Sermons In Time

Choosing to Live Well

sermon given the day before my wife's hip surgery

Gospel: Matthew 5:17-26

Epistle: I Corinthians 3:1-9

Old Testament: Deuteronomy 30:15-20

Tomorrow has been the focus of our attention at home for about a month now. Tomorrow Gloria will undergo major surgery. During these past few weeks, we have done what all of us do when we are facing a major change in our lives: We have talked about it, we have thought about it, we have fussed about it, and we have just sat close to each other and felt about it.

But probably more even than any of these personal reflections, we have made a decision and a commitment. The decision was to trust the doctor and have the surgery done.

Now, it is not my intention to discuss our personal issues. Instead, it is clear to me today that the issues we have looked at together are not just medical, or personal, or emotional, or psychological. They are deeply spiritual decisions. Let me go through some of them with you in the context of the passages which have been given as the lectionary for today. I have read and reread these during the past few days, and am deeply aware of why they are important for us this morning.

In the reading from Deuteronomy for today, the author states, "I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse; therefore, choose life, that you and your descendants may live, loving the Lord, obeying his voice, for that means life to you and length of days.

1. First, there is a decision about "choosing life." In the passage from Deuteronomy, that is a central theme. Now, it might seem a redundancy to say, "We choose life," but the truth is that it is more than just a matter of hoping to live through an operation. Throughout the years, it has been important to seek and live out the kind of choices which have made life wholesome and abundant. That choice has never been related to quantity. It has always been related to quality. In our family, we might not have "The Best" of everything, but when the decision is made, it is always for the best we can afford, or the best we can be or the best we can do. There is an unwritten "rule of thumb" which could be stated: "Be the best you can be, and never let 'good enough' be an excuse for not doing well."

So, when choosing life, when it becomes limited by circumstances one cannot control, then to do that which will make it better is an important decision. And one goes for it with trust and confidence.

When the People of Israel went into the promised land, Moses really said, "Go for it!" And going for it meant to remember that the Lord was with them, that they had the Lord for a friend, and that there was a quality of life which brought the best for everyone. It was called "The Law." But it was more than just a group of "rules" which were to be followed. It was based on a living relationship of trust and consideration.

2. But there is more to it than just "Going for it." There is also a deep trust within the heart which says, "It will be O.K" Now, that's not put very well, but it still says what I want to say. We have a deep trust in the Physician, in the "State of the Art," and his ability to fulfill that in the procedure which will be done. We also look around us and know those who bear testimony for the wisdom of the trust.

One of the important aspects of the spiritual life is the ability to experience support which is authentic. To be able to say, "It works" is very important. We have heard that recently. We trust that word from those who bear testimony to the richness of life following this action. But is that not precisely what we hear and observe and believe in all of Life? We look at the world in which we live and see clearly those ways of living which lead to a rich and full life, and adopt them for our own. We bear witness to them on behalf of those who are seeking a better way, and without apology, we want the best of life for everyone, and are not content until it is there.

When the words of the New Testament passage we call "The Sermon on the Mount" were written I doubt seriously that those who put it together thought of themselves as writing a rule book for the generations to come. They were undoubtedly bearing witness to that which they had experienced which brought a totally new mobility to their souls, and were saying to those around them, "This works!" As the years have gone by, these words have been tested over and over again, and certainly they have been expanded and refined, but they still stand as "trustworthy sayings." When we read, "It has been said of old, "Thou shalt not kill, but I say unto you, do not be angry" Or: "It has been said, An eye for an eye, but I say to you, do not take revenge." These words still stand as trustworthy ways of living abundantly.

The point is, when one is "Choosing Life," it is not just a matter of healthy bodies. It is also a matter of wholesome spirit. One of the pieces of the decision is to ask honestly the question, "What if it doesn't work?" To deny that question is there would be to be most dishonest. Even to ask it is to bring pain to our thinking. There are those who would not even allow the question to be asked, fearing that just to ask it might somehow "temp the fates."

But to those who are honest, it is an important consideration. And the answer is related to what has just been said. Namely, that life is not limited to having everything turn out just the way you want it to. It relates to "wholesome spirit." One does not make decisions about the adverse aspects of life ahead of time. But one has to have the ability to deal with them when they come. For it is inevitable that ultimately, in all of our lives, they do come. It is still a part of choosing life. It is perhaps most important to be able to call upon a wholesome spirit in such times.

In the Old Testament, there is clearly a response to this fact of living. It was in the time of the exile, when Israel was most up against it, that the question was asked, "How does one sing the songs of Zion in a strange land." Tauntingly, those who were so blue were asked to pick up their instruments and sing their songs of faith. It seemed impossible to do so.

The important thing to remember is, that they did. And it was out of exile, out of depression, out of defeat that the people came back to the period of the Prophets: a time when they understood themselves and their world in a new and fresh way. They understood justice, and mercy and wholesome living in a brand new way. One cannot let the decision to "Choose Life" depend upon everything coming out the way you want it to do so.

An important part of trusting is to be able to affirm life in all circumstances without blaming or projecting, and without being destroyed by difficulties.

3. There is one more thing which I need to say. It relates to the passage from I Corinthians. When all is said and done, one has to be able to say, "Thanks be to God." By that I mean this: In the Corinthian passage, those who were bickering about whose they were argued over who had done what. Let me tell you that it is important that each one who will be a part of the experience of next week do all they can to bring the best results possible. And after it is over, I will be glad to say words of gratitude to the Doctor for his skill. But I will also be grateful to the Anesthesiologist, and to the nurses, and to the people who made the hospital possible, and to the person or persons who perfected the prosthesis, and who developed the medications, etc, etc, etc! The point is that no one is everything, and without each, the final result is not possible.

I know of no truth about life greater than this one. There is no way one can say, "Thank You" to all those to whom we will owe gratitude. What I can say, authentically, however, is that to each one wh o has made the choice to give their best, and to do it with a willing heart, and to contribute to the wholesome life, at whatever level, we will owe a great debt of gratitude. And even more, I am most pleased that there is an authentic life out there toward which we all have the privilege of moving, and as we do, we can know that we have chosen life and not death, blessing and not curse, and because this is so, we, and our descendants may live, loving the Lord, obeying his voice, for that means life and length of days to all of us. amen. .

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