The Way Forward

Genesis 9:8-17; Psalm 25: 1-10

The story of Noah begins with a frightening observation: “The LORD saw that the wickedness of humankind was great in the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of their hearts was only evil continually. And the LORD was sorry that he had made humankind on the earth, and it grieved him to the heart.” God was so grieved because of the decision God needed to make about the way forward from this observation. And God decided, given the total depravity and untampered evil of humankind, that everything must be destroyed. We’ve come a long way from the God who observed creation to be “very good.”

The scariest part of this story is that God actually goes through with this plan of destruction. Our God, our creator, allows anger and frustration to get the better of him, and becomes a destroyer. Our Old Testament lesson today shows how God was changed by this experience: God resolved, “I will never gain curse the ground because of humankind, for the inclination of the human heart is evil from youth; nor will I ever destroy every living creature as I have done.” The problem however, is that this story only shows that God was changed by this experience of violence and destruction, what about humankind? Are we capable of being changed by a traumatic experience of violence and destruction?

The pattern seems to be this: there is a violent and destructive event, we are shocked and grieved, then we argue about the way forward without ever resolving to do anything differently. We all agree that no child should be shot at their school, but the way forward seems blocked. In other words, we agree in principle that there’s problem, but we argue over the politics of which pathway to follow. We’re stuck in a cycle of violence and destruction.

The way forward for God involved establishing a new covenant with humankind—a refusal to practice violence and destruction in order to rescue us from violence and destruction. And God marks this covenant with a sign, God hangs his bow in the clouds, he retires his weapon. And God keeps this covenant, even keeping it through Jesus Christ unto the cross. When Peter draws his sword to defend Jesus from his arrest, Jesus rebukes him, “Put that away, violence is not the way forward.” How does this help us here and now? Does God require us to retire our weapons, too? How does following Jesus help us prevent the violence and destruction which is unraveling the fabric of creation all around us?

Let me humbly admit how weak and useless I feel in the wake of violence and destruction. I have no easy answers for how we can prevent the perpetuation of school shootings. I titled this sermon, “The Way Forward,” but I do not know it. Our faith doesn’t make the way forward from violence an easy path to find and follow, but it does make it a necessary one. The only certainty our faith seems to bring to this dilemma is this: we are not capable of saving ourselves.

“Make me to know your ways, O LORD, teach me your paths,” cries the Psalmist, desperate to know the way forward. If there’s a good word for us in all this it’s God’s steadfast love for us, and the Psalmist’s assurance that God “instructs sinners in the way.” Out of deep and faithful love for us, God shows us the way forward. But the psalmist continues, “God leads the humble in what is right, and teaches the humble his way.” I feel like there’s something here for us to pay closer attention to in our public and political discourse. How much humility do we bring to the conversation about the way forward? Do we really plead, like the psalmist, for God to show us the way, or are our prayers stuck in a pattern of self-promotion? “O God, I pray you would open their eyes to see things as I do…for I am right, and they are wrong, and you, O God…well I guess I don’t really care to much about what you think so long as you let me use your name to endorse my opinion. Amen.” Only God knows the way forward for us, and we can only resolve to find this way through humility.

Following this most recent school shooting in Parkland, Florida, students are speaking up to try and lead the conversation forward. Maybe they’re saying things we don’t like, things we disagree with, things we don’t want to hear. May we and our leaders and policy makers at least listen to them. And may all of us find inspiration in the words of Isaiah, “Whether you stray to the right or the left, you will hear a voice from behind you saying, ‘This is the way, walk in it.’” Right and left carry different meaning when it comes to political affiliation (which tends to be how our arguments over the way forward get divided). This is my hope, that no matter our leaning, we may always strive to hear the Word of God above all other words. Only God knows the way forward for us, and we can only resolve to find this way through humility.