Word Three: Authentic
By Griff Martin
A
Sermon on The Third Command, Exodus 3:1-14 and Galatians 5:22-23
For
the Tenth Sunday Following Pentecost (10 Words Series)
August
25, 2019
For
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.
I
remember it like yesterday: my first time.
I
was 6.
It
was at my grandparents’ house after a long day swimming. I had been out all
day. I had obviously avoided the needed second (and probably third) round of sunscreen
and had been in the hot Austin summer sun all day, instead. I was burned; red
as an apple.
Reflecting
on it today, I assume that it was probably a summer holiday because my aunt and
uncle who live in San Antonio were in town, as were my great-grandparents who
lived in Burnet. So, it was probably Memorial Day, July 4th or Labor Day – one
of those perfect summer holidays where the entire family gathers together.
Which
means we probably had GranGran’s fried shrimp for dinner (the best fried shrimp
ever because for breading she always used those club crackers that are so good),
and for sides we had salad with her homemade Italian dressing and a baked
potato, and then for dessert we probably had a cake, most likely chocolate.
I
was very blonde and had a very raspy voice that I used often; I was a talker.
We were all sitting in her den. It was about this time that I realized exactly
how badly sunburned I was, and in a moment of silence I decided to let the
entire family know… great grandmother very much included.
And
I decided to do it trying out a word I heard, one that seemed very powerful. I
will clean this up a bit for church: “I am so gd sunburned.”
I
immediately knew that I had used the word right, and at the same time, very,
very wrong.
The
room went silent. It was like time froze. My grandmother’s jaw slowly hit the floor.
My mother reached to slowly clutch her heart. My aunt gasped audibly. For the
first few minutes, it seemed as if time stood still and no one would move. I
had used a word that froze the world.
Until
it didn’t. The first move was my grandfather getting out of dodge because he
knew exactly where I had learned that word and knew that this evening just took
a very unpleasant turn for him. In fact, I can her my GranGran saying to him,
“Jimmy” in a way that made him know he was in for it.
At
the same time, I was being taken out of the room because I, too was in for it
and would be sternly taught that word was never to be spoken.
I
had broken one of the big ones. I had taken the name of the Lord in vain.
Or
had I?
I
think this is a command that gets very narrowly applied and very poorly applied.
After
all, what kind of God makes an entire boundary about not using God’s name with
a curse word attached to it? That God seems rather puny to me, if I am honest.
It sounds more like something you would find in an Emily Post guidebook. And
one of the problems I think the church faces is how long we have followed
practices aimed at making us look too polite rather than the kind of people who
curse folks who are creating and furthering injustices, who turn over tables,
who tell stories that make you blush, who call a brood of vipers by name, who
eat with the wrong people and hang out in the shady corners… you know, the
things Jesus did that Emily Post would certainly not describe as proper.
And
isn’t it intriguing, when we do and don’t follow the rules, and which
ones we do and don’t follow? We have decided to follow the rules of being
polite (Emily Post), but have no problem breaking the traditional rules of our
religion when God’s name was truly protected and revered.
God
gives God’s name in the Torah. It’s not to Moses first, despite what you may
have been taught. It’s Hagar who first learns God’s name. However, not many
people listen to cast-off women (a group that probably knows the truth way more
often than the rest of us), so God has to give it again to Moses. Once again,
it’s about liberation and healing. The children of God are stuck in slavery and
God has called Moses to free them. It’s a brilliant story that involves a
burning bush and the voice of God and Moses’ wonderful question, “Yeah I see
all this… the bush that does not burn… and I hear the voice… but who do I say sent
me because I don’t know who you are…?” And God replies, “I am. Tell them I am
sent you.”
Which
is really significant.
In
Jewish tradition, names matter. Names convert the nature and essence of the one
(or the item) named. “I am” seems to signify the essence of all. I think the
best translation we have of this is the “Ground of all Being.” A name so
powerful that Judaism built entire system and hedges of protection around it.
