CALVARY BAPTIST CHURCH
The Rev. Fred
Weimert November 15, 2009
“Faith to Follow”
The Gospel
reading for today, from Mark,
is what people popularly call
the “little apocalypse”
or the “synoptic
apocalypse”
I don’t
know why it is
that when things don’t go our way…
or the way that we
believe that things should go…
that we want
to see everything torn down…
destroyed…
and we then project
those same feelings on to God…
who created
this marvelous earth…
and
acted to redeem it
not
with violence and war,
but
through the gentle walk of Jesus.
It has
always been sad to me
that the New Testament writers
after the death and
resurrection of Jesus
chose to revert back to the style of the apocalyptic
writers
who had embraced this destructive…
dualistic style,
which was popular in
In Jesus’
day the northern area of
was a hotbed of this apocalyptic
thinking,
and it could be that
Jesus was influenced by this thought.
He may have
believed that the temple had become
hopelessly
corrupt…
I feel
certain that he did, or said, things
which
lead those in power in
to
believe that he might be
a danger to the status quo.
He
could have simply believed,
along
with Isaiah,
that
God’s house was truly to be…
“a house of prayer for all people.”
I also
believe that he may have been concerned
with
his disciples obvious, slack jawed, amazement
at
this massive temple compound…
“Such
large stones.”
He
may have wanted them to be aware
that
this was just a building…
which
could be destroyed.
As to
whether he believed or predicted,
that the temple would be destroyed,
That
may have been more a product of the time
when
the gospels were written,
and
the temple’s destruction was
by
then complete.
Mark 13: 1-8
As
he came out of the temple,
one
of his disciples said to him,
"Look, Teacher,
what large stones and what large
buildings!"
Then
Jesus asked him,
"Do you see these great buildings?
Not one stone will be left here upon
another;
all will be thrown down."
When
he was sitting on the
Peter,
James, John, and Andrew asked him privately,
"Tell us, when will this be,
and what will be the sign that all
these things
are about to be accomplished?"
Then
Jesus began to say to them,
"Beware
that no one leads you astray.
Many will come in my name and say,
'I am he!'
and they will lead many astray.
When
you hear of wars and rumors of wars,
do not be alarmed;
this must take place,
but the end is still to come.
For
nation will rise against nation,
and kingdom against kingdom;
there will be earthquakes in various
places;
there will be famines.
This is but the beginning of the
birthpangs.
here ends the reading.
One of the
things that struck me as I re-read this passage
was something that I found in Luke’s
parallel version…
While both Mark and
Matthew close off the talk
about the
impending doom
by
predicting war, famine, and earthquakes…
as
birth pangs.
Luke expands this list
of prediction
by adding to
war, famine, and earthquakes…
Pestilences,
terrors and great signs.
These
additions got me thinking about
the
flight from
the
exodus event.
Which
makes sense,
If
God is about to deliver his people
why
not use terms that would call to mind
God’s
greatest deliverance of people.
In part I
may have noticed this
because I am currently reading Bruce
Feiler’s new book
This book
points out how we in
are
fascinated and fixated on Moses and the Exodus.
Words
about Moses and
the
Pilgrims
the
founding fathers
Jonathan
Edwards and the great “awakeners”
the
Slavery’s
Harriet Tubman
the
Presidents
Woodrow Wilson, Franklin Roosevelt,
Lyndon Johnson
Then
who could forget the words of
Martin
Luther King Jr.
at
Mason Temple.
all
heavily influenced by the Prophet Moses.
Many of the
stories that Feiler told in this book were familiar to me,
but one that was new and stood out
for me…
was the story of
Reverend Jacob Duche,
the Rector
of
back
in the days of the Revolution.
It happened that during
the First Continental
Congress in September 1774,
Rev. Duche was invited to come and
say a prayer.
