St.Mary's Episcopal Church, Barnstable, MA

The Sixth Sunday after Pentecost
July 12, 2009
Amos 7:7-15
Mark 6:14-29

Almighty God, the breeze of your love and grace is ever blowing; may we set our sails to capture that breeze, and may it inspire these words and those who hear them. Amen

Misery loves company, so they say, and in this day of electronic communications it’s not hard to find that company. So it was this week as some of my colleagues and I contemplated the week’s lectionary texts and commiserated about them on Facebook. Just what do you do with John the Baptist’s head on a platter? Lots of jokes were circulating; unfortunately, none of them worth repeating.

In spite of all our attempts at humor, this is one of those so-called “texts of terror” that makes you ask yourself, “Where is the good news in that?” As a preacher, it’s tempting to skip such texts; in fact, many of my colleagues are doing just that, preferring to focus on Amos from the OT reading we heard, or on David dancing before the ark of the covenant in the alternate OT reading, or on the epistle. But as the week went by I found myself being drawn back to the gospel and wondering why Mark told this story here and where, indeed, the good news could be found.

And as the week wore on, I began to see that the story of John’s beheading, grizzly and gory as it is, points to a very powerful message. And if you place this story in juxtaposition to that of the prophet Amos, you can find essential threads woven through, threads about what it means to speak the truth to power. In those thread, in the warp and the woof of the tapestry they form, you can also find the good news of Jesus.

In a sense, the reading from Amos sets the stage for our gospel. Living in the 8th century BCE, Amos was not a professional prophet (yes, there were some who were!) but rather, as he points out, a herdsman and a dresser of sycamore trees—in other words, an ordinary person who lived off the land, tended his herds and cared for his family. But Amos was also called by God, and filled with God’s words—words that set him afire like a live coal dropped into straw—words that formed a warning to the people of Israel and to their king Jeroboam, a warning to get right in their relationship with God.

In this portion of his prophecy Amos speaks of a vision in which God shows him a plumb line. In this day of sophisticated tools we don’t see plumb lines too much, but they are still useful—a weight on the end of a length of string that when allowed to hang freely provides a reference point, using the pull of gravity to measure whether something is straight and upright. In its simplicity the plumb line is a wonderful metaphor for measuring our relationship with God—is it straight and true, in line with what God calls us to?

In Amos’ vision, the plumb line is measuring against a wall already in place—the covenant that God has with the people of Israel—but that wall is crumbling. For Amos that can only mean one thing: In God’s view, that relationship is out of whack, it’s askew, and God has sent Amos with warnings about what will happen if the people don’t rectify things, make things straight with God once more. Amos speaks this truth in the king’s court, and not surprisingly, the message is not well received. In fact, when Amos speaks this truth to those in power, he is sent packing.

For John the Baptizer, the consequences of speaking the truth to power are even more dire. John’s message is one of repentance. Be prepared, he cries out, turn back to God, for the kingdom of God is at hand. And how has this gotten him into hot water? He has vocally criticized Herod for marrying his brother’s wife, for committing adultery, and that did not sit well. Herod, however, is intrigued by John, and although John was imprisoned, Herod has thus far spared his life. But when the opportunity arises, Herodias, his wife, also censured by John for adultery and perhaps worried about her position of power, takes advantage of the situation to ensure that John is silenced forever. Speaking the truth to power, it seems, can be fatal.

The Jewish scholar and rabbi, Abraham Heschel, writes that the task of the prophet is to remind the ruler that “his sovereignty was not unlimited, that over the king’s mishpat [justice] stood the mishpat [justice] of the Lord.” We see that in Amos, who warns King Jeroboam about God’s justice, and we see it again in John the Baptizer’s rebuke of Herod. Get your relationships right with God, they cry out, prepare yourself for God’s kingdom where God’s justice will prevail.

