Colors keep it simple.

Deuteronomy 30:11-20

March 21, 2010

Just do it

I had a dream the other day.  A famous individual – and I can’t remember who it was in the dream, just that he was famous – was having a heart attack in a public setting.  It seems like it was like a high school gym, and I was in the bleachers with him.

Nobody else close by knew what to do, and since I’ve had CPR training, I was called on to help.  But I got confused about my training.  How many chest compressions?  Do we still do the rescue breaths or have they stopped recommending that?  Did I check his air passage first?

Based on how my dream played out, I’m hoping that all of you have someone other than me close by if you have a heart attack.

Every time I take CPR training, I think to myself during the training, “This is simple.  Even a caveman can do it.  Why do I need 2-3 hours for this?  There are only a few basic things to remember.”

Then, a few weeks later, I start thinking, “I can’t remember what I’m supposed to do.  It’s kind of complicated.  What were those steps again?  And in what order?  And what are the things I’m supposed to do before I try any of the steps?”

I guess I am ready for a refresher class.

Is CPR simple or complicated?  Is it easy or difficult?  Is it close by or out of reach?  Is it obvious or obscure?  Is it doable or impossible?  Is it understandable or mysterious?

I want to say to all those questions, “Yes.”  “It” depends.

Moses raises the same questions in Deuteronomy about the life of faith.  Is it simple or complicated?  Is it easy or difficult?  Is it close by or out of reach?  Is it obvious or obscure?  Is it doable or impossible?  Is it understandable or mysterious?

“It” depends.  In this passage, I would say Moses is saying “it” is simple, easy, close by, obvious, doable, and understandable.  The rest of Deuteronomy gives us the “depends.”  Today is about simple.

“It” is no different than many other areas of life, and to illustrate “it,” I will use them as examples.  Yet another way to keep “it” simple is to think of the four colors of worship that I used in the children’s sermon this morning.  You’ll see what I mean.

A Matter of Wanting (vv. 11-14)

White in the church represents purity.  It is the color of Christ, so we use it at Christmas and Easter.  White is the color of a clean heart, the color of wanting.

The first paragraph in our text is the reason for today’s sermon title.  Clem Geitner led our Tuesday morning men’s Bible study this week, and pointed out that the word “it” occurs nine times in verses 12-13:

It is not up in heaven, so that you have to ask, ‘Who will ascend into heaven to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?’ Nor is it beyond the sea, so that you have to ask, ‘Who will cross the sea to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?’ …it is in your mouth and in your heart so you may obey it.

Clem asked, “What is ‘it’?” 

(Interesting…that’s the same question the Israelites asked in Exodus 16:15 when they first saw flakes of white, sticky starch after complaining of having no bread in the wilderness.  The word “manna” means “What is it”? [Exodus 16:31, see footnote].)

The answer is in verse 11 and the beginning of verse 14.  “Now what I am commanding you today” is the “it” (11).  “The word” (14) is “it.”

Moses refers to it here in the singular: “this command.”  Literally in the Hebrew, he says, “This command which I command you.”  In context, he is really talking about the command to obey all God’s commands.

Therein is the complicated part.  To obey one command is simple.  To obey lots of commands is not.  That’s why it is a matter of the heart (14).

Marriage is a good analogy.  Is having a marriage that goes the distance simple or complicated?  On the one hand, I want to say to the Tiger Woods and John Edwards of this world, it’s simple.  You made a promise to stay faithful.  That’s it.  That’s all marriage is: “I’m yours, exclusively.  For better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, I take you.” Simple.

Both of them, and on this point everyone who’s ever been married, would answer, “No, it’s not that simple.”  It’s complicated. 

Having a marriage that goes the distance is about understanding gender differences, it’s about communication, it’s about conflict, it’s about money, it’s about power, it’s about in-laws, it’s about priorities, it’s about distractions and temptations, it’s about changes in the seasons of life.  It’s also complicated because it’s not even just about you – whether you want to nurture and sustain your love.  There’s another person involved as well, and sometimes that person breaks covenant.

When you face the complicating factors of marriage, you have to examine your mouth and your heart.  “I know it’s tough, but did I mean what I said when I took my vows?” You can’t control your partner’s heart, and that’s why some marriages do end in spite of your heart, but you can examine your own.

