Sermon - The Second Sunday After Trinity

Readings

1 Samuel 17:32-49

Psalm 9:9-20

2 Corinthians 6:1-13

Mark 4:35-41

This week has been a really strange one, I am not sure whether it is due to the weather, or the fact that my television only appears to play football. The strangeness was compounded when I sat down to have a look at the Gospel reading for today, and had that distinct feeling of déjà vu.

I am absolutely certain that we had this reading (Jesus calming the storm and berating his disciples) only a few weeks ago. However the way my life appears to be whizzing by at the moment, it could have been 3 years ago.

So off I went to try to find the link between the readings, looking for a theme that might help us to understand a little more. This is where it all got a bit complicated.

Not to be beaten, I had a look at the Old Testament lesson. Here we have the irrepressible young David, begging Saul for the opportunity to go out and fight the Philistine Goliath. We all know that particular story. Then the New Testament reading from the second letter of Paul to the Corinthians is a complex and intense piece of communication that we are dropped into. It’s a bit like eavesdropping on the conversation rather than actually being involved in it. We will return to this later.

And the Psalm, well what can I say! Written by David, it could have possibly been in the form of an acrostic poem, it tells of the difficulty in walking the straight and narrow, and the awesome power of God, how we should trust and…..have faith! Yes, it’s us again – We of little faith.

Here’s a joke;

One summer, a drought threatened the crop in a small villiage. On a hot and dry Sunday, the village Vicar told his congregation, "There isn't anything that will save us except to pray for rain. Go home, pray, believe, and come back next Sunday ready to thank God for sending rain."

The people did as they were told and returned to church the following Sunday. But as soon as the parson saw them, he was furious.

"We can't worship today. You do not yet believe," he said.

"But," they protested, "we prayed, and we believe."

"Believe?" he responded. "Then where are your umbrellas?"

Faith, you see, is something completely different to religion, it rises up and becomes something we are. We can be identified by our faith, it affects our actions, our words, and how we spend our lives, even how we spend our money. Religion, at best, can only be the structure that helps us to worship – At worst; it can be the thing that takes us away from faith. We have to be really careful in our churches.

Looking again at the letter of Paul to the Church in Corinth, we can see that there are serious problems in his relationships with the Christians at Corinth. It is plain to see that in the way the passage ends “We (presumably the royal we) have spoken to you frankly Corinthians, our heart is wide open to you. There is no restriction in our affection, but only in yours. In return I speak as to children – open wide your hearts also.”

Paul is urging them to change their attitude towards him and his associates. At an earlier stage in the relationship Paul went away very hurt and angry and then wrote a stinging (or at least, confronting) letter instead of making a promised visit which he was not prepared to face. He writes this letter in a slightly more relaxed mode, having heard from Titus that things had apparently settled down in Corinth. But the underlying issues are still close to the surface.

Our passage follows a whole raft of ideas in 2 Corinthians 5 in which Paul talks about becoming a new creation and exercising a ministry of reconciliation. Underneath these powerful affirmations is a statement Paul is making “our ministry is legitimate.” Whether Paul “the least of the apostles” is losing credibility, or whether others have gravitated towards Peter, it is uncertain. Here Paul is describing his ministry and the ministry of his associates;

He is saying that It may not look flash. It may be characterised by hardship, difficulty and failure. It may lack the impressiveness which others generate. But it is legitimate. More than that, rather than being deficient, it matches how Christ was and what Christ intends. As Christ faced suffering for the sake of the good news, this is the suffering Paul is facing.

People have been asking questions you see….Is Paul really a legitimate apostle? Or is he an impostor, an upstart? Those present at Antioch in the debate between Paul and Peter might have very harsh words to say about Paul, especially if they sided with the majority. (And we thought personality problems were characteristic only of the modern church?)

Paul really wants to hurry the change along in Corinth which Titus reports is underway. That means standing beside the Corinthians, urging them to go the rest of the journey. Paul wants to convert people at Corinth and their leaders to an understanding of ministry and spirituality which puts compassion and vulnerability at the forefront. He counters the boasting of those he, earlier in the chapter, calls 'false apostles', by some boasting of his own - and most of it is boasting of his vulnerability and service. Rather than shrinking back in inadequacy because he is cannot match these successful and obviously popular and influential 'apostles', Paul makes a virtue out of what people see as his weaknesses. He points to Christ's weakness and vulnerability as something which reflects the powerful powerlessness of God.

So what about our faith? Is it authentic? Does it show the genuine signs of being more than mere religion? How do we explain our faith to the world when people measure success by growing numbers, a healthy budget and the amount of noise made? How do we explain that faith?

I have thought a lot about this over the past few days, the question of “what are the hallmarks of an authentic faith?” How do I know that I am going in the right direction? How will I tell if I start to care more about religion than faith? Perhaps I already am?

Well, according to Paul, and heavily précising the last 2 chapters of his letter to the Corinthians, he thinks that an authentic faith is one that;

1. Is constantly creative – looking for new, fresh expressions of belief and faith. Trying to find more accurate and accessible ways of explaining the Good News of Christ to others.

2. Is the product of challenges – we may be challenged to explain and defend ourselves (thankfully not to endure beatings and imprisonment), but as Paul says “calamities, afflictions, hardships and sleepless nights”. Finally,

3. Is prepared to allow others to accept or reject freely, and to never restrict love and openness.

It is a tall order, but we must always be ready to ask ourselves to defend what we do as a church. Each action undertaken, each meeting recorded and each pound spent, is it in the name of religion or faith? Is it to build the kingdom or to build our illusions? Difficult questions for any church.

So there we have it. Faith beyond all things, Faith that is CREATIVE, CHALLENGING and FREE.

Much passes for faith. Much passes for Christianity. Much passes for spiritual success. Paul inspires us to keep returning to the way of compassion and vulnerability: Christ's - and also his own. The rest is idolatry.

I never liked that St. Paul much, he always gives me a headache, but in this case I think he is absolutely spot on. Now where did I put my umbrella?

“Have you no still no faith?” Jesus asks.