Tall order
Commentary
Object:
Basketball fans who are thirty years old or older will remember watching Michael Jordan at his prime. And, in all likelihood, they will also recall the Gatorade advertising campaign built around him in 1992. The theme of the campaign, and the recurring motif of its catchy theme song, was "Be like Mike." The television commercial featured video of Jordan's fabulous feats on the basketball court, interspersed with winsome footage of him being playful, as well as children and youth on playgrounds and basketball courts striving to do what he does.
The prospect of being like Mike was most appealing. He was charismatic, successful, and a winner. I am sure that a whole generation of kids grew up wanting and hoping, indeed, to be like Mike. Even the professional basketball players in today's NBA, with all of their own individual accomplishments, are compared to him and occasionally asked to compare themselves to him. He remains the gold standard: to be like Mike.
For the average kid on a playground in the 1990s, however, Jordan was an improbable role model. For starters, most kids don't begin by being six-feet-six-inches tall and incredibly athletic. What chance do I have of being like Mike if I'm five-feet-eight-inches tall and a bit of a klutz? Add to his natural giftedness the coaching he enjoyed and the opportunities he received, and the fact is that a minute percentage of aspirants have any chance at all of ever being like Mike. Indeed, even the majority of professional basketball players cannot live up to the comparison.
Imagine, therefore, a typical high school basketball team. It has several passable players, a handful of good ones, and perhaps one or two very good ones. Yet the coach bears down hard on all of them. He shows them footage of Jordan in his prime. He immerses them in Jordan's statistics and achievements. And he challenges them -- no, he requires them -- to be like Mike. Every one of them.
That, we would say, is an unreasonably tall order.
Which brings us to this week's scripture readings. As we read and unpack these passages together, we will discover the theme that you and I, along with all the benchwarmers in our churches, are commanded to be, not like Mike, but like God.
Leviticus 19:1-2, 9-18
Most Christians have their favorite places to turn. We have those books, chapters, and verses that we depend upon especially for guidance or comfort, for meaning or inspiration. I suspect that the psalms and the gospels are turned to most often; perhaps then certain parts of the epistles. It would be an interesting exercise to guess at your congregation's "top ten" list of Bible books or passages. And, unless your people are very different from mine and from most, the book of Leviticus would not make that group of ten. Or twenty. Or perhaps even thirty.
This week's Old Testament lection comes from one of the least appreciated books in scripture. Many a soul's effort to read through the Bible cover-to-cover has foundered on the seemingly tedious and irrelevant rocks of Leviticus. When we announce that our Old Testament reading comes from that book, therefore, the news will likely be met with ignorance at best and resistance at worst.
Yet a closer look at this passage reveals profound meaning, remarkable beauty, and significant personal relevance.
The first observation to be made is the passage's recurring refrain: "I am the Lord." To the average reader, the repeated phrase seems like an awkward intrusion into the text. It appears, after all, to be a collection of instructions and the insertion of that statement does not seem to fit in its context. In truth, however, it fits in a very important way, and we will give more detailed attention to this phrase below.
The second observation we make as we read our passage is the variety of people that are guarded and relationships that are guided by these instructions. A mere listing includes "the poor and the alien," "your neighbor," "a laborer," "the deaf," "the blind," "the poor," "the great," "your kin," and "your people." Such is the breadth and depth of the law's concern. While it is sometimes unfairly criticized as primitive and chauvinistic, the truth is that the Old Testament law is remarkably sophisticated and balanced.
Included in that commendable balance is the instruction not to "be partial to the poor or defer to the great." Justice must not be contaminated by either special interest or by misplaced compassion. It is a standard we still struggle to define and to meet today; yet it was already established in Israel 3,000 years ago.
Justice is, naturally, a central concern of the law, and this brief excerpt from that law prompts a discussion of justice at three important levels. As suggested above, there is the question of the relationship between justice and compassion (i.e., the instructions concerning the poor and the alien, the deaf and the blind, and even such matters of the heart as hating and bearing a grudge). There is also the issue of the relationship between justice and vengeance (e.g., v. 18), which we will consider in more detail in the gospel lection. Finally, there is the connection between justice and correction (see v. 17). This is an underdeveloped theme in most conversations about justice, but it is an important, recurring principle in scripture (Ezekiel 3:17-21; Matthew 18:15-17; James 5:19-20). Let punishment be justice's "Plan B," for our first effort should be to correct.
