Luke 19:1-10 (NRSV)

Jesus and Zacchaeus

19He entered Jericho and was passing through it. ²A man was there named Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax-collector and was rich. ³He was trying to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was short in stature. ⁴So he ran ahead and climbed a sycomore tree to see him, because he was going to pass that way. ⁵When Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, ‘Zacchaeus, hurry and come down; for I must stay at your house today.’ ⁶So he hurried down and was happy to welcome him. ⁷All who saw it began to grumble and said, ‘He has gone to be the guest of one who is a sinner.’ ⁸Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, ‘Look, half of my possessions, Lord, I will give to the poor; and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will pay back four times as much.’ ⁹Then Jesus said to him, ‘Today salvation has come to this house, because he too is a son of Abraham. ¹⁰For the Son of Man came to seek out and to save the lost.’

Apologies for the late posting. I have been struggling with a painful kidney infection!

My text this morning is written in Juke 19:10 where Jesus said: ^10’For the Son of Man came to seek out and to save the lost.’

Jericho was a wealthy and important town, lying in the Jordan Valley. It was world famous with its great palm forest and its balsam groves perfumed the air for miles around. It was also known for its gardens of roses and the Romans exported its dates and balsam throughout the empire. It went by the names: “City of Palms” or as Josephus referred to it as “a divine region”. It is understandable that it was one of the greatest taxation centres in Palestine. Zacchaeus had reached the top of his profession – like our bankers today – and was equally hated because of the unfair and often shady ways he had acquired his wealth!

Zacchaeus had made himself rich at the expense of the people – but he was not happy - probably because his unpopularity meant that he was lonely. He had obviously heard of Jesus and the way he welcomed tax collectors and sinners and hoped that Jesus might have a kind word for him, and so was determined to see Jesus. He ran ahead of the crowd and climbed a tree.

When he made contact with Jesus, his life was touched and Zacchaeus made a decision to become a changed person: he decided to give half his goods to the poor. He did not decide to keep the other half for himself, but used it to make restitution for the unfair deeds for which he was ready to own up. This is important. His restitution went far beyond anything required by the law and thus revealed to all present that he was a radically changed man. Barclay makes the important point: “A testimony is utterly worthless unless it is backed by deeds which guarantee its sincerity. It is not a mere change of words which Jesus demands, but a change of life.”

  

There is no more powerful proof of the truth of Christianity than the transformed lives that result when people are confronted with the risen and living Christ. This transformation is not just a one off – it needs to be a continuing experience. Wesley described ‘justification’ as being ‘declared right with God’ and ‘sanctification’ as ‘... being changed into what we have been declared to be ...’ Change is never mere words, but the shining example of a transformed life in a continual process.

One of the stories I remember best from Sunday School is this one of Zaccheaus. We used to sing a chorus and do all sorts of actions to demonstrate what happened. It went like this:

Zacchaeus was a very little man and a very little man was he,

He climbed up into a Sycomore tree for the Lord he wanted to see:

And when the Lord came riding by, he looked up into the tree,

And He Said:

Zacchaeus, you come down, for I'm coming to your house for tea!

Yes, I'm coming to your house for tea!

I could identify with Zacchaeus because I was then (as I am now) one who preferred not to be in the forefront of things. As a result I would often be at the back of the crowd and unable to see the action. But I too am curious and persistent and if something is important enough, I will go after it.

This is an important incident in the ministry and teaching of Jesus, because it picks us some earlier themes that either needed to be endorsed, or required further explanation. Here, Jesus stresses once more that people can change; if one has sinned, there is a remedy and always a new chance to start again. This is always excellent news! Jesus also deals with the issue of riches: At the heart of all this is faith which discovers that the way of Jesus is the means whereby our lives can change and that we need to persist to make encounters with Jesus possible if we want to know the blessedness of transformed living.

Luke, the only one to include this incident, does so to make the point clear that while it might be difficult for rich people to enter the kingdom of God (the point made earlier to the rich young ruler); it is not impossible. Wright explains: “This kind of healing, this kind of new life, ... is what Jesus has come to bring ...’

This was no mere intellectual reflection for Zacchaeus; he knew how much he was hated by the people of Jericho. He was more than a mere tax collector like Matthew, he was chief tax collector so would have been hated even by the tax collectors who worked under him because he would have ripped them off as well as everyone else. Wright makes the important point:

“Whenever money changes hands, whether across a grubby table in a tin shack in a dusty small town or across a sparkling computer screen in a shiny office on the ninety-nineth floor of a Wall Street skyscraper, the hands all too easily get dirty. Whenever money starts to talk, it shouts louder than the claims of honesty, respect and human dignity.”

One can just imagine how the people of Jericho’s hatred for Jacchaeus had grown over the years. This probably included even his relatives and those who might have been friends earlier on, as they saw him acquire a bigger and better house, with more expensive furnishing, and more slaves running around doing his bidding, his clothes becoming finer and his food more exotic and richer. They knew that it was their money he was using and that he had no right to it!

