You know the kind of guy who does nothing but bad things and then wonders why his life sucks? Well, that was me. Every time something good happened to me, something bad was always waiting round the corner: Karma. That’s when I realized that I had to change, so I made a list of everything bad I’ve ever done and one by one I’m gonna make up for all my mistakes. I’m just trying to be a better person. My Name is Earl.
Earl and His Girl, Karma...
Karma is an eastern concept. It’s not part of our religious language or tradition, but it is certainly not a foreign concept to us. We have similar sayings and similar understanding:
- What goes around, comes around
- Cause and effect.
- Reap what you sow.
- Live by the sword, die by the sword.
- You can dish it out, but you can’t take it.
- Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth.
- Do to others, what you want them to do to you.
Karma is a concept expressed in Hindu, Buddhism and Jainism.
Karma paints a picture of a universe that is waiting to give back to you what you dish out.
I was a nurse’s aid in a nursing home during high school. some of the old people were really nice...no surprise...we liked being around them, it was easy to respond to their requests. They got better care because they were more pleasant to be around. But some people were really crabby. Mean, even. We couldn’t do anything right or fast enough. Perhaps you’re thinking: well, they were probably in greater pain, they were more afraid, etc. And perhaps that is true to a small extent. The fact of the matter is that regardless of the health or situtation, some people are nicer than others. One of the nurses said: If you are a nice, respectful appreciative person at 20, you’ll be the same way at 80. If you are a cranky, demanding unhappy person at 20, you’ll be that way at 80. For my whole life I’ve attempted to cultivate being the former rather than the latter because at the end of the day...when I’m in the nursing home, I hope the nurses’ aids will bring me a glass of water, help me to the bathroom, talk to me for a few minutes. I want good things to come my way, so I better put good things into the world. That’s an elementary idea of Karma.
MY MOTIVATION: ME!!. I want to be treated well as an old person and since the universe is watching, I better put kindness to old people out in the world.
Our Bible passage this morning sounds like it is along the lines of karma, or the golden rule...yet it starts in a different place. I think the starting point is important.
Matthew 18:21-35
Then
Peter came and said to him, “Lord, if another member of the church sins
against me, how often should I forgive? As many as seven times?” Jesus
said to him, “Not seven times, but, I tell you, seventy-seven times. “For this reason the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves. When he began the reckoning, one who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him; and, as he could not pay, his lord ordered him to be sold, together with his wife and children and all his possessions, and payment to be made. So the slave fell on his knees before him, saying, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’ And out of pity for him, the lord of that slave released him and forgave him the debt.
But that same slave, as he went out, came upon one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii; and seizing him by the throat, he said, ‘Pay what you owe.’ Then his fellow slave fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’ But he refused; then he went and threw him into prison until he would pay the debt.
When his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their lord all that had taken place. Then his lord summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked slave! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. Should you not have had mercy on your fellow slave, as I had mercy on you?’ And in anger his lord handed him over to be tortured until he would pay his entire debt. So my heavenly Father will also do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother or sister from your heart.
First of all, MAKE NOTE: this is a Kingdom of God parable. The story Jesus is going to tell should inform our imagination about what it is God is up to. Jesus begins his ministry with these words in found in Mark: “The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!” (Mark 1:14) The first thing out of his mouth? THE KINGDOM OF GOD!
“Kingdom of God” : do the words of Jesus matter?
If they do, then we need to be clear that Jesus is teaching about the Kingdom of God (or the Kingdom of Heaven - the phrase is used interchangeably.) If Jesus thought teaching about the Kingdom of God was his main purpose, shouldn’t we pay attention to the idea? Shouldn’t we participate in ushering the Kingdom of God in? Shouldn’t we be co-workers with Jesus in bringing this Kingdom about?
What is the picture painted by Jesus today? How shall we form an image of what the Kingdom of Heaven looks like?
The Kingdom of Heaven is like a King who forgives a servant’s debts.
Let me ask you some obvious things:
What did the King do? read his bank statement, decided to get his books in order, called in one of the guys who owed him money.
What did the servant do? begged for mercy. Received mercy. WAS UNCHANGED IN HIS HEART. Went about doing what is fair and just: asking for repayment. punished those who owed.
Karma starts with ME and asks the question: what do I want? My behavior follows from the answer to that question.
Our faith tradition, Christianity, starts in a different place. We do believe in a deity, God, the great I AM. Our Bible’s first four words: in the beginning, God.
