In Defense of the Hypocrites - The Rev. Philip DeVaul

Sermons from the Episcopal Church of the Redeemer

I think one of the real true disservices most Christians have done to the faith is not taken the Sabbath day seriously. We use these verses like this, 'well, people used to not have to do anything on the Sabbath, but then Jesus showed up and did some healing on the Sabbath and now I can take my kids to soccer and do laundry and get the shopping done.' It's a really big stretch there, isn't it? From Jesus healing on the Sabbath to us just being like, 'who needs a day off from anything?' But Jesus is doing something powerful here, he's healing someone. This is a big deal, especially to her, how many of us have experienced chronic conditions and pain and things we wish would just go away? And then Jesus just shows up and takes care of it. If you're that person, who cares what day it is? If anything, it makes the Sabbath thing more Holy to you? And this is what Jesus is getting on about. Jesus is recognizing that the call of keeping the Sabbath Holy is not just about worshiping, right? It's about how we participate with God, how we share in the healing that God brings into this world. But he does this in a way that is very upsetting. He does it in a way that interrupts and changes and upends and subverts the way people experience their worship. I'm one of those people who find myself wishing Jesus was a little gentler. That he wasn't putting them to shame but was a consensus builder and trying to get everybody on the same page. It's not how he rolls though; I haven't read that story yet.