Living in the Presence of God

How do we live in the presence of God?  Is it something we do only on Sundays when we come to Church?  Or, are we aware that we are living in God’s presence each day during the week, knowing that our intentions and actions are focused on freeing people from bondage and healing the wrongs and injustices that exist all around us?

Yesterday I attended a clergy family day at our Episcopal Conference Center.  It was an opportunity to meet some of our newer clergy in the Diocese and to see some old friends and colleagues.  I was also impressed by the work begin done to improve the conference facilities. 

As I was leaving to come home I saw a large banner on the wall in the barn that quoted the Prophet Micah: “What does the Lord require, but to do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with God.”  This prophetic mandate is especially important this week as we observe the 50^th anniversary of the March on Washington, and the famous “I have a dream” speech that Martin Luther King, Jr. gave on that memorable day.  Dr. King was a person called by God; he was an advocate for justice and equality, and he lived his life in the presence of God.

Today’s Old Testament reading is about Jeremiah being called by God.  “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.”  Jeremiah did not respond with any excitement or enthusiasm to this call.  Instead, he protested: “Ah, Lord God! Truly I do not know how to speak, for I am only a boy.”  However, God did not take “no” for an answer, but said to him, “Now I have put my words in your mouth.  See, today I appoint you over nations and over kingdoms, to pluck up and to pull down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant.”  Jeremiah’s prophetic words soon would both tear down and then build up God’s people.  The message was clear; they would be changed, transformed in order to live in the presence of God.

This wonderful story of Jeremiah’s direct communication with God is a reminder that God knows us intimately in ways we do not even know ourselves.  Just as God set Jeremiah apart to reflect and live in his presence, so God calls us through our baptism and life in the Spirit to live in such a way that we are aware of God’s presence in our lives and in everything we do.  God is with us wherever we are.

This story of how God is present is reflected in the New Testament account of the healing the “woman with a spirit that had crippled her for eighteen years.”  It is a call to live in the presence of God on each day of the week and especially on the day referred to as the Sabbath.  For Jews the Sabbath is Saturday; for Christians, the Sabbath is transferred to the day of resurrection, Sunday.  Whether Saturday or Sunday it is a day to give thanks to God for God’s presence in our lives; a time for rest, refreshment, spiritual nurturing, and worship. It is a day for expressing our gratitude and love, and for renewing our commitment to share God’s compassion with those in need. 

In healing the disabled woman Jesus tried to awaken people to the kind of life God wanted for them.  He also challenged several cultural norms and religious rules:

Jesus laid his hands on the woman and referred to her as a "daughter of Abraham" which made her a member of the house of Israel with equal standing among males.  In healing her on the Sabbath Jesus showed that God's compassion for people was more important than religious laws.  It served to reclaim the Sabbath for celebrating God's compassion, mercy and kindness.

All of this made the leader of the synagogue indignant “because Jesus had cured on the Sabbath.”  The synagogue leader said to the crowd, “There are six days on which work ought to be done; come on those days and be cured, and not on the Sabbath day.”  Jesus was quick to respond. “Does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or his donkey from the manger, and lead it away to give it water?  And ought not this woman, a daughter of Abraham whom Satan bound for eighteen long years, be set free from bondage on the Sabbath day?”  Jesus’ statement resulted in a divided crowd: “his opponents were put to shame; and the entire crowd was rejoicing at all the wonderful things that he was doing.”

The woman who had been crippled for so long might have been suffering with arthritis.  “She was bent over and quite unable to stand up straight.”  Jesus was able to heal her.  Think about people who live in bondage today, not just people we know who struggle with arthritis, but those with other types of bondage, those who are unemployed or under-employed, those in several states who are or soon may be denied the opportunity to vote, those who lack education, or adequate health care, those who are burdened with debt.  There are many kinds of bondage in our society.

There are also many people who do not get a day of rest during the week.  They have to work for a living and care for their families.  And they have to do this at the expense of having a day off, a time for rest, relaxation, or worship.  Without a day of rest people are subject to greater stress and anxiety.  They are not happy.  All of us  need a break, a breather from the stresses of our normal work and other commitments.  Our culture today does not honor a Sabbath or day of rest.

Jeremiah became aware of his call and learned to accept responsibility for bearing witness to the presence of God in the life of his people.  Jesus understood the importance of healing the sick and those who were diseased in body or spirit, regardless of the day of the week.  How do we, and how are we living in the presence of God?  We can live as persons of humility, gratitude, and love; and we can be compassionate in our care for others.  Our Sabbath Sunday is and should be a special day for all of us to reflect on how we live in God’s presence each day of the week.  As we heard in the Letter to the Hebrews, Since we receive the unshakable gift of God’s love, “let us give thanks, by which we offer to God an acceptable worship with reverence and awe.”  Amen.