(This sermon was preached at St Paul's Lutheran Church, Dansville)
Last
Sunday was not my normal routine and my travels took me past the Walmart in
Macedon shortly before noon. I needed a
couple things and so I went in. The
place was packed! Hundreds of people
were shopping. Most of the registers
were open and there were sizable lines at all of them. I realized there were probably more people in
that store at that moment than there were in worship that morning at all the
churches in Victor combined. And who
knows how many thousands of people passed through that store in the course of
the day. I think I can safely say that
more people went through the Macedon Walmart on Sunday than any other location
in that area. It is the center of life.
I
don’t want to judge anyone. People may
do as they please. And yet I wonder what
sort of fulfillment people are finding in shopping and consumption? …and at a
cheap store at that! Are they really
happy? Are they content? Are they really going anywhere in their
lives? Is the typical life of an
American one of consumption without even thinking about any meaning to their
existence?
Those
are heavy questions. They could take
some time to ponder, yet I don’t want to lose your attention over them. I’m using them to set the stage for our
gospel reading for today. You probably
know the parable of the Pharisee and tax collector well. A Pharisee and a tax collector both go into
the temple to pray. Remember, there was
one and only one temple in ancient Judaism.
It was the temple in Jerusalem.
While the Jews believed that God’s presence was everywhere, the temple
was the most holy place. It was the
place where people would go to be made right with God. The temple was a place for animal sacrifices,
giving offerings, and asking for forgiveness.
It's
important to remember that not all Pharisees were the same. They were a diverse group, but for the most
part they believed that what God wanted from people was following the religious
law given to Moses. The Pharisees could
be quite kind and generous. They
probably understood the difference between the letter of the law and the spirit
of the law. They knew people could
become entrapped in special circumstances.
They knew some people would exploit loopholes. But for the most part they felt the best way
to be a good, solid, constructive person - a good person of faith – was to live
by the guidelines God had given to Moses.
If there were Pharisees around today we’d probably consider them to be
good people. They believed that
discipline, hard work, and good decisions would put them in right relationship
with God; and that would lead to a life of wholeness and fulfillment.
This
Pharisee is in the temple, with a life of righteous living, and yet he focuses
on his own goodness as he prays to God.
This is more than just smugness.
He’s actually looking to himself for wholeness.
Then
there’s the tax collector. Jesus loved
using exaggerations in his parables. Tax
collectors were despised people, and for good reason. They had sold out their loyalty to the
Romans. They were collecting taxes and
fees from their own people and that money was being given over to the Romans to,
at least in part, pay for the armies which were occupying the land. Tax collectors were traitors to their nation
and traitors to their faith. I suspect
that many tax collectors were actually also spies and informants for the
Romans. If we were good Jews alive at
that time we’d probably consider tax collectors to be bad people.
This
tax collector doesn’t even lift up his eyes as he prays. Jews in those days would pray looking up rather
than bowing their heads. But this man
looks down. He knows his life is a
mess. He knows he is a mess. He knows he’s a sinner, that he doesn’t
follow the laws, he’s hurting people, and that he isn’t doing what he should be
doing to live a good life.
But
in a shocking twist Jesus says the sinful tax collector goes home in right
relationship with God while the righteous Pharisee does not.
A
straightforward interpretation of this parable would be to say that it teaches
that we are all sinners in need of God’s grace.
That it does not mean that we should beat ourselves up and think lowly
of ourselves. We are made in God’s image
and God’s good creations after all. But,
that we should recognize the presence of God’s unearned favor in
everything. That will keep us from
praying prayers like, “God, thank you for making me better than everyone else.”
Yes,
that would be a straightforward and correct interpretation of this
parable. But that would be a theoretical
interpretation that would not really impact our lives or the world we live
in. Let’s take it a step further.
You
have choices as to where you could be right now. You could be in bed sleeping in. You could be watching TV. There’s probably some kids’ soccer or
football game somewhere that you could be.
You could be where probably the biggest collection of people are – the
nearest WalMart. But you are here. Why?
There
are two possible reasons. Either A),
someone forced you to come. And if
that’s the case, I thank you for being a good sport about it. Or B), there is something deep inside you
that is fundamentally like the tax collector in the parable. You know that you need God.
And
if you need God, then you know there is something lacking in you. You fall short.
You can’t do it.
You
lack the ability to get to heaven on your own.
You
lack the ability to be perfect by your own strength.
You
lack the knowledge of how to be a whole and fulfilled person in and of
yourself.
As for those who are shopping in
Walmart, what is going on in them? I
don’t know for sure. But I suspect
they’re there and not here because they afraid of the truth; the truth that
they also are lacking.
All people are seeking: substance,
meaning, depth, truth. But they’re not
finding it. Because they aren’t finding it
in God. And they’re afraid of that
emptiness. And so, instead of
acknowledging it, they fill themselves with, well… it’s just easier not to find
it because it might hurt too much,
or
it might not align with what works for that person,
or,
dare I say it, it might not align with what is easy.
It might challenge their beliefs and shake their way of life too much.
Our
world is a nonstop distraction. Whether
it’s household chores, yard work, family commitments, work requirements,
keeping up appearances, or a million other things, our world does not
stop. Ever.
Even
with Covid it just changed to different ways of doing everything people always
did. Anything but for people to look
deeply inside themselves and discover the horrible truth. They are empty without God.
And
so they gather in hordes to shop at a cheap department store hoping to fill
that void with consumption.
Why
do they choose that? Because they are
like the Pharisee. Shopping at Walmart
means that you have the world under your control. You, by your own ability to earn, can fill
your life with stuff to give you meaning; even though it doesn’t. And when that stuff fails to give you meaning
you go in for more. And more. And more…
But
you are here. You are here because you
have the courage to face the truth.
Wholeness comes from God. You
can’t get it elsewhere.
Oh
yes, we all like to have stuff that’s fun.
And we like to look good. And we
like to be popular and well regarded, and all of that. But ultimately we know that is secondary.
If
I would have come today and found this sanctuary packed wall to wall and
standing room only, this sermon wouldn’t have worked at all. But I was sure of what is. The world around us is more lost than it
realizes. I don’t say that to its condemnation. I say it so that we realize the magnitude of
the task ahead of us.
Someday
people will come to a reckoning to the emptiness they find within
themselves. When will that be? How long?
I don’t know. For now people just
seem to be going faster and faster to hide from the truth. But it will come.
Whether
that be a time soon or distant, our role is to continue to have the courage to
live in the truth. That’s the courage to
recognize that we do not have it within ourselves to bring ourselves
fulfillment. That resides with God. We need God.
And so we witness to the world the answer to their emptiness. Don’t be surprised if they don’t want to hear
it. For they don’t. But do know that you are God’s chosen people
in this time and place. You are God’s
chosen people, endowed with the gifts and abilities necessary, to bring God’s
wholeness to reality.
Through
courage, commitment, love, and thoughtfulness we keep making God’s kingdom
real. We do not guilt or shame people
for their actions. That will only make
them resentful. But we do let the light
of wholeness shine from ourselves. That
is a light in their darkness. And some
will indeed see. Some will have the
courage to face their inner darkness.
And God’s kingdom will continue to do what it has always done; bring
people to abundance of life for all of life.
Though
it be hard, rejoice to be God’s chosen agents of grace in this world!
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