"The Complicity of the Church ", Marc Lavarin

1:45 Officer, I want to place a tag on this text for today. For the time that is ours, I want to talk from the subject, the complicity of the church. The complicity of the church. The book of Amos is a prophetic book of the Bible that is placed in the section of the Bible referred to as the 12 prophets or more commonly the minor prophets. The minor prophets consist of Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi. But don't be confused, church. Just because they're labeled minor prophets doesn't mean they don't have a major word. As a matter of fact, here's your first teaching point for the day. The minor prophets are labeled minor not because of their depth of message, but rather for their length of message. As a matter of fact, the minor prophets are one of the more deeper parts of scripture that we have today. And I bet you may not be familiar with the minor prophets. You may not read it as often, but I bet you know more about the minor prophets than you think. It's in Amos 5 that God tells the people the quote that I bet you know already, let justice roll down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.

3:09 I know most people are familiar with that because of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. You see that post floating around every MLK day. But I'd be willing to suggest to you that the most important part of the text doesn't show up in that last verse of that particular quote, but rather shows up in the entire chapter of Amos 5. I won't read the entire chapter of Amos 5, but if you allow me in the message translation just to read a few of Amos 5 for your hearing today. It's in Amos 5 that God says to God's people, I can't stand your religious meetings. I'm fed up with your conferences and conventions. I want nothing to do with your religious projects, your pretentious slogans and goals. I'm sick of your fundraising schemes, your public relations and image making.

4:06 I've had all I can take of your noisy ego music. When was the last time you sang to me? Do you know what I want? I want justice, oceans of it. I want fairness, rivers of it. That's what I want. That's all I want. In case you haven't got it still, let me put this in 21st century language for you to understand this. God looks across the social, political and religious spectrum and says to his church, I'm tired of this church. You see, God's tired of seeing his church being one nation under God and then being one nation under Baal. God's tired of seeing his church having a theology of justice, a theology that's absent of justice. God's tired of looking down and seeing his church go on as business as usual as if they're not in a pandemic. God is tired of seeing the church being more concerned about getting back into the church than being the church in the world.

5:11 God's tired of seeing the church being consistently on the wrong side of history. And maybe one of the greatest paradox of our Christian faith is that we profess a freedom in Christ Jesus. But our church, the institution, is complicit in the oppression of other human beings. The church of Jesus Christ, who is called to stand or maybe let me put this in 21st century. maybe we're called to kneel, in solidarity of all persons who are disinherited, has too frequently found its own proverbial foot on the necks of marginalized people. The church, the ecclesia, the called out ones, the embodiment of Jesus's hands and feet have too frequently shackled the hands and feet of other human beings. And I'm reminded of the sermon by the Reverend Dr. Ebony Marshall Terman, who reminded us that on top of the slave dungeon was the church.

6:14 And even more troubling is that 400 years later, the church is still on top of black and brown bodies. And what makes matters worse is that the church continues to be on the wrong side of history and be complicit in maintaining the status quo. The church is still trying to figure out what ministry will look like when we get back in the building, when the world is in need of ministers outside of it. The church is still trying to figure out if women can preach, while women, especially black women, are leading in almost every statistical category. The church is still trying to figure out whether or not to say black lives matter, because the organization believes all black lives matter. How does it, how is it that the church of Jesus Christ has gotten itself here? How does the church of Jesus Christ, whose Savior is known as the Word of God, was carried in the womb of a woman whose message of the resurrection was first proclaimed by a woman, then go around restricting women to preach?

7:25 How does a church whose belief in the resurrection of Jesus Christ has with universal implications become more concerned about the universal restrictions on who can and can't be saved? How does a church move from setting the captives free to being captivated by the freedom to bear arms? How does the church of Jesus Christ allow the term evangelical that once stood for a commitment to the authority of Scripture and the importance of missional work be co-opted to mean right wing conservative politics who place their emphasis on human sexuality and abortion. How does the church of Jesus Christ get here? And as we're contemplating how the church has gotten here, it's important for us to look at the prophecy of Amos to see how a church, how a community of believers can become complicit and complacent in society.

