The Recklessness of God

A sermon for May 1, 2024, Pentecost Sunday, at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church – Buffalo, NY.

To watch the sermon, click here (video starts with the gospel reading).

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen!

Would you say you are a reckless person?

Are there behaviors you consider to be reckless?

This is a loaded question. Recklessness could be wearing dark clothing while walking along a dimly lit road; not wearing a seatbelt; not taking a full winter setup in your car during a Buffalo winter. For some households, it could be leaving the toilet seat down … or leaving the toilet seat up.

It’s clear to see that recklessness abounds.

If you spend any time watching videos on the internet, you’ve undoubtedly seen people who, for some reason think it’s perfectly reasonable to run and jump off the roof of a house, bounce off a trampoline, and try to land in a swimming pool.

Would you consider that reckless?

Do you want a reckless dentist … a reckless surgeon or accountant?

Do you think people tend to be more reckless when they are younger or when they are older?

From what I’ve observed, people view reckless people as irresponsible, selfish, irrational, not considering the bigger picture, and not engaging the rational brain and intellect.

People tend to think of recklessness as a tendency of the young, and that we “grow out of it” as we age and mature. Recklessness is certainly not a quality to be encouraged or emulated.

Is God reckless?

Surely not, right? Isn’t God the epitome of wisdom, rational thought, knowledge, experience, and big-picture thinking?

Let us now look at the evidence!

Jesus shifted so much of our thinking. Where a reasonable person might think that the Son of God should hang out with political and religious leaders, and elite members of society … only a reckless Jesus who would sit with tax collectors, prostitutes, and sinners.

Only a reckless God would build into the DNA of faith a concern for the widow, the orphan, and the resident alien in our midst.

Only a reckless God would even suggest that every 7 years the land should rest, slaves freed, and debts forgiven.

That’s just crazy!

Shouldn’t individuals and even countries be made to pay their debts?

How reckless would it be to forgive the debt of countries like Haiti that will never in this lifetime be able to pay off its debts.

Only a reckless Holy Spirit would stir up faith outside the “chosen people” … in the Gentiles.

Doesn’t the Spirit know that those Gentiles aren’t even circumcised and that is the mark of the covenant with Abraham? Don’t we need to keep some kind of control … maintain some kind of standard for who is and who is not God’s people?

Only a reckless Jesus would say to love not only those who love you but love also your enemies … pray for them. Recklessly forgive 70 x 7.

Only a reckless Holy Spirit would intrude on a public gathering of people celebrating the harvest festival of Pentecost and give them the ability to speak in the languages of their neighbors so that they could share the Good News of Jesus Christ.

The Holy Spirit doesn’t form a task force, committee, a study group, or focus groups to determine when and how it is best to share the Good News! do a study on what are appropriate and inappropriate ways to share the Good News. The Holy Spirit didn’t even do a media blitz with a social media campaign and t-shirts to commemorate the event.

… only this … God is recklessly in love with each and every one of us in all of our uniqueness and quirkiness … in our joy and our sadness … where we feel insecure and unworthy, God is very recklessly in love with people like tax collectors, sinners, prostitutes, widows, orphans, resident aliens in our midst. And isn’t that the Good News?!

God is reckless in love with the poor – those who live with food insecurity and food deserts. And the alarming number of children in poverty! Did you know that New York is 41st in the nation for the worst child poverty rate? That’s not just NYC … among large cities across the US, Buffalo has the 7th highest rate of child poverty.

We are not called to be 100% reckless, but we are called to follow God recklessly in ways that are life-giving to us AND all who God loves.

Where might the Holy Spirit be moving among us … calling us to love recklessly?

… calling us to reckless hospitality and welcome?

… calling us to recklessly advocate?

It doesn’t matter whether you agree or disagree with a person, their politics, their religion, their lifestyle … there are no preconditions for living out God’s reckless love.

In the name of Jesus. Amen!

References

 

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