From the UCC Network: 01/17/2011 "You Can’t Hijack a Legacy"

You Can’t Hijack a Legacy

Excerpt from Hebrews 11:23-31

“By faith the people passed through the Red Sea as if it were dry land, but when the Egyptians attempted to do so they were drowned.”

Reflection by Lillian Daniel

It seems that on Martin Luther King Day, the list of groups claiming his legacy gets more bizarre each year. Organizations that appear to have nothing in common with his vision of justice broadcast clips of his great speeches at their events.

At other times, his legacy seems to get twisted into something much tamer and more manageable than the man himself. There are calls to spend the day volunteering, which is certainly better than spending the day shopping. But perhaps the best thing we could do is remember Dr King’s remarkable risk-taking life.

During a sermon entitled “Why Jesus Called a Man a Fool,” he described his sleepless anguish after receiving a late night bomb threat at his home. He considered giving up. Alone and discouraged at his kitchen table, he prayed and a message came to him that inspires us today:  “… it seemed at that moment that I could hear an inner voice saying to me, ‘Martin Luther, stand up for righteousness, stand up for justice, stand up for truth. And lo I will be with you, even until the end of the world.’”

This day is about more than being nice, more than shopping the sales and more than supporting the status quo. While folks may try to hijack Dr King’s image for projects that are way too bland, or downright unfair, ultimately, they will not pass the Red Sea test.

When the Israelites crossed the Red Sea, they made it because they had the legacy of the God of Justice. The Egyptian oppressors tried to take the same shortcut when they chased after the slaves, but the water swallowed them up. People have always tried it, but ultimately, you can’t hijack righteousness for an unrighteous cause.

Prayer

Gracious God, could you be saying this to me too? “Stand up for righteousness, stand up for justice, stand up for truth. And lo I will be with you, even until the end of the world.” Amen.

About the Author Lillian Daniel is the senior minister of the First Congregational Church, UCC, Glen Ellyn, Illinois. Her new book, This Odd and Wondrous Calling: the Public and Private Lives of Two Ministers, co-authored with Martin B. Copenhaver,

Daily Deliberation and Prayer - 01/17/2011

Awake. Eat. Get Ready.

Be On Your Toes.

The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt: 2 This month shall mark for you the beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year for you. 3 Tell the whole congregation of Israel that on the tenth of this month they are to take a lamb for each family, a lamb for each household. 4 If a household is too small for a whole lamb, it shall join its closest neighbor in obtaining one; the lamb shall be divided in proportion to the number of people who eat of it. 5Your lamb shall be without blemish, a year-old male; you may take it from the sheep or from the goats. 6 You shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month; then the whole assembled congregation of Israel shall slaughter it at twilight. 7 They shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which they eat it. 8 They shall eat the lamb that same night; they shall eat it roasted over the fire with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. 9Do not eat any of it raw or boiled in water, but roasted over the fire, with its head, legs, and inner organs. 10 You shall let none of it remain until the morning; anything that remains until the morning you shall burn. 11 This is how you shall eat it: your loins girded, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and you shall eat it hurriedly. It is the passover of the Lord. 12For I will pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I will strike down every firstborn in the land of Egypt, both human beings and animals; on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am the Lord. 13 The blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you live: when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague shall destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt. 14This day shall be a day of remembrance for you. You shall celebrate it as a festival to the Lord; throughout your generations you shall observe it as a perpetual ordinance. 

 21 Then Moses called all the elders of Israel and said to them, "Go, select lambs for your families, and slaughter the passover lamb. 22 Take a bunch of hyssop, dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and touch the lintel and the two doorposts with the blood in the basin. None of you shall go outside the door of your house until morning. 23 For the Lord will pass through to strike down the Egyptians; when he sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the Lord will pass over that door and will not allow the destroyer to enter your houses to strike you down. 24 You shall observe this rite as a perpetual ordinance for you and your children. 25 When you come to the land that the Lord will give you, as he has promised, you shall keep this observance. 26 And when your children ask you, "What do you mean by this observance?' 27 you shall say, "It is the passover sacrifice to the Lord, for he passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt, when he struck down the Egyptians but spared our houses.'" And the people bowed down and worshiped. 28 The Israelites went and did just as the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron.

Exodus 12:1-14, 21-28

  

Wait on the Lord! Certainly biblical, and very sound advise to boot. But, oh how hard it can be a lot of the time. Especially in this super-speed high-tech world in which we live, seeking  instant answers to our questions and immediate solutions to our difficulties.

Presently in the “search-and-call” process of my denomination – where the “searching” has not yet culminated in a “call” - in the midst of any and all efforts to secure a pastoral position - I have had to remind myself often to “Wait on the Lord!”, as the weeks and months move quickly past. That statement is more than just some ancient platitude; rather, it rises up more as a confession of faith, realizing and honoring the fact that our lives are in the hands of God. Remembering that we have an enormous part to play in the outcome of the circumstances in our daily lives, “Wait on the Lord” also acknowledges that our God has a huge role to play too, in shaping our thoughts, our actions, our souls, and the direction in which we journey. And so this waiting for what comes next in my life is a compelling mixture of a lot of self-applied elbow-grease, combined with a very healthy dose of faith.

