Book of Faith - Luke 16:14-18 - Divorce

In reading Luke, it was difficult to move through this passage about divorce.   To set the context, in the time of Jesus, there were two schools of thought about divorce.  One was the school of Shammai, which allowed divorce only on the grounds of adultery.  The other school of the school of Hillel, which had a more liberal interpretation.  A man could divorce his wife because she spoiled the food, or spoke disrespectfully, or was too loud.  This is just a partial list.  The prevailing view was Hillel.  In fact, it was so bad that women were refusing to be married.  Jesus enters the conversation and argues against divorce.  "Every one who divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery, and he who marries a woman divorced from her husband commits adultery."  

Here is where our discussion began.  Are there absolute laws?  What does it mean that we are free of the law? What is the church's position on divorce?  Has it changed through the years?  How can it change?  If it can, what are the implications for other laws?

We began the conversation looking at the church's position through the years.  Going back to 1930, there has been a shift in our position about divorce.  Divorce is still a sin because it is a breaking of a relationship, but there is a much more gracious tone.  Divorce is a consequence of our living in a broken and sinful world.  Sometimes, divorce brings an end to an abusive relationship.  However, every divorce is an occasion of grief.  Everyone who has ever gone through a divorce can speak of the pain.  No one needs to tell someone who is divorcing about the brokenness.  Certainly, no one needs to judge them.  As a community of faith, we are to speak a word of forgiveness and grace.  If someone then marries again, the hope and prayer is for that marriage to be for a lifetime.  God's intention remains the same.  God intends every marriage to be forever.  That is the constant.  Jesus sounds harsh in scripture because of the reason the people had for  asking the question.  They were trying to get around the law.  They wanted to justify divorce as though bending or using the law would negate the consequences.  Divorce is never OK.  Divorce is never what God intends.  However, like the woman caught in the act of adultery, in the midst of someone divorcing, God's word is one of forgiveness, not judgment.  As Jesus says to the adulterous woman, after he challenges anyone who is without sin to throw a stone of judgement at her and one by one the people walk away, "Is there no one left to judge you, neither do I.  Go and sin no more."  This is God's gracious word.  

We will be continuing this conversation this coming Wednesday.  We have not addressed all the questions.  We invite you to join us in person at noon on Wednesday or join us on the blog.  In any event, be a part of the discussion as we explore the scriptures on the road to discipleship.  

Book of Faith - Luke 16: 1-13 - The Dishonest Stewardship

By comparison, last Wednesday, with the parable of the lost sheep and the prodigal son were, was easy.  This week, the parable of the dishonest steward raised all kinds of questions.  Here is a man who is caught cheating and before he is dismissed by his master, he alters the book so that people will owe his master less and think well of him.  The master finds out and commends the dishonest steward for his shrewdness.  What do we do with such a parable?  Even Luke seems to have difficulty by following the parable with verses 10-13.  He doesn't want us to get the wrong idea.  For Luke, the point of the parable is not that we are to be dishonest.  Luke makes it clear that if you are dishonest with even a little, you will be dishonest when the stakes are higher.  And if you are dishonest, who will entrust you with the true riches?  

Of course, this leads us back to the original parable and all the difficulties the story holds.  It certainly is not an allegory.  God is not the rich man commending the dishonesty of his steward.  The story is not an example of how we are to live our lives.  We are not to be dishonest with money in order to make friends.  So what is the point?  The discussion focused on seeing the big picture.  Jesus is saying that even the people of this world know how to use the gifts they have.  The steward knows how to play the game.  He cheats by altering the books.  He uses his gift.  He knows he is not strong enough to do labor.  He is too proud to beg.  But he knows how to cook the books.  As people of faith, we have been given many gifts.  How often do we use those gifts?  How often do they sit on the shelf?  How often do we wait?  If even a dishonest man knows how do use his gifts, shouldn't we use the gifts that God has given us?  Earlier in Luke, Jesus talks about salt losing its saltiness.  The only way salt loses its saltiness is if it is not used.  We need to use the gifts God has given.  

One final note, the beauty of scripture is that scripture opens so many unexpected doors.  One person in the group saw in the parable letting go of some things in order to open the future.  A hundred measures of oil owed becomes 50 measures of oil.  Sometimes we hold on to set beliefs or grudges that keep us from reconciling with others, that keep doors locked that should be opened.  Sometimes we need to let go.  The group enjoyed this surprising insight from this parable.  Who knows where the Spirit will lead you as you spend time with God's word?

Peace,
Pastor Summer

Book of Faith - Luke 15 - The Prodigal Son: What happens next?

