Sermon preached by the Reverend John E. Kitagawa at the Celebration of the Holy Eucharist on Sunday, 26 October 2008 (Pentecost XXIV), St. Philip’s In The Hills Parish, Tucson, Arizona

ASTONISHING LOVE

Deuteronomy 34: 1-12; I Thessalonians 2: 1-8; Matthew 22: 34-46

Today's Gospel story caps a sequence of dramatic confrontations between Jesus and the religious establishment of his day. In this portion of the Gospel, the Pharisees, priests, and elders are keeping a close eye on Jesus. They ask by what authority he speaks (Matthew 21: 23). They want to arrest him, but do not for fear of the crowd (Matthew 21: 45-46). They plot to entrap Jesus, hoping he will discredit himself (Matthew 22: 15-16).

A little background would be helpful to better understand today’s confrontation.

… rabbis had counted 613 commands “in the law.” There were 248 positive commands [you shall do such and such]—the number corresponding to the number of body parts. And then there were 365 negative commands [you shall not do such and such]—equaling the number of days in a year[1]. [My italicized brackets.]

The Pharisees’ plan was that however Jesus responds, they would accuse him of omitting something critically important. Thus, they hope to entrap Jesus, and make him discredit himself. This is the question they ask:

"Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest? (Matthew 22: 36)".

This is Jesus’ response:

"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.” This is the greatest and first commandment. A second is like it: “you shall love your neighbor as yourself.” On these two commandments depend all the law and the prophets" (Matthew 22: 37–40).

By giving a Scriptural response consistent with Jewish tradition, no one could find fault with Jesus. The first part of the response is a paraphrase of the shema, the prayer Jews say daily.

Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God is one Lord; and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and all your might (Deuteronomy 6: 5).

The second part of Jesus’ response is derived from Leviticus 19: 18, which reads:

You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against any of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord.

Clever Jesus … . His response expresses and is grounded in an orthodox understanding of Jewish law, and draws everyone’s attention to the covenantal relationship between God and God’s people. In the words of a scholar,

Just as the Lord shows loving kindness to us, we are to respond with complete devotion to God. The joining of treatment of neighbors with relationship with God is integral to faith, since God’s love is worked out through our dealings with others[2].

So, Jesus turns the tables on his inquisitors, and asks them a question, which they could not answer satisfactorily. That exchange ended the public challenges and confrontations, but the movement to get Jesus became more discreet.

There is in Jesus’ response a subtle shift. The shema calls Israel to love the Lord with heart, soul and might. Jesus shifts to love God with heart, soul and mind. At first glance, this subtle shift may not seem like a big deal. The idea is to love God with the fullness of who we are. But, to love God with “all your mind” means love is more than an emotion, or a religious sentiment. Loving God with our minds means using our heads and figuring things out. In an age when Biblical literalism dominates a great deal of the religious landscape, and when there are challenges to boil faith down to litmus tests, we need to notice Jesus’ shift to loving God with “all your mind”.

Some of you may be familiar with the story of a young man, who wanted the Bible to tell him what to do. “It’s all in the Word of God,” he said, “I’ll just turn to any page in the Bible and do what it says!” The first verse he turned to was this: “Judas went out and hanged himself (Matthew 27: 5).” “Wait a minute! This can’t be right. I’ll try again.” He opened the Bible and let the pages fall again. It said, “Go thou and do likewise (Luke 10: 37).” “No!” He tried a third time. This time, the Bible, the holy Word of God, opened to, “What you must do, do quickly (John 13: 27)”[3]. Centuries ago, theologian, Richard Hooker, established the fundamental Anglican ethos of Scripture, tradition, and reason. So, even when the issue is how to love God fully, we must employ our capacity to think in harmony and balance with the rest of who we are.

I want to return to a theme I left hanging a few moments ago. I noted the Pharisees could not argue with Jesus’ theologically and scripturally sound response. I also noted that Jesus’ response draws attention to the covenantal relationship between God and God’s people. As we are in the midst of our Covenant 2009 Pledge Campaign, I want to underscore and emphasize the joining of treatment of neighbors with relationship with God as being integral to faith. At its heart, Scripture points us to God’s incredible love for us, and God’s desire for us to share and spread that love. This theme is clearly at the core of our Baptismal Covenant[4]. Now hear one writer describe God’s love.

[It is] a less limited, more boundary breaking love. A startling love. A love that turned heads and dropped jaws. A love that needed explanation. A love that upset the system, a revolutionary love. A love that rattled even emperors[5].

Tertullian, who lived from about 160 to 225 CE, wrote how early Christians witnessed to what he termed, God’s “astonishing love”.

… how [Christians] would support the poor, and even pay for their burials. How they would take in orphans. How they would care for the elderly and the home-confined. How they provided for those who had suffered shipwreck, and how they took care of those sickened through epidemics. How they sent money to those who had been banished to islands or mines for the sake of Christ[6].

Jesus knew the Pharisees were playing a “gotcha” game with him. Not only did Jesus outwit his detractors, he responds as if they had asked a more honest, open and fruitful question.

"Teacher, what priorities would help us to deepen our appreciation for, and ability to spread God’s astonishing, head-turning, jaw dropping love?”

Having heard his answer, we must ask ourselves whether we are individually and as a body appreciating and practicing God’s astonishing, head-turning, jaw-dropping love. In my view, there are numerous bright signs that lead me to say, “sometimes,” and, “we’re working at it.” One small testament recently came from a parishioner. She told me several times how much the support and care of Altar Guild members has meant during her son’s long illness and recent death. You will read in the next Loaves & Fishes about the life-giving ministry of one of our Lay Eucharistic Ministers. We saw a glimpse of our “working at it” a few weeks ago, when on only a few days’ notice, a ministry group pulled together a wonderful and warm funeral reception for a grieving family. We see a glimpse in the large quantities of food you bring to feed the hungry. We see an expression in your generous response to our pledge campaign, in the midst of the country’s worst economic conditions in generations. It happens when people are moved by our corporate worship to a new or renewed relationship with God. It happens when a choral piece, or solo, or sermon, or children’s story make it possible for people to sense the Holy Spirit breaking into their lives in life-giving and inspiring ways.

Living a life of faith, living in relationship to and in response to God and God’s love is not easy. When I am struggling, I find it helpful to shift the focus from my inability or ineptitude in faithful living to God and God’s love for me and for us. The insights of a seminary professor are helpful in shifting that focus. I hope his words will also assist your struggle to appreciate more fully, and to share more fully God’s astonishing, head-turning, jaw dropping love.

… no matter how hard I try to escape from you, you will not let me go. I deny you - but I discover that you do not deny me. I forget you - but you keep remembering me. I leave you safely inside the church - but then I find you outside the church. I defy your teachings - but I discover that you have forgiven me. I often wish you would just leave me alone - but I know that if you did I would be utterly lost.

You strengthen me by your ongoing presence in the sacraments of your church. When I am hungry you feed me with the bread of life, your very body, broken for me. When I am faint, you fortify me with the life-giving wine, your very blood, shed for me. At the beginning of my life, you welcomed me into your earthly household with the cleansing water of baptism, and at the end of my life, you will welcome me into your eternal household as well[7].

AMEN.

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