“Wouldn’t Want to be Like You” (Luke 18:9-14)

It is said that confession is good for the soul.  If that is true, then I must confess that I have stood where the Pharisee has stood . . . I have sized up my fellow human beings . . . and, I have dismissed them through judgment as being less than and not as worthy as me.  I have committed the sin of one-upmanship more often than I want to admit.  The bottom line of the Pharisee’s prayer is: “God, I thank you that I am not like other people.  Really, thank you, God.”  For such sentiments, I stand convicted.

In fact, we are all convicted . . . we are all guilty . . . we all do it.  We size up others . . . we note what is distasteful to us . . . we compare . . . we judge, and we make statements that dismiss others as being less than good enough.

For example, politics . . . whether we are Republicans, Democrats, Independents, or sick and tired of it all, we have all probably thanked God that we aren’t like those others.  Republicans are thankful they aren’t like Democrats, Democrats are thankful they aren’t like Republicans, Independents are thankful they aren’t like either one, and those who are sick and tired of it . . . well, they dismiss them all.

We do it with religion too.  As Christians we thank God, we aren’t like those other religions . . . Islam, Buddhism, Hindu, Jewish, or one of the other 4,200 religions there are in the world.   We also don’t limit ourselves to the non-Christian religions, we also thank God that we are not like other Christian denominations and faiths . . . that we aren’t like the Lutherans, Wesleyans, Catholics, or Baptists.

We thank God all the time that we are not like other people.  We do it with nationalities . . . we do it by gender . . . culture . . . community . . . education . . . wealth or lack of.  We do it with the sporting teams we support.  There probably is not a single day that goes by in any of our lives that we don’t thank God in some way that we are not like other people . . . that we don’t step into the shoes of that Pharisee and proclaim, “God, I thank you that I am not like other people.”

Karoline Lewis, Professor of Preaching at Luther Seminary in Saint Paul, Minnesota, states that “this parable calls out this sin of ours—the sin of dismissal.  The sin of one-upmanship.  The sin of appraisal and assessment before compassion.  It calls attention to that time and space between an all-too-quick evaluation and the final verdict of whether or not we deem another as one who meets the expectation we have set out.”

In hearing this parable, we want to join those who cheer on the tax collector as Jesus puts the Pharisee in his place.  Yet, at the same time we cannot escape the fact that this parable also calls to attention to those moments in our lives when we too readily judge . . . when we cave in to our expectations and standards or those of groups we belong to instead of seeing the person before us with love and generosity.  When we size up another with the assumption that our way, our faith, our politics, our culture, and our standing is somehow better.  We cannot escape the fact that in a way we are looking in a mirror.

There is something that we need to remember . . . I said it a couple of weeks ago and I paraphrase it this morning: We are only the children of God, not the only children of God.  The scriptures we hold sacred tell us that all are created in the image of God . . . all are the children of God . . . and, that we are one family.  If we truly believe this, then we must look at this parable a little differently.  Both the Pharisee and tax collector are children of God . . . both are members of the family.  God loves them equally . . . cares for them equally . . . and desires relationship with both.  In God’s eyes they are both children within the holy family.  They are both lovable and desirable.

Now, I don’t want to be seen as complaining . . . but, I notice that when I go to read our scripture lesson each week that not all of you are following along with the pew Bible . . . the New International Version.  I see that some of you are using other Bibles . . . maybe the King James Version, maybe the Revised Standard Version, or even The Message.  Hey, what’s going on here!  Don’t you guys get it?  There is only one version of the Bible and it is the one I am using . . . the others are worthless . . . they aren’t up to my standards . . . and, anyone who reads anything but the New International Version . . . well, I thank God I’m not like them.

I am kidding.  There are hundreds of versions and translations of the Bible.  Which Bible we enjoy and want to use is up to our personal preferences and likes.  It does not mean one is more correct or better than the other, it just means that there are difference preferences.  The problem comes when we decide that ours is the only way and we condemn or dismissed everything else.  All are the word of God . . . just different in how they tell the story.  No one can sanctify one’s self by comparing one’s self to another . . . God is not comparing us to others, God cares only in how we live our lives. 

