OPENING COMMENTS
- We continue in the season of Epiphany, a time of revealing or making Jesus known.
- Our theme for the Seventh Sunday after the Epiphany is doing what Jesus did.
- This theme is reflected in our call to worship, Psalm 37, which encourages us to “refrain from anger, and forsake wrath. Do not fret – it leads only to evil.”
- We see this acted out in the story of Joseph’s response to his brothers in Genesis 45, and we wonder how it is possible not to hold a grudge against someone who sold you into slavery.
- 1 Corinthians 15 contrasts the physical body with the spiritual body and the first Adam from the second Adam (Jesus), revealing the superiority of Jesus as the second Adam.
- Our sermon text, found in Luke 6:27-38, contains the verse (v.31) known as the “Golden Rule.” This passage explains God’s mercy and love in practical terms and helps us better understand the mystery of the cross.
OPENING SONGS
OPENING PRAYER
FIRST READING
27 “But I say to you who are listening: Love your enemies; do good to those who hate you; 28 bless those who curse you; pray for those who mistreat you. 29 If anyone strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also, and from anyone who takes away your coat do not withhold even your shirt. 30 Give to everyone who asks of you, and if anyone takes away what is yours, do not ask for it back again. 31 Do to others as you would have them do to you.
FIRST MESSAGE
- The Boy from the Well
- Greg Williams
Have you ever felt completely powerless? Have you been in the unenviable place of having no recourse — no action you can take that will change your situation? Imagine being stuck in the bottom of a well.
You likely recall the story. Joseph was the favorite of 12 sons, whose father had given him a coat of many colors. Joseph’s brothers — jealous of his gifts and favor with their father — threw him down a well in a fit of rage. At the bottom of the well — perhaps this one or one like it, he lay helpless, unable to scale the walls, completely dependent upon others to release him. Of course, we know this was just the beginning of his journey of helplessness, which included slavery, imprisonment, and mistreatment.
But we also know that years later, after being released from prison, Joseph became the 2nd highest authority in the land of Egypt. And during this time, he and his brothers met.
The land was in the midst of famine and Joseph’s brothers had traveled to Egypt to ask to buy food for their family. They were now totally dependent upon others. They had no idea the Egyptian official in front of them was their brother Joseph the boy they had thrown into a well so many years before.
At first, Joseph wasn’t sure about revealing himself to them and seemed to toy with the idea of revenge — even seeming to threaten their youngest brother. But mercy wins out. He can’t keep up the ruse anymore, he blurts out his name. But they don’t get it at first.
[Look Down]
And Joseph said to his brothers, “I am Joseph! Is my father still alive?” But his brothers could not answer him, for they were dismayed at his presence. So Joseph said to his brothers, “Come near to me, please.” And they came near. And he said, “I am your brother, Joseph, whom you sold into Egypt.
Genesis 45:3-4 (ESV)
They are so shocked to see him he had to repeat himself. You can only imagine what is going on in their minds. The power dynamic has completely reversed. Now it is them at the bottom of the well as he stands over them. They are trapped in famine and under the mercy of Egypt. He has the upper hand by any measure. But rather than take the upper hand, he informs them of his plan to take care of the most vulnerable member of their family, their aging father.
This is grace. Grace can mean walking away from our rightful revenge, holding back when we want to restore our human version of “balance” to the world.
Grace tells us that God doesn’t work by our weights and measures. In Joseph’s world, the abusing brothers are forgiven and taken in. In God’s world, the weak become the strong; in God’s world, the sinner is given the place of honor. In God’s world, the boy from the well becomes the man on the throne; the boy stripped off his robe provides for his family.
I am Greg Williams, Speaking of Life.
SECOND READING
32 “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. 33 If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. 34 If you lend to those from whom you expect to receive payment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to receive as much again. 35 Instead, love your enemies, do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return.[a] Your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, for he himself is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked. 36 Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.
37 “Do not judge, and you will not be judged; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven; 38 give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap, for the measure you give will be the measure you get back.”
MAIN MESSAGE
27 “But I say to you who are listening: Love your enemies; do good to those who hate you;
28 bless those who curse you; pray for those who mistreat you.
