Here is the sermon from Wednesday evening’s Lenten service:
Luke 18:15-17
The thing I really like about being part of a tradition that practices infant baptism is that it conveys some important lessons about our relationship to God and God’s merciful salvation of our souls.
Babies are needy. They cannot take care of themselves. They cannot effectively communicate except for the most rudimentary cries. When our daughter was an infant, I was always mystified as to whether she was hungry or in pain, or needed her diaper changed. Babies certainly cannot do anything that would earn God’s love except exist, and they didn’t even do that on their own! They are the passive result of their parents’ actions! But think about that for a bit. Babies do nothing except exist, exhaust their parents, disrupt daily life, but we love them… Automatically. It is irrational. This gives us a hint about God because we are made in God’s image.
God loves us. God loves us like we love our children. Even when we have done nothing to deserve it. Irrationally. Divinely.
The fact is, we are all as helpless as babies to effect our own salvation. Just like babies we receive all we have from the hand of another.
It is all gift.
But because we, as human beings, CAN do a lot of things, we get ourselves convinced that all the things we can do matters to God. Now don’t get me wrong… I am quite convinced God delights in all the things we can do. I am quite convinced God rejoices when we use our intellect to solve problems, when we use our emotions to connect with others and when we maintain our bodies to be healthy and strong. I believe God is especially delighted when we use our creativity to make something beautiful or wonderful because then we are truly acting in the image of God the creator.
But just because God delights in those actions doesn’t mean God loves us more because of them.
The converse is true too. I am just as convinced that God mourns when we use our God given talents to take advantage of others, when we deliberately or thoughtlessly put someone down or make their life harder in order to make ours easier. I am sure God grieves when we are insensitive of the impact our actions have on others or when we are careless with another’s life or dignity. But I am also confident that there is nothing that separates us from the love of God in Christ Jesus, not even our own actions. There is nothing we can do to make God love us less.
In Luke 18, Jesus is telling stories again. He is addressing a group of folks who didn’t really think they had anything to gain from Jesus. They were pretty secure about their status with God and in society. He told a parable about a self-confident Pharisee and wretched tax collector. This story conveyed that their self-confidence would be their undoing, and those who were humble and knew their need for God would be OK. It was at that point Jesus turned to the people who were bringing their little ones to Jesus for a blessing. He wanted to make the point even stronger.
Luke writes:
People were bringing even infants to him that he might touch them; and when the disciples saw it, they sternly ordered them not to do it. But Jesus called for them and said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of God belongs. Truly I tell you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will never enter it.” (Luke 18:15-17, NRSV)
What does it mean to “receive the Kingdom as a little child”? Until I read Brennan Manning’s “A Ragamuffin Gospel “ I always thought it meant as innocently as a little child. Because they are innocent, they are trusting, and that too, is to be emulated. I had always been taught that. And I believed it until I had a child. Even as a two year old, our daughter could be quite the little manipulator. She was not innocent at all! But she WAS trusting. And that made her vulnerable. And THAT is closer to what Jesus was talking about.
But in the gospels, the stories are set next to each other for a reason. They provide commentary on each other. One of our strongest Lutheran Bible Study standards is this: Scripture Interprets Scripture. These people were feeling very self sufficient. So contrast them to little children who are incompetent at anything the Pharisees would value. What do these two stories say to each other? How does the one help us understand the other?
I like how Brennan Manning says it in the Ragamuffin Gospel:
“The kingdom belongs to people who aren’t trying to look good or impress anybody, even themselves. They are not plotting how they can call attention to themselves, worrying about how their actions will be interpreted or wondering if they will get gold stars for their behavior.” (pg 53)
And he goes on:
“It is important to remember the Jewish attitude toward children in first-century Palestine if we are to grasp the full force of Jesus’ teaching here. … In New Testament times the child was considered of no importance, meriting little attention or favor. … The child was regarded with scorn. For the disciple of Jesus, “becoming like a little child” means the willingness to accept oneself as being of little account and to be regarded as unimportant. The little child who is the image of the kingdom is a symbol of those who have the lowest places in society, the poor and the oppressed, the beggars, the prostitutes and tax collectors—the people whom Jesus often called the “little ones” or the “least.” Jesus’ concern was that these little ones should not be despised or treated as inferior (see Matthew 18:10). He was well aware of their feelings of shame and inferiority, and because of His compassion they were, in His eyes, of extraordinarily great value. As far as He was concerned, they had nothing to fear. The kingdom was theirs.”(Pg 55) You get more of the idea when you know that in Biblical Greek, the language of the gospels, the word for child and the word for slave are kindred words.
“Once and for all, Jesus deals the death blow to any distinction between the elite and the ordinary in the Christian community.” (Pg 56) Worldly importance doesn’t impress God. The life of a Christ follower isn’t about impressing God. It is about bearing the image of God, and receiving the love and grace of God with humility and hope.
But most of the Christian community doesn’t really do that very well. We stress and strain about our beliefs. We worry about not knowing enough, not measuring up, making it an intellectual exercise rather than a relational experience. He writes:
“This decided uneasiness with the ragamuffin gospel is not confined to one Christian tradition. In every denomination and nondenominational persuasion Christians are seeking to win God’s favor by plunging into more spiritual activities, multiplying altars and sacrifices, making charitable contributions, lengthening the time of formal prayer, and getting involved in more church-related organizations. There is need for careful discernment here. The evidence of earnestness, sincerity, and effort is considerable. The Christian’s lifestyle is pious, proper, and correct. What’s missing? He or she has not surrendered to the Christ of grace. The danger with our good works, spiritual investments, and all the rest of it is that we can construct a picture of ourselves in which we situate our self-worth. Complacency then replaces sheer delight in God’s unconditional love.” (Pg 58)
So tonight, I urge you, receive God’s love like a little child. Receive it openly, understanding you need it, confident that it is yours because God promises it so. Take a deep breath and let go of your striving. Take a deep breath and let go of your doubts. Breathe in, and let the love of God fill you. Breathe in, and let the love of God invigorate you. Breathe in, and let God’s love make you whole.
Please pray with me.
Holy God, give us a sense of your presence. Help us to receive your love as a little child, confident that you love us because you are loving. Help us to share your love with a childlike exuberance. Give us your peace and your life in all its fullness. Hear us as we pray. Amen.
blessings to you,
Pastor Karla
Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Manning, Brennan. “A Ragamuffin Gospel” Multnomah Books, Colorado Springs, CO, 1990, 2000, 2005.
Words To Live By 