A Sermon by Pastor Tom Lacey . . .

BUT I SAY TO YOU…

Matthew 5:21-26, Preached at Congregational Church of Boca Raton, April 1, 2007

There was a painter named Wayne who was very interested in making a penny where he could, so he often thinned down his paint to make it go a bit further. As it happened, he got away with this for some time, but eventually the Congregational Church decided to do a big restoration job on their building. Wayne put in a bid, and, because his price was so low, he got the job. So he set about erecting the scaffolding and setting up the planks, and buying the paint and, yes, I am sorry to say, thinning it down with turpentine. Well, Wayne was up on the scaffolding, painting away, the job nearly completed, when suddenly there was a horrendous clap of thunder, the sky opened, and the rain poured down washing the thinned paint from all over the church and knocking dear Wayne clear off the scaffold to land on the lawn among the gravestones, surrounded by telltale puddles of the thinned and useless paint. Wayne was no fool. He knew this was a judgment from the Almighty, so he got down on his knees and cried: "Oh, God, please forgive me. What should I do?"

And from the thunder, a mighty voice spoke: "Repaint! Repaint! And thin no more!" That’s “repent, repent, and sin no more!” Funny, huh?

Our text for the day is about having the courage to do the right thing, even when we think nobody is watching.

Of course in Jesus’ case people were watching. And they were astonished that he would say the things he said. That is one kind of bravery: To say things when people will take note of what you say and do things when people are watching what you’re doing—and you do them right anyway. It’s the fearlessness that says, “I may get in trouble, but what is best is best.” There is another kind of courage when you do and say the right stuff when nobody is watching, when you won’t be caught, more than likely, that is. This is the integrity that many don’t have and will cause them to end up in a bad place, and you will read about some of them in newspapers and see them on the news, when they finally get caught and their life is now in shambles.

Of course there is a middle ground sometimes, a gray area. Sometimes we find ourselves there and have to chart our own course, like this girl who accompanied her mother to town “general store." After the mother had made a large purchase, the proprietor invited the girl to help herself to a handful of candy. The child held back. "What's wrong? Don't you like the candy?" he asked? "Yes, I love candy," the child replied. Whereupon the owner put a hand into the jar and dropped a generous portion into the girl's cupped hands. Later, the mother asked the girl why she had not taken the candy when it was first offered. “Well,” she wryly smiled, “Because his hand was bigger than mine." Smart kid, right?

Now there is nothing braver or more dangerous than messing with people’s religion. Try drawing a cartoon of Muhammad and see what happens. Jesus touches this nerve when he stands up and says, “You have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, ‘You shall not murder;’ and ‘whoever murders shall be liable to judgment.’ But I say to you…” Nobody said it this way. If you know how the prophets in the Old Testament talked, then you know they always said, “Thus says the Lord….” The Scribe and Pharisee began, “There is a teaching that….” But Jesus who begins that way, and then quotes the Law, takes upon himself the mantle of complete authority with just one three letter word: “But.” No longer is it “Thus says the Lord,” but “I who am the Lord says.” No longer is it “there is a teaching,” but “I teach you.” As you can imagine, it was disconcerting to many of those who heard Jesus. Still, that wasn’t the end of it. Christ raised  the bar of blessed behavior to a new height. We are to “be perfect as our God in heaven is perfect.” So beware of your anger. Take heed of your lust. Watch your tongue and don’t swear at all. Don’t exact equal justice. No eye for an eye, but give even more than what is taken. Love those who don’t love you; care for those who hate you. As Christians, we are to do more than others do and talk better than others talk.

What we want to see this morning is that it’s not enough to go along with the crowd.

Peer pressure is no excuse. Just because others are stealing doesn’t give one the right to do so also. Look, we are each created on our own. Heck, even twins or triplets or what-have-you come out one at a time. Thank God. So at some time in our lives, we have to make our faith into our faith. Look at Jesus, what he walked toward that day when he entered Jerusalem, which we celebrate as Palm Sunday, was his destiny. It was his courage and his faith that steadied his steps, knowing by entering that city he would meet his death there. But he also believed that he would realize his resurrection there. So be true to yourself, to the one God made, even if there are risks involved. “Walk as children of light,” Ephesians 5:8 even if you have to walk by yourself for a stretch of time. As scripture asks, “What shall a person give in exchange for his soul? What shall it profit, if she gains the whole world and yet loses her own soul?” Matthew 16:26 Establish a standard that others will learn from and try to emulate. Be confident in your gifts. Be bold in doing what’s right and weak toward doing what’s wrong. With courage at your side, you can do what is best no matter the rest, and with faith you can be assured that doing what’s right will in the end be what’s right for you.  

Let me tell you a true story. Irena Sendler saved almost 2,500 Polish Jewish children from the Nazis, organizing a ring of 20 Poles to smuggle them out of the Warsaw, Poland Ghetto in blankets and ambulances. You see what happened is that back in 1942, Poland’s government-in-exile set up the secret organization to help save Jews from the Nazi-established ghettoes and labor camps. Anyone caught helping them risked being immediately shot, along with family members. The Nazis arrested Irena in 1943, but she refused despite repeated torture to tell the names of the children she had helped move to mostly Roman Catholic families in Poland. She hid all their names in jars and buried the jars in a neighbor’s yard in order to keep record of them for after the war. She was a true hero, honored recently by Poland’s senate, and honored in 1965 by Israel, awarding her one of its first medals given to people who saved Jews, the so-called “Righteous Among the Nations.” Her amazing acts of bravery and faith are reflected in her just as wondrous words in a letter she wrote and which one of the children she rescued read on her behalf to Poland’s senate. “Every child saved with my help and the help of all the wonderful secret messengers, who today are no longer living, is the justification of my existence on this Earth, and not a title to glory.” Let us seek not our own glory, but our own purpose. As Jesus matched his steps with his destiny, we ought to match our walk with God’s will. We are never as great as when we are God’s. Be bold. Stand up for what is right. Work to make things better, even when others are messing things up.    

A Harris survey commissioned by United Airlines found that 38 percent of passengers never use the lavatory during a flight, 60 percent do, and another 2 percent aren't sure. I'm fascinated by that 2 percent, but I sure hope I never sit next to one of them on a flight! Did you read about Julee Sharik, from Orem, Utah. She gave birth to a 7-pound, 5-ounce son, just 12 hours after learning she was pregnant. She explained: "Looking back, I remember times when he was moving around a lot, but I thought it was just gas." A prison inmate escaped on the 89th day of a 90-day sentence; he was captured and had to serve then 1-1/2 more years. A robber allowed a store clerk to make one call during the robbery—and was flabbergasted when the police arrived on the scene.

For some, it’s tough to realize what’s really going on. It’s easy to get confused. But the one you want to listen to is the one who knows the real you.

An Australian tennis coach named Harry Hopman built the Australian team to the point that for a period of time it dominated the tennis world. He emphasized what he called "coaching by affirmation." He had a slow-footed boy he nicknamed "Rocket." He had a weak, frail player he named "Muscles." "Rocket" Rod Laver and Ken "Muscles" Rosewall became champions in the tennis world. We all need someone who will tell us who we really are.

Now as confirmed Christians, you are to listen to the Lord. As a preacher used to say, "God has not gone on vacation and left you in charge." We don’t ever graduate from Church. We don’t grow up and grow out of needing God. We may want to do what others are doing, but God says to you…. We may want what others have, but the Lord says to you…. Believe in yourself. Believe in God. Have the courage to stand and not to fall. Have the faith to receive the reward that God desires to give.  

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