Obedience

AN OPENING PRAYER

Lord God our Father, through our Savior Jesus Christ you have assured your children of eternal life and in baptism have made us one with him. Deliver us from the death of sin and raise us to new life in your love, in the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, by the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

THE OLD TESTAMENT READING:                                   Ezekiel 31:1-6; 10-14  

The Allegory of the Great Cedar

Spoken by the prophet Ezekiel to the pharaoh of Egypt

^31:1-6 In the eleventh year, on the first day of the third month, God's Message came to me: "Son of man, tell Pharaoh king of Egypt, that pompous old goat:

"'Who do you, astride the world,
   think you really are?
Look! Assyria was a Big Tree, huge as a Lebanon cedar,
   beautiful limbs offering cool shade,
Skyscraper high,
   piercing the clouds.
The waters gave it drink,
   the primordial deep lifted it high,
Gushing out rivers around
   the place where it was planted,
And then branching out in streams
   to all the trees in the forest.
It was immense,
   dwarfing all the trees in the forest—
Thick boughs, long limbs,
   roots delving deep into earth's waters.
All the birds of the air
   nested in its boughs.
All the wild animals
   gave birth under its branches.
All the mighty nations
   lived in its shade.

 ^10-14Therefore, God, the Master, says, "'Because it skyscrapered upward, piercing the clouds, swaggering and proud of its stature, I turned it over to a world-famous leader to call its evil to account. I'd had enough. Outsiders, unbelievably brutal, felled it across the mountain ranges. Its branches were strewn through all the valleys, its leafy boughs clogging all the streams and rivers. Because its shade was gone, everybody walked off. No longer a tree—just a log. On that dead log birds perch. Wild animals burrow under it.

  "'That marks the end of the "big tree" nations. No more trees nourished from the great deep, no more cloud-piercing trees, no more earthborn trees taking over. They're all slated for death—back to earth, right along with men and women, for whom it's "dust to dust."

(This prophecy was spoken one month before Jerusalem fell)

PSALM:                                                                                      Psalm 92

A Sabbath Song

 ^1-3 What a beautiful thing, God, to give thanks, to sing an anthem to you, the High God! 
   To announce your love each daybreak, 
      sing your faithful presence all through the night, 
   Accompanied by dulcimer and harp, 
      the full-bodied music of strings. 

 ^4-9 You made me so happy, God 
      I saw your work and I shouted for joy. 
   How magnificent your work, God! 
      How profound your thoughts! 
   Dullards never notice what you do; 
      fools never do get it. 
   When the wicked popped up like weeds 
      and all the evil men and women took over, 
   You mowed them down, 
      finished them off once and for all. 
   You, God, are High and Eternal. 
      Look at your enemies, God! 
   Look at your enemies—ruined! 
      Scattered to the winds, all those hirelings of evil! 

 ^10-14 But you've made me strong as a charging bison, 
      you've honored me with a festive parade. 
   The sight of my critics going down is still fresh, 
      the rout of my malicious detractors. 
   My ears are filled with the sounds of promise: 
      "Good people will prosper like palm trees, 
   Grow tall like Lebanon cedars; 
      transplanted to God's courtyard, 
   They'll grow tall in the presence of God, 
      lithe and green, virile still in old age." 

 ¹⁵ Such witnesses to upright God! 
      My Mountain, my huge, holy Mountain!

Establish your people, O Lord, in the way that leads to righteousness, so that we may with confidence come into your presence and sing your praise; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen

THE NEW TESTAMENT READING                                    2 Corinthians 5:1-10

 ^1-5For instance, we know that when these bodies of ours are taken down like tents and folded away, they will be replaced by resurrection bodies in heaven—God-made, not handmade—and we'll never have to relocate our "tents" again. Sometimes we can hardly wait to move—and so we cry out in frustration. Compared to what's coming, living conditions around here seem like a stopover in an unfurnished shack, and we're tired of it! We've been given a glimpse of the real thing, our true home, our resurrection bodies! The Spirit of God whets our appetite by giving us a taste of what's ahead. He puts a little of heaven in our hearts so that we'll never settle for less.

