Genesis 15:1-6, Twelfth Sunday after Pentecost C, August 11,
2013
Grace
and peace be unto you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus
Christ, Amen.
Here
are a few interesting definitions that I found online:
DISCONFECT
(dis kon fekt’) verb. To sterilize the piece of candy you dropped on the floor
by blowing on it, somehow assuming this will ‘remove’ all the germs.
PEPPIER
(pehp ee ay’) noun. The waiter at a fancy restaurant whose sole
purpose seems to be walking around asking diners if they want ground pepper.
purpose seems to be walking around asking diners if they want ground pepper.
PHONESIA
(fo nee’ zhuh) noun. The affliction of dialing a phone number and forgetting
whom you were calling just as they answer.
CARPERPETUATION
(kar’ pur pet u a shun) noun. The act, when vacuuming, of running over a string
or a piece of lint at least a dozen times, reaching over and picking it up,
examining it, then putting it back down to give the vacuum one more chance.
(For more, see: http://pages.infinit.net/garrick/jokes/words.html)
Definitions
can make words come alive – whether they are for fun fake words or for
theology-dependent words. Word
studies for biblical terms develop a beautiful complexity of meaning, showing
how one word can be rich and deep. All of the nuances of the word make it a
living term. Some of these beautiful theological words can be found in the first
and second lesson today, including righteousness and faith. In the NRSV
translation read today, the Greek noun pistis is translated as “faith,” and the
verb pisteuo is translated as “believed.”
We
each have our own understandings of what faith is, how it works for us, and how
God is involved in it. Faith is a
gift from God. Without God’s influence in our lives, we would not believe. God
is so big, so loving, and so confusing that believing in God can be a
challenge.
Yet
faith is so much more than believing in God. Accepting church teachings as fact
is only a very small part of faith. In fact, some call the acceptance of
doctrine “dead faith.” Faith is a richer, deeper concept than intellectual
understanding of God.
Our
faith is alive because God is alive. God is working in and through us every
day, inspiring us to do better and be better. Living faith is our relationship
with God, fueled by prayer, worship, and Bible study. Our faith is grounded in
the love of God, and it is that love that inspires Abram to believe God’s
outrageous promise that he is going to have a son, even in his old age.
From
the beginning, Abram and God had an intriguing relationship. Abram was able to
talk to God in prayer in ways that few since have dared to do, and God pushed
Abram in kind. Near the beginning of Abram’s story in Genesis, God tells Abram
to gather his entire household, including everyone and everything that he had,
and leave. God tells them to go to “a land I will show you.” Abram did so,
completely trusting God to show him the way.
At
times along the way, Abram wondered if God would keep God’s promises. These
promises, that God would give Abram a son, that God would give them land, and
that God would make Abram’s name great, were so outrageous that Abram couldn’t
help but wonder. Certainly, Abram had to wait many, many years before all of
these promises were fulfilled.
During
the passage read this morning, the Lord says in a vision to Abram, “Do not be
afraid, Abram, for I will protect you, and your reward will be great."
Feisty as ever, Abram pushes back. “How can my reward be great,” Abram prays,
“if I don’t have a son to pass on my legacy? I only have a servant as my heir!”
And the Lord rebuts in kind, “This servant is not your heir! You will have a
son! Look at the stars in the sky. They are too many to count, yet your family
will be as many as these.” As crazy as it sounded, Abram believed the Lord, and
the Lord treated his faith as righteousness.
The
fact that Abram believed the promises that the Lord gave him did not help these
blessings to come true any sooner. Abram and Sarai had to wait many years
before Isaac came along. When he did, they rejoiced! They loved that little boy
and watched him grow into adulthood. They lived a simple, happy life together,
trusting that the Lord would provide.
This
Abram, whom God later renamed Abraham, continued to be an inspiration to
believers long after his death. His story as recorded in scripture has become a
model for living the life of faith.
http://www.ceo.wa.edu.au/home/re.faith/Bible/bible_200s/images/bible_210_bible_and_candle_tif.jpg
The
biblical book of Hebrews takes this to heart. In the 11th chapter of
Hebrews, the author outlines the history of Israel by describing how believers
throughout history trusted God to lead them on the right path. The author
writes, “Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it
gives us assurance about things we cannot see. Through their faith, the people
in days of old earned a good reputation. By faith we understand that the entire
universe was formed at God's command, that what we now see did not come from
anything that can be seen.” (Heb. 11:13)
The
text continues to describe how Abraham believed in God and trusted God each
step of the way. Every time that God gave Abraham a command, he followed
through. Although sometimes impatient, Abraham never faltered in his faith. And
because of his faith in God, his descendants are as numerous as the stars.
The
author of Hebrews uses the faith of Abraham as an example for us because
Abraham trusted that God would fulfill God's promises despite Abraham’s
situation. God made Abraham the
head of the faithful family of Jews and Gentiles because of Abraham's simple
yet living faith.
So,
here are a few new definitions:
ABRAHAM
Proper Noun. The biological father
of the Jews and the spiritual father of all believers in the one God. This man received promises from God
that extend to all of God's chosen people.
RIGHTEOUSNESS
Noun. The integrity of God that is
passed to humanity so that we might be eligible for heavenly eternal life.
FAITH
Noun. Belief in the one true God
that extends beyond mere thoughts and ideas into a meaningful relationship with
God. God’s gift of faith is one of
our greatest blessings. Amen.
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