29 If anyone strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also, and from anyone who takes away your coat do not withhold even your shirt.
30 Give to everyone who asks of you, and if anyone takes away what is yours, do not ask for it back again.
31 Do to others as you would have them do to you.
32 “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. 33 If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same.
34 If you lend to those from whom you expect to receive payment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to receive as much again.
35 Instead, love your enemies, do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return.[a] Your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, for he himself is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked.
36 Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.
37 “Do not judge, and you will not be judged; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven;
38 give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap, for the measure you give will be the measure you get back.”
We shouldn’t think of giving only in terms of money …
We should think of giving grace … with Luke 6:37 in mind …
- Don’t judge … Give the benefit of the doubt.
- Don’t condemn … Forgive (as we have been forgiven)
Related passages … for consideration …
Proverbs 19:17 Whoever is kind to the poor lends to the Lord and will be repaid in full.
Ecclesiastes 11:1 Send out your bread upon the waters, for after many days you will get it back.
“He scatters abroad; he gives to the poor;
His righteousness[d] endures forever.”
10 He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness.[e] 11 You will be enriched in every way for your great generosity, which will produce thanksgiving to God through us, 12 for the rendering of this ministry not only supplies the needs of the saints but also overflows with many thanksgivings to God.
Matthew 25:34-40 34 Then the king will say to those at his right hand, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world, 35 for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.’ 37 Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food or thirsty and gave you something to drink? 38 And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you or naked and gave you clothing? 39 And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?’ 40 And the king will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did it to me.’
None of what has been mentioned is easy … but we can do it … because God has given us all the help we need …
Romans 7:15-25a I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. 16 Now if I do what I do not want, I agree that the law is good. 17 But in fact it is no longer I who do it but sin that dwells within me. 18 For I know that the good does not dwell within me, that is, in my flesh. For the desire to do the good lies close at hand, but not the ability. 19 For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do. 20 Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it but sin that dwells within me.
21 So I find it to be a law that, when I want to do what is good, evil lies close at hand. 22 For I delight in the law of God in my inmost self, 23 but I see in my members another law at war with the law of my mind, making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. 24 Wretched person that I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? 25 Thanks be to God[b] through Jesus Christ our Lord!
The key is to NOT try to do it on our own … BUT to rely on The Holy Spirit …
Romans 8:6-11,26 6 To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit[g] is life and peace. 7 For this reason the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law—indeed, it cannot, 8 and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
9 But you are not in the flesh; you are in the Spirit,[h] since the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. 10 But if Christ is in you, then the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit[i] is life because of righteousness. 11 If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus[j] from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also through[k] his Spirit that dwells in you.
Romans 8:26 Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness, for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes[o] with groanings too deep for words.
CLOSING SONG
CLOSING PRAYER
SERMON from Home Office …
I’ll Scratch Your Back. Period.
Luke 6:27-38 NRSVUE
You may have heard sayings like this:
You must give to get.
What you bless blesses you in return.
Give what you want first, and it will come back in buckets.
Smile, and the whole world smiles at you.
I’ll scratch your back if you scratch mine.
These sayings are expressions of the law of reciprocity, a well-known cognitive bias that Forbes magazine says is “fundamental to our survival as a species.” Sales teams employ this strategy as a means of building social capital or the trust and goodwill of others. The law of reciprocity appeals to our notions of what is fair and equitable, so that means if someone does something nice for us, we feel obligated to do something nice for them. While reciprocity can be a good starting point, it doesn’t exactly help us when we’re faced with someone who doesn’t play by this rule.
Our sermon text today contains the well-known “Golden Rule,” but we miss the broader meaning of the text if that’s all we notice about this passage. Jesus explains the mystery of the cross to his listeners and ends with an assurance that we will never know a scarcity of God’s mercy and grace when we respond like Him. Let’s read Luke 6:27-38 …
27 “But I say to you who are listening: Love your enemies; do good to those who hate you; 28 bless those who curse you; pray for those who mistreat you. 29 If anyone strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also, and from anyone who takes away your coat do not withhold even your shirt. 30 Give to everyone who asks of you, and if anyone takes away what is yours, do not ask for it back again. 31 Do to others as you would have them do to you.
