Crossed Arms or Open Hearts

Each time I write a sermon I review the text a week or two before it’s time to preach. Doing so allows me the necessary time to research and reflect on the text. Just as importantly, it gives me time to see where and how the story is playing out in our world today. The scripture essentially ends up being a lens through which I view the world. For example, if I am preaching on a story about forgiveness, I will pay extra attention to the stories of forgiveness that I encounter in the course of that week or two. 

On Monday I read through the three scripture passages assigned for today and decided to have some fun and keep it interesting. I decided to preach about the Ethiopian eunuch; which meant that was the metaphorical lens that I viewed the world through this week. All week long I was looking for situations that would recall the story of Philip and the eunuch.

Imagine my surprise when I found my sermon illustration in an interaction with a woman who was volunteering along with me at New Palestine Elementary School this week. We didn’t talk about eunuchs, per se; and neither of us ended up being baptized after our encounter, but nevertheless it was an experience that connects to the story. 

Here’s what happened. 

I showed up at NPE this week for my last day of tutoring through the school’s reading program. Typically I arrive earlier than the other volunteers and am there alone for a couple minutes. This time, however, I wasn’t alone in the classroom. There was another volunteer there—someone that I have previously talked to. She knew that I serve as a pastor and on this day she wanted to ask me a particular question. 

She said, “You mentioned your church is part of the Evangelical Lutherans. What does your church have to say about God’s plan of salvation?”

As you read these words I’m curious what you would guess was the tone behind them. 

Do you imagine this question was asked with an inflection of one who is happy and genuinely interested?

Do you imagine this question was asked with an inflection of one who is panicked, and desperately searching for something that could help them?

Do you imagine this question was asked with an inflection of one who is testing, skeptical, and already has her mind made up?

That is precisely the one she used. To top it off, after she asked the question she folded her arms, sat down, and tilted her head slightly to the side with a look that said, “Go ahead and just try to impress me, but I already know your answer is going to prove you are not a real Christian.”

Her question did not seem to be born out of genuine curiosity; instead, it felt like a lure into a trap. Anyone who would use the phrase “God’s plan of salvation” already has a narrow understanding of what that is; namely, that human beings are inherently worthless and sinful creatures whom God has every right to destroy and cast into eternal damnation and torture at the hands of Satan; however, Jesus Christ appeased this angry bloodthirsty God by dying on the cross as a perfect sacrifice. So, the select few through earth’s history who say the sinner’s prayer and invite Jesus into our hearts will be counted among the select “good” people who will enjoy eternity praising God in a golden city in the clouds. The rest will be thrown into the pit where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth.

I’ll pause the story there in order to show you how this connects with today’s scripture from Acts. In this story, Philip is commanded by an angel of the Lord to head down a wilderness road. 

"So he got up and went. Now there was an Ethiopian eunuch, a court official of the Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, in charge of her entire treasury. He had come to Jerusalem to worship and was returning home; seated in his chariot, he was reading the prophet Isaiah. Then the Spirit said to Philip, “Go over to this chariot and join it.” So Philip ran up to it and heard him reading the prophet Isaiah. He asked… 

"...do you understand what you are reading?

What tone of voice did you imagine when you read this?

Was Philip genuinely curious or was he being sarcastic?

Before you dismiss this hypothetical question, consider that Deuteronomy 23:1 explicitly bans eunuchs from the Temple. So, if the eunuch had indeed gone to Jerusalem in order to worship in the temple, he was likely turned away, which he should have anticipated if he understood what he was reading when he read scripture. Hence Philip’s question.

Philip could have been acting like a smart-alec or he could have been genuinely curious. Either way, it is the eunuch’s response that introduces the good news of this story. He says, “How can I, unless someone guides me?” He invites Philip to sit beside him in his chariot and asks him questions about the scripture that he cannot make sense of. Philip tells him about Jesus, which leads the eunuch to jump into the first puddle of water and demand to be baptized. 