Deep down, Zacchaeus knew that none of these trappings of riches or even the riches itself, brought happiness or contentment and certainly no peace or fulfilment. He knew that there must be a different way, a better way.

So, Zacchaeus was delighted when Jesus invited himself to his house. Once more the respectable people of the community objected. Normally, when Jesus encountered this sort of hostility, he would tell them a parable; this time he allows Zacchaeus to do all the talking.

Zacchaeus speaks out and gives evidence of his ‘... extravagant repentance ...’ Wright reminds us that true repentance is not just a change of heart – which was what was required in Judaism at the time – but it also includes restoration and making amends; and Zacchaeus was determined to do so ‘lavishly’. He did not offer to get rid of all his property – and Jesus did not require this – but by the time he had given half of it to the poor and paid back four times to those he had cheated, his financial circumstances would have been very different. But he does not care because he has found something much more valuable. Zacchaeus does not leave Jericho but remains to face the music and prove to all that he had changed.

Caird also points out how much Zacchaeus would have been despised by the people of Jericho and so adds that no sightseeing curiosity would have induced such a man to risk ridicule or violence by mixing with a large mob, and suggests that he must have been prompted by some powerful urge. This was probably the need to escape his self-imposed loneliness or to be done with the profession that that had become so burdensome to his conscience.

He had probably heard of Jesus and his teaching and more importantly, the impact that Jesus had in transforming lives of those who came to him. Caird continues with wonderful insight: “By bursting through the barrier of religious prejudice that isolated him [Zacchaeus], Jesus awakened to vibrant life, impulses that had long lain dormant, and revealed to him the man he was capable of becoming.”

As Wright pointed out, Zacchaeus’ repentance was extravagant; he went much further than was required of him and even forsook the legitimate profits he had made; he took the path required by Jesus for his benefit that the rich young ruler had so easily forsaken.

We need to ask again if there is anything that the Church is doing that is a stumbling block to those who need Christ in their lives. I suspect there is much! But is the Church even asking the necessary questions? Have we fallen into the trap of the established religion of Jesus’ day with our own Pharisees and Scribes and Zealots? Is the Church even thinking about those who are outside and how to reach them?

It could be that people are very happy with their lives and so do not need Christ and the Church. I doubt it, but too many barriers exist between them and the Church for them to even consider that we might have the refreshment they so desperately thirst after. We need to beware: like the parable of the Pharisee and the sinner, it is all too easy for us to feel self-righteous and that we have it made. I believe it is time for radical Christianity once more, but are we ready to pay the price with our extravagant repentance?

The last words of this passage are so important. Jesus came ‘... to seek out and to save the lost.’

Barclay issues a warning: he suggests that it is important to have a correct understanding of what is meant by ‘the lost’. In the New Testament, it does NOT mean the damned or doomed, it simply means ‘in the wrong place’. A thing is lost when it is no longer in the place it is meant to be. A person is lost when they have wandered away from being in the presence of God. People are ‘found’ when they take their rightful place as obedient children of God and return to the family of God’s people.

Now that Barclay makes this point it seems blindingly obvious. Much of our society is lost, because they remove themselves from the presence of God. They have bought into the lie that living in the darkness is better than in the light. But in recent times, the gods of this world have been found wanting; the gods of money, power, position, status etc. are being rejected. But people are not returning to the Church and a reason is because we still speak of God in ways that they cannot identify with; we still use words that are so loaded with misunderstanding and negative connotation that people still think that the Church is irrelevant. But they are rediscovering Jesus. We need to re-make the link between Jesus, God and the Church by speaking of God in new ways that provide a map whereby those who are lost can find their way home. All people see love as central to their lives. We need to remind them that God is love and whenever they experience love by giving or receiving it, they experience God. This makes them understand that there is so much proof of God everywhere. This links with Jesus as the one who was completely filled with love (and so with God) as to demonstrate both how to live and the way to life. People no longer identify with sin as it is too loaded with the judgemental bigotry of the past. But people know when they are lost because their lives are not what they ought to be. The ‘vehicle’ that transports us back is repentance, and it is hastened bit its extravagance. We need to seek out new ways to connect with the people; we need to go to where they are and seek new ways of engaging with them. This is at the core of our faith because Jesus himself said that: ‘... the Son of Man came to seek out and to save the lost.’

Amen.

2 Timothy 4.6-8, 16-18: (NRSV)

⁶ As for me, I am already being poured out as a libation, and the time of my departure has come. ⁷I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. ⁸From now on there is reserved for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will give to me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have longed for his appearing.

