What God Has Joined Together

In Nomine Iesu
St. Mark 10:2-16
October 7, 2012
Pentecost 19-Proper 22B

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus~

Dear husbands and wives, congratulations on your marriage! It’s no small accomplishment—getting married, and staying married. You deserve a pat on the back and a whole lot more. But I’m afraid we can’t give you all the credit. Even those of you who have been married for upwards of fifty or sixty years—even you need to realize this wonderful truth about your marriage. You may have done the wooing and the wowing. You decided on the dating. You did the proposing and the accepting. You purchased the rings. You reserved the church. You rented the hall. You sent the invitations. You ordered the cake, bought the dress, rented the tux, hired the photographer, and planned the honeymoon. You did all that and more. But it was God who joined you together.

It was God who joined you to your spouse—for better for worse, for richer for poorer, until death parts you. In, with and under the courtship and dating, the engagement and wedding—God Himself was at work, drawing you and your spouse together. Behind your promises and your pledges to one another, stand God’s promises and pledges to you and your spouse. God’s fingerprints are all over your marriage. Yours is truly a match made in heaven. And even if you don’t believe that or feel that to be the case, then at least take Jesus at His Word. For today Jesus describes your marriage and every marriage as, “What God has joined together.”

If you are married, then know that God Himself has joined you to your spouse. Your marriage is a work of God—maybe even a miracle of God. At the very least, we ought to recognize that marriage—your marriage—is holy. It matters to God. God is using your marriage to change the world. He wants your marriage to proper and flourish. When the marital waters get rough, your God wants to still the storm and bring you peace. Couples facing conflict often feel isolated and alone. But those couples are not isolated or alone! The God who joined them will never leave them or forsake them.

That’s part of the good news from God’s Word today about marriage; and I thought it important to start there, since other parts of today’s text are perhaps a bit more troubling. God’s Word about marriage is challenging, first of all, because a good portion of you here today are not married. There’s nothing wrong with that. Marriage isn’t for everyone. But marriage is God’s gift to the whole world. In many ways, marriage is the God-given glue that holds the world together. It’s challenging to preach about marriage and adultery—about divorce and the “one flesh” relationship between husbands and wives. After all, I don’t want to increase the guilt of the guilty or make the complacent more comfortable. But I do want to give you God’s truth about His gift of marriage. And if you don’t get that truth here, then I don’t know where you’ll get it. So I’m going to trust that God’s Word about marriage will accomplish what God desires—and in whom God desires to accomplish it.

It’s important to remember why Jesus said what He said about marriage and divorce in today’s Holy Gospel. He was responding to a question tossed out by some Pharisees. And they weren’t asking out of a desire to build better marriages; no, they were trying to trip Jesus up with a gotcha question. “Is it lawful,” they asked, “for a man to divorce his wife?” However Jesus answered, He was sure to offend someone. Back in those days, the conservative rabbis taught that a man could only divorce his wife if she had been unfaithful. But the liberal rabbis taught that a man could divorce his wife for practically any reason at all. Even the slightest shortcoming—just burning the roast beef—was grounds for divorce.

Jesus responded by leading the Pharisees back to the beginning—back to Genesis chapter 2. There we see that God is the Giver of marriage—how it was not good for the man to be alone, how God made a woman out of the man’s side and then brought her to the man as a gift, and how the man rejoiced over the woman, declaring, “This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh.” God’s giving and man’s receiving is the basis for marriage. Jesus sums it up by quoting directly from Genesis: “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” And then Jesus adds, “What God has joined together, let not man separate.”

But ever since the fall into sin one chapter later, human beings have been busy working to separate what God has joined, rejecting what God has given, and revising and re-defining God’s gift of marriage to suit our sinful desires. And nowhere have human beings sought to change things up more, than when it comes to the phrase, “one flesh.”