Despite all that – and in light of all that - in this interlude between past and future, waiting, and waiting, and waiting can drain us; physically, mentally, and faithfully – just when we need that faith the most. Trying times, for an almost immeasurable numbers of our sisters/brothers, who themselves long for the dignity that full employment can bring, and who in the meantime continue that daily exercise of seeking and waiting on the Lord.

In light of today’s lectionary passage from the Hebrew scriptures of Exodus, anyone who knows me might understand why I became a little keyed up when I read these words:

“This is how you shall eat it: your loins girded, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and you shall eat it hurriedly. It is the passover of the Lord.”

Hurriedly. Your sandals on your feet, with staff in hand, and don’t linger at the table. Wow. What a paragraph. In short; your bags better be packed, the mail put on hold, and instructions left with the neighbors, because God is about to do some remarkable things in your life. Because for all that waiting in faith, when the moment of God’s choosing arrives, the state of affairs can change pretty darn quickly.

Our lectionary text today sheds light just that. For years – or rather more like many passing generations – our Hebrew ancestors labored under the crushing rule of the Pharaoh. For numerous decades they lived as slaves, and called out for some form of relief, and then waited, and waited, and waited on the Lord. Each day they slogged through the mud pits - molding muck and straw - to produce Pharaoh’s monuments to himself. The brickyards were laying them low, and yet their faith, as uncertain as it may have become, was in the One on whom they waited, and waited and waited. God heard their cries –their wailing to be set free from the circumstances that enslaved them – and the Lord “came down” - God’s moment came, and they were told that they better be ready. For God was passing by and leading them to a new freedom; and today was the day. 

(I encourage you to check out the whole story for yourself, beginning in the first chapter of Exodus)

So, here I wait. Profiles circulated. Resumes and references mailed. Emails sent and answered, and interviews completed. With boxes packed (for the most part) and keys in hand; knowing from the narratives of our sacred texts, and from the rich experiences of my own years, that God will “come down”. And when God does; when God moves in your life, you better be prepared. For when this “new” thing happens, it will happen quickly. Waiting for God’s Spirit to speak and lead to the next venture in our life journeys is about being ready for that moment when the Lord our God says, “let’s go”.

Faithful God, I think I have done everything I can do. So now I wait. For you. For that “passover” in my life. Come, Lord Jesus, and “let’s go” – together.

Amen.

Rev. Michael Kirchhoff

The Christian Faith of Martin Luther King, Jr. (Blog Cross-Post)

As we gather to celebrate all across the United States the prophetic life of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King,  Jr., I want to share this special blog post written by my UCC colleague, the Rev. Chuck Currie. 

As we read these words and remember the importance of this day, may we be strengthened and encouraged by the unrelenting faith of Dr. King in the face of the national and spiritual struggles of his time, and seek and embrace for ourselves that connectedness of our own lives with that of our God, who longs to lead us all into a new future and freedom that has been promised since the beginning of time.

Rev. Michael Kirchhoff

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The Christian Faith of Martin Luther King, Jr.

Rev. Chuck Currie

Has the Christian faith of Martin Luther King, Jr. been forgotten? Some on the far fringes of society argue that King wasn't a Christian because they disagree with his theology. Others claim he was an anti-American communist or, oddly enough, a conservative who is represented best today by Glenn Beck. Critics and revisionists like these can be easily dismissed. But as we celebrate another national holiday in his honor it is worth considering whether or not we have created a safe historical vision of King where his Christianity is stripped away and the radical, transformational nature of his faith forgotten.

King was a Christian, of course, ordained to preach and teach the Gospel message. A 13-year old recently expressed surprise to me when he learned that King was a minister. But why would a child today know this? Once a year King's "I Have A Dream" speech is recited or replayed but the origin of the Civil Rights Movement - born out of the Christian church - is largely forgotten in America today. It is vital that the Christian faith of King not be lost. Churches, particularly historic African-American churches and all those within the progressive Christian tradition that King came out of, need to claim King's legacy for important reasons. If forgotten, we lose the memory of one of history's best examples of Jesus' teachings put into action.

Watch how King pushes for civil rights:

Watch the full episode. See more FRONTLINE.

And then how he turns his attention to issues such as war and poverty:

:

Watch the full episode. See more FRONTLINE.

King's views on role of the church in society are best reflected in his sermon "Guidelines For A Constructive Church," in which he preached:

This morning I would like to submit to you that we who are followers of Jesus Christ, and we who must keep his church going and keep it alive, also have certain basic guidelines to follow. Somewhere behind the dim mist of eternity, God set forth his guidelines. And through his prophets, and above all through his son Jesus Christ, he said that, "There are some things that my church must do. There are some guidelines that my church must follow." And if we in the church don't want the funds of grace cut off from the divine treasury, we've got to follow the guidelines. (That’s right) The guidelines are clearly set forth for us in some words uttered by our Lord and Master as he went in the temple one day, and he went back to Isaiah and quoted from him. And he said, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me (Yes, sir) to preach the gospel to the poor, (Yes, sir) he hath sent me to heal the broken-hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, (Yes) to set at liberty them that are bruised, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord." These are the guidelines.

