"intentional faith development"

Anna Blaedel
First UMC, Osage
March 15, 2009
Psalm 19
Exodus 20:1-17

Today, we’re going to try something new. I’m going to ask you to participate in this sermon. Get a little call and response going on. And nothing is more embarrassing than inviting people to participate, only to have them refuse. So, let us pray…

Who can name the four seasons…this isn’t a trick question…call it out, now…(winter, spring, summer, fall)
The four gospel accounts in our Christian New Testament (Matthew, Mark, Luke, John)

Very good. The seven days of the week…(Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday)

The seven continents…(North America, South America, Asia, Africa, Australia, Antarctica, Europe)
Getting harder…

Ok. Let’s shift…let’s test the billions of dollars this nation pours into advertising and marketing each year…fill in the blank, at the end of the phrase…

Nike—Just _________________________________ (do it)
AT&T—Reach out and _________________________ (touch someone)
Twizzlers—Makes mouths __________________ (happy)
Burger King—Have it _________________________ (your way)
Hy-Vee—Where there’s a helpful smile ________________ (in every aisle)
Cambell’s soup is mm mmmmmmmmmm _____________ (good)
Lay’s potato chips—betchyou can’t ______________________ (eat just one)
Nobody doesn’t like ________________________________ (Sarah Lee)
M&Ms—Melts in your mouth, not _______________________ (in your hands)
Skittles—Taste ___________________________ (the rainbow)
Nobody better lay a finger on my _____________________ (Butterfinger)
With Allstate, you’re in ____________________ (good hands)

We carry a lot of knowledge with us. A great deal of information. It seems we could go on and on. Whether these bits of knowledge make us wise or not is a significant question. But. Thank you for participating with me.

Ok. Now. How can we do with the 10 commandments? We have the benefit of having just heard them read. Start calling ‘em out…Can you do it? …………………..

In preparing for this sermon, I asked around. I made some calls. I called people like you, people who call themselves Christians and regularly attend church. I talked to seminarians. Pastors. I called conservatives, and I called liberals. And over and over, they couldn’t name all 10 commandments. Some felt sure they could, if only they thought about it enough. Others admitted their embarrassment, and some, their dismay.

Bill McKibben, a journalist for Harper’s Magazine, cites a survey that reports that less than 40% of people in the US can name more than four of the Ten Commandments. It’s almost impossible to pay attention to faith in the public square without running into heated debate about the 10 commandments. There is no shortage of people wanting to post them. And no shortage of people wanting to make sure they aren’t posted. Put in classrooms. Copied in courtrooms. Hung in hallways. Published on stone monuments in parks. There is no shortage of places we could put the 10 commandments. And I’m not saying this is a bad idea. Or a good idea. But. There is no shortage of people calling for their posting, and no shortage of places we might post them. The only shortage, it seems, is people who actually know them. Or perhaps, also, people who follow them. Who live them. Who adhere to these commandments of our covenant relationship with God.

With so many slogans, so many pieces of information and bits of knowledge and perhaps even nuggets of wisdom slung our way, we need to know what wisdom roots us. We need to identify and develop, with intention, the sources of wisdom which speak to our faith. Prayer. Worship. Study. Gathering at table. Mission.

A recent poll showed that 76% of people living in the US identify themselves as Christian. Only 33%, however, say they manage to get to church regularly on Sunday. The number drops even lower still when asked if they participate in the faith life of the church outside of Sunday. In regular prayer, and in prayer vigils. In midweek services. In daily Lenten practice. In small groups, and study groups. In choir. In United Methodist Women, and United Methodist Men. In teaching Sunday School.

Now, if you’re feeling too guilty about not knowing all 10, know that even the Bible isn’t entirely clear on this list of commandments. The 10 commandments appear three times. In the 20th chapter of Exodus we read today. Again, in the 34th chapter of Exodus. And in the book of Deuteronomy, chapter 5. And there’s a little variance among the three versions. And, if you’re feeling too guilty about your own sub-par attendance record, or the length of time lapsed since saying yes to teaching Sunday School, or serving as an usher or greeter, or guilty about your level of active participation in the life and vision of this community, remember that our Christian tradition is one of love, not law. And remember, our Wesleyan tradition is one of grace, not guilt.

