One of the challenges I tried to address at the beginning of the sermon was how on-members or people who have no desire to be members anywhere should interface with the sermon. As I noted, I think the membership claims we have speak to how we are called to be disciples, which should speak to all of us who are seeking to follow Christ.
I learned a lot about mezuzahs in preparing this sermon, which was informative and enjoyable. I never quite got the "Hear and obey" section done, which is where the sermon started (note the title). I do not yet have a clear sense of how this series is doing and where it is going exactly!
“hear…And…” Deuteronomy 6: 1-9: SAPC, Denton; June 19, 2022; Church membership series; Richard B. Culp
Deuteronomy 6: 1-9 Now this is the commandment—the statutes and the ordinances—that the Lord your God charged me to teach you to observe in the land that you are about to cross into and occupy, so that you and your children and your children’s children may fear the Lord your God all the days of your life, and keep all his decrees and his commandments that I am commanding you, so that your days may be long. Hear therefore, O Israel, and observe them diligently, so that it may go well with you, and so that you may multiply greatly in a land flowing with milk and honey, as the Lord, the God of your ancestors, has promised you.
Hear, O Israel: The Lord is our God, the Lord alone. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might. Keep these words that I am commanding you today in your heart. Recite them to your children and talk about them when you are at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you rise. Bind them as a sign on your hand, fix them as an emblem on your forehead, and write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.
Introduction: We continue our preaching series, ‘I’m a member, now what?” in which we are reflecting on the different aspects of being a member.
I had someone ask me this week if they had to listen to the sermon, or since they were not a member of St. Andrew could they use the sermon time to check their email?
I think it was asked in jest? But, it’s a fair question.
so please note that everyone here in person or on the internet is invited to listen to the sermon.
When we speak about membership claims or expectations we have in the Presbyterian church, we are talking about membership in the church of Jesus Christ, what it means to be a disciple of Christ, and the claim that has on us.
so any and all of us who are learning and growing about disciples of Christ may find the sermon applicable to our lives, regardless of where we are a church member, or even we are a church member.
Or, you can check your email!
this week - we reflect on the importance of studying Scripture and the issues of Christian faith and life,
Move 1: We begin by noting the importance of connecting our faith with the world around us.
a. Our story from Deuteronomy this morning takes us back to the wilderness.
1. God has led the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt.
2. they have been wandering in the wilderness.
3. They have had moments of great unfaithfulness and they have had moments of clarity when they knew God was in their midst and they trusted completely in God.
4. Now, they are about to enter the Promised Land.
5. AS they engage in new ways of living, new opportunities, new understandings, how are they to remember who they are, whose they are, and how they are called to act?
6. like the ribbon you might tie around your finger to remind yourself of something important, the Israelites are told to take the foundational words of their faith and “Bind them as a sign on your hand, fix them as an emblem on your forehead, and write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.
7. God’s word will stand ever before them to remind them of their calling.
b. Today, as you enter the homes of some practicing Jews, you can see on their door a mezuzah case - typically, a leather case with a parchment inside it.
1. The word “mezuzah” actually means “doorpost”.
2. The parchment it holds has written on one side the words of Scripture: Hear, O Israel: The Lord is our God, the Lord alone. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might.
and, of course, as we hear those words, we automatically add Jesus’ addition to love our neighbors as ourselves
3. On the other side is the often the word Shaddai, one of God’s names in Hebrew, which is also an acronym in Hebrew for the phrase “Guardian of the doors of Israel”.
4. As one Jewish historian notes, “The purpose of the mezuzah is, of course, to help us maintain an awareness of God and of our purpose in the world, every time we enter or exit a room.” (http://www.letterstojosep.com/2014/12/26/on-the-doorposts-of-your-home-all-about-mezuzot/; blog Letters to Josep: Judaism as told to a Christian friend” December 26, 2014)
Move 2: I suspect most of us do not affix a mezuzah on our door entry, but as we are reminded, studying Scripture is a critical part of who we are disciples of Christ and members of the Presbyterian church.
a. As we study the biblical text, make it the lens through which we view the world.
