November 7, 2010  Hag.1:15-2:9 Lk. 20:27-38

 

We continue looking at books of the twelves, the minor prophets. This is a parade example of why i use the lectionary, as Haggai would not come to mind as a preaching text in my mental file cabinet. Haggai is a great piece for dispirited people. It does stake the reality of feelings seriously but says in spite of them to take heart, to not be afraid, to work. How much should one work when you are colonized? How does being under the thumb of a power affect people? Here Darius is building a fabulous city and they are struggling to rebuild a ruined city that seems to remind them only of their failure.Work has begun on a reconstructed temple. Like all building projects, this one runs into criticism. It is especially poignant as it lacked the real or imagined magnificence of the first temple.Darius the Great ruled from around 522 until 486 BCE, so this is early in his reign. This Darius was called king of kings. This is the builder of some of the glories the great Persepolis that Alexander would later level. In contrast, the exiled have returned to ruins.  I get sad when I see grass growing in the cracks of city sidewalks, of "whitewashed windows and vacant stores" as Springsteen sang in the midst of the recession of the early 80s, just as I am delighted that some new businesses will grace the eternal Lincoln Street project..  

How to fight that sense of failure?  God is with you. God is with you in this project. Notice the spirit of God is among them or within the community already. God is not only presence, the power of God would be felt again. This power was already felt in the rebuilding and in the work. So Haggai says to find courage, to not fear, and to work. Putting hands to work negates the drooping hands of despair and resignation. It is a description of living in the culture of life, not death. it is seeking out new life in the midst of the old ways that have crumbled into dust. 

 

Now it says, just you wait, this will be even better than before. The point of all of this is a move toward shalom=peace/prosperity/well-being. After all, we are temple of the spirit, as Paul said. god will not allow us to fall into decay and ruin forever, but offers whole new way of being. We obviously can't do this on our own, but the revivifying spirit of God can.  We see heaven as a place to help to make up for life's failures and disappointments, the goal toward which we press on.We use heaven to express an ultimate destination of shalom, of well-being in an entirely new and different dimension.  Jesus sees us as children of the resurrection While his religious opponents are assuming the cultural pattern of a family taking responsibility for the widow and family, Jesus is pointing to a whole new way of life. They are trying to show the foolish extent of a belief in an after life that has but  vague hints in the Scripture. Jesus sees it as discontinuity of existence. The need for children is an arrangement about immortality through progeny. The immortal needn't worry about arrangements for having children. more than that, Jesus sees God of the living not the dead. Living or dead, we are alive to God. In this new realm restricted love is  not within resurrection  life. Rev. Eversull  had Albert Outler as a teacher. Once he was discussing the resurrection with a Yale colleague. Outler said that we can't pin down resurrection except at two times, when we are on our deathbeds or when we are at the bedside of a dying person. Jesus would not play mind games abut describing life in heaven, but he did claim it as a reality that will not only restore us but will blow away any of our cherished preconceptions.

 

 

This story follows a story of a blind man. Two men want to see, one physically blind, one morally blind. The name, Zaccheus,  is ironic as it means clean or innocent-the last person who should have that name. Z may be  small inside and out? I imagine Z to look like Danny DeVito. Apparently a good deal of prejudice was directed at the very small.  Climbing a tree was considered undignified for an adult. Z and the publican both are seeking God. We are in the interesting position where the rich Z is a social outcast to some degree.  What draws Z to Jesus? Z may well be eager to do a lot for the poor as opposed to the rich young ruler. Both the  blind beggar and Z attain  spiritual insight. The sycamore is different than our sycamore had figs, an evergreen one could reach (Amos 7;14) here is a  rich guy is climbing a tree for the poor.  He rejoiced in coming down. when Jesus says must that is a divine imperative- Jesus announces salvation has come to this house ( himself or what)-

 

