September 14 , 2008 Twenty-fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time Proper 19 Commentary by Bruce G. Epperly

See also: [2005] [2002]

Exodus 14:19-31
Exodus 15:1b-11, 20-21
Romans 14:1-12
Matthew 18:21-35

Today’s readings speak of the interplay of grace and justice in the affairs of persons and nations. The Exodus readings celebrate the deliverance of the Hebrews from their Egyptian oppressors. In the nick of time, God comes through to save the people. God makes “a way when there was no way” for the people to cross the sea, and then lets loose the waters to destroy the Egyptian army. While scholars have debated the historical accuracy and geography of this text and have challenged its vision of supernatural deliverance, nevertheless the Hebraic peoples saw God’s hand moving to free them from oppression.

Although mainstream and progressive, process-relational Christians understand God’s movements in history in terms of working within and through the interplay of natural causes, we also look for the movements of the omnipresent and omni-active God in the movements of our own lives and faith communities. If, indeed, God is a lively center of experience, presenting each moment with a vision of what it can be, we can imagine that some moments may more fully express God’s aim toward justice, wholeness, and beauty than others. In the interplay of divine universality and divine variability, we can also imagine that God, like ourselves, joins momentary and global visions. Although I believe, in contrast to Rick Warren’s Purpose Driven Life, that God allows for maximal creaturely freedom and creativity in the context of God’s momentary and global vision, God may take the initiative in providing the energy and the imagination necessary for Exodus moments in our lives. Still our “input,” or partnership, is essential in the realization of God’s vision in our communities and personal lives.

Nevertheless, as in the case of last week, we need to explore the vision of God, described in the destruction of the Egyptian army. Our actions have consequences, both individually and corporately. Injustice and militarism leave in their wake poverty, post-traumatic stress among soldiers and their families, hopelessness, higher prices for essential commodities such as food and transportation, and pervasive mistrust of political leaders. Perhaps, the destruction of the Egyptian army was a consequence of Pharaoh’s domestic and foreign policy, and serves as a warning to any national leader who believes that military power alone can assure security and prosperity. Nevertheless, Moses’ image of God as a “warrior” and Miriam’s gleeful celebration of the enemy’s death are theologically problematic and may be exploited in order to identify God’s will with our own use of power to dominate other peoples.

In the spirit of William James’ concept of the “moral equivalent of war,” we would do well to see such military images in terms of justice-making that includes not only our side, but also those whom we oppose. We can “fight” for a righteous cause, but must always recognize the limitations of our own perspective and the danger to dehumanize persons in order to achieve our own just ends. We also would do well to remember the wisdom of Rienhold Niebuhr, foreshadowed by Abraham Lincoln’s recognition that we should not pray for God to be on our side, but for our nation to be on God’s side.

Paul’s words in Romans 14 have a post-modern feel. Paul recognizes, affirms, and relativizes the diverse forms of practice within the emerging Christian community. Diversity is a call to appreciation and understanding rather than judgment. Our aim in all our religious behavior is to live in relationship to the God whose presence is revealed in, but not contained by, our rituals and practices. We belong to God, whose wisdom is sovereign in life and death.

Paul’s counsel in Romans 14 is an antidote to the culture and worship wars that divide communities and congregations. Our spiritual, liturgical, and life-style practices are confessional in nature and reflect our diverse spiritual experiences, social contexts, personality types, nationalities, and ethnicities. No one path has the whole story or is appropriate for everyone. Each authentic path brings healing to those who follow it. Through it all, our allegiance is to God who inspires all authentic paths of salvation and not merely to our own particular path. As significant as our path may be for our spiritual community and our own growth, the absolutizing of any path leads to spiritual and often physical violence and persecution of those with whom we disagree over matters of ethics, lifestyle, and theology.

Matthew 18 portrays the centrality of forgiveness in Christian life. Forgiveness is one way that we say “yes” to God’s grace within our lives. God’s grace has guided, challenged, and inspired us every step of the way, even when have fallen off the path. In the interplay of divine call and human response, and human action and divine healing, God is constantly forgiving, or letting go of the past, in order for us to experience new life. This same ongoing process of letting go is essential to healthy Christian community and interpersonal relationships. Just as God is infinite in grace and forgiveness, we should forgive others as a way of restoring health to the community, reconciling with those who have hurt us, and promoting our own well-being.

The parable of “the unforgiving servant” is not intended to be a model for human interaction. We do not need to throw the book at those who fail to share the grace they have received. But, we can clearly recognize the cost of unforgiveness and gracelessness. Those who chose not to forgive or share the blessings they have received will minimize God’s ability to bring wholeness and beauty into their lives. When we turn away from grace, we may experience “a famine of hearing the word of God.” Some medical studies even suggest the possibility of a “forgiveness factor” that is registered not only in our spiritual and emotional well-being, but also our physical well-being. In the holistic nature of life, could our own forgiveness be a factor, though the not the only one, in physical as well as relational health and disease?

The graceful God, who delivers the powerless from their oppressors, calls us to be channels of grace to one another. While we may seek redress from those who practice oppression and injustice, God’s grace calls us to recognize that we are also in need of grace and forgiveness. While we may not love the Egyptian taskmasters, the unforgiving neighbor, or persons who judge our worship and spiritual practices as inferior to their own, God is at work in all of our lives to create a realm of Shalom and healthy relationships. The “warrior God” is ultimately the “loving God,” who strives after healing and justice for persons and nations.

Bruce Epperly is professor of practical theology and director of continuing education at Lancaster Theological Seminary. He is author of fifteen books, including a response to The Purpose Driven Life, the forthcoming Holy Adventure: Forty-One Days of Audacious Living (Upper Room Press).

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