¹⁶ At my first defence no one came to my support, but all deserted me. May it not be counted against them! ¹⁷But the Lord stood by me and gave me strength, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. So I was rescued from the lion’s mouth. ¹⁸The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and save me for his heavenly kingdom. To him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

The author realised that his time was over and that the remainder of his life must be poured out as a sacrifice to God. It does not appear that the author did not think of himself as going to be executed, but that he also saw himself as offering up his life to God in the process; his life was not been taken from him; he was laying it down. Barclay assumes that the author was the Apostle Paul and reminds us that ever since Paul’s conversion, Paul had offered everything to God: money, scholarship, strength, time, devotion and passion. Now ‘... only life itself was left to offer, and gladly Paul was going to lay life down ...’

And now the time of his departure had come and the word Paul uses – ‘analusis’ is rich in meaning as Barclay explains, it is the word used to describe the unyoking of an animal. Paul therefore implies that his death was going to be an unyoking, was going to be rest from his labours and he was glad of it. Death was going to be a ‘liberation’ and a ‘release’. The word was also used to describe the unloosing of fetters and so the implication here too is the sense of release. The word was also used to describe the loosening of ropes from a tent. Here the implication could be that it was time to move on, and strike up camp elsewhere. It was also used to describe the loosening of the mooring ropes of a ship. Paul had sailed many times and so was about to embark on a final voyage.

For Christians death is therefore a laying down of the burdens in order to rest, a loosening of the shackles in order to be free, a striking up of camp to take up a new residence, a casting off of the ropes which bind us to this world and embarking on a new journey which ends in the presence of God.

There is no need to fear death ...

Paul loves using sporting metaphors (if it was indeed Paul who wrote this epistle), and this is one area where being humbled came naturally to me because I was always so rubbish at games! But the author makes a wonderful point and that and that is what really matters is the inner feeling of fulfilment we experience, as Barclay writes: “There is no satisfaction in all the world like knowing that we have done our best.”

There is also the notion of finishing. It is very easy to start things, but it is another thing to finish them. It is so easy to fall in the last lap of a race.

Paul had finished the race and had the satisfaction of reaching his goal.

The author continues: “I have kept the faith ...” This is an accomplishment of grace; with God’s help he had completed the course and had (to keep in mind the sporting image) kept the rules of ‘... honour and honesty in the race of life ...’

Barclay suggests that one can also use a business image paraphrasing this passage as ‘... I have kept the conditions of the contract; I have been true to my engagement.’ He had engaged himself to serve Christ and he had stood by that engagement and had not let his Master down.

He had kept the faith, he had never lost confidence and hope. Through the many difficult times, in all the dangers of land and sea and now even in the face of the final journey – death - he had never lost the confidence that comes to those united with Jesus Christ.

If we can say the same, one day, we too will die well.

The author speaks of there being a ‘crown of righteousness’ reserved for him. Thinking of his continued use of sporting imagery, he could have being referring to the laurel wreath awarded to winners at the Greek Games. This ‘crown’ would wither within a few days, but the crown of righteousness would never fade or wither.

Here the author is turning from seeing things in human terms, to seeing things in the eyes of God. He was going to face two verdicts: the earthly Roman court whose verdict was pretty obvious as Nero’s reputation went before him; but he also knew what God’s verdict was going to be. Barclay writes: “The person whose life is dedicated to Jesus Christ is indifferent to the verdict of men. They care not if they condemn him so long as they hear their master’s ‘Well done!’”

As the author continues to write it is as if he is saying to Timothy: “My end is near, and I know that I am going to my reward. If you follow in my steps you will feel the same confidence and the same joy when you when the end comes to you.”

The experience of this author is open to all who fight the same fight and who finish the race and who keep the faith.

And so to the final verses ...

The author tells of three things that brought him courage during this difficult time.

Firstly, when all people forsook him, he felt in a very real sense that God was with him in a special way. This is the promise of Jesus who said that he would never leave his own or forsake them and that he would be with them to the end of the world. The author is saying that this has been his experience.

Secondly, the author never forgot his privilege and duty of proclaiming Christ. He did so even in the Roman court, and when he began thinking of his task of preaching he began to forget the danger and this conquered his fear.

Finally, he was assured of his final rescue in eternity. Barclay concludes: “It is always better to be in danger for a moment and safe for eternity, than to be in safety for a moment and to jeopardise eternity.”

I know there is debate over whether Paul was indeed the author of this letter, and the style of the Greek is the point at hand; but in translation, it certainly sounds like Paul and it is definitely his theology.

Luke 18:1-8 (NRSV)

The Parable of the Widow and the Unjust Judge

¹Then Jesus^* told them a parable about their need to pray always and not to lose heart. ²He said, ‘In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor had respect for people. ³In that city there was a widow who kept coming to him and saying, “Grant me justice against my opponent.” ⁴For a while he refused; but later he said to himself, “Though I have no fear of God and no respect for anyone, ⁵yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will grant her justice, so that she may not wear me out by continually coming.” ’^{* 6}And the Lord said, ‘Listen to what the unjust judge says. ⁷And will not God grant justice to his chosen ones who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long in helping them? ⁸I tell you, he will quickly grant justice to them. And yet, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?’