Some think Z is protesting that he indeed does good. this might be  resolve to follow biblical principles. Paying back double was for the law in Num. 5:7, the big number for animals. The "if" in Z's words bothers some of us. If Z is repenting, he is going to follow the regulations and pay back money to those whom he defrauded. For those of us who are more suspicious, he could be saying in the future, I will make restitution, or a broad statement, if, if I defrauded anyone (not that I ever did) then I will pay them back more than what I owe. Z was seeking a but so was Jesus. For us in a culture of religious choice, God is the seeker for us-Today is a word of emphasis the issue of restitution and forgiveness-"giving back" I realize that we cannot ever make full restitution, but we can make a start. Few things show taking responsibility as much as it does. First, it obviously means paying back funds. Second, it seeks to try to make up for the emotional impact of a wrong. In legal settings it is not only compensatory but even punitive. I would extend it and ask us to consider trying to make restitution when we have wronged someone. We have the quick phrase kiss and make up. Restitution is a serious way to try to make up. It is a sign of sincerity. Men buy candy and flowers as a sign of trying to make up. What do women bring when they hurt the feelings of their spouse? We don;t have symbols of trying to make up as much as we could

 

It is big surprise that Z gets picked. The long sweep of salvation history points to this little guy. This would be as if we received a vision that

LINDSAY Lohan, or colts punter Pat Macafee or Donald Trump was to receive special divine favor. Of course, all the people grumble/murmur, that word for complaining in the wilderness, that word of putting God to the test. In large part, the complaint would go, why Z and not us. Why Z and not me? There must be something not right about Jesus if he would invite himself to share some time with Z. The grumbling comes from the same instinct that angers the elder brother and pushes the Pharisee into an arrogant prayer. We claim god's gift of salvation extends to everybody, but we would still like to pick and choose those on the inside. That attitude puts us precisely in the role of the judgmental in the gospels, so places us in need of the grace. Today in worship once again we all hear the words salvation has come to this house, today.

Dan.7:1-3, 15-18 second cut
1) I'm glad we have this choice, as I am weak on the book of Daniel in general. this section moves from Daniel interpreting dreams to being the seer. It also is a decisive move into apocalyptic. Some date material to the time of the rebellion against Antiochus and the period of  Hanukkah, 160s BCE.

2) the four winds( see Zech.2:6)  are attacking the sea in the LXX. tghe word is birth pangs in Micah 4:10.We are in mythic territory certainly. See also 1 Enoch and four angels. See Job 26:12 and Ps. 89:9-11 for more cosmic weaponry.

3)Now four great beast arise. the are creatures of the deep, maybe ancient chaos itself. Clearly Rev. plays off this. Political powers are associated with evil here. Also the sea could stand for the nations of the earth (Is. 17:12, Jer. 6:23) This is no surprise for a long colonized people to imagine.  We may also be in Persian Terrijo with its emphasis on dualism, good v. evil.  Some think the four beasts are a symbol for the entirety of wrong as in Zech. 1. As you can see these are mixed beasts, so they are unclean beasts. IB (457) the beasts emerge from our own hearts. In our time Walter /Wink would call the beast powers as in powers and principalities.

4) Our passage concludes with an emissary giving explanation of the vision. the dream interpreter now needs help in interpretation, like a therapist going to a therapist.

5) Quite simply, power arises and falls, but god will win out in the end.  the fourth beast gets elaboration later, if you choose to go that way.

 

6) the old IB (449) sees this as a "trumpet call to loyalty." whenever it was recorded ti reflect the difficulties of a colonial people and the prevailing cultural assumptions. As religion grows culturally disestablished n this country, we too face these issues of drawing the line.

7) Apcalyptic material appeals to the underclass when they feel beaten and need outside, external help to change their world. they are encouraged when they see that might does not last forever.

8) IB (450) links the beast to the metals of ch. 2. In both cases, they decline in value.

9) sons of the most high can be saints/holy ones. Possibly this refers to the angelic host. The will possess the kingdom the way we hold property.

A minister slips into church early to pray before a church board meeting: no, a Presbyterian minister, maybe one serving  two churches. Feeling tired and  frustrated, he prays that in comparison to others, it could be worse. Most church goers know we should have the humility of the publican. At the times of prayers of confession, we may feel more like the Pharisee. self-righteous people unwittingly, unknowingly put themselves sin the position of the publican. I have heard people say that they don't share in the prayer of confession because it doesn't apply to them. Whenever we hear a sermon really going at a sin and folks say to the minister, you really let them have it, we are in Pharisee territory. We have pews in church so the self-righteous have something to hold on to so that they don't ascend at that moment. It is difficult for community when we  view others with contempt when we are judging others harshly. Of course, the moment we go, whew, I'm glad I'm not like the Pharisee, then the trap is sprung shut on us. This story cannot be read as denigrating the good acts of the Pharisee who walks the talk. This is an an admirable religious person, no hypocrite.

