The Downside-Up Kingdom

St. Michael’s Episcopal Church, Gainesville FL
The Chapel of the Incarnation, Gainesville FL
January 30, 2011

Year A: The Fourth Sunday after Epiphany
Micah 6:1-8
1 Corinthians 1:18-31
Psalm 15
Matthew 5:1-12

The Downside-Up Kingdom

I’m going to start with a big understatement.

We’re living in a time of frightening change.

Living in a time of frightening change can reduce us to survival mode – to focusing on just getting through the day – to focusing on all the scary things that have happened and might still happen.

Living in a time of frightening change can make it hard to remember – or even believe - that God is at work, just as God is always at work, restoring the good creation that has been broken.

Change is burning across the Middle East. The government of Tunisia has already fallen and now the leadership of Egypt and maybe other countries are about to tumble, as well. People in the part of the world had seemed beaten into submission forever, and, yet, now they are rising up and demanding a better life, demanding freedom.

As for the United States, it was just a few short years ago that we were strutting across the world stage, declaring ourselves the indispensible super power, declaring that it was unlikely that any other country would be able to challenge our supremacy any time soon.

And then, on Tuesday night there was the President in the State of the Union address warning us that we were losing ground. Our children are not learning what they need to learn and are falling farther and farther behind their counterparts in Europe and Asia.

So many of our jobs have been exported. Our infrastructure is crumbling around and beneath us. The Chinese, to whom we owe an astonishingly huge amount of money, seem to be breathing down our necks.

We’re living in a time of frightening change.

And there’s been much frightening change closer to home, too.

(Last week, when I was standing right here preaching from this pulpit, our beloved sister Merna was, as usual, sitting right there in the first pew, next to Gill. And now she has gone from us and is in the full presence of the God who loved her into existence.

As much as we celebrate the completion of her journey, her sudden death is another reminder that only right now is promised – nothing more.

Last week our beloved brother and sister Phil and Sue had no idea that the following day their home would be set ablaze by a lightning strike and be destroyed. While we are relieved that they are safe, I know all of us mourn with them the loss of their home.

And of course many here are still reeling from the possibility that this property may be sold and that this building that is our spiritual home may be demolished. Many of us are still struggling to accept the frightening change that began for us when the bishop visited us in November – the change of leaving this place and moving to a new church building on another piece of property.)

(It’s been only a couple of weeks since the shocking death of our sister, Shayna. Many of us are still trying to absorb – if that’s the right word - that loss. Her sudden death was a powerful reminder that only right now is promised – nothing more.

The career fair this past week is a real reminder that time is passing, the semester is already one month old, and for the seniors their days here at UF are drawing to close.

May I remind you of the fine graduate programs available at UF?

Some of us are beginning to think about what it will be like to leave this place. Others of us are beginning to think about what it will be like without some great people who have given so much to build up and support this community.

In previous years this may have been an exhilarating time. I could be wrong, but I sense fear more than excitement.)

Well, I don’t know if this will make us feel any better, but the truth is, it’s not so unusual to live during a time of frightening change. In fact, it’s probably the norm.

The Prophet Micah also lived during a time of frightening change. In his case, it was the late 8th Century BC.

He lived during the time when the Kingdom of Israel had fallen to the Assyrians and the other Israelite kingdom, Judah, was threatened.

Micah lived during a time when the old ways of life seemed to be dying as droves of people left the countryside and moved to the big city of Jerusalem.

In a time of frightening change, I’m sure it was hard to see that God was at work, building God’s kingdom right here and now.

In a time of frightening change, it was hard to remember that, as always, God was inviting people to join in the great work of building God’s kingdom. So, speaking through Micah, God reminds the people of this invitation in the most beautiful question ever asked:

“He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”

We are invited to work with God on the great project of building God’s kingdom, of restoring the good creation right here and now.

We are invited to work with God by doing justice, loving kindness and walking humbly with God.

The invitation from God spoken through Micah still stands.

And, as Christians, we receive God’s ultimate invitation in, and through, and from Jesus of Nazareth.

One of the highlights of this new year has been our Tuesday evening Bible study at the chapel. Each week a wonderful group has gathered to study the Gospel of Matthew – this inspired text that is so important to Christians.

One of the things we talked about was how this gospel was written during a time of frightening change.

For the first few decades after the earthly lifetime of Jesus it was possible for his Jewish followers to continue to gather at the synagogues, just as always. But that was becoming increasingly difficult by the time the gospel was written in the last decades of the First Century. The Jesus followers were making bold claims about Jesus – claims that to many seemed less and less Jewish.

So, Matthew’s gospel was written during a time of big change. The Romans had destroyed the Temple and now the Jewish followers of Jesus were faced with the reluctant parting from the faith of their ancestors.

Matthew writes to and for a mostly Jewish Christian community – a community faced with frightening change.

And once again, during a time of frightening change, a time when we might prefer just to hunker down in survival mode, God invites the people to join in the great work of building God’s kingdom. This time God’s invitation is even more direct.

Matthew sets the scene by telling us that Jesus is on a mountain, reminding us of the encounter Moses had with God on another mountain long before.

This time, though, rather than Moses receiving revelation from God, Jesus is God’s revelation.

In the poem that has come to be known as the Beatitudes, Jesus extends the invitation to join with God in the great work of building God’s kingdom.

In Matthew, Jesus calls it the “kingdom of heaven.” But, he’s probably not referring to life after death. Instead, Jesus is talking about the transformation of this world – the transformation of the good creation that has been broken.

First, Jesus tells us that this kingdom is like no kingdom we’ve ever seen.

Jesus tells us in this downside-up kingdom it’s the poor in spirit – the people who are at the end of their rope – who are blessed.

In this downside-up kingdom, it’s those who mourn and those who are meek who are blessed.

In Jesus, God offers the ultimate invitation to be part of the great work of building God’s kingdom, right here and now.

We accept God’s invitation when we hunger and thirst for righteousness, when we’re merciful, when we’re pure in heart and when we’re peacemakers.

It’s quite an invitation.

And to make matters worse, Jesus warns us that if we accept God’s invitation we’re likely to suffer.

If we accept God’s invitation we may be persecuted for righteousness’ sake.

If we accept God’s invitation we may very well be persecuted and slandered.

It’s quite an invitation.

And, as always, God leaves the response up to us.

Living in a time of frightening change can reduce us to survival mode – to focusing on just getting through the day – to focusing on all the scary things that have happened and might still happen.

Living in a time of frightening change it’s hard to remember – or even believe - that God is at work, just as God is always at work, building the downside-up kingdom, restoring the good creation that has been broken.

Yet, during this time of frightening change, God invites us – you and me - to join in the great work of building God’s kingdom, right here and now.

So, what’s it going to be?

Do we respond by hunkering down in survival mode?

Or do we respond by doing justice, loving kindness and walking humbly with God?

Amen.