Jesus loved us.  What seems like it would be a difficult, embarrassing process doesn’t have to be, if we can, indeed, believe and trust in the grace of God, which assures us that all those ugly parts can be redeemed and transformed by the love of Christ, if only we’ll own up to them.  What better way to have a difficult conversation than to start with the declaration that we are all sinners who are forgiven?

Those words in Paul’s letter – encouragement, love, compassion – they mean something.  They make a difference.  They are signposts along the way of Christ, showing us the right direction forward.  They are more than mere emotions; they are choices.  Because we are human, because we are weak, petty, selfish creatures more often than we like to admit, it is so important to realize that we don’t have to feel totally compassionate to act compassionately.  And that if we can do the compassionate thing, it will often change us so that we do feel the compassion we previously lacked.  That is the power of the Spirit of Christ acting within us.

When we chose to do the right thing, even if we don’t feel like it, we make openings for that transformative Spirit to enter into our hearts and do wonderful things.  When we agree to enter in conversations about racism and racialized oppression and racialized privilege and how they affect our lives, in the context of church, we invite the Spirit of Christ in to help us become the people God wants us to be.  It isn’t easy.  There is a reason that first brother didn’t do the work in the vineyard and a reason the second brother didn’t want to.  It’s hard work!  It means getting dirty and sweaty and uncomfortable.  We will probably make mistakes and say things that are embarrassing.  We will be judged by our friends, whether they let on or not.  We will confront things within our own souls that we’d prefer not to think about.  We will be forced to admit how much more we are shaped by the culture around us than we realized.  We will be pushed to take responsibility for things we didn’t do.

It would be easier to say we’re okay with all that and not have to go through the actual process of doing it.  And so the question before us is whether we are going to do the will of God or not.  Not whether we want to, but whether we’re going to.  Because if we get started doing the work, the Spirit will work on our wanting to, the Spirit will catch our emotional investment up if we will invest our time and energy.

The scabs have been torn off our country’s racial wounds this summer.  There is no denying that there is work to be done.  Whether it’s addressing the prison pipeline that is currently sending more young black men to prison than to college, or the injustices created by biased sentencing guidelines and punitive conditions placed on those who have served their time, the Disciples of Christ are doing the work, and we are invited to join in.  We can be part of inviting our local police forces to explore issues of racial prejudice and to consider how the use of equipment is designed for combating “enemies” affects how the officers relate to our communities.  We can help fill the gaps in children’s lives that make them more vulnerable to hunger, gang involvement and violence.  You may feel passionate about these issues already, or you may get involved just because you believe it’s the right thing to do, even if you don’t feel like it.  You may be surprised at how passionate you become once you get engaged.  God is at work with us, enabling us both to will and work for his good pleasure.  The grace of God is there, to catch us when we fall, to redeem us when we fail.  The love of Christ is there, to show us how it’s done and inspire us when we forget our motivations.  The power of the Spirit is there, to transform our hearts and our society, as we make choices to open ourselves up to those changes.  The problems of racism in our society are spiritual problems, and we have access to the sort of spiritual power that is needed to address them.  Let us boldly follow the call of Christ to redeem our broken world!  Alleluia and Amen!