Sermon prepared for Messiah Lutheran Church, Auburn WA

for the 8:30 contemporary service, 8/27/00

by Gregory S. Kaurin, associate pastor

Texts: Exodus 8:28-31 and Matthew 5:43-48

[Hand out outline figure]

Let’s talk about the prayer that for many of us is the toughest prayer of all. This prayer either sticks in our throats when we try to say it. Or it’s the prayer that many of us never get around to, or maybe never even think of saying.

This is about praying for the people we don’t like, the people who have hurt or used us, abandoned, disappointed or disgusted us. And I mean praying for them—not about them. It is fine to pray about someone: "Dear God, that guy, he did it again today. Help me deal with it; help me to remain calm around him. Forgive me for my hateful thoughts and help me to forgive him."

But there is another step: "And, dear Lord, I pray for him, that you will live in him, let him feel you working in his life. Forgive him, Lord. Bring him peace, health and happiness. Amen."

Some of you here this morning might be very good at that second step. You don’t harbor resentments. You pray for people that have hurt or annoyed you. And in good conscience, you move on. Thank God for people and prayers like yours. But we all need to experience that kind of prayer.

I want you to think of someone (and you won’t be telling anyone else here, so you can be totally honest with yourself). This might be someone in your present, or in your past. It might be someone in leadership, at work, in the government, or in the church. Or, it might be someone more personal. It might be someone who offends you, has hurt you, made you angry, or maybe it is someone you just don’t like. Take a moment to think of that person. I’m going to do this with you. Let’s close our eyes, and imagine that person, and how we honestly feel about him, or about her…

…Now, open your eyes. Look at the figure-outline, and mentally fill this outline with that person you were thinking of. Let the figure represent him/her. Now, hold on to that paper; we’ll come back to it later.

Let’s turn for a moment to Moses and Pharaoh in our first lesson. You caught on that this was during one of the plagues. Pharaoh never denied that these plagues came from and could be stopped by the God of Moses. And each time, and he calls and sends Moses with this request, "Pray for me." And Moses and his people journey a short way into the desert to pray. The swarms depart, but Pharaoh’s heart—slightly softened—hardens again, and a different plague is sent. But this scene between Moses and Pharaoh happens again and again.

"Pray for me," he says, and Moses prays. And it wasn’t just a prayer about Pharaoh, but for him, for his health, and his people. Even forgiveness, each time.

And then in our Gospel text, Jesus said, "Others have told you to love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I say, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you." Anyone can love those who love back, and that might be fine for them, but you are set aside to love and pray for those who cannot or will not love you. The same way that your perfect Father in heaven lets rain and shine fall on the heads of the good and the bad, so you must imitate his perfection and allow your prayers and your Christian actions to fall on others without discrimination.

Those who gathered around Jesus knew the greatest commandments, 1) Love God, and 2) Love neighbor. But there was always a great debate over who your neighbor might be. You won’t find a law in scripture that allows us to hate our enemies, but plenty of people in Jesus’ day knew how to define neighbor and bend scripture to say that you owe nothing, no favor, and definitely no prayers for your enemies. So, I’m sure there were and are plenty who pray against their enemies.

One of my friends from seminary was visiting a neat little church on Mt. Airy Avenue in Philadelphia. The pastor had opened the prayers of the people to the congregation. One normally sweet older lady prayed fervently for a few people, but then mentioned some fellow, and asked God to "please send down a fireball from the sky and send that louse’s blackened soul straight to hell!"

I know there are people we encounter, who by our judgement do not deserve our prayers, our kindness, and no blessing from God. Here Jesus was suggesting that we pray for them. Caesar? For the Romans and those wicked Samaritans? The thief, the sinner? The Pharisees, and tax collectors, politicians and jilters? The braggarts and jerks, liars, and promise breakers? —Pray for those people that we can hardly forgive?

Look again at your figure-outline, and at the person you have placed in that outline. It’s tough, it’s hard. It may even seem impossible. It’s not my demand, but Jesus, the Son of God who tells you and me to love and pray for that person. For this person in your hand.

Like he did for you and me, and that whole crowd of gambling soldiers, rock throwing hands, jeering, learing, spitting faces, the black-filled hearts, the hidingand fearful disciples, denying Peters, and despairing Judases. And every person and every sin that put him on the cross. "Father," he prayed, "forgive them. They know not." He prayed for their forgiveness, he asked God to give them, to give us, the highest blessing. He let it fall and extend to everyone.

…Be ye perfect. Love your enemies. Pray for those who hurt you. Like Jesus. Like God. So, pride swallowed. We will look at that person on our paper and pray for them. And I believe that, as sure as God is present listening and reacting every time we pray, our prayers will send the Holy Spirit knocking on that other person’s door. The prayer will ask God to help us let go of feelings and grudges we are not meant to hold, to help us move on and into greater peace. When we pray for someone, we place them into God’s hands. Put bluntly, they will become God’s problem. And he can deal with them better than we can.

But finally, the prayer grabs hold of faith. And calls forth a miracle. We do not need to develop warm fuzzies for this person. He or she may still need confrontation and a tougher kind of love. But you and I are changed in the praying, probably more than the person that we will pray for. If I can pray for this person, and can imagine a God willing to embrace him/her, then it shows me the incredible width, breadth, length, depth and the power of God’s love that claims me, and extends me out to them.

We are each going to do this very difficult prayer. Together, silently. I am going to lead us through each step of the way.

But first, I need to say something about this perfection Jesus calls for. "Be perfect," he says. Whenever you hear Jesus tell you to be perfect, I want you to understand it more as a declaration than a command. Only by his grace and forgiveness alone can we or any of our prayers be called perfect. What Jesus seeks from us first is not perfection, but confession, confession that we cannot do this on our own, we need him to help us through it and forgive us where we come up short. We need God’s forgiveness to declare our prayers and us "perfect" …for him.

It is with that sense of confession in mind that I want you, once again, to look at the person in your figure. And as far as you can, allow the Holy Spirit to guide your heart in praying for this person. Today, you may only get through the first step or two. But even then God will have done a powerful thing in you. Other steps can follow later. God takes a long time to answer some prayers. Sometimes we take a long time to get the prayers out. In both cases, it is the powerful and patient work of the Spirit.

Looking at the person in your paper, say the person’s name silently. Close your eyes.

Tell God how you honestly feel about this person…

Tell God how hard this prayer is going to be for you…

Ask God for the help and guidance of his Spirit…

Ask God to forgive and help you pass through your limitations…

And now listen to the various things that you can pray for this person. Choose the things you think they need from God: Ask God to give them his guidance… healing… peace of mind, heart, soul… hope… a new start… helping friends… forgiveness…

Think of one or two more things they may need from God and ask him for them…

Now ask the Holy Spirit to help you and your feelings toward this person…

Open your eyes and look at your paper. Mentally remove the person out of the paper in your hands and put that person into God’s hands. Fold the paper in half. Fold it again. Close your eyes once more.

Ask God to help you heal and put aside hurts so that you can move on.

Take a moment. Ask for and trust God’s forgiveness for your weakness. Let God be the strong one…

Amen means: "so be it." Everyone, say together and out loud: "Amen."

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