Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] In the name of one God who creates us, redeems us and sustains us. Amen.
[00:00:07] Please be seated.
[00:00:14] So for the last few weeks, I've been walking up and down the aisle, but I got so many people outside that I thought it might be better if I just centered myself and spoke loudly. So sorry for you in the front row. If you have hearing aids, you might want to turn them down a notch, please.
[00:00:31] I'll be using my teacher voice.
[00:00:34] So for the past two weeks, we have heard the Joseph story. And then we get to today, and we have now come into a new book of the Bible, Exodus.
[00:00:44] And it begins with, there was a Pharaoh who no longer knew Joseph.
[00:00:51] So. So the Hebrew people are out of the good graces of this Pharaoh.
[00:00:57] But it is also what allows Moses to come on the scene and eventually take God's people out of Egypt.
[00:01:06] Now, there are a lot of directions I could go with the readings today. They are rich. Take your paper home, read them during the week. They are really, really good.
[00:01:17] And I like Joseph. I love Moses. I adore Moses. May have been a rabbi in a past life if I believed in such things.
[00:01:28] But I especially love when Moses readings are paired with the Gospel of Matthew. Because Matthew especially, it happens in all the gospels. But Matthew especially makes a point of talking about the connection between Jesus and Moses, such as for both of them, there was a call for the newborn boys to be killed for different reasons. But again, it was a move of a ruler trying to stay in power.
[00:02:00] And yet neither of them were killed.
[00:02:05] Moses was put into a basket in the reeds for Pharaoh's daughter to find him. Jesus was born in a manger. Neither of these are where you would have lain a child.
[00:02:18] Both of them have lowly births and rise to be a leader. Both of them deliver their people. And it's one thing I love about today's translation.
[00:02:30] Pharaoh's daughter saying Moses name is pulled out because he's also going to pull his people out of Egypt.
[00:02:40] Moses was given the ten Commandments. And in the Gospel of Matthew we have the Sermon on the Mount where Jesus says, I will give you a new commandment.
[00:02:50] So they both set out how to live a faithful life. And I could go on, I really could go on, but it's not the point of my sermon today. But I love Moses so much. I just need to get some of that in there.
[00:03:05] But I want to hone in on the women in Moses story, particularly Shippura and Puah, these two midwives, and how their choices and actions actually connect with Jesus and the disciples as they have a discussion today.
[00:03:31] So I love that Shipwreh and who, by the way, not a lot of women named in this story. Pharaoh's daughter. No name. The mother of Moses?
[00:03:42] No name.
[00:03:43] But Shiprah and Puah are named. Something to pay attention to because what they did changed the history of our faith.
[00:03:55] Now in our translation today, it says that they had a respect for God. But if you go back to the more traditional translation, it said they feared God.
[00:04:07] They feared God, therefore they did not listen to Pharaoh and they did not kill the young boys who were being born.
[00:04:19] And in their fear, in their respect for God, in that faith, in their lives, they in turn give a blessing not just to the Hebrew boys, but quite frankly to all of us who are followers.
[00:04:36] Because if it was not for them, we would have had no Moses. And I'm sure God would have worked it out another way. But this is how God worked it out, through these two women.
[00:04:49] They know God and I'll put them together. They respectfully fear God.
[00:04:56] Which makes me wonder for you and I gathered here, what is it we do or we do not do?
[00:05:05] Because we are fearful.
[00:05:10] We're fearful of what others will think.
[00:05:14] Maybe we're fearful of what God will think.
[00:05:18] But Shipura and Pua bring the question to us today about where does our faith connect with our decisions and our actions.
[00:05:29] Because their faith changed the fate for our faith.
[00:05:35] Now we can say our faith connects with our actions. And that while we know not to commit murder, right? We know we should not commit adultery, we should not do these things.
[00:05:51] But think about that on a more daily level. I don't think we go around daily going like, well, I'm not going to commit murder today, right? This isn't really one that faces us.
[00:06:03] But how does our faith connect to our daily decisions and actions?
[00:06:09] How do we use our resources to help those in need? How do we stand up to power that is self serving, such as Pharaoh?
[00:06:19] How do we help and treat those who are treated as less than in our society as the Egyptians were treating the Hebrew people?
[00:06:29] The big question is how do we use the gifts that each of us have been individually given?
[00:06:39] Individual I can't play music. But thank goodness you two are willing to share your gifts with us.
