When it Rains, It Pours - 10/23/22

“It’s Pouring...!”

Sermon preached at the First Baptist Church of East Greenwich by Rev. Nancy Forsstrom, October 23, 2022

Scriptures: 2 Timothy 4:1-8, Joel 2:23-32

How many of you are familiar with the comic strip ‘Calvin and Hobbes,’ about the little boy and his stuffed tiger? Calvin is what some might call ‘a terror,’ dreaming up all sorts of ways to wreak havoc around the house, and Hobbes is often the voice of reason. In a strip I saw recently, Calvin is going on and on about the future. “In the future, everything will be effortless! Computers will take care of every task. We’ll just point to what we want done and click. We’ll never need to leave the climate-controlled comfort of our homes! No nuisance, no wasted time, no annoying human interaction...” Hobbes’ response is, simply, “No life.” And Calvin replies, “Life is too inconvenient.”

In our stories today, life is a bit too inconvenient. In the letter to Timothy, the people in young churches are waiting for Christ’s second coming. For years, early Christians believed that Jesus would be back any minute, and they lived in this constant state of anticipation. In the meantime, there were a lot of people on the fringes who were spreading false information, sowing discord, trying to confuse those who were looking for answers, and, in some cases, working from within the new churches trying to upend everything. And since Christianity was so new, there were those who were able to pass themselves off as teachers of the Word, even though they clearly had never read the Word and obviously knew nothing about Jesus. So the writer of the letter was addressing some young leaders who were continually on edge from not knowing what might happen at any given moment, and urging patience...

In the book of Joel we have another group waiting for God to show up and deliver

them. They have recently lived through a plague of locusts, which they see as a sign of God’s judgment. There has also been a drought, possibly related to the locusts, and the two combinations of bugs and dryness have resulted in a lack of food. At this point in the story, the people have been beaten down again and again, and apparently the locusts are in on it, since even God refers to them as ‘my great army.’ So we have an invasion of big bugs which both hop and fly, and an attack by those who try to undermine the truth of the gospel by spreading false information and damaging messages. I have to admit, in the political climate of this election cycle, that if I could choose, I’d pick the locusts...

Put yourself for a minute in one of these situations. If I were to say to you, “It never rains, but it pours...,” what would you think I meant? What does that expression mean? It’s generally used when bad things pile on top of each other – like they lost the game and their two best players got hurt. So you’re in the midst of either drought with creepy bugs or social turmoil, and I tell that it’s pouring... How do you feel? On edge? Even more on edge? Reassured? Nervous? Relieved?

Well in this case, you should be happy. Because I’d be telling you that it is pouring blessings. Blessings of nourishment, sacrifice, and power.

“23 O children of Zion, be glad, and rejoice in the LORD your God, for he has given the early rain for your vindication; he has poured down for you abundant rain, the early and the later rain, as before. 24 The threshing floors shall be full of grain; the vats shall overflow with wine and oil.”

As Baptists, we tend to have an affinity with water. Baptism is one of our foundations, one of the most important things we do, and we do it with gusto, wading right into that water and making sure that those involved get soaked, up to and over their heads. We love water. We are horrified at the scenes of drought across the country, and indeed the world – at the rivers and reservoirs which are so low, every bit of commerce and livelihood which depends on them has slowed or even come to a complete stop. At the same time, we cannot help but feel for those who have been in the news this year for the water which has been so destructive. The small towns in Eastern Kentucky this past spring which were literally washed away by flash floods. And just last month the places in Florida inundated by hurricane Ian. While our lives depend on water, we are well aware that too much too fast can be deadly and have effects that last for months or years. Two years after hurricane Katrina, I was talking to a man whose sister in New Orleans was still living on only the second floor of her house.

But, the prophet Joel is not talking about that kind of ‘pouring.’ This is not a rain that washes everything away. This is rain in just the right amount with just the right timing. This is God’s rain, God’s blessings which are flooding the people with everything they need. Just as they have felt what they thought was God’s punishment, now they will experience the nourishment to put their lives back together. They will eat again, worship again, praise again, and live again. They will know what it is to be God’s people, to be free of the shame of captivity, or judgment, or inequity. They will understand what it is to be loved, to flourish. Drought will be replaced by abundance, and destruction overcome with renewal. This is not a rain which merely allows them to grow food and be full in their stomachs. This is an outpouring of belonging which allows their souls to be satisfied, which fills their spirits and helps them thrive. It is definitely pouring – but it is pouring life and hope. So they are full, as nourished as they need to be, physically and emotionally and spiritually.

The next thing pouring down upon the people is something which can be spoken of almost casually these days – sacrifice. Those of us in Christian or Baptist churches talk about Jesus and his sacrifice, but we don’t often talk about our own lives in terms of sacrifice. We don’t usually look at Lent the same way as other traditions, where for generations believers have genuinely deprived themselves to honor Christ’s sacrifice. I have been in the ministry for 35 years, and many times I have gallantly offered to give up vegetables for Lent – even though I have to admit that I don’t like vegetables. Then I often – glibly - say, ‘But if I had to give up chocolate – now THAT would be a sacrifice.’

But really – that’s not sacrifice, it’s a choice.

Sacrifice is what we sadly witnessed in Bristol, CT last week, when their police department lost two members. Sacrifice is putting everything you have on the line in the service to others, and sometimes losing it, like the officers who were ambushed as they ran in to help. Sacrifice is going where no one else will go, to do the work that no one else will do. Sacrifice is putting others first.

This is what the author of the letter to Timothy is talking about. As he tries to encourage the new believers to stand fast in the face of the false teachers and the persecution, he admits that sacrifice is not out of the question. “As for me, I am already being poured out as a libation (an old-fashioned word meaning ‘sacrifice’), and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” He is making clear his life has not been easy. This author may or not be Paul – the style of writing is not like Paul’s, but the message is, and it is clear that he is speaking for Paul, as everyone knows that Paul went through some tough times. But he says that this is just the way it is – he has sacrificed his life for the gospel, for the faith, for the believers who needed his example. He has given up everything else and been someone they can count on, someone they can turn to. And while it is possible they might also have to suffer, it is guaranteed that, as messengers for God, they also will receive the crown of righteousness, which means an eternal relationship with God. Lastly, what is pouring down on the people in our passages is power and strength.

“28 Then afterward I will pour out my spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions.

29 Even on the male and female slaves, in those days I will pour out my spirit.”

Throughout the Bible, God’s spirit is the symbol of life, of strength, of the ability to keep going and succeed against all odds, which is exactly what Joel is predicting. Back in the day, basic people like sons and daughters did NOT prophesy – that was the job of the anointed ones. Old men were revered but at the end of their usefulness and were certainly not still dreaming. Young men were too naïve to see anything beyond their own noses. And slaves – both male and female – were the lowest of the low and clearly not worthy of notice by God. But here Joel is putting everyone on notice that what they think about others is not what God thinks, and that in God’s great democracy everyone can share in God’s power. Joel declares that everyone will be renewed, even or especially those who the powers- that-be have dismissed. Joel reminds them that, yes, there will be signs of judgment – a ‘portent’ is not something you want to see, since it heralds bad things about to happen. But those ‘who call on the Lord’ have nothing to fear, not the darkness, the smoke, the fire, or the blood-colored moon. In fact, those who are faithful and true will come out ahead when God comes to grant salvation. The faithful ones will have more power – and not the power that breaks down, but the power that builds up. The power of dreams and imagination and belief in something better. The power of looking into the future and being dedicated to finding a way to steer it in a positive direction. The power of investing themselves into fighting for what’s right, not what is merely profitable or benefits only a few. The power of mercy and reconciliation and being able to see the bigger picture. The power that comes from truly wanting to walk a path God sets before them.

So what does this all have to do with us? Why do we care about Joel’s locusts and Paul’s sacrifice and old men’s dreams? We care because it is not only about God and others, but also about God and us. There is not one of these gifts that has not been poured out on us.

We know about drought and we know about floods. But we also know about the perfect balance which does produce the food we need. We know about having dry spirits or days when the stress is overwhelming. But we also know that fellowship with other believers and time in prayer and learning and listening for the Word fills us with what we need to keep going.

We know about sacrifice. We know that Jesus put out everything he had for us, to make us see the full extent of God’s miraculous love. We know that during the pandemic there were many who spent their time caring for others, sometimes at the expense of being with their families. We have had times of putting aside our own stuff for a while to help someone who just didn’t have the resources to do it themselves. We have given up things – things much more important than vegetables or chocolate – for the greater good.

And we know about power and strength. We know that the power of God’s mercy and love will – eventually – always win. We know that those who abuse power or can’t let go of it can only keep control for so long. We know that strength amassed by groups of people who band together to save what’s important to them is a strength that’s hard to fight. Look at Ukraine – Putin assumed they would roll over and submit to him because he was bigger and badder. But notice who has remained strong and who has continued to look more desperate. We see people like Alex Jones, who spread false information about the shootings of school children in Newtown CT, and how ‘successful’ he is because he makes a lot of money on lies. I have a colleague from seminary who is the minister of the UCC church in Newton, and I can tell you without a doubt that those shootings happened. Alex Jones is not interested in truth, but I believe that the tenacity of the relatives of those murdered at Sandy Hook will eventually put him out of business. At the very least he is being exposed as an ignorant bully.

Each one of us wakes up every day and faces different challenges, and each one of us keeps putting one foot in front of the other – and how do we do that? We are able to do it because we have each other, and we have our faith, and when we sit still we can hear the words, “I will pour out my spirit on YOU.” We have all the power we need. Because God poured it out then and pours it out still.

As Calvin says, Life is inconvenient. But, in the words of that great American philosopher Yogi Berra, “If the world were perfect, it wouldn’t be.” We are tempted to wish that things would just go smoothly every day. That everyone would agree and hardship wouldn’t happen. But the fact is that hardship shows us our resolve and builds our conviction. I wouldn’t wish on anyone the floods in Florida or the war in Ukraine or the shootings in schools. I would remind us that there are things we can’t change – like the weather - and things we can.

We have the power to band together and fix what is broken. We have the opportunity to make statements of truth, and to make them more loudly than those who shout out the lies. We have the power to remember what sacrifice is and who sacrificed for us and to do some sacrificing of our own for the greater good. We have the ability to offer resources – physical or emotional or spiritual – to those who need them, knowing that our own wells will never run dry as long as we call on the name of the Lord.

We can do it. We can accomplish what needs to be accomplished. We can make a difference. We can make our voices be heard and our actions speak even more. We can because it is indeed pouring. There is never any question about whether God is still pouring down the blessings of the Spirit... The question that remains is, What are we doing to make the best of them...