Raise Up the Foundations

February 5, 2023
St. John’s United Church of Christ, Union, Illinois

Isaiah 58:1-12; Matthew 5:13-20[1]

I used to read science fiction comedy by Douglas Adams, about this average guy from a town in England who discovers his best friend is actually from another planet. In one of the novels, they have to park their spaceship in a town on Earth near a sporting event. In order to keep the spaceship from being seen, they have to use an invisibility shield. They wrap the ship in an energy field called “Somebody Else’s Problem.”[2] You see, when it’s somebody else’s problem, you don’t really notice what’s going on and you can ignore it.

Now, as Americans, we enjoy certain inalienable rights; and individual freedom and opportunity are protected in our laws. The value that our society places on the individual enables us to achieve incredible things, allows us to do and be our best, and promises that every person has value – no one is expendable.

Those who serve our country and protect those rights, particularly those in uniform, know what it means to “Be all you can be.” And they deserve our thanks for their service. Several years ago, I read an article by General Stanley McChrystal, U.S. Army, retired, former Commander of U.S. Forces in Afghanistan. The article, “Step Up for Your Country,” was published in the January 31^st, 2011 copy of Newsweek. McChrystal raised an important point about our rights and freedoms. He says, “As important as those inalienable rights are, there are also inalienable responsibilities that we must accept and fulfill.”[3]

A soldier knows a great deal about responsibility. If the unit doesn’t perform as a team, or if any member of the unit fails to do their job, someone is going to die, and it won’t be the enemy. There can be life or death consequences if anyone thinks something is somebody else’s problem. And the tremendous responsibility that comes with command in the armed forces has given McChrystal an important perspective on what many of us might dismiss as somebody else’s problem. He wrote, “We have let the concept of service become dangerously narrow, often associated only with the military.”[4] He continued, “This allows most Americans to avoid the sense of responsibility essential for us to care for our nation – and for each other.”[5]

Are there any Boy or Girl Scouts here today? You know something about responsibility as well. “‘Do a Good Turn Daily’ is a core Scouting precept. Scouting encourages young people to recognize the needs of others and take action accordingly. Scouting works through neighborhoods, volunteer organizations, and faith-based organizations to help young people appreciate and respond to the needs of others.”[6]

Shared responsibility for the well-being of our neighbors, our community, and our world is not as clearly defined in our laws. It is, however, quite clearly defined in our scriptures.

Isaiah’s people are trying to figure out what led to their exile in Babylon. They believe that they must have angered God, who punished them, and so they focus with zeal on worshiping God and over-observance of religious ritual. “Isaiah’s people appear to be very religious. They not only go to worship daily; they also fast frequently. The people complain that they have observed the fasts, but God has not answered their prayers. Isaiah has to point out that the wealthy are fasting on the holy days, but their employees still have to work.”[7] “Look, you serve your own interest on your fast-day, and oppress all your workers.”[8] Their energy is misdirected, they are missing the point, and their fasting serves no purpose. “Is such the fast that I choose, a day to humble oneself?”[9]

Isaiah suggests that observing the letter of the law misses the spirit of the law. Worship is supposed to fill us with the power of the Holy Spirit, and charge us to go forth to bring the “Day of the Lord” or the “Kingdom of God” to fruition. Worship should remind us of our responsibility to our fellow family members, the children of God. Fasting is supposed to free up resources that could be used to serve others in the community. “Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of injustice, to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover them, and not to hide yourself from your own kin?”[10]

Both Isaiah and Jesus make the point that worship of God is about more than faithful observance of ritual. When Jesus says “unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven,”[11] he means that there is something more important than obsessive observance of the letter of the law. What God desires, offering food to the hungry, satisfying the needs of the afflicted, is what gets missed when our focus is on ourselves rather than on our responsibility to our neighbors.

In that Newsweek article,[12] General McChrystal described a situation he saw in Afghanistan. In that harsh environment, agriculture was sustained by a complex and extensive irrigation system using underground tunnels. This system was essential, and required labor-intensive maintenance. The members of the community understood their responsibility to do the work necessary to keep the system flowing. It was a shared task.