The 15th chapter of Luke includes two of the best know stories in scripture: the Lost Sheep and the Prodigal Son.  The Prodigal Son caused the most conversation.  The question was asked, "What happens after the welcome home feast?"  The older son is already upset about his father throwing a party for his younger brother, who wasted all of his inheritance (which should have been the older brother's in the first place) and comes home because he has nowhere else to go.  Everyone in the group appreciated the older brother's feeling.  An example was given of people receiving assistance when they fail to pay their mortgage.  What about the people who have taken a big hit financially, but still faithfully pay their mortgage?  How is their not receiving help fair?  Are we supporting those who are irresponsible?  It's difficult not to be upset.  It doesn't seem fair.  So we're back to the original question about what happens after the feast.

Two possibilities were given by the group, however, neither felt right.  One possibility would be that after the party, the younger son receives another portion of the inheritance, but that seems truly unfair.  A second possibility would be that the younger brother receives nothing, but that also doesn't feel right.  Out of our discussion a third possibility arose.  What if the gracious welcome the younger son received changed (transformed) his life?  What if he refused any additional support?  What if the welcome (which he didn't expect) was all he needed?  This possibility felt right for everyone and reflected what we say about grace.  We say God's grace has the power to change (transform) lives.  Paul, Augustine, and Luther all believed in that transforming power.  

This led to a discussion about where we have seen or experienced that transforming power in our lives.  There are some faith traditions that are very comfortable talking about a changed or transformed life.  We Lutherans are not as open about recognizing or sharing that experience. We tend not to point to one moment, but say that it happens over time.  We say that transformation takes place in our baptism and that we acknowledge that change in confirmation.  We say that transforming power is experienced when we come to the table at worship or when we hear the word proclaimed.  One person shared that they experienced that transforming power in the Book of Faith conversations.  The more we talked, the more examples were put on the table.  The conversation then turned to how we, as Lutherans, can lift up and celebrate those moments and occasions of transformation.  We need to say, like our brothers and sisters in other traditions, that the gospel, the grace of God, has the power to change lives and is doing so each and every day.

Peace,

Pastor Summer

Book of Faith - Luke 14:25-35 - Discipleship: In or Out

This week, we couldn't get past the cost of discipleship.  Jesus speaks of you hating your father, mother, children,  brothers, sisters, and your own life, if you would be a disciple.  This radical call is soften a little when you remove the word "hate" with it's emotional content, and talk about priorities, who or what comes first.  Jesus says, if we are to be disciples, he must come first before anyone or anything else, including  family and our own lives.  Even soften, this is an extraordinary demand.  The question was asked whether there was some middle ground.  The suggestion was made that there could be an "Associate Disciple" and everyone laughed, but the truth is, there is no middle ground.  With discipleship, it's all or nothing.  Jesus makes this point clearly and makes it more often as he moves toward the cross.  At least, that's how the gospel of Luke presents the story.  Where is the grace?

The group noted that in the gospel of Luke, that most of Jesus' words of grace seem to be for the outsiders, the gentiles, and the sinners more than his own people, certainly more that the righteous people and religious leaders. For the righteous and authorities, there always seems to be a challenge.  Jesus wants to shake things up, to get people out of their comfort zones.  There is a radical nature to being a disciple that makes you leave everything you thought you knew behind.  Discipleship demands a dependence on God that does not come easily to us.  Discipleship is something we can't do ourselves.

Where is the grace in the call to discipleship?  The example we explored was the teacher who challenged us to the core when we were in school.  Often times, our favorite teacher was the most demanding.  I had an English teacher who gave me my first and only D's.  I didn't get D's in school.  How could this be?  He demanded more of me.  At first, I thought he was completely unfair.  By comparison, my writing was not that bad.  There were times when I hated him and saw my homework assignments and doing battle with him.  I would not let him get the best of me.  I would show him.  As you can imagine, my grades began to improve dramatically.  I began to notice that my writing was much better than it had ever been.  I began to enjoy writing, which was a first for me.  I became proud of some of my stories and would go back over them.  By the end of the year, this English became one of my favorite teachers and I was one of his favorite students.  I would learn that I had always been one of his favorite students.  He wanted to challenge me to become something more than I had been.  I never thought of myself as a writer or that I could be creative with words.  He saw the potential in me and challenged me.  I will never forget the gift he gave me, even though it was a struggle at the time.  His challenge was an act of grace.  

Jesus calls us to something greater in our lives.  He calls us to discipleship.  The road is not easy and we cannot travel the road alone.  We stumble on the way.  We grow weary.  We fall short, but we travel on.  There are times when the challenge seems to great, but, once we begin the journey, we don't want to leave the road.  We are grateful that we have been called.  We discover strengths and gifts in ourselves we never imagined.  We come to realize that the call, though radical and challenging, is grace.