In the end, this Old Testament book, which suffers both scorn and neglect in the average American church, provides a great treasure for us this week. We see in it the profound themes of integrity and compassion, a concern for justice and righteousness, and a sense for the holiness and reverence that are meant to characterize the people who belong to a holy God.
1 Corinthians 3:10-11, 16-23
Every text has a context, though not every context is equally relevant. In the case of these excerpts from Paul's first letter to the Christians in Corinth, the context is extremely important, for the threads that make up this pericope are woven throughout the larger letter. Specifically, three recurring themes are involved.
First, there is the issue of sects within the Corinthian congregation. Paul deals with this problem early in the letter (1:10-17), as the believers there were apparently aligning themselves with different human leaders (Paul, Apollos, Peter). We have no indication that those three men were competing with one another or vying for distinctive allegiance. Paul addresses those unfortunate divisions in chapter 1, and he returns to the issue here in chapter 3. The three central characters are referenced by name at the end of our passage, and the issue is implicit at the beginning, as well, when Paul refers both to his own initial work in their midst ("like a skilled builder I laid a foundation") and to his successors in Corinth ("someone else is building on it").
We should note that Paul's final word on this whole issue is always the same. In his chapter 1 discussion, Paul asks, "Has Christ been divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?" (1:13). The issue, you see, is neither Paul, nor Apollos, nor Cephas; the issue is Christ. Likewise, in our selected verses. The foundation that Paul laid -- and on which his successors build -- "that foundation is Jesus Christ." At the end, Paul dismisses the individual significance of the human servants, declaring, "All belong to you, and you belong to Christ, and Christ belongs to God."
The second prominent issue is the theme of "God's temple." Paul's reference to the believers as God's temple in verse 16 follows on the heels of his building imagery in verses 10-11. The sense, then, is of an extended metaphor in which Paul and his successors in Corinth have been constructing God's temple; the foundation of that temple is Jesus himself. The Spirit dwells there and the Christians in Corinth are that under-construction dwelling place of God. Paul's language is highly reminiscent of imagery used by Peter later (1 Peter 2:4-5).
Meanwhile, Paul returns to the theme of the believers as God's temple later in this epistle to the Corinthians, when he asks, "Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God, and that you are not your own?" (6:19). And he echoes the motif again in his second letter to that congregation, saying, "What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God" (2 Corinthians 6:16).
In my years of pastoring, I have heard numbers of people along the way correct some behavior -- usually some child's behavior -- by saying, "No, no. We don't do that in church!" Perhaps we should broaden our sensibilities to recognize that we ourselves -- not just the building in which we worship -- are holy, dedicated to God, and therefore there are certain things that shouldn't go on with or in us. That was Paul's point to the Christians in Corinth.
Finally, the third significant strand of our passage, which is woven throughout the larger letter, is the theme of wisdom and foolishness. At the very beginning of the letter, the Corinthians read a long discourse by Paul on wisdom and foolishness. He embarks on the theme in 1:17, and he continues to develop it through the rest of chapter 1 as well as all of chapter 2. He makes a sharp distinction between the world's wisdom and God's, noting along the way that he is not called to mimic worldly wisdom, and that God's own preference seems to be to use the foolish things of this world.
Note that Paul is not dismissive of wisdom. He is only eager for his congregation to distinguish between what passes for wisdom in this world and the true wisdom of God -- even though that may be disdained and discounted by this world. The challenge to them remains a challenge for us. We, too, are natural heirs to the perspective of the world in which we live. Yet that world is contrary to God, and so we must recognize that everything is turned upside down. I imagine, therefore, that he would urge us, too, to jettison the world's so-called wisdom and "become fools so that you may become wise."
