"IBIS TEK AND THE FRICTION"

By The Rev. Gary Miller
March 16, 2003

Mark 8:31-38

Please pray with me.

Gracious and loving God, as we enter this time of meditation, may you take the imperfect words of my mouth, the meditations of each of our hearts, directing them to a perfect understanding of your love, your care and your presence with us. We pray this all in Christ's name, Amen.

Grace and peace be to each, to all, from God our Creator and the Lord Jesus Christ.

My dear friends….

I am told that the congregation was much more evangelical than this one. I'm told also that the preacher there took greater license and liberty in moving about the chancel. Indeed, he never stood behind the pulpit; he loved just to roam back and forth, exhorting his flock, his congregation on, in his mind, to greater heights. Although they were more evangelical and although there was more freedom for the preacher to move, they were not especially advanced with their technology. They did not have what we have, which are cordless microphones. Oh, they had a lapel mike, but the lapel mike had a long cord that stretched back to the outlet in the wall. And this preacher, as he moved from side to side in the chancel, would often get the cord tangled or stuck on something, and he would give it a major yank. And, indeed, on some occasions, when he was filled with ecstasy, he would turn and discover that the cord would also be caught around his feet and his legs, and he would jerk viciously on that cord and kick it free. After several minutes of this, one particular Sunday morning, a little girl leaned over to her mother and whispered in a loud voice, "If he gets loose, will he hurt us?" The answer is: perhaps. Perhaps, indeed.

We have talked about Chuck Woodard this morning, his role in the lives of children and in the life of this church. But there is another image of Chuck Woodard that I will never, ever lose from my mind's eye. On Tuesday morning, September 11th, 2001, our minister of youth had just walked into the library here at the church and informed everyone he was sorry to be late, but an airplane had crashed into one of the World Trade Center towers and he had been sitting in his vehicle transfixed by the news. At that point, it was believed to be an accident and probably a private plane. Staff decided it would be good to see for ourselves, so quickly a television was brought to Drew Hall…in we went and began to watch. And within minutes we saw something unfold before our eyes that was much more horrific than a private plane, off course and by accident, striking one of those towers. We were spellbound, and most of us speechless except for the tears, which ran down our cheeks. Chuck was at the church that morning doing some repair work, as was his custom several days every week. He stood behind us. He watched the screen. And then after a few more minutes and more news revelations, he walked away shaking his head. He went back to work. I went to see if he was okay, if there was anything we could do for him. I said, "Chuck, are you all right?" He said, "I am so ashamed about the many things that have been done in the name of God."

It's a statement about where we find ourselves today, isn't it? We have visions of terrorists running down center aisles of aircraft. Visions of horrific events of international terror all around and about our world and, almost always, there is the claim that God is "on our side," that we have done this "because God is great and because God is with us." And, disturbingly, I have heard that refrain and that phrase more than I ever thought I would in this land of the free and home of the brave. I have heard with great repetition these past weeks and days, the inference, or the blatant statement that God is on our side, that we have some ownership of God's purposes, ownership that other people of the world have no claim to at all. And even as we claim that ownership, there are others claiming that similar ownership, all of us believing and trusting that God is on our side, so God will absolutely carry us to victory over those satanic and devilish persons.

All of this I suppose was triggered by a phone call last Monday. It was in response to my announcement from the pulpit that we would be praying for peace at noon and 5:30 every Monday. The caller asked how dare we become involved in politics in praying for peace. Now…wouldn't you think that everyone in this world needs to be praying for peace, instead of claiming that God is on our side and pretending that we know fully God's purposes for the Creation. One of the things I know about God from the person of Christ Jesus as Matthew reports and records is that "it is not the will of my Father," says Jesus, "that even one of the children should suffer and die?" That's not a hedged statement. It's not a conditional statement. Jesus says clearly, "It is not the will of my Father that even one of the children should suffer and die." What else do we know about God? God weeps for us when God sees tragic wastes of life and life's renewal. This is not a meditation this morning to couch a political point of view, to stand as Republican, Democrat, Independent, Conservative or Liberal. It is to say clearly that if anyone needs to stand firmly and oppose folks claiming ownership of God, it is Christ's Church.

