one wholly committed to the proposition that the Church is the living embodiment of the res
urrected Christ…
and as such holds our community to the highest of ideals
—our righteousness must exceed that of the scribes and Pharisees.
Our life together, at its most faithful,
is a life of blessing,
making the Beatitudes a reality,
bringing out the goodness of this world,
preserving all that is life giving and noble.
Jesus recognizes that religion,
religious rules
—the 10 commandments in particular
—are meant to be pathways toward human flourishing,
but at times,
they get twisted and do the opposite.
And so, like Moses,
who went up the mountain and received the 10 commandments as rules to form God’s people after their harrowing escape from slavery
Jesus gives a reading, an interpretation, of several of the commandments
—in so doing, he, like Moses, is calling a community into existence
—imagining for his followers, what a community of blessing would be like,
a community of salt and light,
a bright and flavorful people.
He imagines such a community would be a place where the sources of suffering,
not simply their symptoms,
would be wrestled with.
-Struggle with anger, so murder does not arise
-Tame lust, so it doesn’t sprout into adultery.
-Deal with deception, so false witness does not abound.
Perhaps this is what the prophet meant when he wrote, “The Law will be upon their hearts.”
Imagine a blessed community,
Imagine a Beatitudes world,
imagine the living body of Jesus Christ
—then look around,
because here we are.
Prayer.
Imagine a community without murder…
For anyone who has witnessed, or been touched by, such violent death,
it’s elimination would be enough...
But we are pushed further by Jesus words
—strike at the root, hatred and anger.
Has that seed been planted,
do you let it grow by hurling insults, harboring prejudices?
Do you leave resentments on the table to fester?
Do you fling jests or japes as arrows
—watch out they can be transformed into bullets or beatings.
There is an addictiveness to it
—biologically, some of the same parts of your brain burn hot when you lean into angry,
as they do when you take an opioid or finally finish a task you’ve been putting off…
And down that road, there is inflicting pain
—physical or emotional
—on other human beings,
forgetting they’re human beings,
alienation that can’t easily be undone,
intergenerational trauma, war, and despair.
As the body of Christ, we are called to neither endanger nor harm the lives of our neighbors, but instead help and support them in all of life’s need.
Imagine a community without adultery...
Jesus insists that we take seriously our sexual and romantic relationships and pursuits…
that we recognize affairs seldom start in the bedroom,
and when we lead with lust,
we rarely have the best interest of the other person at heart.
If you look with lust
—lose that leering eye.
If you are prone to unwanted touching
—tear that hand off.
If you abuse your authority for sexual fulfillment
—your fate will not be good.
If you do not stop using other people’s bodies for your pleasure—you will burn.
Lust leads to objectifying people
—using things and loving people instead of loving people and using things…
Lust can lead to brittle marriages
and the disruptions of divorce,
a loss of a sense of safety among loved ones and in families.
Now, let me say something as your pastor, that some of you need to hear
—after all these days 50% of marriages end in divorce,
because a flat reading of Jesus’ words about divorce, can, frankly, slaughter souls…
There can be good reasons to get divorced.
If you are divorced you are no less a beloved Child of God,
no less part of the Body of Christ,
no less a member of the blessed community.
The interpretation of the Law that Jesus is correcting is the idea that:
a man can “put away his woman” for any reason, “even burnt breakfast.”
To many women in Jesus’ society,
Jesus correction of this teaching, would be words of blessing,
not the tying a millstone of a bad or oppressive marriage around someone’s throat.
With that said, friends,
please know that Christ has freed us for respect, fidelity, and consent…
so that we can lead pure and decent lives in word and deed,
and each of us can love and honor their spouse.
Imagine a community without false witness… telling lies…
Jesus goes so far as to insist, when it comes to oaths,
any untruth uttered is from the Devil.
Every vow not kept, drags God’s creation and name and reputation,
into the hands of the Evil One.
In other words, deception is diabolical.
Sometimes it starts with self-deception,
seeking truths only from information silos that feed your bias…
Or finding solace in emotivism
(the practice of classifying values and facts as personal preferences).
Other times we’re manipulated into lying,
or there is just too much to gain by bending the truth
or even telling a boldfaced lie until it sounds true.
Yet the consequences
—the collapse of social capital,
reputations ruined,
fractured and wrecked relationships,
fighting over every opinion as fact,
instead of seeking truth.
But we beatitude people, set free by the Truth of the Gospel…
We are called to come to our neighbor’s defense,
speak well of them,
and interpret everything they do in the best possible light.
And here we are…
-a community continually being formed to be a blessing.
-Formed to be salt for the earth and light to the world.
-Formed by struggle against sin at its source.
-Formed to be faithful, for God is continually faithful to us.
-Formed in the religious imagination of God come among us.
-Formed to be what we are, the Body of Christ.
Amen.
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