Old Scratch Still at Work?
July 20, 2008
Rev’d. Dr. Kenneth McKenzie
Today's sermon is a bit of a continuation of last week's thoughts on Jacob and the fact that his righteousness before God was certainly more of God's doing than his. We remember that Jacob had pretty much dedicated his life to the twin prospects of back-stabbing and double-dealing. Most of what he had he acquired by shady means and he was not above stealing from his own family to get what he wanted.
Today we see a bit of justice at work. Isaac has died and now there is nothing to prevent Esau from coming after Jacob and giving him a bit of material assistance in meeting his Maker. To put it in the vernacular, Jacob is literally running for his life.
When we encounter him today, he is alone in the wilderness. It is a barren, desolate place. The Hebrews were afraid of being in the wilderness alone. It was the domain of demons. The fact that he is there is a testimony to his desperation. It seems that all of his misdeeds are now coming to the fore and while vengeance may, indeed, belong to the Lord, it may well be that Esau will be His appointed agent.
Depressed, anxious, and exhausted, Jacob finally lies down on the ground and takes a rock as his pillow. The next day Esau might catch up with him and that will most likely be the end of a miserable, wasted life.
Now, let's pause here for a moment and do a bit of examination. What was it that made Jacob the way he was? Insecurity at being the second born? Did his parents not love and nurture him enough? Did he perhaps suffer some kind of trauma in his formative years? Maybe his super-ego never developed sufficiently and he was simply unable to tell right from wrong.
I have my own theory. I believe that he was jealous, vindictive and a schemer by nature. He was most decidedly a sociopath who never asked for anything but found ways to simply take whatever he wanted. If Old Scratch was looking for a garden plot to plant his evil seeds, he couldn't have done much better than Jacob.
But, lest we be too hard on the boy, we must admit that we, ourselves, have deeded over some of the acreage of our souls to the enemy. And we all have our reasons for having done so. We can say that we did it because we were somehow victims of our past, our upbringing, our heritage or whatever. We can put scientific names to our human nature and try desperately to put the blame for the way we are on someone or something else. But the feet of the matter is that Old Scratch is alive and well in our own hearts and minds.
When I was growing up, one of my favorite comedians was Flip Wilson. He had a wonderful routine with a female character he called Geraldine. Geraldine would always find herself in some kind of moral quandary and would consistently choose the low road. When confronted, she would declare, "The Devil made me do it!"
That always brought forth peals of laughter. But the laughter, at it's core, was not due to the comical portrayal of bad theology and poor personal choices; rather it was due to the fact that we nervously agreed deep in our souls that there are forces at work which lead us to do things we know we shouldn't.
When we consistently do that, we find ourselves in Jacob's company. Alone in the wilderness of our humanity, waiting for the axe to fell.
So Jacob is not really alone. We are all on that barren plain with him. Regardless of the causes, it is now time for justice to be brought to bear. And there will be no excuses, no expert witnesses for the defense, no wise and experienced counselors. Just Jacob and Esau settling their business once and for all. Just you and me, waiting to answer for our failures and foibles.
But that isn't exactly true, either. In the depth of the night, while Jacob was trying fitfully to sleep, the Lord came to him in a dream. He saw angels coming and going and sensed that God, Himself, was standing beside him.
And without so much as a "by your leave," God reaffirms the covenant which He had made with Abraham and Isaac. Now Jacob, the swindler and deceiver will be a key player on the stage of salvation history.
It is a mystery of grand proportions. How can God choose such a one as mis? Admittedly, Esau was not the brightest bulb in the chandelier, but he at least had a bit of character and honesty about him. Why Jacob?
It is not so much about what Jacob was as it is about Who God is. Time and again, God reveals Himself as one Who surprises us with His grace, generosity and love. He knew Jacob inside and out, and He chose him to be the next generation of the covenant. There was doubtless something hidden deep inside Jacob, some strength or ability which was uniquely necessary for God's purposes to be realized. While those around him and those of us regarding him across the millennia cannot see it, God sees it. And He, of course, is the One that matters.
It gives the Christian soul pause to think, doesn't it? If God can use the likes of Jacob, can He not use me likes of you and me? Of course He can. Not only that, He does.
For our part, we, like Jacob, are called to cooperate with God. From the time of his desert encounter on, Jacob was a changed man. He listened for the voice of God. He re-named the place of his encounter to Bethel, literally the House of God. Later, he and Esau would mend the fences following a night long struggle with an angel that left a mark on Jacob for the remainder of his life.
I believe that one of the true blessings of the Kingdom is that we are not so much judged by what we have done or not done, as we are affirmed in what we are doing and trying to become, by God's help. That's why we have our confession of sin each Sunday.
Keeping us trapped in the past is one of Old Scratch's favorite ploys. If he can keep our mind on our mistakes of days gone by, he effectively prevents us from living fully today and faithfully tomorrow.
And it is a continual struggle. St. Paul, in our Epistle Lesson for today, urges us to live out of the Spirit of Christ rather than our own weaknesses. He says over and over, "Do not be a slave to fear." He is referring to our fear of being punished for what we have done. And he then points to the glorious future which is ours based on God's love rather than our deeds.
The past is over and done. Nothing can re-claim or redeem it. It is the devil's domain. But thanks be to God we don't need to live in the past. We are called to bear fruit today and tomorrow, leaving the past to be the past.
In our Gospel Lesson for today, Jesus tells the parable of the wheat and the weeds. Literally, He is speaking of what are known as tares. Wheat and tares look exactly alike until the time comes for them to produce their seed. The wheat, of course, produces grain which is necessary for making bread. The tare produces a seed which is useless.
The focus, then, is not so much on the plant, but rather on what it brings forth. The fruits.
One of the continuing themes of the Gospel is the necessity of God's children bringing forth good fruit. There is only one way that we can do mat. We must be in cooperation with God. Left to our own devices, desires and designs, we will never be able to bring forth the fruit which God intends. Just like Jacob, we will serve our own ends and not those of the Kingdom.
Yes, Old Scratch is indeed still at work. But that is not the end of the story.
God is still encountering his children in the dismal wastelands of their hearts and souls. God is still calling us to leave the past behind and join Him in the march toward a glorious future. God is still enabling us to bear fruit such as the Kingdom needs. And God is still the Lord of all.
But the choice is still ours. We can stand at the foot of Jacob's ladder and watch the celestial procession coming and going, lamenting that our sins and shortcomings prohibit our participation, or we can turn that burden over to the Lord and start climbing despite ourselves.
God has never forced me to do anything. I'm pretty sure that He has not forced you, either. Rather, he invites and encourages.
And as for the end time when the wheat and the tares are separated and the tares are thrown into the fiery furnace? As long as we have done our best to meet our God along the journey and accept his invitation to bear good fruit, even if only a little bit, I mink that we have nothing to fear.
And the reason is pretty simple. While Satan tries to keep us mired in the past, God is calling us to live folly and faithfully today as we prepare for tomorrow. Beyond that, God has promised us the resources of His Kingdom as we go up the ladder, rung by rung.
With a promise like that, we just can't help but bear good fruit!
