Works of Art in Progress

Based on James 1:17-27

When God made you, God broke the mold. You are unique. Of the billions of people God has made, there has only been one of you. You are a unique, intentional creation of God. Fred Craddock tells the story of a time when he was the pastor of a small country church in Appalachia. On the first day of Vacation Bible School, he got through his lesson plan with the kids under his care in five minutes and had only fifty-five more minutes to go. So, he decided to send the kids out into God’s creation. He said, “I’m going to ring the church bell, and then I want you kids to go outside and find something that God made. And then when you hear the bell ring again, I want you to come back and share what you found and what it tells you about God.” He rang the church bell and the kids scattered. His intention was not to ring the bell again. But after a while he gave in and rang the bell. The kids came back with what they found. Fred asked one of the children, “Mary, what do you have?” She said, “Some huckleberries.” “What does that tell you about God?” “That God is good.” “That’s right. And Johnny, what do you have?” “I have a rock.” “And what does that tell you about God?” “That God is stout.” “Yes, God is stout.” Then there was Larry, the ornery kid, the child that the teachers warn each other about. He had in his hand the hand of his sister who he got from the kindergarten. So, Fred asked, “Larry, who do you have?” “My sister.” “What does she tell you about God?” Larry thought and replied, “I don’t know.” Do you know? I think you do. God made everything in all of creation and called all of it good. But when God made Larry’s little sister, just like when God made you and me, God said, “Ah, this is the best I can do; just like myself.” You and I are the best of what God has made. James refers to us as the first fruits of God’s creation, the best representation of creation itself. God can do no better than when God created you and me.

But we are a work in progress. We are the best God can do but we are all in a process of refinement. A sculptor will look at a block of stone and see in her mind’s eye a beautiful work of art. She just has to break, chip, and shape the rock until that beautiful form comes out. Each of us are masterpieces of God’s creation. But God is still working on us. We get chipped and shaped until that beautiful piece of art that is you emerges. Our whole life is a process of being formed, shaped, refined. Of course, not everything that happens to us was what God had in mind. But God can take every experience we go through and use it to bring out the best in us. That’s our hope when we face stuff in life that somehow God is behind it all, patiently working with us, leading us, shaping us, into who God desires us to become. We are works of art in process.

God works on us through experiences that we have. God also works through people. It is through people that we come to learn and understand who God is and who God wants us to become. Think of the first Sunday School teacher who taught you to sing “Jesus Loves Me, This I Know.” What about that youth pastor, if you were fortunate to have one, who put up with you, and through silly games, campfire devotions, service projects, and short conversations, continued to build on that foundation of faith. Think of the pastor who saw something in you and encouraged and mentored you to grow deeper in your faith, to organize and lead that mission trip. Think of all the Bible study teachers and conferences you have attended where you were given information and gained insights on how to live God’s way. God doesn’t just use pastors and Sunday school teachers to help shape us into the kind of person God desires us to become. Think of that difficult supervisor who pushed you to up your game, to be a more disciplined and effective worker; the birth of your first child, and the realization that you have a precious life completely dependent on you. Or the person that you have committed to share life with for the rest of your lives. What have they taught you in your years together? God has placed many people in our lives and spoken through them to share with us God’s truths, about how God wants us to live and to love, about who God wants us to become.

Here’s the thing, though. God can work on us through experiences and through the people that God places in our lives. But we have to be open. We have to be humble and willing to listen, really listen, to take a good hard look at what we are learning, like a long gaze in the mirror rather than a quick glance. The first step in learning something is to acknowledge that you don’t know everything, and that this person talking to you may have something to say that you need to know. For God to work on us and shape us, we have to be open, be humble, acknowledge that we are works in progress. God isn’t done with you and no matter how good you feel about yourself, which is important by the way, you are immeasurably precious to God just as you are, but you aren’t finished yet. No matter how comfortable you are in your patterns and habits, there is always more to learn and to master in the art of life.

However, being open to learn isn’t the end. Gaining new knowledge, new insights, about the things of God and about how to live God’s way, how to take care of yourself in more healthy ways, how to love well, learning about these things does you no good unless you take the next step. You have to actually do the things. You have to act, put into practice, what you are learning. Almost all of us can relate to this common scenario. You go to a conference, get a three-ring binder full of great information, ideas and strategies that you can try when you get back home. And when you get home the binder goes on a shelf to collect dust. We just keep doing what we did before. We know better but we don’t act better. Using James’ image of the mirror, we look at the mirror, see what we need to change about ourselves, and then walk away from the mirror and quickly forget what we saw and what we intended to do about it, returning to our familiar habits and patterns. It is a tragedy that is repeated over and over. I’m embarrassed to admit how common it is for me, as a person who loves learning things but struggles to put what I learn into actual practice. We all get set in our ways and it is hard to break it. To become what God wants us to be, we have to act on the insights and truths, that implanted word that James writes about. We have to allow ourselves to be chipped, shaped, refined.