“[Husbands and wives] are no longer two but one flesh,” said Jesus. That phrase “one flesh” is more than just a figure of speech. It describes how marriage is the closest communion that can possibly exist between two people. It is the union of a man and woman—physically, emotionally, spiritually. And this communion between husband and wife is a closed communion. No one is permitted to drive a wedge between a husband and wife. Anyone who dares to do so—anyone who dares adultery—who subtly seeks to separate what God has joined together—that person will be answerable to God.

That phrase, “one flesh” also tells us another truth about marriage: Marriage is the only proper and God-pleasing place for sexual love to be expressed. Only within marriage can two people, like Adam and Eve, stand before one another naked and without shame. Any sexual relationship between people who are not married is destructive, harmful, and sinful. It separates sex from marriage—separates what God has joined together for our good. Couples who live together without the benefits and blessings of marriage are dishonoring marriage—and dishonoring the God who gives marriage (not to mention setting themselves up for all sorts of marital troubles in the future). And by the way, God’s truth about living together and sex and adultery—it’s just as true for teenagers as it is for senior citizens. No one gets a pass. God gives us His truth about marriage because He loves us and wants the best for us. And His truth about marriage contains no loopholes, no exceptions or exclusions.

In fact, God’s truth about marriage condemns us all. For we’ve all dishonored marriage in our thoughts, words or deeds. And in every marriage, every day, husbands and wives sin against one another and against the God who joined them together. We can go on excusing our sin or hiding our sin, or blaming someone else for our sin, or claiming that everybody else is doing it. Or, we can confess our sin to God, receive His full and free forgiveness, and then make the changes we need to make. God’s forgiveness is always total and complete. But God’s forgiveness is never the permission to go on living in our sins.

In the Scriptures, God gives us a perfect picture of marriage. In this picture, Jesus is the groom and the church is His bride. We are the bride of Christ. But it could have been otherwise. For Jesus could have divorced us. God could have put us all away for our countless spiritual adulteries and infidelities. He could have sent us away for good, and with just cause. Instead, Jesus Christ bore our adulteries on the cross. Our sin was joined to His body. His body was joined to the cross. All of our sin was laid with Him in His tomb. Whatever your personal adulteries and infidelities—whatever the ways you have sought to separate what God has joined together—see that shameful load buried forever in the tomb of Jesus. See it all washed away in the cleansing splash of your baptism.

Husbands and wives, God has joined you to your marriage partner; and God doesn’t make mistakes. That doesn’t mean that your spouse will always be your best friend, or that your spouse will always make you happy. No one can be that spouse. Men are not from Mars and women are not from Venus. We’re just struggling sinners, cleansed and redeemed by the blood of Jesus. But as we confess our sins to God and one another, we have an ever-present help. For the God who joins husbands and wives together is surely willing, ready and able to provide your marriage with help and healing and hope and joy. Are you willing to look for that help and receive that help?

Beloved in the Lord, it’s not just a matter of “marriage is good” and “divorce is bad.” It’s a matter of “marriage is holy, and we must all keep it holy with the help of God.” Apart from His help, there’s not much we can do. “Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain.” But with the Lord—with His mercy, help, and forgiveness—all things are possible. Amen.

Ancient Prayers Answered

In Nomine Iesu
Numbers 11:4-6, 10-16, 24-29
September 30, 2012
Pentecost 18-Proper 21B

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus~

Is it possible that a prayer prayed years ago is somehow being answered in your life today? Thomas Merton, a 20th Century theologian, includes a very touching scene in his autobiography. He is standing outside the ruins of a 13th century French monastery. A fascinating thought crossed his mind as he viewed the empty, abandoned monastery. He wondered whether the prayers of those monks—who had been dead and gone for hundreds of years—whether some of their prayers were being answered by God in his life on that day.

Does God answer ancient prayers in a way that shapes our lives today? After all, God is in eternity. He stands outside of time as we know it. His “inbox” is not at all like my e-mail inbox. As I go through my inbox I can recall e-mails that I’ve received in recent weeks and months; but if you sent me an e-mail back in September of 2009 I can assure you that I have no recollection of it whatsoever. But with God, every prayer and every petition ever received is just as fresh and new today as ever.

