Greg and I have had quite the week. It all started last week. Max was playing with
another dog on the ice and snow and took a terrible tumble. By the end of the day he was
hurting so we started giving him aspirin. But things only seemed to get worse. So on
Monday we took him to the vet. It turns out he came close to rupturing a disk in his back.
So the doctor gave us several pills and instructions that we were to keep Max still for 2-3
weeks. Have you ever tried to get pills down a dogs throat? It is not a pretty sight, we
have to fight 3 times a day to give them to him. We do it because we care for Max’s
welfare, but for him it’s a hard pill to swallow. But you know, there is another problem to
this situation, the pills work well, too well. Max is still injured, but now he is unaware of
the pain, He doesn’t realize the damage he can do to himself. Now we have to fight to
keep Max still. We have to corral him so he doesn’t harm himself more. We won’t let
him play, or chase things, or even walk more than a few 100 yards. We do it because we
care for Max’s welfare, but for him it’s another hard pill to swallow.
That’s the way life is, sometimes isn’t it. We can be in a difficult situation, and we aren’t
even aware of it. We will blithely go our way thinking everything is fine, until someone or
something pulls us up short. In the life of Israel God often had to wrestle with his people
to keep them from hurting themselves. God was not being mean, God did it because he
cared, but for Israel it was a hard pill to swallow. Todays reading in Micah opens with
God saying “I have a contention with my people.” God is wrestling with Israel over their
action and attitudes. They think everything is just fine. They are observing the religious
regulations of the law, even if they aren’t keeping up with all the other standards for being
the nation of God. They see themselves as God’s chosen people, but in God’s eyes they
are hurting, and don’t realize the damage they are doing. So God gives them a
prescription, really the essential elements needed to be the people God desired them to be.
Do justice, love kindness, walk humbly with your God. Three little pills, not much to
swallow, right! but boy it’s hard to get them into Israel’s life, and ours Let’s see how easy
these go down.
First God tells them they must do justice. That doesn’t seem to hard does it. If someone
does something wrong, take them to court and let the judge decide. But of course it’s not
that simple. To do justice the way God means it here is to give to each person what is
their due. It is to figure out what belongs to whom, and give it to them. That’s not so
hard when we are crying for Enron executives to give back the money the workers were
denied, but what about when we are called to do justice here in our community, or in our
church. It’s not always easy to give up our wealth to give others a fair wage, or to give
up our investments to support the church’s desired mission. It’s not always easy to let go
of power so others can lead, or let go of our authority so that others can make decisions
that might affect the future of this church. It’s not always easy to act for the best interest
of all and set your preference aside, to make those decisions that are right but will upset a
few. But sometimes you have to swallow that pill, and its’ hard. Now stop your
squirming!
But God did not just call us to do justice, hard as it is. God also called us to love
kindness. Now that should be easy, right, just be nice and polite. Folks nice has nothing
to do with it. To love kindness is to live in relationship the way husband and wife live
together in a good marriage. There is loyalty and faithfulness, honest concern for the
welfare of another. It’s being patient and tolerant. It is listening so that you see the world
from their eyes. It’s getting inside some else’s skin, walking around in their shoes and
seeing how they fit. The only thing is that if you really do that, it will affect your world
view, you will see things you never saw before. And that can be scary, and hard. We
don’t want to sit down with Osama Bid Laden and listened to his complaints, it might just
hit home. We don’t want to hear how someone from Park Street Hartford perceives
Norfolk, do we? And we may be polite when people have different opinions in this
church, but do we really care about their concerns? When we make a commitment to
listen seriously to both sides, perhaps we will find some resolution and act toward each
other with love. Sometimes that takes a lot of wrestling, but it’s good medicine so open
wide.
There is one other thing God expects from his people, just a little thing, really. Walk
humbly with God. That is a very quaint image, but not simple. To walk humbly with God
is to “live carefully,” to be attentive to God at each moment. It is not just ‘saying your
prayers and going to church.” But being sensitive to the ways of God and God’s Spirit.
To walk humbly with God is to be conscious of God’s presence and obedient to God’s
will. To walk humbly is to acknowledge that we do not have it all together, neither before
God, or before one another. We have our foibles, we have our limits, we do not know it
all, and in fact we are often clueless. So we turn to God to direct us, not to direct God.
We lean on God for help, rather than bully our way through. To walk with God is to live
as a servant not a king, to follow not direct. It is to listen and act in faith. Now this we
want to reserve for the saints and martyrs. Or at least for the near saints, like Mother
Theresa and Desmond Tutu, but it’s not for us. We say we don’t have the time or the
will, but the truth is it’s just too hard. Saying ‘yes lord’ all the time can get on your
nerves, you never can tell what will happen next. Depending on God for our welfare
really makes us vulnerable. Laying aside our agenda and plans, and opening ourselves up
to God’s purposes is anxiety provoking. Letting God be Lord in this church, well, you
know what I mean. And sometimes God has to literally pin us down to make us well
again.
I’m sure by now your all chocking, it’s not so easy to take these in when we realize the
full weight of their meaning. So why is God so insistant that we take are medicine.
Because it’s good for you! God doesn’t want to be mean. He wants you to be well. He
wants this church to be whole and holy. And sometimes we have to swallow hard and
follow the perscriptions God has written out for us. Are you feeling aches and pains from
this word? Do you sense God wrestling with you today? There here is a little perscription
If you know justice is your strength, then keep kindness in mind as you act. If you are
loving and kind to everyone, then perhaps it is time to stand for the right. And where ever
you are whoever you are, walk humbly with your God. Remember it’s for your own
good.