Monday, October 31, 2011


Beware the Hypocrite that Dwells Within
Psalm 107: 1-9 read responsively and Matthew 23: 1-12
Preached by Linda Jo Peters ~ October 30, 2011
Reformation and All Saints Sunday
Unity Presbyterian Church ~ Terre Haute, Indiana

INTRODUCTION TO SCRIPTURE
Psalm 107: 1-9 read responsively
This is a great song of thanksgiving after a time of fear and loss.  God’s saving grace saves the lost and hopeless throughout the ages.  As it was an affirmation of faith of ancient Israel it is still an affirmation of faith for us.

1O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever.
2Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, those he redeemed from trouble
3and gathered in from the lands, from the east and from the west, from the north and from the south.
4Some wandered in desert wastes, finding no way to an inhabited town;
5hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted within them.
6Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress;
7he led them by a straight way, until they reached an inhabited town.
8Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love, for his wonderful works to humankind.
9For he satisfies the thirsty, and the hungry he fills with good things.

Matthew 23: 1-12
Discipleship involves purity of heart not just of body.  Jesus emphasizes that the heart is the wellspring of good and evil actions. He criticizes acts of piety done with public pomp motivated by a desire for others' approval as hypocrisy.  As disciples our actions speak as loud as our words.  In our behavior we reveal what we really believe. Not just the Pharisees have to confront hypocritical leanings.[1] We all have to face our willingness to tell others to do what we say, not what we do.

Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples,2“The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat;3therefore, do whatever they teach you and follow it; but do not do as they do, for they do not practice what they teach.4They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on the shoulders of others; but they themselves are unwilling to lift a finger to move them.5They do all their deeds to be seen by others; for they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long.6They love to have the place of honor at banquets and the best seats in the synagogues,7and to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces, and to have people call them rabbi.8But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all students.9And call no one your father on earth, for you have one Father—the one in heaven.10Nor are you to be called instructors, for you have one instructor, the Messiah.11The greatest among you will be your servant.12All who exalt themselves will be humbled, and all who humble themselves will be exalted.

SERMON

This is Reformation Sunday.  It celebrates Martin Luther’s nailing 95 Theses to the Wittenberg door.  He was challenging his church to reform itself.  The banners that are hanging around the fellowship center are designed to represent eight of our historic confessions of faith.  The other banners represent the great ends of the church:  the proclamation of the gospel for the salvation of humankind; the shelter, nurture, and spiritual fellowship of the children of God; the maintenance of divine worship; the preservation of the truth; the promotion of social righteousness; and the exhibition of the Kingdom of Heaven to the world.  These visual images are tools for us to grasp the journey believers have traveled to be reformed always reforming. 

Those of us who are using the Horizon’s Bible Study on the Beatitudes have discussed that both inside and outside the church confession is ordinarily associated with admission of wrongdoing and guilt… But in Christian tradition, confession has an earlier and more positive sense. To confess means openly to affirm or take a stand for what one believes to be true… When Christians make a confession, they say, “This is what we believe, regardless of what others may believe and regardless of the opposition, rejection, or persecution that may come to us for taking this stand.”[2] Luther had no idea that what would come of his honest confession would be a radical and often violent reshaping of the body of Christ.  Each one of these confessional banners (on cover of bulletin) represent a time when the church struggled to publicly profess a shared conviction. 

So what does Reformation have to do with our scripture today? Jesus is laying it on pretty heavy with the religious leaders.  I think he is expecting more from them because of their office than he would of most of his disciples who were ordinary working people.  I have been asked by fellow believers, “How can Christians claim Christ as their Lord and Savior yet demonstrate a hatred of the poor and refuse health care to those in need?”  I believe, we are living during a time of reformation for our faith.  It is never a comfortable time to be challenged.  But looking at these banners we know we are not alone in facing times of not just disagreement about the interpretation of scripture but real times of persecution and the violence that often follows such conflict.  Are we up to the challenge?  This is an age that idolatrized public figures.  Let be honest, ff Peyton Manning could be come back healthy to lead the Colts, trust me the reaction would boarder on worship.  There is nothing new about this behavior.  I remember the madness over the Beatles when they first came to this country and as far back as Julius Caesar war heroes have come home to be made political leaders.  We also like to tear our idols apart.  Jesus was the man of the hour when he was healing and feeding the hungry but when he challenged the status quo he became persona non grata. 

It is our hypocritical nature that Jesus is forcing us to see.  Not fun is it?  We worship what we think will make us happy or safer.  But only God is owed our worship.  Every time we put anyone before God we put someone or something on the throne of God.  The Westminster Confession was born in the fire of the English Civil War (1642-1649).  Here is a glimmer of a separation of Church and State, as each had a province appointed by God but the leader of government also had a role in the church:

The civil magistrate may not assume to himself the administration of the Word and Sacraments, or the power of the keys of the kingdom of heaven yet he hath authority, and it is his duty to take order, that unity and peace be preserved in the Church, that the truth of God be kept pure and entire, that all blasphemies and heresies be suppressed, all corruptions and abuses in worship and discipline prevented or reformed, and all the ordinances of God duly settled, administered, and observed. For the better effecting whereof he hath power to call synods, to be present at them, and to provide that whatsoever is transacted in them be according to the mind of God.[3]

The Barmen confession confronted the nationalism of Germany that put either nation or Hitler himself on the throne of God. 

We reject the false doctrine, as though the State, over and beyond its special commission, should and could become the single and totalitarian order of human life, thus fulfilling the Church's vocation as well… We reject the false doctrine, as though the Church in human arrogance could place the Word and work of the Lord in the service of any arbitrarily chosen desires, purposes, and plans. [4]

Every communion Sunday we state the Apostle’s Creed, one of the oldest confessional statements of the church.  On the other Sundays of the month as we will today we read from the “Brief Statement of Faith” the newest edition to our Book of Order.

So what would be your confession of faith in this day and age?  What is it you believe is true and beware the hypocrite within that seeks favor for ourselves but not for the least of these.  Most confessions are written in community, but The Second Helvetic Confession was written by Henry Bullinger, a Swiss pastor as part of his last will and testament during a time of plague.  But before he died it became a public witness of faith that churches all over the world have found value. 

THE PREACHING OF THEWORD OF GOD IS THEWORD OF GOD. Wherefore when this Word of God is now preached in the church by preachers lawfully called, we believe that the very Word of God is proclaimed, and received by the faithful; and that neither any other Word of God is to be invented nor is to be expected from heaven: and that now the Word itself which is preached is to be regarded, not the minister that preaches; for even if he be evil and a sinner, nevertheless the Word of God remains still true and good.

So you could write your own confession of faith or work with a small group to uncover what it is you believe.  You may be surprise where that search takes you. Jesus said, “The greatest among you will be your servant.”  So remember to do what you say! Amen.



[1] See: Mk. 7:14-23; Mt. 15:10-20 and Mt. 6:1-18, 23:5-7
[2] See: THE CONSTITUTION OF THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH (U.S.A.) PART I BOOK OF CONFESSIONS
Published by the Office of General Assembly, Louisville, KY 40202-1396, p.xif
[3] See: 23:3
[4] See: 8: 23

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