Weekly Sermon

We apologize for the lack of updates these past few weeks (Farmer Wilson has been VERY busy) !
Please catch the February 21rst & 28th sermons in the archived section.

“Judgmental”
1 Corinthians 10:1-13
Luke 13:1-9
March 07, 2010
3rd Sunday in Lent
By Rev. Mark E. Zender

Father may the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable to you O’ Lord our Rock and our Redeemer…This Sunday’s gospel presents us with a challenge, I think. What I mean by that is, today’s Gospel gives sort of an unsettling, uncomfortable, judgmental Jesus. I say challenging because we tend to romanticize, rework Jesus into who we want him to be… more like a therapist rather than a Savior. Good friend, our buddy, always affirming never denouncing, always blessing never criticizing. That’s sort of the Jesus even the contemporary Church portrays, meek and mild, gentle, we’re comfortable with that.

This story today we also read about this fellow Pontius Pilate. Luke is the only Gospel that mentions him prior to what we hear of him at the crucifixion. Pilate becomes Jesus’ chief judge and executioner. But today we hear about how he ordered the execution or slaughter of these Galileans. That’s the backdrop to the disciples question to Jesus today. Did you hear about what Pilate did to those people up there at the temple? What they’re wondering is, what did they do to merit the wrath of Pontius Pilate? Malcontents? Plotting against the state, the powers that be? What did they do, what sin did they commit?

What’s interesting to me about this story? Rather than being drawn into the drama, this discussion of who’s at fault. Jesus instead puts this whole question of quilt and judgment right back in their laps. “I tell you“, he says; “unless you repent you too shall be judged”. God’s wrath not Pilates is what you have to look forward to, is basically what he says… I tell you what, Jesus’ words today sound more like what we heard John the Baptist preach and scream like crazy a few weeks back. Repent! Get right with God! You’re all a bunch of snakes! Now, I’d much rather preach this Sunday on a much more pleasant subject. Little bit of spirituality, prayer or disciplines for Lent, good works. These words today from Jesus though don’t allow me to do that.

Jesus today wants to talk to the disciples and I think maybe to us about judgment. They want to talk about Pilate’s judgment on those poor Galileans, Jesus wants to talk about God’s judgment on them…on us. You know, many folks come to church most Sundays if they bother to come at all. Many come initially with a lot of judgments of their own. Does this church stuff make sense? Do I have room in my life to live these teachings of Christ, or is it to inconvenient. We come here wanting in a way to judge Jesus. To see if religion’s practical or relevant? Does it answer the deep questions about life that I seek? Today though notice how Jesus puts those questions right back on our laps. He turns it right around this day and questions us. Repent, let go of all you cling to, cling only to God… This story, we all know ends on Good Friday. Pontius Pilate we’ll read thought he was judging Jesus too. He thought he held all the cards, didn’t he? Before the story ends though, on the cross, we find out who really judges who, don’t we? In today’s Scripture Jesus speaks of repentance, our guilt before the judgment of God. We try like the disciples to ask about why all the suffering, why oh why all the injustice in the world! Why’s everybody else walking down the wrong path? And He turns the conversation, turns the questioning right back at us. Speaks about our own need to turn around, our own need to repent. How appropriate for this third week of Lent is that? GOD BLESS & AMEN