32 “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. 33 If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. 34 If you lend to those from whom you expect to receive payment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to receive as much again. 35 Instead, love your enemies, do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return.[a] Your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, for he himself is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked. 36 Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.
37 “Do not judge, and you will not be judged; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven; 38 give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap, for the measure you give will be the measure you get back.”
The context of Luke 6:27-38
In Luke 6:20-26, we read a passage known as the Sermon on the Plain that closely corresponds to the Beatitudes, part of the Sermon on the Mount found in Matthew 5-7. Barclay’s Commentary says that “They take the accepted standards and turn them upside down. The people whom Jesus called happy the world would call wretched; and the people Jesus called wretched the world would call happy. Just imagine anyone saying, ‘Happy are the poor, and Woe to the rich!’ To talk like that is to put an end to the world’s values altogether.” This sets up our sermon text by turning the typical and natural human responses upside down.
In verses 27-30, believers are commanded to behave in a positive manner toward people who are described as enemies, haters, cursers, abusers, and thieves. It’s important to point out that Jesus paints a picture of how we are to live and act as disciples. It’s more than endurance of mistreatment; we are being asked to mirror God’s mercy to the world. In another Gospel, Jesus told us to love others as He loves us. This passage in Luke shares examples of that love in practice — join others in their sufferings; walk beside them in their pain; allow them to vent to us; share what we have with others. These are constructive activities we are encouraged to participate in — blessing, praying, offering, giving, and loving.
Verses 31-37 explain this positive Christian ethic where we choose to act or respond positively rather than to simply refrain from harm. Barclay writes, “It is not unduly difficult to keep yourself from such action [i.e., not doing to others what we would not want done to us]; but it is a very different thing to go out of your way to do to others what you would want them to do to you. The very essence of Christian conduct is that it consists, not in refraining from bad things, but in actively doing good things.” The reason we choose to behave in this manner is our decision to reflect God toward others. To be children of God, Barclay says, requires us to “seek even our enemy’s highest good … It is that love we must copy.”
Verse 38 focuses on the outcome of our reflection of God’s love and mercy to others: abundance, running over, but not the way we typically read it. This verse suggests reciprocity again, and when taken out of context, we often interpret it to refer to financial resources. But the imagery suggests an overflowing return of the same mercy and forgiveness we offer others. It’s a reciprocity, but one that isn’t undertaken for its end result. Professor Karoline Lewis writes the following:
Our impulse is to use Jesus’ words as justification for our own value and worth when it comes to adequate belief and acceptable discipleship. And yet, our perceived ability to follow Jesus’ principles is likely grandiose, most of the time. We’d like to think we can do all of these things. The truth is, we can’t. It is a leveling list. It puts us all on the same plain … these words of Jesus are but a vision for what is possible, for what should be were we to have Jesus’ sermon at Nazareth in mind; were we to have Mary’s Magnificat in mind.
Both Mary’s Magnificat (Luke 1:46-55) and Zechariah’s Song (Luke 1:68-79) identify God as merciful and reveal that mercy is an assurance of the fulfillment of God’s promises. When we think about God’s mercy, as spoken about in Matthew 5:44-46, we are humbled as to how far short we fall in mirroring God’s love and grace:
But I say to you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in heaven, for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? Matthew 5:44-46, NRSVUE
Luke 6:27-38 presents a worldview much different than what we’re used to because it is fueled by our connection to Jesus and not our own human will. This same worldview also helps explain the mystery of the cross. Let’s consider the myth of redemptive violence and the forgiveness of reality’s contradictions in light of the mystery of the cross.
The myth of redemptive violence
The myth of redemptive violence asserts that violence is the only way to bring about justice and peace, as we destroy what we perceive as the cause of a problem (or evil). Theologian Walter Wink says that “this Myth of Redemptive Violence is the real myth of the modern world. It, and not Judaism or Christianity or Islam, is the dominant religion in our society today.” The life and death of Jesus opposes the myth of redemptive violence as it reduces the emphasis human beings place on group identity, the nuclear family, and one’s occupation or security. Instead, Jesus emphasizes inclusion of all people and groups, and that requires forgiveness. Rather than devote our energy to reject what we believe is “bad,” we expend our energy to choose love and the highest good for everyone.