William Barclay suggests that the ‘judge’ could not have been Jewish and Jesus hints at this because he describes him as one who ‘... neither feared God nor had respect for people ...’ All ordinary Jewish people took their disputes to the elders and not to the public courts. If a legal judgement was needed, there would be three judges, one chosen by the plaintiff, the second chosen by the defendant and the third would be independently appointed.

The judge in this parable would have been a reference to one appointed either by the Romans or by King Herod. These judges were notoriously corrupt: unless one had money to bribe one’s way to the desired verdict, it would not happen. People even punned on their title: officially they were referred to as ‘judges of prohibitions or punishments’ (Dayyaneh Gezeroth) but they were called robber judges (Dayyaneh Gezeloth)!

The widow symbolised all who were poor and defenceless and was without material resources of any kind and so had no hope of getting justice. But she did have one thing – persistence.

It is a mistake to think that the judge represents God; rather Jesus contrasts the judge with God. Barclay paraphrases the message as follows: “If, in the end, an unjust and rapacious judge can be wearied into giving a widow woman justice, how much more will God, who is a loving Father, give his children what they need?”

But this does not mean that the Christian need think that God will provide everything they pray for. Often a Father has to refuse a request of a child because he knows what is asked for is not in the long-term best interest of the child. Only God sees in the longer term and knows what is best for us.

One of the great weaknesses of some secular (and even religious) teleological systems, focusing on consequences, as that we cannot predict what these will be – especially in the longer term. But God can!

Jesus says that we must not be discouraged in prayer and Barclay concludes: “... and our faith will never falter if, after we have offered to God our prayers and requests, we add the perfect prayer, ‘Thy will be done’.”

Barclay is brilliant at providing insights into the original contexts of Scripture, but I am no longer sure that I can accept his conclusion uncritically. It seems easy to say ‘Thy will be done’ from the confines of our academic studies, but what does this say to those who cry out in prayer, persistently, because of the horror of torture, injustice and imprisonment and so on, and it seems to them just not to work?

G B Caird reminds us that, of all the Evangelists, Luke would appear to be the one that was the most interested in prayer and so it is fitting that he combines the themes of prayer with that of another, justice.

The perversion of justice is often mentioned in the Old Testament and so it was a part of the experience of many people. It was the function of a judge to be an impartial arbiter but also to be the champion of those who were vulnerable to injustice e.g. the widow, the orphan, the poor and the foreigner. Caird comments: ‘... whatever other cases he heard, he must be sure that these at least received their rights. This is explicit in the Law, most notably in Exodus 22:22, Deuteronomy 10:18 as well as in Psalm 68:5 and the prophets Isaiah 1:17 and Jeremiah 22:3.’

But the judge in the parable was not influenced by religious conviction nor public opinion with the result that the poor widow – who was too poor to be able to resort to bribery and without influential friends had to resort to all that she had left – and that was her persistence!

In contrast to the judge we have God who is the champion of the needy and oppressed and  who listens patiently to those who call upon him. God can be relied on to intervene with ‘... swift and sudden vindication.’ So Caird concludes: ‘If persistence prevails with one who cares only for his own peace and comfort, how much more will it prevail with One who has compassion for his elect?’

But once again, we cannot take this too literally, because we know that oftentimes, people cry out to God in their need, because of trials and tribulations in this life, and they are not spared; they have to endure even sometimes to death. But I will come back to this later.

Caird has an interesting take on the idea of ‘election’. He reminds us that references to Israel being the elect only come at a time of their national humiliation. The implication is therefore, that the elect are those who are specially called to serve God through suffering for their faith at the hands of the ungodly world. It is their loyalty to God that forces them to their needs to pray day and night and to persist in this way. If election means favouritism, it is because God is on the side of those who are on the receiving end of injustice – the innocent victims of persecution.

To be fair, when Jesus calls us, he tells us that the going is going to be tough. As Bonhoeffer reminded us in the midst of his stand against Nazi Germany, the cost of being a disciple can require us to sacrifice everything. But the difference is that for those who are united with Christ, there is meaning and purpose and a deep sense of fulfilment. The secret is faith. Being united with Christ, who comes to us in the deepest and most significant way as a suffering Messiah, present with us means no delay, he is right there with us, indeed he is within us.

Earle Ellis explains the background to this parable which I find quite useful. Apparently, it was written at a time when Christians were under deep persecution and they were denying their faith as a result. For them, the delay of the perousia was more than a chronological problem; it was a ‘life’ problem. Luke then reminds his readers of Jesus’ teaching of the coming of the ‘Son of Man’ to give them encouragement.

Jesus always made it clear that suffering will precede his return and that the means of survival was through prayer. And in the end, God is not like the unjust judge who provides justice to the persistent widow; he does even more in vindicating his elect. So, the implication must be that not only must the disciples persist in prayer; they must have the right attitude to accompany their prayers – perseverance. LaVerdier adds: “They may be persecuted, but this is no grounds for self-righteous comparisons with others (verse 9) ...” which becomes the subject of the second parable that follows.