Is it possible that God answers ancient prayers, long forgotten by us, in a way that impacts us today? Is it possible that a prayer offered for you by a parent or grandparent way back when you were just a tiny baby is shaping your life today—that a prayer offered for you by a godparent on the day of your baptism is guiding your decisions and your steps today—that the prayer of someone you never even knew is making a difference in your life this day? And if so, it is possible that God could answer a prayer you speak today much later in your lifetime—or even long after you are dead and gone? Is it possible that our lives today could be shaped by ancient prayers?

In today’s Old Testament reading we have just such a prayer—a prayer that God is answering here and now to shape your life. I’m guessing that you probably missed it. It is admittedly hard to hear that prayer because as you listen to Numbers chapter eleven, the things that really jump out are the grumblings. Now, grumblings can sound a lot like prayers. And sometimes our prayers to God do include complaints. But you must understand that grumblings are not prayers. Grumblings are not spoken to God. Grumblings are spoken to the world—to anyone who will listen.

The grumbling in Numbers 11 got its start like this: The tribes of Israel were encamped in the wilderness. At the center of the camp was the tabernacle, the tent of meeting, the place where God dwelled among His people. That tabernacle was like the hub of a wheel, and spread out around it were tents as far as the eye could see. The grumble began perhaps when one man stepped out of his tent early one morning. He looks and he sees what’s wrong. He used to love to get up in the morning—to go outside and see manna covering the ground as far as the eye could see—precious, mysterious food from God. The name “manna” literally meant “What is it?” The very name of this food expressed wonder and amazement, as it reminded you that it was a gift from the hand of God—that it was the bread of angels.

Who knew you could get so sick of the bread of angels? Baked, battered, boiled, pickled or fried—it didn’t matter. Just the sight of that manna now made him sick. Manna yesterday, manna today, manna tomorrow for years on end. So, rather than gather up that gift of God, the man let out a beautiful grumble. He let loose his longing to go back to Egypt. Only he conveniently forgot about the hardships and slavery; and all he could recall was the veritable smorgasbord of meat and fish and cucumbers and melons and leeks and onions and garlic. And his mouth watered and his neighbors’ mouths watered, and all too soon that one grumble had spread throughout the entire camp. That grumble—that awful, beautiful grumble had a terrible power to shape the world.

You know the power of a good grumble, don’t you? Like when you’re driving home from church, after you’ve had your sins forgiven and you’ve been fed and nourished with the precious, priceless body and blood of Jesus, and the Word of God is still ringing in your ears and you let loose with a good grumble about how the sanctuary was too warm (or too cold), or how the choir sounded flat, or that the distribution took too long or the organ was too loud or how it seemed like pastor just “mailed in” the sermon this week. And suddenly the precious, powerful gifts God gives in this place fade away—just disappear—erased by the power of a good grumble.

Or it’s like in marriage, when you are sacrificing of yourself for the sake of your spouse. And that sacrificial love for your spouse is Christ-like. It is holy. It makes the angels in heaven rejoice because that’s the hard work husbands and wives are called to do. But in your frustration, you let loose with a good grumble about how lazy and unthankful your spouse is—about how you are taken for granted day in and day out, and about if only you knew back then what you know now. And suddenly—suddenly—the gift of God that is your spouse is despised and what God has joined together you have ripped apart by the power of a good grumble.

The grumbling of the Israelites drove Moses to his knees. Moses took all those grumbles and gave them to God—made them into a prayer. Only it’s not a prayer for wisdom or strength or faith. Moses prays a prayer for himself—that God would annihilate him! Because Moses was sick of these people! Moses takes it all and throws it up to God. God has a leader who doesn’t want to lead and people who don’t want to follow. The people are looking at the past in a way that takes away the gift of the present. Moses is looking at the present in a way that takes away the gift of the future. And Moses prays a terrible prayer, “Kill me now!” But God doesn’t kill Moses.

