"Don't Worry or Be Afraid." A Sermon from Littlefield Church on Luke 12:13-34.

"Don't Worry or Be Afraid"

Luke 12:13-34

       

In this world we live in, there’s so much to fear.  Political speeches on various parts of the spectrum have named a litany of things and people that we should be afraid of.   When we travel, we go through security screenings.  There are metal detectors at big events, surveillance cameras in a growing number of places.  Churches have security systems.   I just attended a training on safety in houses of worship.  We’re surrounded by reminders of the possibility of danger and possible loss.

            On my phone, I get texts and emails from the local police and the Nextdoor app with subject headings like “Be on the lookout”, “Heed the Warning”, “Attempted home invasion,” “Secure your home and automobile.”    From a variety of voices, we keep getting messages: “Be afraid.  Be very afraid.”

            Truth be told, a lot of the news is grim around the country.  Mass shootings.  Forest fires. Global warming.  Economic worries.  Diseases. Fears of not having enough.

             

            At the beginning of today’s gospel lesson, Jesus warns people in the crowd to be on their guard against all kinds of greed.  He puts our relationship with material wealth in perspective: “for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of possessions.”

            Then Jesus tells a parable, about a rich man whose land produced abundantly-- so abundantly that his barns were full.  He had so much that he’d run out of space to store his harvest. This rich man thought to himself, “What should I do?”

            Then he answers himself: “I’ll do this: I’ll pull down my barns and build larger ones, and there I’ll store all my grain and my goods. And I’ll say to my soul, ‘Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years. Relax, eat, drink, be merry.”

            This rich man thinks--or hopes-- that if he can only fill more barns, then he can finally relax and be happy.

            But God said to the rich man, ‘You fool!  This very night your very life is being demanded of you. And the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ So it is with those who store up treasures for themselves but are not rich toward God.”

            Jesus goes on to teach his disciples: “Therefore I tell you, don’t worry about your life, about what you will eat, or about your body, what you will wear. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing.

            Look at the birds, Jesus says.  They don’t worry about stuff, and God provides for them.  Look at the lilies.  They don’t worry about stuff, and God provides for them.  How much more will God provide for you?   It is God’s good pleasure to provide in abundance.   Don’t be anxious.  Don’t worry or be afraid.   

            Stuff, Jesus tells us, is not to be collected and stored up.    Stuff is to be shared… given away…used for others.  He told a rich man who was too attached to his wealth, “Sell your stuff and give it away to those who are in need.”[1] 

            The kind of life Jesus describes has to do with choosing to live more simply, choosing to intentionally have less stuff, choosing to stop collecting more possessions… choosing to discover our sense of well-being in a just sharing of material possessions.

            What Jesus teaches about having a faithful relationship to possessions isn’t hard to understand.  But it isn’t easy to follow. 

            It’s so counter-cultural, in a society in which we are known as consumers… a society in which we are bombarded by messages that try to convince us that the things we buy and own can make us happy…secure…and content. 

            I’ve become more and more convinced that the greed and worry and fear that Jesus keeps warning his disciples about are at the root of so much of the evil and the problems in our world today.           We live in one of the richest nations in the world.  Yet we don’t seem to have the will to make sure that the neediest of Americans have what they need.

            We have enough food to provide basic nutrition to everyone in our nation. There’s enough food in the world for everyone to have a basic diet.  It’s a matter of priorities.  What are our highest priorities?  To care for the most vulnerable in our nation?   To pay for wars?  To give tax cuts to the wealthiest people?

            I believe that—deep down—a lot of us want to be more generous and gracious.  I think what gets in the way for a lot of us has to do with chronic anxieties.  We worry about whether we’ll have enough.  We’re afraid we’ll be vulnerable or dependent if we don’t build bigger barns or houses or retirement accounts, so we cling tightly to what we have. Maybe we tell ourselves that, if we can accumulate more-- then we’ll be happy and secure, and then we’ll be free to share.

