Remembrance, Running, Rescue, and Reconciliation
(Free Version)- Exodus 12:1-14; Romans 13:8-14; Matthew 18:15-20
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Our readings this week remind us of the ways God’s people are to be shaped in light of who God is: as a people of remembrance, running, rescue, and reconciliation.
In our Old Testament reading (Exodus 12:1-14), we hear God’s invitation for Israel to celebrate the feast of their deliverance, even though their deliverance has not yet fully happened. They are to be shaped by deliverance, by the God who sets them free, rather than by the gods of Egypt. Their meal is to be eaten in a hurry as they are prepared to run away from captivity and into freedom.
In the Passover story, Pharaoh had a tough time letting go. Moses said, “Let my people go,” and Pharaoh was like “nah.” It is difficult getting out of the old way of living, and trusting in a new world.
This story reminds us that the gods of Egypt always fail us. We need a better story. We need to trust God. Exercising our faith in God is really hard because the gods of our world seem to promise so much and are easier to see.
The way in which God’s people are to be formed, our habits, are incredibly counter-intuitive to the ways of this world. We have been so shaped by “Egypt,” by the culture around us and its idolatry that to run away from it feels strange. We are so caught up in the latest conflicts of the day that it is difficult for us to truly remember who we are and what God has done for us. This is why Christian virtue is so difficult, because our culture is not built on it. And, we live in a culture of vengeance and division, so reconciliation with one another is difficult.
As Pharaoh resisted, each of the gods of Egypt were revealed as fakes. This is what the plagues are all about. Systematically each God is shown to be a fraud. These are the gods of the Egyptians, but they so easily could be what we prop up for ourselves. We trust in certain things for prosperity or security. We trust in political or cultural idols. Often our false idols lead us towards darkness, towards counterfeits, or to exclude or oppress others.
The good news is that there is a better way. The one true God has rescued us and is shaping us and forming us by His grace. Our calling? Remember what God has done and who we are as his people. The new day has dawned, and we will one day see light in fullness.
In our New Testament reading (Romans 13:8-14), Paul calls the church to live in ways counter to the empire in which they find themselves. These are not merely moral commands, but a call to be shaped by rescue, by who God is and what God has done for us. The church can “wake up” from their sleep because their salvation is at hand. A new day has dawned, so they are to put away things of the darkness, which only lead to emptiness and destruction. And the church is to wear, not our pajamas, but the clothes of the new day by “clothing ourselves” with Christ.
Our gospel reading (Matthew 18:15-20), points us towards being a people of reconciliation. This is always the goal, because this is who God is. When someone sins against someone else in the Christian community, the aggrieved person can seek the offender’s healing by making them aware of what they have done. If the offender does not listen, other members of the community are necessary to shed light on the situation. In extreme cases, even a group of gathered Christians needs to be involved; and, in even more extreme situations a person must be cut off from the community because their sin is actively tearing the community apart. Yet, Jesus reminds us that the goal is always to “regain” the brother our sister. Our God is always working towards reconciliation. And Jesus promises that he is always with them: working through his church: binding and loosing.
May we be a people of remembrance, shaped by God through our habits and patterns of celebration. May we be people of running, ready to leave what binds us and move towards freedom. May we be a people of rescue, who live differently because of who God is and what God has done for us. And may we be a people of reconciliation, knowing the God who brings all things together in Him.