Matthew 5:38-48
"You have heard that it was said." Five times in Matthew 5 Jesus begins a teaching with that introductory phrase. Prior to the beginning of our selected passage, he referenced "you shall not murder" (v. 21), "you shall not commit adultery" (v. 27), and "you shall not swear falsely" (v. 33). Then, in our excerpt, he adds two more: "an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth" (v. 38) and "you shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy" (v. 43).
This recurring "you have heard that it was said" phrase introduces Jesus' commentary on the Mosaic Law and the traditions that had grown up around it. Many contemporary Christians casually assume that Jesus nullified the law. Some base their conclusion on theological grounds: that is, Christ's atoning death fulfills the righteous requirements of the law. Others derive their vague impression from Jesus' responses to the Pharisees. But Jesus' argument with the Pharisees is not that the law is less important than they make it; rather, it is more important than they make it. For they had turned the law into a mere collection of superficial, legalistic observances. Jesus, however, as illustrated in our selected passage, always made obedience to God a matter of the heart.
The "an eye for an eye" principle, found in the Old Testament Law (Exodus 21:22-25) and referenced here by Jesus, epitomizes for some people what they think is wrong with the Old Testament. They see it as angry, bloody, and vindictive, and they contrast it with the prevailing forgiveness that they associate with the New Testament. In truth, however, the "eye for an eye" rule was precisely the opposite of what so many folks assume. It was designed to restrain vengeance; not institutionalize it. The harsh reality is that revenge is naturally disproportionate. The desire to "get even" is seldom actually about making things "even." Rather, revenge is blinded by its own rage, and so it tries to get more than even. Revenge double-counts the offense, calculating in not only the wrong that was done but also its own hurt and anger. And so the wise but ridiculed Old Testament Law put a leash on human vengeance, setting a fair and reasonable limit on punishment: "an eye for an eye."
For society still today that ancient standard remains a quite reasonable one in the administration of justice. Yet for the individual follower of Christ, there is a higher standard to be sought. In this teaching, Jesus encourages us not only not to steer clear of revenge, but also to let go of our quest for justice (justice for ourselves, that is; we must remain vigilant about seeking justice for others). Instead of revenge and justice, the aspiration of the followers of Christ is mercy: a generosity of spirit and magnanimity of love and action.
For some of us, the first challenge of these teachings is to remove them from the sentiment that comes from familiarity and from the lovely embroidered hangings in our church parlors. We need to insert personal situations and specific names into these teachings in order to see how outrageous they are.
Since I don't have anyone striking me on the cheek, for example, I must think instead of that woman whose words were a slap to my ego. Since I don't have anyone suing me for my coat, perhaps I should think of that man who is so demanding of my time. And since no Roman soldier is compelling me to carry his pack, I should turn to the interruptions that are part of my day and the people who seem to have no regard for my schedule and itinerary. Once I have translated Christ's teachings to my daily experience, then I will see them for what they are: astonishing.
The second half of the passage continues the astonishing expectations. Loving enemies requires a polar shift in our fallen natures. And praying for those who persecute us is equally unnatural. What comes naturally is to pray for my loved ones -- my wife and children, my parents, and dearest friends. But the people who are antagonistic to me and give me grief do not appear on my heart's default prayer list. If they appear in my prayers, it is that the trouble they cause me prompt me to pray for myself!
Then comes the logic behind the absurdity: "so that you may be children of your Father in heaven." And that is the logic we shall consider below.
Application
"So that you may be children of your Father in heaven," Jesus says.
The phrase should not be misunderstood. Jesus is not making our relationship with God as Father a function of our performance or our merit. It is not when I love my enemies that I become his child. Rather, it is when I love my enemies that I prove that I am his child.
"He makes his sun to rise on the evil and the good," Jesus famously observes, and then makes the same point about the blessing of rain. In other words, God is indiscriminate in his generosity, and therefore we should be, too.
We noted above that these teachings from Jesus should astonish us. If we have managed, however, to make it all the way through the gospel passage without being astonished, then Jesus guarantees our shock with his conclusion. "Be perfect," he commands, "as your heavenly Father is perfect."
