1 Corinthians 2:1-12 When I came to you, brothers and sisters, I did not come proclaiming the mystery of God to you in lofty words or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and him crucified. And I came to you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling. My speech and my proclamation were not with plausible words of wisdom, but with a demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith might rest not on human wisdom but on the power of God.
Yet among
the mature we do speak wisdom, though it is not a wisdom of this age or of the
rulers of this age, who are doomed to perish. But we speak God’s wisdom,
secret and hidden, which God decreed before the ages for our glory. None
of the rulers of this age understood this; for if they had, they would not have
crucified the Lord of glory. But, as it is written, “What no eye has seen,
nor ear heard, nor the human heart conceived, what God has prepared for those
who love him”— these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit; for
the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God. For what human
being knows what is truly human except the human spirit that is within? So also
no one comprehends what is truly God’s except the Spirit of God. Now we
have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit that is from God, so
that we may understand the gifts bestowed on us by God.
Matthew 5:13-20 “You are the salt
of the earth; but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be
restored? It is no longer good for anything, but is thrown out and trampled
under foot. “You are the light of
the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. No one after lighting a lamp puts it
under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the
house. In the same way, let your
light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory
to your Father in heaven.
“Do not think
that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets; I have come not to abolish
but to fulfill. For truly I tell
you, until heaven and earth pass away, not one letter, not one stroke of a
letter, will pass from the law until all is accomplished. Therefore, whoever breaks one of the
least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, will be called
least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does them and teaches them will be
called great in the kingdom of heaven. For
I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and
Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
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The
musical, Les Miserables, opens with prisoners on a chain gang singing a
song: “Look down, look down! Don’t look ‘em in the eye. Look down, look down! You’re here until you die.” One convict says, “I’ve done no wrong; sweet
Jesus, hear my prayer!” The gang
answers, “Look down, look down; sweet Jesus doesn’t care.” Another says, “I know she’ll wait, I know
that she’ll be true!” The gang answers, “Look
down, look down; they’ve all forgotten you.”
Look
down. Look down. Don’t try to help yourself. Don’t try to help anyone else. Just keep your head down. This is the message. This is a dangerous place. It’s a brutal world. Look down.
It’s
one way of sizing up the world and living in it. Keep your head down. Keep your light low.
The
main character in the story, Jean Valjean, is one of the prisoners on that
chain gang. He gets his parole and is
released from prison. But he is not
truly free. Convicts do not easily find
honest work. No one wants to hire a
convict, even once he’s paid his debt to society. Just like before, he grows desperate. A churchman, a bishop, is the only one who
shows him mercy, but Valjean steals from him.
He is caught by the police and returned to the bishop with the silver he
took, and the most remarkable thing happens:
The bishop lies to protect Valjean.
The bishop forgives him and gives him a chance to be truly free.
When
the police are gone, he tells Jean Valjean to keep the silver and use it to
become an honest man.
This
moment of grace is the turning point for Valjean. Before this, he was one of those who would
look down. Look down, don’t look them in
the eye, don’t expect anything good and don’t offer anything good. After this moment, he is no longer a man who
will look down, ignoring the plight of those in need. Jean Valjean was once a man in need and
someone showed him mercy. He becomes a
man who is able to show mercy.
To
be salt and light.
Last
week in Portland Maine, four black high school students were attacked by a white
student who made racist remarks and threatened them with a knife. Another student decided to stand up against
it. She is a Muslim. She organized a march against hate. More than 300 students and faculty
participated. They carried signs saying
things like “You are loved” and “We are with you.” One of the reasons she did it, she says, is
because she is a student representative on the school board. She believed it was her duty to stand up for
others, to stand for justice and kindness.
It was important to her to be a positive example to others.
To
be salt and light.
A
week ago Friday, a mosque in Texas was burned down, leaving the 100 or so
Muslims in the community without a place of prayer. The next morning, the local Jewish community
gave them a key to the synagogue. Later
in the day several Christian churches offered support as well, and on Wednesday
children from the Catholic school marched to the burned down mosque and made a
human chain of love.
Salt
and light.
Last
week we read the words of blessing Jesus offered, the beatitudes. They strike our ears as so peculiar – blessed
are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for
righteousness. It doesn’t often come
naturally to us – to stand up for righteousness’ sake. Our instinct is often to look down, look down
– don’t look them in the eye. To believe
no one cares, nothing good will come of getting involved; to believe the worst. But we hear Jesus telling us to look up, to
share your light – the light that comes from God. Let others around you see your good works,
all to the glory of God in heaven.
The
first century Rabbi Hillel was asked by a man to recite the whole of the law
while standing on one leg. It was meant
as a taunt. The whole of the law is five
books of the Bible and consists of more than 600 commandments. But this is how Hillel replied “That which is
hateful to you, do not unto another.
That is the whole of the law. All
the rest is commentary. Now go study.” When Jesus says he has come not to abolish
but to fulfill the law, this is what he meant.
And anyone, he says, who breaks the law and teaches others to do the
same will be called the least in the kingdom of heaven. But anyone who teaches this law, by word and
example, will be called the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
There
is no shortage of opportunities to teach this law by our words and our actions,
by the example we set with our lives. As
the apostle Paul said to the Corinthians, with demonstrations of the Spirit and
the power of God. Hear the words of
Jesus and the words of Paul encouraging us to stand up, look up, and be
an example of the love and wisdom and goodness of God. We don’t need lofty words and flowery speech,
as Paul might say, but simply Christ, through whom we receive the powerful love
of God. There is no shortage of people
who need to see the love of God embodied in others.
Be
salt of the earth. I said at the
roundtable that I have trouble understanding the meaning of that analogy, and
someone suggested that since salt is essential to life, perhaps it means that
we are essential.
In
Christ, you have been given the light of God; do not hide your light but let it
shine. This is essential. Be a
light to the world, showing the grace of God with your words and deeds. Lend hope to others with your hope. Give courage to others with your
courage. Be a light to the world. It is, in fact, essential that you do
this. The world needs this light.
photo credit - Ibrahim.ID
photo credit - Ibrahim.ID
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