When the Soviet Union invaded in 1979, the system was damaged. Ironically, this resulted in private individuals digging their own wells and setting up their own systems, disrupting the community dynamic. What had been a unifying responsibility for all was now a source of wealth for a few – and yet another source of frustration for the rest.

In our own country, it is often more efficient and cost-effective to hire professionals to complete a project, but not if our objective is to shape our society with a sense of shared responsibility.[13]

Snow removal is a perfect example of this type of shared responsibility. Clearing the sidewalks so children can safely walk to school is the responsibility of all of us. And it’s more than just the sidewalk in front of my house – if the path ends in a snow-bank where it meets my property line, that’s a dead-end, not a safe and clear passage. Now, I have a deal with my neighbor, who has a bad back and a snow-blower, that I can use the machine and clear the snow from both properties. But ultimately our responsibility goes all the way to both corners. When it snows, if my neighbors and I work together, there will be a clear path by the next morning.

There are other examples, things that members of this congregation are already involved in. Serving at the MORE Food Pantry, or the Food Pantry in Huntley. Raking leaves and shoveling show for our neighbor with a bad back is one way our family takes responsibility for others. Loosing the bonds of injustice and letting the oppressed go free are more difficult duties, but not beyond the ability of people in this room, particularly if we work together.

Jesus said, “You are the salt of the earth.”[14] Worship of God means to bring salt to the world. Salt is that spice that brings out the flavor of food. A life lived in worship of God can enhance our experience of the world, and help us bring out the best in others. Salt also preserves food. A worshipful life helps us hold onto our heritage and all that has made us who we are. Salt makes us thirsty. Worship of God can give us a thirst for justice and the desire to end oppression.

“You are the light of the world.”[15] To be told we are the light of the world encourages us to share our gifts and talents with others. “However, there is another reason for light to shine. There is darkness in life – external and internal.”[16] “The light is not given for our own personal enjoyment.”[17] We are given the light in order to go into the darkness, “to engage and walk through it, so that, in time, the light can overcome it.”[18]

To be the light of the world is to take on the responsibility to rebuild the ancient ruins, to raise up the foundations of many generations. To be the light of the world means that we repair the breach, we restore the streets to live in. To be the light of the world means that we recognize our shared responsibility for the well-being of our world in the commandment to love our neighbor as ourselves. To be the light of the world means that we see through what seems to be somebody else’s problem, and understand that we have a responsibility to serve one another in the name of Jesus Christ.

When we bring salt and light to the world, we raise up the foundations of something better. We bring glory to God and raise up the foundations of the City of God![19]  Amen.

---

[1] The Scripture quotations contained herein are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989, by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

[2] Douglas Adam, Life, the Universe and Everything (Harmony Books, 1982).

[3] Stanley McChrystal, “Step Up for Your Country,” Newsweek, 31 January, 2011, 36.

[4] Ibid.

[5] Ibid.

[6] Boy Scouts of America, from http://www.scouting.org/Visitor/WhyScouting/ServingOthers.aspx (accessed 2/7/2011).

[7] Brett Younger, “Homiletical Perspective” on Isaiah 58:1-9a (9b-12), in Feasting on the Word: Preaching the Revised Common Lectionary, Year A, Volume 1 (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2010), 319.

[8] Isaiah 58:3b.

[9] Isaiah 58:5a.

[10] Isaiah 58:6-7.

[11] Matthew 5:20.

[12] McChrystal, 36, 38.

[13] Ibid., 38.

[14] Matthew 5:13.

[15] Matthew 5:14.

[16] Charles James Cook, “Pastoral Perspective” on Matthew 5:13-20, in Feasting, 336.

[17] Ibid.

[18] Ibid.

[19] The worship service concluded with the singing of the hymn “You Are Salt for the Earth, O People,” paraphrase by Marty Haugen, 1986, alt.; in The New Century Hymnal (Cleveland: The Pilgrim Press, 1995), 181.

Healing on the Sabbath

August 21, 2022
St. John’s United Church of Christ, Union, Illinois

Isaiah 58:9b-14; Luke 13:10-17[1]

We don’t use the term “sabbath” much in our conversations. “What are you doing on the sabbath, brother?” “Oh, I’m going down to the temple to pray, then resting in the park.” We might ask someone, “What are you doing on Sunday?” And they might reply, “Going to church, then watching the ball game, you?” But, just because we don’t use the term “sabbath,” doesn’t mean we don’t know what it means.

In the church, we long ago took the Jewish practice of sabbath - observed from Friday sundown to Saturday sundown - and moved it to Sunday. Going to the temple was replaced with going to church, but prayer and the worship of God are still the focus. And we’ve kept the idea of keeping Sunday as a special day. Thanks to the labor movement, now we have two special days we call the weekend, which is nice. But Sunday is still extra-special for most of us.

Sunday is the day we relax with family and friends. Some people run marathons (which seems like a lot of work to me), play golf or other sports, watch other people play sports, eat out, eat together around the dinner table, or other things we don’t usually do during the rest of the week. Most of us don’t work on Sundays, though some of us do. But I’ll guess that all of us with jobs outside the home get a day or two off each week.

That was part of the point of keeping sabbath, even for our ancient ancestors. The idea of taking a break from work, a day to rest and recuperate, is important to our well-being. Even God took a break after creating the world in six days. The keeping of sabbath as a law or religious ordinance, however, wasn’t established until Moses went up the mountain to receive the Ten Commandments from God. The word “sabbath” doesn’t appear in the Bible until after Moses has led the people out of Egypt. And what were they doing in Egypt? They were slaves.

Slaves don’t get a day off. Slaves don’t get paid either, let alone health benefits and a retirement fund, but they did usually receive food, water, and perhaps shelter. But there was no break from work, no day off to rest, recuperate, and cheer on the chariot racers. Slave work wasn’t sitting at a desk occasionally Facebooking either. Day after day after day of endless hard labor with never an end in sight. Imagine that. Imagine working hard, day after day, getting ever more tired and worn down, and never getting a break. Sounds like parenting, actually. But seriously, I worked some long stretches when I worked at the bank, at month end, and after twelve days straight I was about ready to die. I can’t imagine never getting a break.

The sabbath is a gift from God. For the newly forming Israelite community, it must have seemed incredibly wonderful. Over time, it became a signature characteristic of Jewish people, that they didn’t work on the sabbath. Taking a break from the routine, taking time to worship God and be with their families was, and still is for most, part of their identity. Exodus 20, the first list of the commandments (yes, there’s more than one list), reads:

Remember the sabbath day and treat it as holy. Six days you may work and do all your tasks, but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. Do not do any work on it—not you, your sons or daughters, your male or female servants, your animals, or the immigrant who is living with you. Because the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and everything that is in them in six days, but rested on the seventh day. That is why the Lord blessed the sabbath day and made it holy.[2]

This idea of getting a day off from work, and taking time to worship God, is precious. Certainly, this was important to a people who had just been enslaved. This precious gift from God must be protected. And so, later in Exodus, the Lord gave to Moses instructions for keeping the sabbath, and says:

Keep the sabbath, because it is holy for you. Everyone who violates the sabbath will be put to death. Whoever does any work on the sabbath, that person will be cut off from the people.[3]

This is serious business. God really wants you to take a break. This is reiterated in the Isaiah passage we just read:

If you refrain from trampling the sabbath, from pursuing your own interests on my holy day; if you call the sabbath a delight and the holy day of the Lord honorable; if you honor it, not going your own ways, serving your own interests, or pursuing your own affairs; then you shall take delight in the Lord, and I will make you ride upon the heights of the earth.[4]

Keeping sabbath, and keeping it holy, is a really big deal. Bad things happen when you work on the sabbath, and good things happen when you don’t. This is why the leader of the synagogue is so upset by what Jesus does. Jesus heals the bent-over woman; he does work on the sabbath. No, no, no! That’s not what we do. “There are six days on which work ought to be done; come on those days and be cured, and not on the sabbath day.”[5] The sabbath day is precious. If Jesus starts working on the sabbath, then his followers will start doing work on the sabbath, and pretty soon no one will get a day off ever again!

This poor guy who is leading the synagogue that Jesus visited that day. He’s trying to be faithful. There’s a right way and a wrong way to do things; if you want to please God, we’ve got laws that tell you how to do that. Religious observance is the way to win God’s favor, so make sure you have interesting worship services, lovely buildings, beautiful prayers, and a lot of focus on the law, in this case the law about doing no work on the sabbath.

Okay, maybe they pushed things a little too far, as Jesus points out when he responds: “You hypocrites! Does not each of you on the sabbath untie his ox or his donkey from the manger, and lead it away to give it water?”[6] A little work is okay, because sometimes things need to be done now, and they can’t wait. And this woman, this daughter of Abraham, needs to be set free now, she can’t wait any longer, her life is too precious. Yes, the sabbath is good, and important, but if you really want to please God, worry less about following the letter of the law, and worry more about how you treat one another.

This religious leader, and others like him, were folks who got up in the morning thinking about God and how they might serve God better. They didn't always get it right, but they were sincerely trying. Sounds a lot like you and me. We don’t always do things the way that God might want us to. What would Jesus do? I’ll try to do that. And when I let Jesus point out the shortcomings in the way that I’ve been thinking, I might just be a little more forgiving of myself, and more kind to others.

Taking a break, resting and worshiping on the sabbath, on the Lord’s Day, is valuable. It’s important. But maybe the point is not about whether we keep the Sabbath or not, but the way in which we keep it, and keep it holy. So, I come to church and worship God. I’ll rest and take some time to be with my family. But if something needs to get done, and it just can’t wait, I’m not going to beat myself up about it. I’m also not going to let whatever it is take over my day, and take away my opportunity for sabbath.

I’m not going to spend all day focused on my computer screen, or my cell phone screen, or my TV screen. But if I need to know the weather forecast, I’ll look it up. I will try to resist the temptation to check Facebook and my email. If I want to relax in front of the game with friends, that’s fine, but I’ll try to make my friends, and not the game, the main focus of my time. I may check my cell phone once in a while, but maybe I’ll take it out of my pocket and set it down somewhere so that it doesn’t command my attention constantly.

We might do a little work on the sabbath, and we might not follow the letter of the law, but we’re celebrating the spirit and the point of the law which is to be loving, caring people, resting in the presence of one another, stepping out of our routine to celebrate the gift of sabbath, a gift given by God for our well-being. Let us take delight in the Lord’s Day, share the sabbath meal together, and remember the one who came to show us the way to be holy, the one who healed on the sabbath day.  Amen.

---

[1] The scripture quotations contained herein are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A.  Used by permission.  All rights reserved.

[2] Exodus 20:8-11.

[3] Exodus 31:14.

[4] Isaiah 58:13-14a.

[5] Luke 13:14.

[6] Luke 13:15.

Another Try

March 2, 2022 – Ash Wednesday
St. John’s United Church of Christ, Union, Illinois

Isaiah 58:1-12; Matthew 6:1-6,16-21[1]

We’ve all made New Year’s resolutions, right? We promise to quit smoking, to lose weight, to get better grades, to make the team, to spend more time with our families. How’d that work out for you? For me, it usually lasts for a few days, but then I slip, skip, or fail. Try again next year, I guess. Often, it seems as if Lent is “New Year’s resolutions part 2.” Only this time there’s more guilt because you’re not just failing yourself, you’re failing God! “What are you giving up for Lent?” is the question I heard as a kid. Was I a bad Christian because, at first, I didn’t understand the question? My answer was “Um, nothing”? I felt like I was missing out on something, something important.

What is Lent really about, anyway? “The traditional purpose of Lent is the preparation of the believer — through prayer, penitence, almsgiving and self-denial — for the annual commemoration during Holy Week of the Death and Resurrection of Jesus.”[2] Prayer serves to direct our attention to God. Penitence is “the condition of being sorrowful and remorseful for sins one has committed.”[3] Almsgiving is charity, giving to those in need and thus showing love for our neighbor. And self-denial is the giving-something-up which is meant to redirect our thoughts and energy from bodily or earthly things to spiritual or divine things. Lent was originally the time when candidates prepared for baptism, which took place during the Easter vigil, the Saturday night before Easter Sunday morning. It was an intense period of fasting and prayer.