We are a people, a nation, a world intent on finding security in some way, and we will go to no small lengths to discover that security. My favorite example is our penchant for SUVs. Don't be angry with me if you drive an SUV. But if you watch, if you look at the media advertising, every week a newer, larger, safer SUV comes on the market. And if you don't feel safe in this "truck" that you're driving, we can sell you a Hummer. And whether you're on an African desert or on Farmington Avenue, you will have a sense of security. Think about how much of our lives are driven by security and the struggle to find that security. And the more we struggle to find that security, what is one of the great lessons we learn? That there is no such thing as absolute security. Yet someone is always looking. Humph. Do you see that meditation title? Do you like that? Ibis Tek and the Friction. Can't you see it on one of those CPTV doo-wop specials? Huh? One of the announcers saying that great band from 1974…. "It's Ibis Tek and the Friction?" Ibis Tek is a company in Butler, Pennsylvania that has a penchant for SUVs, only they do something very special with SUVs. Let me tell you. This SUV, as adjusted by Ibis Tek, looks from the outside like one of the millions of suburban cruisers piloted across this country, but with the flip of a switch, the sun roof opens and a weapon pops out. And you can take your pick…you can have it equipped with an M2.50 caliber machine gun, or a 40 millimeter grenade launcher. Butler, Pennsylvania…Ibis Tek. Do you choose for your security an M2.50 caliber machine gun or a 40 millimeter grenade launcher? You had better not get in the way of that driver on his or her route to soccer practice.

You will be comforted by this. These heavily armed people-movers are not available in the United States. They are only produced in the United States. But according to the Associated Press, they are being shipped in ever-growing numbers by Ibis Tek to hot spots like the Middle East where the expression, "Have a safe trip," is more than a pleasantry; it's like a prayer.

Should we talk a bit about weapons of mass destruction?

The disciples thought they knew Jesus very well. They were growing comfortable with Jesus. They were feeling secure in Jesus' presence. And then he says, "The Son of Man must undergo great suffering and be rejected and be killed." Can you imagine how that felt to them? A shock? Perhaps much more than they thought they could even take? "Is this any way for a Messiah to act?" And Peter took Jesus aside and urged him to stop talking like this. Indeed, Peter proudly delivered the following entreaty… "Such talk, Lord, will cause people to begin having negative thoughts. They might get depressed. How do you expect us to attract people to your movement?" Peter might have asked, "If you talk like this about a cross and about submitting yourself, and searching for God's ownership of you and not your ownership of God…how will people respond?" Jesus rebukes Peter, and he does so harshly. "If you want to be my follower, you must deny yourself and take up your cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and the sake of the Gospel, will save it." It was all so very strange. No doubt there were many following Jesus that day who were following precisely because they thought that by following Jesus, they would save their lives. They would find some security. They would make their lives better. They would deliver security. And Jesus speaks these tough words.

I'd like to suggest something else. I would like to suggest that after Jesus spoke these words, the crowds around Jesus got a bit smaller as the gap between who Jesus was and what people expected and wanted him to be got greater.

I say to every new member class here at the church, "When you come to worship, I want you to leave feeling better about yourself. I want you to feel more empowered. I want you to know that God has great purposes for you." I try to do that almost every Sunday. But there are times when we need to be rebuked. There are times when the Christian Church must be challenged to ask the important questions, to push clearly what God has declared through Christ Jesus as God's purpose is for us, that life should be full that our joy might be complete, that not a single child shall suffer and die.

Friction…the friction is about discerning clearly God's purposes for us and then having the clarity to speak of what we understand and what we know. The last thing our world needs is more folks to say, "God is on our side." What really needs to be asked is, "Who is on God's side?" "Who will stand and pray fervently for peace?" "Who will go the extra mile to serve brothers and sisters, neighbors and friends?" Oh, and by the way, in this global civilization in which we live today, it demands that not only we must live next to each other, but that we must live together. If we realize that love for our neighbor is the universal commandment for all cultures, even though these cultures are sometimes in conflict, perhaps we will be able to transcend the present experience of democracy as a mere battleground for individual interests and the determination of whose side God is on. And the children still cry to us about the world that we prepare for them.

My dear friends, let us be people of peace seeking to be fervently on God's side and with God's concern for all of the children and all of the Creation.

When I finished this last night at the Saturday service, somebody gave me a huge load of "what for" at the door. "How dare you?" she said. Sometimes my voice from this pulpit is not clear enough. Sometimes my voice from this pulpit is not courageous enough to ask some of the important questions. But this morning is not about what I'm for, or what I'm about, or the level of my courage or my insight. This morning is about our courage, our corporate courage, to declare ourselves on God's side and committed to a world that lives in peace.

In Christ's name, Come by here, my Lord, come by here.