As though telling me to turn my cheek, give away my cloak, and love my enemies was not enough, now Jesus commands me to be perfect. Perfect like God, no less. Hang that in the church parlor!
While Jesus' statement may seem like an absurdity, it is not an anomaly. On the contrary, it stands right at the heart of scripture. Our other two lections bear witness to the larger theme. In the Old Testament Law, God unblushingly commands his people, "You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy." In short, they are to be like him. Paul's word to the Corinthians echoes that truth, for "you are God's temple" and "God's temple is holy."
If even most professional basketball players cannot reasonably hope to "be like Mike," what chance do you and I have to be like God? How outrageous an ambition, how tall an order is that?
Yet, from the beginning, that has been God's will for us. For his stated purpose was to "make humankind in our image, according to our likeness" (Genesis 1:26). And that continues to be his will and his purpose, for what seems way beyond you in your own power is enabled by the truth that Paul declares: "God's Spirit dwells in you."
Alternative Application
Leviticus 19:1-2, 9-18. "Non sequitur." The dictionary says that the phrase "non sequitur" comes from the Latin, and it originally meant, "It does not follow."
As we noted above in our consideration of the Old Testament lection, this chapter from Leviticus seems to contain a non sequitur. For woven throughout the instructions and prohibitions we find this recurring phrase: "I am the Lord." To the modern reader, it appears as an awkward interruption of the text. It does not seem to follow. In truth, however, it suggests a critically important theological principle.
The scope of God's laws for his people is as broad and as deep as life itself -- from worship to commerce, from Israel's relationships with foreign nations to their most intimate personal relationships, from annual holidays to daily hygiene.
Meanwhile, we recognize that the centerpiece of God's law for and covenant with his people was the Ten Commandments. We observe that, at the very beginning of that famous passage of scripture, the Lord introduced his commandments with this statement: "I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery; you shall have no other gods before me" (Exodus 20:2-3).
Israel's entire law was given and understood, you see, within the larger context of their God and their relationship to him. The recurring insertion -- "I am the Lord" -- therefore, is not an intrusion. On the contrary, it is the central support beam to which everything else is attached.
That pattern in the Old Testament Law serves as a helpful reminder for you and me as Christians. The Lord is not segregated off in some religious corner, separate from the rest of daily life. Rather, his presence with us and his claim on us is woven through every aspect of our lives: all of our living and choosing, all of our commerce and relationships, the occasional and the daily, the special and the routine. Perhaps we would do well to scatter that phrase -- "I am the Lord" -- throughout our checkbooks, our calendars, and our address books. Let me pin it to my clock, my bathroom mirror, and my refrigerator.
The constant reminder of who he is -- and whose I am -- is not a non sequitur. On the contrary, everything in my life follows from that.
Preaching the Psalm
Schuyler Rhodes
Psalm 119:33-40
Parents will readily tell how important it is that children simply obey the commands of their parents. When a car is speeding down the road straight toward the child, this is not the time to explain why they should run and run now! Just do it! Especially in young children this need for obedience is critical. Yet as a child grows, the need to explain and help a child understand the rules and they ways of the world becomes more pressing. In fact, understanding things can lead to a child's ability to better navigate the world.
Here in this psalm is a plea for such understanding. "Give me understanding that I may keep your law," writes the psalmist. Help me make sense of this! Give me a glimmering of why your law exists and what it means, and I will be able to keep it. This is a step in maturity from the child who must obey for the sake of its own safety to the maturing individual who needs reasons and understanding.
Interestingly enough, God's laws do have their anchor in sound reasoning. Why not eat pork? It's not just a silly religious rule. In those days of no refrigeration you could easily die of eating spoiled pork. It was practical. Why not steal? Well, a community would not last long if mutual respect of property was not a value commonly held. The list continues, with each of God's laws really having their root in something that actually makes sense. "Give me understanding that I may keep your law...."
The trick for us is trying to navigate laws and rules that may once have made sense but no longer do. An old hymn bellows out the line, "Time makes ancient good uncouth..." Today, with modern processing and refrigeration, is eating pork a problem? Maybe not. But stealing? That's still a problem even though large corporations are given license to do it.
