Do's, Don'ts and Signs

Do's, Don'ts and Signs

Presented at County Line Brethren Church on August 9, 2009.
Year B, Proper 14
Scripture passages: Ephesians 4:25 - 5:2 & John 6:24-35

Have you ever been working on a project and get distracted by another unrelated project? Have you ever been studying for a test and then find yourself doing something completely unrelated to the test? It seems rather normal for us to get sidetracked from what is really important. Of course, I have some ADHD and this happens with me all the time. In our two scripture passages for today we will find a couple of different ways that we can get sidetracked.

Whenever I hear or read the word “Sign”, I often recall the song by Five Man Electrical Band back in 1972, the year I graduated from high school.

V1
And the sign said long haired freaky people need not apply
So I tucked my hair up under my hat and I went in to ask him why
He said you look like a fine upstanding young man, I think you'll do
So I took off my hat I said imagine that, huh, me working for you
woah!
Chorus:
Sign Sign everywhere a sign
Blocking out the scenery breaking my mind
Do this, don't do that, can't you read the sign

V3
And the sign said everybody welcome, come in, kneel down and pray
But when they passed around the plate at the end of it all,
I didn't have a penny to pay, so I got me a pen and a paper and I made up my own little sign
I said thank you Lord for thinking about me, I'm alive and doing fine
Sign Sign everywhere a sign
Blocking out the scenery breaking my mind
Do this, don't do that, can't you read the sign

© 1970, 2002 Five Man Electrical Band

You may be wondering what this may have to do with the sermon today. Again, we are looking at distractions from what is most important.

Now, in order to set the stage for our first passage in Ephesians, let us state that one of the basic understandings of Biblical grace and mercy is that we, as human beings, simply cannot attain ethical perfection or righteousness. Nevertheless, you will often hear preachers focusing on “do this, don't do that, can't you read the sign” or in this case, can't you read the Bible? You may hear those of us who stand behind the pulpit preaching as though the congregation is less righteous than those who hold the title. You may hear us saying that the Bible is very clear on a particular sin or about something we should do. You may hear us say, stop cussing, don't smoke, love your neighbor, and forgive those who have hurt you. The fact of the matter is that those of us who have worn the “cloth” are no more righteous than you are.

If we focus too heavily on “do this, don't do that” then we are venturing into the dangerous territory of legalism. This dangerous territory of legalism is how most people outside of the church view not only Christianity, but most of the world's religions. Religion, to them, simply means “do this, don't do that.” And furthermore, we have often been found guilty, and rightly so, of focusing on the more outward appearances of indiscretion rather than on one's internal spiritual congruity. This passage does speak of internal spiritual issues when it addresses those private matters of bitterness, wrath, anger, malice as well as the more desirable attitudes of being tenderhearted, forgiving and loving. And yet, even if we were to speak of these internal matters alone, we would remain upon the precipice of establishing an ascetic and mystical set of rules and thereupon we can easily slip into exercising our own effort to achieve Christian righteousness. We are told in Isaiah that this type of human endeavor amounts to the value of “filthy rags.”

For all of us have become like one who is unclean, And all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment; And all of us wither like a leaf, And our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.
(Isaiah 64:6 NASB)

Instead of do's and don'ts, what I do see in this Ephesians passage are guidelines for relationships, which seems to be a predominant theme, if not the most important theme, in the Bible and the New Testament in particular.

For example, let us look at “truth.” For most of us in western society, truth or truthfulness is viewed as a concept, or a philosophical construct to be debated, or as in “I'm right and you're wrong.” Interestingly enough, Paul behooves us to “speak truth to our neighbors, for we are members of one another.” Hmmmmmm! That's interesting, is it not? Paul is saying here that truth is not so much about concepts, philosophical constructs, or even wrong or right. Rather, truth is more about building and sustaining relationships with our neighbors. That seems to me to put a whole different slant on “truth.”

And let us look more closely at what he says to those who have stolen from others. Paul says that instead of stealing, that we should
“let them labor and work honestly with their own hands, so as to have something to share with the needy."

Now, I have to tell you that this is a far cry from why we would want thieves to work. If they stole a lot, we might want them to work at hard labor, moving rock piles on the chain gang. We want thieves to “pay a price” for their misdeeds. So, why would we want them, or anyone else for that matter, why do we want people to work? We want people to work, so they are not freeloading. We want them to work so the we don't have to take care of them. We want them to work so that they can pay their share of taxes. We want them to work because we want them to be as miserable as we are on Monday morning.

But Paul says, that instead of robbing from the community, former thieves should work IN ORDER TO HELP THOSE WHO ARE WEAK, TO FEED THOSE WHO ARE HUNGRY, TO PROVIDE STRENGTH TO THOSE WHO ARE POWERLESS, AND TO INCLUDE THOSE WHO HAVE BEEN DISENFRANCHISED. Indeed, it would not be hard at all, upon searching the scriptures for a few minutes, to arrive at the conclusion that this is one of the main reasons for all of us to work: in order to help those who need our assistance.

I am reminded of John Wesley's often quoted phrase on this subject. “Gain all you can. Save all you can. Give all you can.”

What I am trying to say is that this passage in Ephesians is primarily “relational.” And that if we were to focus on “do this, don't do that”, we would get drawn away from the more important relational aspects of this passage.

