SERMON

+ Lectionary 10/Proper 5 C

TEXT: Luke 7:11-17

DATE: June 9, 2013

St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, Dallas

 

                                    You realize, I hope,

                                    that in the culture and time of Jesus,

                                    the death of this man

                                    would render his mother, the widow,

                                    to be practically worthless.

 

She would be demoted to a life of poverty

and complete dependence

on relatives, benevolent friends,

or the alms she could collect

and the food she could glean on her own.

 

                                    That’s why what Jesus saw was so tragic.

                                    Not that the death of someone

                                    is ever an easy thing to take,

                                    but that Jesus was very aware

                                    that the death of this man

                                    meant a virtual death of his widowed mother, too.

 

So, Jesus has compassion for her –

that is, he “suffers with” her –

and because he has the power to do so,

he touches the bier,

speaks a word of life to the dead man and raises him,

and gives him back to his mother,

restoring them both back to their community.

 

                                    And that, at least in part,

                                    is what this story is about:

                                    Jesus has compassion,

                                    and by his powerful touch and word

                                    gives life

                                    and gives community

                                    to the dead man and his widowed mother.

 

And when you put it that way,

it sounds very much

like what Jesus does for us in Holy Baptism, doesn’t it?

He has compassion,

and by his powerful touch and word,

gives life

and gives community to us.

 

                                    He wouldn’t need to welcome us so graciously

                                    as he does in baptism.

                                    He could place very strict guidelines, for example,

                                    or very restrictive requirements on us

                                    in order to become members of the church.

 

But Jesus welcomes us with open arms

as a merciful gesture of compassion.

He looks on our human fallenness and sin,

our ways of death and separation from God,

and has compassion on us –

he suffers with us.

And he welcomes us to the font.

 

                                    And there, with a watery touch and a word of power,

                                    Jesus gives us new life –

                                    gives us a new birth –

                                    raises us from the death and fallenness of sin –

                                    through his suffering for us.

                                    By his own death and resurrection,

                                    he gives us the gift of eternal life.

 

And he brings us into a community –

a community of believers across time and space

called the saints of God – the church –

a community which surrounds us and welcomes us,

sustains us and rejoices with us

just like the community did for the widow and her son.

 

                                    Jesus makes us members of his own body –

                                    a new community called the church –

                                    a community of life.

 

In baptism,

Jesus, in essence,

turns us into the man and the widow of this story.

 

                                    But the story doesn’t end there, does it?

                                    What comes next is the telling.

 

Neither does baptism end

with the watery touch and powerful word at the font.

Life in the covenant of baptism continues.

And what comes next is the telling.

 

                                    When you get to witness something so miraculous

                                    as compassionate Jesus

                                    giving life and a place in community

                                    to those who were dead –

                                    dead to sin, dead to the community, dead to the world –

                                    there are certain responses that are quite natural.

                                    First, fear at the gravity of what we’ve just seen,

                                    then, glorifying God for the great gift Jesus gives,

                                    and finally, spreading the word to others

                                    so they can come to know of the miracle, too.

 

And that’s just what happened there at the town gate.

That’s just what the crowd did in the story

when they saw the man get up

and he and the widow were restored to the community.

Fear seized them and they glorified God.

Then they told everyone,

and the word spread throughout the region.

 

                                    And that is just how it is

                                    for life in the covenant of baptism, too.

                                    We live among God’s faithful people

                                    hear the Word of God

                                    and share in the sacramental supper

                                    in holy worship of God,

                                    in fear of the Lord,

                                    and glorifying God for such gifts.

 

And then we go and tell others

because anything this good has to be shared!

We go in peace to proclaim the good news,

serve the Lord,          

welcome the stranger.

 

                                    It’s just a natural response that,

                                    when we experience something so awesome

                                    as the miracle of baptism –

                                    as Jesus giving life and community to us –

                                    we would proclaim that good news

                                    in our own words and deeds,

                                    serving those we meet

                                    and working for the ways of Jesus’ reign

                                    like justice and peace.

                                    These are the actions that mark the baptismal life.

 

But the story doesn’t even end there for us.

Because in Baptism,

Jesus also calls us to follow him,

to be his disciples,

and he empowers us with his own Spirit

to be his body alive in the world today.

 

                                    Which means, of course, that the compassion,

                                    the touch and word of power,

                                    the giving of life and the wholeness of the community

                                    that Jesus gives in this gospel story

                                    are now our mission and task.

 

Jesus not only makes us

to be like the man and the widow in the story,

he also makes and empowers us

to be like him.

 

                                    Your proclamation of God’s good news,

                                    your sharing the story,

                                    your welcoming the stranger,

                                    your declaration of forgiveness and hope,

                                    your gentle touch of love and care,

                                    your service to those in need,

                                    your compassion for those outside the community –

                                    all these are the actions of Jesus

                                    to bring life and community

                                    to our own time and place, here and now.

                                    Done by your hands.

 

It’s miraculous good news,

and an amazing story to tell.

Because it’s a story, a calling, and a lifestyle

of compassion

and community

and life.