8:25 Here, here's the first, the first, the first way that the church becomes complicit is that priests become puppets for politicians. It's in the text. It's not my own thinking. It's right in the text. I'll prove it to you. The first character that were introduced in the prophecy of Amos in chapter seven is a character by the name of Amaziah. Now, I want you to realize and I want you to understand that Amaziah is the priest of Bethel. And as the priest of Bethel, Amaziah has one of the most prominent houses of worship. As a result, Amaziah has a direct access to the king. His position has granted him access to the king. Don't miss this. As the priest of Bethel, Amaziah has one of the most largest influences during his time. Amaziah's house of worship has afforded him an influence with countless followers.

9:30 Let me put this in 21st century language. Amaziah has a blue check on his Instagram and on his Twitter account. Amaziah gets invited to the king's table to talk about faith and policy. Amaziah gets invited to the king's inauguration services. Amaziah has access and influence. But in the text, where we find the conundrum in the text is that Amaziah doesn't use his access for advocacy. No, Amaziah uses his access for allegiance. Instead of using his platform to speak up. Amaziah uses his platform to double down on Amos's prophetic speech. Can I tell you that what's one of the greatest problems we have as a church today? One of the greatest problems and one of the greatest reasons the church is complicit today is because pastors and priests who have influence are too afraid of speaking up against the king. When Amaziah hears of Amos prophetic speech, he begins to think, what will happen to my access if I don't give a positive report? And too often we have people who are afraid of losing their access and position, too afraid of losing their influence, and they don't speak up to the king because they're afraid of losing their influence. Too often preachers of the gospel of Jesus Christ will accept an invitation from the king without even challenging the king. Too often we're afraid to speak out because we're concerned what people will say about us. But I came to remind somebody today that any preacher of the gospel of Jesus Christ has a responsibility to a heavenly king and not a loyalty to an earthly king.

11:16 Let me say that again. You have a responsibility to a heavenly king and not a loyalty to an earthly king. You may have a political party, but your political party should never be blind allegiance to a politician. Regardless of your affiliation, you have to be willing to speak out against the, for the injustices of the world. Let me make this a bit clear for you. Let me make this more clear to you. You can call out, you have to call out injustice any way it comes. So yes, you can call out conservatives for being pro-life in the womb but not being pro-life in the streets but you also have to call out liberals who are more concerned about seeing oppressive institutions reformed and not abolished. Yes you can call out conservatives for being quick to adopt black and brown bodies overseas while disrespecting black and brown bodies down the street but you also have to call out liberal institutions who are quick to post Black Lives Matter on social media but not make it clear in their executive leadership. You have a responsibility to call out injustice no matter who it is for or against. In the words of Malcolm X, I'm for truth no matter who tells it. I'm for justice no matter who it is for or against. I'm a human being first and foremost and as such I'm for whoever and whatever benefits humanity as a whole. You have a responsibility to name injustice no matter who it benefits or who it doesn't.

12:51 But can I go a little bit deeper here? I know I'm going to get in a little bit of trouble. Y'all probably not going to let me preach no more. But let's go a little deeper while we have the opportunity. Amaziah goes to the king and says, Amos has conspired against you. Watch this. Be careful. As the priest of Bethel, Amaziah is representative of the official religion of Israel, which means the representatives of the church goes to the representative of the country and try to convince the country that Amos's words is not prophetic speech, but hate speech. He tries to convince the country that Amos's words is treason. It's reversed racism and we have to get in charge of Amos because Amos is disrespecting the flag with his speech and we have to get control of Amos.

13:53 The church has been complicit in trying to convince the country that Amos's prophetic speech is a result of his lack of respect for the king and his country. When in actuality, the reason why Amos has chosen to kneel down, I mean, the reason why Amos has chosen to speak up is because he loves his country and he wants to see his country return back to God. and the church and the country owe Amos an apology because they're calling Amos' prophetic speech treason. Here's why y'all gonna kick me out of this pulpit from here. Because the church and the country owe Amos' like Colin Kaepernick an apology for the way they treated him for kneeling during the national anthem. The church and the country owe Amos' like Reverend Dr. Jeremiah Wright an apology for the way they treated him, for his indictment of the United States, the church and the country.