Jesus knows our human condition.  I think that’s why he spent so much time teaching about how to be in a faithful relationship with material possessions and how to have faithful priorities. 

            I like the way Eugene Peterson translates this passage in The Message.  Peterson hears Jesus saying, “What I’m trying to do here is get you to relax, not be so preoccupied with getting-- so you can respond to God’s giving…. You’ll find all your everyday human concerns will be met….” 

“Don’t worry about your life,” Jesus says.  “Don’t keep striving for the things of this world…  Your Father in heaven knows what you need…. So, strive for God’s kingdom, and what you really need will be given to you as well.”

“What you really need will be given to you…. It is God’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.”

            Do we believe this?   Do we live like we believe it—like we trust God to give us what we need? 

            Imagine how freeing it would be if—instead of being afraid, instead of worrying—we would stake our lives in trust in our great and faithful God!     

            Jesus asks his disciples, “Why are you afraid?”  If we trust that nothing can separate us from the love of Christ Jesus our Lord,[2]  then we don’t need to be afraid.

            In the midst of all the voices of fear, we are called to live fearlessly.  Not because the world isn’t scary.  Not because we are invincible.  Not because we don’t struggle with fear and anxiety.  But because we know we belong to God.

            This may sound simplistic to some, but placing our trust not in earthly treasures but in the treasures of God’s kingdom can be powerful and transformative.

            As Henri Nouwen wrote, “The more you feel safe as a child of God, the freer you will be to claim your mission in the world as a responsible human being.”

 Living fearlessly in faith can free our energy, our imaginations, our intelligence to live into the Kingdom.  It can open our hearts and empower us to embody God’s love in ways that the world so desperately needs.

            Over the years, the stock market and the value of our homes can go up and down. Governments rise and fall.  Corporations split and merge and restructure.  Possessions can be stolen or destroyed in fires or floods.  In faith communities, income rises and falls.  The political scene is full of scary scenarios.

But don’t worry.  Don’t be afraid.  God knows what we need, and it is God’s good pleasure to provide us with what we truly need.  

            So… may we learn how to relax…and not be so preoccupied with getting or hoarding or trying to be in control-- so we can respond in faith to God’s generosity.  May we learn to trust that God will provide what we truly need.   May we learn not to worry or be afraid, as we learn to trust that God is good—all the time. 

Do we believe this?  Do we believe that God is good and that God delights in giving us what we need?   Do we trust in it? 

            I pray that we do.  I pray that we can affirm our trust:  God is good. All the time. All the time, God is good!

            Thanks be to God!

      

Rev. Fran Hayes, Pastor

Littlefield Presbyterian Church

Dearborn, Michigan

November 18, 2018

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[1] Matthew 19:16-30; Mark 10:17-31; Luke 18:18-30.

[2] Romans 8:38-39

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[1] Matthew 19:16-30; Mark 10:17-31; Luke 18:18-30.

[2] Romans 8:38-39

"Don't Worry or Be Afraid." A sermon on Luke 12:22-40 from Littlefield Presbyterian Church.

"Don't Worry or Be Afraid"

Luke 12:22-40

In this world we live in, there’s so much to fear.  Political speeches on various parts of the spectrum have named a litany of things and people that we should be afraid of.   When we travel, we go through security screenings.  There are metal detectors at big events, surveillance cameras in a growing number of places.  Churches have security systems.  They all that remind us of the possibility of danger and possible loss.

            In my email inbox I get messages from Aviation Nextdoor and the local police with subject headings like “Be on the lookout”, “Heed the Warning”, “Arrested for Home Invasion,” “Secure your home and automobile.”    From a variety of voices, we keep getting messages:  “Be afraid.  Be very afraid.”

            Truth be told, a lot of the news is grim.  Terrorist attacks.  Mass shootings.  Global warming.   Economic worries.  Diseases. Fears of not having enough.