He came and read the
Psalm
assigned for that day in the prayer
book…
which
happened to be Psalm 35
there he read the words:
“Plead my cause, O Lord,
with
them that strive with me:
fight
against them
that
fight against me.”
and
then he said a prayer…
Of that morning
John Adams
wrote to his wife Abigail:
“It
seemed as if Heaven had ordained that Psalm to be read on that Morning.” “an
extemporary Prayer, which filled the Bosom of every Man present. I must confess I never heard a better Prayer
or one so well pronounced… It has had an excellent Effect upon every Body here. pg.56
Apparently delegates fell to their
knees and began to cry.
This was a watershed
moment in American History.
But Rev.
Deuche’s greatest moment came 2 years later
when on July 4, 1776
after the word was
spread
that the Declaration of Independence
had been signed.
Reverend Duche
came back to
and
asked his vestry to approve a motion
“Whereas
the honourable Congress have resolved to declare the American Colonies to be
free and independent States, in consequence of which it will be proper to omit
those petitions in liturgy wherein the King of Great Britian is prayed for as
inconsistent with the said declaration.” pg. 56
The motion was approved
And Rev.
Duche in his own hand
scratched
out the six references
which asked God to bless:
“thy servant George,
our most gracious king
and governor,”
and
he wrote instead we ask God to bless:
“The Congress of the United States.” pg.
57
and on the following Sunday
July 7th 1776
a day before
the public reading of the Declaration…
the
Members of
used those altered prayer books in
worship.
You think the Episcopal Church has a major fight
now…
this was far bigger.
The king is by decree, the head of the Anglican Church.
The action by Rev. Duche
and the vestry of
and its members
was a mixture of heresy and treason.
Rev.
Duche could have been hanged
Feiler wrote:
“Duche
must have felt like Moses going before pharaoh.
How
could you do anything but quake?”
And quake Duche did the next year
In September 1777
the British
recaptured
and
Jacob Duche was arrested.
The very next month he
wrote an eight page letter
to his friend, George Washington,
who
had worshipped at
begging him
to call off the war,
and
save the lives of his soldiers.
and
the once courageous patriot, Duche
was
unmasked for all
He was forced to go into exile in
Reading the
signs, of the times and seasons,
with any degree of
certainty
in this very
political world can be very dangerous,
is
nearly impossible…
When you hear of wars and rumors of
wars,
do not be alarmed;
this must take place,
but the end is still to come.
I can understand Rev. Duche’s
dilemma
his joy at the initial
promise of independence,
but on
watching the tide turn,
and
understanding the danger faced
by
soldiers and civilians
he
waffled…
It
could have been
a
compassion driven waffle
but
he waffled none the less.
and
he was viewed as a coward.
What are we
who are waiting for God’s rule to
come on earth
to
do?
Are we to rally our forces
every time there is an
earthquake
war or
famine?
Should we sell all we have and live
communally…
Maybe force God’s hand…
Make God
come and deliver us?
Or should we never risk taking a
stand…
Just trust that those in
power have been placed there by God?
Two thousand
years have come and gone
since
Jesus stood on the
The
temple is gone…
The
Dome of the Rock now stands there…
the
along
with many others…
there
have been thousands of earthquakes
and
famines…
And still we wait…
Ready to take up the sword
and defend
the faith…
to
join battle with the forces of darkness…
even go it alone like David…
and
face down the giant Goliath
with
only a sling and a 5 stones.
And Jesus, born of Mary,
calls us
to love our
neighbors and enemies,
to become
like little children…
to be wise
as serpents and harmless as doves…
And we pray and plead
for some great task to
prove ourselves…
Like the
Syrian general Naaman
who
was offended by Elisha’s suggestion
that
healing could be found
simply
by washing
in the dirty
and
who almost rejected the cure
because
it was so common
so
beneath him…
And all the while God is found
working
in the oddest places…
in this
child, Samuel,
whose
mother was presumed
by the powerful priest, Eli,
to be tipsy.
May we in our waiting for the world
to come
not miss the world that
is come…
the world
that comes to us everyday.
in
ways that are hardly earthshaking
It comes to
us, begging for the bread of life.
May
we share what we know
and
have.
And in our small and simple acts
may the world
find healing and redemption.
Amen.