Martin Luther King Sunday
©Thomas B. Cundiff
Matthew 22: 34-40
When the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together, and one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. ‘Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?’ He said to him, ‘ “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.” This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.’
Deuteronomy 34: 1-12
Moses Dies and Is Buried in the Land of Moab
Then Moses went up from the plains of Moab to Mount Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, which is opposite Jericho, and the Lord showed him the whole land: Gilead as far as Dan, all Naphtali, the land of Ephraim and Manasseh, all the land of Judah as far as the Western Sea, the Negeb, and the Plain—that is, the valley of Jericho, the city of palm trees—as far as Zoar. The Lord said to him, ‘This is the land of which I swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, saying, “I will give it to your descendants”; I have let you see it with your eyes, but you shall not cross over there.’ Then Moses, the servant of the Lord, died there in the land of Moab land of Moab Moab
Joshua son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom, because Moses had laid his hands on him; and the Israelites obeyed him, doing as the Lord had commanded Moses.
Never since has there arisen a prophet in Israel land of Egypt Israel
I. Where have the years gone?
Back in December I turned 60. Where have all the years gone? With very few regrets, I am overwhelmed with positive feelings about all the ways God has blessed me, my family and this church. While life is not perfect, I feel pretty good about where I have been these past 60 years.
Through the years, my family and many of you have gone through a lot with me. We enjoy some wonderful times together. I appreciate your support as I have had to face health challenges.
What has remained constant in my life and IN this church is our love for God and perseverance in serving God through Christ our Lord.
This text from Revelation has come to mind: While so many things change in our lives, the world and this church, we can always know God is the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, always present with us as a source of strength and support, the one who is, who was and is still to come, the Almighty One.[1]
II. Deuteronomy
All of this reflecting on turning 60 takes me to a man who lived, reportedly, twice as long—Moses who reportedly lived to be 120. Regardless how old he was, the important story is Moses’ commitment to lead the people of God through the Sinai Peninsula toward the good life and what scripture calls: The Promised Land.
To quote Dr. John Buchanan of the Fourth Presbyterian Church in Chicago
“…. Moses leading all the way—inspiring, pushing prodding, scolding—and now God’s chosen people have arrived at their destination, the Promised Land. God takes Moses to the peak of the highest point in the region, Mt. Nebo, and allows Moses to look over and see the land, all of it, the goal of his life, toward which he has been walking for four decades. And then God tells Moses, ‘You can see it, but you’re not going over there yourself.’”[2]
In condensing this story, Moses dies at an old age with Joshua taking over in leading the people toward the Promised Land. For four decades of traveling I can only imagine the life of Moses and the people he was leading: the hardships; hunger and disease, illness and death. Good days and some really ghastly/harsh days of suffering and death. Yet – then and now – life goes on.
And now centuries later after Moses lived we continue on our journey in searching for the Promised land filled with “Milk and honey”(Exodus), health and stability; wellness and peace! Life goes on.
Then and now, while the world is changing all around us, God continues to be the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end….the source of strength and encouragement and peace we search for through God’s Son Jesus our Lord. Life goes on.
Tomorrow we celebrate the birthday of another great man, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., who dedicated his entire life to preaching and leading God’s people to the “Promised Land” of freedom and security and justice and peace. Dr. King was a prolific preacher and charismatic leader who was taken from this world at a much to young age. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in April of 1968.
As I have been reading through some of his sermons and speeches this past week, I quickly learned that Dr. King was quite a fan of Moses. In almost every sermon there is some reference to Hebrew scripture and Moses quest to reach the promised land…..
The imagery of Moses climbing to the top of Mt. Nebo
One of Dr. King’s most famous speeches, “I’ve got A Dream” , was delivered on August 28, 1963 at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC
I have a dream today! I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight; and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together.
Perhaps his greatest sermons delivered the evening before his assassination, April 3, 1968 —he was preaching a powerful message about his journey through many years struggling for freedom from the oppression of slavery. In this sermon titled, “I’ve Been to the Mountain Top” King spoke about the African-American experience—from slavery to Jim Crow laws to the civil rights movement. After King told several powerful stories, including stories about death threats he had received, he said,
“Well, I don’t know what will happen now… We’ve got some difficult days ahead. But it really doesn’t matter with me now, because I’ve been to the mountaintop….”[4]
While we might be inclined to “Count our days” wondering when God will receive us home, what we can learn from Moses and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr -- and Jesus our Lord—only God, the Alpha and Omega, knows the end of the story of life—the beginning of a new story with him in his glorious kingdom.
