By Griff Martin
A Sermon on Psalm 19:1-6, 63:7, 37:25 and Matthew 6:25-34
For the Third Sunday of
Eastertide – May 5, 2019
(Creation Celebration
Sunday)
To the Beloveds of First Austin:
a baptist community of faith
Incarnate and Resurrected God, we
ask that you once again take the Word and transform it into a living and
breathing new reality we can all together experience. Make us aware of your
presence here in this space and in these words, God, for if we are present to
you then nothing else will matter, but if we are not present to you then
nothing else will matter. In the name of the Creator, the Christ and the
Comforter. Amen.
A
few years ago, a bestselling Christian book came out by the same name of the
title of this sermon, The Bible Jesus
Read. Some of you might have read this book. It’s not bad theology (but
please note, that does not mean the reverse is true. It’s not bad theology and
it’s also not good theology). I admire the premise of the book, to get
Christians to be a bit more biblical. So often Christians tend to put the New
Testament on a much higher pedestal than the Old Testament. The author points
to the importance of the Old Testament as the Torah being the Bible Jesus read –
the Torah being the book that formed Jesus.
Which
I don’t disagree with, but again, note that this does not mean the reverse is
true; I don’t disagree with it, but I also don’t totally agree with it.
I
think Jesus was a very bizarre Biblicist. I think Jesus had an incredible
understanding of the Word of God, yet Jesus does not appear biblical in the way
that we think of as biblical, meaning one who quotes Scripture every other
verse and thumps their bible loudly and proudly. Jesus does not do that.
Jesus
does not prove what he says by citing Scripture very much. In fact, this
actually gets him in trouble with the religious leaders when they accuse him of
teaching “with inner authority and not like our scribes.” Jesus tends to quote
only a fraction of the Old Testament: Exodus, Deuteronomy, Isiah, Hosea and the
Psalms, mainly. There are 19 other books that he never mentions. And he is
pretty open to borrowing freely from other religious traditions and sayings of
the day, “you have heard that it was said…”
Father
Richard Rohr says it best by stating that Jesus is a biblically formed
non-Bible quoter. Jesus understood the Bible well, appreciated the Bible and
knew the Bible starting with Genesis 1. And God created…. the Bible begins with
2 creation accounts. A very telling introduction, and not just because the one
story begins with two beginnings. But because this grand story of the God who
created us and loved us begins with God’s first act of creation.
The
first chapters of Scripture points us to Creation, to the world around us, as
God’s first act of creation.
I
think Jesus understood what theologically is known as General Revelation long
before theologians like John Wesley crafted this concept. General Revelation is
simply the theological belief that God is revealed in some manner in the
natural world around us. To which Jesus would have simply said, “Well of
course… consider the birds.”
Jesus
might not quote Scripture much, but he does quote our Creator’s first act of
Creation quite often. Flowers. Stars. Birds. Fig Trees. Fire. Bodies. Moths.
Dogs. Pigs. Sheep. Grapes and vines. Sky. Fields. Fish.
Jesus
was a student of the world around him. Jesus paid attention. Jesus found God
everywhere he looked.
Which
is why I think the text we read this morning, a portion of the sermon on the
mount, might need a bit of retelling. I think it’s the word ‘sermon’ that gets
us. I think we think of Jesus getting ready to make his big homiletical debut,
so he does what any good preacher would do, he goes into his study and he finds
the best commentary he can. He borrows a copy of Robert Altar’s brilliant
translation of the Torah, he gets a copy of Walter Brueggemann’s Theology of the Old Testament, he gets a
book of sermons from Barbara Brown Taylor and then a volume of poetry from
Wendell Berry and Meister Eckhart. He finds a verse or a subject he connects
with and then he learns as much as he can about that verse or subject. He
begins to play with words, what works best for the air, not the page. He manuscripts
it and practices his arm motions and delivery.
And
that is about as far off as we can get.
The
Sermon on the Mount is no pre-planned manuscript-ed text to make Jesus a
homiletical all-star. The Sermon on the Mount is like any of Jesus’ other
teachings; Jesus is suddenly surrounded by a crowd of people, and they are
shouting and asking questions and seeking his wisdom on things, and he just
gives it, plainly and matter-of-fact, and then he tries to find a way to
illustrate it for the people.
Someone
says something about struggling with anxiety and worry, a very common trait of,
you know, being human. And Jesus replies, “Therefore I tell you do not worry
about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body
or what you will wear. Is not life more than food and the body more than
clothing?” And then, I think, he pauses as the words sink in…. And I
think he sees a crowd full of people looking at him with their jaws opened
wide, standing there confused because someone asked him what to do about the
very real problem of not worrying and Jesus has responded by essentially
saying, “Well, don’t worry.”
And
it’s in that moment that a whole host of birds fly over the group, making their
noises and making their presence known – flying is not a quiet activity. And
they all look up at the birds overhead, and that is when the grin breaks out on
Jesus’ face: “Consider those birds, they don’t store up food in a barn and yet
they are always fed. Are you not of more value?”
And
then Jesus looks down and notices something he has missed up until now – right
at their feet, flowers are springing up all around them, and there is that
smile again: “Consider the flowers growing in the fields, they neither toil nor
spin, they don’t spend energy trying to look good, they just look better than
the best dressed person you can think of…”
Jesus
preached by paying attention. I personally think that is how he got all his
best sermons. The parable of the Prodigal Son – I think there was a family out
there who lived that story, who let their child run off and waste their wealth,
and then let them come back home, and while everyone else was laughing at them
and questioning their parenting, Jesus said, “actually, that is a lot like the
Kingdom of God.”
