A sermon for September 8, 2024, 16th Sunday after Pentecost, at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church – Buffalo, NY .
Video: To watch the sermon at the 10:30am service, click here (video starts with the Gospel reading).
Sermon Text: James 2:1-17
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Faith is such an important part of what we do in the church. Faith is also central our understanding of our relationship with God. We believe that it is through faith as a gift we are saved. St. Paul writes: “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast (Ephesians 2:8-9, emphasis added).
And yet, we read these words from James: “Can faith save you? … Faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead” (James 2:14-17, emphasis added). These are strong words. We’re left to wonder: are we hearing conflicting messages from the Bible between faith and works? James even pushes a bit harder when he says: if you break even one part of the law, you are accountable for all of it. When we hear these kinds of things, we declare that we haven’t broken any Commandments. We haven’t murdered or stolen or committed adultery.
But is it that easy? Martin Luther noticed that there really is more to the Commandments. Aren’t there other ways people can murder or be murdered other than physical killing? Consider the harmful and lasting effects of bullying, for example. There are ways we can diminish people or they can diminish us. People can be torn down … their spirit can be killed. Luther said that we commit murder in these ways and also when we see our neighbors in need and do not come to their defense, but turn away.
Trying to sort all of this out can be frustrating and confusing. What does God actually want and need us to do with readings from the Bible like these? What does God want us to do and be and become? Even as I let these words wash over my soul, I feel some familiar pangs of judgment. I want to know what is healthy – what is faithful – what is “right.”
You might recall that I shared in last week’s sermon what I find helpful in the face of judgment. I ask myself “Where does this judgment direct my focus, time, and attention?” What happens if it is not focusing us on God’s grace?
God leads with love – that’s true when it comes to salvation as well as caring for our neighbors. We are saved by God’s grace … period. God’s grace can be defined as “love beyond what we deserve.” Believe it or not, it’s GRACE that helps us process and make sense of the world around us. The works that we do are simply an out-pouring of what we’ve received.
Meanwhile, I’ve been greatly troubled this week – as I’m sure many of you have – by two events. The death of Ugandan Olympian Rebecca Cheptegei left my heart in pieces. She lived in Kenya where, earlier this week, she was set on fire by her boyfriend. She died from her injuries. Rebecca was the third high-level female athlete to be killed in as many years in Kenya. I am also troubled by yet another school shooting – this time at Apalachee High School in Winder, GA. This was the first deadly school shooting this school year and the 45th in 2024.
How are these tragedies connected? When James asks us “Can faith save you?” … we may want this to be an easy “yes!” Yet James slows us down a bit and gives us a scenario: if a person doesn’t have the basics of life and we simply say something like “God bless you … stay warm and dry and be well fed” is that enough? If we see their need and do nothing to feed and clothe them – what good is that? How do our words when they are accompanied by our lack of action evidence our faith?
As people of faith, we’re called to wrestle with these things together. Yes, we offer our “thoughts and prayers,” but doesn’t James challenge us to wonder whether that is enough? What if we follow Jesus and lead with grace to “love [our] neighbor as [ourselves]”? What if we work together toward love not just in words but in actions?
This is a bit overstated, but I’m sure you’ve heard the phrase “the enemy of my enemy is my friend.” Is there a way that matters of domestic violence and school shootings can be labeled as our common “enemy”? Can we befriend the people we may consider “enemies” politically or ideologically to work together to dislodge our community in matters that prevent us from loving our neighbors as ourselves in word and in action?
Thoughts and prayers are necessary and powerful, but they aren’t enough … not where the potential exists to alleviate the injustice and suffering. Our faith compels us to DO something … to recognize the needs of our neighbor and not stand idly by. It is clear that addressing school shootings and other forms of behavior destructive to our community is not going to be effectively dealt with if people of differing perspectives retreat into their own corners to talk amongst themselves and conduct studies and give speeches. Jesus calls us to go beyond the mere appearance of action.
Following Jesus as he leads with love actually calls us to risk. We risk putting our beliefs into action and our values on display. We risk being vulnerable and imperfect and not having all the answers laid out neat and tidy.Taking action and leading with love actually leads us into a deeper sense of community where we have the conversations … the tough conversations that some think we shouldn’t have in “polite company.” Yet if we don’t, what will become of us? What is the trajectory … what is the course that will be set? Is the course out of our control or do we get to play a role in determining a direction? If we don’t talk and have those tough conversations, there will soon be a 46th school shooting and a 47th. There will continue to be increased domestic violence. There will continue to be threats to the lives of those charged with keeping the peace in our communities.
You may know that today, September 8, is Star Trek day. Our readings for today dovetail beautifully with the intent of Star Trek day, which is to “embrace the vision of a brighter future.” So we set a course for the brighter future that God has in store as we follow Jesus and do hard things together as we lead with love. In Star Trek, whenever the captain of the USS Enterprise told the crew where they were to go next, the captain would use a word like “engage.” In that same spirit, I invite you to set a course to add action to your thoughts and prayers, and then engage.
In the name of Jesus … Amen!
Epicurious Lutheran 