 

An old story tells of a student wanted to know the way of God. The master poured the cup full and it spilled on to the saucer. Was it a sign of my cup runneth over? No, you have no room in yourself for God.Think of the publican as say, a meth dealer, or a corrupt official, who has cheated on a spouse, been negligent toward the children, but who has now broken under the pressure. Or consider the recent great  NYT piece on a woman, Annie, 85,  who haunted the old Fulton Fish Market in New York. She was a foul-mouthed older woman who ran errands for the market, cleaned offices, and laundered the fishing clothes for the workers.  and hid the money in her clothes. At one point, she had been a beauty that turned heads, and her old pictured was featured at one of the docks. At home, she was a grandma. She gave away all of the money she made at the fish market. She supported a ballet school in LA. She got a car for a grandchild and sent the other through college in new Hampshire. She almost single-handedly supplied the clothes need for the Catholic worker house. The publican is a recipient of Joel's vision. 

 

Joel wrote to people who felt like the world seemed stacked against them, when everything from nature to politics to religion seemed to be going wrong.Joel's vision of the Spirit being poured out speaks of offering access to God in a more direct way. In Joel images of nature drying up and in abundance vie for pwoer. Old and young, men and women have the Pharisee and the publican residing within. We've all done things of which we are proud and justifiably so and done things of which we are ashamed and justifiably so. That kind of access is scary, as it illumines parts of ourselves we would rather remain hidden. Pride is an obstacle to getting involved with God. So is the confidence that we can handle anything all on our own.Humility seems to be a vehicle for prayer. It's a rare posture for most of us, appearing without our masks and justifications and rationalizations. Maybe it's related to being cast down by something that most predictably draws us to prayer. God's not as lucky to have us, as we are to have a generous, open-hearted God who loves us: Pharisee or publican.

Second  cut Hab. 1:1-4, 2:1-4
1) Habakkuk is a shorter version of Job in its way, or if you prefer a longer version of Ps. 13. If one is feeling bold, this is a good place to work on some theodicy. I resist material that seeks to excuse or defend God for the weight of evil in the world, so I like material such as Douglas John Hall, God and Human Suffering, or Wendy Farley Tragic Vision and Divine compassion.. A good textbook is Tyron Inbody, The Transforming God. N.T. Wright works with the issue in  an accessible way in Evil and the god of justice. On lament see Migliore and Billman or the compendium on prayer, Patrick Miller's They Cried ot the Lord.

2) We are back to the issue of Lk. 18:1-8 two weeks ago and the issue of persistence in prayer and unanswered prayer. The messenger is to be bold, to write it in large letters.

3) Calvin saw God as constantly acting in discrete ways. So, he was uncomfortable in talking of god's permissive activity. We see it here in the lament. Why would God tolerate evil? At 1:3 destruction and violence (hamas) can be literal but also metaphors for perverted justice and the power of Mammon Strife (rib) and contention (madon0 are often legal hearing words, trial words. See MacLeish's JB.

4) The lectionary breaks make the readings a bit unclear. The end of chapter one has another complaint/question from the prophet about the propriety of god punishing the Nation with an evil idolatrous nation. Chapter 2 is god's response to that second complaint. In other words, God announces punishment at the hands of the Chaldeans and the prophet responds with how could that be a proper instrument?

5) 1:4 aqal=twisting/bending of justice at 1:4. 2;2 is a tough translation. Think perhaps of running with it as a metaphor for working the mesage to its ocnclusion.2:3 is an attempt to give assurance that God really will act, even with a delay.

6) 2:4 looks t the arrogant, the puffed up/ swollen apal) My old teacher JJM roberts reads it as two words and the fainthearted will not walk in the way. righteous or just is saddiq.2:4 is quoted by Paul,  if you want to get picky about the Hebrew word, faithfulness/steadfast trust/faithfulness/fidelity/loyal commitment  may work better, and it would read his faithfulness..We also don't know if it refers in its antecedent to that faithfulness or the faitfulness of the message. In others word, hold on, keep on, trust in the promise. In the LXX it would be my faith. I suppose one could then use this to force the words into a Pauline mode to create the old Protestant fear of works righteousness 500 years after Luther. One could also work with the best translation one could muster and work on it, even though its meaning seems different than Paul's use of it..

