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Sunday, June 26, 2011

Whose story do you believe?

(This was a reflection I gave at Ponsonby Baptist Church on 5/6/11 prior to leading the Communion service and following a sermon series on Transitions.)
A few weeks ago Jody mentioned a gathering at Carey Baptist College to discuss the book Love Wins by Rob Bell. I hadn’t read the book at the time so I didn’t go to the event but I like Rob Bell as an author who tackles big theological issues in a non-jargon way that relates very well to people across the board who are asking hard questions. I’ve recently read the book and yes it does deal with the heaven and hell issue and does so extremely well.  But its theme is broader than just that question – read it yourself and find out!

What particularly struck me was a slightly new angle on the familiar Prodigal Son story which we have heard read again this morning. (Luke 15:11- 32) I offer you my version of this as something that links very well with our series on Transitions and with our celebrating of Communion in a few minutes.

Whose story do you believe about yourself – and about God?

The younger son in the story believed that he had so messed up his life that the best he could ask for from his father was to be re-instated as a servant. His internal story about himself might have gone something like this: “I’ve really ruined my chances. I feel so stupid that I wasted all that money and wrecked my life. There’s no hope for me now. All I can do is grovel and hope for some way to save myself from starving. There’s no point in expecting to be in Dad’s good books again but at least he might have pity on me enough to let me live out the back and stay alive. It’s all very humiliating but what choice to I have?”

Inherent in this is the story he was believing about his father: “He is bound to be angry with me but he is my father so maybe he’ll give me a kind of second chance – but definitely a second best chance. He’ll expect me to learn from my foolishness and take the consequences of my actions on the chin.”

What the Biblical account reveals is that the Father lived out of a very different story! His story about the son was: “Here’s my wonderfully, dearly loved son. I can’t wait to give him the best of everything and celebrate with all the bells and whistles. I don’t even need to know what he’s been up to. He’s here!  Tell everyone. At last I can shower my love on him in the most extravagant way I can think of.”

Whose story do you believe about yourself and about God? Your own story or God’s story?

Then there is the older brother. His story about himself seems to be: “I am a good, hardworking person. In fact I “work like a slave” for my father. Not that I begrudge that exactly but I do think he should take a bit more notice of all I do and celebrate me a bit more. It’s all very well to be the good one but I think I deserve a bit more credit. Not that I’d say so of course. I work hard at being appropriate in everything I do and that includes being self-effacing. But sometimes I’m inwardly furious that other people get what they definitely don’t deserve and I don’t even get what I do deserve.”

Inherent in this is the story he was believing about his father: “He expects me to work like a slave and not complain. He’s really a hard taskmaster who doesn’t go in for affirming or celebrating. He just expects me to get on with life and not expect much from him.”

When the older son’s story really bursts out honestly in the face of the party for his undeserving brother we once again discover that the story the Father held was quite different. We might imagine the Father saying: “Oh my son. I’m so sorry you see it like that. No, no, no. You are right here close to my heart all the time and every single thing I have is always available to you. You could have had parties every week if you wanted. I thought you knew that! Let’s talk more about this later. But please do come and join in the party for your brother.”

Whose story do you believe about yourself and about God?

Both sons missed the point – but in opposite ways. One son thought his “badness” separated him from the Father’s love. The other son was waiting for his “goodness” to earn his Father’s love. Neither of them believed that badness and goodness were both immaterial. Their Father’s love was free, expansive and exhuberant for them both. Whether each of them “got” that or not depended on them being willing to drop their own story about themselves and launch themselves into the party!

Whose story do you believe about yourself and about God? Your own story or God’s story?

It’s quite a transition to drop our own story, our own self-talk, self judgment, self righteousness, self-striving… and allow God’s story of love without boundaries, love without conditions, love without merit or earning or trying or doing penance – to be the story we believe; the story we live in, the story we live out of.

Taking communion is a great time to drop our story about ourselves and receive the love of a God who says to each of us: This is my body broken for you. Can you accept? This is my blood poured out for you. Can you receive that?

Let your receiving of the bread and wine this morning express your willingness to drop the story of your “badness” or your “goodness” and enter the celebration of God’s love for you exactly as you are.