1. Our Presbyterian heritage takes us back to the Reformation and its emphasis on people reading the Bible.
2. Bible was translated into the language the people spoke.
3. Scotland, the home of Presbyterianism, pushed education until every county in the country had a public school - why? Because the Bible was so important people needed to know how to read it.
4. as you may know, one of the things the Reformers did was clear out of sanctuaries things like statues, organs, and stained glass windows.
5. Stained glass windows were replaced with clear glass so that the light came in and people could read their Bibles!
b. No doubt, the world understands and approaches the Bible from a variety of vantage points.
1. We cannot solve the issue of how different traditions interpret the biblical texts, but we can make sure that we are studying God’s Word so we can see how God sends us into the world to act.
2. This morning as I was putting some finishing touches on this sermon, I received a text from a member in the church I served in OH.
his kids had gathered with him for Father’s day and were looking over old photos.
they sent me one - there I was staring in my robe after church, my arm around his daughter who was in first grade at the time. She was holding the New Adventure Bible the church had given her.
it went joined her collection of Bibles that began with the children’s Bible given to her at her baptism.
During confirmation, she would read daily from the Bible.
Just like we do here at St. Andrew.
c. My predecessor, Rev. Plunkett, liked to remind the congregation of Karl Barth’s admonition to have the newspaper in one hand and the Bible in the other
1. We might have to amend that to include twitter and Facebook or Internet news or news on TV.
2. Watch your Fox or CNN while holding your Bible. Is it to turn to the Bible to justify what you have just heard, or to start with the Bible and use it as a lens for the news?
b. The Karl Barth quote is from a 1966 Time magazine article.
1. Karl Barth: “Take your Bible and take your newspaper, and read both.
2. But interpret newspapers from your Bible.” (Time Magazine, May 1, 1966.) https://sinibaldo.wordpress.com/2015/03/05/on-barth-the-bible-and-the-newspaper/)
4. I won’t ask how many of us are involved in daily Bible study, but at the core of how we are as Presbyterians is God’s word.
Move 3: Study of the biblical texts leads to a response.
a. If I ask the question, “did you hear me?” most of you would understand the question as a logistical one.
1. Was the volume out enough for you to hear.
2. did I enunciate?
3. Could you literally hear me.
b. Hebrew word “Hear” carries with it the implication of “obey.”
1. To hear is to obey.
2. Our actions ought to be guided by our study of the biblical text.
c. One of the most famous French rabbis of the twelfth century was Rabbi Solomon ben Isaac, also known as Rashi. His grandson, Rabbenu Tam, felt that mezuzot should be affixed horizontally for the sake of tradition, because the scrolls in their leather cases were originally pushed horizontally into the crevices between the stones around the doorways of homes.
Rashi argued that mezuzot should be affixed vertically, in such a way that the top pointed toward the Almighty. They eventually compromised, and agreed that a mezuzah should be hung on the diagonal, with its top inclined toward the inside. The decision, allowing peace to rein in a Jewish home in 12th century France, is part of the message of the mezuzah.( https://www.jfedgmw.org/the-mezuzah-why-isnt-it-straight/)
1. Point straight up to God?
2. Point into the house to look inward?
3. Point out to the world?
Yes, to all. God’s Word points us to God to know whose we are; God’s Word points us inward to know who we are; God’s Word points us into the world.
Conclusion: Harvey Cox, who is a professor of Divinity at Harvard University and the Harvard Divinity School tells the story of being jailed during the civil rights movement.
The jail practiced segregation, so the white protestors were in a cell at one end of the jail and the black protestors were in a cell at the other end of the jail.
They were arrested on that Saturday and there were no plans for their release until at least Monday.
Cox notes that the jail warden happened by his cell on Saturday night and shared that the black prisoners had asked for a Bible so that they could have Sunday School and church services in their cell the next morning. The warden agreed to get them a Bible and told Cox, “Can't do no harm” to let them have a Bible.
The next morning the whole jail filled with singing of gospel songs, preaching from the Exodus story about being led out of bondage, and prayers for deliverance and strength coming from the young, black protestors who were holding church.
As Cox reflected, he realized the warden was correct.
the Bible can’t do no harm. (How to Read the Bible, Harvey Cox, 7-8).
But it can change the world.
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