2 Timothy 2.8-15 (NRSV)

⁸ Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, a descendant of David—that is my gospel, ⁹for which I suffer hardship, even to the point of being chained like a criminal. But the word of God is not chained.¹⁰Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, so that they may also obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory.¹¹The saying is sure:
If we have died with him, we will also live with him; 
¹² if we endure, we will also reign with him;
if we deny him, he will also deny us; 
¹³ if we are faithless, he remains faithful—
for he cannot deny himself.

A Worker Approved by God

¹⁴ Remind them of this, and warn them before God that they are to avoid wrangling over words, which does no good but only ruins those who are listening. ¹⁵Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved by him, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly explaining the word of truth.

My text this morning is written in 2 Timothy 2:15 which reads:

Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved by him, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly explaining the word of truth.

It is almost as if the author of this letter meant the compliers of the lectionary to select these verses – 8-15 – because ending on this note seems to be the culmination of what he had been trying to say in the rest of the passage. It begins with the word remember because this is so important, not only for Christians but also for people in general. It seems to be part of the recipe of what makes a person human is the ability – indeed the need – to remember. Arthur Marwick, one of my favourite philosophers of history suggests that ‘... a society without its history is like a person without a memory – incoherent.’ It is as if we are like a person driving a car – while it is important to focus one’s eyes on what lies ahead, we always need to be glance behind as well. We cannot move forward effectively unless we know where we have come from.

For Christians, remembering is central to what we are. When we gather for worship we remember a number of important things about Jesus and when we meet together at the Eucharist we obey our Lord’s command to ‘... do this in remembrance ...’ Today the author of the epistle reminds us that we remember that the Jesus whose life and ministry we remember each week – indeed each day in our reading and prayers – is more than just a figure of history – he is the Christ ‘... raised from the dead ...’ he is alive in a new and significant way because he was ‘... raised from the dead ...’ He was not merely revived; he was resurrected, transformed into something new – the reason why Mary could not recognise him at first and why this was the experience of the disciples on the Road to Emmaus as well as the others. Yes, he was a human being – ‘... a descendent of David ...’ but also much more and this is testified to in the raising from the dead. This is a source of great joy and hope for the Christian because he is here with us here and now and wherever we might be or no matter what circumstances we might find ourselves in our Lord is alive and is with us. Especially when we meet together in the Sacrament of Holy Communion, our Lord is not only with us, but is within us. Jesus, who experienced human life, gives us guidance and hope and joy even in the midst of difficult times.

The author of this letter was in prison and there was no chance of release, but we sense the spirit of hope in his writing, because the truth of the presence of the risen Christ with people is not in chains and can never be chained. If it were possible for Christianity to be silenced, it would no longer exist. But you cannot kill what is immortal. The author realises that his suffering is not pointless, especially as it is evident that it is going to enable others to believe. History is full of examples of this where the witness martyrs were so powerful that people came to believe as a result. By the grace of God, Christian goodness, especially in the midst of persecution and injustice often leads to the conversion of the others including the perpetrators of the suffering.

The author brings this point home in what was probably one of the first hymns of the early Church which speaks beautifully of our Lord’s identification especially with the suffering. Jesus is present in a special way in us and we are called to see Christ in each other. Mother Teresa’s comment that she spent time reading and reflecting on our Lord, and then going out into the streets of Calcutta in search of him makes this clear. Those who die, because of persecution, our Lord dies with them, but just as he was raised, so will they; as we endure, we reign with him. There is also the challenge to those who deny the truth because they separate themselves from God’s love in the process. But our hope is strengthened yet again because even though we might deny him in all our human frailty, even if we are faithless, Jesus remains faithful ‘... for he cannot deny himself.’

This is wonderful good news and those of us who have had this experience know how true and wonderful this is; it is so beautiful, that it is impossible to put into words. The experience of struggle, and failure, only to be raised up forgiven, cleansed and blessed, welcomed and renewed, is something that refreshes us at the core of our being.

The good news is the truth of the love of God being incarnated in the man of history, Jesus of Nazareth, who was in one sense an ordinary human being in history, born of the Jewish family of King David, but who was so filled with the presence of God that we also know that he was much more than this, and that this is confirmed because he is with us now and always in the power of his Spirit; indeed he is within us.

When we gather for worship, we need to remember this.

But this is not all. Being human, we try to make sense of things using words, and this is important and good we have a need to understand meaning, especially the meaning of those times of pain and suffering and even death. But, while this is good to do, we also need to be reminded that words are not always adequate; they can be a blunt instrument when it comes to capture the essence of some of the deeper experiences of what it really means to be human, and more importantly, when trying to understand the truth of God.