It isn’t easy. To change habits and patterns, to change the way we think about things or let go of what we thought was true but maybe isn’t true, it’s hard. It can be painful. It can be scary. The first time you got on a bike, that was scary. You felt awkward. You fell down a lot. You got bruised and maybe scraped your knee. But you had someone by your side to help. Maybe it was your dad who would run alongside, holding the bike as you increase your speed, and then he says, “OK, I’m going to let go.” “No, daddy, don’t let go!” “Son, I have to.” And dad lets go, you try to keep your balance and peddle, but over you go again. Dad picks you back up, helps you get back on, and encourages you to keep trying. Over and over, the process continues. But then, when dad lets go of the bike this time, off you went. All the awkwardness and fear melt away into the freedom of being able to ride that bike on your own. You speed down the sidewalk and on to new possibilities.

There are a lot of “bikes” we need to learn to ride through our lives: how to be a good student, how to be a good worker, how to be a good friend or spouse, how to be a good parent, how to be good at our vocation, how to navigate through the different stages of life. Growing up, maturing, is a process. There are people beside you all along the way. There is also a lot of awkwardness and a bit of fear from time to time. We fall down a lot. We get hurt. And there’s all kinds of influences that try to get us off track. James talks about how desire gives birth to sin which gives birth to death. He talks about how anger can throw us off track. He talks about how “sordidness and rank growth of wickedness” gets in the way of our progress. There is the temptation to learn what to do but then not acting on what you know, looking in the mirror and then forgetting what you saw. Absolutely, it is a struggle.

But it’s not hopeless. There are moments where we have breakthroughs, and we are free of old habits and ways of thought that blocked us from becoming who God intends us to be. Another chip has been cleared away. We experience growth. What once was awkward becomes natural. All along, God was with us. The one who James says is the source of every gift continually gives what we need as we strive to put into action what we are learning. And when we get the lesson, here comes the next challenge, the next barrier to break through, the next piece of stone that needs to be broken off. God is never finished with us. That masterpiece that is you, the best that God can create, the first fruit of all creation, is a work in progress. May we yield to God’s creative hand, and through learning and doing, slowly become all God desires us to become, for God’s glory.

Engage in the Resistance

Based on Ephesians 6:10-20

Today we reach the end of our summer road trip through the letter to the Ephesians. It has been quite a journey. We have seen visions of the glory of God and the unity that God, through Jesus, has provided for us. We have thought through how this unity can impact our lives today, some examples of what this unity looks like in real life. We have talked about the rules of the road, those principles and guidelines that support us in manifesting our unity. And now, we have arrived home, carrying with us the memories of this trip.

Back when I was a kid, and our family would go on summer road trips, my dad took with him a Nikon camera. He took lots of pictures, mostly of the scenery but also a few pictures of the family. When we got back home, he took the rolls of film to the Fotomat to get them developed into slides. Then, a few weeks later, my dad set up the slide projector and the screen in the living room, loaded up the carousel, and one click at a time we would view the pictures and remember our trip. It was a great way to review all we saw and did. It brought back memories of fun stories and some chuckles as we remembered the inevitable mishap that happened along the way.

I invite us to approach today’s scripture as a way to reflect back on all that we have seen these past several weeks. We enter into this time of remembering not with a slide show but with a single image, this well-known illustration of putting on the whole armor of God: the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, shoes that make us ready to proclaim the gospel of peace, the shield of faith to quench the fiery darts of the devil, the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God. It’s a great image. Perhaps you can visualize yourself wearing this suit of armor and holding up the sword of God’s word. A bit militaristic, true. But also an interesting image Paul uses when we remember that when he wrote this letter he is sitting in chains in a prison.

Paul tells us why wearing this armor is something we need to do. We are to stand against the forces of evil. Verse 11, “stand against the wiles of the devil.” Verse 13, “withstand on that evil day…stand firm.” Verse 14, “stand therefore.” We can’t miss Paul’s point! Paul is very clear that there are evil forces in this world whose intent is to knock us down, break us apart, and ruin our community. These are forces from which we cannot run and hide. They are always coming after us. They are in the air. So, we have to stand our ground against these forces and not back down. Thus, the armor.

