Episodes
Sunday Feb 01, 2015
The Case of the Missing God
Sunday Feb 01, 2015
Sunday Feb 01, 2015
The Case of the Missing God
A sermon preached by Rev. Ginger E. Gaines-Cirelli at Foundry UMC, February 1, 2015.
Text: Exodus 17:1-7
Years ago, I heard a powerful preacher describe her experience at the bedside of her dying son as “the case of the missing God.” She felt abandoned, like she needed God and searched, but God was nowhere to be found. I’ve never forgotten this phrase—and it comes back to me again and again as I hear people young and old tell me that they feel they’re on that same case. When depression sets in or loneliness weighs heavy…when the earth rises up in whirlwind and flood and homes and lives are lost…when diseases steal vitality and cut life short… the case of the missing God… when nations, races, religions seem incapable of finding even a tenuous, much less a permanent peace… when loved ones are in pain and hopelessness and helplessness threaten to undo us… when injustice and violence and greed keep food out of hungry mouths and medicine out of suffering bodies…when the capitol city of this great nation allows a 13% increase in homelessness in 2014 leaving 7,748 folks without shelter, with this year threatening yet another increase in this number.…the case of the missing God… in moments of betrayal…when work dries up and we find ourselves struggling to put food on the table or to pay the bills… in the chains of addiction and abusive cycles, when best efforts and intentions seem to come to nothing…the case of the missing God… Where is God? Is the Lord among us or not?
The question is not new…in fact, it’s very, very old. We hear the question in our text from Exodus this morning. The text is part of the story that the Israelites tell about their time in the wilderness. And this small part of the story is actually pretty typical. The larger context is this: the Israelites had been slaves in Egypt. And God called Moses to lead them out of slavery and into a land “flowing with milk and honey.” Moses has done all that he was asked to do and God has done what God said God would do…the people have been led out of their bondage and are on their way, journeying by stages toward the land that God promised. But we are brought into the story this morning while they’re still out there in the desert—no milk and honey in sight. The people are thirsty and complain to Moses, laying the guilt on thick: “why did you bring me out of Egypt just to kill me and my children with thirst in the desert?” What’s typical here is the fact that the people are quarreling and testing God…that they are grumbling and questioning God’s presence…they do it over and over… The fact is that just before this episode in the story, they complained and grumbled and God provided manna for them in the desert to feed their hunger. How quickly they forget. Not to mention the fact that the people seem to have pretty handily forgotten the reality of their enslavement in Egypt and the way that God provided the means to accomplish their release. The point is that it doesn’t take long in the midst of a challenge for the people to doubt the presence of God—even though they have experienced God as saving them from slavery, parting the waters of the sea for them to cross to safety, and feeding them with manna in the wilderness.
Some might interpret this story as suggesting that it’s not acceptable to question God’s presence in a time of need. But in the face of the realities we face in our world—war, starvation, cancer, homelessness, racism, AIDS, abuse—how can we not struggle with the question: Where is God? Is the Lord among us or not?
Perhaps one way to think about these things is this: to be human is to ask the question, to struggle with the pain and suffering and confusion in the world and to want a good God to make it stop. Perhaps in the present, life looks grim or you are lost in confusion, wandering in the wilderness, facing loss or illness, or just a transition that is scary. And in the midst of it all, sometimes we wonder what God’s going to do about it…why God allows it… sometimes we wonder where God is…sometimes it makes us wonder if God is… That’s an understandable place to be and it would be dishonest to suggest that we never had those kinds of questions. They’re human questions—but they’re not the only, or the last, truly human response. Human beings have been given the gift of memory—and so it is also profoundly human to remember, to honor the gifts that have been received in the past, and to hope. This is why all the grumbling stories show up in the Bible—let’s face it, these stories the Israelites tell on themselves aren’t the most flattering. But they repeat them so that they will remember: “in the midst of our difficulties and suffering” (they seem to say), “when we are needy, whiny, suspicious, forgetful, malcontented folks, God is consistently present, faithful, creative, sustaining, liberating.” Story after story is told to remind the people that they can trust God, that they can hope for the future because of what God has done in the past. So for us, when we find ourselves grumbling, crying out, impatient at the seeming absence of God, we are invited to take a breath and remember God’s providence and grace. To remember is a form of prayer. Remember the moments in your life when you experienced something sacred, when you experienced joy, grace, forgiveness, hope, love, God. Remember the experiences of transformation in your life and relationships—moments of wonder and new life and new love. Remember the stories of the faith—the signs and wonders that God has shown through the ages, liberation of enslaved peasants from the empires of the world, nobodies becoming somebodies through the mystery of God’s Spirit, chains broken and demons cast out that once kept lives in bondage, mourning turned to dancing, alienation transformed to love, death to life. Remember and, from that remembrance, be encouraged and strengthened to keep moving forward; the God who has brought you through this far is out ahead, ready to bring you into a new place of promise. The remembrance of God isn’t an incantation that will magically transport you from the wilderness or make a painful reality vanish, but it can (as the great hymn of the church says) give us “strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow.” And that is something I’m guessing we all need.
I contend that there is nothing wrong with asking the question “where is God?” or with asking God in prayer for what we feel we need or want. If to ask these questions is sin, then Jesus was a sinner—because in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus asked for what he wanted—for God to let the cup of suffering and death pass from him…on the cross, Jesus asks the same question we so often ask, “My God why have you forsaken me?” But Jesus, the fully, truly human one, shows us that even in the midst of these questions there is another step to take: remembrance and trust. Jesus’ prayer in the garden doesn’t end with “let this cup pass from me” but goes on to say “but not my will, but yours be done.” Jesus remembers who God is, Jesus trusts God’s love even in the face of the worst the world can do. And, by that trust, Jesus shows us the best that we can do—shows us our own human potential for faith, hope, and loving surrender into God’s arms.
At the end of the day, rational “proofs” of God and of God’s presence are as difficult to hold onto as water in our hand. The only thing we have is the story of God’s mysterious, saving presence—in the stories of human lives—past and present. We can look not only at Jesus, but also at people in our families and among our friends and church family to be reminded of God’s never-failing presence and provision. We know how much folks have come through and we have seen evidence of transformation and healing and wisdom that have been borne through God’s grace in difficult places. We know these things…we just need to remember.
And that is what we do as we come to this Table. We eat and drink in remembrance. We call to mind God’s mighty, merciful, and loving acts in Jesus Christ. We remember what God has done in the past and celebrate that God is still at work loving and redeeming us. And we remember the promise of a fully reconciled world to come where all will be invited to the heavenly banquet to feast together in peace and joy. If you’re trying to solve the case of the missing God today, then this Table provides what you need. If you can’t feel God’s presence and can’t believe God’s promise today, you’re still invited to come and receive, for you are part of the gathered Body who will hold you and keep the faith on your behalf. Stumbling or striding, confident or uncertain, we are all invited to come and to share in this mystery—God’s own presence in Jesus Christ to sustain and strengthen our souls. Come, receive and remember that God—even today—even when you may not be able to see or feel it—is holding you and will never let you go…and give thanks.
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