Jane Daugherty is an Associate in Ministry who prepared the following meditation for our most recent Lenten Devotions service. Who knew playing the organ could be a lesson in faith?
My left foot was on A flat. I knew it. I couldn’t see my feet. My eyes were glued to the music and my hands were busy playing the passage leading up to the pedal entrance. But I knew that my left foot was on A flat. And at that moment I realized that playing the pedals on the organ is something like faith:
“Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.”
Now I am not always so confident about my feet being in the right place. In fact, sometimes I am very unsure, and this uncertainty about where my feet are sometimes causes my hands to go astray.
This is not magic that helps me find the right pedal. Practice helps develop the muscle memory and the feel of the pedalboard—so that my accuracy improves.
Faith, however, is not a skill to be honed. We cannot manufacture it on our own. Faith is a gift from God given to us in Baptism. If we were lucky, our parents or other significant people in our lives saw to it that our faith was nourished—perhaps in Sunday School, worship, choir, VBS, with table and bedtime prayers, or in sharing their own faith stories with us as we got older. With the help of the Holy Spirit, we grew in faith and grace.
As adults we cannot control or create faith. With openness to the work of the Holy Spirit, we can nurture the gift of faith through prayer, Word and Sacrament, and in fellowship with one another.
The Jewish author of the book of Hebrews makes a case for faith with the Jewish Christians. Probably written around 60-70AD, it had been several decades since the death and resurrection of Jesus, and it would seem that these believers were considering a return to their “old ways”. The Jewish author makes a case for faith in Jesus Christ—much as a lawyer would make an argument or as a scientist might present a theory. He follows an organized and logical progression that frequently references OT scripture. He is knowledgeable and persuasive, as he attempts to convince these Jewish Christians that Jesus is superior to the angels and the prophets--that he ushers in a new covenant freeing them from the bondage of sin. They no longer need to atone with animal sacrifices.
They need not be weighed down by their sin—a sign of living under the old covenant. They only need to receive the forgiveness given to us through Jesus Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. This is the new covenant. Through faith in Jesus’ Christ sacrifice, we are forgiven our sins and born as new creatures. The author reminds these Jewish Christians of how eager they were when they first heard the Gospel and urges them not to throw away their confidence that Jesus is the ultimate sacrifice for the forgiveness of sin. Faith in Jesus Christ is all that is needed.
Now faith has a prestigious history with the Jewish people. Hebrews chapter 11 goes through a whole litany of OT folks who had an abundance of faith in God—which carried them through the most extraordinary circumstances.
We have heard about several of those people over the past few weeks. I remember especially Abraham. As I listened to Pastor Hanson talk about Abraham as a “pioneer”, as someone willing to take risks because of his faith in God—I was in awe and I was intimidated by someone willing to leave home with his family and live in a tent the rest of his days because of God’s promises. I have a hard time just coming out of my comfort zone!
Tonight we talk about the Israelites—the faith of the Israelites—the faith not of an individual but a community of God’s people. They went through a lot together and it wasn’t always pretty. They were often dismayed, and who can blame them? Wandering around the desert without sight of this Promised Land had to be tough. I can relate. For some reason I come to church on Sunday mornings and look out on the congregation and expect to see a full church. Perhaps this would satisfy my vision of “success”. Or perhaps it would lift my spirits. Or perhaps I simply want to share what I have come to treasure. Whatever my motivation, I am often disappointed. Not too unlike the Israelites I have limited vision. I get:
Discouraged
Impatient
Willful
Complain
Now…this was not all the Israelites were about. They had their moments. Can you imagine the fear that they felt when the angel of death passed over Egypt, killing the Egyptians’ firstborn? The scripture says that there was “ a loud cry in Egypt”. Yet the Israelites followed Moses out of Egypt—although he was afflicted with some sort of speech impediment and his brother, Aaron, had to act as his spokesperson. That took courage. And think about stepping onto the floor of the Red Sea with a wall of water on either side. This had to take a certain amount of faith. And which one of us wouldn’t get grumpy if we were hungry and thirsty with no prospects of satisfying these very basic human needs. Yes, they had their moments and so do we.
The Israelites’ faith had its ups and downs, but maybe the point is not about the Israelites faith. Maybe the point is God’s faithfulness. He was always waiting for the return and repentance of the Israelites. He never abandoned them, although they continually thought he had. He provided for all their needs—even though they complained and expected the worst. God’s faithfulness was enduring and his love unconditional. God is with us just as surely as he was with the Israelites in the desert. His love and faithfulness are everlasting.
We need only turn our faces to him. Amen.
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