"Coping With Interference" July 8, 2018

2nd Samuel 6: 1-19 Mark 6: 12-29 Decades ago a couple were married, and the Groom’s great grandmother gave a gift. The great grandmother was known to be eccentric and her presents quite bizarre, so without opening, they placed the unopened box in the spare bedroom, later moved to the hall closet, then to the attic. One day their son found it, and asked if he could open the present and have what was inside? Thinking better of it, his father said “Okay.” Inside, was an empty wooden box, which allowed the Father to breathe a sigh of relief. The son kept the box on his desk for change, pens and treasures. Over the next several years the box became quite worn. The boy grew up, fell in love and planning to marry, his partner was going through their accumulated stuff for what to purge and save, and unfortunately the scratched old box was in a box for the transfer station. But as the cardboard box was lifted, the little box fell out, and when he picked it up, it rattled as if something was inside. Secured inside, was a Pewter coin wrapped inside a letter. The Letter gave thanks for the generosity of a couple, who had provided a place of warmth and shelter from the storm, along with food for the stranger and his men. The author described that they were involved in a great battle for the future, and while this fledgling people did not have much to offer by way of payment, this was the first dollar struck by the Continental Congress. And the letter was signed G. Washington. So be careful what you try to put in a box and how you treasure it. In both of this morning’s readings, the Kings determined that possessing articles of faith was something they wanted, but they were not ready for what came with it. During the 40 years in the Wilderness, God gave, to Moses to give, to Israel, the 10 Commandments, and the Priests placed these along with a jar of Manna in the Ark of the Covenant. Those of us who remember The Indiana Jones’ Film recall that The Lost Ark was a large box with two cherubim on the top, all encrusted with gold, as a throne for God. As Israel crossed the Jordan with Joshua, and throughout the years of the Judges: Gideon, Samson, Deborah, the Ark of the Covenant led them into battle, with prayers and singing and sacrifice; and Israel was victorious. But in a particular battle with the Philistines, Israel possessed the Ark and neglected to pray and sacrifice to the Lord, and the Philistines were able to rise up against Israel. This was the point at which, the people lost faith in Samuel and God, demanding a King instead. The Ark was captured by the Philistines as a trophy of war, but any who came near the Ark sickened and died. After the deaths of Samuel and King Saul, when David was in Jerusalem, he remembered the Ark and decided it would be nice to have. David and his army went to take possession of the Ark, and the Philistines were only to happy to be rid of it. Except, like the Philistines, King David did not know to treat faith with respect, or how to demonstrate giving honor to God. They placed the Ark on a Cart which Ahio drove, and Uzzah walked behind, which seemed a practical means of transporting a heavy box encrusted with gold. However when they hit a pothole, the ark began to slide off the cart, and Uzzah reached out to catch the thing. As Uzzah touched the Ark, Uzzah died, and David determined to leave the dangerous power outside the City. Like the Raiders of the Lost Ark film, all that the David, and in the film the Nazis, could understand was that the box was full of limitless power, rather than being a foundation for the Holy Spirit. Growing into faith and relationship with God, David recognized that the Ark was not a treasure to be treated as cargo on a wagon, but as extension of the living God, to be carried on the shoulders of the Priests, literally with two long poles. Different from before, the King stripped in humility, wearing only a linen ephod. The priests blew the shofar, praying and singing, and every Six steps, every twelve to fifteen feet, they sacrificed both an Ox and a fatling calf. And the King threw himself into dancing. This was not a ritual procession, this was not a parade as the Army, or somber dirge, this was A Man of Faith and his followers demonstrating unbridled joy. His wife, Michal did not understand, expressing her embarrassment and shame at her husband’s public display of dancing, as wives are sometimes want to do! Do you recall when John and Martha were married here in 2005, the wedding was a marvelous occasion, but that evening two things happened. The African music began to play and the crowd began shouting and dancing. At 11pm I became nervous of the reaction of the neighbors and asked that we try to keep it down, but was told “Pastor, how do we control the volume of our joy?” Also, the children of those attending the wedding were City Kids unfamiliar with having backyard lawns, toys and equipment that could safely be left outside. So they began going from yard to yard, shooting Basketball, playing Catch and Football with whatever they found. The next morning, I sent letters to all the neighbors thanking them for their hospitality and hoping there had been no problem. The response was how wonderful for children to play with children of color in their backyard! King Herod was no King David! He had the DNA pedigree, of being descended of David, but Herod had traded faith in God for faith in the Empire, wealth, power and popularity. Herod lusted after his brother Phillip’s wife, so having limitless power, Herod had his brother killed and took Herodias as his wife. We tend to read of John the Baptist in December at the start of Advent, crying “Prepare the Way of the Lord” and in January with the Baptism of Jesus. But John was a prophet, who spoke Truth to Power, Comforting the Afflicted, and Afflicting the Comfortable! John publicly condemned Herod and Herodias’ marriage as being based in murder and coveting. Herodias was outraged, but Herod recognized the wisdom and insights of John, so threw him into a dungeon, but kept John alive as a possession of faith. Then came King Herod’s Birthday, and his niece, daughter of his wife and brother, danced for his banquet. Her dancing was not like the dancing of David. Herod was so enflamed with lust for his own step-daughter, King Herod offered her half of Israel! But, remember this was not a holy feast. This was not Feeding the 5000, or celebration of Communion. This was a Bacchanalia celebration, of the power of King Herod Under the Roman Empire. So the final course of the night was not a sweet delicacy, not an extravagance of fruit, a dessert of Jello, Chocolate or pastry, but the grotesque severed head of John the Baptist displayed on a Silver Platter. We make a great deal of beginnings, Weddings, Baptisms, Confirmations, where the vows we take, are declarations for us to live into. It is one thing to be able to say that we renounce evil and embrace the grace of God; to claim Jesus Christ is my Lord & Savior. It is another, to live life with all the temptations and struggles to win, that surround us, but to choose to trust God and rely only on God’s grace.