Remember, we are made in the image of God.

Author Anne Lamott writes: “You can safely assume you’ve created God in your own image when it turns out that God hates all the same people you do.”  Is this what the Pharisee did when he lifted up his “thank God I’m not like him” prayer?  Did he assume that his thoughts and feelings were God’s thoughts and feelings? 

Silly him . . . it is not the Pharisee’s job to determine another’s or even his own salvation by comparison . . . it is God’s.  All the Pharisee or we can do is to take care of our own business . . . just like the tax collector did.  The tax collector proclaims: “God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”  In the end, it all lies in the hands of the believer.

In all honesty, none of us wants to be like anyone else.  In the end, we want to be ourselves . . . we want to be who God created us to . . . we want to be all that we can be as that image of God within us.  No one can control that except ourselves . . . that is a choice we have to make for ourselves.  Remember, God loves us for who God created us to be . . . and, God makes no junk.

In this way we must look at ourselves and others differently.  We mustn’t look at ourselves or others through the eyes of the world . . . that is a harsh and judgmental way that creates division and divisiveness . . . it creates hatred.  No, we must begin to look at ourselves and others in the same way that God looks at each of us . . . as God’s own.  We must model and live this as Jesus showed us in his life.  We should hold ourselves and others up with deep regard . . . with strong respect . . . and, a willingness to admit that we are all the children of God.  We all have a place at the table.  It is not our table, but God’s . . . and, God desires everyone to belly up.

I wouldn’t want to be like any of you . . . not because I think that I am better, or you are terrible or different.  I wouldn’t want to be like you because I want to discover who it is that God created me to be . . . because I want to embrace who I am . . . and, I want to be the best me that I can be.  I also would not want you to be like me, instead I want us to be able to walk and help each other discover who we are in the eyes of God . . . to discover our gifts, desires, and potential—as different as they might be . . . so that we might fulfill God’s will.

That is the best that we can do.  That is what God would want.  Confession is good for the soul . . . and, so we begin.  Amen.

“Customer Satisfaction” (Luke 18:1-8)

They say that the squeaky wheel gets the oil . . . but, does that work with God?  The quick assumption from our reading this morning is that if one is persistent—especially in prayer—he or she will be rewarded with what they are asking for.  Isn’t that what we assume as we listen to this parable?

There was a widow who felt that she had been unjustly treated by another person.  Each day she would go to the community’s judge and demand that she be granted justice against this adversary.  The judge really did not care and refused to do anything with the widow’s complaint.  The judge did not fear God, nor did he fear people.  He just did not care and was not worried about any retaliation from God or others.  He did not care.

But we learn that the widow was persistent.  Each day she went to the judge and demanded justice.  Day after day she harassed the judge with her demands for justice.  Eventually it worked.  She was wearing the judge down.  The judge was getting tired of seeing the widow each morning, demanding justice . . . he was tired of being bothered by her.  The result?  The judge grants her the justice she seeks.

Persistence pays off in the end.  But is this about prayer or something else?

Even though the parable is framed under the guise of prayer through the statement: “Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.”  I contend that this has nothing to do with persistent prayer being rewarded.  It is a bigger topic, and an even greater concern on the mind of Jesus.  Jesus states its several times throughout the parable.  So, what is the bigger issue in this story?

Think about it . . . what is it that the widow is demanding?  She is demanding justice.  Each day she confronts the judge asking for justice.  She wants justice.  In the end, it is justice that the judge grants her.  Then there is Jesus’ wrap up of the parable in which he states that “God will bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night . . . he will see that they get justice, and quickly.” 

Justice, not prayer, is the topic of the parable.  Prayer is the metaphor for action . . . persistence is the key. 

