Preached at First Presbyterian Church, Baldwin, NY, August 18th 2013
A printable PDF file can be found here
Fire has many benefits. Fire can be put to positive uses. One of the images of the Holy Spirit is that of a fire that inspired the disciples at Pentecost. The love of Jesus Christ is a desirable thing – to have a burning passion for the Kingdom of God is something most preachers would encourage in their congregations.
But – careful - FIRE BURNS! This mornings reading counsels that if we want to be on fire for God then we have to take the heat that comes with it. It's not always to take a stand for what we believe. Luke talks of taking the heat of the Cross, of taking the heat of criticism, and of taking the heat of our choices.
1. Taking the Heat of the Cross.
Luke 12: 49-50 "I have come to cast fire upon the earth; and how I wish it were already kindled! But I have a baptism to undergo, and how distressed I am until it is accomplished!”
There are a whole host of biblical images all mixed up in these two verses. You may recall John the Baptist describing himself as one who baptized with water, and Jesus as baptizing by fire. We have the image of ‘tongues of fire’ in the Upper Room. Jesus appears to be speaking in this verse of the fiery baptism of suffering upon the Cross.
He is feeling the heat of opposition as the crisis of His crucifixion approaches. There is a sense of “Let’s get this over with”… in the phrase “How I wish it was already kindled”. There appears an element of judgment and anger as Jesus speaks of casting “fire upon the earth”. He appears to be under such tremendous pressure that He is almost buckling under its weight.
What had brought Him to this point of crisis? More than anything it was His unwavering commitment to be One through whom the unconditional love of God would flow to the lives of everyday people. Time and time again this meant pushing against the social, religious, political and sexual boundaries of His society.
He counted lepers amongst His friends and sat down at table with unholy tax-collectors. When challenged about breaking Sabbath law he proclaimed Himself ‘Lord of the Sabbath’. To a woman caught in the act of adultery He says, “I don’t condemn you, go and sin no more”. He told stories that made heroes out of enemies (like Samaritans) and was outspoken against any form of religious legalism or hypocrisy.
I recall as a child playing ‘tug-of-war’ with a rope between my hands. Though my side was losing I wasn’t going to give up. When everybody else let go, I tried to keep hold and the rope slid through my hands. Only when the pressure got too much did I realize my hands were hurting and looked down to see the rope burn marks across them. You can bet that was the last time I played tug-of-war for a while.
Friction. Caused by going against the way everybody else wants to go. Being a faithful disciple means getting burnt is part of the job description. It’s an inevitable consequence of going against the flow. At times our faithfulness will produce stress and the going will be hard. We may become angry and even judgmental.
The ‘New Interpreters Bible’ comments, “Some of the most unexpected crises we have to face come when we set out to do what we perceive to be the good, moral and right thing to do. Jesus Himself knew how devastating such crises can be, and He warned His followers to be prepared to encounter them also.”
Take courage! If you are feeling the heat because you are making a stand for what you believe, then Jesus stands with you. He knows how that is. He knows how that feels. He warns us that His road involves taking up our cross and following wherever He may lead.
2. Taking the Heat of Criticism
Verses 52-53 “From now on five members in one household will be divided, three against two, and two against three. They will be divided, father against son, and son against father; mother against daughter, and daughter against mother ...”
The Hebrew word “Shalom” speaks of more than our narrow description of ‘peace’. “Shalom” involves healing and justice and reconciliation and wholeness. Such things do not come into being without conflict. Division often precedes reconciliation. Wherever the Word of God has been heard, division has occurred among the people who heard it.
We are blessed in this country to have religious freedom. Such is not so in many other parts of the world. In some lands where religious or political Fundamentalism holds sway then to convert to Christianity can mean facing death. In some it can mean that upon finding you had become Christian your family would go through a ceremony to pronounce you dead. Certain political philosophies will only tolerate Christianity as long as it produces social change along the lines the powers that be proscribe.
You would think that for us, prosperity and religious freedom would create an ideal situation for Christianity to flourish. But the Kingdom of God is an upside down and inside out concept. Materialism creates such a desire for the acquisition of ‘stuff’ that very rarely do we stop and ask why no matter how much we have there’s always something more.
