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29 January 2006   Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany Micah 6.6-8; 1 Corinthians 1.26-31; Matthew 5.1-12   The Reverend Javier A. Viera   Can you imagine what would happen if I stepped into this pulpit and spoke to you as Paul spoke to his Corinthian congregation?  Chances are I wouldn’t have a job for very long.  Perhaps that was the advantage Paul had, he was never in one place for very long and he related to congregations primarily from quite a distance.  In the section we read this morning he’s concerned about quarrels and divisiveness in the church, especially those people that exist in every congregation that are a source not of unity and charity, but of contention.  And writing to the entire congregation he says to them, “What about you?  I don’t see the brightest and the best among you, not many influential, not many from high-society families.”   Not exactly the best way to start a sermon or a letter.  But what interests me in Paul’s words this morning isn’t so much what he said, but that he said it.  He just said it and didn’t worry himself with how it would be heard, who it might offend, or even who might leave as a result of his words.  He just said it.  And Paul has good company this morning.  The prophet Micah doesn’t hold back either.  Concerned by the growing hypocrisy of religious observance, Micah decides to just say what is.  He couldn’t tolerate any longer a religious system in which people gathered for worship, gave offerings to God, made sacrifices to atone for their sins, and walked away feeling as if they had performed all they needed to before God.  And Micah says essentially, “Do really think that a few songs, a prayer or two, and an offering is what it takes?  Do you really think that if you do this you’ve done what you need to be made right with God?  Well, you’re kidding yourselves.  If you want to be in harmony with God then do what is fair and just to your neighbor, be compassionate and loyal in your love, and do not take yourself too seriously; rather, take God seriously.”  He just says it.  Then there’s Jesus.  A huge crowd has gathered to hear him.  He knows that some are there because they are drawn to him.  Others are there because they’re curious; they’ve heard the word on the street about this dynamic traveling preacher and just want to see what it’s all about.  Still others are there to challenge him.  And still others are there because they are genuinely seeking a new way for their lives.  Rather than take all that into account and devise a way to speak to each of his different audiences, and try to reach them all, Jesus just says it.  He says what he thinks and believes and lets the pieces fall where they may.  “You are blessed when you admit that you’re spiritually poor.  You’re blessed when you’re mourning.  You’re blessed when you finally accept just who you are.  You are blessed when people ridicule you and harass you on account of me.” There’s freedom in their speaking.  There’s passion in their faith.  And, more than anything else, there’s a desire for authenticity and truthfulness.  No pretense.  No hiding.  No agenda other than an authentic love of God and neighbor.  When it comes down to it what other agenda could we possibly have besides love of God and neighbor?  What other purpose could we have for existing as church?  If these two foci aren’t at the heart of everything we do, aren’t we just kidding ourselves?   But beyond simply knowing that this is the reason we are here, how are we actually going to live it out?  What will it take for us to live a faith so passionate, so loving that we won’t be afraid to take on the great questions and struggles of our day?  What will mean for us in our individual lives to live with a love of God and neighbor so profound that every aspect of our day will be motivated by that godly instinct?  It’s very tempting to come here each week and feel better, hopefully even inspired from time to time.  But how does what we do in here shape how we live beyond these walls?   Martin Luther King, Jr. wondered about these very questions while sitting in a Birmingham jail.  There he wrote a lettnot merely a thermometer that recorded the ideas and principles of popular opinion; it was a thermostat that transformed the mores of society…Small in number, they were big in commitment. They were too God intoxicated to be "astronomically intimidated." By their effort and example they brought an end to [ancient evils]. “Things are different now. So often the contemporary church is a weak, ineffectual voice with an uncertain sound. So often it is an arch defender of the status quo. Far from being disturbed by the presence of the church, the power structure of the average community is consoled by the church's silent and often even vocal sanction of things as they are.” He just says it.  And we must ask if this description is true of us.  And if there is even a hint of truth to it we must also be willing to ask what it means.  I can hear Micah asking, “Do you really think that a few songs, some prayers and an offering makes you right with God?  All we have to do is pick up the daily paper to see that committed, faithful, passionate, loving, kind people are desperately needed in our world, in our community.  Moderates need not apply.  Whether it is in the war torn Gaza Strip, or AIDS ravaged South Africa, or poverty stricken Nicaragua, or in our immigrant rich Columbus Park, we need to care, to love justice and kindness, and to stop hiding behind order and a false peace.  I often wonder if the day laborers who have become the target of derision in our “friendly village” walk by our church and look at our stained glass windows and ask, “What kind of people worship there?  Who is their God?”  How would you answer that question?  Our shared life speaks volumes on these matters, but what exactly does it say?  This morning let us hear the challenge of Micah, of Paul, of Jesus, of Martin Luther King and let it speak to your soul.  Let it stir us from our complacency and our defense of the indefensible.  Let it work its way in us and with us so that a bold people may rise up here.  And in the process let’s turn this world upside down and right-side up for God.  And may God bless us as we try.

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