Labor Day Sunday (last prayer at the bottom includes Labor Day references)
Revised Common Lectionary: Exodus 12:1-14; Ezekiel 33:7-11; Psalm 119:33-40; Psalm 149
Matthew 18:15-20; Romans 13:8-14
As we begin our third week in Exodus, we have jumped to the institution of the Passover, the marking of the new calendar, the marking of a new beginning for the Hebrew People; marked by the blood of the lamb upon the door as a sign for their family to be spared. It is hard for us today to look back on this story as a sign of a new beginning when it is steeped in old animal sacrifice tradition, but the practice of Passover today is a meal of remembrance, not one of slaughtering lambs to escape the death of the firstborn. But this story of sacrifice and death is central to the ritual of remembrance for the ancient Hebrew religion to Jews of today. And the Christian ritual of remembrance, a meal in remembrance of Jesus where we share the cup and the bread, reminds us of the bloody, sacrificial story of Jesus on the cross. Neither story is pretty–in the Exodus story, the firstborn Egyptian children are killed, and as the story is told, by God. In our Christian story, Jesus is killed by Roman soldiers driven by an angry mob.
It is important to note in the story of Jesus’ death that while certain religious leaders had a part in his arrest and death sentence, not all of the religious leaders were involved, and certainly not all of the Jews or the Romans. In the Exodus Passover, not all of the Egyptians were responsible for the oppression of the people. As we celebrate the Lord’s Supper or Passover or any ritual of remembrance, especially one of tragic loss and death (as the ten-year anniversary of 9/11 approaches) it is an important lesson to remember: never lump together all people of one group, or all leaders of one group. Never use a ritual of remembrance to stir up anger or hatred or violent retribution: the rituals of remembrance are those of mourning death and celebrating life, and simply to remember the event. When the Jews celebrate Passover they do not rejoice in remembering the death of Egyptian children nor do they remember to seek revenge on their captors of thousands of years ago; nor do Christians as we remember the death of Jesus seek vengeance on those that were responsible for Jesus’ death, for we know when we look inward, we all take responsibility. We rejoice in the triumph of life over death, as our Jewish brothers and sisters rejoice in God’s deliverance of their people from Egypt. As we prepare to remember 9/11, let us prepare to honor those who gave their lives for others, to remember and grieve the innocent lives lost, and to grieve the lives of those who have died in the wars since that time, in the war against terror, both soldiers and civilians. Let us not seek vengeance, but remember that life is triumphant over violence and death.
The short passage from Ezekiel reminds us that God does not desire death, but life. God’s ultimate plan is a plan for life, as stated by Jeremiah in 29:11, plans to give us a future with hope. God calls Ezekiel to speak out against wickedness, and that if he does not, the fault of the wicked rests upon him. How often have we remained silent when we ought to have spoken out? How often have we let injustice slip by instead of standing up? What kinds of wickedness have we allowed in this world, collectively and individually? When have we stood by as a people and allowed genocide to occur, as it has been in Darfur, or allowed the kind of starvation that has occurred in Somalia? When have we stood by when a child was bullied? When have we ignored the cries of someone on the street? What have we done to speak out for justice, as Ezekiel was called to do?
The short passage from Psalm 119 is a call for the individual to remember God’s ways, to allow our hearts to turn to God’s instructions for right living. Psalm 149 is a psalm of praise, but also is a call for vengeance. The Bible is not easy to read and we have to remember that the Bible is written in response to relationship with God, and that while at one time people believed God to be on their side in war and battle, Jesus came telling Peter to put away his sword, Jesus came healing, and that among both Jewish and Christian traditions peace became a prevailing quality of faithful followers, not war, and forgiveness, not vengeance.
