Set On You
Deut. 30:15-20; Psalm 119:1-8; Matthew 5:21-37
Rev. Tiare L. Mathison, Pastor & Soul-Tender
The Last Will and Testament of Moses, given on the plain of Horeb, near Mt. Nebo, his final gift to the people of Israel. They stand all together on the edge of the Promised Land, eager to move in, settle down, build homes, stores, schools, the synagogue, the gates where the elders sit to adjudicate disputes, the water cisterns where the women gather every day to offer support and comfort. They had been on the move for 40 years after a harrowing escape from Egypt’s slavery, with the Red Sea parting in a miraculous sort of way. When Moses stayed too long up on the mountain as he listened to the Lord declare Torah - the 10 Commands - they went wild and built a golden calf; their first try at idolatry. It would not be the last time they turned away from Yahweh, creating idols, oppressing their workers, worshipping other gods.
Now, finally, here they are.
His voice still booming even as his body gave way to decay, Moses leans on his mercy stick and declares:
“SEE! I have set before you today life and prosperity, death and adversity. If you obey the commands of the Lord YOUR God that I am commanding you today:
#1) Love God
#2) Walk in His ways
#3) Observe His commands, decrees, and ordinances
Remember Moses shouts!
This declaration reminds Israel of the GREAT COMMAND, The Shema:
‘Hear O Israel, The Lord our God is one Lord
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your might. Keep these words that I am commanding you today in your heart. Recite them to your children and talk about them when you are at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you rise. Bind them as a sign on your hand, fix them as a frontlet on your forehead and write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.’
Deut. 6:4-9
God set Her heart on Israel, the Deuteronomist writes. A small nation of no account, God provides relationship, strength for the journey, eventually and most importantly, the land to build a nation. God’s commands are designed to generate a reciprocal connection, heart to heart. Deemed the most important part of the human body, ancient Israel was instructed to listen carefully, to take in these commands and then show forth their obedience. Love God, walk in His ways - this is the pattern for a transformed life, rooted in the image of God. Love and care for one another and the whole community flourishes. Choose life!
Set On You
This is a bit of a bird walk but I want to remind you of what was preached last week, to connect the dots of Moses’ last will & testament and the instructions of Paul regarding the mind of Christ in the letter to the Corinthian Church:
Quote: When we follow Torah - the Commandments - synthesized by Rabbi Jesus: ‘Love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength and love your neighbor as yourself,’ we participate in Christ, IN AND FOR the world. In other words, we live inside the Trinity! God’s House! Isn’t this remarkable? Each little act of care, each kindness & mercy shown, each stand for justice, each moment of awe before God, reflects this Christ-mind we have as gift.”
Remember? I shout, like Moses. In a pattern - if…then we are instructed in sentences based on conditions. Life and death, blessings and curses. A sacred testament, the covenant = life; reject the covenant = death.
Let’s go over the commands again;
No graven images
No idols
Don’t use My Name for your own good
Remember the Sabbath and keep it holy
Honor your father and your mother
No murder, no adultery, no stealing, no false witness
no coveting your neighbor’s spouse, house, field, or wealth
Often we chafe against these kinds of instructions. We are people who like our choices - just look at a cereal aisle in a grocery store. Tiare, are you telling me that God inspects my decisions and judges them? Wait a minute…
Let me put it bluntly: There is hell to pay when the commands are violated. Stop and think about it: Let’s start with our economic world. Greed, stealing and covetousness are baked into our market economy so that the poor and middle class remain right where they are, while the rich don’t even get taxed on their earnings! The idols that the rich build in their golden splendor blind us to their cruelty and oppression. Look at the exploitation of the world’s natural resources, our capacious appetites for having stuff overwhelms the regeneration of the earth through its orderly life cycles. We even have excessive Public Storage Buildings because our houses are too small for all our things.
Talk to anyone who has suffered the humiliation of a partner who commits adultery - the pain almost too much to bear.
And who doesn’t need a Sabbath rest each week?
What I am suggesting is these commands and demands from God give shape and form to a life that thrives, not just for individuals but for whole communities. We need to deepen our habits of thinking to recognize God has given us this pattern of holy life because, because She has set her heart on us, too. Set On You
It has always been my belief that God gives us freedom to say yes or no to Her. Sometimes She sets the hounds of heaven after us, we are dragged, kicking and screaming, into the realm as C.S. Lewis suggests. There are glimpses, certainly if you allow yourself to stand in awe and humility before Mt. Rainier or The Olympics on a sunny winter’s day. I know of nuns all over the world who are cloistered so they can pray for the salvation of humanity. And we know what we don’t know - what in the world is God doing today?
God’s penultimate action is to give us Jesus Christ, a baby born, a human/divine life lived in full obedience to these commands. It is His witness to the possibility of wholeness, and His willingness to suffer for sin on the world’s behalf, that we claim redemption and hold out the opportunity to love the Lord our God with all our hearts, minds, souls and strengths and our neighbors too. To keep Sabbath, not steal, covet or swear falsely. To recognize that without the presence of the Holy Spirit, we are incapable of choosing life on any kind of consistent basis.
Archbishop Desmond Tutu, from South Africa, and all that that means living through apartheid as a black Christian leader, says this: quote:
“What we are, what we have, even our salvation, all is gift, all is grace, not to be achieved but to be received as a gift freely given.” Unquote
I believe we have to root ourselves in gratitude first and foremost, before we take on the sometimes daunting task of obedience to the commands. Our starting point is not a moral or ethical, right or wrong place. Our first prayer is to simply say, Thank You, thank you, for setting your heart on us. Amen