LAKEWOOD UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST
2601 54th Avenue South St. Petersburg, FL 33712 on the Gulf of Mexico
On land originally inhabited by the Tocabaga
727-867-7961
lakewooducc.org
lakewooducc@gmail.com
Date: February 23, 2025
Scripture Lesson: Luke 6:27-36
Sermon: Faith Is Absurd
Pastor: Rev. Kim P. Wells
Love your enemies.
Do good to those who hate you.
Bless those who curse you.
Pray for those who abuse you.
Turn the other cheek.
If someone takes your coat give them your shirt also.
Give to everyone who begs from you.
Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
Love your enemies, do good, and lend, expecting NOTHING in return.
Do not judge or condemn. Forgive. [See Luke 6: 27-36]
Do we hear this? This is a radical shift from the common wisdom of the society and culture around us – it was in Jesus’ day and it may be even more so today. This is a call to ending complicity with a culture of violence and injustice and intolerance, economic and social. The gospel is a call to engaging in a completely different kind of living in which you let go of resentments and grudges and you don’t seek revenge. Where you seek to understand and help those who harm you. You, as an individual. You, as a community. You, as a country and a people. The form of the word ‘you’ in the verses we heard today is plural. So, this admonition is not just for the individual but for the community, the society. This is a call to ending self-obsession and narcissism and greed. It is a call to other-centered living. This is a call to wild compassion, generosity, and love expressed in community.
These are core teachings of Jesus. Perhaps among the best known. The foundation of the gospel. The basis for morality in the reality of God. Yet, let’s be honest. These teachings are, well, absurd.
Other spiritual paths have the moral dictate ‘do no harm.’ Well, that in and of itself is a challenge. But Jesus does not stop at the already almost inconceivable declamation, do no harm. No. Jesus goes even further. Do good. And do good to those who hate and revile you. And let’s remember that in the first century there were plenty of people, Roman and Jewish alike, who reviled the followers of Jesus; who were persecuting the followers of Jesus; who were doing physical, social, and economic harm to the followers of Jesus. So these words that we heard from Luke are not ‘theoretical.’ They are given to people who were actually very much experiencing harm at the hands of those around them for their devotion to Jesus.
And Jesus does not just say, do no harm. Don’t hit back. No. He says, turn the other cheek. Let them hit you again, if they will. Help these people. Give to them. More than they ask for. Forgive them. Don’t judge them. Don’t become consumed with hatred or fear of those who hate you. And for heaven’s sake, don’t use violence, force, to solve your problems or take revenge.
Jesus teaches us to do not just the easy good. Like a buck to the guy panhandling at the end of the exit ramp. But give to those who have wronged us. And not just giving away something ‘extra.’ Remember John the Baptizer saying, if you have two coats, give one away. Jesus says, if someone takes your coat, give them your shirt, too. Give away your own necessities. In our time, that may not be clothes. It may not even be money. It may be time. Take the time to help others despite all you think you have to do and should be doing. If someone asks for an hour, give them a day.
With Jesus, it is not just about do no harm, difficult as that is. But it is do the good. Do more. Go further.
Why? Why would Jesus ask this of his followers? We are told in the verses we heard this morning. Because you are ‘children of the most High: For God is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked. Be merciful, just as God is merciful.” There it is. This is the nature of God. To do good for all. No matter what we have done. This is what God is like – giving us more than we could ask for or imagine. Providing for us. Loving us unconditionally. Showing us infinite mercy. So this is to be the character of our nature as well because we are created in the Divine image.
The teachings of Jesus completely shatter other images of God as a God that is violent, hateful, mean, angry, punishing, and war-like. These are images of God that are used to justify human behavior mirroring these traits. Jesus presents us with a template for a God that is merciful, kind, generous, forgiving, non violent, and compassionate.
And we are created in the image of that God. So, to be fully ourselves, to be true to ourselves, to experience our highest freedom without constraint, we are to emulate the character of God. Jesus is calling us to our highest good. Our deepest joy.
There was a very beautiful story in the New York Times last week about an evangelical pastor whose brother and then son come out as gay. This upends the pastor’s faith, life, job. Everything that has made him who he is. In 2013 before he knows that his son is gay, he writes in his journal, “I think down deep, I hate homosexuality. I hate it more than just about anything else in the world. I hate it because it seems sometimes to be stronger than you, God. Yes, that’s what I said. It seems that way. I am sure there is plenty of good in the gay community, but my experience tells me otherwise — I see the isolation, the craving, the insecurity. Father, you have to spare Timothy [his son] from that. You have to.” [This quote and the ones to come are from “How My Dad Reconciled His God and His Gay Son,” by Timothy White, The New York Times, 2/16/25.]
The son, Timothy comes out 2 years later in 2015. The pastor starts to explore his theology and faith around inclusion. He considers the authority of the Bible and the church as he knows it. He questions the foundation he has built his faith and his life on. And as his foundation begins to crumble, he notes in his journal, “Life and morality and God and religion were a lot clearer then than it is now. And yet the strange thing is that I’ve never felt closer to Jesus — more intimate, more interested, more willing to sacrifice for him, and more free to be a Christian.”
There is it. The freedom. Jesus wants us to be free to fully express the good that is within us with no restrictions or constraints.
The pastor writes a letter to the governing body of his denomination telling about what his church is going through and their exploration of welcoming and including LGBTQ people into the church. He says: “Let me put it very plainly; I don’t think City Church Long Beach will be here in a year if we don’t live into the mission God has called us to. If we turn away the people he is bringing to us, our Sunday service will shrink and die. On top of that, if we can’t live into our convictions, our very souls will shrink and die. We will close our doors and shut down our hearts.”