Matthew 18:15-20 is seen as the “Matthew model” for handling church conflict. As it is one of two places where the English word “church” appears in the Gospels (it appears earlier when Jesus declares Peter to be the rock; in actuality here the Greek word is brother, not church), this has been used as guidelines on how to deal with conflict. It’s a pretty good model. The problem is we rarely use it as a church. Instead of taking our issue to the person we have a problem with, we often gossip about it, get others on our side, start rumors or let the problem fester rather than going and talking directly to the person who has hurt us, intentionally or unintentionally. Jesus says here that if the person does not listen, then to take one or two others. This might be a good time to talk to the pastor, but only if you have talked to the original offender first! How often do we go to others, then the pastor, then the person who has caused problems. Only as a last resort does Matthew’s Gospel offer that you go to the congregation.
When I have seen this work effectively, and when it has gone to the last resort, is when someone has caused a terrible wrong, such as abuse or theft. But rather what happens is that church conflict escalates to the congregational level over petty things that do not matter in the long run. How many church conflicts occur over curtain choices for the parlor or who is to serve what at the next church luncheon? How many people have left congregations over petty issues, because they could not deal with the real conflict, which was a disagreement with one person. If we actually follow the Matthew model, we rarely get to the last resort, because we are called to work out our disagreements with each other personally, one on one, remembering that wherever two or three of us are gathered in Jesus’ name, Jesus is among us. And if we truly see the person who has wronged us as still a Christian, still a member of Jesus’ family, then we desire to have the relationship restored and the matter resolved, rather than letting it fester, growing by adding in other people and gossiping about the other person.
The passage in Romans this Sunday calls for us to love one another, that love is the fulfilling of the law. Love calls us not to seek revenge but restoration. Love calls us not to hate but to seek healing. Love calls us into conversation with those who have wronged us rather than gossip and slander. Paul calls the Roman church into right living–living as people of the light, not of the darkness. People of the light live in the ways of love, peace, justice and forgiveness. People of light stand up against injustice but also speak the truth in love. People of light look to the good of all rather than selfish gain. People of light remember that religion and tradition teach us the ways of God’s plan for life in the world, and that we are called to love one another as Christ has loved us. This is what we are called to do; this is how we are called to live.
Call to Worship:
Leader: God has plans for us,
People: Plans for a future with hope.
Leader: God has a way for us,
People: The way of peace, love and reconciliation.
Leader: God has hope for us,
People: The hope of resurrection, the promise of new life in Christ.
Leader: God has a commandment for us,
People: That commandment is to love one another.
Leader: Let us worship and pray together.
People: Let us live into the way of Christ together.
Prayer of Confession:
Holy God, we confess that we have lost Your way. We have held grudges and called for revenge. We have allowed hate into our hearts and have not loved our neighbor as ourselves. We have at times ignored calls for justice and instead demanded blood. Forgive us, O God, when we forget Your ways. Forgive us, O God, when we think our way is better. Call us back into living in the ways of love, restoration and healing. In the name of Jesus, the Great Physician, we pray. Amen.
Assurance of Pardon (from Romans 13):
Owe no one anything, except to love one another; for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore, love is the fulfilling of the law. When you love, when you forgive, you allow God’s love and forgiveness into your hearts. You are forgiven, renewed, and restored. Amen.
Prayer:
Great Creator, we praise You today for the works of Your hands, the wonders of our created universe. We thank You for this beautiful earth that we live upon. We thank You for the creative gift in each of us, to build and create, to teach and to learn. We thank You for all those who work in our community, for all those who work hard for their families. On this Labor Day, we remember all those who have made our towns and cities, our communities and our country great–for those that work in factories to those that work caring for children, for those that work as leaders and teachers and those that work as students and researchers. We remember all who work to build a better community for us all, and we thank You for Your creative gifts in each of us. May we have a day of rest to remember You as our Creator, who also rested after You finished Your work. On this day, as we gather in worship and prayer, may we remember all who work for Your kingdom, that all of us are builders, and may we do our part to participate in the building up of Your reign, on earth as it is in heaven. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
Music Suggestions:
“And They’ll Know We Are Christians By Our Love” is appropriate both for the themes of the scriptures as well as for Labor Day. “The Gift of Love” based on 1 Corinthians 13 is also a good selection for today.
Facebook
Twitter