[00:06:44] Right? We all have gifts.
[00:06:47] Read the end of Romans about all of the possible gifts we may have.
[00:06:54] But how is it that we use those to be a blessing to others?
[00:07:02] Because the actions of Shipra and Pua, they remind us that our faith is not static.
[00:07:08] Our faith should Be and is an active participant in our lives.
[00:07:15] Which brings me to the question that Jesus asked his disciples, who do you say that I am?
[00:07:26] If someone came up and asked you on the street, who do you say Jesus is?
[00:07:33] What would be your answer? And I've always sworn that some year I'm going to pass out paper to my congregation and make them write answers. And then, you know, I'm going to do. But I never get around to it. So I want you to think for a moment.
[00:07:47] Who is it that you would say to someone if they said, who is Jesus? Because his faith is an active participant in our lives. Our faith is based upon not just the stories of Moses in the Old Testament, but his faith based upon Jesus and the life of Jesus and Jesus death upon the cross and his resurrection.
[00:08:15] And so just as Jesus asked his disciples, who do you say I am? Jesus asked this of us.
[00:08:24] We all know the set answer. Well, Jesus is my Lord and Savior.
[00:08:31] Okay, it's a good answer.
[00:08:35] But how is that working itself out in your life?
[00:08:41] How is Jesus the example by which we not just live our lives, but change our lives?
[00:08:50] Because how we answer, who do you say I am?
[00:08:57] Is where the rubber meets the road in our faith journey.
[00:09:02] Shipra and Puah, these two midwives, they did not know Jesus, but they knew God.
[00:09:11] And it changed the decisions that they made.
[00:09:15] They came up against the powers that be. They changed history with their small act of defiance.
[00:09:22] Shipwrecke and Puah followed what they knew was right in the face of great power over them.
[00:09:32] And in turn they became a blessing for the entire Hebrew nation.
[00:09:41] Who do you say that I am? Who is Jesus for you?
[00:09:47] Jesus. Who is Emmanuel God with us?
[00:09:51] Jesus who made sure that everybody had access to healing.
[00:09:57] Jesus. Who always tried to feed the hungry? Jesus. Who forgives our sins when we fall away from God?
[00:10:07] Jesus who is our way and our truth and our life.
[00:10:13] So many of these. But the core for me is Jesus is love incarnate.
[00:10:22] Who do you say that I am?
[00:10:25] Jesus is love.
[00:10:29] Unending, unsailing, can't take it away from you, love.
[00:10:37] And if this is true, then how do we order our lives in a God loving manner so that we may be a blessing to others?
[00:10:51] Are we willing to share our bounty, to help others?
[00:10:56] Our bounty of time or a bounty of resources or a bounty of wealth?
[00:11:05] Are we willing to be even self sacrificial to make sure that everyone has access to shelter and food and education?
[00:11:17] I often ask myself as my own faith test, what am I willing to give up to help make this happen.
[00:11:28] Are you and I, are we willing to tell other people about the great love that we know surrounds us day in and day out?
[00:11:42] A love so powerful that it indeed can be a bit fear producing if you think about it.
[00:11:51] A love so overwhelming that it makes us vulnerable.
[00:11:59] A love so powerful though, that our only response can be to share that blessing of love with others.
[00:12:10] And to that end, I want to read a poem which I have a sermon group. We texted it every week, five of us, and they all know that I think poems can be a cop out at the end, but this one speaks exactly to what we are talking. I am talking about today with our readings. And this is called Fierce Blessing by Jan Richardson.
[00:12:37] Believe me when I say there is nothing this blessing would not do to protect you, to save you, to encompass you.
[00:12:51] This blessing would stand between you and every danger and every evil, every harm and hurt.
[00:13:02] This blessing would dare to wade with you into the waters that come offering life.
[00:13:17] It would make a way for you through the waters that come, threatening death.
[00:13:24] I cannot explain how fierce this blessing feels about you. But I can tell you it has more than pledged itself to you.
[00:13:34] It would lay down its life for you and not once look back in regret nor go in sorrow for what it has chosen to give.
[00:13:50] And you, so deeply blessed, so utterly encompassed, what will you save in turn?
[00:14:03] Not because it is owed, but because you cannot imagine failing to pass along this grace that casts its circle so wide, this love that flows so deep through this perilous and precious life.
[00:14:25] Amen.
