Moses has had it. The people of Israel have been freed from slavery. But the price of their freedom is costly \u2014 seemingly too costly for them to deal with. All this wandering around in the wilderness, with nothing but a steady diet of manna to eat\u2026memories of their time as slaves in Egypt seem pretty good. Very good, in fact. \u201cWe used to have such wonderful things to eat\u2026fish, the choicest of vegetables and fruits \u2014 and all for free. We can\u2019t take it anymore, Moses. We are sick and tired of looking at this manna!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The people of Israel are angry, Moses is angry, and the Lord is angry. Things can\u2019t get any worse. Moses is convinced that his servant-leader role isn\u2019t working, and he shares his concern with God in no uncertain terms. \u201cWhere have I gone wrong, Lord? I am carrying the burden of this huge number of people on my shoulders \u2014 and I don\u2019t feel like you\u2019re helping me very much right now. They come to me asking for gourmet food. What am I supposed to do? I just can\u2019t do this all by myself. The burden is simply too heavy.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So God responds. Moses gathers seventy elders before the Lord. And the Lord takes some of the spirit that is on Moses and puts it on the seventy elders. They begin to prophesy \u2014 to interpret and proclaim God\u2019s version, God\u2019s message, to the people. The spirit of God also affects two other men \u2014 Eldad and Medad \u2014 who remain in the camp, who do not go with Moses to the tent of meeting. But not everybody is happy about the Eldad and Medad doing God\u2019s work. Some are so upset by this unauthorized ministry that they try to get Moses to stop them. But Moses refuses: \u201cWould that all the Lord\u2019s people were prophets, and that the Lord would put his spirit on them!\u201d \u201cWould that all the Lord\u2019s people were prophets\u2026.\u201d What is Moses saying? Surely he can\u2019t really mean that every single person of Israel should aspire to the job of the prophet. If too many cooks spoil the broth, certainly too many prophets would spoil the community of faith. It\u2019s like saying that everyone should be ordained. Besides, God asked Moses to gather seventy elders. What Eldad and Medad are doing is improper. They have not gone through the \u201cproper\u201d channels. Moses must just be so frustrated with being the only one speaking for God that he exaggerates. His exclamation is a classic case of hyperbole \u2014 born of desperation\u2026 Or is it? \u201cWould that all the Lord\u2019s people were prophets\u201d \u2026is this plea of Moses itself prophetic? Do his words reflect God\u2019s dream for the community of faith?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When a person is baptized in the Episcopal Church, we welcome that person into the Christian community with these words:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nWe receive you into the household of God. Confess the faith of Christ crucified, proclaim his resurrection, and share with us in his eternal priesthood.
(Book of Common Prayer, 308)<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\nIn so welcoming a new Christian into our midst, we are saying what it means to be a member of God\u2019s family. To be a Christian means that we are called to bear witness to the crucified and risen Christ. To be a Christian means to be a part of a priestly community \u2013 \u2013 a community that mediates between God and the world. Every baptized person, we believe, is a priestly person. \u201cWould that all the Lord\u2019s people were prophets, and that the Lord would put his spirit on them!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Through baptism, all of us are made God\u2019s ministers. Through baptism, all of us are made God\u2019s prophets. Through baptism, all of us are filled with God\u2019s spirit. Through baptism, all of us are empowered to interpret God\u2019s vision and message to the people around us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What would it be like for an entire community of faith to share the burden of leadership? Imagine it. Everyone has been touched by God\u2019s spirit. Everyone has a call to ministry. Not just the nine or so people on the vestry. Not just the clergy. But everyone \u2014 everyone exercising. \u201cWould that all the Lord\u2019s people were prophets, and that the Lord would put his spirit on them.!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Moses wanted something more than to delegate authority and responsibility. He wanted the people of Israel to become the community of faith that would be a blessing to all people and nations. He wanted each person to share the burden and the gift of interpreting God\u2019s word.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Moses shared the dream of God. The dream of God\u2019s spirit being poured out on every human being. The dream that all God\u2019s daughters and sons would prophesy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And that dream inches more and more closely to reality each time we live into our responsibility as members of God\u2019s household \u2014 each time we share in the priesthood of the community of faith. We are, each of us, God\u2019s ministers\u2026God\u2019s priests and prophets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And the spirit of the Lord is with us. Amen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This sermon was written by Amy Bentley Lamborn<\/strong>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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