In the parable there has been an injustice done against the widow.  We do not know what the injustice was, but we know that it irritated her to no end that she felt that she had been wronged and wanted to set things right.  The widow knows that her only recourse for getting justice is to go to the stubborn and immovable judge . . . a judge that does not care one way or another . . . a judge who does not fear God or any person.  It is a long shot at best, but it is the only course she can take . . . thus, she begins her daily ritual of pestering the judge with a demand for justice.  Repeatedly she demands justice.  She wants customer satisfaction.  She wants to right a wrong.  The only way that she is going to be able to accomplish this is to be persistent in her actions for demanding justice.

My sister-in-law is educated as an economist . . . both her bachelor and master’s degrees are in economics.  She believes that the driving force in life and in the world comes down to economics . . . comes down to compensation whether it is money or some other reward.  It comes down to making a buck and no business ever wants to lose money.  That is why it is so darn difficult to get one’s money back when a bum product or service is bought . . . why it is so tough to get customer satisfaction.  It does not matter whether the customer is right, once they have the money, they are tight-fisted in letting it go.  No one in control is going to give up wealth or power even if they are in the wrong. 

I think you all know what I am speaking about . . . when it comes to customer satisfaction, we all know that we must be persistent.  We must be persistent if we are to get justice.

I once bought a product from a store . . . and, it did not work.  I went back to the store and asked for my money back.  No, they could not do that, but they could exchange it for one that worked.  Well, I can be stubborn too, so I asked for my money back.  Finally, they agreed to give me my money back . . . but, it could only be spent in their store.  By this point, I didn’t want to have anything to do with the store, and I asked for my money back in cash.  Reluctantly they agreed . . . they would mail me a refund check in a couple of weeks.  I got the check two months later.  I got my justice, but it took time and energy on my part.

We need to see prayer as more than words . . . prayer also needs to be seen in the way that we live our lives . . . as the actions that we take . . . as we strive to live in relationship with God and God’s will.  Because of this we must consider that just as Jesus stepped up to defend and work for those who were often mistreated and left out, we too must step up and make our lives—our prayers—as action.  God is a God of justice . . . demands that right be done, and because of this it is up to us to do likewise.  We are to be like the widow in demanding justice.

Jesus tells us that God will answer this prayer . . . it might take time, but God will answer this prayer.  Justice will prevail.  Prayer is not simply talking to God, but it is any expression of a demand for justice.  If that is the prayer one seeks to pray and live, God will answer the prayer.  In that case, this parable is about prayer.

At the same time, Jesus has a concern . . . a big concern.  He is concerned whether there will be faith when he returns . . . will there be a desire to do God’s will . . . or will it disappear when people are either worn out from their pursuit of living in relationship with God and others, or they become satisfied with what they have?  Will there be signs of faith . . . of pursuing God’s will?  Will there be a persistence of faith . . . or prayer . . . that will witness to this relationship with God?

Well, the answers are there in the scriptures for us to see, though they are not in the places we would expect:

·        A centurion who believes Jesus can heal a slave, even from a distance.

·        A sinful woman who anoints Jesus’ feet.

·        Friends of the disable man who are willing to dig through a roof to lower him down.

·        A bleeding and unclean woman who touches the hem of Jesus’ clothes and is healed.

·        Samaritan leper who returns and falls at the feet of Jesus in thanksgiving.

 

Jesus will find faith, but just not in the places most of us would consider.  It will be found in places where the people are on the outside looking in . . . the outsiders, the unlovable, the unclean, the outcasts, the sinners, and those who are mired in injustice.

We live in a time and world where there is much chaos . . . much unhappiness . . . much oppression . . . divisiveness . . . anger . . . and little satisfaction.  I do not think that I need to point out to any of you what is unsatisfying to you when you think about the world we live in and the world which God seeks our help in restoring . . . I think you can see that for yourself.  I think we each know what is unsatisfactory in our world and in our faith.  The question becomes whether it concerns us enough to seek a solution . . . to seek justice . . . to pray.  To pray with persistence.

The prayer of persistence for God’s will . . . God’s justice . . . God’s vision for all.  That is the life and prayer that Jesus wants for his disciples and for us . . . one that exhibits faith.  God wants customer satisfaction.  Jesus shows us the way.  Amen.