This is much more than getting along, or learning how to live with one another, or in a worse case scenario, learning to love our enemies who may live a few doors down. Paul is talking about how we can live in community with one another. It may be helpful to recall that this book of Ephesians is actually a letter written to a body of believers in the town of Ephesus. This letter is written to a church! And most of us who have been in churches for any length of time, know that it is really all about relationships.

I'd like to conclude this portion of the message by encouraging us not to get hung up on the do's and the don'ts of this passage and fall into the trap of legalism, but to wrap them in the context of the community of the body of Christ – our relationships with one another.

In our second passage, we are given the opportunity to be a fly on the wall, so to speak, and observe first hand how easy it is to be sidetracked away from core truths about Jesus, the Christ. We will observe how “signs” have a propensity of distracting us from what is most important.

After feeding the 5,000+ people, Jesus and the disciples leave to a destination unknown to the crowd. The crowd searched for him and finally found him and the disciples on the other side of the lake.

When they first arrive, they ask Jesus, “When did you come here?” This question essentially reveals their bewilderment. It makes a vague reference to the fact that they were looking for Jesus. In a sense, it is kind of a bizarre scene. Here was Jesus with his disciples after having ditched the crowd. And the next thing you know, this armada of boats appears in Capernaum. It's like they were saying, 'we're ready to make you king, why did you leave.?'

Jesus' response is on a completely different wavelength. Jesus says that they saw the sign, the miracle of feeding the crowd, but they didn't get it. They were fed from a boy's small lunch and their bellies were full for one day, but they had no understanding of what was really going on. They had met Jesus and wanted to make him king, but they did not know Jesus. It's almost as if they did not recognize that their feeding the day before was really a miracle. Indeed, one of the questions/requests is almost beyond our comprehension.

What sign are you going to give us then, so that we may see it and believe you? What work are you performing?

Excuse me for being so crass, but were they blind too? Could they not see the manner by which they were fed the day before? In point of fact, Jesus later says that many of the people are indeed blind – spiritually. They see, but do not believe in Jesus, the Christ – because their eyes have not been opened by the Spirit. At some point in time, it would be wise for those of us who have grown up in Armenian churches, to more reconciled with this, but we will not venture there today.

This exchange between Jesus and the crowd points out to me that they were not communicating very well.

We watched a clip of “Who's on First” by Abbott and Costello, on youtube. Abbott is dressed in a baseball uniform for the St. Louis Wolves and they are going to go to the ball game. Costello asks Abbott to tell him the name of the players so that he will be able to become more quickly acclimated to the game once they arrive at the ball park. Abbott begins by saying that “Who's on First, What's on second and “I Don't Know” is on third. And from there, the burlesque entertainers were off and running. It is a comedy routine that exemplifies miscommunication to a T.

This crowd was 'off base.' They weren't getting it. It was like another version of Abbott and Costello. They wanted to be fed again. They wanted another sign. They wanted Jesus to prove himself, so they could believe. They are kind of like us. We are all living an abundant life and we want more. We crave for a sign, even today. We pray desperately for another miracle. We ask for more prosperity and grow less dependent upon God. We ask for healing and wonder where God is, when it doesn't come. You see, in perhaps smaller and different ways, we are asking God to prove himself. Maybe we are not asking for proof so that we can believe. Perhaps we ask for signs, miracles, proof – to satisfy our doubt, to assuage our fear, embolden our trust.

But is that really the purpose of signs and miracles? The scriptures (and especially the gospel of John) would say that signs and miracles are NOT particularly helpful in developing belief. Did the Exodus miracles persuade Pharaoh to believe in God? No. And we learn later in this chapter that many of Jesus' disciples left him despite witnessing the miracles and signs.

Do I believe miracles and signs still happen? Yes.
But I also believe that there are those who place too much emphasis on miracles and signs. Jesus tries to tell the crowd that it is not about the miracles and signs – IT IS ABOUT BELIEVING IN JESUS, THE CHRIST.

(from Feasting on the Word, Year B, Volume 3, p. 308)
There was a name in nineteenth-century China (and perhaps all over Asia) for persons who came to church because they were hungry for material food. They converted, were baptized, joined the church, and remained active members as long as their physical needs were met through the generosity of the congregation. But once their prospects improved and they and their families no longer needed rice, they drifted away from the church. Hence missionaries called them “rice Christians.” That name calls to mind those who flocked to the churches in East Germany and Romania just before the liberation of eastern Europe – when the church was manifesting courage, and pastors were speaking out against Communist regimes. The people came to cheer the church on, and to join the congregation in its opposition to the tyrannical state. But after liberation from the heel of the Soviet boot and local dictators, the crowds dispersed and the churches began to look as straggling and abandoned as they had before the stirrings of political liberty took hold.

I recall that after the September 11, 2001 attacks on our country, church attendance went up. Perhaps we were looking for understanding. Perhaps we were looking for revenge. Perhaps we were looking for a miracle or a sign. Perhaps we were looking for something to to satisfy our doubt, something to assuage our fear, something to embolden our trust. I will say that a new sign or a miracle will not accomplish everything we hope for. In some sense, it would be a distraction.

It is so easy to major on the minors. It is so easy to become distracted away from what is most important. In our first example today, we can easily become distracted by focusing on the do's and the don'ts instead of relationships. In our second example today, we become distracted by focusing on miracles and signs instead of our risen Lord, Jesus, the Christ.

May the Lord be gracious unto us and teach us how to live more as a community and not be distracted by less important things.