For
most Jews, God is referred to as Yahweh; a name that sounds like your very
breath. It is spelled out using just four Hebrew letters and is often referred
to as the Ineffable, Unutterable Name. It is rarely spoken, and when done, it
is with incredible respect. It is rarely written, although this is misleading.
It’s actually not about the writing of it, but the fear that in the future this
paper might be defaced or destroyed, and God’s name should never be defaced or
destroyed. Thus, in Jewish writings, God is referred to as G-d.
What
Judaism understood was a deep respect for the name of God.
How
far we have come, where you can buy God candy, where there are stores that sell
God on sweatshirts, keychains, coffee mugs, oven mitts, notebooks and on and on
and on. Where you can buy all sorts of greeting cards with God’s name and
hearts all over it. Where God’s name appears on bumper stickers and church
marquees. Where God’s name appears in a host of things religiously oriented: church
names, book titles, songs.
And
those are the safe examples.
How
about the Crusades, when somewhere between 1 and 3 million folks were killed in
God’s name? Or the witch hunts? Or so many examples of apartheid? How many
females have been kept from their fullest potential because it was God’s will
that they hold lesser status than males? How many LGBTQ persons have ended
their own life because there were told in God’s name they were not accepted and
loved? How many times have white persons used God’s name to justify
discrimination?
Or
the litany of things that have been done by our country and claimed, “one
nation under God?” Or even more telling, the fact that on our currency, which
is about as strong of an idol as one can get today, we have the phrase “in God
we trust?”
I
think that is way worse than saying a swear word.
And
again, we are sticking with safe examples. Let’s get personal.
Do
you think God is more concerned about the fact that as a little boy I once said
gd, or by the fact that I have been known to spend dollars supporting unjust
labor practices because that store was closer to my house, or the fact that I
have been known to tell a little white lie even though I know it’s one that I
could easily get caught saying and hurt my reputation as someone who speaks
truths, or that I have gossiped about someone who is made in the image of God,
one of God’s beloved creations, or that I have mocked them, or that I have not
done my share to care for creation, or that I can be exclusive, or that I can
be selfish, or that I can get short-tempered with my kids?
This third guideline may be the Word the church
breaks the most often and with the worst consequences: it is the sin of the
pious. It’s the words that I heard so often in my youth group, the quote from
Brennan Manning: “The greatest single cause of atheism in the world today is
Christians: who acknowledge Jesus with their lips, walk out the door, and deny
Him by their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds
unbelievable.”
Don’t risk corrupting the name of God.
It’s that odd story that is one of my favorite
Gospel stories, when Jesus is walking to Jerusalem and sees a fig tree in bloom.
He goes up to the tree and finds no figs, and he curses the fig tree to die.
More than once I have heard preachers refer to this as evidence of Jesus’ anger
or just having a bad day. Terrible explanations. The explanation is in the
story. The fig tree was in bloom, meaning that the tree was advertising that it
had fruit on it. It was claiming something but there was no evidence or truth
to its claim.
It’s a scene from the Gospels that surely echoes the
Third Word: Don’t take God’s name in vain. Don’t risk corrupting the name of
God.
If you claim the name of God, you best have the
right fruits: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness goodness, faithfulness and
self-control. Be authentic. Live like that name you proclaim.
If you claim the name of God, you need to look like
God incarnate. Which does not mean polite, but instead like someone who curses
folks who are creating and furthering injustices, who turns over tables, who
tells stories that make you blush, who calls a brood of vipers by name, who
eats with the wrong people and hangs out in the shady corners… you know, the
things Jesus did.
“By this the world will know that you are my
disciples….”
The Third Word: “You shall not misuse the name of
the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses
his name.” Make sure your actions match the name you claim. Be authentically
Christian.
Amen and Amen.
*artwork: Moses and the Burning Bush, Atelier d'icones Karatzas, atelier-karatzas.com
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