Forming God or Being Reformed?

June 16^th, 2019    “Forming God or Being Reformed?”    Rev. Heather Jepsen

Summer Sermon Series: The Amazing Adventures of Paul

Acts 14

         This morning we continue our summer sermon series, “The Amazing Adventures of Paul.”  We have already discussed Paul’s amazing conversion experience on the road to Damascus and his call thereafter to minister to Jews and Gentiles alike.  Last Sunday we read about Paul’s encounters with the Holy Spirit which included being called, sent out, preaching, and even striking a man blind.  This Sunday the adventures continue as Paul is mistaken for a god.

         (Read Acts 14:1-7)

         Once again we find Paul and Barnabas traveling from city to city and sharing the good news.  You might remember in our reading from last week, Paul was rejected by the Jewish congregation and declared that he and Barnabas were therefore on a mission for Gentiles alone.  But this morning we find the two back in the synagogue.  Even though God has called them to spread the word to Gentiles, Paul has not given up on his mission to share the good news with his fellow Jews.  Just as before, some accept the word of God and some reject it.  The community is divided and Paul and Barnabas flee the city under threat of violence.

         (Read Acts 14:8-20)

         This is where things get interesting.  Unlike last week, where Paul uses his power and authority to strike someone down, this morning we find Paul using his powers to heal.  In the city of Lystra Paul and Barnabas encounter a crippled man.  Paul sees that this man is listening intently and understands the gospel that Paul is trying to share.  Paul can see that the man desires healing and so he heals the man.  Of course we have stories of Jesus doing such things, and earlier in Acts Peter is able to heal, but this is the first detailed account we have where Paul heals someone. 

         The crowds are astounded at Paul’s healing powers, and they decide that Paul and Barnabas are actually Hermes and Zeus.  It was common at the time to tell stories of the gods visiting people in the guise of human flesh so their thinking was not really far off.  The crowd gets carried away praising Hermes and Zeus and the priest of the temple of Zeus even prepares offerings. 

         Paul and Barnabas are distraught at the confusion and they tear their clothes in agony.  They keep telling the people that they are not gods but are instead servants of the one true Lord.  But the crowds still do not understand.

         Jews from the last city are following Paul and Barnabas and see their opportunity.  They take the energy and zeal that the crowds have for Paul and turn it against him.  Suddenly, the crowd goes from praising Paul to violently stoning him.  Mob mentality is known to be a fickle thing and it is not hard to imagine this scene suddenly going south. The stoning or beating is so severe that the people of Lystra assume that Paul is dead and drag him out of their city.

         The disciples follow him to the outskirts of town, and when they gather around his seemingly dead and bloodied body, Paul gets up.  He returns to the city and then travels on.  The writer of Acts does not mean this story as a seeming resurrection of Paul.  Instead, they want us to notice how deep and powerful Paul’s loyalty and faith are.  Even after he is beaten to the point of near death, Paul returns to his mission and ministry.

         (Read Acts 14:21-28)

         Paul and Barnabas retrace their steps from Lystra back through Iconium and Antioch and finally sail back to the place where they set out from.  The story and mission is beginning to shift.  After suffering a true beating, they begin to use that experience to encourage others in the faith.  “It is through many persecutions that we must enter the kingdom of God.”  Like us, Paul and Barnabas begin to find meaning in their suffering.

         Also, they have learned a thing or two along the way.  Instead of just leaving the community in a mess like they did last week, this week we find Paul and Barnabas setting up systems of leadership.  Just as they were appointed for this mission, they now appoint elders in each church.  Through fasting and prayer, they are giving others the authority to lead the community in their absence. 

         When they get home, they tell the others all about everything that has happened and they rest awhile in good company.  They rejoice in the knowledge that the Gentiles have heard the good news and they take time to recover from their amazing adventures.

         I think that the most interesting part about this chapter is the way the people of Lystra become confused and think that Paul and Barnabas are Hermes and Zeus.  The author of Acts thinks this is funny and has written this as a joke.  “Isn’t it silly these ignorant people don’t understand!”  That humor grates at my modern sensibilities.  We can’t show up in some unknown culture and assume that people will know what we are talking about when we talk about God.  Plus, I hardly understand half of the God-talk in this Bible, why would the people of Lystra be any different.  More than that, when I was reading the story this week, in the people of Lystra I saw reflections of ourselves.

         God is so big and so amazing and so not us, that it can be really hard for us to understand who God is.  In fact, I don’t think we can ever really grasp the whole person and nature of God.  That is part of God being holy, and being mystery, and being so totally profoundly other.  This morning is Trinity Sunday in the life of church, and that is certainly a doctrine or idea that I have more questions about then answers!  God, by God’s very nature, is unknown.

         And so, when we do hear about God and when we learn about God, we do the same thing we do any other time we learn, we try to connect God to something we already know.  Just like how learning in school is a process of adding and connecting one thought to the next, our understanding of God grows throughout our lifetime.  When we first hear about God, we try to connect it to information we already have.  For the people of Lystra that was Zeus and Hermes, for us it might be our understanding of Fatherhood, or creativity, or how we know and feel about love and compassion. 

         The problem is that just like the people of Lystra we often get it wrong.  We don’t let an encounter with God change us, instead we try to change God.  We try to form God into our own image or what we already know or who we want God to be, rather than being open to who God really is.  We jump to conclusions about God and then we don’t allow anything else to change our minds.  Like the mob in Lystra, when our understanding of God is challenged, we don’t reform our ideas we just get angry.  We go from praising a God we know to stoning someone who threatens our understanding of God. 

         The counter example to the mob in Lystra is the crippled man Paul first encounters there.  He hears the word, and he takes the time to actually listen.  He is open to new understanding about God and therefore he is open to healing.  He lets the word of God change him, instead of trying to change the word of God.  And of course, he is better for the whole thing as he walks away from the story healed.

         And so today I invite you to consider how you encounter God in our world.  Are you trying to form God in your own image, or are you willing to allow God to reform you?  Are you open to learning, growth and healing, or are you threatened by knowledge?  How do you react to an experience of God that doesn’t fit into your preconceived notions about the divine?  Are we forming God or are we being reformed?

         Already in our story we see that people have very different reactions to Paul and his ministry.  Some are healed by their encounters with the Word he brings and they come to faith.  Others are threatened by his message and his popularity, and we find that Paul’s encounters with the authorities are increasingly violent.  Paul himself is the epitome of faith and loyalty, as he continues to travel and spread the good news of this dangerous and threatening gospel. 

         I think it’s good to pause here and notice something: not everyone believes Paul.  He spends a lot of time in Lystra and he does heal the one man, but the text is clear that there is not a large following of believers in the community.  Paul is not able to convince everyone to come to faith.  They stone him, and he goes back there to preach but eventually he just leaves.  His adventures are amazing for sure, but in Lystra he is unsuccessful.  Not even Paul can convert everyone!

         And so we leave Paul for today, recovering from his injuries and reflecting on his mission.  He has had success and he has also had failures.  Just like in our own faith journeys, not everything is easy and hard times do come.  The amazing thing about Paul is his faithfulness to the gospel, and his willingness to be reformed by the faith.  May we follow his example.  Come back next week to hear about what happens next as we continue the “Amazing Adventures of Paul”.  Amen.