It has been said that Christians should preach the gospel and use words if they have to. It’s another way of saying actions speak louder than words. But we are in a society that uses lots of words. Words in newspapers, books, articles, advertisements, tv shows, movies, videos, music, debates, laws, conversations, contracts, courts, legislatures, on the radio, in direct mail, and on and on. We are part of a culture of words and communication – via talking, texting, and typing. All these words are shaping our thoughts, our values, and our experience of ourselves and the wider world.
In Psalm 22, the writer declares of God:
I will tell of your name to my brothers and sisters;
in the midst of the congregation I will praise you.
From you comes my praise in the great congregation
. . . future generations will be told about God.
We hear the writer make a commitment to talking about God, to telling others about God, to speaking about God. The writer is committing to spreading the word about God’s faithfulness, love and goodness.
In today’s context, we celebrate God in church. We talk, sing, and pray in ways that affirm the love and goodness and faithfulness of God. And it is good that we do. That is what church is about. But I am wondering how much talking we do about God outside of church? For one thing, to talk about God freely in non-church contexts can feel uncomfortable because we may be concerned about alienating or offending others, especially those of other religions. Also, we may feel that to speak freely of God and faith may make us appear to be, well, superstitious, or even worse, extremists who want to impose their religion on others. Where might we get these associations? So much in the media about Christianity and faith represents a small segment of the spectrum of Christian beliefs and practice, yet it has taken over as the default definition of Christianity. Christianity is not primarily about prayer in schools, or abortion, or birth control. If we look at what Jesus has to say, Christianity is about a God of unconditional love, economic justice, acceptance of the nobodies in society, and food and healthcare for all. Christianity is also about anti violence. Think of some of the basics: feeding the poor, helping the homeless, assisting those in prison, loving the enemy, and giving everyone access to power. But people will never see this side of Christianity unless more people start to make their voices heard. And here we are back to Psalm 22. For people to see other facets of faith, of Christianity, of God, we have to tell. We have to open our mouths. We have to use words. Deeds are well and good, but words are needed also. Think about how you can start spreading the love of God using words, too.
Prayer
We are grateful for our faith that teaches us to trust in the power of divine love. We are grateful for those who have taught us about the way of Jesus and how to find life in service to others. May we not be afraid to use words to share our faith so that all people may know of the love and compassion of God. Amen.
Lakewood United Church of Christ 