Ash Wednesday is the first day of Lent, the forty-day period leading up to Easter Sunday. (Sundays are not counted as part of Lent since every Sunday is a celebration of the resurrection.) The forty days symbolize the forty days Jesus spent fasting in the wilderness before he began his public ministry. Ash Wednesday gets its name from the practice of placing ashes on the foreheads of the faithful as a sign of repentance. The act echoes the ancient Near Eastern tradition of throwing ashes over one’s head to signify repentance before God.[4] You may recall that Job, after arguing his case before God and being humbled, repented in sack-cloth and ashes. The ashes are also a reminder of our mortality, as we read in Genesis 3:19, “You are dust, and to dust you shall return.”

Of course, all of this tradition seems to be just the opposite of what the biblical texts we just read tell us. Isaiah, speaking for God, asks: “Is such the fast that I choose, a day to humble oneself… and to lie in sackcloth and ashes?” (58:5) Matthew, quoting Jesus, says: “And whenever you fast, do not look dismal, like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces so as to show others that they are fasting.” (6:16) Hypocrisy, making a show of faith without any substance, without action to back up the words, is bad religion. Don’t just talk the talk, walk the walk. Actions speak louder than words. The words from Isaiah and Matthew remind us that God knows when we’re faking it.

So why should we celebrate Lent, and why, especially, should we put ashes on our faces? Well, for starters, showy religiosity is not really something we get accused of a lot. We tend to be quite humble in our piety, anonymous in our charity; we never pray in public and we put on a happy face even when we feel miserable, depressed, or hungry for something we cannot find. If anything, we’re not showy enough. But I’m not suggesting the opposite extreme. Please, go home and wash your face tonight, if you like. No, I don’t know where you can find sack-cloth. And, don’t go stand on the street and start shouting prayers; you’re likely to get arrested.

We should receive the ashes and celebrate Lent because we need help keeping our focus on God. It’s okay if we stumble, if we fail, if we fall short. God knows that the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. Lent will come again, and we can give it another try. But we should try, because when we do, we store up treasures in heaven, and that treasure can’t be taken from us.

There is value in ritual. There is something powerful in the act of repentance, here before one another, and that power can make a difference in the way we live our lives. If this year we give Lent another try, really take it seriously, maybe something in us can change for good. Maybe something in the world around us can change for good.

Rather than a fast of self-denial as expressed by going without food, or sweets, or indulgences, let us choose the fast of other-sustaining. We know this by the phrase “love your neighbor.” It’s something we already do, but we can take this moment, these forty days, to give our other-sustaining efforts a new intensity.

Share your bread with the hungry, and the Food Pantry customers will be grateful. Bring the homeless poor into your house; they may be angels in disguise. Give clothing and household items to people in need; you may turn a house into a home. We have already done good work to help others through our offerings and donations. But this is just treating the symptoms, not curing the disease. We can do so much more. We can do more to loose the bonds of injustice, to let the oppressed go free, and to satisfy the needs of the afflicted.

This Lenten season let us really try to be constant in prayer, to seek God in every moment, prepared to answer when we hear the call. This Lenten season, let us repent; not merely feeling sorry for the wrong things we have said and done, but really making an effort to correct our mistakes. This Lenten season, let us be generous with our money, with our time, and with our love. This Lenten season, let us deny ourselves what we don’t need, and sustain others with all that we can. This Lenten season, may our light rise in the darkness and raise up the foundations of many generations.

There is a spiritual I learned in seminary that speaks to the spirit of Lent, and how I can best direct my thoughts and my actions this season, and every day. It goes like this:

Woke up this mornin’ with my mind, stayed on Jesus
Woke up this mornin’ with my mind, stayed on Jesus
Woke up this mornin’ with my mind, stayed on Jesus
Hallelu, hallelu, hallelujah.

Amen.

---

[1] The scripture quotations contained herein are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A.  Used by permission.  All rights reserved.