 ^6-8That's why we live with such good cheer. You won't see us drooping our heads or dragging our feet! Cramped conditions here don't get us down. They only remind us of the spacious living conditions ahead. It's what we trust in but don't yet see that keeps us going. Do you suppose a few ruts in the road or rocks in the path are going to stop us? When the time comes, we'll be plenty ready to exchange exile for homecoming.

 ^9-10But neither exile nor homecoming is the main thing. Cheerfully pleasing God is the main thing, and that's what we aim to do, regardless of our conditions. Sooner or later we'll all have to face God, regardless of our conditions. We will appear before Christ and take what's coming to us as a result of our actions, either good or bad.

THE GOSPEL READING                                                           Mark 4:26-34

Never without a story

 ^26-29Then Jesus said, "God's kingdom is like seed thrown on a field by a man who then goes to bed and forgets about it. The seed sprouts and grows—he has no idea how it happens. The earth does it all without his help: first a green stem of grass, then a bud, then the ripened grain. When the grain is fully formed, he reaps—harvest time!

 ^30-32"How can we picture God's kingdom? What kind of story can we use? It's like a pine nut. When it lands on the ground it is quite small as seeds go, yet once it is planted it grows into a huge pine tree with thick branches. Eagles nest in it."

 ^33-34With many stories like these, he presented his message to them, fitting the stories to their experience and maturity. He was never without a story when he spoke. When he was alone with his disciples, he went over everything, sorting out the tangles, untying the knots.

COMMON PRAYER UNCOMMON PAIN

Assyria was an example for Egypt, and both were examples for Jerusalem to not pierce the heavens with a swagger, or one ends up useless and alone. The Psalmist reminds us good people grow tall in God’s favor and flourish. Paul encourages us to pay attention because all behavior has consequences, not only in the life, but in the life eternal. Jesus, himself, wants us to understand and seek God’s kingdom. He untangles and unties the knots so we can share our experiences to help others understand the urgency of respecting and following the law of love. 

Until we moved from Texas to Florida, the tallest trees I saw were the poplars that lined the north side of our back yard. The small birds nested there. They were a windbreak for our play space and the rest of the backyard. They weren’t good climbing trees because the limbs were weak and too closely spaced. I always knew when I disobeyed my daddy, the new growth near the bottom of the tree made the best switches. 

If I strayed into the vacant lot next door; or if I crossed the street, yards and alley to the railroad tracks; or even rode my bicycle further away than around the block - I knew I would be out taking limbs off the tree. Sometimes, depending on the character of my disobedience (how frequently or recently I had been counseled on the dangers my small rebellions could bring to myself or others) I might be sent back to find “a better one.” I know now my daddy ;was pushing down anger praying for wisdom and prudence. Me, I was just picking switches.

For me, worse than the switching were the questions that came when I finally found the right switch. Why was I being corrected? Did I know the danger I was placing myself in? What kind of example I was being for my younger sisters? “Silence” was never an appropriate response. “Everybody else” didn’t make any difference.

Then, I was sent to my room to “think.” When I was prepared to answer for my mistaken behavior – usually when I regained control from sobbing out my disappointment of myself. Daddy was always waiting with a hug and a consequence that included accountability. We talked about how God felt when we disobeyed. We talked about His joy, patience, and loving kindness. There was “I love you,” promises, and taking all the switches to the burn barrel.

Today obedience is taking medications as and when prescribed. Today obedience is stretching and going to the gym to walk in the water and ride a stationary recumbent bicycle. Today obedience is eating as directed by my doctor for weight loss and wellness. Today obedience is listening for God’s general and specific instructions for my life in ways that will deliver justice with mercy. Today obedience is living with joy through and beyond the pain, anxiety and depression. Today obedience is never being without a story that will shine light into the darkness.

A PRAYER FOR GOD’S BLESSING and SENDING OUT INTO THE WORLD

Keep, O Lord, we beg you, your family the Church in your unwavering faith and love, so by the help of your kindness we may proclaim the Truth with boldness, and have a habit of managing your justice with kindness; for the sake of our Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and rules with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen