January 31, 2021
The Rev. Joel T. Nickel, Pastor Emeritus/Artist
Satan is identified in the scriptures as the “father of lies” (John 8:44). Lies are his “native language” and this language can play havoc with human perception, susceptibility, and culpability. The event on January 6 in Washington DC with a mob (another name for the forces of Satan, Mark 5:9) storming the capitol building where Congress met in joint session was deliberately incited with lies that the election was “stolen” and needed to be overturned. This event again reinforces the realistic meaning of universal sin and the weakness of human nature (“flesh”) as a restraining resistance to pathologies. The lies play on the ego—its willful fictional belief, blaming a scapegoat rather than acknowledging the difficult truth about human responsibility. So we must deal with the droplets of hate as well as the droplets of a virus that infect our nation. Mask up!
Already at the beginning of his ministry (Mark 1:21ff), Jesus encountered a man with an evil spirit that spoke a truth about Jesus’ identity: “you are the Holy One of God!” The footnote in my Bible notes that in occult belief, the precise use of a person’s name gave one power over that person, so the cynical assertion of the man identifying Jesus isn’t innocent. Jesus had already met satanic temptation in the wilderness (Mark 1:13) so he knew what he was up against, even a flattering identity (see also Mark 10:17-18). Even Satan can quote scripture and hold up a Bible. In this confrontation Jesus again encounters opposition that will plague him for the next three years right up onto Calvary’s hill. In the Capernaum synagogue Jesus “muzzles” the shrill voice of the demoniac and demands the cessation of his protest. So much for “free” speech (see also Mark 1:34).
What bedevils us today in the USA is how to understand the separation of church and state. The idea originates with Martin Luther, who describes the “two kingdoms” of God’s reign: the kingdom of His left hand—the State where He rules through the use of laws and just punishment, and the kingdom of His right hand—the Church where He rules through the gospel, the good news of grace and creation’s renewal. The two kingdoms are seriously impeded when they are confused or conjoined, like if the State claims “divine right” and ordains a specific theological world order, or if the Church utilizes the power of the State to legalize its doctrines and criminalize those who refuse obedience. The Church cannot compel the State to do its job of inviting trust and obedience, while it may ask for help in caring for the poor and outcast. May God bless America is a correct prayer; the imperative “God bless America” is a thoughtless demand more reflexive than meaningful, a heretical praxis.
In our fast moving times our eyes seem to glimpse everything and grasp nothing—immediate impressions that don’t last. At least the worshippers in the Capernaum synagogue were “amazed” at what they witnessed—a “new teaching with authority”. How long this amazement lasted is anyone’s guess (Matthew 11:23-24 suggests it was short lived). Perception has been defined as “what we make of the world before we ever think about it.” Jesus has to break into this “seeing but not understanding” with parables, like the “good Samaritan” who perceives the plight of the man in the ditch who was ignored by the two religious persons, a priest and a lawyer. Who is my neighbor? This is a question at the heart of truth living—a looking at the present time with faith-inspired “feel for the world”—a “faculty of perception pitched somewhere between intellect and instinct.” 1 It is a “tuning in” to what both amazes and puzzles us, to what can register and enter into our imagination. What is your “feel for the world?” asks Jesus. Can you fathom the kingship of God in the midst of this time? Imagination is based on images perceived both actual and ideational, and the ministry of the Word is insightful to both, calling forth our memory of Christ. “Do this in memory of me” covers more than just the Lord’s Supper as we learn how Jesus imaged the world (John 3:17) in the cruciform meeting of heaven and earth.
What makes truth living so difficult in our land is the deeply dehumanizing history of slavery and the abiding and troubling persistence of racism. Perpetuating this injustice creates an unacknowledged guilt that results in fear: what might happen if there is a turn-around reversal and dark skinned citizens treat the white population as they were treated, with lynchings and discrimination in housing and job opportunities and all? The despicable language used by some of the capitol invaders highlights this festering wound, much like the rantings of the man with an evil spirit in the Capernaum synagogue. Where would Jesus “abide” in this moment? What would be his council? How should we pray and respond with civility? Where there is fear there is no faith, and trust disappears, but in Christ there is healing for the sick and demon-possessed. Be amazed! The kingship of God is no small thing!
There is a hymn for such a time as this: LBW #415 “God of Grace and God of Glory,” Verses 2-4:
Lo! The hosts of evil round us, scorn the Christ, assail his ways!
From the fears that long have bound us, free our hearts to faith and praise.
Grant us wisdom, grant us courage for the facing of this hour….
Cure your children’s warring madness, bend our pride to your control;
Shame our wanton, selfish gladness, rich in things but poor in soul.
Grant us wisdom, grant us courage for the facing of this hour….
Save us from weak resignation to the evils we deplore;
Let the gift of your salvation be our glory evermore.
Grant us wisdom, grant us courage, Serving you whom we adore….
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1. James K.A. Smith, “Healing the Imagination”, in IMAGE magazine, Center for Religious Humanism, Seattle, WA; #107, p. 3)