             

            Today, we hear Jesus saying, “Do not be afraid, little flock.” Today’s gospel lesson picks up right after the story of the rich fool that you heard last Sunday when Bob Stead preached.  Luke shares Jesus’ teaching on anxiety.  Look at the birds.  They don’t worry about stuff, and God provides for them.  Look at the lilies.  They don’t worry about stuff, and God provides for them.  How much more will God provide for you?   It is God’s good pleasure to provide in abundance.   Don’t be anxious.  Don’t worry or be afraid.   

In the final part of today’s gospel lesson, Luke suggests an important distinction between anxiety and preparedness.  Jesus knows that he is headed to Jerusalem to die, and that time is short.   He wants his disciples to live with a sense of urgency and awareness.  Life is short, and when we stop living as if we have forever--  we can stop worrying about the wrong things and chasing what’s unimportant.            

            Stuff, Jesus tells us, is not to be collected and stored up.    Stuff is to be shared… given away…used for others.  Sell your stuff and give it away to those who are in need. 

            The kind of life Jesus describes has to do with choosing to live more simply, choosing to intentionally have less stuff,  choosing to stop collecting more possessions, choosing to discover our sense of well-being in a just sharing of material possessions.

            What Jesus teaches about having a faithful relationship to possessions isn’t hard to understand.  But it isn’t easy to follow.  This is so counter-cultural, in a society in which we are known as consumers… a society in which we are bombarded by messages that try to convince us that we the things we buy and own can make us happy…secure…and content. 

            I’ve become more and more convinced that the greed and worry and fear that Jesus keeps warning his disciples about is at the root of so much of the evil and the overwhelming problems in our world today.         We live in one of the richest nations in the world.  Yet we don’t seem to have the will to make sure that the neediest of Americans have what they need.

            We have enough food to provide basic nutrition to everyone in our nation. There’s enough food in the world for everyone to have a basic diet.  It’s a matter of priorities.  What are our highest priorities?  To care for the most vulnerable in our nation?   To pay for wars?  To give tax cuts to the wealthiest people?

            Now, I believe that—deep down—a lot of us want to be more generous and gracious.  I think what gets in the way for a lot of us has to do with chronic anxieties.  We worry about whether we’ll have enough.  We’re afraid we’ll be vulnerable or dependent if we don’t build bigger barns or houses or retirement accounts, so we cling tightly to what we have. 

Jesus knows our human condition.  That’s why he spent a lot of time teaching about how to be in a faithful relationship with material possessions and how to have faithful priorities. 

            I love the way Eugene Peterson translates this passage in The Message.  Peterson hears Jesus saying, “What I’m trying to do here is get you to relax, not be so preoccupied with getting-- so you can respond to God’s giving.   People who don’t know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how God works.  Steep yourself in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions.  You’ll find all your everyday human concerns will be met.  Don’t be afraid of missing out.  You’re my dearest friends!  The Father wants to give you the very kingdom itself.

            “Be generous.  Give to the poor.  Get yourselves a bank that can’t go bankrupt, a bank in heaven far from bank robbers, safe from embezzlers, a bank you can bank on.  It’s obvious, isn’t it?  The place where your treasure is, is the place you will most want to be, and end up being.    

“Don’t worry about your life,” Jesus says.  “Don’t keep striving for the things of this world…  Your Father in heaven knows what you need…. So strive for God’s kingdom, and what you really need  will be given to you as well.”

“What you really need will be given to you….It is God’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.”

            Do we believe this?   Do we live like we believe it—like we trust God to give us what we need? 

            Imagine how freeing it would be if—instead of being afraid, instead of worrying—we would stake our lives in trust in our great and faithful God!   

            We live in an age of anxiety and fear.   When we tune into the media, we hear about cultural and political polarization and divisiveness… and scarcity… and danger.   

But through our faith, we hear through the prophet Isaiah, “Do not fear, for I am with you.  Do not be afraid, for I am your God.”   We are not alone.

            Jesus asks his disciples, “Why are you afraid?”  If we trust that nothing can separate us from the love of Christ Jesus our Lord,[1]  then we don’t need to be afraid.