The
woman with the lost coin? Very easily she might be the joke of town, because
when she went to give her offering, she told the story of how ‘last night I
lost this and I tore my house up looking for it and I could not find it and
then I did’… and the people are laughing, because what needy person spends
their time and energy looking for money to give away? And Jesus, again with
that grin: “Actually, that is a lot like the Kingdom of God.”
I
feel certain that, at some point, the disciples and Jesus were camped out on
the beach, and one of the disciples probably asked Jesus to explain God, and
Jesus just opened his arms wide and said, “Look around you.” That might
actually have been his answer to each and every theological question and
ethical question and philosophical question asked of him: “look around you…
consider the birds.”
Or
consider….
The
elephants in the Kalahari Desert, a place not known for its abundant rains. In
fact, it is more famous for its drought season. However, once a year the desert
floods, not because of the rain there, but as a result of rain in Northern
Africa. The timing of the event is perfect. The rain from Northern Africa flows
down to fill the Kalahari Desert, which, for a brief time, turns into a vast
ocean. The timing of the animals is also perfect. They sense the coming of the
water and all animals arrive within 24 hours of the floods.
Many
of the animals have quite a journey to get to the water. The elephants have the
most difficult passage. To get to the exact spot that will flood, they have to
walk for over 100 miles and brave horrible winds and sand storms. It gets so
bad that mothers often lose their children to the wind. Elephants can barely
see the elephant directly in front of them. But when those that complete the
journey arrive, a celebration occurs. The elephants first drink until they
can’t handle any more water. Then they rest by the water, and then they begin a
celebration of playing in the water. They dance and swim. All of this because
Northern Africa received so much rain, the abundance overflowed.
Consider
the elephants…. Or consider….
The
salmon, who at the end of their life makes a journey several thousand miles
long, back to their birthplaces where they can return home to the exact spot
they were born, almost exactly, to lay their eggs. Each salmon will lay several
thousand eggs. Very few will survive, and then the salmon will die. It’s this
incredible cycle of life and death where the mother never meets the child for
whom she sacrificed everything, but rests in the hope that she has just passed
on life.
Consider
the salmons…. Or consider….
The
milkweed seeds. In our area, consider the antelope milkweed seed. This seed can
literally be tossed onto the ground in a clump of dry dirt, or barely planted
under the surface. And then, for what could be one season or even up to three
years, suddenly in the cold, the seed will sprout and you won’t notice anything
above ground, but below ground this seed will be hard at work, birthing a root
that is unbelievably strong and can force life just about anywhere. And then
that Spring, suddenly, up the milkweed plant comes, at its own perfect time.
Consider
the milkweed… or consider….
The
live oak tree of which there are a million different unique trees. Just go look
at any two next to each other and see that variety. Each tree is
essentially the same in terms of being a live oak, but each tree’s growth and
design is as unique as human fingerprints. No two are alike in terms of the
texture of the bark or shape of their canopy or the paths of their limbs. Think
about our creativity – we invent something great, and then make a million
copies of the exact same product. But not the live oak. Each tree is its own
unique piece of art.
Consider
the live oak… or consider….
The
red bird, a backyard favorite for many of us. Consider how the red bird will
become so devoted to protection, so single-minded in this pursuit that he will
actually spend incredible energy fighting his very self in a window reflection
in order to protect those he loves. There is a parable in there, if you sit
with it.
Consider
the red bird….
Or consider
the cacti, the Rocky Mountains, the Gulf of Mexico, the Colorado River, the
Marfa lights, the limestone, the bougainvillea, the night stars, the morning
sun, the bulbs we plant each winter that surface each spring, your favorite
dog, blue birds, the grass, the grasshopper, the breeze, the moon…. Consider it
all.
It’s
Mary Oliver who writes,
“So
it is not hard to understand
Where
God’s body is, it is
Everywhere
and everything; shore and the vast
Fields
of water, the accidental and the intended
Over
here, over there. And I bow down
Participate
and attentive
It
is so dense and apparent.”
All
of life is a testimony of the truth of God. Look around you.
If
you want to get to know an artist, what do you do? You study the work. If you
want to better understand Beyoncé, you listen to Lemonade and you pay attention to every word and every beat. You
pay attention to every stroke Van Gough used, and every splatter of Jackson
Pollack. You study every word of dialogue Aaron Sorkin writes for a character
and you study how Ava DuVernay frames every image in her movies.
You
want to know an artist, you study their art. You want to know God, study the
art, look at creation. Creation is our art, and it’s more than just a divine
love song, it’s a blue print. All of life is an expression of God.
This
day, I want you to hear the call of Jesus: Consider the birds… Look up…. Look
down…. Look all around… Pay attention…. Offer your reverence to the world
around you.
There
is so much truth waiting to be discovered, so much to be celebrated. Sue
Searles begins every walk outside with a prayer and question: “God, what will
you surprise me by showing me today?” It’s a pretty good way to go about life.
To open our eyes and all around us see the Bible that Jesus read, and that we
can read, too.
Look
around you, consider creation and see that God is good. Amen and Amen.
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