The Ravages of Hunger
Sermon by Sandra M. Thomas
May 6, 2007, Presbyterian Church of Chestnut Hill

II Samuel 11:2-17; 11:26-12:13
John 6:24-35

“There were two men who lived in the same town; one was rich and the other poor.”

One had a kingdom; the other a little house in the shadow of the palace. One had many wives; the other one wife. One had fields full of sheep, goats, cows; the other had one much-loved little lamb. One had power, influence, wealth, opportunity. The other had responsibilities, duty, principles. One takes; the other gives. One is empty; ravenously hungry….the other pays for his meal.

A common theme in our reading of the Old Testament is -- people who have been given everything – to the point where they ought to have been knocked over with amazement and stunned by gratitude – instead find themselves still hungry, complaining, worrying, longing for the past, fretting about hardship, complaining, dragging their feet. Even David, child born into privilege, eager shepherd, intelligent young son of Jesse, handsome, strong, a genuine leader, head on straight, national hero, beloved king…..the one who has done it all and has it all ….. Sleeps in one day, enjoys how his soldiers continue in battle without him and discovers – a deep hunger.

Some years ago, an advertising agency formulated a Burger King lingo that grabbed us and held on “Aren’t you hungry? Aren’t you hungry? Aren’t you hungry for Burger King now” and we all said “Yes!” And when they added “Have it your way at Burger King now” we said “Yes! Yes!” and David said “Yes! Yes! Yes!” “I’m the king, and I’m special, and my needs are unique, my situation is different, “I’m hungry right now” and I have a stressful job, it’s lonely at the top, and it’s been a while since anyone said “thank you.” “I should have it my way….right now.” Pushing aside any glimmer of gratitude for all he has been given -- David takes his life, his family, his neighbor, his community and ravages all.

The root of David’s hunger is not stress or loneliness, it’s not low self-esteem, or poverty, or despair. It is arrogance. Other Israelites need to go to war, he doesn’t….they need to sleep in an open field, he needs to get his rest in his own bed, in his palace. They need to be faithful to one wife; he can have whatever woman he wants. They need to keep the rules….he makes rules, bends and breaks rules when it suits him.

Last week I was driving, listening to talk radio. The topic was traffic congestion. A guy called in complaining about people driving in the left lane….and he says “They know it’s not right, but they just drive on mile after mile in the left lane rather than moving over to the right….what’s wrong with them! and the conversation continued. Clearly the most sinful people in Philadelphia are those who drive in the left lane. But then the talk show host said: “It sounds like you really want the left lane available for you.” And the man answered “Exactly! I usually drive about 10 miles over the speed limit and I need to be able to get around other cars driving slower.” His hunger for speed not only placed him above the law, but justifies his gripping about other sinners. “Stay out of my way, I don’t need to obey the speed limit – you need to stay out of my way.”

Life does get awkward doesn’t it….when things that we need, require moving others aside. When bending over backward (to make sure nothing interferes with our free access to the things we’re hungry for) something’s likely to get broken.

The Hebrew word used when David reaches out to Bathsheba does not mean that she slipped into his room and he couldn’t help himself…. it is not the word for “seduced her” or “fell in love with” or even “hook up with” – it is “grasp her” -- grasp as one starving. We need to ask – “Why was the king starving?”

Sin happens but it doesn’t just happen…..we set ourselves up for it by forgetting all that we have been given by the hands of a gracious, extravagant God …. and attending only to our hunger.
    • In our hunger we concoct schemes for trading carbon credits with the poorest of the poor – they don’t have cars, we do – they don’t need factories, we do – they don’t want fresh strawberries in the dead of winter – we hunger for them
    • In our hunger for speed we buy radar detectors – because we are busy and should be immune from the rules – to speed without penalty as we go about our important lives.
    • In our hunger for security, we trade in human rights, violate our own principles, in order to make another country democratic – for their own good – whether they like it or not. We – like terrorists ourselves – set aside what we know is right and feed fear.
    • In our hunger for recognition and esteem we push and pressure our children – toward goals that are ours and not theirs – substituting play and recreation with stress and achievement.
    • In our hunger for rest and renewal we destroy our health and our families with quick fixes and small comforts.

It is our vast unrequited hunger that moves us to reach out to take our neighbors’ one little lamb while storing up our own vast herds;

It is our deepest hungers that tells us – when we have it all – that we cannot take a moment for gratitude – that we are needy and don’t have enough, that life is to be spent consumed by worry, filled with complaints, heavy with fear of hardship just around the corner.

This is why God delivered us from slavery? This is why we were given a promised land? This is the proper use of God’s lavish love and grace?

We’ve read the first 8 books of the Bible like a litany that is all too familiar. We are never satisfied. We are rescued from slavery and given the Promised Land and we long to go back to Egypt. We have the opportunity to live in covenant with our God, in the midst of a diverse society – but we can’t manage to remain faithful. We have the opportunity to live in democracy and cry out for a king. We have a king and want to overthrow him. We are recipients of the covenant, adopted as God’s own, fed every day by divine providence, embraced by God’s presence and devote ourselves to our hungers.

But hunger ravages our lives.

Let me remind you. There are no “private” meals – consent, discretion, irresistible, enticed, just tasting, proclaiming “this has no calories”, hiding under a table with our cookies. We have an amazing ability for self-deception!

And then out of nowhere comes Nathan – telling the same story with different words. Just when we thought we were all dressed up – our arrogance, our sense of entitlement, our excuses, our feeble rationale -- is exposed.

While we have so much…..we are “starving ourselves to death” because the bread which we grasp and hold and stash and binge on – is not the bread that satisfied. We all have empty places which only God can fill.

Gathering around the Lord’s Table, my little sons used to ask: can’t Jesus afford bigger pieces of bread? Yes, of course. With the help of Jesus, we could afford to give everyone here an entire loaf of bread – but we give out little pieces – because it is not the bread which satisfies – it is Jesus – who is the bread of life – who guarantees that if we bring our empty hearts to him we will never hunger and never thirst again.

My brother Les, had a hunger, a deep hunger to be a builder like our father. My dad would bring him scrape pieces of wood to play with, but he wanted bigger boards. Dad bought him a little kid’s hammer – but he wanted a real hammer. Now and then my dad would cut boards for him – but he wanted to work the saw. And over and over and over again, my father would find his work tools lying out in the backyard – because Les needed them.

One day we all woke up and it was pouring rain – torrential rain – which meant my dad could not go to work building houses. So he decided that this was the day God had given him to build the shelves for our rooms with the clear pine lumber he had purchased a few weeks earlier. But when he went out to the garage – the board were gone. And his hammer was gone. As he came back in the house asking “Where are my boards? Where is my hammer?” We all scrambled, knowing that judgment day had come. My little brother crept slowly down the steps to where my Dad stood smoldering. “I needed them.” he answered quietly. “And I forgot to bring them back.” “Your board and hammer are lying outside behind the garage in the mud.” We all reached for our ears preparing for the yelling and punishment that would surely come. But then Les said “I’m sorry, will you forgive me?” It took a moment, but my dad looked down at him and said, “I guess I have to forgive you – because if I can’t forgive you how will you ever understand that Jesus forgives you.” And that was that. We never did have shelves in our bedrooms, but we knew that Jesus is one who sets a table abundant in forgiveness, the finest bread, the costliest cup, the most humble, fulfilling, never ending gift of life.

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