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June 19, 2005; Proper 7, Year A
    The Rev. Harold "Skip" Comer, Rector

The Rev. James Lawrence tells the following story.  In a Sunday school play about Jesus walking on the troubled waters of the Sea of Galilee, the little boy who played Jesus put his whole heart and soul into try to duplicate exactly what Jesus said and did.  He asked his Sunday school teacher exactly how one walks on water.  He wanted to know, do you step over the waves or kick through them?  He practiced his one line that Jesus spoke to his disciples, “It is I, be not afraid,” over and over again until he thought that he had capture the way Jesus would have said it.  On the night of the play when the little guy came out on the stage and saw all of the people in the audience he became so nervous that he blurted out, “It’s me, and I’m scared.”[i]

Jeremiah said, “God, it’s me, and I’m scared.”  What happened to Jeremiah that we find him shaking in his sandals in our Old Testament reading this morning?

When Jeremiah was called by God the first thing that God did was to assure Jeremiah that he would give Jeremiah the words he was to speak.  And to further reassure Jeremiah, God also told him, “Do not be afraid … for I am with you …”[ii]  So Jeremiah began his ministry as a prophet to the people of Israel armed with the Word of God and shielded by his presence.  

But now we find that Jeremiah had become afraid of the people around him and what they could do to him.   He was criticized and ridiculed every time he opened his mouth, not just by strangers, but even his closest friends.  These were people who believed in the same God as he did.  The God for which he was a spokesman.  He was accused of being a traitor and was thrown into prison.  Yet his greatest fear was the feeling that God did not seem to be concerned about what he was going through.  Jeremiah felt overwhelmed and it seemed to him that his life was out of control.  He complained to God, more than once.  And it was in the midst of his complaints that he became acutely aware that he was not alone.  The God he thought had abandoned him was there at his side to empower him to withstand the assaults by friend and foe.

What happened to Jeremiah happens to all of us.  We become overwhelmed by frightening things that are bearing down on us and feel all alone.  We panic and become afraid, even terrified.   Most of us have experienced this when we or someone we love has been diagnosed with an illness or disease.  But – if there is someone we can turn to, the panic begins to subside, and even though the problem or situation is still there, we are enabled to face it better than before. 

Something that many of us have probably not thought much about is our fears connected with the living out of our faith.  Do we have a fear of what people will say about us, or what they might do to us because of what we believe?  Our readings from Jeremiah and Matthew are about the hostility that people of faith experience in this world.

Jesus gave his disciples fair warning that they will be treated in the same way that he has been, and will be, treated; and then he added, “Don’t be afraid.”

Jesus had been accused of being in cahoots with Beelzebul, the prince of darkness, Satan.  This same accusation would be leveled against them.  “Don’t be afraid,” he told them.   If you fear Satan more than God, it means that Satan has power over you.  If you fear others, whether they are strangers, friends, or family, then you will be more concerned about their acceptance of you than being acceptable to God.  Jesus’ warnings are – that if we compromise our Christianity, who we believe in and how we live, then we place ourselves in jeopardy.

Don’t be afraid of someone who can kill you, but be afraid of the one who can destroy the soul.  Who has the ability to destroy the soul?  The only one who can destroy the soul is the one who gave it to us to begin with – God.  This is perhaps the hardest; “Don’t be afraid,” that Jesus ever gave.  I’m afraid of dying, just as most, if not all of us are.  Even with the faith and belief that we have in the resurrection and the promise of eternal life, death is very intimidating, even terrifying.  Yet we will all die someday.  What Jesus is saying to his disciples, and us, is that we will not perish because God has ultimate power over our souls and he will not let anything happen to the divine source of life.

Don’t be afraid that God does not care for and about you.  Even though we will all face many pains and tragedies in life, God does care about us.  We are valuable to him because we are one of his children.  Just like a mother or father cannot always prevent their children from being hurt, so it is with God.  But that does not mean that they, or God, do not love and care about their children.  God cares for us so much that he has given us the way through which we can be with him forever – where there is no pain or sorrow.

The persecution of Christians, at least in our society, appears to be somewhat outdated, and we might say that what Jesus told his disciples is irrelevant for us today.  But this begs the question, why is it irrelevant?  Is it because everyone has become a Christian, or because the people of God have become complacent?

I believe that most, if not all, of us would agree that everyone is not a Christian.  And we probably know some people who claim to be Christians, but are not very Christian in their attitudes and actions.

We live in a hostile world.  I know that some would beg to differ with me on this point, but if you take the principles that Jesus sets forth on how we are to live, how we are to treat one another, what we are to value the most;  we can find numerous examples in everyday life that are just the opposite.  From road rage to gossip, from corporate financial scandals to shop lifting, from adultery to spousal abuse, the list goes on.

Where do we stand, or do we take a stand, when the principles of our teacher are violated?  Or is it that we hope the State will intervene to put a stop to it.

Jesus sent his disciples out into the world to make a difference.  They were to live and teach the ways of God to everyone they met – no matter what the response might be.  Are we, both individually and as the Church bold enough to speak out today?  Or will we let someone else do it for us.

“Don’t be afraid.”  It is easier to say those words than to believe what they say – and then be daring enough to assume the role as a witness for Jesus Christ.  I find myself at times struggling as Jeremiah did, wishing that he had called someone else to be his spokesperson in the world.  But he didn’t.  We are meant to make a difference, to help bring the kingdom of God into this world, so that everyone might receive an experience of God’s loving kindness and be transformed into children of God.  Lord help us to stand up for what we say we believe and be your agents in the world in which we live.  

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