Sermons

Sun, Jan 27, 2019

The Spirit of the Lord is upon me...?

Series:Sermons

It seems like, almost every time that there’s a natural disaster…

somewhere in the world…

someone, usually a religious leader, will pop up…

and publicly attribute the devastation to God’s punishment.

In September, Malaysia’s Deputy Prime Minister suggested that the Sulawesi earthquake and tsunami in Indonesia––

in which more than two thousand people died––

was God’s punishment for the Gay and Lesbian community and its activities.

In August, the massive bushfires in California…

in which nearly two million acres were destroyed, were—

according to one religious leader––

the result of California being so liberal;

while another claimed it was for America’s sin.

Also in August…

a Pentecostal pastor in India blamed the Kerala floods—

in which about five hundred died…

and from which around one million had to be evacuated––

on the city’s sins.

And that’s just in the last six months!

Indeed, it seems that every major hurricane to strike the United States––

be it Harvey, Sandy, or Katrina–– 

is attributed to divine wrath, usually aimed at the LGBTI community.

Of course, we expect that sort of thing in a place like America…

where… 

a recent poll suggests… 

some forty-four percent of Americans think that natural disasters “are or could be a sign from the Almighty”.

But, sadly, that sort of attribution even happens here––

although not as frequently.

There was the Pentecostal minister in Melbourne who claimed that the devastating bushfires of Black Saturday…

a decade ago…

were God punishing the people of Victoria for their “unrighteous, ungodly…practices”…

specifically, their relaxation of abortion laws.

And he popped up again, a couple of years later, to assert that…

the massive floods in Queensland…

were the result of Australians turning “our backs on God and…His conditional protection”

 

Now, when I hear those sorts of “explanations”, I get frustrated…

even angry.

Leaving aside just how incredibly insensitive such pronouncements are…

I get angry because of the way that these ignorant buffoons portray God.

I find it offensive––

no, in fact, blasphemous–– 

to suggest that God is in the habit of unleashing untold suffering and destruction…

and striking down hundreds, if not thousands of people…

in order to make a point.

I mean, what sort of a God would do that?

Surely, that means that we would be dealing with a God who is completely callous and capricious…

stern and uncaring…

fickle, and fit only to be feared.

Such a God would best be described as a spiteful control-freak…

and a sadistic puppet-master–– 

pulling the strings of our world and our lives to satisfy His whim or His pleasure…

or to mete out some puerile punishment;

a God who would be guilty of the worst form of genocide;

a God who is nothing short of a monster.

But, if we follow their line of reasoning…

then, surely, that’s what we’re left with.

Mind you… 

if we turn to parts of the Old Testament, then that’s also the sort of picture that we get––

an image of a God, who spitefully wipes out millions with a flood…

or who sends plagues upon innocent children…

or who demands that God’s people slaughter their enemies’ wives and children following battle.

Is it any wonder, then, that many educated and intelligent people are atheists?

And, to be honest, I don’t blame them.

I cannotbelieve in––

let alone respect or reverence––

a God like that.

 

Over and against all of that… 

however…

we have the image of God revealed by–– 

and reflected in–– 

the person of Jesus Christ.

And I think that this morning’s reading from Luke’s Gospel gives us a good insight into the nature of God… 

and of God’s dealings with humankind:

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,

because he has anointed me

to bring good news to the poor.

He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives

and recovery of sight to the blind,

to let the oppressed go free, 

to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.”

What I think this shows us about God is––

first and foremost––

that God is One who cares deeply about the plight of the most disadvantaged.

God is One who feels compassion for those who are poor––

who lack the basic necessities of life…

who lack support structures…

and who are unable to feed themselves and their families.

God is One who feels compassion for those who are crippled by debts that they cannot repay.

God is One who feels compassion for those who struggle with disabilities…

which hinder their quality of life…

their ability to support themselves…

and their sense of value and worth.

God is One who feels compassion for those who are excluded, exploited, or enslaved…

pushed to the margins of human society…

and treated as if they possessed no worth.

God is One who feels compassion for those who are powerless and oppressed;

and who doesn’t care who they are…

where they come from…

how they got here…

or what they believe.

What we see here is a deeply compassionate God…

and a God who desperately yearns for change.

This is the God that Jesus claims to incarnate.

 

More than that, within the structure of Luke’s Gospel…

this story…

this claim by Jesus as to what the Spirit was inspiring him to do…

serves a programmatic function.

Jesus’ preaching and acts of ministry throughout the rest of Luke’s Gospel…

enflesh and embody the claims that he makes in our reading.

These claims shape Jesus’ preaching in the Sermon on the Plain––

especially Luke’s version of the “Beatitudes”;

and it informs his frequent denunciation of the rich and powerful and their treatment of the poor.

In fulfilment of these claims, Luke’s Jesus touches ‘lepers’…

liberates the ‘possessed’;

and heals the blind, the lame, and the sick.

In fulfilment of these claims, Luke’s Jesus includes the excluded––

both those who were regarded as ritually impure…

as well as those who carried out despised occupations.

What we do not find Jesus doing––

in response to the inspiration of God’s Spirit––

is the sorts of things that so many modern Christians focus upon and obsess about.

We don’t find Jesus condemning people for the diversity of their God-given sexuality…

or how they express it.

We don’t find Jesus criticising ordinary people for reproductive choices.

We don’t find Jesus obsessively preaching at people that they need to ‘believe in’ Him…

in order to be ‘saved’ and to avoid going to Hell.

Reversing the condition of the poor and the destitute…

healing the sick and hurting…

including the excluded…

liberating the oppressed––

these are the marks of Jesus’ incarnational mission;

these are what demonstrate that God is with him…

and God is within him;

these, our author suggests, are the characteristics and concerns of God.

 

And, if that’s true…

then, as followers of Jesus––

as those called to continue his ministry…

and, in our own way, to incarnate God––

these are to be our characteristics and concerns as well.

And it’s only when we use our God-given abilities and resources… 

to meet the needs of those who cry out for hope and healing––

for liberation and inclusion––

and offer them genuine good news…

that we, too, can claim:

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon us…”

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