HOMILY – 24^TH SUNDAY OF ORDINARY TIME

ST. ANTHONY CHURCH & FURMAN UNIVERSITY

GREENVILLE, SC – SEPTEMBER 17, 2006  -  8 & 11AM & 8:30PM

May the Lord give us His peace.

God’s gotcha back!  RCALM,  the question we answer every day.

God’s gotcha back!  The youth in our parish shared with me that they like when the preacher gets all worked up “God’s gotcha back!  God’s not letting you go!”  They want me to preach like that, but I am thinking that style isn’t mine, and I get so worked up sometimes I am afraid of what will happen. What do you think?  Heh!

Fact is, according to the prophet Isaiah today – God does have our back.  But that includes the suffering that comes our way.  You see-heh, God wants ya free-heh!  Problem is, everybody else is free too.  You put that much freedom in, and someone’s going sin.  They might spit on you.  The suffering servant we hear about in Isaiah says, “I did not shield my face from buffets and spitting.”  Well what good is that?  God’s got ma back, but the spit is coming in from the front!  God made each of us a player in His story, and His story must have this freedom in it.  We get to choose to participate or not.  We can be a player or a strayer! 

God wants a free decision to love Him.  God could have made each of us wag our tails whenever His name was mentioned - like a dog when you say walkie, walkie! But we aren’t dogs or frogs, we’re His children.  And He wants a free decision from His own child, despite spit on our face, to acknowledge that God is bigger than spit, longer loving, kind when they’re not, more patient.  God waits us out through it all (and we’ve put God through some things) God wonders if we will be like Him, a suffering servant, if we’ll be strong in Him.  It doesn’t sound pretty, but that is what love looks like.  Play or stray God’s gotcha back!  Can God trust you with trouble?

RCALM.  RCALM is an acronym for the 4 religions that have maintained an active discussion on the bishop level about what is required to be saved.  Roman Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran and now Methodist just 4 months ago.  We all agree now that a person is saved by faith alone, which issues forth in good works.  Protestant denominations including the ones named and Baptists believed after Martin Luther that by faith in Jesus alone a person was saved, by no other name.  Roman Catholics believed that too but added “and issues forth in works” from the second reading today from the book of James.  “Faith without works is dead.”  Thankfully, our bishops have stayed on track in working toward Christian unity.  Now, Roman Catholics, Anglicans, Lutherans and Methodists agree.  (RCALM) You are saved by faith alone which issues forth in works.  Our Baptist sisters and brothers live this but haven’t put it in their formal identity statement yet.  One day, RCALMB!

The question we answer every day.  Jesus says, “Who do the people say that I am?”

We answer that question every day.  Is Jesus Lord?  Lord of my mouth?  My schedule?  My money?  My thoughts?  Or am I the Lord of them?  Who do the St. Anthony parishioners and their guests say that I am?  We answer the question.

We say you care about evacuees, people with no food, rent, electric.  We say you would go to the prison, the hospital, the soup kitchen and we are following you Lord, not ourselves.  We find ourselves like you – the suffering servant.  May we share in your glory.  We take on the financial burdens of our Diocese when we have our own.  We plant and feed, we entertain and reveal dignity and oneness.  We follow you Lord.

When you come again, you will recognize us a little more each day, suffering,

in solidarity, disciplined, working hard, trying to love, understand and provide. 

We hope to look like you, St. Anthony’s, a sign of the Kingdom.  Never too stuffy to welcome a fellow sinner to the table.