IV As We Count our Days
If we honestly recognize the truth of God’s presence in our lives, we too have perhaps been to the mountaintop. We might not be there now but we’ve been there. With varied experiences, good and bad, God has touched us in special, positive, challenging ways. While there are still deep valleys of discouragement and despair that overwhelm us from time to time, my experience? We usually get through the deep valley experiences better off than where we started.
Regardless where we’ve been in life, God is always ready to bless us with something new…..something positive …..something encouraging. The promised land awaits each and every one of us each and every day! As a pastor this is my experience. This is also my prayer for each of you.
In reflecting on turning 60; listening carefully to stories from scripture and Dr. King -- I look down from the mountaintop of my experiences and continue to see the pain, the hunger and the struggles. I see the valleys of violence and death.
Tens of thousands of people are looking for jobs. Hundreds of thousands of people are hungry. The disparity—the gap—between rich and poor is getting worse. Politically, I don’t see any Republican, Democrat or Independent candidates equipped to solve all these issues. So many in this world are either doing well….or not doing well at all!
And we count our days. What will it take to make things better? I have dedicated my entire life to ministry and feel we’ve made some progress in making this a better world in which to live. At the same time, life is short. So many people suffering. So many more things to be done in the short span of life God has given us.
V. OUR HOPE FOR YEARS TO COME
Consider this thought as we count our days—the most important thing we can do as Christians and church leaders is pass the mantle of leadership on to others. Just as Moses passed on leadership to Joshua, we too need to pass on to others the tools of faith and hope and love that have sustained us – so other can see from the mountain top what we can see….
Let me get specific:
I look at the parade of former pastors pictured in the Narthex who have led this church through our 145 year history. As my picture on that wall literally starts to fade away I ask: Who will take over leading this church when I retire? While some think our dwindling resources and small membership might make it hard to continue, I would like to think we just haven’t quite figured what the mission of this church will be in the next ten to twenty years! Get the right leadership in place in a new pastor, I think there is a lot this church will be able to do!
What I do know is we have a core of members ready to lead this church toward the promised land…..a future in continuing to reach out to people in this community.
Specifically, I think of those eight individuals I have had the privilege to baptize who are now serving as ordained officers of this church…one of the great perks of a long pastorate:
Matthew Davis Baptized 4/9/89 Ordained an Elder 1/9/05
Bradford Jebb Baptized 2/9/92 Ordained a Deacon 1/4/09
Katlyn Scovill Baptized 10/4/92 Ordained a Deacon 1/4/09
And two adults:
Freddie Hudson Baptized 6/16/02 Ordained a Deacon 1/7/07
Tom Becker Baptized 5/10/87 Ordained a Deacon 1/8/89
(also the usher who makes sure I have fresh water every Sunday LJ
(also the usher who makes sure I have fresh water every Sunday LJ
These and a good many of you will take over when its time for me to retire.
VI. FINALLY
Finally and most important of all: Jesus Christ is our leader. Through faith we place in Jesus, baptized in Christ, we join with Moses and other great leaders in moving forward toward the hope, the peace and justice, -- the good and prosperous life God wishes for all creation.
Together we are the living body of Christ. We are Christ’s church. Where two or three have gathered in the name of Jesus, we are two or three steps closer to the promised land…..that land of milk and honey…..that life beyond death where we can live eternally with God.
All of us now are the adherents of Jesus Christ passing on the legacy of all God’s gifts to others. Faithfully, we are doing the best we can to serve our lord with the resources we have at our disposal. Young and old and Counting our Days, we are challenged to accept the call pass the love of God known to us through Jesus Christ on to others….near and far.
Counting our days, I invite you to climb the mountain of your life experiences to reflect upon where you have been….where you are going…..and where God will lead well beyond our time here on this earth.
Counting our days, let’s take to heart the words of from the prayer-hymn and Psalm 90:
Our God our Help in Ages past, our hope for years to come. Our shelter from the stormy blast, and our eternal home. (Hymn 210)
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