This psalm can serve as a prayer for understanding.
Help us God to understand. Open hearts and eyes and minds to the power of and truth of your law. Give us balance and reasoning hearts. Give us, we pray, a holy understanding so that we might indeed follow your law. Amen.
The prospect of being like Mike was most appealing. He was charismatic, successful, and a winner. I am sure that a whole generation of kids grew up wanting and hoping, indeed, to be like Mike. Even the professional basketball players in today's NBA, with all of their own individual accomplishments, are compared to him and occasionally asked to compare themselves to him. He remains the gold standard: to be like Mike.
For the average kid on a playground in the 1990s, however, Jordan was an improbable role model. For starters, most kids don't begin by being six-feet-six-inches tall and incredibly athletic. What chance do I have of being like Mike if I'm five-feet-eight-inches tall and a bit of a klutz? Add to his natural giftedness the coaching he enjoyed and the opportunities he received, and the fact is that a minute percentage of aspirants have any chance at all of ever being like Mike. Indeed, even the majority of professional basketball players cannot live up to the comparison.
Imagine, therefore, a typical high school basketball team. It has several passable players, a handful of good ones, and perhaps one or two very good ones. Yet the coach bears down hard on all of them. He shows them footage of Jordan in his prime. He immerses them in Jordan's statistics and achievements. And he challenges them -- no, he requires them -- to be like Mike. Every one of them.
That, we would say, is an unreasonably tall order.
Which brings us to this week's scripture readings. As we read and unpack these passages together, we will discover the theme that you and I, along with all the benchwarmers in our churches, are commanded to be, not like Mike, but like God.
Most Christians have their favorite places to turn. We have those books, chapters, and verses that we depend upon especially for guidance or comfort, for meaning or inspiration. I suspect that the psalms and the gospels are turned to most often; perhaps then certain parts of the epistles. It would be an interesting exercise to guess at your congregation's "top ten" list of Bible books or passages. And, unless your people are very different from mine and from most, the book of Leviticus would not make that group of ten. Or twenty. Or perhaps even thirty.
This week's Old Testament lection comes from one of the least appreciated books in scripture. Many a soul's effort to read through the Bible cover-to-cover has foundered on the seemingly tedious and irrelevant rocks of Leviticus. When we announce that our Old Testament reading comes from that book, therefore, the news will likely be met with ignorance at best and resistance at worst.
Yet a closer look at this passage reveals profound meaning, remarkable beauty, and significant personal relevance.
The first observation to be made is the passage's recurring refrain: "I am the Lord." To the average reader, the repeated phrase seems like an awkward intrusion into the text. It appears, after all, to be a collection of instructions and the insertion of that statement does not seem to fit in its context. In truth, however, it fits in a very important way, and we will give more detailed attention to this phrase below.
The second observation we make as we read our passage is the variety of people that are guarded and relationships that are guided by these instructions. A mere listing includes "the poor and the alien," "your neighbor," "a laborer," "the deaf," "the blind," "the poor," "the great," "your kin," and "your people." Such is the breadth and depth of the law's concern. While it is sometimes unfairly criticized as primitive and chauvinistic, the truth is that the Old Testament law is remarkably sophisticated and balanced.
Included in that commendable balance is the instruction not to "be partial to the poor or defer to the great." Justice must not be contaminated by either special interest or by misplaced compassion. It is a standard we still struggle to define and to meet today; yet it was already established in Israel 3,000 years ago.
Justice is, naturally, a central concern of the law, and this brief excerpt from that law prompts a discussion of justice at three important levels. As suggested above, there is the question of the relationship between justice and compassion (i.e., the instructions concerning the poor and the alien, the deaf and the blind, and even such matters of the heart as hating and bearing a grudge). There is also the issue of the relationship between justice and vengeance (e.g., v. 18), which we will consider in more detail in the gospel lection. Finally, there is the connection between justice and correction (see v. 17). This is an underdeveloped theme in most conversations about justice, but it is an important, recurring principle in scripture (Ezekiel 3:17-21; Matthew 18:15-17; James 5:19-20). Let punishment be justice's "Plan B," for our first effort should be to correct.