But. God’s law is meant to be life giving. And guilt, sometimes, can be an indicator when we have gone astray. This is what the psalmist is getting at in Psalm 19: “The law of God is good, reviving the soul. The decrees of God are sure, making the simple, wise. The precepts of God are right, rejoicing the heart. The commandment of God is clear, enlightening the eyes. The awe of God is pure, enduring forever. The ordinances of God are true and righteous. More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey, and the drippings from the honeycomb.” Meant to give life, not restrict life. Meant to revive souls, not weigh them down.

Knowing the 10 commandments, posting the 10 commandments, does not make us people of faith, disciples of Christ, covenant community with God. Having them memorized does not ensure revival of our souls, or rejoicing in our hearts, or enduring awe of God. It is, however, hard to live into the covenant if we don’t even know what it commands. Is is, however, hard to deepen and nurture our faith if we can hardly show up on Sunday.

Intentional Faith Development—purposeful learning in community, that helps the followers mature and deepen in faith.

So, here they are, again. The Ten Commandments. The first four intend to order our relationship with God—our covenant with our Creator. The final six intend to order our human interactions—our shared life together.

One. Have no other gods before God. Money will not make you all powerful. Social standing cannot sustain you. Investments, we should know by now, will not redeem us. Have no other gods before God. God, and God alone, is the Holy One.

Two. Do not make for yourself an idol. In the form of anything that is in heaven above, or on the earth beneath, or in the water under the earth. Worship God, not cars. Not political leaders or pastors. Not brilliant marketing schemes or bulging budgets. Not even the Bible should be idolized, but rather its texts lifted up as living word. Idols will be broken. Tarnished. They’ll lose their power to captivate. Do not bow down and worship anything other than God. Not nation. Not government. Not even the church. Worship God, and bow down before God alone.

And, three, because of this, don’t make wrongful use of God’s name. Don’t attach it to things that aren’t of God. Be careful about how you call on this Higher Power.

Four. Remember the Sabbath, and keep it holy. For six days, you shall labor and work. This is good. God knows something about the goodness of work and creation. And sometimes, work keeps Sabbath from coming on Sunday. But on the seventh day, God needed to rest. And, if after making the heavens and the earth, God needed to rest for a day, how can we not see this need for ourselves? Do we really think ourselves so important, so much more able than God, as to not take a day to rest? This is not a suggestion. This is not laziness. This is a command. Because we need it. (And I need to be reminded of it as much as you.) You. Me. Your sons and daughters. Even the slaves, the livestock, and the alien residents in your towns, we find written in scripture. Rest. And if our society and economy is structured so that a day of rest is not possible, we must shift these structures of society. God has blessed the Sabbath, consecrated it, and commands it.

Five. Honor your father and mother. Scholars note the language used here indicates not just the people who birthed and raised you. Honor your ancestors. Those who came before. The generations who have raised you up. Those who have fought for your rights, who have offered their wisdom, who have nurtured our communities and families. They will not be perfect. They will fail. Fathers and mothers will not always be honorable. But. We must remember from whom we came. And honor the wisdom of the past, and of our formative mothers and fathers.

Six. Don’t kill. You shall not kill. Not, don’t kill unless you’re provoked. Not, don’t kill, unless the negotiations have failed. You shall not kill. Doing so destroys the covenant, and destroys community.

Seven. You shall not commit adultery. Remember, these commandments are about covenant. Don’t break the covenant. If we are unable to maintain our covenants with each other, we are unable to maintain our covenant with God. If we cannot trust each other, we cannot trust God.

Eight. You shall not steal. No shoplifting, no Ponzi schemes, no taking what isn’t yours.

Nine. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. Don’t gossip. Most rumors aren’t true, anyway. But the impact lingers.

Ten. You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s spouse. Or ox, or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor. Coveting keeps us from feeling satisfied. Coveting leads to stealing. To adultery, even to killing. To breaking the Sabbath, as we try to make more to buy that new truck. Or tv. Or piece of jewelry. Or fancier house. Or, or, or, or. You shall not covet. It diminishes life, and suffocates spirit.

That’s it. The base of this covenant. Bishop Schnase reminds—Jesus deliberately taught his disciples in community. We cannot learn grace, forgiveness, patience, kindness, gentleness, or joy, simply by reading about it in a book. Or through a memorable marketing campaign. Or even by going home and memorizing the 10 commandments. These are the central tenants of the community of God. And we can only learn them together. In relationship. In community. Spiritual formation, through intentional engagement—with each other, hearing the wisdom of our tradition, learning and sharing the teachings which ground our faith, hearing and telling and retelling the stories that root us—our covenant with God, our connection with each other, in the name and spirit of Jesus, our Christ. Thanks be to God. Amen.