"A Gift, A Compass"

First Presbyterian Church
September 10, 2006
Peter S. Buehler
Exodus 20:1-17; Matthew 5:17-20

I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt,
out of the house of slavery; you shall have no other gods before me.

HAVE YOU HEARD ABOUT BEN UNDERWOOD?

KATIE COURIC FEATURED HIM ON THE SECOND DAY OF HER NEWS SHOW; GERALDO HAS BEEN AFTER HIM, AS HAVE MONTEL WILLIAMS AND ELLEN DEGENERES.
THE PEOPLE MAGAZINE ARTICLE ABOUT HIM IS FIVE PAGES; TV CREWS FROM ENGLAND AND JAPAN HAVE WANTED TO SPEND TIME WITH HIM.

BEN UNDERWOOD, AGE FOURTEEN, OF ELK GROVE, CA, LOST BOTH HIS EYES TO CANCER WHEN HE WAS THREE YEARS OLD -- HE IS COMPLETELY BLIND -- BUT SOMEHOW LEARNED TO  GET AROUND, TO NAVIGATE, BY MEANS OF ECHOLOCATION.
LIKE A BAT OR A DOLPHIN, HE MAKES SOUNDS -- IN HIS CASE BY CLICKING HIS TONGUE -- AND LISTENS TO THE SOUND WAVES THAT COME BACK.
JUDGING BY WHAT HE HEARS BEN CAN TELL EXACTLY WHAT HE NEEDS TO KNOW ABOUT HIS SURROUNDINGS TO MOVE ABOUT SAFELY.
AND WE'RE NOT TALKING JUST ABOUT GETTING AROUND IN HIS HOME.
MAKING HIS CLICKING SOUNDS, BEN WALKS THROUGH HIS HIGH SCHOOL CORRIDORS, AND THROUGH THE MALL, AND WHEREVER HE NEEDS TO GO.
BEN ALSO RIDES A BIKE, AND PRACTICES KARATE, AND TOOLS AROUND HIS NEIGHBORHOOD ON INLINE SKATES.
AND SWIMS, AND WRESTLES.
NOTHING STOPS HIM, OR EVEN SLOWS HIM DOWN.

AND WHILE BEN UNDERWOOD HAS BECOME BIG NEWS, EVEN A CELEBRITY -- VERY FEW PEOPLE HAVE EVER BEEN KNOWN TO TELL THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A DOOR, A CONCRETE WALL, AND A WOODEN POST JUST BY SOUND -- TO HIM IT'S NO BIG DEAL.
IT'S JUST SOMETHING HE LEARNED TO DO.
HIS MOM ALWAYS ENCOURAGED HIM TO TAKE RISKS, AND HE DID.
WHEN ASKED ABOUT HIM, SHE SAYS "EVERYONE CALLS HIM AMAZING, AND HE IS A NEAT PERSON. BUT TO ME, HE'S JUST BEN."

HUMAN BEINGS ARE AMAZING!
WE'RE FASCINATED AND IMPRESSED BY TECHNOLOGY, SOMETIMES INTIMIDATED BY IT, MAYBE A LITTLE THREATENED;
WE SHOULDN'T BE.
THE MORE WE LEARN, ESPECIALLY FROM 14 YEAR-OLDS LIKE BEN UNDERWOOD, THE MORE WE REALIZE THAT HUMAN BEINGS ARE WONDERFULLY AND MARVELOUSLY MADE.
WE HAVE CAPABILITIES AND SKILLS WE'RE HARDLY AWARE WE HAVE -- GOD-GIVEN WAYS TO NAVIGATE OUR WORLD, AND NOT JUST TO BE SAFE IN IT, BUT TO BE CONFIDENT IN IT,
TO LIVE NOT WITH FEAR BUT WITH A SENSE OF FREEDOM AND JOY.

STARTING TODAY, I'D LIKE US TO GO ON A JOURNEY TOGETHER -- AND TO NAVIGATE IN A WAY THAT'S NEW FOR US.
FOR THE NEXT TEN WEEKS WE'LL BE WENDING OUR WAY AMONG THE TEN COMMANDMENTS, BUT NOT SEE THEM AS FAMILIAR TERRITORY.
OH YES, THE TEN COMMANDMENTS, THE THOU-SHALT-NOTS, THE LIST OF THINGS WE'RE NOT SUPPOSED TO DO.
AS SOMEONE HAS PUT IT, "THERE ARE TEN COMMANDMENTS, RIGHT? WELL, IT'S LIKE AN EXAM. YOU GET EIGHT OUT OF TEN AND YOU'RE JUST ABOUT AT THE TOP OF THE CLASS."
LET'S STEP OUTSIDE THAT BOX, THIS WAY OF THINKING: WELL, I'VE GOTTEN MOST OF THEM RIGHT MOST OF MY LIFE, SO I GUESS I'M A GOOD PERSON.
INSTEAD, IF WE WILL CLOSE OUR EYES AND TRY RELYING ON A DIFFERENT SENSE -- MAYBE JUST OUR HEARING -- WE'LL LEARN MORE OF WHAT GOD WANTS FOR US, WHICH IS FREEDOM AND FAITHFULNESS AND JOY.

OUR JOURNEY IN THE COMMANDMENTS BEGINS AT A HIGH ELEVATION, A MOUNTAINTOP.
EVEN WITH OUR EYES CLOSED WE CAN TELL WE'RE AT THE TOP JUST BY THE SOUND -- THE SOUND OF THE VASTNESS, THE OPENNESS, THE SILENCE ALL AROUND.
THERE IS NO MISTAKING WHERE WE ARE.
RESISTING THE IMPULSE TO TREK OFF  TOWARD COMMANDMENT NUMBER ONE, WE STAND STILL AND LISTEN.

GOD'S PEOPLE ARE ALWAYS LISTENING.
AND THE FIRST WORDS WE HEAR ARE NOT ABOUT A LIST, THEY ARE NOT SHALL-NOTS; THEY ARE ABOUT GOD'S VERY NATURE.
WHO IS THIS GOD WHO GIVES COMMANDMENTS?
WHO SHOWS US HOW TO WALK;
WHO SHOWS US WHERE THE PATH IS AND WHERE THE WALLS ARE, AND THE DOORS, AND THE PITFALLS?
"I AM THE LORD YOUR GOD WHO BROUGHT YOU OUT OF THE LAND OF EGYPT, OUT OF THE HOUSE OF SLAVERY."
I AM THE ONE WHO WANTS YOU TO BE FREE, TRULY FREE!
I AM THE ONE WHO LIBERATED YOU WHEN YOU WERE UTTERLY CONVINCED, THAT PHARAOH HAD YOU OUTNUMBERED AND OVERPOWERED.
I AM THE ONE WHO LOOSED YOUR CHAINS; I AM THE ONE WHO SHOWED MOSES THE WAY THROUGH THE SEA;
I'M THE ONE WHO STOPPED THE EGYPTIAN ARMY IN ITS TRACKS;
I'M THE ONE WHO CARED FOR YOU, GIVING YOU FOOD IN THE DESERT, AND SPRING WATER TO DRINK.
I SPEAK TO YOU BECAUSE I LOVE YOU!
LISTEN TO MY WORDS!

WE LISTEN TO THOSE WE LOVE.
WHOM DO YOU LISTEN TO?
A FEW OF US WERE TALKING THE OTHER DAY AND REALIZING THAT WE REMEMBERED OUR TEACHERS' NAMES FROM YEARS AGO, DECADES AGO.
MY FAVORITE TEACHER WAS MR. KRAUS.
I HAD HIM FOR FIFTH GRADE; HE WAS MY FIRST MALE TEACHER.
MY SIXTH GRADE TEACHER WAS MR. VOLCANO; MY EXPERIENCE WITH HIM WAS A BIT EXPLOSIVE.
BUT MR. KRAUS I LOVED.
ALWAYS ENCOURAGING, VERY PATIENT, I REMEMBER HIS  GENTLE VOICE TO THIS DAY.
I THINK IF I HEARD IT I'D RECOGNIZE IT IMMEDIATELY, AND I'D LISTEN TO HIS EVERY WORD.

IT'S HOW WE HEAR THE TEN COMMANDMENTS, LISTENING TO A VOICE WE KNOW AND TRUST.
AND THE MESSAGE IS NOT COMPLICATED.
THOMAS CAHILL, IN HIS BOOK THE GIFTS OF THE JEWS, SAYS WHAT BIBLE SCHOLARS HAVE CONCLUDED, THAT THE ORIGINAL SENTENCES WERE ALL BLUNTLY BRIEF, SO BRIEF IN FACT THAT EACH ONE MAY HAVE BEEN BUT ONE WORD -- AN IMPERATIVE VERB PRECEDED BY A NEGATIVE PREFIX OF ONE SYLLABLE --
AS IN NO-KILL, NO-STEAL, NO-LIE.
THE BIBLE ITSELF REFERS TO THEM AS "THE TEN WORDS."
SIMPLE, EASY TO MEMORIZE.

TOO BRIEF? IF THEY WERE WRITTEN TODAY WE'D EXPECT MORE WORDS.
SOMEONE HAS DONE SOME COUNTING AND COMPARING:
"THE TEN COMMANDMENTS (AT LEAST AS THEY APPEAR IN EXODUS CHAPTER 20) CONTAIN 297 WORDS. THE BILL OF RIGHTS IS STATED IN 463 WORDS. LINCOLN'S GETTYSBURG ADDRESS CONTAINS 266 WORDS. A RECENT FEDERAL DIRECTIVE TO REGULATE THE PRICE OF CABBAGE CONTAINS 26,911 WORDS." (Atlanta Journal)

LESS IS MORE.
BUT FEW WORDS DOESN'T MEAN THAT WHAT WE'RE HEARING IS EASY -- MEMORIZE IT AND YOU'VE GOT IT.
THE FIRST WORD, THE FIRST COMMANDMENT, IS SIMPLE TO REMEMBER: NO OTHER GODS.
YOU SHALL HAVE NO OTHER GODS BEFORE ME.
YET THIS ONE IS THE BANNER OVER ALL THE OTHERS;
IT'S WHY JESUS CALLS IT THE FIRST AND GREATEST, PUTTING IT IN THE POSITIVE, FOLLOWING THE HEBREW SCRIPTURE: YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.

WHAT DOES THE FIRST COMMANDMENT MEAN?
ARE THERE OTHER GOD'S OUT THERE WHO SHOULD NOT BE WORSHIPPED?
ORIGINALLY THAT WAS EXACTLY THE ISSUE.
THE COMMANDMENT WAS HEARD AS NO OTHER GODS BESIDE ME -- WHICH IS HENOTHEISM.
POLYTHEISM IS BELIEF IN MANY GODS;
HENOTHEISM IS BELIEF IN ONE GOD, YET ONE GOD AMONG MANY.
MY SON HAS A T-SHIRT THAT EXPRESSES MODERN-DAY HENOTHEISM: IT READS, "THE SPORTS TEAM FROM MY AREA IS SUPERIOR TO THE SPORTS TEAM FROM YOUR AREA."
LOTS OF TEAMS OUT THERE; MINE HAPPENS TO BE THE BEST.

BUT THE FIRST COMMANDMENT, THIS FIRST WORD, READS YOU SHALL HAVE NO OTHER GODS BEFORE ME.
BECAUSE THERE ARE NO OTHER GODS.
MONOTHEISM IS NOT ONE GOD PER NATION;
IT IS NOT ONE GOD PER RELIGION;
IT IS NOT ONE GOD PER DENOMINATION, OR CHURCH, OR FAMILY;
MONOTHEISM IS NOT ONE GOD PER PERSON.
IT IS ONE GOD FOR ALL THE EARTH.

WE LISTEN TO THE VOICE WE TRUST, THE VOICE OF THE ONE WHO LEADS HUMANITY INTO FREEDOM AND FAITHFULNESS AND JOY.
JESUS CALLS US TO LOVE GOD WITH ALL OUR HEART, MIND, SOUL, AND STRENGTH -- AS HE DID.
AND HE CALLS US TO LOVE OUR NEIGHBOR AS OUR OWN SELF -- AS HE DID.
IT HAS BEEN SAID -- AND IT'S TRUE -- THAT IT IS OF THE UTMOST IMPORTANCE THAT WE GET THE IDEA OF GOD RIGHT, FOR WE BECOME LIKE THE GOD WE WORSHIP.

TODAY IT'S NOT OUR MONOTHEISM THAT IS TESTED, BUT OUR LOVE.
WE ARE ALWAYS OFTEN TEMPTED TO BE HENOTHEISTIC, TO SAY, IN EFFECT, "YOU HAVE YOUR GOD, AND I HAVE MINE; YOU HAVE YOUR RELIGION, AND I HAVE MINE.
WE ALL NEED TO GET ALONG, SO LET'S AGREE TO DISAGREE WHEN IT COMES TO WHAT WE BELIEVE IS TRUE.
LET'S JUST BE SPIRITUAL EACH IN OUR OWN WAY."

WE DON'T WANT TO BE ARGUMENTATIVE; WE DON'T WANT TO SEEM FANATIC ABOUT OUR FAITH.
BETTER TO KEEP IT PRIVATE.
I OFTEN FEEL THIS WAY MYSELF.
MY INNER VOICE SAYS, "TONE IT DOWN. PLAY IT COOL."

BUT THE FIRST COMMANDMENT SAYS "NO OTHER GODS!"
YES, ALLOW FOR MYSTERY, BE RESPECTFUL OF OTHER FAITH TRADITIONS, THERE IS MUCH TO LEARN.
BE A HUMBLE BELIEVER, NOT ARROGANT -- BUT DON'T BE A HALF-BELIEVER!
DON'T HIDE THE FAITH YOU'VE BEEN GIVEN UNDER A BUSHEL BASKET!
THE GOOD NEWS IS NOT SOME SECRET; IT'S GRACE, IT'S HOPE, IT'S SALVATION, IT'S NEW LIFE AND A NEW WAY TO LIVE.

SO WE ASK: WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BECOME LIKE OUR GOD WHO GIVES ALL HE HAS, WHO GIVES HIS ONLY SON FOR THE SALVATION OF THE WORLD?
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO LIVE IN A CHRIST-LIKE WAY, TO BECOME LIKE CHRIST?
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO KEEP THE FIRST COMMANDMENT?
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE TRANSFORMED?

THE OPPOSITE OF LOVE IS NOT HATRED.
HATRED IS NOT WHAT WE CONCERN OURSELVES WITH.
TOMORROW WE, THE PEOPLE OF OUR NATION, WILL REMEMBER AND RELIVE WHAT WE EXPERIENCED FIVE YEARS AGO.
WE ALL REMEMBER WHERE WE WERE ON THAT DAY.
MANY OF US WERE WATCHING TELEVISION; PEOPLE CALLED US AND TOLD US TO TURN ON OUR SETS; WE COULDN'T BELIEVE WHAT WE WERE SEEING.
IT DIDN'T MAKE ANY SENSE.
COMMERCIAL AIRPLANES WEREN'T SUPPOSED TO FLY INTO BUILDINGS; SKYSCRAPERS WEREN'T SUPPOSED TO PLUMMET TO THE GROUND.
INNOCENT PEOPLE AREN'T SUPPOSED TO DIE.
A FREEDOM-LOVING COUNTRY ISN'T SUPPOSED TO BE ATTACKED.
A PEACE-LOVING NATION SHOULDN'T BE A TARGET.

FIVE YEARS LATER WE FEEL THAT SAME SENSE OF CONFUSION; WE CERTAINLY STILL FEEL VULNERABLE.
IT'S AN EMOTION WE'RE NOT USED TO; WE DON'T LIKE IT;
WE LIKED THE WORLD MORE THE WAY IT WAS BEFORE 9/11.
YET THE QUESTION IS AS URGENT TODAY AS IT WAS THEN, PERHAPS MORE SO: HOW ARE WE TO LIVE IN THIS WORLD,
A WORLD NOT OF OUR CHOOSING?
HOW ARE WE TO LIVE FAITHFULLY IN THIS TIME AND PLACE?
WHAT IS OUR PURPOSE?

THE SCRIPTURES TEACH US THAT THE OPPOSITE OF LOVE IS NOT HATRED; THE OPPOSITE OF LOVE IS FEAR.
WHEN THE LORD JESUS ENTERS A ROOM, HIS FIRST WORDS ARE FEAR NOT.
LIKE A COMMANDMENT: THOU SHALT NOT FEAR.
LET MY LOVE FILL YOUR HOUSE AND YOUR HEART.
THEN RESPOND TO ME BY LOVING THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIGHT,
AND BY LOVING YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOUR SELF.
BECOME LIKE THE ONE YOU WORSHIP.
FOR THERE IS NO FEAR IN LOVE, BUT PERFECT LOVE CASTS OUT FEAR.

BROTHERS AND SISTERS, LET US LIVE IN THE LOVE OF THE LORD.