In the end, this Old Testament book, which suffers both scorn and neglect in the average American church, provides a great treasure for us this week. We see in it the profound themes of integrity and compassion, a concern for justice and righteousness, and a sense for the holiness and reverence that are meant to characterize the people who belong to a holy God.
1 Corinthians 3:10-11, 16-23
Every text has a context, though not every context is equally relevant. In the case of these excerpts from Paul's first letter to the Christians in Corinth, the context is extremely important, for the threads that make up this pericope are woven throughout the larger letter. Specifically, three recurring themes are involved.
First, there is the issue of sects within the Corinthian congregation. Paul deals with this problem early in the letter (1:10-17), as the believers there were apparently aligning themselves with different human leaders (Paul, Apollos, Peter). We have no indication that those three men were competing with one another or vying for distinctive allegiance. Paul addresses those unfortunate divisions in chapter 1, and he returns to the issue here in chapter 3. The three central characters are referenced by name at the end of our passage, and the issue is implicit at the beginning, as well, when Paul refers both to his own initial work in their midst ("like a skilled builder I laid a foundation") and to his successors in Corinth ("someone else is building on it").
We should note that Paul's final word on this whole issue is always the same. In his chapter 1 discussion, Paul asks, "Has Christ been divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?" (1:13). The issue, you see, is neither Paul, nor Apollos, nor Cephas; the issue is Christ. Likewise, in our selected verses. The foundation that Paul laid -- and on which his successors build -- "that foundation is Jesus Christ." At the end, Paul dismisses the individual significance of the human servants, declaring, "All belong to you, and you belong to Christ, and Christ belongs to God."
The second prominent issue is the theme of "God's temple." Paul's reference to the believers as God's temple in verse 16 follows on the heels of his building imagery in verses 10-11. The sense, then, is of an extended metaphor in which Paul and his successors in Corinth have been constructing God's temple; the foundation of that temple is Jesus himself. The Spirit dwells there and the Christians in Corinth are that under-construction dwelling place of God. Paul's language is highly reminiscent of imagery used by Peter later (1 Peter 2:4-5).
Meanwhile, Paul returns to the theme of the believers as God's temple later in this epistle to the Corinthians, when he asks, "Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God, and that you are not your own?" (6:19). And he echoes the motif again in his second letter to that congregation, saying, "What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God" (2 Corinthians 6:16).
In my years of pastoring, I have heard numbers of people along the way correct some behavior -- usually some child's behavior -- by saying, "No, no. We don't do that in church!" Perhaps we should broaden our sensibilities to recognize that we ourselves -- not just the building in which we worship -- are holy, dedicated to God, and therefore there are certain things that shouldn't go on with or in us. That was Paul's point to the Christians in Corinth.
Finally, the third significant strand of our passage, which is woven throughout the larger letter, is the theme of wisdom and foolishness. At the very beginning of the letter, the Corinthians read a long discourse by Paul on wisdom and foolishness. He embarks on the theme in 1:17, and he continues to develop it through the rest of chapter 1 as well as all of chapter 2. He makes a sharp distinction between the world's wisdom and God's, noting along the way that he is not called to mimic worldly wisdom, and that God's own preference seems to be to use the foolish things of this world.
Note that Paul is not dismissive of wisdom. He is only eager for his congregation to distinguish between what passes for wisdom in this world and the true wisdom of God -- even though that may be disdained and discounted by this world. The challenge to them remains a challenge for us. We, too, are natural heirs to the perspective of the world in which we live. Yet that world is contrary to God, and so we must recognize that everything is turned upside down. I imagine, therefore, that he would urge us, too, to jettison the world's so-called wisdom and "become fools so that you may become wise."
Matthew 5:38-48
"You have heard that it was said." Five times in Matthew 5 Jesus begins a teaching with that introductory phrase. Prior to the beginning of our selected passage, he referenced "you shall not murder" (v. 21), "you shall not commit adultery" (v. 27), and "you shall not swear falsely" (v. 33). Then, in our excerpt, he adds two more: "an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth" (v. 38) and "you shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy" (v. 43).