These forces of evil that Paul is talking about are not some general force. Paul identifies specific kinds of evil forces that are manifested in real life ways. He speaks of rulers, authorities, cosmic powers of this present darkness, and spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. What are these? Well, they aren’t people. Our struggle is not against people but against forces. The rulers and authorities he is talking about are not human rulers or human authorities. These are spiritual entities. The cosmic powers of this present darkness are forces that emerge in the world while spiritual forces of evil come from outside of this world, the heavenly places. Now, there is a lot of confusion over exactly what Paul has in mind as far as what these specific evil forces are. But the main point for us is that they are specific and diverse. And they manifest in real life ways. These forces are present and active in society, in systems, in institutions, in people, sometimes in us. How can this be?

Back in 1962, almost 60 years ago, in Jackson, Mississippi, there were three young people sitting at a lunch counter in a drug store. They were a white man, a white woman and a black woman. Behind them were a large number of mostly young white men, although there is also an old white man standing in the back. The crowd is jeering this trio sitting at the lunch counter. The white man has had a bottle of catsup emptied on his head. The black woman looks to have had some kind of white powder poured over her head, maybe coffee creamer. When the picture is taken, a young white man is in the act of emptying the sugar jar on the head of the white woman. These three young people, their backs to the mob, sit there and take the abuse. Wearing God’s armor, they don’t run away or lash back. They stand their ground as they reveal the presence of evil forces. It is the evil embedded in Jim Crow segregation, the evil that motivated such hostility in the crowd of white men. The three young people sitting at the lunch counter, two white and one black, demonstrate resisting the forces of evil. We also see one other person in the picture. He’s an older white man, sitting at the end of the counter. He is looking down at his plate of food. His face has a look of shame. These three young people standing their ground against the forces of evil prompted in this man the need to acknowledge that the evil of segregation was not right. He was ashamed. His heart was opened a little that day. For him, this experience became a small transformation. He left that diner different than when he went in.

That instance took place in 1962. The struggle continues, and it is real. There are threats to unity and peace all around us. We see it in our political life, with so many voices of division. Racism and fear of the stranger manifest in many ways, not only through rhetoric but through policy. Our food systems separate us from where our food comes from. So much of the food we eat is processed in a factory somewhere. Our urban way of life separates us from the land we live on. We see forces of division in our churches as we divide over all kinds of issues. Misunderstandings and quarreling put stress on families that lead to division. Divisiveness bends and sometimes breaks relationships.

With so many manifestations of evil in the world, we must engage. Love requires it. We don’t need Paull to tell us to engage. How can you and I not engage with the forces of evil that seek to divide and destroy? Love demands engagement. But how do we go about engaging these forces which, again, are not people but are spiritual?

Well, I would say the first step in engaging with evil forces is to be determined in your will to do it rather than turn a blind eye. I know how tempting it is to look the other way. We are tempted to tune out the news, to cocoon ourselves the best we can with our friends and family in an attempt to shut out those forces from our awareness. But it doesn’t work. These forces are everywhere and can’t be avoided. We are tempted to rationalize what we see or minimize it or shrug our shoulders and say, “that’s just the way it is.” We say that every police department has a few bad apples rather than interrogating how policies, training and police culture can be influenced spiritually, manifesting distrust and sometimes callousness. We say it is unfortunate that Sue had to be cut off of her life saving treatments because of insurance rather than questioning how evil forces penetrate into bureaucracy and policies that lead to someone needlessly being blocked from health care. Again, this struggle is not against people but against spiritual forces that divide and destroy. These forces are all around us. The first step is to acknowledge this and be real about the influence of these forces rather than turn a blind eye or find a scapegoat or shrug our shoulders and say, “ain’t it awful.”

The second step in engaging with evil is to be set in our minds not to lash out. A violent response is not the go to move. I think again of those three young people sitting at the lunch counter. If any of them turned around to lash out at a single one of that mob it would have been an all-out beat down and nothing redeeming and transforming would have happened. That man with the shameful look on his face may have then thought to himself, “Ah, just some troublemakers.” The young resisters sitting at the lunch counter would have lost the moral high ground by lashing out. Remember, our struggle is not against people. It is against spiritual forces. Lashing out at people only perpetuates division, hatred, and broken community. Violence, verbally and physically, is destructive by its very nature.

