Lectionary blog for June 17
The Fourth Sunday after Pentecost
Ezekiel 17:22-24; Psalm 92:1-4, 12-15;
2 Corinthians 5:6-10 (11-13) 14-17; Mark 4:26-34
“for we walk by faith, not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7).
I can’t think of June without thinking about nervous teenagers walking blind-folded through a college campus somewhere in the South. Every June, the Southeastern Synod holds its big youth event, AFFIRM, somewhere in Georgia or Alabama, and holding hands while stumbling around blind-folded under the direction of college student counselors is a vital part of the experience.
“for we walk by faith, not by sight.”
Faith walks are not unique to AFFIRM; they are standard youth ministry fare. They are meant to teach the truth Paul talks about in 2 Corinthians – walking by faith and not by sight. It is not an easy lesson to learn. From an early age we are taught just the opposite – to “look where you’re going,” to “look both ways before you cross the street,” and to “look before you leap.” We are admonished to “watch out!” and to “watch your step!” We are reminded to “keep your eyes open,” and to “keep your eye on the ball,” and to “keep a sharp lookout.” Walking by “faith, and not by sight” is definitely not encouraged in our culture.
Yet the Bible, here and elsewhere, makes the bold claim that living by faith, walking by faith, trusting in God’s provision and leadership, is the very heart of spirituality and religion.
Ezekiel’s vision of God taking a tiny, tender, sprig from the top of a tree and planting it on a mountain where it becomes a tall, strong, tree is a parable of sorts—a parable about trusting that God can, and will, create great endings from unpromising beginnings. This is the sort of thing that one cannot “see” through logic and science and the pragmatic predictions of power and politics. It is the sort of thing that one knows and trusts because God has promised it, and God fulfills God’s promises.
Yet the Bible, here and elsewhere, makes the bold claim that living by faith, walking by faith, trusting in God’s provision and leadership, is the very heart of spirituality and religion.
“for we walk by faith, not by sight.”
The sower in Mark’s parable of the kingdom lives by faith and not by sight. Listen to the words of Jesus, “The kingdom of God is as if someone would scatter seed on the ground, and would sleep and rise night and day, and the seed would sprout and grow, he does not know how”(Mark 4:26-27).
“for we walk by faith, not by sight.”
But we would rather not, actually. We would rather be in control, in charge, taking the lead. We want to do great things for God instead of allowing God to do great things for and through us. We plot and plan and make five-year projections and create long-term mission and ministry strategies and search diligently for that next “new thing,” that “exciting and innovative” program that will cause our congregation, and our synod, and our beloved ELCA, to grow and thrive. If we just look hard enough at the data, if we just watch our step and our spending, if we just keep a sharp eye on what the other, larger churches are doing—surely, we will find the golden key and succeed.
“for we walk by faith, not by sight.”
There is a wonderful line in Sinclair Lewis’ novel Elmer Gantry. The book is a long ramble through the life of a blowhard ex-football player turned preacher who is variously successful and self-destructive. Gantry is on an upswing; he is the minister at a big church in a big city and he is on a speaking tour around the state, telling other people how to be as successful as he is. Andrew Pengilly is a gentle and humble minister with a long career in the same little church who volunteers to put the famous preacher up for the night when he comes to town. Gantry sits at the kitchen table, drinking coffee while boasting and bragging about all the things he has done, and plans to do, to bring in the kingdom. Suddenly, Pengilly interrupts, “Mr. Gantry, why don’t you believe in God?”
“for we walk by faith, not by sight.”
“I’ll believe it when I see it,” we sometimes say—and in many cases and with many people, that is a good thing to say and to do. But not with God. To believe God, to trust God, to have faith in God, is to “walk by faith, not by sight.”
It is to plant sprigs of hope on wind-blown mountain tops, fully believing that a mighty tree will someday fill the sky.
It is to sow seeds of kindness, and justice, and forgiveness, and joy, trusting that these tiny seeds will burst forth into an abundance of love and community, we know not how.
It is to hold each other’s hands tightly, trusting the voices that call us forward, leaning into the hands and arms of those who have been this way before and who promise to stay with us and keep us on the path.
It is to “walk by faith, not by sight.”
Amen and amen.
