February 25, 2018                      Reckoned as Righteousness

This has been a very disappointing week. It all began with the school shooting in Parkland Florida, where another 17 school students lost their lives to someone with an assault weapon. Another Columbine, another New Town, another Las Vegas, they just seem to come one after another.

And even more disappointing is that our leaders can’t seem to agree on anything that would change this situation. On Monday, a group of students and parents from Parkland, Columbine, and New Town, gathered and were listened to. They had wonderful ideas – recognizing that guns and people kill people – so both gun and people legislation has to be part of the solution. There were program ideas offered to help law enforcement and schools recognize and intervene to keep guns away from those emotionally or mentally disturbed. Many of these laws have already been written, but defeated by the special interests groups who are more invested in profits than our children’s lives.

And on top of that, we saw teens attacked for being used by media organizations, listened to but encouraged to embrace one particular political agenda, and once again national organizations defending the rights of Americans to own assault weapons, even if your 18 and mentally ill. Yes, it was a very disappointing week.

But you know what, if there’s a silver lining in this week, it was these kids, these families, these people who have committed their lives to protecting school children. They know the deck is stacked against them. They know their politicians take money from gun manufactures and gun organizations. They know that their leaders will find a way to tie up any legislation that might come their way. But they believe that their words and actions will make a difference. And they are gonna keep fighting no matter what until a change occurs. They have faith, faith that a change can happen, faith that in this valley of death, there can be life.

So what does this have to do with our scriptures this morning? Well, in our scripture lessons we have a theme. A theme of disappointment, promise, and faith. Abraham is a hundred years old, he and Sarah have no children, and no earthly hope of having any. Yet God makes a promise, that he will have an heir, and become the father of a multitude of nations. And Abraham believes. The apostle Paul compares Abraham’s faith, to our faith that Jesus Christ has been raised from the dead, and that there is new life to be found in that faith. And finally, Peter, having just confessed that Jesus is the Messiah, is rebuked when he objects to Jesus telling him, that he must die in order to bring about God’s plan of salvation for the world. Peter, I imagine was disappointed to hear Jesus tell him this, because he could not envision that one day, the risen Jesus would indeed overcome the Roman Empire.

Now I do not know of the faith of the people at Parkland, Columbine, or New Town – but they do have it. They believe in this land, where we are having one mass shooting after another, that enough people will be moved to do what is necessary for these shootings to end. It may not happen this time, but they will keep fighting this battle, until life overcomes death itself. And that is God’s promise to Abraham, and to all of us, that through faith there is life.