You see, the church is not a social club, although some people think it is. (Make it plain) They get caught up in their exclusivism, and they feel that it’s a kind of social club with a thin veneer of religiosity, but the church is not a social club. (Make it plain) The church is not an entertainment center, although some people think it is. You can tell in many churches how they act in church, which demonstrates that they think it’s an entertainment center. The church is not an entertainment center. Monkeys are to entertain, not preachers.

But in the final analysis the church has a purpose. The church is dealing with man's ultimate concern. And therefore it has certain guidelines that it must follow.

Now I wish time permitted me to go into every aspect of this text, but I want to just mention a few. Let us first think of the fact that if the church is following its guidelines, it seeks to heal (Yes, sir) the broken-hearted. Now there is probably no human condition more tantalizing than a broken heart. You see, broken-heartedness is not a physical condition; it’s a condition of spiritual exhaustion. And who here this morning has not experienced a broken heart? I would say broken-heartedness comes basically from the trying experience of disappointment. And I don't believe there are many people here this morning under the sound of my voice who have not been disappointed about something. (Yes, That’s right)...

Secondly, when the church is true to its guidelines, it sets out to preach deliverance (Yes, sir) to them that are captive. (Yes, sir) This is the role of the church: to free people. This merely means to free those who are slaves. Now if you notice some churches, they never read this part. Some churches aren't concerned about freeing anybody. Some white churches (Make it plain) face the fact Sunday after Sunday that their members are slaves to prejudice, (Yes, sir) slaves to fear. You got a third of them, or a half of them or more, slaves to their prejudices. (Yes, sir) And the preacher does nothing to free them from their prejudice so often. (Make it plain, Yes) Then you have another group sitting up there who would really like to do something about racial injustice, but they are afraid of social, political, and economic reprisals, (Make it plain) so they end up silent. And the preacher never says anything to lift their souls and free them from that fear. (Make it plain) And so they end up captive. You know this often happens in the Negro church. (Yeah) You know, there are some Negro preachers that have never opened their mouths about the freedom movement. And not only have they not opened their mouths, they haven’t done anything about it. And every now and then you get a few members: (Make it plain) "They talk too much about civil rights in that church." (That’s right) I was talking with a preacher the other day and he said a few of his members were saying that. I said, "Don't pay any attention to them. (Make it plain) Because number one, the members didn't anoint you to preach. (Yeah) And any preacher who allows members to tell him what to preach isn't much of a preacher." (Amen)

For the guidelines made it very clear that God anointed. (Yes, sir) No member of Ebenezer Baptist Church called me to the ministry. (No, sir) You called me to Ebenezer, and you may turn me out of here, but you can’t turn me out of the ministry, because I got my guidelines and my anointment from God Almighty. And anything I want to say, I'm going to say it from this pulpit. (Make it plain) It may hurt somebody, I don’t know about that; somebody may not agree with it. (Tell them) But when God speaks, who can but prophesy? (Amen) The word of God is upon me like fire shut up in my bones, (Yes, That’s right) and when God’s word gets upon me, I've got to say it, I’ve got to tell it all over everywhere. [shouting] (Yes) And God has called me (Yes) to deliver those that are in captivity. (Yes, sir)

Some people are suffering. (Make it plain) Some people are hungry this morning. (Yes) [clap] Some people are still living with segregation and discrimination this morning. (Yes, sir) I'm going to preach about it. (Preach it; I’m with you) I’m going to fight for them. I’ll die for them if necessary, because I got my guidelines clear. (Yes) And the God that I serve and the God that called me to preach (Yes; Amen) told me that every now and then I'll have to go to jail for them. (Make it plain) Every now and then I’ll have to agonize and suffer for the freedom of his children. (Yes) I even may have to die for it. But if that’s necessary, I'd rather follow the guidelines of God (Yes) than to follow the guidelines of men. (Yes) The church is called to set free (Yes) those that are captive, (Yes, sir) to set free those that are victims of the slavery of segregation and discrimination, those who are caught up in the slavery of fear and prejudice. (Make it plain)

And then the church, if it is true to its guidelines, must preach the acceptable year of the Lord. (Yes, sir, Make it plain) You know the acceptable year of the Lord is the year that is acceptable to God because it fulfills the demands of his kingdom. Some people reading this passage feel that it’s talking about some period beyond history, (Make it plain) but I say to you this morning that the acceptable year of the Lord can be this year. (Yes) And the church is called to preach it.

You see, Dr. King was more than just a civil rights leader.  That would by itself be a honorable legacy.  But he was a Christian minister, a prophet even, who challenged the church to build up the Kingdom of God.  That's radical.  That's transformational.  And for those of power and privilege it was terrifying because in the Kingdom the last come first.  The Holy Spirit worked through King to break-up the evil of white supremacy and to lift up the needs of those oppressed by economic systems that failed to address the condition of poverty.  The task of the church, in this day, is to continue that ministry in new ways and to continue - as Jesus did himself - to confront oppression wherever we find it...to set the captives free.