Loving God, you are the only source of life and salvation and created us to live in relationship with you.  Fill our hearts with the gifts of faith and love by the power of your Spirit, and continue to draw us to you, through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

    Throughout the Old Testament, there is a question that comes up again and again: Are these people going to worship God, or worship idols (which are false gods)? The Hebrew Scriptures make it clear that there is only one God who is living and powerful – one God who is Creator of heaven and earth – one God who has power over life and death.  All the rest of the so-called gods that people worship have no real power and will ultimately disappoint because they cannot and will not give life.

    As modern people we sometimes sort of sneer at this, wondering how somebody could bow down to a statue as if that statue could actually do anything for them.  However, people today are not as different as we might think.  I believe it was Paul Tillich who described our god as our ultimate concern.  In other words, whatever gets the bulk of our time and attention is, in fact, our god.  And so, is it the one true God – the one who can give life – who is our ultimate concern, or is it someone or something else?

    Many of the people of Israel in our first reading today had chosen to make Baal their ultimate concern.  Do you know very much about Baal (or Ba’al)?...  The word itself actually means “lord” or “husband.”  However, the Baal who is mentioned in today’s reading is basically a Canaanite fertility god.  The Canaanites worshiped Baal in order to help make their crops grow and their flocks and herds multiply.  Of course, once the Israelites were living in the land of Canaan, they wanted to try this particular farming technique as well.  However, worshiping Baal and worshiping the living God really don’t go together.

    You see, worshiping Baal did not require any attention to justice or right relationships or holy living or looking after the widows and the orphans.  Rather, worshiping Baal often involved visits to temple prostitutes, cutting yourself with swords or lances, or even human sacrifice.  It was all about doing the right rituals, as opposed to loving God with your whole heart and soul and mind.  And yet, the people of Israel were trying to do both.  No wonder the prophet Elijah finally says, “How long will you go limping with two different opinions?  If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal, then follow him” (1 Ki. 18:21).

    Once again, is this really all that different from what people do today?  How many worship God only when it’s convenient or only when it doesn’t interfere with other, more important things?  How many actually have money, or sports, or family, or even work as their ultimate concern and only throw God in there when the need arises?  Yet, God is the only one who can truly give life, and God is the only one who has power over all things, even when the odds are 450 to 1.

    The things is that, in spite of the fact that we are talking about worshiping the living God, other options have remained far more popular.  In Elijah’s time, both the king and queen in Israel supported worshiping Baal, and Queen Jezebel had even been killing off the prophets of the Lord (1 Ki. 18:4).  This is part of the reason why the numbers are so lop-sided when Elijah faces off against 450 prophets of Baal.  Yet, there is little question who has the real power when Elijah’s prayer is answered with fire from heaven.  In spite of his popularity, Baal just can’t compete.

    In the same way, Paul makes the distinction between pleasing people or serving Christ as he is writing to the Galatians. He asks, “Am I now seeking human approval, or God’s approval?” (Gal. 1:10) In Paul’s estimation, if he were trying to be popular, he would not be serving Jesus Christ.  However, in spite of this, Paul would not have it any other way.  He is happy to count all other things as loss because of the surpassing value of knowing Jesus Christ as Lord (Phil. 3:8).

    Keep in mind that this is the same Jesus who often did not do the popular thing.  While his ability and willingness to heal people was a wonderful thing and was regularly sought out by others, often the way in which the healing occurred became a source of controversy.  In Jesus’ estimation, healing was more important than the Sabbath laws, and more important than the purity laws, and more important than keeping Jews and Gentiles separate.  In today’s gospel, once again, Jesus would have shocked many people as he pointed to an enemy – a member of the occupying force – as a better example of faith than any he had seen in Israel.

    Thus, it really shouldn’t be surprising to us that in many circles these days it is not particularly popular to be Christian.  It’s not that we try as Christians to be unpopular, but our ultimate concern is quite different from many of those whom we meet.  When you look at what might be called “pop” culture, everything is all about me – it’s about what I want and what makes me feel good.  It’s about doing my own thing and perhaps occasionally doing something that might be good for others.  Thankfully, at least in some quarters, there has begun to be more emphasis on “we” rather than “me.”

    Still, it is not particularly popular to worship God or to work on your relationship with God.  It is not particularly popular to do what is right and just and honest because of your relationship with God.  It is not particularly popular to share your faith with others – simply because you have found life in Jesus Christ and want to share that life with others.  Perhaps we can ask along with the apostle Paul, are we going to please people, or serve Jesus Christ?

    In Paul’s case, he had no doubt that serving Jesus was absolutely worth it.  He knew Jesus’ power to heal.  He knew that Jesus had given himself for the sins of the world.  He knew that in Jesus there is forgiveness and resurrection and eternal life.  And he had experienced life in all its fulness – the Spirit of God at work within him and through him, filling him with peace and joy even in the midst of trials and suffering.

    This same kind of relationship with God did not end with Paul or with the New Testament, but remains open to all those who believe in Jesus Christ.  The demonstrations of God’s power also did not end with the Bible, as many people continue to see God’s power at work, both in the world and in their own lives.

    My prayer today is that those who are gathered here would continue to be empowered by the Holy Spirit – able to see God at work in the world and among us.  For the one who gives life continues to love us and to call us, desiring us to have life-giving relationships of love through Jesus Christ.  Thanks be to God.  Amen.

Lectionary 9(C)                                1 Kings 18:20-39
June 2, 2013                                Galatians 1:1-12
St. Luke’s Zion Lutheran Church                        Luke 7:1-10
Pastor Lynne Hutchison

© 2013 Lynne Hutchison  All Rights Reserved