Sermon: The Law

          Hear, Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is One.  Blessed be the Name of His glorious kingdom for ever and ever. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be in your heart.  And you shall teach them diligently to your children, and you shall speak of them when you sit at home, and when you walk along the way, and when you lie down and when you rise up.  And you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be for frontlets between your eyes.  And you shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

          Our Old Testament lesson today points out that if the people cannot follow the Sh'ma, finding it too difficult to obey, then God reminds us, "No, the word is very near to you; it is in your mouth and in your heart for you to observe."  It's not an impossible, or even a difficult law, because we remind ourselves, each other, our children that these words are no further away than our own voice and our heart.  Following those words, those laws, will cause us to be blessed abundantly "in the fruit of [our] body, in the fruit of [our] livestock, and in the fruit of [our] soil."  And yet, the Jews of the Old Testament still found it too difficult.  In every instance of guiding prophets, kings, and the gift of the law -  in all of these instances, it is God, not Israel, who makes it possible for Israel to be in relationship with God.

          Let's look here at one word in all of these instances:  shall.  Working in a law firm, I learned to read rather closely the words that are chosen, particularly within the law, and within decisions created by judges.  The law often provides modal, auxiliary verbs, and you'll see the same choices found in the Bible.  Auxiliary verbs include can, could, may, might, must, shall, should, will and would.  Out of all these, only the word "must" does not provide an option.  All the others provide guidelines, but can lead to ambiguity.  Unfortunately, as with so many arguments created by the choices of words, it's very difficult for absolute, hard and fast rules to be created. 

          But nearly every jurisdiction has held that the word “shall” is confusing because it can also mean “may, will or must.” Legal reference books like the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure no longer use the word “shall.” Even the Supreme Court ruled that when the word “shall” appears in statutes, it means “may.”  And thus, even the Sh'ma, that prayer which should be said at least twice a day, and should be on the hearts and minds of those saying it, is still a choice.  God gave us that free will.  If we want to follow the commandments, the rules and tenets that God has given us, we have to make that choice.  And with our choices, we are provided our consequences.

          So let's look at the Gospel lesson today.  Interestingly enough, it's lawyer asking Christ a question about how do we "inherit eternal life".  And Christ, ever the teacher, asks him, well, "what is written in the law?"  And the lawyer provides him with the Sh'ma, which today is now practiced by Christians as the greatest Commandment.  Same words. 

          Now of course, lawyers can't just accept words without picking apart meanings.  And so of course, this is not the end, neither for the lawyer, nor for us. As is so often the case when the right answer is on the tip of our tongues, we waver. We point out obstacles that would make doing the right thing difficult. Truly, the most demanding journey is the hike from a right answer to a right action.  That's why the lawyer suddenly seems so anxious. "Do this and you will live," says Jesus.  Okay, wait!  Love God and neighbor? You can hear the screech as the lawyer stomps on the brakes. How complex of a case is that going to be?  This could get tricky. It could take over my whole life.  Love God and neighbor? I need a little clarification here, Jesus. Tell me, who counts?  So he asks Christ, "Who is my neighbor?"

          And so now, we heard the story of the Good Samaritan.  What we don't hear are the thoughts going through the minds of the priest and the Levite, as they choose to pass by.  Any first-century attorney would quickly recognize both the priest and the Levite in this parable as people who would also have a deep understanding of the law.  Like the attorney, these clergy knew the law well enough to have the right answers come to mind under pressure. They also knew the law well enough to make it work for them. What does God's law say? What case has precedent here? In this story, a religious man finds a bloodied body lying by the road. What should he do? What does the law dictate?

          Well, there are passages that say love your neighbor. Of course, if you wanted to avoid the messy roadside situation, you might also recall that there are verses that instruct a priest not to approach a dead body.  If he doesn't approach, he can simply assume the body is dead.  They would be ritually unclean and could not perform their service at the temple.  And the Levite? Who can blame him?  What if there were accomplices lurking in the bushes along the road, waiting for just such a “do-gooder” to come along so they could relieve him of his money? They were using common sense in not stopping to help.

          Perhaps Jesus is reminding us that Scripture can be used to justify some pretty ungodly behavior. We are probably not surprised when he portrays the clergy in this parable as the culprits. Are we? Over the course of history, preachers have quoted the Bible to prop up slavery, to support the persecution of the Jews, to justify not providing clean water and soap for children whose parents brought them illegally into our country.  Even today, you don't have to channel-surf for long to find ministers who sprinkle their prescriptions for America with bits of Scripture as if such snippets provided an excuse for the meanness of their message. "What is written in the law? What do you read there?" These questions challenge all of us to give careful thought to the way that we read the texts of our faith. All too often we use verses of Scripture to license whatever benefits us. We appeal to the Bible and find support for our perspectives, our way of living, and, yes, even our prejudices. This parable cautions us. Just because you've got the good book in hand doesn't mean that you've cornered the market on holiness. As Luke points out, even the devil can quote Scripture.

          So here, we have a Samaritan. In other words, he is an outsider. Samaritans were from the wrong side of the tracks. They were also unorthodox. They did not share mainstream Judaism's beliefs about God. So, the next person we see jogging down the road is a foreigner who we know has a strange take on God.  There's no way he'll feel a compulsion, religious or otherwise, to help someone in a ditch. And, yet, Jesus tells us that this man is kind.  Maybe he's not able to quote Deuteronomy at the drop of a hat, but he is hospitable. The stranger makes the trip from right answer to right action. And is it just me or does he seem to go about this act of charity with a lightness of heart. You might even call it joy.

          "Which of these three," Jesus asks the lawyer, "do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?" "The one who showed him mercy," said the lawyer. "Right!" responds Jesus. And in extending a hand to pull the attorney free from the bog of selfishness, Jesus says, "Go and do likewise." And the story finally ends.

          Or does it?  We're left wondering.  Has Jesus just placed the burden of endless service on that attorney?  Probably.  But if you stare at the attorney long enough, you may see Jesus blessing him, giving him a chance for meaningful life, maybe even a life steeped in the eternal. "Go and do likewise." I guess it does depend on how you look at it.  How do you at it?

          Let us pray.  Holy God, open our eyes to the stranger before us. Help us to see our neighbor; help us to be the good neighbor lest we pass you by when you are hungry, thirsty, or lonely, and so miss a time to spend with you. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen.