7 August 2011 Year A Proper 14
Genesis 37: 1-4, 12-28 Psalm 105:1-6, 16-22, 45 Romans 10:5-15 Matthew 14:22-33

Genesis 37:1 “Jacob lived in the land where his father had stayed, the land of Canaan.”
Jacob lived in the Promised Land – physically and spiritually. He lived the faith of his father and grandfather, Isaac and Abraham. He lived a life that was connected to God and he walked that life with the hope in the promises of God’s covenant to make him a great nation. But tragedy struck the heart of Jacob. His favourite son, the son of his wife who he loved the most, was seemingly killed by a wild animal.

In some way each of the patriarchs experienced the death and resurrection of Christ. Abraham and Isaac were most dramatically connected to the story when God tested Abraham by asking him to sacrifice Isaac. There was another son of Abraham, if we are looking at the story in a biological and physical sense, but Isaac was like the only son of Abraham... the son of his heart, the beloved son, he was the son born due to the miraculous providence of God. Isaac was the son that God promised to make into a great nation.

Joseph was the son that was also born to a barren woman and as an answer to prayer. He was cherished above all his brothers who were born to Jacobs other wife and his two wives maidservants. This made Joseph rather unpopular with his brothers, not to mention the special coat that his father had made for him and his prophetic dreams of ruling over his family and the fact that he brought his father a bad report about his brothers.

Similarly, Jesus was unpopular among his brothers. The religious people were resentful of the popularity of Jesus and the miracles that he performed. Joseph was betrayed by his brothers, (there were 12 brothers altogether), and in particular by the one named Judah, who suggested selling Joseph as a slave for 20 shekels of silver. Jesus was betrayed by one of his 12 followers, a man of similar name, Judas, for 30 pieces of silver.

Ultimately, the betrayal of both Joseph and Jesus enabled the saving grace of God. The very people who betrayed and destroyed the lives of both Joseph and Jesus were the ones who God sought to save through the destruction of these beloved sons. And there was a special quality about each of these sons, as they willingly accepted hardship and suffering to save those who had betrayed them.

Judah was the 4th born son of Jacob and the one who suggested selling Joseph. After Joseph had become the right hand man of pharaoh these brothers came to Egypt to buy grain for food. They didn’t recognise Joseph as their brother, only as the harsh man who they needed to please to buy food. After many accusations about stealing and the threat of losing another brother, Judah finally takes the responsibility for his actions and offers to be put in jail instead of his brother, and at this point Joseph reveals his identity and all is forgiven. Judah is the human ancestor of Christ. Through the position of Joseph, and the seeming resurrection of this once dead son of Israel, the people of God’s covenant are saved.

The brothers of Joseph were not saved because they were good and righteous. They were saved by God’s will. To be in a relationship to enjoy the saving grace they did need to repent from their actions, but the grace was offered even before their repentance was expressed.

To then bring this message to our own lives, we know that the sacrifice, the death and resurrection of Jesus also happened in order to offer us the saving grace of God before any of us realised our human sinful and finite condition. The grace is offered, not because we are worthy of it, but simply because we are loved by God.

How can we enter into this covenant of Grace?

Matthew 14:25-33 “Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear.
But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”
“Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.”
“Come,” he said.
Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!”
Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?”
And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”

Peter was saved by Jesus. Peter took a “leap of faith” and walked toward Jesus but when he looked at the situation around him from his own human perspective he began to sink.

We often do the same. We step out in a life of faith when we get a glimpse of Jesus in the situation and then the reality and obstacles of our situations become more highly visible than the goal of our adventure and we falter. This is a lesson for living the life of grace, but as far as being saved by grace, then next part of the story is the most important.

Peter doubts and begins to sink. He calls out “God save me!” Peter realizes that he can do nothing to save himself. Peter does not have enough faith to continue walking, but only enough faith to cry for help. The amount of faith you have is not what saves you, but who you have faith in.

Someone once described the faith that we have in a chair. We have plenty of faith that a sturdy chair will hold us... and it does. We have a little faith that a fragile chair will hold us and sit down carefully testing it as we go. But if a chair is too fragile to hold us, no amount of faith in that chair will change the fact. Peter may have only had a tiny grain of faith, but his faith was in someone faithful and with power and ability.

We have story after story throughout the Bible of God’s saving grace. The story of Joseph clearly shows us that God’s saving grace is provided for His people who are clearly not worthy of such care. God’s hand is always outstretched to us and the way into a relationship with him has been provided, but it is up to us to accept.

Our reading from Romans explains how this message of God’s grace was always available. It is referred to as the righteousness that is by faith. That is, being right before God due to faith in him. This first section of the reading is also found in the book of Deuteronomy and proclaims that there is a righteousness that is accessible and near – in your mouth and in your heart.

Romans 10:5-11 “Moses writes this about the righteousness that is by the law: “Whoever does these things will live by them.” But the righteousness that is by faith says: “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’” (that is, to bring Christ down) “or ‘Who will descend into the deep?’” (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). But what does it say? “The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,” that is, the message concerning faith that we proclaim: If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. As Scripture says, “Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.”

The message here is that the Law of God is in our hearts by the Holy Spirit, and our access into the way of grace is made easy as we are clearly told that if we declare with our mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in our hearts that God raised him from the dead, we will be saved. – Simple as that. In the same way that Joseph’s brothers were saved by their relationship to Joseph, and not by any good deed that they had done, we also are saved by our relationship with Jesus.

Peter was the only one who got out of the boat and walked to Jesus on the water, but all were saved because they believed and confessed that belief in Jesus.
Matthew 14:32, 33 “And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”