We must set in our minds that evil forces are real and must be resisted. We resist lashing out at people. Third, we use the armor God has given us. We speak the truth. We represent righteousness. We proclaim the gospel of peace. We exercise our faith in the power of God when evil forces send out the fiery darts of discouragement and futility. We trust in our salvation. We ground our resistance in the word of God, the word that comes to us from the Spirit. By “word” Paul does not mean only what is on the printed page of Scripture. He is talking about Spirit inspired messages. Sometimes people will say to a pastor in their time of need, “Preacher, can you give us a word?” The word is just the thing we need to hear in times of struggle. That’s the word that cuts through the noise, the doubts, the hurts and confusion so that we are clear about what is happening and what we need to do to resist these forces. This is the armor, God’s own armor, that God has given us to use as we resist the evil forces that seek to divide and destroy community.

Finally, resisting evil forces is done through constant prayer. That’s what Paul wrote after describing the armor. He instructs us to pray in the Spirit at all times. Doesn’t that make sense? If we are engaging evil spiritual forces, should we not be tuned in to the Holy Spirit that works through us to vanquish these forces? We want to be a conduit through which the Spirit can flow. This happens by being aware of the presence of the Holy Spirit within us and allowing ourselves to be directed by the Spirit in our thoughts, words and deeds. We want to be filled with, possessed by, the Spirit of God so that evil forces get pushed out. Think of it this way. We receive so many different influences in every moment of our lives, influencing what we see, what we feel, what choices we make in response to a particular situation. What Paul is saying is to zero in on the influence of the Holy Spirit. Let this influence be the guiding one throughout our day. This grounds us and directs us so that we can engage the evil forces effectively, resist them, stand our ground.

And remember that the struggle to resist evil is not your struggle alone. We do it together as the body of Christ. This is a community struggle, not the uncoordinated efforts of individuals. In this struggle we truly need each other. There really is strength in numbers. And the body of Christ has numbers! There are over a billion of us on this planet right now and when you add in the billions more that are now in the church triumphant that’s a lot of members in the body of Christ. We don’t often think about how massive the body of Christ is. We buy in to the rhetoric of division within the church, which is another evil force we have to resist. Remember that the unity we have in the body of Christ is not something we create. It is what God has given us. Our challenge is to acknowledge the unity God has provided and build on that. But as long as the body of Christ buys into and even adds to the rhetoric of division, we are less effective in the struggle against the evil forces that seek to divide and destroy. See every Christian you know, no matter what church they belong to or what their theology or views they have on social issues, as a brother or sister in the resistance against evil forces. What I just said alone is a struggle. We have a lot of work to do to realize unity in the body of Christ even as we resist the forces that are seeking to rip apart society and disrupt the cycles of nature that sustain life on this planet. This engagement with evil forces is way bigger than any one of us can do. It has to be an entire group effort.

In the end, we have reason to be confident in this struggle. Even though we don’t always win the battle, even though many times we are complicit by being influenced by these forces and do harm, even though we fail to maintain the spirit of unity in the bond of peace, this is ultimately God’s struggle. The power we have at our disposal to resist evil in all its forms is divine power. And we know the end game. God will bring unity out of the chaos. Love will conquer all. The world will be mended. This is God’s determination. You have heard that phrase, maybe original to Martin Luther King or maybe he got it from someone else: the arc is long, but it bends toward justice. This is true. Our struggle, haphazard, faltering, and frustrating as it is, is not in vain.

So, I close with the prayer Paul offered to the Ephesians. Please pray with me. “I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him, so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe, according to the working of his great power. God put this power to work in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the age to come. And he has put all things under his feet and has made him the head over all things for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.” It is in this name, the name of Jesus, that we pray. Amen.  

Keep On Singing

Based on Ephesians 5:15-20

Our summer road trip continues through Paul’s letter to the Ephesians. We have covered a lot of ground. Earlier in our journey, we visited a few glorious scenic outlooks that gave us a glimpse of how awesome God is and how beautiful is the harmony of relationships that God makes possible. The past few weeks, we have been reviewing some of the rules of the road that help us live in ways that build up beloved community, that make real that unity in Christ that God has provided for us. We have been on this road trip for a while. We actually have only a bit further to go until our trip through Ephesians comes to an end, which will be next Sunday. 