Our faith starts with God. Our first questions are: Who is God? What does God want? As a Christian, my behavior follows from the answer to that question. Jesus is using this parable to tell us something about who God is. How God is. I say this frequently: a theology that starts with who humans is off on the wrong foot. Our theology starts with who God is and then how we should be in light of WHO GOD IS.
Who is God? In this story today? God is the one who bestows UNDESERVED, RADICAL FORGIVENESS. NOT FAIRNESS. NOT JUSTICE. FORGIVENESS.
What does God want? Well, in this story our response couldn’t be clearer: God wants us to be as merciful, as forgiving as God is. And if we are not: God will treat us as we have treated others. (a different spin to “do unto others, right?)
“Do unto others as you would have God do to you.”
Luke 6:37 “Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. 38 Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”
You want God to bring peace, while you wage war? Forget it.
peace at home? peace at work? peace in the world?
You want God to provide plenty, while you allow scarcity. Forget it.
You want God to heal you, while you engage in dis-ease? Forget it.
God forgives. You want God to forgive you a million times? Go and forgive a million times.
God provides. You want God to provide for you? Go and provide for others.
God is Mighty. You want God to be your strength? Be someone else’s strength.
God is love. You want God to love you, while you harbor hatred? forget it.
For the measure you use, it will be measured to you.
Do unto others as you would have God do to you.
I love origami. I love the colorful paper and I love the beauty that emerges from the folds. And I love the peace cranes that so many of you have seen or folded yourselves.
The story of the peace cranes and Sadako Sasaki: Sadako Sasaki was two when the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima. She lived. When she was 12 she caught a cold. Along with the cold came a stiff neck. When the cold cleared up, the stiff neck did not. Her face started to look swollen and it wasn’t long until she was diagnosed with leukemia, a result of the bomb’s radiation. During the course of her illness, a friend came in to visit, cut a gold square and folded it into an origami crane. According to an ancient Japanese story, if you folded 1000 paper cranes, the gods would grant you your wish.
Sadako wanted to live and set about folding 1000 cranes. The story has two different endings. In one, she finishes the 1000 cranes and goes on to make more. In the other she folds 644 and her friends finish the 1000 after her death.
"After her death, Sadako's friends and schoolmates published a collection of letters in order to raise funds to build a memorial to her and all of the children who had died from the effects of the atomic bomb. In 1958, a statue of Sadako holding a golden crane was unveiled in the Hiroshima Peace Memorial, also called the Genbaku Dome. At the foot of the statue is a plaque that reads:
"This is our cry. This is our prayer. Peace on Earth."
There is also a statue of her in the Seattle Peace Park. Sadako has become a leading symbol of the impact of nuclear war. Sadako is also a heroine for many girls in Japan. Her story is told in some Japanese schools on the anniversary of the Hiroshima bombing. Dedicated to her, people all over Japan celebrate August 6 as the annual peace day." (from Wikipedia)
Paper cranes have become a symbol for peace. And peace cannot come unless we learn and practice forgiveness. Radical, difficult, messy forgiveness.
My grandmother hated the Germans and the Japanese people because of the war they had waged and the pain they had inflicted. And perhaps she had every right to. Perhaps we have every right to hate the people who hurt us. Or to harbor grudges against those who cause us pain. Or to live our lives in anger because of the many people who have done us wrong.
Forgiveness isn’t because we don’t have the right to be angry and desire vengeance. Forgiveness is because in spite of our right to hatred, we choose to be like God is to us: merciful.
Do the words of Jesus matter? Are we going to take them seriously? Are we going to be the people who help bring the kingdom of God to reign.... or not?
"The
matter is quite simple. The bible is very easy to understand. But we
Christians are a bunch of scheming swindlers. We pretend to be unable to
understand it because we know very well that the minute we understand,
we are obliged to act accordingly. Take any words in the New Testament
and forget everything except pledging yourself to act accordingly. My
God, you will say, if I do that my whole life will be ruined. How would I
ever get on in the world? Herein lies the real place of Christian
scholarship. Christian scholarship is the Church’s prodigious invention
to defend itself against the Bible, to ensure that we can continue to be
good Christians without the Bible coming too close. Oh, priceless
scholarship, what would we do without you? Dreadful it is to fall into
the hands of the living God. Yes it is even dreadful to be alone with
the New Testament."
— Søren Kierkegaard
— Søren Kierkegaard
If you would like to read more remarkable stories of forgiveness I recommend the website, The Forgiveness Project.
http://theforgivenessproject.com/stories/
Prayer: Go forth into the world in peace; Be of good courage; Hold fast to that which is good. Render to no one evil for evil. Strengthen the faint hearted. Support the weak. Help the afflicted. Honor everyone. Love and serve the Lord.