            In the midst of all the voices of fear, we are called to live fearlessly.  Not because the world isn’t scary.  Not because we are invincible.  Not because we don’t struggle with fear and anxiety.  But because we belong to God.

            This may sound simplistic to some, but placing our trust not in earthly treasures but in the treasures of God’s kingdom can be powerful and transformative.

            As Henri Nouwen wrote, “The more you feel safe as a child of God, the freer you will be to claim your mission in the world as a responsible human being.”

 Living fearlessly in faith can free our energy, our imaginations, our intelligence to live into the Kingdom.  It can open our hearts and empower us to embody God’s love in ways that the world so desperately needs.

            The stock market and the value of our homes go up and down. Governments rise and fall.  Corporations split and merge and restructure.  Possessions can be stolen or destroyed.  In faith communities,  income rises and falls.  The political scene is full of scary scenarios.

But don’t worry.  Don’t be afraid.  God knows what we need, and it is God’s good pleasure to provide us with what we truly need.   Life is a gift—a gift to be shared, a gift to be treasured.

            So… may we learn how to relax…and not be so preoccupied with getting or hoarding or trying to be in control-- so we can respond in faith to God’s giving.  May we learn to trust that God will provide what we truly need.   May we learn not to worry or be afraid, as we learn to trust that God is good—all the time. 

Do we believe this?  Do we believe that God is good and that God delights in giving us what we need?   Do we trust in it? 

            I pray that we do.  I pray that we can affirm our trust: God is good.  All the time.

            All the time—God is good!

            Thanks be to God!

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[1] Romans 8:38-39

"Hoping Skills": A sermon preached at Littlefield Presbyterian Church on November 15, 2015

"Hoping Skills"

Mark 13:1-8

There will be wars and rumors of wars.  There will be earthquakes in various places, and famines.

            Just a few days ago, I was wondering what I would do with this passage on a Sunday when we consecrate our stewardship commitments and take some time for faithful imagination about the future of the church.  Then we studied it at the beginning of Evangelism committee meeting, and I started to see some possibilities. 

            Then it happened-- again.   Just this week:  Terrorist attacks in Beirut.  Baghdad.  Paris. 

            The thirteenth chapter of Mark has traditionally been called “the little apocalypse.”  This passage, along with the other apocalyptic writings in the Bible, has been what Lamar Williamson calls “a happy hunting ground for persons fascinated by the end of the world.   It figures prominently in books by doomsayers and in sermons by evangelists more interested in the next world than in this one.”^[1] 

            “Apocalypse” can mean the uncovering or revealing of things that are to come:  like the wars and earthquakes and desolation of Mark 13.  But perhaps in a deeper sense it’s about how the vision of devastation transforms our vision of the things that are.  What is revealed is the true nature of the reality in which we live: its transitory, provisional character.   And so, it can be a kind of reality check.

            As Jesus was coming out of the temple, one of his disciples says to him, “Look Teacher, what large stones and what large buildings!”  Herod the Great had reconstructed the Jerusalem temple at immense expense, and it was one of the wonders of the ancient world.”^[2]   It was designed to be the crowning glory of King Herod’s ambitious architectural program.  Herod probably didn’t want to be remembered for his legendary brutality, so these imposing structures were to be his lasting legacy.

            “Look, Teacher, what large stones and what large buildings!”

            Jesus asked the disciples, “Do you see these great buildings?  Not one stone will be left here upon another.  All will be thrown down.”

            “Tell us, when will this be, Jesus?  What will be the sign?”

            We want to know what the future will be.  We want to know what’s going to happen… and when it will happen.  We worry. 

            Instead of giving them direct answers to their questions, Jesus warns them against false Messiahs who may try to take advantage of excitement and anxiety about the end-times:    “Beware that no one leads you 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 birth pangs.”   Later, Jesus tells them it isn’t for us to know when the end will come.