That’s what Moses means.  White represents your wanting in the life of faith.  What was in your mouth when you professed your faith publicly?  What is in your heart?   When you don’t understand God, when the Bible doesn’t make sense, when faith seems complicated, keep it simple by wanting.

A Matter of Waiting (vv. 15-16)

Red is the “happy color,” as I told the children, because we use it for celebrations.  It’s a little hard to explain Pentecost in a children’s sermon, but the reason red is for celebrations is that represents the day the Holy Spirit fell upon the church in Acts 2.  But remember, they had to “wait” for the Spirit.  Faith is made more simple if we remember “it” is a matter of waiting.

Waiting is another way to keep it simple:  “See, I set before you today life and prosperity, death and destruction” (15).  He’s not talking about immediate results.  Prosperity doesn’t happen overnight.  Death doesn’t come immediately following disobedience – at least most of the time.

He repeats his command to love and obey God, and then he says, “and the LORD God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess” (16).

But not necessarily right away.  They still have a war to fight.  Some of them are going to die in battle.  There will be varying degrees of material blessing in the new land.

Is getting an education simple or complicated?  It’s simple, right?  There’s really only one rule – prioritize.  At certain periods of your life, nothing is more important than taking advantage of the opportunities you have. 

But life gets in the way.  For kids, “life” might mean playing or partying.  George Bernard Shaw, the Twentieth Century Irish playwright, said, “Youth is wasted on the young.”  Not always, of course, but sometimes it is hard for kids to focus on what is most important.

For adults trying to further their education, the “life” that gets in the way – often legitimately – might be family or jobs or health.  At some point, though, when you decide to go for it, education is about delayed gratification.  There are lots of things I’d rather be doing with my time or money, but this is about the rest of my life, and it’s worth the sacrifice.

I was a late bloomer (I now know to “blame” ADHD!) in learning the rewards of focus on education.  Looking back, though, I would only focus more on those seasons of life when I worked on a high school diploma, a bachelor’s degree, my Master of Divinity, and Doctor of Ministry.  Those seasons of life are so worth it.

Faith is simpler when we remember it is a matter of waiting.  We are the ones who make it complicated when we expect God to answer our prayers now, to make it all better now.  If I just remember that the very essence of faith is learning to trust and obey even when God doesn’t come through on my timetable, it becomes simpler.  Some rewards of faith will not come until the next life.  Keep it simple by waiting.

A Matter of Warning (vv. 17-18)

Purple is, as I told the children, the “thinking” color, the royal color.  The adult way to say that is that purple is for reflection, for repentance.  We use purple for Advent and Lent because the King is coming.  His coming is good news for those who are ready; it is bad news for those who have chosen unfaithfulness and disobedience.  So purple is a warning color.

Moses warns the people that if they don’t guard their hearts and delay their gratification, they will be destroyed (17).  They will not live long in their new home (18).

Financial management – is it simple or complex?  There is really only one rule for financial health: “Spend less than you earn.” It’s simple, right?

Not necessarily.  Life throws all sorts of circumstances at us beyond our control.  Sometimes the risks we choose to take turn out badly.

Moses’ third reminder for simplicity is a matter of warning.  In terms of finances, do we need a reminder of that in today’s economy? 

OK, so we don’t like the negative.  Don’t you wish now, in retrospect, that there were more people, not fewer, warning about the excesses of personal and government spending?  I don’t always like it when someone gives me a warning about finances or anything else in life I think I have under control.  But warnings are good. 

Here is my warning. It is written into our corporate American DNA that everyone has the right to be happy, to be fulfilled, to maximize his or her potential.  Find out “who you are” (see the cover of today’s Parade magazine) and live it out.  We’re supposed to stay out of each other’s way in that quest, and even advocate for one another’s pursuit of personal freedom. 

The more we live out our identity and stay out of each other’s way, the happier we all will become.  That is the quintessential American value.  Political parties rival each other to insist that they are the ones who will do the best job making more people happy.  Even churches market themselves and compete with each other as places to enhance your quest for happiness.