Freedom brings with it the temptation to treat belief, in anything, as an option. Where others make many decisions for us, life can just roll along, uninterrupted by questions of purpose or meaning or truth. If we get mad, we can bring a lawsuit. If we become anxious, we can find therapy. And for everyday life, just stick your brain in neutral and turn on the television, because it’s back to work on Monday morning.
Throw yourself into the life of your local church, spend some serious time in Bible Study and prayer, tell others about the faith that burns in your heart and shapes your commitments and people think your just going through a religious phase. “Hey.. it’s their choice, they’ll get over it… they always were a bit... y’know … religious”.
The faith destroying factor about living in a world of freedom and prosperity is that we rarely have to make a stand for anything. And you know that when you do, then it’s going to be frowned upon. That’s when those closest to you come and say, “Hey, back off, slow down a bit”. That’s when people start saying, “Don’t rock the boat.”
In this passage from Luke, Jesus warns us that making a commitment to Him changes our relationship to others. That even those closest to us will be affected by that commitment.
Take courage! If you are feeling the heat of personal criticism, because you are making a stand for what you believe, then Jesus stands with you. He knows how that is. He knows how that feels.
The reverse of that is the challenge I saw on a poster the posed the question, “If you were arrested for being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you?” It seems appropriate therefore that the third element in this passage has to do with;
3. Taking the heat of our choices
In verses 55-56 Jesus speaks to our complacency: “When you see a south wind blowing, you say, 'It will be a hot day,' and it turns out that way. You hypocrites! You know how to analyze the appearance of the earth and the sky, but why do you not analyze this present time?”
Personal Responsibility. Two words our affluent society has a real problem with. Personal Responsibility. “Yes Lord, I know I’m a sinner, but I’ve got some really good excuses!” In the Garden of Eden, Eve says, “Hey, don’t blame me, it was the snake”. Adam says, “Don’t blame me, it was the woman”. Cain says of his brother, “Am I my Brothers Keeper?”
“Analyze this present time”, says Jesus. Analyze this present life, the one we live in, moment by moment, hour by hour, day by day, year by year. Analyze. Where is God in it all? Analyze, where our real commitments are, what really burns inside of us, what are our motives for being part of God’s church?
Analyze what we think, what we say, what we believe, how we act, how we react, what you do with our money, what we do with our time, what we do for pleasure, what we do to help others, what we expect of others, how we react to others who are not the same. Analyze.. our fears, our prejudices, our motives, our beliefs, our values. Where is God in it all? “Analyze your present time” invites Jesus.
In the Scriptures the concept of judgment is all about personal responsibility. All about taking the heat of our choices. Scripture teaches us that we cannot stand before God on the last day saying, “It wasn’t me, Its not my fault, I’m not responsible”.
God holds us personally responsible for our relationship with Jesus Christ. That’s our business. The Church cannot do that for us. No pastor cannot do that for us. God holds us personally responsible for our spiritual growth. That’s our job. God holds us personally responsible for our knowledge of God’s Word. God holds us personally responsible for our prayer life.
God holds us personally responsible for loving our neighbor. God holds us personally responsible for our commitment to God’s church, for our stewardship within the community of faith, for our living and loving and our thoughts and our words and our deeds.
“Analyze your present life”. Before God we do not have the luxury of blaming our spouse, our parents, our children, our peers, our brothers or sisters, our environment, our temperament, our church, our pastor, our doctor, our diet, our dog, our Cable operator, our representative in Congress, or any thing else or anybody else.
Jesus calls us to Personal Responsibility. If we are burning with love for God , then it means we can expect to face some heat. In this mornings passage Jesus tells us three areas we can expect things to heat up. He encourages us...
- Take the heat of the cross
- Take the heat of criticism
- Take the heat of our choices
Take courage!
If we are feeling the heat, then Jesus stands with us.
He knows how that is. He knows how that feels.
Let us place our life in His hands.
Amen!
The Rev. Adrian J. Pratt B.D.
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