It’s a beautiful story of two very different people being open to one another. Philip takes the time to develop a relationship with an outsider, and the eunuch risks being mocked and ridiculed by asking a question. The eunuch’s eyes were opened to the truth of Christ and Philip’s eyes were opened to the truth that eunuchs were actually not outside of God’s saving plan. 

So, back to my original story.

I answered the lady’s question about God’s plan for salvation. I kept it succinct; I tiptoed around some of the issues I didn’t really feel like addressing; and focused on God’s love. She replied with a nod and eyebrow raise. I’m not sure she intended to communicate that I had passed the test or that I was as condemned as she assumed. After I was done with my speech, and after she nodded, I sat down. We were done. Chances are I will never see this person again. 

The story of the Philip and the Eunuch is a beautiful story of two different people taking risks and pursuing relationship.

The story of the two volunteers at New Palestine Elementary School is a much different story. It’s a tragic story because I never bothered to ask her what she thought; not necessarily about my answer, but rather, I should have asked her how she would answer her own question. But instead I assumed I already knew. I assumed I had accurately read her body language. I assumed nothing I would say would change her mind or create a meaningful bond between us. So I made no effort to nurture any possible relationship.

My message today is a warning and an invitation. Heed my failure and be instructed by it. Sisters and brothers, our assumptions of others are barriers to transformative relationships. Let us replace sarcasm and condescension with genuine inquiry. Let us be bold enough to accompany people even if our initial assumption is that they’re out to get us. And let us accept the invitation to be vulnerable and authentic around all people for in so doing we might open the eyes of others and also have our eyes opened to unexpected truth and beauty.

Amen.

Peter's Sermon He Needed to Hear

Acts 3:12-19

When Peter saw it, he addressed the people, “You Israelites, why do you wonder at this, or why do you stare at us, as though by our own power or piety we had made him walk? The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, the God of our ancestors has glorified his servant Jesus, whom you handed over and rejected in the presence of Pilate, though he had decided to release him. But you rejected the Holy and Righteous One and asked to have a murderer given to you, and you killed the Author of life, whom God raised from the dead. To this we are witnesses. And by faith in his name, his name itself has made this man strong, whom you see and know; and the faith that is through Jesus has given him this perfect health in the presence of all of you.

“And now, friends, I know that you acted in ignorance, as did also your rulers. In this way God fulfilled what he had foretold through all the prophets, that his Messiah would suffer. Repent therefore, and turn to God so that your sins may be wiped out,

---

I want to dig deeper into today’s reading from Acts, which is essentially a sermon from Peter. So, yes, you are about to experience a sermon about a sermon.

There’s a saying about preachers – that we tend to preach the sermons we most need to hear. I’m not sure if this idea is meant to be affirming or dismissive; but regardless, it is true.

I would like you understand that the ideas I address in my messages are ideas that I wrestle with. They are ideas that I strive to understand. They are ideas that I feel are important. They are ideas with implications that are played out in the world that we share. 

My preaching is an exploration my questions, struggles, experiences, joys, as well as my grasp of what is true and beautiful in this world. It is all I can ever hope to do since no matter how many perspectives I try to explore, I cannot ever fully see the world through anyone else’s eyes. 

Occasionally you offer me feedback about my sermons that goes beyond comments like “I liked the message” or “You went a little long today.” Sometimes you say, “That really made me think” or “I feel like you were talking about me.” 

When you hear a sermon and think I wrote it about you, please acknowledge that experience as a point of connection between us. If something makes you stop and think, it’s because I’m thinking about it too. If something makes you upset, it’s because I’m upset about it too. I’m not preaching what you need to hear, I’m preaching what I need to hear. That’s the best I can do. 

It is helpful to keep this idea in mind as we explore Peter’s sermon from the 3rd chapter of Acts. I’m not sure if it left an impression on you when you heard it earlier in worship, but it’s a pretty damning message. In fact, these verses have a shameful history of being used to support anti-semitic causes and atrocities. However, like everything in scripture, there are layers to explore and often the good news is hidden under the surface. 

