LUTHER SEMINARY CHAPEL, 27 APRIL 1999

TEXT: PSALM 66

PREACHER: FREDERICK J. GAISER

 

(Note: This sermon involves several voices: the “commentary” by the preacher, a voice from the congregation, and the congregation itself.)

 

COME AND SEE...COME AND HEAR

 

CONGREGATION (66:1-4):

 

            Make a joyful noise to God, all the earth;

                        sing the glory of his name; give to him glorious praise.

             Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds!

                        Because of your great power, your enemies cringe before you.

            All the earth worships you; they sing praises to you, sing praises to your name.”

 

COMMENTARY 1:

 

            Ah, yes, ladies and gentlemen: A great day in the worship of Israel. People gathered from every part of the country to make a joyful noise to God. It’s an impressive sight: the glorious temple of Solomon, the priests in fine raiment, the hustle and bustle of men, women, and children come for the festival, the music of the psalms, the noise of the animals. An exciting time!

            But, all the excitement is finally nothing but window dressing, of course. The awesome deeds of God—that’s what worship is about. God’s great power that has at last made Israel a great nation as God had always promised. The awesome deeds that are meant to do nothing less than restore Israel to God and the nations to Israel and all creation to the peace and order God gave them in the beginning.

            The whole earth sings with Israel today. The whole earth that God has made. The whole earth that joins the chorus of this grand festival day, the whole earth that...

 

 VOICE (from the midst of the congregation) (66:13-15):

 

            I will come into your house with burnt offerings; I will pay you my vows,

                        those that my lips uttered and my mouth promised when I was in trouble.

            I will offer to you burnt offerings of fatlings,

                        with the smoke of the sacrifice of rams; I will make an offering of bulls and goats.

 

COMMENTARY 2:

 

            What? Who’s that? How dare that woman interrupt this grand service? Upstart! What did she say? Coming to pay her vows? Well, fine, I guess—but there’s a time and place for that kind of thing. And this isn’t it. Somebody get her out of here. If she must do her own religious thing, find a priest who’s not busy and let him take care of her.

            This is the time for celebration by all Israel, all the earth, for heaven’s sake. What’s this no-name village woman think she’s doing here? Fine, lady, do your offerings, burn your bulls, but do it on your own time. This is the worship of Yahweh, Lord God of hosts. We hardly have time for some voice crying in the wilderness.

            Still, I suppose if you invite the whole world in, you have to accept what comes. Even nobodies like this lady. If you ask me, God always was a bit too interested in the nobodies. So, here comes another one to take advantage of that misplaced generosity. Okay, I know, you always rub Hannah’s story in my face: the nobody who came to pay her vows and ended up being Samuel’s mother. Fine, I suppose this lady will spawn a dozen prophets. Okay, let her in. Let her tell her story. Fat lot of good it will do.

CONGREGATION (66:5-7):

 

            Come and see what God has done:

                        he is awesome in his deeds among mortals.

            He turned the sea into dry land;

                        they passed through the river on foot.

            There we rejoiced in him,

                        who rules by his might forever,

            whose eyes keep watch on the nations--

                        let the rebellious not exalt themselves.

 

VOICE (now in the chancel) (66:16-19):

 

            Come and hear, all you who fear God,

                        and I will tell what he has done for me.

            I cried aloud to him,

                        and he was extolled with my tongue.

            If I had cherished iniquity in my heart,

                        the Lord would not have listened.

            But truly God has listened;

                        he has given heed to the words of my prayer.

 

COMMENTARY 3:

 

            Didn’t I warn you? You let her in the side door, and she pushes her way right up here in front. Women! Next thing you know one of them will want to lead worship. If you ask me, she’s probably one of those “rebellious” ones trying to exalt herself.  Whose story did we come to hear, after all—God’s or hers? Come and see what God has done! That’s the point. Sea into dry land! That’s the story. Exodus, Moses, Zion, David—that’s what we want to hear about.

            We’ve got wars and rumors of wars. We’ve got society falling apart all around us. We’ve got people coming to worship that don’t remember why. You name it, we’ve got it.  A big God, that’s what we need. A big story for big troubles.

            So, this lady...what’d she say? I couldn’t quite hear. She was sick, and she got well? She was outcast, and now she’s home? She was wrongfully accused, and now she’s set free? Whatever! Fine, I’m glad it worked for her. I really am. But that’s not what we came to hear, is it?

            Still, it is interesting how her words echoed ours. I suppose she did that on purpose? Come and see what God has done, we sang. Come and hear...and I will tell you what he has done for me, she said. Our liberation in exodus, her liberation from death. Right, and there you come with your Hannah stuff again. How Hannah’s deliverance matched God’s planned messianic deliverance of the world. I know, it’s in the Bible. Big deeds match little deeds, I know. But that was Hannah, and that was than. Today’s just everyday today. Besides, I knew Hannah, and this lady is no Hannah.

            Still, she has a point. God apparently did answer her prayer. She is alive. She is here. People did listen when she spoke. But does that prove anything? Because God answered her prayer, will God answer ours? That seems a stretch.

VOICE (66:20):

 

            Blessed be God,

                        because he has not rejected my prayer or removed his steadfast love from me.

 

COMMENTARY 4:

 

            I knew it, now she has taken over. There she is again claiming that God did not reject her prayer. Okay, I’ve been thinking about what you said. Maybe it is better that she brought her story here. There are lots of so-called religious experiences out there, and this lady at least was willing to line hers up alongside ours. Exodus of Israel, deliverance of lady. Congruity all down the line. Not bad, I guess. Communal story, personal story. Ours points to hers, hers point to ours. Okay, so maybe both sides gain something from that. She tests her experience against the exodus. We rehear exodus in her experience. I give up. You have a point. And so does she. And, yeah, yeah, so does God. If God wants to do messianic work in nobodies, I guess he can. If God wants to show us life in the midst of death, maybe this is as good a way as any—at least until somebody walks out of a grave.

            She chalks all of this up to God’s steadfast love, which—much as I hate to admit it—has always seemed considerably more inclusive than mine. More steadfast, too, if you must know. So, maybe God did bring her here today. Maybe her interruption of worship was worship. Her heart was tested, she said. It wasn’t always easy to hold onto God in the midst of her troubles, she said. Our acceptance of her, she said, was finally what showed her that her story belonged, that her prayer was not rejected. Okay, so some of us accepted her just a little reluctantly—but, hey, I’m a traditional guy. Can’t be too careful here.

            So, what do you think? Do you suppose her story might work for us? That hearing about how she came through her troubles might prepare us to get through ours? It would be nice. God knows, these are slippery times out there. I’d sure like a safe place to stand!

CONGREGATION (66:8-12):

 

            Bless our God, O peoples, let the sound of his praise be heard,

                        who has kept us among the living, and has not let our feet slip.

            For you, O God, have tested us;

                        you have tried us as silver is tried. You brought us into the net;

                        you laid burdens on our backs; you let people ride over our heads;

            we went through fire and through water; yet you have brought us out to a spacious place.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bulletin for the service in which this sermon/dialogue was used:

 

Chapel of the Incarnation, Tuesday, April 27, 1999

 

Organ Prelude

 

Call to Worship

 

   Hymn                                    Oh, sing jubilee to the Lord                                           LBW #256

 

   Psalm 66:1-4, 13-15

      Women:  Make a joyful noise to God, all the earth;

                        sing the glory of his name; give to him glorious praise.

      Men:    Say to God, "How awesome are your deeds!

                        Because of your great power, your enemies cringe before you.

      All:         All the earth worships you; they sing praises to you, sing praises to your name."

 

   Commentary

 

      Voice:     I will come into your house with burnt offerings;

                        I will pay you my vows,

                     those that my lips uttered

                        and my mouth promised when I was in trouble.

