August 3, 2008 Sermon by Rev. Nancy Cushman

How do you sum up the requirements of a faithful life? What does God want from us? How can it be stated in such a way that people can keep it in their hearts and bind it to the forefront of their thinking and acting? Matthew and Mark have Jesus saying the words, but Luke has the questioner answer his own question in this passage by reaching into their Scripture, the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament to us) and summarizing the law and the prophets with two very simple statements. The first part he quotes comes from Deuteronomy 6:5, the second part comes from Leviticus 19:18. As you hear these words remember that as Biblical scholar Douglas Hare states “the primary component of biblical love is not affection, but commitment.” This passage demands of us “not warm feelings, but a stubborn, unwavering commitment” to God.^[i]

As we think about the companions on this journey of life as portrayed in the Wizard of Oz, we hear about the Tin Man who wanted a heart, the Lion who wanted courage and the Scarecrow who wanted a brain. Each of these characters seek a component of the great commandment. The heart and soul that shall be committed to God, all our strength which I correlate with courage must be committed to God, and all our mind shall be committed to God. These companions on our journey shall help us live and live fully.

The thing is that what is required of us in this relationship with God often goes against conventional wisdom. It seems foolish to those who have not made the same commitment and who do not understand the way of Christ.

“Just do it. Image is everything. Money talks. Me first. Failure is not an option. Real men don’t ask directions. Boys don’t cry. The one who dies with the most toys wins. I don’t get mad, I get even. Second place is just another name for loser. I want everything and I want it now” (that is a current Chase bank commercial slogan.) Bumper stickers and commercials speak conventional wisdom. The Bible also carries wisdom. I am using the Message Bible for these passages. Proverbs 10:7”A good and honest life is a blessed memorial; a wicked life leaves a rotten stench.” Proverbs 10:17 “The road to life is a disciplined life; ignore correction and you’re lost for good.” Proverbs 11:1 “God hates cheating in the marketplace; he loves it when business is aboveboard.” Proverbs 11:17 “When you’re kind to others, you help yourself; when you’re cruel to others, you hurt yourself.” My all time favorite Proverb is Proverbs 11:22 “Like a gold ring in a pig’s snout is a beautiful woman without good sense.” (NRSV) Proverbs 11:29 “Exploit or abuse your family, and end up with a fistful of air; common sense tells you it’s a stupid way to live.” Proverbs 12:18 “Rash language cuts and maims, but there is healing in the words of the wise.” As a parent I really like Proverbs 13:1 “Intelligent children listen to their parents; foolish children do their own thing.” “The idle want it all and get nothing; the energetic have something to show for their lives.” Now not all of conventional wisdom is anti-Biblical. One of the most famous sayings of conventional wisdom is the Golden Rule which comes right out of the Bible, “Do unto others as you would have them do to you.”

When Dorothy meets the Scarecrow in the Wizard of Oz she discovers that he is searching for something, too. Let’s watch.

In their conversation, Dorothy learns that the Scarecrow desperately wants a brain and so she invites him to join her on the journey to the Wizard. The Scarecrow unknowingly demonstrates throughout the journey that he already possesses the ability to think, to strategize. He tricks the trees into giving them more apples that they can eat. He recognizes the witch’s evil spell on the red poppies. He helps the companions find a way into the witch’s castle to rescue Dorothy. The Scarecrow reveals and uses his brain without even recognizing it. It takes the Wizard to acknowledge it and help him accept what he has had all along. Let’s watch.

As the wizard noted, what the Scarecrow really wanted was wisdom not just a brain. The diploma is nothing more than recognition of the wisdom and ability he already has.

Now wisdom is different than knowledge. Have you ever known someone who knew lots of facts and figures, but they had no common sense? Wisdom is very important in the Biblical witness as we saw in the Proverbs we heard earlier. Biblical wisdom is grounded in the belief that in creating all there is God not only put power into creation but sense, coherence, order, and beauty. God has willed that all parts of creation are delicately related to one another and therefore every decision, every act matters to the shape and well-being of the whole. This means that ordinary matters, day to day decisions and actions, are full of significance. As the writers of A Theological Introduction to the Old Testament continue, “Wisdom recognizes that life is a delicately balanced network of givens, choices, and consequences and one can’t outflank the requirements, disciplines, and demands of that dailiness of life. In other words, “what you sow, you shall surely reap. (Galatians 6:7)”^[ii] The problem comes that we human beings often do not instinctively act in harmony with God’s created order.^[iii] The truth is that we are often innately selfish beings focused on what’s best for us and unmindful to how we impact the rest of the created order. This is why we need Jesus Christ. He embodies the wisdom of God. I love that image in 1 Corinthians, Jesus became for us wisdom from God.

The wisdom that Jesus embodied and taught is often counter to conventional wisdom and sometimes even to the Old Testament wisdom. For example, in his great teaching section in the Gospel of Matthew Jesus says, “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I say to you, Do not resist the evildoer. But if anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other also.” (Matthew 6:38-39) Later he says, “You have heard it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous.” (Matthew 6:43-45) As Paul very bluntly states this seems like foolishness to the people outside the fold (and even to some within it.) Jesus life of self-sacrifice; his death – a crucified Messiah is foolishness. This is why God has given us companions on the journey, companions who are seeking the same wisdom for their lives, companions who are willing to wrestle with these teachings, dig deeper to understand what God is saying through them. These companions are us, the church. Together we seek to understand this sometimes confusing wisdom of God. As Proverbs 13:20 says, “Become wise by walking with the wise; hang out with fools and watch your life fall to pieces.” It is our hope and deepest desire that together we can help everyone follow the Way, the Way of God’s wisdom for we believe that is the wisdom that we need to follow to have a better life - not conventional wisdom but the wisdom of God shown through Jesus the Christ. The things that we talk about in church, the values that we lift up from the Bible are things that will help us live in harmony with God’s created order. The choices we make about what we say, about money, friendship, work, sexuality, business, relationships all these choices have an impact not just on us, but their consequences reverberate into the lives of other people and as we are coming to realize more and more into the rest of creation. Be mindful of what you do. Be careful to listen to the wisdom of God.

God created the universe with order, sense, coherence and beauty. May we follow the Wisdom who is Jesus for he leads us to overcome our tendency toward selfishness and leads us to harmony with all that God intends. “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength and with all our mind; and your neighbor as yourself. …Do this and you will live.” (Luke 10:27-28)

I have enclosed in each of your Reminders a prayer card with the Serenity Prayer on it. This is a great way to open ourselves to God’s Wisdom whenever we pray it. Let us pray it together now.

God, grant the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.

Living one day at a time, enjoying one moment at a time, accepting hardships as the pathway to peace, taking as he did this sinful world as it is, not as I would have it, trusting that he will make all things right if I surrender to his will— that I may be reasonably happy in this life and supremely happy with him forever.^[iv] Amen.

[i] Douglas R.A. Hare. Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching: Matthew (Louisville: John Knox Press, 1993), p. 260.

[ii] Bruce C. Birch, Walter Brueggemann, Terence E. Fretheim & David L. Petersen. A Theological Introduction to the Old Testament. (Nashville: Abingdon, 1999), p. 389.

[iii] C.A. Newson. “Biblical Wisdom Tradition” Dictionary of Pastoral Car and Counseling. Rodney J. Hunter, general ed. (Nashville: Abingdon, 1990), p. 1326.

[iv] Trevor Hudson. The Serenity Prayer. (Grand Rapids: Monarch, 2004).