This message, of course, is most fully embodied in Jesus. In the context of the stories of Amos and John the Baptist, and especially in the shadow of John’s death, we come to understand how it was that Jesus was crucified. Jesus dares to speak the truth to those in power, dares to confront the earthly powers and just as John’s confrontation with the earthly powers led to his death, so too will Jesus have to pay the consequences for speaking the truth.

As hard as that is to take in, that’s also where we come to the good news in this story. The good news is that in Jesus’ death, those earthly powers don’t have the last word. Jesus’ resurrection breaks those powers once and for all, breaks their hold over humanity and makes real the promise of God’s justice, God’s love, God’s redemptive power and grace, and that is good news indeed.

That might be enough, but there is still another message for us in the stories of Amos and John the Baptist. Not only do these stories prepare us for what will happen to Jesus, they also remind us that we, too, are called to speak the truth to the powers of the world, powers that would twist it and distort it and misuse it. We are called to bring justice and peace and mercy and love into the world as Christ’s witnesses, indeed as Christ’s body, using Christ as our plumb line.

Although it is tempting to think that our modern day prophets—people like Martin Luther King and Oscar Romero and Desmond Tutu and Jonathan Daniels and Dorothy Day and Mother Teresa and Barbara Harris—might take care of this for us, the truth is that we cannot leave it to the. The truth is that each and every one of us is called to speak out, to speak the truth of Jesus Christ, to proclaim his gospel message of hope and justice and love. There is no voice too small to spread the good news of Christ and while most of us aren’t likely to have our head literally handed to us on a platter, there is nonetheless no price too large to pay for doing speaking the gospel truth.

For to be a Christian is walk in the footsteps of Jesus, speaking the truth to those in power, and trusting in God’s power of creative transformation. To be a Christian is to pray for peace, to seek justice, to act against oppressive people and systems, knowing that the power of God, the power of Jesus Christ is far greater that the power and principalities of the world.

The prophet Amos summed it up this way, “Let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream. (Amos 5:24)

Let me add: and let it begin with us.