When we think of those things that really matter in our lives: love, hope, joy, forgiveness, faith ... we know that words often fail us. Thomas Aquinas eventually drew the conclusion that we needed to move away from the literal and can only make sense of all this when we use analogy saying “... it is like ...” and provide only a glimpse of the experience for others as we seek to make sense of it ourselves.  And so the author exhorts us to remember ‘... to avoid wrangling over words, which does not good and only ruins those who are listening ...’

It is clear that words matter because the Scriptures are full of references to the holiness and importance of the word of God. Jesus himself is given the title of the ‘Word’ and it is crucial that we reflect on his teachings and even struggle with them, in order to find meaning. And it is good to debate and discuss and to search and to struggle, but not to wrangle! The Concise Oxford Dictionary definition explains why as it defines wrangle as:  ‘... a long and complicated dispute or argument ...’ It is the spirit of how we do things that matter. It is wonderful if people are searching for the truth together, but they must wrestle with it and not wrangle over it, for doing the latter ‘... ruins those who are listening.’ I do not want to give the impression that we must gloss over difficult issues like the human sexuality debate and other important matters that come up from time to time. Without confrontation and challenge, we would still have slavery, the subjugation of women and apartheid would still be law in southern Africa to mention but a few examples.

But there is another danger and that is that wrangling over words imprisons action. William Barclay put it this way: People try to ‘... make Christianity into a recondite (obscure) philosophy instead of an adventure of faith.’

Words are wonderful and I am deeply committed to teaching philosophy, but there is a danger that all this can become a substitute for action. There are too many people who just love talking about things, but fewer people who are really willing to get up and do something. If the world could have been saved by talking, it would have been saved long before now. If the world’s problems could be resolved by discussion, there would be none left by now.

It is also true that understanding often comes from doing rather than talking. Wesley was struggling with a number of issues about the faith and wrote in his Journal:

‘Immediately it stuck into my mind, "Leave off preaching. How can you preach to others, who have not faith yourself?" I asked Boehler, whether he thought I should leave it off or not. He answered "By no means." I asked, "But what can I preach?" He said, "Preach faith till you have it; and then, because you have it, you will preach faith.”

There is a sense that things solve themselves as you continue on the journey. Barclay suggests that ‘... the best ways to understand the deep things of Christianity is to embark on the unmistakable duties of the Christian life.’

We also know that too much talk can be dangerous, not only because it can be confusing and even hurtful to others, but most importantly, because it is paralysing – people stop doing – and to think back to last week’s Gospel reading – it leads little one’s astray because it puts them off and disguises the good news of the Gospel or as the author of the Epistle puts it: ‘¹⁴ Remind them of this, and warn them before God that they are to avoid wrangling over words, which does no good but only ruins those who are listening.’

But all this does not alter the fact that that the truth matters and struggling with it matters. The Church has the duty to rightly explain the message of Scripture to the world. This is why it is such an important task for preachers and teachers to get it right – it is also why the ministry of the preacher and teacher is such a terrifying responsibility. We need to ‘... do our best ...’

The authorised version translates this passage as ‘... study to show thyself approved unto God ...’ This passage is central to my calling and why I devoted myself to years of study before ordination and why the journey continues. The responsibility is enormous because we have to ‘... rightly ...’ explain the word of truth. But ‘study’ implies intellectual assent and this is not the central issue here. Belief is more about commitment. So, the modern translators get it right when they translate the passage as ‘Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved by him ...’ and this is the task of all Christians.

We have already been warned that it is also the way we teach as much as what we teach that matters. For me, what a person believes has a huge impact on their lives; and if it is for the good, it leads to greater holiness. Paul elaborates on this thought in 2 Corinthians 3 where he writes:

³and you show that you are a letter of Christ, prepared by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts. 

Nothing is more attractive than a holy life; and it is this sort of life that makes people want to ask what a person believes, and when this happens we know that we have rightly explained the word of truth. We will never have complete understanding, because the truth of God is infinite and our minds are finite. But we know God deep within the core of our being more than merely with our minds more than can be explained in mere words, because His Spirit is our guide and teacher. The words ‘I believe’ can be translated as ‘I commit myself to ...’ and leads to a transformed life of love. This is the renewing of the mind that Paul speaks of in Romans 12. And this is why it is the duty and the privilege of all Christians – and not just preachers and teachers to:

Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved by him, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly explaining the word of truth.  Amen.

Luke 17:1-10: (NRSV) Some Sayings of Jesus

¹Jesus^* said to his disciples, ‘Occasions for stumbling are bound to come, but woe to anyone by whom they come! ²It would be better for you if a millstone were hung around your neck and you were thrown into the sea than for you to cause one of these little ones to stumble. ³Be on your guard! If another disciple^* sins, you must rebuke the offender, and if there is repentance, you must forgive. ⁴And if the same person sins against you seven times a day, and turns back to you seven times and says, “I repent”, you must forgive.’