For anyone who has been on a long road trip, it is likely that at some point along the way someone started one of those road trip songs. When I was growing up, my family belonged to a large church located near downtown Oklahoma City, St. Luke’s United Methodist Church. We had a large youth group, so much so that the church purchased a full-sized school bus for us to use when we would go on trips, including snow skiing in Colorado during spring break and mission trips to various locations across the country during the summer. The bus was painted white with a big blue stripe along the side. When we were on one of those long trips, someone would get us started singing songs. We might sing church songs like “Pass it On” or “Kum By Yah.” But we also made up a song that went like this, “We all ride in a blue and white bus, a blue and white bus, a blue and white bus. We all ride in a blue and white bus all day long.” Then, there was the classic, “100 bottles of beer on the wall, 100 bottles of beer. Take one down, pass it around, 99 bottles of beer on the wall.” Ah, yes. Singing together can definitely help pass the time when you are going down the road.

I thought about traveling songs when I first turned to this passage in Paul’s letter where he encourages us to sing. The more I have reflected on this passage, the more it is becoming one of my favorites. I love how Paul names and encourages us to fill our lives with singing. Whether it’s singing in the shower, humming or whistling a tune while you are out for a walk or listening to music while cleaning the house, music throughout the day really helps get through the day, doesn’t it? Music is such a gift. It can lift our spirits, make the drudgery of the day not so tedious and can bring people together. For me, that might be the most important thing music can do and one reason why I think Paul lifts it up. Music brings people together who otherwise can be divided in so many different ways. Music has the capacity to unite. That’s what we are going to reflect on today, both how music brings us together and how music can help us do the other thing Paul teaches in this passage, which is to give thanks to God in every situation and for everything. We are going to need to talk about that one.

First, let’s talk about singing. Paul invites us to have the Holy Spirit fill us as we sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs among ourselves. As United Methodists, that’s right down our alley! The Wesleyan tradition of which we are a part has always had an emphasis on the singing of hymns. Hymn singing has been and remains a vital tool, not just to express our hearts to God but also to teach what we believe. If you want to study the theology of John and Charles Wesley, you go to John’s sermons and letters and you go to Charles’ hymns. Charles Wesley published over 6,000 hymns. He wrote around 600 hymns just on the topic of Holy Communion.

Wesley’s hymns are a great tool to teach theology, without the use of technical words but with the rich language of poetry. Hymn singing is also a powerful group experience. It is something our tradition has always treasured. Any of us who have gone to a hymn sing know what I mean. In fact, we have talked now and then about having a hymn sing and inviting our community. We need to get that scheduled. Whether it’s just a handful of people gathered around the piano or thousands of people gathered at Annual Conference, singing hymns, praise and worship songs together uplifts the soul.

Group singing is a great way to express unity. Each person participates with their own unique vocal sound. Some voices are deep, some high, some in between. Some are soft and some are strong. Some are right on pitch and others are a little off. And some aren’t even in the ballpark. But it’s ok because in the act of group singing, especially when the song is well known and loved, it all comes together. The other great thing about group singing is that there is always room for one more voice. As I’m sure any choir director will tell you, you never have too many singers. The singing circle can always be opened wider. In fact, the more people who sing, the easier it is for those who are less confident in their singing to join in. Their uncertain voices blend in with the stronger voices around them. One more thing about group singing as opposed to singing solos or smaller groups: there is a lot of grace. You can flub up the words, take a breath whenever you want, stop singing for a bit, it doesn’t matter because the whole group is carrying the song. Truly, group singing is a unifying and grace-filled experience. The Spirit does fill our hearts and fill the space when a group of people are singing together.

Think of the experiences you have had of group singing aside from church on Sunday morning. Maybe you were gathered around the campfire, or singing Happy Birthday to a friend, or participating in a community choir. I remember attending a Promise Keeper’s Convention in Dallas back in the ‘90s. Thousands of men were gathered at Dallas Stadium for worship and to hear speakers who challenged us to live lives that honored God and cared for our families and communities. I will never forget the experience of joining over 6,000 men singing with all our might. We would have lifted the roof off the stadium if it had one! I will also never forget seeing the Indigo Girls at the Newport. The place was packed. And the 400 or so of us gathered there knew all the songs. It became one big group singalong. It was so cool, one of the most fun concerts I have ever been to. The unity and good feeling in that space was palpable. What memories come to your mind of experiences of group singing that filled your heart with the spirit of unity? Paul tells us not to get drunk on wine but instead to be filled with the Holy Spirit. Wine can cheer your heart, but music does a much better job.

