Dependence Day 2 Samuel 5: 1-5, 9-10; Mark 6: 6b-13; 2 Corinthians 12: 2-10 July 6, 2003 (Baptism of Marianna and

Cassandra Barnhart) Rev. Deborah Dail Denbigh Presbyterian Church

This weekend we have been celebrating Independence Day in a variety of ways. Many have attended picnics, parades and fireworks displays (not to mention great sales at the mall) to celebrate our nations independence and freedom and to remember those whove worked, fought, lived and died in pursuit of that freedom. We are a nation that values independence. Some long to be independently wealthy or ruggedly independent. We grow older or contract a chronic illness and pray desperately that we wont lose our independencethat we will not become dependent on family members or paid caregivers. As kids we cant wait to be independent, on our own, no longer dependent on our parents. The parenting experts tell us as we raise young children we are to help them become independent and self-sufficient in order to function in the world and care for themselves. We tend to look down on those who are dependent on welfare or other forms of public assistance. When Dan and I were first married and he was on active duty in the Army for three years, I bristled every time I was referred to as a dependent. In neighborhoods where our houses are close together, we all own our own lawn and garden equipment, power washers and assorted gear rather than sharing some of the equipment we use only once or twice a year because we feel uncomfortable being dependent on someone elses equipment or having someone else dependent on ours. In our culture independence is highly valued. William Willimon (a preacher who writes for a publication called Pulpit Resource) says: Just a couple of days ago we in the United States celebrated the Fourth of July, the birth of our beloved nation, a nation that has been so good to so many of us. On the Fourth of July we celebrate our Independence. Independence is not a biblical word. In todays gospel, Jesus gives his disciples orders, expects them to follow his instructions. As Christians, our Sunday morning goal is not independence, but rather dependence upon the will and the righteousness of God. We Christians are weirder than we often admit! (p. 7, Pulpit Resource, Vol. 31, No. 3). Jeff Joyner, our music director, and I e-mail during the week about the music for the worship service. He jokingly wrote, as we planned for todays baptismal service on the Fourth of July weekend, that there arent too many patriotic baptism hymns! In baptism we remember our utter dependence on God and on the community of faithful believers. If we are not careful, our patriotic fervor may lead us to forget that we are both individually and nationally dependent on God, one another and our brothers and sisters around the world. Baptism reminds us, as Willimon said, that as Christians our goal is to be dependent upon the will and the righteousness of God. In baptism we acknowledge that we are absolutely dependent on GodFather, Son and Holy Spiritfor our life and for eternal life; for our birth and for our rebirth. Baptism also challenges us to be dependent on one another. Today we didnt just have Dan and Cheryl make vows and

Copyright 2003, Rev. Deborah Dail

promises to God and to their children and to us. We made vows, too. In so doing we have said that Dan and Cheryl are not independent agents, solely responsible for the upbringing of their children in the Christian faith. We have said they will need our help, too, and the help of other Christians in other churches of which they will be a part. We are saying they cannot and should not be independent in this processthey cannot and should not go it alone. As we look at each of the Scripture lessons for this morning, we hear some similar themes. As David is anointed king of Israel and begins to serve fully in that capacity, we read in 2 Samuel: And David became greater and greater, for the Lord, the God of hosts, was with him. The writer of 2 Samuel clearly portrays Davids growth in greatness as a result of God at work within him. David was not great in and of himself. He grew in greatness because of God. David was dependent upon God. Paul in the lesson from 2 Corinthians speaks of his weaknesses and strengths all in relation to God. Paul expresses his own utter dependence on God and says that God gave him this message: My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness. Finally, in the Gospel lesson we read of Jesus sending out the disciples in pairs to minister to others. He ordered them to take nothing for their journey except a staff; no bread, no bag, no money in their belts; but to wear sandals and not to put on two tunics. He said to them: Wherever you enter a house, stay there until you leave the place. Talk about dependence. Jesus is sending his disciples off to do ministry and having them been totally dependent on Gods provision, the generosity of those they will meet on the way and one another. How weird. Such scriptures fly in the face of who we are and what we value so highly. We become great by pulling ourselves up by our own bootstraps, by hard work and rugged independence. And Davids greatness grew because the Lord was with him. Weakness? We try to hide, overcome or deny any weaknesses within us. One becomes powerful by being together, strong, tough and above all independent. Paul says: So I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities for the sake of Christ; for whenever I am weak, then I am strong. Go on a journey unprepared? Stay in a house without offering to pay for food or at least bringing a hostess gift? Depend on God and the people we encounter for each days food, lodging and laundry services? Impossible. Rude. Irresponsible. And Jesus said: Take nothing for the journey except a staff; no bread, no bag, no money in their belts; but to wear sandals and not to put on two tunics. These scriptures and the sacrament of baptism rattle us for they remind us that we are not independent and that we are not supposed to be. We are dependent on God and we are dependent on one another. While in Seminary, one my Presbyterian professors shared this story from his life. He recounted how, despite the fact that he was a minister and a Ph.D., his marriage had deteriorated, his family life had become chaotic and miserable and how his teenage daughter had run away from home. For days he did not know where his daughter was. He lived through the agony of uncertainty and terror, wondering where his daughter had ended up. One day, several weeks into the ordeal he received a phone call from his

Copyright 2003, Rev. Deborah Dail

daughter who had made her way back to the city of her birth and to the city of her baptism. She was living in a car. She was out of money. She needed help. Relieved beyond all belief to know that his daughter was alive and was calling out for help, this father knew it would take a day for him to travel to his daughter. What could he do in the meantime? He said that he immediately thought of the couple who had stood with him and his wife in the First Presbyterian Church some sixteen years earlier when their daughter was baptized. They along with the congregation had pledged to help raise her in the faith and to show the love of Jesus to her. My professor said he immediately called the couple and by Gods grace reached them at home. He said Remember that day 16 years ago when you stood in the front of the church with us? I need you to help my daughter until I can get there. I need you to fulfill those vows in a way I never thought Id have to ask you to fulfill them. The couple went and found the girl, they took care of her until her dad could get there and they took care of him when he arrived. Independence? No, utter dependence. The Reverend, the Doctor, the Ph.D. was in that moment utterly dependent upon others. In a time of despair, in time of weakness, he knew the strength of Gods provision, of Gods sufficiency, of Gods power. What an immeasurable gift it was to know that he could depend not only on God but also on Gods people. On this Independence Day weekend, we celebrate our nation and all that it means to us. We celebrate our freedoms, and rightly so. But even as we celebrate our nations independence we acknowledge that our nation has always been dependent upon God, that we have always been dependent upon one another to collectively make America what it is and that we have also been dependent upon othersother nations and peoples. On this day of Baptism, we celebrate Dependence Day. For as Christians we acknowledge that our goal is not independence. Rather, we acknowledge this day that we are nothing apart from God. We acknowledge that we are dependent upon God for life itself and for life eternal; for our birth and for our rebirth. We acknowledge today that we are dependent upon one another, for we walk together on this journey of faith relying on one another throughout the journey. Happy Independence Day. Happy Dependence Day.

Copyright 2003, Rev. Deborah Dail