Amen

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Sermons at Saint Mary's The Sixth Sunday after Pentecost July 12, 2009 Amos 7:7-15 Mark 6:14-29 Almighty God, the breeze of your love and grace is ever blowing; may we set our sails to capture that breeze, and may it inspire these words and those who hear them. Amen Misery loves company, so they say, and in this day of electronic communications it’s not hard to find that company. So it was this week as some of my colleagues and I contemplated the week’s lectionary texts and commiserated about them on Facebook. Just what do you do with John the Baptist’s head on a platter? Lots of jokes were circulating; unfortunately, none of them worth repeating. In spite of all our attempts at humor, this is one of those so-called “texts of terror” that makes you ask yourself, “Where is the good news in that?” As a preacher, it’s tempting to skip such texts; in fact, many of my colleagues are doing just that, preferring to focus on Amos from the OT reading we heard, or on David dancing before the ark of the covenant in the alternate OT reading, or on the epistle. But as the week went by I found myself being drawn back to the gospel and wondering why Mark told this story here and where, indeed, the good news could be found. And as the week wore on, I began to see that the story of John’s beheading, grizzly and gory as it is, points to a very powerful message. And if you place this story in juxtaposition to that of the prophet Amos, you can find essential threads woven through, threads about what it means to speak the truth to power. In those thread, in the warp and the woof of the tapestry they form, you can also find the good news of Jesus. In a sense, the reading from Amos sets the stage for our gospel. Living in the 8th century BCE, Amos was not a professional prophet (yes, there were some who were!) but rather, as he points out, a herdsman and a dresser of sycamore trees—in other words, an ordinary person who lived off the land, tended his herds and cared for his family. But Amos was also called by God, and filled with God’s words—words that set him afire like a live coal dropped into straw—words that formed a warning to the people of Israel and to their king Jeroboam, a warning to get right in their relationship with God. In this portion of his prophecy Amos speaks of a vision in which God shows him a plumb line. In this day of sophisticated tools we don’t see plumb lines too much, but they are still useful—a weight on the end of a length of string that when allowed to hang freely provides a reference point, using the pull of gravity to measure whether something is straight and upright. In its simplicity the plumb line is a wonderful metaphor for measuring our relationship with God—is it straight and true, in line with what God calls us to? In Amos’ vision, the plumb line is measuring against a wall already in place—the covenant that God has with the people of Israel—but that wall is crumbling. For Amos that can only mean one thing: In God’s view, that relationship is out of whack, it’s askew, and God has sent Amos with warnings about what will happen if the people don’t rectify things, make things straight with God once more. Amos speaks this truth in the king’s court, and not surprisingly, the message is not well received. In fact, when Amos speaks this truth to those in power, he is sent packing. For John the Baptizer, the consequences of speaking the truth to power are even more dire. John’s message is one of repentance. Be prepared, he cries out, turn back to God, for the kingdom of God is at hand. And how has this gotten him into hot water? He has vocally criticized Herod for marrying his brother’s wife, for committing adultery, and that did not sit well. Herod, however, is intrigued by John, and although John was imprisoned, Herod has thus far spared his life. But when the opportunity arises, Herodias, his wife, also censured by John for adultery and perhaps worried about her position of power, takes advantage of the situation to ensure that John is silenced forever. Speaking the truth to power, it seems, can be fatal. The Jewish scholar and rabbi, Abraham Heschel, writes that the task of the prophet is to remind the ruler that “his sovereignty was not unlimited, that over the king’s mishpat [justice] stood the mishpat [justice] of the Lord.” We see that in Amos, who warns King Jeroboam about God’s justice, and we see it again in John the Baptizer’s rebuke of Herod. Get your relationships right with God, they cry out, prepare yourself for God’s kingdom where God’s justice will prevail. This message, of course, is most fully embodied in Jesus. In the context of the stories of Amos and John the Baptist, and especially in the shadow of John’s death, we come to understand how it was that Jesus was crucified. Jesus dares to speak the truth to those in power, dares to confront the earthly powers and just as John’s confrontation with the earthly powers led to his death, so too will Jesus have to pay the consequences for speaking the truth. As hard as that is to take in, that’s also where we come to the good news in this story. The good news is that in Jesus’ death, those earthly powers don’t have the last word. Jesus’ resurrection breaks those powers once and for all, breaks their hold over humanity and makes real the promise of God’s justice, God’s love, God’s redemptive power and grace, and that is good news indeed. That might be enough, but there is still another message for us in the stories of Amos and John the Baptist. Not only do these stories prepare us for what will happen to Jesus, they also remind us that we, too, are called to speak the truth to the powers of the world, powers that would twist it and distort it and misuse it. We are called to bring justice and peace and mercy and love into the world as Christ’s witnesses, indeed as Christ’s body, using Christ as our plumb line. Although it is tempting to think that our modern day prophets—people like Martin Luther King and Oscar Romero and Desmond Tutu and Jonathan Daniels and Dorothy Day and Mother Teresa and Barbara Harris—might take care of this for us, the truth is that we cannot leave it to the. The truth is that each and every one of us is called to speak out, to speak the truth of Jesus Christ, to proclaim his gospel message of hope and justice and love. There is no voice too small to spread the good news of Christ and while most of us aren’t likely to have our head literally handed to us on a platter, there is nonetheless no price too large to pay for doing speaking the gospel truth. For to be a Christian is walk in the footsteps of Jesus, speaking the truth to those in power, and trusting in God’s power of creative transformation. To be a Christian is to pray for peace, to seek justice, to act against oppressive people and systems, knowing that the power of God, the power of Jesus Christ is far greater that the power and principalities of the world. The prophet Amos summed it up this way, “Let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream. (Amos 5:24) Let me add: and let it begin with us. Amen top \| home \| site index