Now, let’s talk about that other thing Paul teaches us in this passage, to give thanks to God in every situation. There are some things that we go through in which there is nothing to be thankful for. I am thinking of health crises, the loss of someone too soon, a natural disaster, a freak accident, a vicious assault. I could go on and on. It seems Paul is asking us to do something that just can’t be done.

I wonder if this is not what Paul is teaching us to do. Maybe what he means to say is that we are to thank God in every situation. It’s not about thanking God for the situation but to thank God in the situation. Now this makes more sense to me. In any situation, even tragic ones, we can, by the Holy Spirit, give thanks to God.

But what are we thanking God for? We can thank God for a lot of things. We can be thankful that God is with us in the situation. We can be thankful that God has given us brothers and sisters in Christ who will support us, encourage us, help us through. We can thank God for grace. We can thank God for love. We can be thankful that God will never, ever abandon us.

This being thankful to God in hard situations is not being Pollyanna. Some things that happen are just plain ugly. There are times when grief and lament are necessary. What I am saying is that in some difficult situations, giving thanks to God is an act of resistance. It is resistance to despair. It is resistance to hopelessness. It is to affirm that God’s power is greater than anything that would stand against it.

There’s this song by Chris Tomlin which has a lyric that expresses what I’m trying to say. It goes, “Every blessing You pour out I’ll turn back to praise; and when the darkness closes in Lord, still I will say blessed be the name of the Lord, blessed be Your name. Blessed be the name of the Lord, blessed be Your glorious name.”

This is where music comes in. Music helps us give thanks to God, especially when facing difficult times when there’s not a lot to be thankful for. I have found that music lifts my soul when I am feeling down, frustrated, or anxious. Music puts me in a different frame of mind where I can see through the murkiness of whatever is going on and be able to affirm that I am still loved, that God is still with me, that I have a family and friends that love me and are there for me, that I am a part of the body of Christ, that I am not alone. And I can be thankful for all of this.

And this gets me to Aretha Franklin. The woman who has been named the queen of soul had a challenging life. She had a rough childhood. She became a mother at a young age. Being a black woman in the music business those days and not only survive but thrive brought with it indignities, betrayals, stuff that you and I can’t even imagine.

But that was the thing about her music. It has been said that you can sense her pain through her music. The collective pain of being black in America was something that infused her music but in a way that gives strength, fortitude, even a little joy. It wasn’t just her voice, but her very presence, that filled up the space she was in. She refused to be held back from being herself. Her music was the way she expressed the power of the Holy Spirit, I would say. And the Spirit that filled her blessed so many people, filling their hearts and lifting them up.

Here is a homework assignment for you. Go on YouTube and search Aretha Franklin Amazing Grace live 1972 https://youtu.be/CBKwV6oNYvw. Listen to her rendition of that hymn. The way Aretha sings that hymn is so powerful. Not only does she sing in a way that expresses her pain and her hope, but she takes the congregation with her, a congregation gathered together in California in 1972, a time of great unrest and hardship throughout the nation. I think it was the hardness of the times that provided the context for Aretha Franklin to take that pain and redeem it through the music. And that congregation was lifted up with gratitude and thanksgiving, not just to Aretha, but to God. Watching that performance, listening to the song, and imagining yourself there, you can’t help but have your soul stirred. That’s why she is the queen of soul. She demonstrates what Paul was saying when he told the church not to get drunk on wine but to be filled with the Spirit, as we sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, making melody in our hearts, and giving thanks to God at all times and for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Thank God for Aretha Franklin. Thank God for the gift of music. May all of our days be filled with music until the day comes when we gather with the saints in heaven and join that unending hymn of praise.

Getting to the Nitty Gritty

Based on Ephesians 4:25-5:2

We are continuing our summer trip through the letter to the Ephesians. As I shared last week, Ephesians begins with expansive descriptions of the awesome reality that all of the universe is connected and held together by Christ, how God contains the whole universe and that the presence of God is everywhere and fills everything. Paul is describing this amazing reality so that the Ephesians become more clear about this reality and their privilege of living their lives with this understanding. It’s this understanding about what God has done through Christ that lays the foundation for the church to really be on the vanguard of living out this reality in daily life, to transform the vivid descriptions of what God has accomplished in Christ into actual lived experience. It’s no easy task since they, and us, live in communities that are so divided in so many ways. We all have to deal with the “what’s in it for me” attitude. And so often we don’t realize that decisions we make and the actions we take impact the community in ways we don’t even see. It is one thing to say we are all in this together and that we are all one body in Christ. It’s another thing to actually live that way and to treat every person we encounter as one of our own, so to speak. It’s easy for us to only be concerned about ourselves, or our family, or our church, or our neighborhood. Our lives are woven into the fabric of the universe whether we acknowledge it or not. We get that. We affirm that. We believe that we are all brothers and sisters in Christ and that everything and every person contains the presence of God. How do we live that way? How do these beliefs shape how we treat one another and the earth on which we live?

The second half of this letter is when Paul starts moving into the nitty gritty. Last week, we reflected on a few of the values that Paul lifts up which reflect the reality of our connectedness: values such as humility, gentleness, patience, and bearing with one another in love. Paul talked about some of the roles people play to help build a framework that makes it possible to live out these values. He spoke of those who do the work of waking people up to this new reality of unity in Christ. Paul names apostles, prophets, and evangelists who do that outreach. Then there are pastors and teachers who assist with the work of getting people on board when they come to understand what God has done through Christ.

Now, Paul starts giving some practical examples that help clarify what is involved in living out of this understanding of our unity in Christ. That’s what we will do today, look at some of these examples to see what light they can give us in our own day to day living.

And as Paul has been doing consistently through his letter, I want to stress this again. You and I belong to the body of Christ, not by our own choosing but by what God did through Jesus. God has already unified us in Christ. This unity is not something we achieve by our own actions. The unity we have is not dependent on us, which is what makes the unity we have so precious and durable. Our intertwined lives are a given. This is where we have hope because it is our tendency to strain unity, break off into factions, do our own thing. Left to our own devices, there would be no unity at all. The only unity that we can depend on is the unity that God has provided. We can be assured that we are united to God and that we are united to each other, whether we acknowledge it or not.

Perhaps you have heard of the concept of Ubuntu. It is a Bantu word for humanity which can be translated “I am because we are.” If it was not for a community, I would not exist. My very existence depends on the existence of the community. The community we have is given to us by God. This community is the body of Christ. Because the body of Christ exists, you and I exist. Our connectivity to each other simply is, in spite of the fact that we are not always mindful of our connectivity or sometimes even try to rip ourselves apart from each other. As Paul did, I’m stressing this point because it is so important in making sense of what Paul teaches about how we are to live together. If we can grasp how we are bound together by God’s action, then it is only natural for us to love each other and to turn away from anything that would try to pull us apart.

So, by keeping this in mind, that we are united by the sheer will and grace of God, Paul challenges us this morning to live a life of love. By accepting that God has joined us together, loving each other becomes more of a natural action. We are joined together in the bond of peace so of course we love each other, build each other up, live a life of love together. Doing otherwise makes less sense if we accept that God has already bound us together.

So, what are the practical ways to live a life of love? Paul starts by telling us to put off falsehoods and speak truthfully to one another. People who love each other are honest with each other, even when it’s a hard truth. Now we know how challenging this can be. I remember this commercial a few years back that showed what appeared to be Honest Abe Lincoln with his wife who asks him, “Abe, does this dress make me look fat?” Abe didn’t answer right away, giving us the impression he was calculating the cost of being truthful with his wife! Yes, we need to be honest and truthful with each other. But we need to think about how we are truthful, or how fully honest we will be. There can be a cost. The truth needs told in a way that it can be understood and received. Maybe not the whole truth needs to be shared. There’s nothing wrong with using discretion when we tell the truth to each other. I remember one time when I was young, our youth group was having some kind of devotional. I can’t remember what we were asked but I said something to someone in the group in all honesty and with the best of intentions. But how I said it hurt her feelings. What I said was true, but I said it in an unintentionally hurtful way. So, telling the truth instead of lying to each other is the way to go. That’s what people who love each other do. But how we go about telling that truth needs to be considered so that our truth telling doesn’t do harm but can be heard and received. Another way of saying it is that we should aim to call people in and not call people out.

