Why bother?

Our first lesson today gives us 3 reasons, and our examination of those 3 reasons will lead us to say again some familiar but still ignored things about God's law and our behavior.

(1) The first thing which the writer of Deuteronomy says is that we should do the will of God so that we can live.

Even to persons who are not in the Jewish or Christian faiths, the 4^th through 10^th commandments will make some sense.

The commands about murder, adultery, stealing, lying, etc., make it possible for us to get along with each other.

It is just prudence!

We know this is the First Use of the Law, as we learned it in catechetical class.

Do what God asks so that we do not destroy each other.

(2) Next, the writer of Deuteronomy says that law-keepers will be able to live in the land which God promises.

In other words, the law makes possible not only relationships but also possessions.

And, in distinction from Greek and other cultures, creation and possessions are seen as “good,”

--as gifts from God,

--as things to be used and treasured

rather than squandered or treated as ultimately meaningless.

To those in other cultures, what is real and important is a disembodied soul that wants to flee the world as quickly and expeditiously as possible.

To persons in those other cultures, the land, possessions, work, and even human bodies are ultimately good for nothing.

Not so n the faith of the Bible.

God has plans and uses for all of his creation and all of his people.

(3) Then the writer talks about a third reason for doing what God asks:

so that the other nations will marvel at the goodness of God and be drawn to worship him themselves.

They are to be a “light to the nations” as the Psalmist phrases it.

These three things are all very practical reasons; they make sense.

And they are regularly twisted out of shape.

Think about that third reason:

To “be a light to the nations” is very soon seen as a matter of pride rather than a grave responsibility.

“Hey look at me. I'm important. I'm one of the chosen people.”

And the second reason, the holding of land and possessions is seen as my right rather than a privilege granted by God.

Or God's will is OK as long as it applies to someone else, but I'll bend it or ignore it however I choose, thus turning the 10 commandments into the 10 suggestions or 10 ideas for intellectual consideration.

At the root of it all is our basic drive toward idolatry, our desire to claim the honor for ourselves or for some one or thing other than God.

We are sneaking up on another big idea that we remember from catechetical studies, the Second or Proper Use of the Law, which is to show us that we are constantly getting this wrong;

that we, in all that we do, point to ourselves and not to God.

When Jesus is complaining about the Pharisees, it is not because they were bad people. Not all all.

They were well-intentioned, intelligent, religious, and diligent.

They did lots of good things,

but they forgot that keeping the will of God is far more difficult than they thought.

It is not an easily-accomplished check-list.

It is there not only for our own benefit,

but also for a needy world.

The law is there to remind us always that all of these things which need to be done do not win us any special favor with God.

Indeed, we need to hear it clearly:

His love for us is not tied to our doing of certain things, but rather our doing is made possible because of his love for us.

That is the Good News in all of this.

To add a bit more complication:

we don't just have a problem with what we should do,

there is also the question of the intention behind the deed.

Rules can be kept, and their intent very much broken.

The Pharisees stumbled there, and so do we.

Jesus launched into an attack on the Pharisees who wrote a great number of rules ostensibly to protect the commandments, but were used instead to flaunt it.

Thus we have the verses about “corban” in today's Gospel. That term describes a way for a son to dedicate his income to the Temple or some other institution and thus to avoid caring for his aging parents. (There is no Social Security.)

They were using this human rule as a way to pretend to keep the first commandment by designating income to God, while what they were actually doing was trashing the fourth commandment about honoring one's father and mother.

I've often observed that there is no good thing that cannot be misused in some way.

Even the idea of tithing, the giving of 10% of one's income through the work of the church, can be misused.

If one thinks that when a certain percentage has been reached that one's thankfulness is paid off like a bill, and no more thought needs to be placed on it, one is placing something in the stead of God, the First Commandment is trampled, and the Gospel is obscured by our accomplishment.

So, why bother?

If things so often turn out wrong,

when even the bad things get mixed up with good intentions, and vice versa, why go on with the struggle?

In part, because the practical reasons which the writer of Deuteronomy lists are still very appropriate:

we work at hearing and learning and practicing them so that

--we can live in community,

--so that we can use well the land and other possessions,

--so that we can stir up in others

wonder at the goodness of the Lord.

But then also, we can continue the struggle of living within the law of God,

the law that keeps on measuring us,

because it is the love of God that continues to support us.

Even when things fall apart completely for us, as at the time of death, even then the last word is not about our brokenness but about the new life in Jesus Christ.

Why bother with the struggle?

Why worship, study, and serve?

--because God asks it.

--because we need it.

--because the world needs it.

--because the promise of the Lord Jesus Christ makes it possible.

And surely those are reasons enough.

Amen.

Please note: The preceding sermon is provided as a resource for the thought, prayer, and meditation of the members and friends of St. Mark's. It is the residue of a verbal event, and thus it does not have academic footnotes and other details that would be expected in a written document. The writer gladly acknowledges the prior thought and work of many Christians before him.