Sermon C25 16-May-10
St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, Brodhagen
Text: Act 16:16-35
Theme: Watch out – you might catch faith here.
JAILHOUSE ROCK TUNE The warden drew his sword and then he said that’s it
Jailbirds’ gone away and now I gotta quit
Paul called out and told him don’t be doing something rash
We’re here singin’ prayin’ and havin’ a praise bash Let’s pray
Let’s pray
Everybody who’s on the way (1)
Was singin’ and a singin’ and a prayin’ Note
(1) “The way” is a term from the book of Acts and was by the early
Christian to describe themselves – the way is a path to follow – to
follow Jesus. You know the original song? Jailhouse rock.
The 1950s were a different time
Elvis was only show on Television from the waist up
Elvis was singing the Jailhouse rock ditty about jailbirds
And I read the lyrics this week … and I don’t get it.
You know I can understand when Johnny Cash sings about jailbirds
– but not this Elvis song.
Maybe it Jailhouse Rock was just a show tune.
Maybe there’s not much to get.
Well there wasn’t too much to get in my little ditty – apologies to Elvis – where ever you are?
It was just a show tune! But if you ever wondered about our bible stories being written in a different time …
this might be the proof text to show that.
How much of this text from Acts just seems so out and out weird.
Let me list a few:
Paul met a slave girl – and she ticked him off with her outcries.
The fact that she was a slave doesn’t bother him.
There are mentions of slaves all over the New Testament stories
but to us modern readers –
the idea of slavery is abhorrent and just plain wrong
Paul and Silas are severely beaten then chucked in jail because …
well because the ticked off the slave owners.
Again to our modern ears - it’s just plain wrong. Then there is the girl – our NRSV translation calls her a “slave-girl”.
My English-Greek Interlinear bible calls her a “damsel.”
And again - our translation say she has a “spirit of divination”
She can predict the future – a fortune teller.
The original Greek says she had a:
Pnuma Pythonos – literally - “a spirit of Python”
I’m being to wonder if then meant Monty Python.
This is all just too weird to comprehend.
And the jailer – the warden – plans to kill himself with his sword
because he thinks the jailbirds flew the coop.
I don’t know what to make of all of this. Of course there is a bigger story going on here.
In some ways it is a story of captivity
All those who are captive at the being of story get released.
Paul and Silas are released the next morning
Not that they ever felt incarcerated
with their singing and praying at all hours.
And the girl is released from the spirit who
processed her and she is also released
from need to perform for her owners.
And those who seem to be in power and who seem to be free:
The jailer who has the keys;
Yet he is the one who is entrapped by his duty as the
warden even to the point of taking his own life.
This is really such a rich text with all sort meaning
– once you get past the weird stuff. What caught my attention – was that same warden.
Not so much his miraculous turn around from a near death
to asking the question “What must I do to be saved?”
And that oh so Lutheran answer:
“Believe in the Lord and you will be saved”
That is Lutheran theology at it’s best
God does the saving,
you don’t do anything – just believe.
Pretty good deal – don’t ya think? But I’d like to go a little further with Paul’s response to the warden.
Paul says not just you will saved but - you and your household.
The jailer had gotten faith.
It sounds like some infectious disease.
“Hey jailer you got a bad dose of faith
you better watch out nobody else gets it.”
So what would the jailer need to do
to stop his whole house from catching his dose of faith? Washing his hands with soap or hand sanistiser?
Washing his mouth with soap? No wait that’s for something else
- maybe he would need to wear a mask over his face so
that he wouldn’t breath his pnuma on anyone.
Maybe he would need to stay in isolation?
I’m think that might just work you know.
If you have a severe dose of faith the
precautions might work for you too.
Washing our hands is a good thing –
but an important part about hand washing is that your
hands need to get dirty first.
They need to get dirty looking after others
- picking people up who have fallen,
Those who are stuck
Those that need help
Our hands – our hands of faith ought to be dirty from work – dirty from doing the Lord’s work.
So hand washing might just stop someone else catching a dose of faith. We also can’t be doing the Lord’s work if wear masks to cover up our faces.
People need to hear our words about our faith.
People need to see our reaction to life –
People need to see us using faith in all of life’s situation.
Our words of faith – of kindness – of care – are all important in showing the world our faith.
So wearing a mask might just stop someone else catching a dose of faith. So finally isolation might just stop someone else catching a dose of faith.
Isolation is not how to go about sharing our faith.
If faith is strengthen when we are with others
then faith shared with others can be all that is needed
to catch a severe dose of faith –
you can’t receive a dose of faith either
if they or ourselves stay in isolation.
I know Lutherans talk about a quiet faith –
maybe that’s’ just who we are –
but quiet and silent are not the same thing
Quiet and isolated are not the same thing either. Because the jailers whole family would be saved through the jailers faith –
the same can be true for each of us.
Our dose of faith is something that we want others to catch.
So that means –
not sanitising our spiritual hands - Our spiritual hand need to get dirty in spiritual work.
So that means not wear a face mask –
but showing the people around your faith on your face
and letting them hear your faith in action
through you expressions.
And that means not keeping yourself,
or letting other stay in isolation –
part of our faith life must - absolutely must
be about engaging with others.
Because – your faith might just save an entire household. Amen
The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:7
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