This recurring "you have heard that it was said" phrase introduces Jesus' commentary on the Mosaic Law and the traditions that had grown up around it. Many contemporary Christians casually assume that Jesus nullified the law. Some base their conclusion on theological grounds: that is, Christ's atoning death fulfills the righteous requirements of the law. Others derive their vague impression from Jesus' responses to the Pharisees. But Jesus' argument with the Pharisees is not that the law is less important than they make it; rather, it is more important than they make it. For they had turned the law into a mere collection of superficial, legalistic observances. Jesus, however, as illustrated in our selected passage, always made obedience to God a matter of the heart.
The "an eye for an eye" principle, found in the Old Testament Law (Exodus 21:22-25) and referenced here by Jesus, epitomizes for some people what they think is wrong with the Old Testament. They see it as angry, bloody, and vindictive, and they contrast it with the prevailing forgiveness that they associate with the New Testament. In truth, however, the "eye for an eye" rule was precisely the opposite of what so many folks assume. It was designed to restrain vengeance; not institutionalize it. The harsh reality is that revenge is naturally disproportionate. The desire to "get even" is seldom actually about making things "even." Rather, revenge is blinded by its own rage, and so it tries to get more than even. Revenge double-counts the offense, calculating in not only the wrong that was done but also its own hurt and anger. And so the wise but ridiculed Old Testament Law put a leash on human vengeance, setting a fair and reasonable limit on punishment: "an eye for an eye."
For society still today that ancient standard remains a quite reasonable one in the administration of justice. Yet for the individual follower of Christ, there is a higher standard to be sought. In this teaching, Jesus encourages us not only not to steer clear of revenge, but also to let go of our quest for justice (justice for ourselves, that is; we must remain vigilant about seeking justice for others). Instead of revenge and justice, the aspiration of the followers of Christ is mercy: a generosity of spirit and magnanimity of love and action.
For some of us, the first challenge of these teachings is to remove them from the sentiment that comes from familiarity and from the lovely embroidered hangings in our church parlors. We need to insert personal situations and specific names into these teachings in order to see how outrageous they are.
Since I don't have anyone striking me on the cheek, for example, I must think instead of that woman whose words were a slap to my ego. Since I don't have anyone suing me for my coat, perhaps I should think of that man who is so demanding of my time. And since no Roman soldier is compelling me to carry his pack, I should turn to the interruptions that are part of my day and the people who seem to have no regard for my schedule and itinerary. Once I have translated Christ's teachings to my daily experience, then I will see them for what they are: astonishing.
The second half of the passage continues the astonishing expectations. Loving enemies requires a polar shift in our fallen natures. And praying for those who persecute us is equally unnatural. What comes naturally is to pray for my loved ones -- my wife and children, my parents, and dearest friends. But the people who are antagonistic to me and give me grief do not appear on my heart's default prayer list. If they appear in my prayers, it is that the trouble they cause me prompt me to pray for myself!
Then comes the logic behind the absurdity: "so that you may be children of your Father in heaven." And that is the logic we shall consider below.
Application
"So that you may be children of your Father in heaven," Jesus says.
The phrase should not be misunderstood. Jesus is not making our relationship with God as Father a function of our performance or our merit. It is not when I love my enemies that I become his child. Rather, it is when I love my enemies that I prove that I am his child.
"He makes his sun to rise on the evil and the good," Jesus famously observes, and then makes the same point about the blessing of rain. In other words, God is indiscriminate in his generosity, and therefore we should be, too.
We noted above that these teachings from Jesus should astonish us. If we have managed, however, to make it all the way through the gospel passage without being astonished, then Jesus guarantees our shock with his conclusion. "Be perfect," he commands, "as your heavenly Father is perfect."
As though telling me to turn my cheek, give away my cloak, and love my enemies was not enough, now Jesus commands me to be perfect. Perfect like God, no less. Hang that in the church parlor!
While Jesus' statement may seem like an absurdity, it is not an anomaly. On the contrary, it stands right at the heart of scripture. Our other two lections bear witness to the larger theme. In the Old Testament Law, God unblushingly commands his people, "You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy." In short, they are to be like him. Paul's word to the Corinthians echoes that truth, for "you are God's temple" and "God's temple is holy."
If even most professional basketball players cannot reasonably hope to "be like Mike," what chance do you and I have to be like God? How outrageous an ambition, how tall an order is that?
Yet, from the beginning, that has been God's will for us. For his stated purpose was to "make humankind in our image, according to our likeness" (Genesis 1:26). And that continues to be his will and his purpose, for what seems way beyond you in your own power is enabled by the truth that Paul declares: "God's Spirit dwells in you."
Alternative Application
Leviticus 19:1-2, 9-18. "Non sequitur." The dictionary says that the phrase "non sequitur" comes from the Latin, and it originally meant, "It does not follow."
As we noted above in our consideration of the Old Testament lection, this chapter from Leviticus seems to contain a non sequitur. For woven throughout the instructions and prohibitions we find this recurring phrase: "I am the Lord." To the modern reader, it appears as an awkward interruption of the text. It does not seem to follow. In truth, however, it suggests a critically important theological principle.
The scope of God's laws for his people is as broad and as deep as life itself -- from worship to commerce, from Israel's relationships with foreign nations to their most intimate personal relationships, from annual holidays to daily hygiene.
Meanwhile, we recognize that the centerpiece of God's law for and covenant with his people was the Ten Commandments. We observe that, at the very beginning of that famous passage of scripture, the Lord introduced his commandments with this statement: "I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery; you shall have no other gods before me" (Exodus 20:2-3).
Israel's entire law was given and understood, you see, within the larger context of their God and their relationship to him. The recurring insertion -- "I am the Lord" -- therefore, is not an intrusion. On the contrary, it is the central support beam to which everything else is attached.
That pattern in the Old Testament Law serves as a helpful reminder for you and me as Christians. The Lord is not segregated off in some religious corner, separate from the rest of daily life. Rather, his presence with us and his claim on us is woven through every aspect of our lives: all of our living and choosing, all of our commerce and relationships, the occasional and the daily, the special and the routine. Perhaps we would do well to scatter that phrase -- "I am the Lord" -- throughout our checkbooks, our calendars, and our address books. Let me pin it to my clock, my bathroom mirror, and my refrigerator.
The constant reminder of who he is -- and whose I am -- is not a non sequitur. On the contrary, everything in my life follows from that.
Preaching the Psalm
Schuyler Rhodes
Psalm 119:33-40
Parents will readily tell how important it is that children simply obey the commands of their parents. When a car is speeding down the road straight toward the child, this is not the time to explain why they should run and run now! Just do it! Especially in young children this need for obedience is critical. Yet as a child grows, the need to explain and help a child understand the rules and they ways of the world becomes more pressing. In fact, understanding things can lead to a child's ability to better navigate the world.
Here in this psalm is a plea for such understanding. "Give me understanding that I may keep your law," writes the psalmist. Help me make sense of this! Give me a glimmering of why your law exists and what it means, and I will be able to keep it. This is a step in maturity from the child who must obey for the sake of its own safety to the maturing individual who needs reasons and understanding.
Interestingly enough, God's laws do have their anchor in sound reasoning. Why not eat pork? It's not just a silly religious rule. In those days of no refrigeration you could easily die of eating spoiled pork. It was practical. Why not steal? Well, a community would not last long if mutual respect of property was not a value commonly held. The list continues, with each of God's laws really having their root in something that actually makes sense. "Give me understanding that I may keep your law...."
The trick for us is trying to navigate laws and rules that may once have made sense but no longer do. An old hymn bellows out the line, "Time makes ancient good uncouth..." Today, with modern processing and refrigeration, is eating pork a problem? Maybe not. But stealing? That's still a problem even though large corporations are given license to do it.
This psalm can serve as a prayer for understanding.
Help us God to understand. Open hearts and eyes and minds to the power of and truth of your law. Give us balance and reasoning hearts. Give us, we pray, a holy understanding so that we might indeed follow your law. Amen.