⁵ The apostles said to the Lord, ‘Increase our faith!’ ⁶The Lord replied, ‘If you had faith the size of a^* mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, “Be uprooted and planted in the sea”, and it would obey you.

⁷ ‘Who among you would say to your slave who has just come in from ploughing or tending sheep in the field, “Come here at once and take your place at the table”? ⁸Would you not rather say to him, “Prepare supper for me, put on your apron and serve me while I eat and drink; later you may eat and drink”? ⁹Do you thank the slave for doing what was commanded? ¹⁰So you also, when you have done all that you were ordered to do, say, “We are worthless slaves; we have done only what we ought to have done!” ’

This is such an important passage because the warnings are so clear. Verses 1 and 2 condemn the person who teaches others to sin. The word translated as ‘stumble’ (skandalon) can actually be more literally translated as scandal and according to Barclay has two meanings: (i) originally it meant to entrap and (ii) it then evolved to mean any stumbling block in a person’s way to trip them up. Barclay writes: ‘Jesus said that it is impossible to construct a world with no temptations; but woe to that person who teaches another to sin or to take away another’s innocence.’ People eventually receive their first nudge along the way to sin and ‘... God will not hold a person guiltless who, along life’s road, causes a weaker one to go the wrong way.’

This is why drug pushers are so dreadful and whenever a stronger character misleads a weaker one it is so inexcusable. This is also why the older person who seduces a younger person is wrong. Our society sends out the message that sexual activity is normal and multiple sexual partners are just part of life. As soon as one allows sexual activity outside of a mature adult, life-long, committed relationship – preferably within a marriage - one opens the door to ‘... leading people to stumble ...’ There is such a fine line between equal, voluntary and informed consent and one feeling pressured to do something they are not really comfortable with. Our young people are confused and I sometimes need to help them pick up the pieces. They are bombarded with sexual license and promiscuity that they feel pressured by the media and the film industry. There is a very real sense that especially movie and TV film makers will be held accountable for ‘... leading little ones astray ...’ but also educational programmes and some in the health service.

Nurturing young ones to maturity is the great honour that I have devoted my life to being part of. But there is a profound difference between this and giving the impression that they can choose for themselves, unless they are properly prepared to make informed choices. Society in its post-modernism states that all opinions are of equal value, that there is little that is definitely wrong, and that everything is okay if the people taking part have agreed; yet when one reads the agony aunt columns of teenage magazines (which I did when I started teaching them), one finds that young girls feel that they have been led astray and this leads me to feel a real sadness for them, who feel robbed of something so precious – their innocence. I know it is an unpopular notion, but I believe we should be making it clear that there is a different way, a better way, the way of cherishing innocence, protecting it and making sure that young people are really properly informed so that they can appropriately make life-changing decisions. I remain committed to marriage as the only appropriate place for sexual activity.

But what other examples are there? We cause others to stumble when we behave in such a way that it makes our faith seem unattractive and bigoted by the things we say or more importantly by the things we do. I was away in Oxford for a few days at a Chaplain’s conference. We were met by a worker Priest from the east end of London, who has colleagues working in Canary Warf, both as Chaplains and as bankers. It has been a powerful Christian witness that the reason why one particular bank has not been part of the crisis is because there are Christians working it in, Christians who take their huge salaries and give 90% of what they earn away. This does the opposite, it attracts people to Christ, not send them away.

The eyes of the world will always be upon us. We will be judged more by what people see, even more than what people hear. This is why what people like Mother Teresa believed becomes irrelevant, because of the power of her actions, so Roman Catholic, Protestant, Muslim, Hindu, Sikh, atheist and stand in awe when they reflect on how she changed the world for good. J C Ryle writes: ‘Let us endeavour to make our religion beautiful in the eyes of people, and to adorn the doctrine of Christ in all things. Let us strive to lay aside every weight of sin which most easily besets us, and so to live that men can find no fault in us ...’

We are going to cause some offence because the way we live is going to be different to the ways of the world. As I alluded to earlier, our sexual ethic is going to be different, our business ethics are going to be different, our speech and actions are in themselves going to cause offence to some who are going to accuse us of all sorts of things. Christians caused offence to the white majority in South Africa by opposing apartheid; Wilberforce caused great offence to the majority in his call for the abolition of slavery. Jesus caused so much offence that he was crucified on a criminal’s cross. This is not what he is referring to here; here he is referring to those who are caused to stumble off the right path – what their consciences, deep down tell them is right – because we have said or done things which bring discredit to the Gospel of Christ. Ryle concludes this section by writing: ‘The Cross of Christ will always give offence. Let us not increase that offence by carelessness in our daily life.’

But he does not leave it there. We have all got things wrong and will continue to get things wrong. And when this happens we need to forgive others.

Verse 3 and 4 refer to the settling of disputes. The injured person must be on their guard against the dangers of resentment and bearing grudges and must rather go to the person who has caused offence and between them sort things out with repentance and forgiveness being the vital ingredients. No matter how often the offence occurs, the same recipe needs to be followed ‘... with tireless goodwill ...’ and without limit.

