Brotherhood

Sermon on Ascent Psalm 133

Readings:
1. Eugene Peterson’s “A Long Obedience in the Same Direction”
2. 张国定：诗篇 -卷四（天道圣经注释）
3.Eugene Peterson’s “Christ Plays in Ten Thousand Places”
Psalm 133 is the second last Ascent Psalm. For past few weeks, we have described aspects of pilgrims on the journey toward God. This morning, Psalm 133 talks about “brotherhood” – a certain kind of living together that treats fellow pilgrims as our brothers and sisters. Verse 1 celebrates the goodness of such community life. Verse 2 and describe what this involves. You’re probably wondering what has this to do with oil, Aaron’s beard and Palestinian mountains! We will go through 4 points: the meaning of belongingness, brotherhood, anointing and the blessedness of living as God’s together as God’s family.
1. I’m belong – You too!
First – the issue of belongingness. There are two sides to this. One is “I belong”, the other is “you belong too”. “I belong” means I am part of this community – I get involved. I’m not just a spectator. Yet in church there are many people who perpetually regard themselves as “outsiders”. When something is unsatisfactory, outsiders don’t feel compelled to do anything about it. People don’t tidy up their hotel bathrooms or clear the table after dining at restaurants. They complain about the pathetic conditions, they call housekeeping, the waitress, or go somewhere else. On the other hand, if I’m part of the family and I come back home seeing trash, dirty dishes and laundry piled up, I don’t just stand back and criticize. I will roll up my sleeves and start tidying up. “I belong” means: When I’m not happy with the state of things here, I don’t just leave; nor do I passively allow things to remain in its unsatisfactory state. I immerse in the process to improve the situation.
Friends, members of Jubilee Church, we belong to this community. We are “insiders” not outsiders. We are not here to “fulfill some religious obligations”. We are here because we want to build this place into what is meaningful for all of us. And each of us can contribute to in significant ways to make this happen, with God’s help. Belongingness requires commitment and involvement. Sadly many of us are phobic about commitments. Commitments seem to imply more responsibilities and obligations. “If I get elected to be committee member, more work!” “If things go wrong, will I get criticized?” Others shun commitments because of the emotional costs. We don’t wish to get hurt when people we care leave us, or those we love disappoint us. So when it comes to church life, people generally stay detached and indifferent. We are “committed” enough to be physically present, but not enough to be “plunge in and get our hands dirty” in shaping this community into the kind of place God desires.
I have friends who ask me, “Can I be a Christian but not commit to the church?” It’s like asking, “Can I be married without living a relationship with another person?” The obvious answer is no. The moment you marry, by default you become a member of a new family.
The moment we confess Jesus Christ as Lord, we have a relationship with God and the rest of His redeemed children. As long as I am a Christian, I am a member of God’s family. This is the spiritual reality, regardless whether our names are registered on a particular church roll. Therefore the question is never “can I don’t belong”. But this: since I already belong, “how am I going to live with this company of people that God has placed me?”
Once we have determined to stay and belong, it doesn’t take us long to realize that community life can be difficult! Part two of belongingness is “You belong too.” This is the issue of inclusiveness and co-existence. I may have no problems getting rooted and serving in this community. But I have problems having you in the same place. Community is complicated. It consists of many people of varying moods, expectations, experiences, needs etc. (See slide: Some wear Reebok shoes, Crocs, ah-gong slippers. Some don’t wear shoes.) We soon discover many people who are “not the same frequency with us.” We may label them as boring, arrogant, selfish, stupid, poor attitude etc. We wish they would go somewhere else. We want to pick nice people who “click with us”. But friends, the reality is: in God’s family we don’t get to choose the members. God does, and He is clearly less discriminative. If God says “that person belongs”, who am I to say he can’t?" Regardless of my liking, all who acknowledge God as Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ as Lord are my brothers and sisters in faith. On this shared confession alone, I need to accept that all other “differences” are but secondary; these can and should be accommodated. We simply need to work hard at how to co-exist with our differences in a mutually edifying way.
(2) Brotherhood – friends or fiends?
Have you watched the movie Brotherhood? The show is pretty emotional. It is about two brothers whose family was torn apart by the Korean War. The younger brother was conscripted into the war. For the sake of protecting and taking care of him, the elder brother reluctantly joined the ranks reluctantly. Subsequently he made the ultimate sacrifice to keep his brother alive. How wonderful to have brothers like that!
But in reality, how do some brothers live? More often the scenario is endless squabbling and finger pointing. In the news, we often hear about siblings fighting in court for a bigger share of inheritance. Living as “brothers can actually be worse than living as strangers. The Chinese says 相敬如宾.With strangers and guests, we at least offer some courtesy. But to our family members, we can be very heartless and cruel.
Children, in particular, fight. Psychologists name this behavior “sibling rivalry”. Children are so full of their own needs that they see their siblings as competitors. For attention, for that last piece of chocolate, they will jostle and fight all the way. Whenever brothers play together, 打球变打架. Winners will smirk and losers will cry foul play. The first pair of brothers Cain and Abel ended in one murdering the other. Joseph had 10 brothers. All plotted to take his life out of jealousy. What does it mean then – to live as brothers and sisters?
For some background to understanding this psalm, read Numbers 12. Moses had a sister Miriam and brother Aaron. Each of them played unique significant roles. When they combined their giftedness, they succeeded in rescuing God’s people. But after the celebrations, Miriam and Aaron challenged Moses’ authority. This could have led to a split-up if God had not intervened. God rebuked Aaron and struck Miriam with leprosy – she turned white as snow. Moses then stepped in and pleaded on her behalf. God accepted Moses’ mediation and healed Miriam. Moses acted as a “priestly mediator” on behalf of his siblings.