This is what Jesus is trying to stop when he teaches: Love your enemy. Do good to those who hate you. Give and give and forgive. Asking nothing in return. Do not condemn. Do not judge. It seems too much. Scary. Beyond our capacity.
Certainly Timothy’s father found the journey to acceptance of his son and a transformation of his theology and world view threatening and scary. And yet as things resolve, he comments in his journal, “I entered this journey unwillingly, but as it draws to a close for me I find myself flooded with gratitude. I’m grateful to God loving me along the way, changing me along the way. And although it’s uncomfortable, I am grateful for the call to become radically welcoming — not just of those with whom I agree but welcoming of those with whom I disagree.”
Let’s be honest, our country, our communities, our families are fraught with disagreement at this time. There is severe polarization. Last night we went to another high brow event with our friends that administer an endowment for the arts. We were part of a table of eight at a gala. Our friends let us know, ahead of time, that one couple at the table did not share our political views. We were being warned so that we could behave accordingly. I told our friends, don’t worry, we’re ok with that. We’re Christians after all. We’re the ones who are supposed to be understanding and kind in our dealings with others, whoever those others may be.
I saw this same generosity of spirit from a neighbor recently. Her political leanings are different than mine. I was talking with another neighbor who shares my views. The other neighbor came up to join in the conversation. We told her we were discussing politics. She responded, “Then I’ll listen.” She is a devoted church goer. Again, she is being very Christian about the whole thing. And we need more of that.
True freedom. To be good. To be nonjudgmental. To be loving and kind. Because that is who we fundamentally are as creatures created in the image of God. We are free to be generous and loving. To everyone. Not just the people like us. This is true freedom.
It is not the freedom to stand your ground and kill someone. It is not the freedom to own a gun. Or to lower the taxes on guns so that more people can buy them. That is not freedom. Christian freedom is not the freedom to kill a killer, even if it is legal.
Jesus challenges his followers, the church, to embody the true ways and spirit of Divine Love. To seek peace. And reconciliation. To give more than we are being asked for especially to those who are regarded as less than. We are to conduct ourselves with grace and generosity and good will toward all.
This description of the nature of the way of Jesus is so far from much of what we see in the church in this country. So much of Christianity today is self-centered, not other-centered. It is focussed on receiving blessings not giving blessings to others. It promotes amassing wealth and comfort instead of meeting the needs of others. Much of the church in America today is about giving a God-veneer to consumer capitalism, sexism, racism, and ethnocentrism. Jesus invites us to be free of all of that. To live unencumbered by hatred or malice or greed.
And, the church also readily accepts and promotes violence – encouraging armed conflict, military service, promoting gun ownership, even hiring armed guards as security for church services, supporting the death penalty. This is all completely contrary to the way of Jesus. We are to love all of our enemies, all those who consider us enemy, all those who would do us harm. Love them not just in our hearts, but by helping them, listening to their stories, honoring their experience and their humanity. Certainly we are not to mistreat or inflict violence upon another. I love the story about the church in California where a shooter appeared on Sunday morning and some church members tackled him and tied him up with an extension cord. They restrained him. For safety reasons. Someone did not whip out a gun and shoot him.
The way of Jesus puts us completely out of step with the society around us. Jesus tells his listeners that if they follow him they will be hated, reviled, excluded and defamed. This goes for Christians today. If we were really taking the Sermon on the Plain seriously, there’d be fallout.
Oh, we can’t invite her to the Met Gala. She’s a Christian. She won’t wear an obscenely expensive designer outfit. Oh, he’s a Christian. We can’t accept him in the police academy because he won’t fire a gun at a criminal and that might put the lives of colleagues in danger. Oh, she’s Christian, we can’t have her as a diplomat because she will try to help all the countries even those that hate us instead of just helping our allies. We can’t hire him to work on this political campaign because he’s a Christian. He won’t design ads that smear the other candidate.
I mean there are all kinds of ramifications that go with actually following the teachings of Jesus that we heard today. You could lose your job, for instance, even if you are a pastor.
Some 6 years after his decrying of homosexuality, Bill White, the pastor whose son was gay, entered this in his journal: “As Katy [his wife] prayed last night she thanked you for the remarkable gift of Timothy coming out — and how we thought it was the end, but it was only the beginning of a full, true, vibrant life in Christ. Father, thank you that you created our son gay. Forgive me for how poorly I received that gift.” Maybe next Pastor Bill White will be led to examine patriarchy and male imagery for God!
The teachings of Jesus were absurd in the first century. And they may be seen as even more absurd now. But they are life-giving. And when we water them down, we negate our reason for being as a church. And we deny the gift we are being given and that the church has to give the world.
We close with a story from a monk of the 13th century and how he navigated the waters of the extreme teachings of Jesus and the watered down version endorsed by his monastery. Apparently, Brother Juniper, a companion of Francis of Assisi, was notorious for constantly giving his possessions away, including his clothes. Remember the verse, if someone asks for your coat, give them your shirt as well? Well, Brother Juniper took Jesus at his word. But his superior in the monastery was not happy about all the clothes and other things that were being given away. At one point Brother Juniper was ordered by his superior not to give away his coat to beggars anymore. Shortly after that order, he met someone in need who asked for some clothing. Apparently, Brother Juniper is remembered for responding: “My superior has told me under obedience not to give my clothing to anyone. But if you pull it off my back, I certainly will not prevent you.” Francis is said to have joked that he wished for a forest of Junipers! [This story is in Common Prayer: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals, Shane Claiborne, Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove, Enuma Okoro, p. 278.]
May we not be afraid or selfish when it comes to the power of love within us. May we be open to being transformed. May we transform the world. Amen.
A reasonable effort has been made to appropriately cite materials referenced in this sermon. For additional information, please contact Lakewood United Church of Christ.
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