Matthew
10: 24-39
A
Sermon for the People of Holy Cross Lutheran Church
Lake
Stevens, WA
June
22, 2014
Pray with me as we
begin: May the words of my mouth and the
meditations of our hearts be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, our Rock and our
Redeemer. Amen.
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“Naming
the Dragon.” How many of you are
familiar with that phrase? It means
essentially that you name that thing that terrifies you, and that simply by
calling it out by name, it loses some of its power over you. It’s much harder to be afraid of a “Norbert”
than a nameless fire-breathing scaly creature determined to char your flesh and
incinerate your bones. Now, of course,
outside of a fantasy novel (with no offense to J. K. Rowling, all you Harry
Potter fans), dragons simply do not exist.
But we assign their power and might to other things.
What
are you afraid of? What are your
dragons?
Snakes? Flying?
Heights? or more practical
matters…Has your son just gotten his driver’s license? Are you still awaiting the delivery of your end-of-term
report card? Are family members growing
up and moving away or just moving on?
Are you wrestling with the kind of care you can give to your aging
parents? Is your workplace “toxic”? Is your rent past due? Is your congregation shrinking?
You
should each have half an index card and a pen or pencil. Take a moment and think: What are you afraid of? On the lined side of that card, write down
two or three fears that you are wrestling with currently. Go on.
Name your dragons. Dig deep. Make it good and honest. No one will see these unless you show them,
okay? Now…hang on to those cards. Don’t
put them away just yet.
What
happened when you named those dragons?
Are they still frightening?
Sure. But simply by naming them
by acknowledging what they are, you strip them of some of their fire
power.
In
today’s Gospel lesson, Jesus speaks to his disciples about fear. He’s beginning to send them out, actually,
and is giving them a “pep-talk”, if you will, about how to go about God’s
mission in their world.
The
first thing Jesus says is, “a disciple is not above the teacher, nor a slave
above the master.” Which basically means,
“hey, they’re gonna treat you the same way they’re treating me.” Yikes.
So much for the pep-talk.
Then,
Jesus goes on to talk about dragons.
Again, not literal dragons, but those things which frighten or worry us. And he begins this passage by saying, “have
no fear of them.”
Fear
not. (have you noticed that every time
someone says that in the Bible, a really great promise follows?)
At
first glance, it might seem like our God is a god of mixed messages. “They’re gonna treat you terribly, but don’t worry.” “These are all the things you should be
worried about, but don’t be afraid!”
The
disciples had the ultimate worry. At the
time of Jesus, remember, to be a disciple meant the constant threat of
death. Jesus and his followers were
persecuted. (I assure you, despite what
some Christians would have you believe –particularly around Christmas time when
the birth story of Christ is not allowed in public schools and Christmas trees
are called “holiday trees,” we Christians in 21st United States are
NOT persecuted.)
But
the disciples were! Just by traveling
with Jesus and by doing what he asked of them, they suffered rejection and the
very real threat of death…every. single. day.
The threat of death may be the ultimate threat…the ultimate claim and
abuse of power. But Jesus says to the
disciples that they shouldn’t be afraid of the person who is trying to kill
(what??)…instead, they should be afraid of the one who can kill their bodies
and their souls. In other words, no
mortal has more power than God. No human
can claim authority over their souls.
God always has the final word.
And
this is true for us, too, though perhaps in a more metaphorical sense: Those dragons and people and things can cause
you great fear and worry, but God has the last word. Don’t worry about the words and threats and
fears and “dragons” of this life. Worry
about God. God alone is the one we
should fear.
But
what do we know of God? Here’s the Good
News: God loves you. God loves you
so intimately that God knows the number of hairs on your head. God has even paid attention to the ones that
fell out in your hair brush this morning.
God knows every detail of your physical and spiritual being, and God claims you, God claims you, and calls you good.
God, who has ultimate power
over our lives both in the present and in the life to come, holds that power
with love, and mercy, and tenderness, and grace. God
loves you.
So
what about those dragons which you have named this morning?
What
if we look at them in a different way?
What if we decide that all of those adversities or “what-ifs” are not
things to be frightened of but instead are chances to use our faith? To use an example from my dear professor David Lose, “Is
a brewing conflict with a dysfunctional colleague or difficult friend something
to be avoided at all costs or an opportunity for setting boundaries, affirming
healthier patterns of behavior, and nurturing growth?”
I
don’t mean to imply that the dragons are sent by God to teach us how to live
our lives, I don’t think God is sadistic or cruel. But I do want to remind you that God uses for
good the things that the world intends for evil, and God shows that to us again
and again and again. Not only in the
Bible but in your life as it is unfolding today. God can and God will use those
hardships, those dragons, to create new life.
There is no bigger dragon than the cross…and if God can use that
for the good of all, imagine how God might be using our current sufferings to
bring renewal.
Now,
pull out those index cards once again.
Look at your dragons. Think for a
moment about how you might be able to see some new life seeping its way through
them. How might God use those challenges
for good?
Flip
those cards over. On the blank side, I
want you to write, “Do not fear—you are of great value to God.”
Take
a good long look at that promise. God
loves you. I want you to
take those cards with you. Pull them out
during the week and allow them to serve as a reminder that God knows you…every
hair…every freckle…every anxiety and fear…and God calls you good. Even and especially as you fight your
dragons.
Jesus
says, “what I say to you in the dark, tell in the light; and what you hear
whispered, proclaim from the rooftops.”
And
God sends you out into the world to make that Good News known to all
people. Hear the Good News: “You are claimed. You are called. You are forgiven. You are free.
You are loved. You are of great
value to God.” Shout it from the
rooftops, people! Once you have named
your dragons, those words will be your dragon-slayers.
Amen.
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