Last week there was an issue in the news that seemed to get
under peoples skin. Opinions, strongly held and expressed with great emotion,
were shared on both sides of the issue. And then on Saturday a decision was
reached that was irreversible, and the issue was over. Celebration on one side,
smoldering embers of dismay on the other side. And then it was Sunday morning.
A friend of mine who preaches posted this to her Facebook
page Sunday morning:
"If your pastor
doesn't preach on _____ issue, listen anyway.
Sometimes the Holy Spirit is on a different page from the 24 hour news cycle."
Sometimes the Holy Spirit is on a different page from the 24 hour news cycle."
When I first came to faith I was attending a church where
there was a strong element that expected the issues of the day or week to be
addressed from the pulpit. One Sunday, the Sunday of Labor Day weekend in 2005,
the pastor preached on the idea of vocation, particularly that people might consider
their own life and the possibility that God was calling them from their current
vocation to a more intentional way of serving him.
That sermon brought out a bit of outrage within that element
expecting the news to drive the sermon, because it was the Sunday after
hurricane Katrina had devastated the southeast, and New Orleans in particular.
However in my case that sermon was the spark that moved the idea of going to
seminary from being dormant to being pursued. The effects of that sermon unfolded and one thing led to another, eventually bringing my family and I to the place we are presently at, living on a reservation and serving a church here.
Funny thing is, I don’t have any idea what the scripture
text was that Sunday. At the time I doubt it really mattered to me. The
scripture was the scripture and the sermon was the sermon. Any connection between them may
well have struck me as mere coincidence. Now, however, I understand that
scripture and the sermon are intrinsically connected. It is the scripture that
drives the sermon, and not the other way around. Or any other way around.
To take my friend's thought a step further, the Holy Spirit and
the news cycle operate from completely different worldviews. The news cycle
says "This issue is absolutely
important to every single person on earth!"
The Holy Spirit says:
"The
Lord reigns, let the earth rejoice; let the many coastlands be glad!"[1]
and:
"Come
to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."[2]
and:
"For
I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified."[3]
and:
"If
you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God
raised him from the dead, you will be saved."[4]
And many, many more things as well. You get the picture.
The news cycle lives with the seemingly urgent, while the
Spirit always advances the eternal. As a preacher, if they happen to intersect
on a particular Sunday, fine. And if not, that's fine too.
Last Sunday I preached from John 6:1-15. This coming Sunday
I'll preach from John 6:16-21. In both cases those pieces of scripture had, or
will have, something powerful to say to the people gathered for worship. The
following Sunday will be John 6:22-29. At this point I don’t know how those
verses will apply to my congregation, but I trust that the Spirit will give me
guidance in understanding the text and its meaning to the people here on the
reservation.
The news cycle constantly changes. But the Spirit reminds us
that:
"All
flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass.
The
grass withers, and the flower falls, but the word of the Lord remains
forever."[5]
Scripture quotations
are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by
Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All
rights reserved.
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