             

            As one of my colleagues points out, “Worrying is a human pass time.  “It’s a way to cope with the reality that evil is in the world.  It is a tool that can be overused to the point where we worry too much and forget to live.”[3]
            I’m convinced that God doesn’t want us to worry or be afraid.  God wants us to live into hope.  Every time an angel shows up with a word from God, what do they say?  “Fear not.”  “Don’t be afraid.” 

            But that’s hard.  It’s hard when attacks occur around the world.  It’s hard when gun violence continues.  It’s hard when natural disasters strike.  It’s hard not to worry about all the terrible things that could happen.  It’s hard not to worry that we don’t have enough.   It’s hard not to worry about the future of the church.

            Yes, there will be wars, and rumors of wars.  There will be death…and disaster.  There will be all manner of things in this life to rattle our souls.  There will be terrorism…injustice…racism… and hatred.

            Don’t be alarmed.  Don’t be afraid.

            When we’re anxious or afraid, we make bad decisions.  I think that’s why we hear again and again in the scriptures that we should only fear God, and that we need to hope and trust in what God is doing.

            We need to trust in Jesus:  “Wars and rumors of war will not have the last word.  The storm clouds of war are not the last word.  There are people who are trampled down because of their race or their gender or their religious beliefs—but that trampling does not have the last word.  God has the last word.

            It is futile to try to put a time frame on when the end is going to come or trying to describe it in detail.  But as Christians, we are called to believe that we are headed toward peace and justice and the rule of love.  We are called to live into that hope. 

            When we show up on Sunday mornings--  which is a strange thing to do in our culture-- we are living our belief that the world is headed in a direction of God’s reign.   When we commit our lives to Christ and his way of love, we are invited into a way that can bring out goodness in us.   When we fill out our financial commitment card, we are living into hope for this congregation and for Christ’s mission of love and justice beyond this congregation.   When we witness as a congregation to Christ’s way of peace and justice and love, we are staking our lives on a path that goes counter to the direction of the popular culture.  

             Jesus tells us, “The end is yet to come.  Don’t be afraid.  This is not how the world ends.”  The world will end with peace—not violence. And that is the end of the world we can look forward to.

            Jesus says, “Nation will rise against nation… there will be earthquakes and famines.  This is but the beginning of the birth pangs.” These are the signs we need to watch for, these “birth pangs.” 

            In his letter to the church in Rome, the apostle Paul wrote, “We know that the whole creation has been groaning in labor pains....”[4]

            In other words, God is at work where something new and good is being born, where new life is becoming possible.

            We look forward in longing to the end of violence in the world and the birth of a more peaceful world… the end of poverty, and the birth of a more just world…the end of hate, and the birthing of a world ruled by love. 

            As Christians, we expect trouble in this broken world.  But we can be confident that nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus.  No one who calls upon God’s name needs to be hopeless.  We can trust the promise we hear through the prophet Jeremiah:  “Surely I know the plans I have for you, says the LORD, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope.”[5]             

            We are called to witness to God’s love and justice and peace in the world.   Part of our witness is to let the world see us out-hoping our troubles…  and living into hope.

            We can’t do this alone.  But—with God’s help-- we can practice living into hope and faith and love.  We can help and encourage each other.  That’s why we need to be in community together.

            Even in the midst of suffering and turmoil, we can trust that God’s ways are rebirth and hope.  God is in charge.  Goodness is stronger than evil.

            Whenever we live in courage, whenever we trust in God’s promises as we make decisions, we are witnessing to God’s transforming love in the world and how God is birthing new life. 

            So let us keep practicing being faithful.  Let us live into hope.

            Amen!

Rev. Fran Hayes, Pastor

Littlefield Presbyterian Church

Dearborn, Michigan

Nov. 15, 2015

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^[1]Lamar Williamson, Mark.  (John Knox Press, 1983), p. 235.

^[2]Lectionary Homiletics, Nov. 16, 2003.

[3] #hopewins#notafraid#diwali Practicing Humanity & Defeating #terrorism.  Posted by Katyandtheword.wordpress.com on November 14, 2015.

[4] Romans 8:22

[5] Jeremiah 29:11