7) Hiebert in NIB quotes Wendell Berry at 643, 'be joyful, even though you have considered all of the facts." Faithfulness to God's loyalty will not permit the tyranny of mere facts.

resemble God's people pray. Usually, our prayers are asking for help in some way, it may well be the only time we ever admit dependence on anyone or anything. We look for the recipe that will somehow get a good answer to our prayers. Weary with life's troubles, we get weary in prayer. (IB 308) Perhaps faith does not find God except on the last edge of helplessness,  Success maybe, but yes to perseverance and fortitude in prayer.  Praying like politics can be the slow boring of hard board in the story. Ps. 44 wonders if God is asleep and uses its prayer to rouse the sleeping god to justice and action. Early in the movie The Apostle, Robert Duval's Pentecostal pastor character comes to an accident scene and prays through the window of the crushed family in the ruined car. The woman's hand moves. He goes back to his car and tells his mother, Mama we made news in heaven today, yes we did

 

Even the early church struggled with prayer. Jesus dealt with unanswered prayer in the Garden. Jesus would resemble the widow in the parable in the Garden.The widow demonstrates power disparity and the temptation to despair when no one could or would help. The story does not ask us to make analogies to God but to have us move from the lesser to the greater   Prayer may feel like pounding on a locked door.Dylan had a song years ago, knocking on heaven's door. Prayer can be pounding on heaven;'s door. I never thought that I would live to see the Berlin wall fall peacefully. It did, and that utter surprise may have had some of the countless prayers for peace to thank.So, the unfit judge cannot be equated to God but can still do right, even though he is not virtuous. We don't know why she is not heard, maybe it's one more person looking for justice when he is waiting for a bribe. Instead, he is fed up with her constant pleading, literally so she won't strike me or wear me out.=keeps giving me a black eye.

 

 

Gen. 32 prayer as wrestling, with purpose, with oneself (see Janzen-old grabby self and a new one ends in dislocation-the words in Hebrew play with the ordering and the sounds-new name-new birth in baptism-alienated from the true self) One of the things we wrestle with is a slow answer to a prayer-we wrestle with what seems to us to be uncommon slowness, like drumming our fingers when the ATM doesn't spit out bills immediately,and the divine timetable. Wrestling prayer can be exhausting, not polite mere feigned emotion. Prayer does not leave us unchanged. Patience as a virtue lost.Having it out with God may leave us with a bit of a limp. I think of Robert Duval in the Apostle, yelling "I love you Lord, but I'm mad at you." We don't need to nag God who knows and wants good for us. Persistent prayer teaches us about the flow of time and to learn patience in the sense of forbearing/long suffering/enduring with God amid trouble.

 

Our Greek Orthodox sisters and brothers pray with images, icons. It is noteworthy we use the word to speak of old entertainers now. Praying hands evoke the spiritual sense in me. I have always liked the Grace and Gratitude pictures by Eric Enstrom or the praying hands of Norman Rockwell's freedom of religion piece of the four freedoms set. We all received a living tableau of persistence and rescue from Chile this week. For some time, miners were trapped in what col miner grandfather called the bowels of the earth. Many prayed, and some gave the enacted prayer of presence

day after day at the entrance. They waited for a rescue capsule to arrive on the surface. Think of prayer as sending messages from below ground up to God's presence, as we wait for the rescue capsule to bring us back to a safe place together.

Third  Cut As far as I am aware, no consensus exists on the date of these oracles. Since I was in seminary, roughly at the time of the writing of Joel, a move has been made to conflate the minor prophets and refer to them as the book of the twelve.

 

1) A good bit of disagreement exists if the locust horde was a natural disaster or a symbol for an army of destruction. Either way, God will make recompense. All of this reverses the previous indicators of suffering.If it is a natural event, see the new book by Terence Fretheim on creation and natural disasters.

2) the abundance image fits this time of harvest.

3) Notice the repetition against being shamed, by what do you think?

4) Now we move into familiar Pentecost territory. since we see this being fulfilled at Pentecost where does this place us in the afterward of v.28

5) What do vv. 28-9 and 32 say about claims to religious exclusivity?

6) v. 31 seems out of place to me. It certainly is of a peace with Amos 5 and the blood curdling view of the Day of the Lord. Notice how it gets picked up in Mt, especially, during the crucifixion.

7) The old men dreaming dreams seems to me to be a a very good place to write a sermon about defying age's debilities.