The cross itself has often been interpreted as a means of paying the debt of sin to an angry God (which is the erroneous substitutionary atonement theory). In this line of thinking, the cross becomes a transaction rather than a means to convey through imagery what God’s love for creation looks like. In actuality, the cross expresses a solidarity with suffering in an effort to change humanity’s mind about God’s character and love while offering a chance to contemplate our own violent tendencies toward those we think problematic or evil.
Franciscan priest and author Richard Rohr calls the cross “the victory” because its opponents are also included:
The cross is about refusing the simplistic win-lose scenario and holding out for a possible win-win scenario. The cross is refusing to hate or needing to defeat the other because that would be to only continue the same pattern and reciprocate the violence and to stay inside of the inexorable wheel that the world has always called normal (p. 203).
Rohr offers that the cross helps us understand our complicity with evil rather than thinking we exist on some sort of moral high ground. He writes,
What the mystery of the cross teaches us is how to stand against hate without becoming hate, how to oppose evil without becoming evil ourselves … The goal of nonviolence is always winning the true understanding of the supposed opponent, not his or her humiliation or defeat (p. 203).
It helps us to see that our perceived enemy is a victim and a symbol of evil, and we find ourselves on that level playing ground again, no better and no worse than any other person.
The acceptance of contradictions
Human life is hard, and some endure more difficult lives than others. Our existence can’t be controlled the way we would prefer. Though there’s just enough consistency to make us think it might be possible to have control if we could only ________ (fill in the blank). We must begin by accepting that reality is full of contradictions if we are to understand in part the mystery of the cross and Jesus’ nonviolent resistance to empire.
Rohr writes:
The price you pay for holding together the contradictions within yourself, others, and the world is always some form of crucifixion … We agree to bear the burden of human evil, of which we all are victims, and all are complicit. It is the ultimate act of solidarity with humanity (p. 206, 204).
By God participating in human suffering through the cross rather than watching it happen as a detached observer, now our suffering and tragedies also hold the potential for resurrection.
Through nonviolent resistance, Jesus exposes the sin and evil of corrupt human systems. He shows that our preoccupation with purity and individual moral behaviors has missed the mark, and Jesus’ identification with victims of these corrupt human systems reveals his solidarity with our human vulnerability. Through our exposure to the injustice of Jesus’ crucifixion, (God) teaches us that evil is overcome or absorbed by love’s choice to do good (Romans 12:21 NRSVUE).
Jesus’ life and death were subversive; they upended the myth of redemptive violence and the false belief that reality for us is something that could be predicted and controlled.
Instead, Jesus offers His believers a worldview that makes love the pinnacle of any faith. This isn’t a limited love, restricted to reciprocal relationships, but a love that eagerly seeks the highest good and flourishing of all, even one’s enemies.
Reciprocity, or I’ll scratch your back if you scratch mine, doesn’t result in transformation that establishes God’s dream for peace on earth.
Reciprocity keeps us stuck in a mindset based on moral superiority rather than on a level playing field where we humbly acknowledge we fall short.
Luke 6:27-38 shows us that God’s love flowing through us to others goes beyond the Golden Rule to the mystery of the cross.
Call to Action:
- Consider the way you express love to others, primarily those whom you consider different, difficult, or maybe even evil in their opinions or viewpoints.
- Think about how you can proactively reflect the mercy of God to them, reflecting on the fact that we all fall short.
Small Group Discussion Questions
- How does the sermon text from Luke 6:27-38 show there is more required of us than reciprocity or the Golden Rule?
- Is there a difference between merely not causing harm and contributing to another’s flourishing?
- How would you define the myth of redemptive violence?
- What examples in the world today would you use to contextualize your definition to our modern world?
- How do you think evil is overcome and ultimately transformed by love and forgiveness?