What next? Don’t let the sun go down on your anger, lest you make room for the devil. There’s that old truism for couples: never go to sleep mad at each other. It’s fine to be angry for a while. But it’s the holding on to the anger that becomes like a festering sore in our minds and hearts. Carrying a grudge is a real thing. I still carry a bit of a grudge with some experiences I had several years back. Holding on to anger from past slights, a misunderstanding, a poor choice of words, whatever it it…this really does harm the community. I see anger and truth telling going together. If someone makes you angry, tell them. Don’t stew about it. Don’t tell everyone else about it. Don’t suppress it. Tell it to the person that made you angry and do it quickly so that the anger doesn’t fester in your heart. Otherwise, it can just build up and build up until something happens that lights the fuse, and you have a big mess on your hands. So, it’s ok to be angry, but don’t stay angry for long. Talk it out with the person who has angered you. Say your peace and then let it go. Holding on to that grudge or plotting your revenge doesn’t do anyone any good.

The next thing Paul talks about is thievery. We are one community. But we also have to be responsible, not only in caring for our personal needs but also in contributing to the good of the whole. For example, if you have bills to pay you only have a few options: you can work and earn money, you may get government benefits that can help you, you could borrow money, you can beg for money, or you can steal money. In Paul’s day there were just three options: work, beg, or steal. Of these options, only stealing was the bad option. Begging is perfectly fine. But working is the preferred option. And not just working to care for your own needs but also so you have something extra to give to those who choose to beg. Working and begging are two acceptable ways to care for your needs. Only theft damages community. So, Paul tells us not to choose that option.

“Let no evil talk come out of your mouths, but only what is useful for building up, as there is need, so that your words may give grace to those who hear.” This verse of Paul’s is like pure water in the swampy stench that is our body politic. From slimy political ads to the evening opinion shows on cable news we are awash in talk that tears down rather than builds up. It is so important for us to speak words of grace, words that build others up, that offer hope, encouragement, advice, whatever is needed. Along with that, we should also be discerning about who we listen to. If someone is always tearing you down with their words, just let the words go through one ear and out the other. No one is making you watch those opinion shows on the cable news. Try to eliminate as much of the negative talk as you can out of your life. Words are powerful. Words can tear down, and they can build up. Paul is telling us to use words that build up.

Paul sums up what he has been teaching so far with verses 31 and 32: put away bitterness, wrath, anger, wrangling, slander, and malice; be kind, tenderhearted, and forgive one another. Why? Because that’s how people who are united in one body love each other. People who love each other are kind to each other, are tenderhearted toward each other and forgive each other. I mean, it’s obvious right? So, if it’s obvious, why is it so hard?

The answer has to be sin. There is something let loose in the world that twists things up, that blocks us from being our best selves as God created us to be. I understand sin to be like a congenital disease, or like a virus, a parasite that is foreign to who we are as those who are made in the image of God. Sin is like a disease that we all have to overcome. And by God’s grace we can. This is the other thing Paul talks about, a word of encouragement for us, to build us up.

Paul tells us that we have been sealed with the Holy Spirit. We are marked with a seal for the day of redemption. As I thought about what this means, I thought of canning. My mother-in-law makes the absolute best canned peaches. It’s not anything fancy. No secret ingredients. She carefully peals and cores the peaches. She then cuts them into bite sized chunks. She puts them in a simple sugar syrup. She fills the mason jars, puts the seals on and then put the jars in boiling water, making sure to get a tight seal. Then those jars of peaches sit around waiting to be opened so those sweet, delicious peaches can get eaten. We always get to take a few home with us and they sit in one of our kitchen cupboards. Then, at some point, we take one of those jars, maybe wipe some dust off the top. Then we take a bottle opener and pry that seal until we hear “POP”. Then we dig in. A little taste of heaven.

It’s that tight seal that keeps those peaches fresh and tasty. It preserves them. In a way the seal of the Holy Spirit we have received is like seal on that mason jar of peaches. The Spirit preserves our souls. In spite of all around us, including sin, that seeks to corrupt and spoil us, deep inside, at the core of who we are, the Spirit of God preserves us until that day when we are set free, the day of our redemption.

This is all good news for us. The Spirit binds us together as the body of Christ. The Spirit seals and preserves our souls. God has done this for us, assuring us that we belong, that we have a community and are not cut loose to drift aimlessly in the world. Who we are in our essence, our core, it is protected and secure, all because of God’s love for us. We have nothing to fear. We have nothing to lose. We belong to God and each other and this will never change.

If we can trust this to be so, that our lives and our community are in the hands of God, safe and secure, then we can have the confidence to be imitators of God as Jesus demonstrated for us. We can take the risk to love one another. We can do all these things that Paul is teaching us to do. We can be resolved to make love a way of life, so that every thought, word and deed is shaped by love, just like what God does, the One who is love.