Forgiveness needs to be a central feature of Christian living. These verses speak of forgiving seven times. The ancient rabbis spoke of forgiving three times and if one did, one was a perfect man. Christians need to take the rabbinic standard, double it and add one. Barclay writes: ‘... but it is not a matter of mathematical calculation. It simply means that the Christian standard of forgiveness must immeasurably exceed the best the world can achieve.’

Karl Menninger, the famed psychiatrist, once said that if he could convince the patients in psychiatric hospitals that their sins were forgiven, 75 percent of them could walk out the next day! (Today in the Word, March 1989, p. 8.)

Thomas A. Edison was working on a crazy contraption called a "light bulb" and it took a whole team of men 24 straight hours to put just one together. The story goes that when Edison was finished with one light bulb, he gave it to a young boy helper, who nervously carried it up the stairs. Step by step he cautiously watched his hands, obviously frightened of dropping such a priceless piece of work. You've probably guessed what happened by now; the poor young fellow dropped the bulb at the top of the stairs. It took the entire team of men twenty-four more hours to make another bulb. Finally, tired and ready for a break, Edison was ready to have his bulb carried up the stairs. He gave it to the same young boy who dropped the first one. That's true forgiveness. (James Newton, Uncommon Friends.)

Jungle Aviation and Radio Service (JAARS), the flying department of Wycliffe Bible Translators--had flown thousands of hours over a 25 year span without one fatal accident before April 7, 1972. On that day, a Piper Aztec lost its right engine and crashed in Papua New Guinea, killing all seven persons aboard. The Aztec had just rolled out of the Wycliffe maintenance hangar the day before following a 100 hour inspection. The chief mechanic was stunned when he heard the news of the crash. Reviewing in his mind each step he had performed in inspecting that right engine, he suddenly recoiled in horror. He remembered that he had been interrupted while tightening a fuel line and had never returned to finish the job! That faulty connection had allowed raw fuel to spray out and catch fire while the Aztec was in flight. The mechanic's guilt at being responsible for the deaths of his companions crushed him. For days he did not know what to do. The other mechanics tried to help him, as did his own family. But when the family of Doug Hunt, the pilot who was killed in the accident, was preparing to return to their home in New Zealand, the mechanic knew he had to see them, talk with them and beg their forgiveness. He could barely get out the words as he sobbed in their presence. "That hand there," he said, looking at his right hand, "took Doug's life." Glennis Hunt, Doug's widow, embraced him. "Glennis sat by me and held the hand that took her husband's life," he later wrote, "and another JAARS pilot sat on my other side with a demonstration of love, comfort, and forgiveness. That was the most significant first step in the healing process." (Max Lucado, God Came Near, Multnomah Press, 1987, p. 101.) (See also sermons.com for excellent illustrations) 

To some people today, this forgiving attitude of the dead pilot’s wife is offensive thinking rather than she should have sued both the organisation and the mechanic concerned. But it was an honest mistake and the most costly one anyone could ever make. The man truly repented and was truly forgiven.

This sort of living requires faith; something that we cannot do for ourselves. We know that faith is a gift that God gives us, and all that is left for us to do is to accept it. Confronted with examples of forgiveness like this – which amplify what Jesus was in effect trying to get across to his disciples – I too need to ask Jesus as his disciples did in verse 5 – ‘Increase my faith ...’

Verses 5 and 6 tell of the centrality of faith. Implied in these verses is typical ancient hyperbole suggesting that what might look impossible becomes possible. This is true even in the realm of science and medicine. Today there are many operations that are commonplace which would have been deemed impossible 50 years ago.  Barclay adds: ‘If we approach a thing saying “It can’t be done,” it will not; if we approach a thing saying, “It must be done,” the chances are that it will. We must always remember that we approach no task alone, but that with us there is God and all his power.’ Caird adds: ‘... faith in God is a power that takes impossibilities in its stride.’

Verses 7 to 10 tell us that we can never do things that make God indebted to us and we can never have any claim on him. When we have done our best, we have only done our duty, and when we have done our duty we have done no more than we could have been compelled to do. Barclay concludes: ‘It may be possible to satisfy the claims of law; but every lover knows nothing can ever satisfy the claims of love.’

The parable of the slave and the master ‘... is a warning against the bookkeeping mentality, which thinks it can run up a credit balance with God.’ The slave’s labour belongs to the master, and a full day’s work is not more than the slave doing what is expected of him. Nothing the slave can do give him any claim on his master’s gratitude or can put his master in his debt. The same is true of Christians: we cannot earn God’s approval nor can we put God in our debt. Even the best service we can offer ‘... is no more than God is entitled to expect, since it gives him nothing that does not belong to him by right. The whole idea of merit is to be abandoned in our approach to God.’