Process & Faith: 28 September 2008

Lectionary Commentary

See also: [2005] [2002]

Exodus 17:1-7
Psalm 78:1-4, 12-16
Philippians 2:1-13
Matthew 21:23-32

Today's scriptures invite us to consider questions of alignment between our vision and God's vision for our lives. Is our vision of God’s care and the scope of salvation large enough or do we need to align our vision more consciously with God’s everlasting and all-embracing path of salvation?

The Christological hymn from Philippians invites us to reflect on a Christian koan, or mysterious or evocative question, "what is the mind of Christ?” This was the key question that one of my students constantly asked himself and others over a few year period, “What is the mind of Christ? Is the ‘mind of Christ’ a spiritual quality, an ethical stance, or a metaphysical reality, or all three of those joined in a dynamic synergy defining each moment of experience?” I believe that while the answer to this Christian koan will always remain beyond our reach, it holistically joins what is always meant to be integrated – theology, spirituality, and ethics. Indeed, all four passages point to the unity of these three disciplines of faith which ultimately shape our worship and lifestyle as followers of Jesus.

Paul counsels the Philippian community to have the same mind within them that Christ embodied in his ministry. Paul's counsel is both personal and corporate. As individuals we are called to make Christ's vision the center of our experience. But, the community as “body of Christ” is also called to awaken to the deepest reality of the mind that animates its communal life. Similar to the “sighs too deep for words” that Paul describes in Romans 8, the mind of Christ animates the individual and the collective, guiding and directing first unconsciously and, then, consciously through worship, service, and contemplation. In line with the image of the Triune God, all of divine personae must be everywhere, shaping to greater or lesser degree everything, and this means that the mind of Christ is inspiring you and your congregation even when you don’t know it.

Like most important theological issues, it is important that we open ourselves to many possibilities in understanding and experiencing the meaning of the mind of Christ. Too much theological clarity excludes layers of reality when we need to be most open to the polyvalent nature of divine revelation. Still, Philippians provides a few insights into this Christian koan. The mind of Christ is, first of all, global and inclusive. It is the mind in all things at their deepest and best. Rather than emphasizing the gulf between infinite and finite, touted by Karl Barth and much “orthodox” Christianity, the mind of Christ joins God and us at the most intimate level. Contra Barth, I believe here is always a "point of contact" in Christ's presence in all things. Christ does not cling to God in contrast to the world in all its messiness and pain, but lets go of his divine otherness – what some describe as the infinite qualitative distance between Creator and creature - to transform our inwardness and save the world. There is no dualism of God and the world, or Christ and humankind, even though Christ is always more than we can imagine. Further, Christ in becoming one of us, fully taking on the human adventure, embraces the world in all its joy and sorrow. Christ suffers with us and in his sharing of our lives brings forth the possibility of transformation, healing, and salvation.

Christology and soteriology, or the vision of salvation, are joined in Paul's Christological hymn. The Christ who goes beyond the dualism of divine and human also transcends the dualism of saved and damned, and found and lost. Every knee will bow, every tongue will confess, that Jesus is Savior to the glory of God. The key word is every – does this imply God’s universal call and our conscious response, which may or not occur, or something deeper, that everyone will eventually say “yes” to God’s embracing love?

The Christ whose oneness with God reflects God’s oneness with creation seeks to save all creation. God's joy is in inclusion, not exclusion; in healing not illness; in salvation, not damnation. Philippians 2 invites us to ponder a Christological universalism in which Christ is in all things as their deepest reality, and all things are in Christ as their ultimate destiny. The One, who is always more than we can imagine, guides and leads us to a realm of awareness in which we truly experience the mind of Christ in our unique and creative way as our deepest reality.

A community conformed to the mind of Christ is awake to God's presence in worship, everyday life, prayer, and service. Like a healthy body, this community seeks to incarnate health in every part and in the whole. Such a community lives by practices of contemplation in order to experience Christ's inner presence and guidance; practices of perception in order to see Christ in all things; and practices of healing that seek transformation of community and culture, church and world. Preaching in such a community is intended to inspire awareness of Christ’s mind communally and personally and, in so doing, inspire Christ-like acts of inclusion and healing within the community and in the world.

The preacher may choose to ask her or his congregation, “When did you feel attuned with Christ? When did you see Christ? What enabled you to experience Christ within you as the hope of God’s glory in your life and in the world?”

The gospel (especially Matthew 21:28-32) asks another koan-like question, "Who belongs in God's realm?" and suggests that one answer is "everyone.” The surprise is that those furthest away are the first to enter. The banished belong in God's realm of radical and subversive hospitality. Jesus' community welcomes all - the righteous who need a conversion of heart and an awakening to solidarity and the lost who can't imagine that God would embrace them as beloved daughters and sons. We all belong, and the surprising response to this koan is found in pondering, “Who will be next to me in God’s everlasting reign? Will the ones I might banish be in line ahead of me in God’s healing realm?” Some of us may find ourselves in God’s realm of Shalom singing next to the leader of Iran, while others may find ourselves chanting beside Dick Cheney. In either case, they may also be surprised to find us next to them!

Once again, in Exodus we encounter the interplay of call and response, both human and divine. This time the Israelites call out in all their fear and doubt. They are concerned that God won't come through. But, rather than punishing them for doubt, God comes through in a saving way, providing water from the rock will refresh and sustain them.

As we look at our lives, the question emerges, "when will God respond?" and "how will God respond?” Rather than turning away from these doubters and skeptics, God hears their prayer, experiences their doubt, and provides a pathway to survival. This is creative-responsive love at its best. The God who brings the Israelites forth from captivity, and who saves their lives, guides and sustains them even when they are unaware of God’s constant care. Surely water was all around – like manna and quail – as the gift of God, but God opened their eyes and guided their steps to flowing waters in the midst of a dry land. This is a miracle – not so much a violation of the laws of nature – but a miracle of awareness that God, who is constantly providing possibilities, energies, and pathways to wholeness, is with us in the holy here and now to provide for our deepest need in this moment. Remembering grace awakens us to the grace of the present and the hope of the future.

Psalm 78 invites us to “remember” God’s presence in our lives. Perhaps, the question is “Where have you seen God? When did God become real to you? When did you find resources when you thought you were alone and helpless?”

While the future is radically open, we find hope and energy in remembering where God has been present in our lives. God's work is often subtle and not noticed until many years later. But God is with us in the moment and throughout our lives. The preacher might ask the congregation other questions such as, "Where have we found healing when we were broken? Where did you find direction when we were lost? What gave us a future when we faced a dead end?” As we look at our lives, we are called to have, as Kierkegaard said, a passion for the possible and to trust that the God of possibility has a vision - or many visions - for each moment of experience. Each moment bears the imprint of God's loving care and, in the future, that same care will present us with pathways of possibility appropriate to each step of the way. Life is still dangerous and perplexing, and failure is a possibility, But, still our task is one of openness to the vision God presents us one moment at a time.

The perceptive pastor may choose to invite the congregation to imagine where God is in its life today - individually and corporately. In the interplay of silent listening and imaginative service, persons can envisage God's faithfulness and train themselves to follow the wisdom they experience. While we experience God in surprising and unexpected ways, we may also bring God’s presence to our awareness by remembering and claiming special moments that shine a light on the totality of our lives and remind us that in life and in death, God is our companion, guide, comforter, and challenger, and that the One who breathed life and possibility into our lives will embrace us when we feel alone and without resources.

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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