Instead God looked ahead to the future—and in the future God would indeed kill the leader of His flock—the Good Shepherd of His sheep. The punishment His grumbling people deserved would be heaped up upon the One God sent to save them. God didn’t kill and God didn’t punish that day because of His mercy. The mercy of God was hidden right there in their midst—behind the curtain in the Holy of Holies in the tabernacle. God must have longed to pull back that curtain and dwell among His people in the flesh—to gather them as a mother hen gathers her chicks beneath her wings. But when that time had fully come—when the Word became flesh and dwelt among us in the person of Jesus the Christ—God’s grumbling people grabbed Him and grasped Him and nailed Him to the cross. Jesus was beaten and battered and crucified—and this was the desire of God—to offer His life for you. This is the merciful heart of God—that He does not punish us as our grumbling hearts deserve; but shows us mercy instead.

It was because of that mercy that God answered Moses’ prayer in an unexpected, undeserved fashion. Instead of gathering manna, the Lord told Moses to gather men—seventy men of the elders of the people. And the Lord Himself came down in the cloud and took some of the Spirit that was on Moses and put that same Spirit on the seventy elders. And they began to prophesy. And that Spirit was so full and so strong and so powerful that even two men who were way out on the far edges of the camp—Eldad and Medad—even they began to prophesy. Joshua came running to Moses to make them stop. But Moses responded with a prayer—a prayer which doesn’t sound like much more than a footnote to the whole episode. Moses prayed, “Would that all the Lord’s people were prophets, that the Lord would put His Spirit on them all!”

That’s the ancient prayer I want you to hear today. “Would that all the Lord’s people were prophets, that the Lord would put His Spirit on them all!” That prayer went unanswered for centuries. It sat in God’s “inbox” year after year. But God began to answer it when He raised Jesus Christ from the dead and lifted Him up in glory to be seated at His Right Hand in the heavenly realms, and then sent His Holy Spirit into this world to call and gather for Himself a holy people, filled with His Spirit—each one a little temple—a temple of the Holy Spirit.

And do you know what this means? It means that that ancient prayer of Moses is today, here and now, being answered. It is being answered in all of you, here, in this place. It is being answered in the members of our choir and musicians, as they use their voices and instruments to lift up our hearts and to set our minds on things above, not on earthly things. That ancient prayer is being answered by our organist, Benjamin, who rings out the praises of God each week with discipline, dedication and humility. That ancient prayer is being answered in our midst by our Sunday school teachers who week after week welcome our little ones in Jesus’ name and teach them God’s Word—in Marcy Angeli who, even though her own girls are gone and graduated, continues to lead the opening each week and oversee the all-important snack distribution. That ancient prayer is being answered in those of you who fix things—in Matt and Jerry and Jim who keep this place up and running, and do it on-time and under budget. And speaking of the budget, we have a treasurer in Curt Steinhaus who quietly and fearlessly crunches the numbers each week so that none of us has to give it a second thought—in the counters who count the offerings and in you givers who give the offerings—in you who serve at the Bethany soup kitchen, who labor at Blessed Again, in you who put your arm around that one who is hurting and mourning, in all those who do good works in this congregation—those who toil, those who sing, and in all the people here present who await from the Lord great and abundant mercy, ancient prayers are being answered in you and through you.

God’s answers shape our life together here at Our Savior. It’s not easy—what you do. What is easy is the grumbling. I know because I do it all the time. But I also know that that grumbling takes away God’s gift of the present. So when you feel the urge to let out a good grumble, give it to God. Because God will hear and answer. And He will answer not according to what we deserve, but according to His grace. He will forgive us for Jesus’ sake. And He will continue to put His Spirit in you so that you might always be an answer to prayer. Amen.