Scandal, Mercy and Love

In the gospel lesson this week (Luke 17:1-10) there are three distinct groupings. And in a surface reading they might seem to have nothing to do with each other. Random sayings of Jesus collected and roughly situated in the narrative when he might have spoken them, but otherwise not connected. That type of arrangement isn’t unheard of, for that is roughly Proverbs or most wisdom literature. Random sayings collected around some age or event or theme. But I think they might have a better flow than that first glace.

And I think that in the first block, our translations gets us off on a bad foot. They record, “Temptations to sin are sure to come, but woe to the one through whom they come (Luke 17:1).” And they continue with the condemnation of the millstone around one’s neck. It is not that temptation is a wrong translation, but that it doesn’t really capture the effect of what is being said. The word used is the Greek world that we directly take as our English word scandal. And the meaning is not our contemporary celebrity petty “scandals” which are more a humorous public failing. The better meaning is an action that causes someone to lose faith, or maybe an intentional disheartening of the faithful. Scandals are sure to happen. It is a sinful and fallen world. But woe to the one who scandalizes, who intentionally disheartens these “little ones.” Now any such scandal probably involves a temptation. One thinks immediately of the Roman Church’s priestly sexual abuse scandal. But honestly I think what the Pope said this week is also just such a scandal. To have the highest bishop of the largest tradition actively dishearten the faithful in the very area the church is most prophetic is a scandal. And Jesus is talking to his disciples. If you are a teacher or a leader in the church, it is a warning about “Paying attention (Luke 17:3).” Millstones attach to these things!

But that harsh but good reminder is quickly followed up by something unimaginable. Imagining a god of vengeance and wrath has never been hard. Believing in a god who forgives “seven times in a day (Luke 17:4)” is harder. Yet that is the command of Jesus, “if your brother says…’I repent’ you must forgive him.” God is a god of mercy, and he expects his people to have mercy also. Mercy to the extent of that number of completion – “seven.” Full forgiveness. Because in Christ we have been fully forgiven. The disciples’ response makes sense – “increase our faith (Luke 17:5)!” The request feels nonsensical. Scandalize me once, shame on me. Scandalize me twice, shame on you! It only makes sense in the world of faith. When one has faith that The Father is who Jesus says he is, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. When one has faith that Jesus came for sinners. Then anything can happen. Even a tree being planted on the sea (Luke 17:6). The strangeness of the Kingdom.

The last section might be more for those disciples that have been at this a long time. Maybe you are at the end of your forgiveness. Maybe you are just tired of being taken advantage of. Or maybe you labor under some idea that if I do this – live forgiveness in this world – this world will give some back to me. I don’t think that is an uncommon feeling. “No good deed goes unpunished” as the fractured fairy tale has it. Jesus’ gives the disciples a salutary reminder. The rewards of discipleship are not this worldly. In this world we are servants (those translators again, more pungent slaves.) Christ would have been perfectly fine issuing the commands and “we would have only done our duty (Luke 17:10).” But what Jesus precedes this with is telling. No earthly master would tell his slave to “come at once and recline at table (Luke 17:7).” The slave would do the preparation and might get something after. But Christ has prepared a table. And he has told his servants to come and eat.

The Kingdom of God operates differently. It intends to overcome scandals, not with duty, but with mercy and love. Mercy toward one another for the millstones we all might carry. Who among us has not been the cause of scandal? Love from the Father in the body and blood of His Son which covers us and make us whole.

Scandalized by Me

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Biblical Text: Luke 7:18-28

This is a stand alone sermon (most of mine are) but with John the Baptist at the center it is something of a pair with last week. It is a scene of taking stock. John’s in prison and going to lose his head. Has his work been at all meaningful? The one he said must increase doesn’t look exactly like what he was proclaiming the loudest. Jesus, are you sure what you are doing? Is the prophet and his prophetic words true? Does this grace that can be seen in this hour align with that word? How do grace and truth go together? They go together in the one Christ. Blessed is the one who is not scandalized by me.

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A Salty Peace

Biblical Text: Mark 9:38-50
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Living the Christian life isn’t always easy. I’m not talking about easy choices like things coded into the 10 commandments or lines of the creed. Those things are easy. I’m also not talking about those times of clear persecution. Those are easy in the way I’m talking about, but hard in reality. What this sermon addresses is what the text addresses which is the normal life of discipleship. Jesus’ words put a couple of things in tension. On the one side discipleship is a serious thing. I call it the discipleship of commitment. We are to be committed to each other in that we are responsible for our brother’s faith. Likewise we are to be committed to holiness for the sake of our own faith. Jesus is serious as a literal hell. On the other side, this commitment never excuses a lack of openness or grace. The disciple, as long as who they are interacting with in not against Christ, is to act as if they are with you. What that will lead you into sometimes is getting burned. But that is to be expected as Jesus says “we will all be salted with fire.” We are to be living sacrifices. Salted in ourselves. Ready to be at peace. This sermon expands on that and explores what that might mean in concrete situations.

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Scandalized Hearts

Biblical Text: Matthew 5:21-37
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We continue reading the sermon on the mount today. The Sermon starts with a very quick recap of the past two weeks before turning to the text. At a very basic level Jesus re-ups the 10 Commandments as part of the law that not a jot of tittle will disappear from. While this section of the Sermon on the Mount could be used as case law, Jesus’ purpose is really beyond just looking references. Instead what he is doing is demonstrating what we tend to do with the law, and telling us what we should be doing with it. We tend to look for an easy way to externally keep the law. We want the recognition for keeping it without the actual work (virtue signaling). What Jesus says back is that the external matters little, what he desires is that we attempt to keep the spirit, the internalized law. The real definition of privilege as that term is used today is the extent to which we can claim to keep the law while relaxing its claims on us individually. Part of keeping the law inwardly, is being willing to be scandalized over our own behavior. Hearts of flesh contrary to hearts of stone are able to feel the effects of sin, know where it leads, and be willing to make personal changes and sacrifices to avoid scandalizing our hearts, and not just to avoid scandalizing the neighbors.

Worship Notes: I have left in one of my favorite hymns, LSB 716, I Walk in Danger All the Way. This is the opening hymn of my funeral right now. The text and the tune mesh together perfectly. It is the rare example of the slow burn hymn. The open verse states a true problem, and things get worse from there, but there is no immediate delivery or magic as so often happens. It doesn’t deny the reality of this world, but it develops over the last three verses our solid hope both here and for eternity. Powerful text if you let yourself hear. The second item is that you might hear a missing note. Our organ decided to drop a note this morning. Providentially, we have a new organ on the way.

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