                     I will offer to you burnt offerings of fatlings,          

                        with the smoke of the sacrifice of rams;

                     I will make an offering of bulls and goats.

                        with the smoke of the sacrifice of rams;

                     I will make an offering of bulls and goats.

 

   Commentary

 

What God Has Done

 

   Readings                                                                               Psalm 40:1-3; John 20:30-31

 

   Psalm 66:5-7, 16-19

Congregation:

Come and see what God has done:

   he is awesome in his deeds among

      mortals.

He turned the sea into dry land;

   they passed through the river on foot. There we rejoiced in him,

   who rules by his might forever,

whose eyes keep watch on the nations—

   let the rebellious not exalt themselves.

                                                           


Voice:

Come and hear, all you who fear God,

   and I will tell what he has done for me.

I cried aloud to him,

   and he was extolled with my tongue.

If I had cherished iniquity in my heart,

    the Lord would not have listened.

But truly God has listened;

   he has given heed to the words of my

      prayer.

   Commentary

 

   Hymn                                    Praise God from whom all blessings flow                       LBW#529

 

Prayers

 

Blessing

 

   Psalm 66:20, 8-12

      Voice:  Blessed be God,

                     because he has not rejected my prayer

                     or removed his steadfast love from me.

 

   Commentary

 

   Reading                                                                                                                     John 1:45-46

 

      Congregation:

         Bless our God, O peoples,

            let the sound of his praise be heard,

         who has kept us among the living,

            and has not let our feet slip.

         For you, O God, have tested us;

            you have tried us as silver is tried.

         You brought us into the net;

            you laid burdens on our backs;

         you let people ride over our heads;

            we went through fire and through water;

         yet you have brought us out to a spacious place.

 

   Benediction

 

Organ Postlude

 

Preacher:                   Fred Gaiser, Old Testament

Assisting Ministers:    Mark Donald, Liz Engel; MDiv Middlers

 

 

 

Today’s service is based on the following literary analysis of Psalm 66, understanding the psalm to have two main parts (communal, vv. 1-12; individual, vv. 13-20), each part with three sections (a paneling structure: ABCA’B’C’):

 

PSALM 66

 

 

vv. 1-4

 

vv. 13-15

 

A

Make a joyful noise to God, all the earth;

    sing the glory of his name;

    give to him glorious praise.

Say to God, "How awesome are your deeds!

    Because of your great power,

         your enemies cringe before you.

All the earth worships you;

    they sing praises to you,

    sing praises to your name."

 

 

A’

I will come into your house with burnt offerings;

    I will pay you my vows,

those that my lips uttered

    and my mouth promised when I was in trouble.

I will offer to you burnt offerings of fatlings,

    with the smoke of the sacrifice of rams;

I will make an offering of bulls and goats.

 

vv. 5-7

 

 

vv. 16-19

B

   Come and see what God has done:

    he is awesome in his deeds among mortals.

He turned the sea into dry land;

    they passed through the river on foot.

There we rejoiced in him,

    who rules by his might forever,

whose eyes keep watch on the nations—

    let the rebellious not exalt themselves.

 

 

B’

Come and hear, all you who fear God,

    and I will tell what he has done for me.

I cried aloud to him,

    and he was extolled with my tongue.

If I had cherished iniquity in my heart,

     the Lord would not have listened.

But truly God has listened;

    he has given heed to the words of my prayer.

 

 

 

vv. 8-12

 

 

v. 20

C

Bless our God, O peoples,

    let the sound of his praise be heard,

who has kept us among the living,

    and has not let our feet slip.

For you, O God, have tested us;

    you have tried us as silver is tried.

You brought us into the net;

    you laid burdens on our backs;

you let people ride over our heads;

    we went through fire and through water;

yet you have brought us out to a

        spacious place.

C’

Blessed be God,

    because he has not rejected my prayer

    or removed his steadfast love from me.