[2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lent.

[3] Donald K. McKim, Westminster Dictionary of Theological Terms (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1996).

[4] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ash_Wednesday.

Raise Up the Foundations

February 9, 2020

St. John’s United Church of Christ, Union, Illinois

Isaiah 58:1-12; Matthew 5:13-20[1]

I used to read science fiction comedy by Douglas Adams, about this average guy from a town in England who discovers his best friend is actually from another planet. In one of the novels, they have to park their spaceship in a town on Earth near a sporting event. In order to keep the spaceship from being seen, they have to use an invisibility shield. They wrap the ship in an energy field called “Somebody Else’s Problem.”[2] You see, when it’s somebody else’s problem, you don’t really notice what’s going on and you can ignore it.

Now, as Americans, we enjoy certain inalienable rights; and individual freedom and opportunity are protected in our laws. The value that our society places on the individual enables us to achieve incredible things, allows us to do and be our best, and promises that every person has value – no one is expendable.

Those who serve our country and protect those rights, particularly those in uniform, know what it means to “Be all you can be.” And they deserve our thanks for their service. Several years ago, I read an article by General Stanley McChrystal, U.S. Army, retired, former Commander of U.S. Forces in Afghanistan. The article, “Step Up for Your Country,” was published in the January 31^st, 2011 copy of Newsweek. McChrystal raised an important point about our rights and freedoms. He says, “As important as those inalienable rights are, there are also inalienable responsibilities that we must accept and fulfill.”[3]

A soldier knows a great deal about responsibility. If the unit doesn’t perform as a team, or if any member of the unit fails to do their job, someone is going to die, and it won’t be the enemy. There can be life or death consequences if anyone thinks something is somebody else’s problem. And the tremendous responsibility that comes with command in the armed forces has given McChrystal an important perspective on what many of us might dismiss as somebody else’s problem. He wrote, “We have let the concept of service become dangerously narrow, often associated only with the military.”[4] He continued, “This allows most Americans to avoid the sense of responsibility essential for us to care for our nation – and for each other.”[5]

Are there any Boy or Girl Scouts here today? You know something about responsibility as well. “‘Do a Good Turn Daily’ is a core Scouting precept. Scouting encourages young people to recognize the needs of others and take action accordingly. Scouting works through neighborhoods, volunteer organizations, and faith-based organizations to help young people appreciate and respond to the needs of others.”[6]

Shared responsibility for the well-being of our neighbors, our community, and our world is not as clearly defined in our laws. It is, however, quite clearly defined in our scriptures.

Isaiah’s people are trying to figure out what led to their exile in Babylon. They believe that they must have angered God, who punished them, and so they focus with zeal on worshiping God and over-observance of religious ritual. “Isaiah’s people appear to be very religious. They not only go to worship daily; they also fast frequently. The people complain that they have observed the fasts, but God has not answered their prayers. Isaiah has to point out that the wealthy are fasting on the holy days, but their employees still have to work.”[7] “Look, you serve your own interest on your fast-day, and oppress all your workers.”[8] Their energy is misdirected, they are missing the point, and their fasting serves no purpose. “Is such the fast that I choose, a day to humble oneself?”[9]

Isaiah suggests that observing the letter of the law misses the spirit of the law. Worship is supposed to fill us with the power of the Holy Spirit, and charge us to go forth to bring the “Day of the Lord” or the “Kingdom of God” to fruition. Worship should remind us of our responsibility to our fellow family members, the children of God. Fasting is supposed to free up resources that could be used to serve others in the community. “Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of injustice, to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover them, and not to hide yourself from your own kin?”[10]

Both Isaiah and Jesus make the point that worship of God is about more than faithful observance of ritual. When Jesus says “unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven,”[11] he means that there is something more important than obsessive observance of the letter of the law. What God desires, offering food to the hungry, satisfying the needs of the afflicted, is what gets missed when our focus is on ourselves rather than on our responsibility to our neighbors.

In that Newsweek article,[12] General McChrystal described a situation he saw in Afghanistan. In that harsh environment, agriculture was sustained by a complex and extensive irrigation system using underground tunnels. This system was essential, and required labor-intensive maintenance. The members of the community understood their responsibility to do the work necessary to keep the system flowing. It was a shared task.

When the Soviet Union invaded in 1979, the system was damaged. Ironically, this resulted in private individuals digging their own wells and setting up their own systems, disrupting the community dynamic. What had been a unifying responsibility for all was now a source of wealth for a few – and yet another source of frustration for the rest.

In our own country, it is often more efficient and cost-effective to hire professionals to complete a project, but not if our objective is to shape our society with a sense of shared responsibility.[13]

Snow removal is a perfect example of this type of shared responsibility. Clearing the sidewalks so children can safely walk to school is the responsibility of all of us. And it’s more than just the sidewalk in front of my house – if the path ends in a snow-bank where it meets my property line, that’s a dead-end, not a safe and clear passage. Now, I have a deal with my neighbor, who has a bad back and a snow-blower, that I can use the machine and clear the snow from both properties. But ultimately our responsibility goes all the way to both corners. When it snows, if my neighbors and I work together, there will be a clear path by the next morning.

There are other examples, things that members of this congregation are already involved in. Serving at the MORE Food Pantry, or the Food Pantry in Huntley. Raking leaves and shoveling show for our neighbor with a bad back is one way our family takes responsibility for others. Loosing the bonds of injustice and letting the oppressed go free are more difficult duties, but not beyond the ability of people in this room, particularly if we work together.

Jesus said, “You are the salt of the earth.”[14] Worship of God means to bring salt to the world. Salt is that spice that brings out the flavor of food. A life lived in worship of God can enhance our experience of the world, and help us bring out the best in others. Salt also preserves food. A worshipful life helps us hold onto our heritage and all that has made us who we are. Salt makes us thirsty. Worship of God can give us a thirst for justice and the desire to end oppression.

“You are the light of the world.”[15] To be told we are the light of the world encourages us to share our gifts and talents with others. “However, there is another reason for light to shine. There is darkness in life – external and internal.”[16] “The light is not given for our own personal enjoyment.”[17] We are given the light in order to go into the darkness, “to engage and walk through it, so that, in time, the light can overcome it.”[18]

To be the light of the world is to take on the responsibility to rebuild the ancient ruins, to raise up the foundations of many generations. To be the light of the world means that we repair the breach, we restore the streets to live in. To be the light of the world means that we recognize our shared responsibility for the well-being of our world in the commandment to love our neighbor as ourselves. To be the light of the world means that we see through what seems to be somebody else’s problem, and understand that we have a responsibility to serve one another in the name of Jesus Christ.

When we bring salt and light to the world, we raise up the foundations of something better. We bring glory to God and raise up the foundations of the City of God![19]  Amen.

---

[1] The Scripture quotations contained herein are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989, by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

[2] Douglas Adam, Life, the Universe and Everything (Harmony Books, 1982).

[3] Stanley McChrystal, “Step Up for Your Country,” Newsweek, 31 January, 2011, 36.

[4] Ibid.

[5] Ibid.

[6] Boy Scouts of America, from http://www.scouting.org/Visitor/WhyScouting/ServingOthers.aspx (accessed 2/7/2011).

[7] Brett Younger, “Homiletical Perspective” on Isaiah 58:1-9a (9b-12), in Feasting on the Word: Preaching the Revised Common Lectionary, Year A, Volume 1 (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2010), 319.

[8] Isaiah 58:3b.

[9] Isaiah 58:5a.

[10] Isaiah 58:6-7.

[11] Matthew 5:20.

[12] McChrystal, 36, 38.

[13] Ibid., 38.

[14] Matthew 5:13.

[15] Matthew 5:14.

[16] Charles James Cook, “Pastoral Perspective” on Matthew 5:13-20, in Feasting, 336.

[17] Ibid.

[18] Ibid.

[19] The worship service concluded with the singing of the hymn “You Are Salt for the Earth, O People,” paraphrase by Marty Haugen, 1986, alt.; in The New Century Hymnal (Cleveland: The Pilgrim Press, 1995), 181.