Every once in a while, I want to scream to all of America, “How’s that working for you?”  The validation of personal pursuit and freedom has brought us a culture of promiscuity, venereal disease, addiction, obesity, uncontrollable personal and national debt, divorce, unemployment and economic crisis, and general frustration.  Meanwhile, we are not happier and more fulfilled than we were a generation ago.

We are not listening to the warnings of Scripture.  Here is the twenty-first century version of Moses’ warning.  When life is all about self-fulfillment, its end is self-destruction – sometimes personally, sometimes corporately; sometimes physically, sometimes emotionally or spiritually; sometimes sooner, sometimes later. 

What is the alternative?  The awareness that God has told us who he is and what he wants, and life is about seeking his way, not validating our own.  Simultaneously, we need enough humility to admit that none of us has God completely figured out.  We are all on a journey toward him, and we need to learn from each other along the way and also give others the benefit of the doubt and remember they are accountable to God, not to us.  It’s not about trying to fix you; it is about heeding God’s warning to me.

Moses says it plainly: “If your heart turns away and you are not obedient…you will certainly be destroyed.”  Keep it simple, and heed the warning.

A Matter of Witnesses (vv. 19-20)

Green is the color of growing – the season of Pentecost, ordinary time.  Green is the color of nature – leaves, grass, all sorts of vegetation.  Moses uses nature as witnesses to the life of faith.

Moses says in verses 19-20, “This day I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses.  Now choose life, so that you and your children may live, and that you may love the LORD your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him.”

The world around us is witness to what we have promised to God.  Nature itself records our vows.

Maybe for you, flowering daffodils, budding trees, and singing birds are sufficient witness to your spiritual vows.  For me, it helps to have some human witnesses.

Here’s another area where a parallel helps.  Is it simple or complicated to eat healthy?  It’s simple, isn’t it?  Eat less, exercise more.  That’s simple.  Or is it?

Some of you find it easier than some of us.  It’s a lifelong battle for me.  If you haven’t known me long, I weigh about 40 pounds less than I did three years ago, and 60 pounds less than the day Sharon Rowe was at a Charlotte Hornets basketball game and looked a few rows in front of her, exclaiming, “That looks like a fat Bob Thompson!  It is Bob Thompson!”

Without question, the most helpful aspect of getting weight off and keeping it off for me has been accountability – “witnesses.”  Whether it’s a class or a doctor or a friend or just my Excel chart, I need to be accountable for my progress or lack thereof.

I have my annual physical this coming Friday, and I had put back on about 10 of those forty pounds since Thanksgiving.  My strategy for taking it off?  Text my weight to David Washco once a week.  And if there’s any week that I gain weight, text my weight daily to him for the next week.

Who keeps you accountable for your “simple” commitment to walk in faith and obedience?  Who has permission to ask you hard questions about the very areas that are your biggest struggle?  To whom have you offered blanket “witness protection” to see that you stay on course?  Keep it simple – name your witnesses.

The embroidered rose

This life of faith – is it simple or complicated?

Yes.  For most of Deuteronomy, it seems complicated – because of the sheer volume of commands the people are supposed to keep.  But here in chapter 30, Moses says, “Now what I am commanding you today is not too difficult for you or beyond your reach” (v. 11).

Here’s what makes “it” simple – “it” is a matter of wanting, of waiting, of warning, of witnesses.

Basically, “it” is one simple decision, that I am not my own, followed by a lot of smaller decisions – same as marriage, education, finances, and physical fitness.  Like every one of those areas, when you blow it (and you will), you come back to the decision.  And when you don’t feel like it, you come back to the decision.  And when you hit a crisis or face a distraction, you come back to the decision.

It’s the decision to keep you on a path that makes this life of faith simple.

Several years ago, Chris Cerrito shared an illustration of “simple vs. complicated” that I have used in the Pastor’s Class ever since.  Chris had not been active in church when he came to Corinth, and relatively quickly he was in a leadership role.

He told me one day, “The church is like an embroidered rose.”  When you first start coming, you see the front side – beautifully woven.  After you’ve been here a while and you get on some boards and committees, you see the underside – the tangled mess of threads.  Every once in a while, I have to turn it over and realize the rose is still there.”

At the moments when “it” feels most complicated and difficult, turn “it” back over and remember “it” really is quite simple.

Amen.