Here’s the wider context, beginning with Acts 3:1:

One day Peter and John were going up to the temple at the hour of prayer, at three o’clock in the afternoon. And a man lame from birth was being carried in. People would lay him daily at the gate of the temple called the Beautiful Gate so that he could ask for alms from those entering the temple. When he saw Peter and John about to go into the temple, he asked them for alms. Peter looked intently at him, as did John, and said, “Look at us.” And he fixed his attention on them, expecting to receive something from them. But Peter said, “I have no silver or gold, but what I have I give you; in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, stand up and walk.” And he took him by the right hand and raised him up; and immediately his feet and ankles were made strong. Jumping up, he stood and began to walk, and he entered the temple with them, walking and leaping and praising God. All the people saw him walking and praising God, and they recognized him as the one who used to sit and ask for alms at the Beautiful Gate of the temple; and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.

This is another example of God working through Peter to achieve miraculous ends, and Peter is still coming to terms with this new power and reality. 

Recall Peter’s role in the events that led up Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection. Peter was one of the disciples who fell asleep in the garden while Jesus prayed. Also recall that Jesus had announced that Peter would deny him three times. Sure enough, three times people accused Peter of being in cahoots with Jesus. Each time Peter says, “I don’t even know the guy.” When Peter realizes that Jesus’ prediction was true, he breaks down in tears and does not reappear in the story until after Christ’s resurrection.

But almost immediately in the book of Acts Peter goes from a failed disciple to an outwardly successful one. His first sermon results in 3,000 people being baptized. He has started healing people. Amazing things are starting to happen through Peter – the disciple who fell asleep when Jesus told him to stay awake, denied Jesus, and played a role in Jesus’ death.

Peter has to reconcile the truth that he is as unworthy as they come, and yet God is working through him to accomplish divine healing and restorative purpose in the world. 

And suddenly it makes sense why he is yelling at the Israelites – his tribe – gathered around him and blaming them for Jesus’ death. He’s conflicted. He’s working out some issues. And preachers preach the messages they need to hear. 

He looks out at the Israelites and sees himself. His sermon is little more than an inner monologue dripping with frustration, shame, and confusion.  

See what I mean when we re-read the sermon but replace the pronouns “you” with “I”

Peter thought to himself, "Why do I wonder at this, or why do I think that it is by my own power or piety I made him walk? The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, the God of our ancestors has glorified his servant Jesus, whom I allowed to be handed over and rejected in the presence of Pilate, though he had decided to release him. But I rejected the Holy and Righteous One and asked to have a murderer given to me, and I killed the Author of life, whom God raised from the dead. I witnessed this. But faith that is through Jesus has given this man perfect health. And now, I know that I acted in ignorance. In this way God fulfilled what he had foretold through all the prophets, that his Messiah would suffer. I must repent therefore, and turn to God so that my sins may be wiped out.

The idea that this message should stand on its own accord, independent of its larger context, as proof of Jewish culpability or condemnation is dangerous and misleading. This is a message by Peter to Peter; it is a message of condemnation and grace that resonates in our own hearts because we, too, are God-killers. We, too, would turn our backs on Jesus if the stakes were high enough. And we, too, are used by God to bring grace, beauty, and healing into this world despite our fears and failings. 

As for practical takeaways from this sermon:

– take this as permission to tread lightly with scripture and refrain from using it as a weapon to assault others. The truth as revealed in scripture is always nuanced and should lead us towards grace, hope, and love. 

– also, be encouraged to do your own mental and emotional work. Human beings tend to redirect internal anxieties as arrows aimed at others. Pay attention to your hangups – the things that bother you and you wish you could change about other people. These are typically indicators of issues you need to address in your own life. Admit this and seek assistance before others are made to suffer. 

– take heart that God is able to accomplish incredible things through imperfect people like Peter. Your final chapter has not yet been written. There is still time to expect and demand God’s miraculous and restorative presence to work through you. 

Amen.