(3) You are my Priest and I am yours
Here is where verse 2 begins to make sense. Living together as brothers, like precious oil on Aaron’s head, is when we stand in as priests for each other. This requires that you and I stop behaving like fighting children. We get rid of myopic pettiness and self-centeredness to put the wellbeing of our siblings before ours. We keep going extra miles for their sake. Like Moses, and like Jesus our great high priest.
In ancient OT times, a priest is called and ordained by God. He doesn’t “choose” whether he wants to be priest or not. Aaron was the first priest. All his sons were set apart as priests for Israel. As long as you are Aaron’s male descendents – a Levite – you would be a priest. Similarly, as long as we are descendents of Jesus – born again by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, we are priests of other fellow believers. We share Christ’s meditative ministry. Jesus took our burdens upon himself and bore it for us. He stood in on our behalf to receive God’s judgment. He continually intercedes for us by the Father’s side now. That’s what “mediation” involves.
Moses anointed Aaron in the presence of God, as commanded. Moses watches as oil flows down Aaron from head to toe. It signifies being soaked in God’s Spirit to perform God’s service. It also signifies the priestly ministry is continual and permanent. Whenever Moses feels misgivings about his siblings, this scene replays. Moses knows he and his brother had been set apart to support each other in accomplishing God’s work together. They need each other.
“Brotherhood” in God’s family means becoming each other’s priests. Every time I look at you, I see oily figures that God has appointed to teach me spiritual truths. In this company of believers, God has set us apart to build each other up. We need each other to challenge, encourage, rebuke, comfort and grow together in this pilgrimage toward God. Nobody is superior to the rest. We mutually edify. Community life is always an essential part of experiencing God’s redemption. “In the beginning is relationship.” Right at the start Cain flared up at God, “Am I my brother’s keeper?” In God’s predetermined will for creation, answer is always “yes”. In God’s family, I commit to be your keeper; you commit to be my guardian. It has been Jesus’ intention to establish a distinctive type of community earth – one that is manifests brotherhood of mutual self-giving. Jesus commanded his followers: “love one another the way I have loved you” John 12:34-35. Today, in our time and space, the church community is God’s special channel of grace to humanity. When each of us makes set apart time and resources to exercise our priestly role – become our brother’s keeper” – we begin to experience “life on earth as it is in heaven”.
(4) Heavenly life – Resurrection Community
The last verse describes the blessedness and distinctiveness of such a community. Verse 3: “It is like the dew of Hermon, which falls on the mountains of Zion! For there the Lord has commanded the blessing, life forevermore.” If “eternal life” is akin to what life is like in heaven, here is snapshot of it. Mount Hermon, at 9000 over feet, is the highest mountain in Palestine. If you spend the night there, the next morning you will be drenched because the morning dew is so thick. In contrast, Zion is only a few thousand feet high. Geographically Hermon and Zion are miles apart. There’s no way for the dew of Hermon to blow all the way over to Zion! The psalmist stretches our imagination. Between the Hermon and Zion are overlapping mountainous regions. We are to imagine how dew from Hermon would gather and generate additional dew as it passes from peak to peak until it reaches Zion. The emphasis is this sense of “layers upon layers” of endless overlap.
God’s community that lives as “brotherhood” will receive from God blessings after blessings, without ceasing. History testifies how God often works wonders through one individual’s selfless sacrifice. One simple act of love – in obedience to God’s direction – can kick-start a chain of edifying reactions that blossoms to bless that whole community. If a few ruthless individuals can cause a global economic tsunami, a few Christians who are committed to live as Jesus commands can also generate a blessing tsunami. I have a friend who comes from kampong. She told me when her father passed away, for up to a year her mother didn’t have chance to buy rice. Because friends would appear at the door to give her – small measures each time from different people. It’s their way of showing support to a widow. This is indeed living like brothers and sisters. God once promised the Israelites that when their whole community lived out God’s communal laws, there would be no poor, hungry, lonely people in their midst. It would be the answered prayer of experiencing “life on earth as in heaven”. It really comes down to how we choose to live alongside our fellow believers, how we employ our resources.
Final point: Church community is characterized by resurrection. We are a resurrection community. The community is marked by vitality of life and newness. Palestinian areas are very dry. Dew is important water source for sustaining life. It is new every morning. Dew signifies life and freshness. Through faithful community living, God will continually renew, recharge, refresh and nourish us – personally and communally. Jesus’ resurrection is the ultimate epitome of church community. It was Jesus’ resurrection that launched this unique community called Church that we are now part of. Resurrection is solely the work of God who raised Jesus from death. Resurrection is about living again, living anew, living a different /glorious kind of life from the old one. We are a resurrection community in the sense that when we respond, God transforms. When we truly live together as brothers and sisters in love, God does a wonderful transformative work in us – individually and corporately. Just as we cannot manipulate resurrection, we cannot know and control how God will change people’s behavior and lives. Suffice to say, those of us actively involved in this kind of living together will change, and keep changing – for better. Let us review. Look at slide and think back Psalm 133 as we draw some practical implications for today:
• This place is big enough for you and I.
• As your priest, I commit to your wellbeing.
• I will to do my part in whatever available ways to bless individuals in this place.
• I will not make presumptuous judgments about my fellow pilgrims, or predict how they would behave.
• Because I believe each pilgrim is uniquely led by God, and in God’s hands have potential to change and mature.
"All actual life is encounter.” To live life to the full as God intends, we must engage deeply in the lives of other believers. May God help us recover the meaning of life through our involvement within this Jubilee community.
Let us pray. This is the prayer of Jesus for us – his renewed family of believers. John 17:20-26. “Father, I pray for those who have believed in me… that all of them may be one as we are one: I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.”