Sunday, August 29, 1999

If You Are Going to Follow Jesus, You Must Confront the Pharaoh!
The Rev. Linda Carder

Exodus 3: 1-15Romans 12:9-21Matthew 16:21-28

I grew up as a coal miner’s daughter in the hills of West Virginia. The coal mining town itself was not a particularly great place for children to play. But my uncle lived a few miles away, on small farm of about 12 to 15 acres. It was a special treat for me to go there and spend a few days. I loved it there and visited often. It was one of those places that bordered on other such farms and children were allowed to wander from farm to farm. A spring poked its way out of the side of the hill, and water meandered its way through the fields creating a bubbling stream. At one point the stream fell off the side of the hill and splashed down to form a small swimming hole.

Wild grapevines wound themselves securely into the tall trees. We could swing on them from one hill to the other over the stream, playing Tarzan and making wild yells. There were pastures to explore, wheat and hay fields galore, a few gentle cows and a summit which allowed a glorious view of the immediate surroundings. Mr. McAlaster had an inviting apple orchard, which seemed to call to us. As we were high up in the trees picking apples, the screen door on the house far below would make a loud slam. We were convinced it was a gun shot, and would run like mad for home.

On days when my cousins were otherwise occupied I had that glorious place to myself. I would run barefoot through the wheat fields or lie on the grass and silently watch the clouds go by. This was for me a sacred space. Holy ground. I did not know it then, but I found God there. Many years later and even today when I am asked to describe my spiritual place, or my centering place, or a place where I felt close to God, I immediately think of that place. It was and is my retreat place, my mountain top experience and my wilderness. I still go therein my mind.

Midian must have been such a place for Moses. While in Midian, he had married and he was now a young father. Moses’s father in law was a priest who also owned a large flock of sheep. Moses days were spent in a very pastoral setting. After his days in Egypt and the ways he and the other Israelites were treated there, this must have been a very welcome change and refuge. Now he was in a safe and affirming place. Then he finds himself shoeless, on holy ground where miracles happen, where one can experience a vision of the amazing God who will not reveal a name except literally "I will be who I will be." Why would he want to leave this place? Why would he want to go? Why would he want to face the Pharaoh again?

And then there is Peter. Peter, who finally got it right for once. He had just identified Jesus as the Messiah or the Christ. Jesus had congratulated him on his insight and told Peter that he had been blessed by divine truth. He was also told that he was a rock, the foundation of future ministry. What an affirmation! What a mountaintop experience this must have been for Peter. He too must have felt himself to be on Holy Ground. And since contemporary Jewish thought found no reference to a suffering messiah, Jesus words that he must suffer and die made no sense to Peter. These must have been jarring words to one so newly on holy ground, to one who surely must have wanted to revel in the moment for at least a little while. Surely he would not want to leave that comfortable and comforting place either.

So is it any wonder that Moses, Peter, Linda and maybe you would want to stay in such a place, never grow up to confront the harshness of the powers and principalities around us. O, do let us go barefoot, naïve and innocent in the sacred fields forever! Let us be enchanted by a vision of holiness rather than be sent to confront the ruler of the empire. Whether the words are "go" or "follow" the message is that shoes must be put back on the feet, backs must be turned on the warm fuzzies that feel so good, and one must face directly into what one is most afraid of.

Moses is afraid of the Pharaoh and Peter is afraid that Jesus might really die. That is the cross that must be picked up. Over the years the traditional description of the cross is whatever life gives us, be it pain, illness, or a particular struggle. To that has been added the word obedient so that we are led to believe that if one who seems to be speaking for God tells us that we must put up with something, then we must bear that cross. The scriptures just do not support that. Rather these scriptures help us understand that the protagonists in these stories are being helped to respond to their true inner calling. They, as well as you and I are always called to be all that we can be and to be all that God has called us to be. The cross then is whatever has kept us from following that call.

We hear that same story again and again in the Bible. God calls and the one being named has some excuse for not responding. Moses, in the verses following the ones we heard today, replies that he certainly cannot do what God wants him to do because he is not a good speaker. Jonah could not go to Ninevah because he did not like those people. Elijah did not want to leave the still small voice and face Ahab and Jezebel again. Jeremiah was sure he would get off the hook because of his youth. And Peter was afraid of Jesus death. None of them nor none of us wants to face the Pharaoh, and we can find a whole list of reasons or fears to support our claim that we should not even be asked to go.

But you see, we must go, we must follow, if for no other reason than the number of times Jesus told us to do so. In the Gospels, there are only 8 or 9 statements that we must be saved. But in those same Gospels, Jesus says 87 times that we are to follow him.

So then we have to ask who is this Jesus that we are to follow? The Jesus Seminars have been helpful in that understanding recently. They have made it clear that everyone could agree that Jesus was deeply and in his very being, spiritual. He was also thoroughly and ultimately compassionate and inclusive in his relationships. He placed justice above legalism. And he said again and again, follow me!

This is what we need to tell our children when they ask us what we believe. This is what we need to tell newcomers to the UCC. Since we are not a creedal church and since we have such a wide range of theology in our denomination, it is sometimes hard to know what to tell people. But every UCC church and member will tell you it is about loving and following Jesus.

Brian Sircchio is a musician and popular leader of large UCC youth events. He often tells the following story of one of his experiences of working with teenagers: He was performing for a group of youth in a room about the size of our sanctuary. The place was packed with youth. Brian noticed that over against the wall, sitting not to far from him was a young man in a black leather jacket, with long hair and earrings every place but the ears. But the most disturbing thing was that the young man seemed to be sitting alone. Others seemed to move away from him. Brian continued the program sharing his particular version of the Jesus story through music and words. A few weeks later he got a letter from the young man. The letter said something like: "I don’t know if you remember me. I attended your concert. I was the one…and he described himself. What you said about Jesus really touched me. I had to do something. I heard you say how Jesus welcomed everybody and how he wanted us to follow him. So I went to school the next week and I found this table over in the corner where nobody ever sat. I put a big sign on the table that said, "Everyone is welcome here!" I sat there alone at lunchtime every day for several days. Then this kid that nobody likes came and sat with me. He asked if it really was okay if he sat there. I told him it was. He wanted to know why I was doing this. I told him what you had told us about Jesus. He started coming every day. Then slowly, others started joining us. Later on, even some of the Jocks and the really brainy kids came. We had to add tables. I just thought you would like to know this." And he signed his name.

Can you imagine the Pharaohs of the school system and of the youth culture that this young man had to face to do this? He certainly did not stay at that comforting concert either.

Yes, I remember those hills and that farm well. But I could not stay there. Neither did my spirituality stay there. It has grown and been with me all the way. Because you see, confronting the Pharaoh and picking up the cross always has a spiritual dimension.

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