14:53 Oh, Amos is like Alicia Garza and Opel Tometi and Patrice Cullors, the founders of Black Lives Matter, an apology for being more concerned about their sexual ethics than ignoring their message. And the church and the country is complicit in trying to silence voices they don't even understand. the church always tries to silence voices it doesn't understand and I came to remind some Amos's today that if God has put a word in your belly that word ought to come out of your mouth came to remind somebody that if you feel like you've been pushed to the margins of society for the way you have for your opinion for your thought and for what you have to say you ought to let that word come out because I came to encourage somebody from the gospel of John Lewis that every now and then that when you represent God, you ought to get in some good trouble. Every now and then you ought to be able to speak out against the institution and bring the institution back to God. Here, here, here, I don't have much time. The second reason why the church is complicit is because the church has weaponized worship. The church has weaponized worship. The church is guilty of being obsessed with who can and cannot worship in the pews. We have a problem as a church that we feel as if we know about somebody that gives us and grants us privilege to determine whether or not they can worship. It's right in the text. This isn't just my own belief. It's right there in the text.

16:40 Amaziah is the priest of Bethel. Now, I want you guys to remember that if you go back to Genesis 28, Bethel literally translates as the house of God. Go back to Genesis 28 when you have some time and there you'll see Jacob's dream in the ladder and you'll hear and you'll see that Jacob names that place, the house of God. So Amaziah as the priest is representative of the house of God. And watch this, the priest of the house of God literally tells Amaziah to leave Beth-El and prophesy in Judah. Leave Beth-El, go from Beth-El and prophesy. What he's translating is, Amos, I don't like what you have to say. I don't like what you think. I don't like your theology. And because our theologies don't agree, you can't worship here. The priest doesn't realize and cannot agree with Amos's theology. So he decides to kick him out of the house of God.

17:44 And the church has too often not been able to deal with people who think differently than they do. The church struggles with ministering effectively to people who have a different view of God, who have a different ethic than they do, who have a different theology than they do. And instead of having conversation, the church has too frequently kicked them out of the church. Let me push this deeper. Let me push this deeper because Amaziah doesn't only kick Amos out of Bethel, but he also seeks to diminish Amos's gift. Many scholars believe that when Amaziah says, go, you seer, that when he calls him a seer, Amaziah is not recognizing him as a prophet. Don't miss this. The priest of the house of God can't recognize the gift inside of Amaziah because he doesn't believe that Amaziah has a gifting because he has a different theology than he does.

18:48 He doesn't believe that Amos has the aid. Amosiah doesn't believe Amos has an authentic gift because they have a different theology. And the church is going to miss out on some Amos's that have gift things that we need because we're too busy trying to determine who can and cannot worship. That we're missing the greater point on who we came to worship to begin with. The church is going to miss out on some Amos's because we struggle with having differences of opinions with people in the pews. The church is going to miss out on some Amos's because we're too busy kicking people out when we're called to bring people in. Now, now, now, now, now, hear me, because I know what you're going to say. You're going to say, well, I'm the priest of this household and it's my responsibility to protect the household that God has granted me. It's my calling. God has called me. I have a standard to set and you can have a standard to set.

19:44 You can be called, but remember, you don't have a heaven or hell to put anybody else in. And I'm tired of seeing the church become a place where we're too busy kicking people out. We're too busy discussing who can and cannot worship. We're called to worship God on one accord. I'm tired of hearing stories of my brothers and my sisters who have church hurt because we don't know how to have differences of opinions and still worship the same God. But let me push this thing a little bit deeper. Amaziah can't accept Amos into the house of God because Amaziah believes that God doesn't call people outside of the church. Don't miss this. When Amaziah says, go you seer, when Amaziah calls Amos a seer, Amos's response is that I'm no prophet. I don't have any prophetic lineage.

20:41 I don't come from a house of prophets, but God, I was a sheep. I was a shepherd and God called me. Don't miss that. Amos is not in the institution of the church like Amaziah, but God realizes that the church is too busy in bed with the country, that he has to pull out some people outside of the church in order to get the church back on track. I'm thankful for God who realizes that every now and then I got to go outside of the church in order to raise up some folk to get the church back on track. I'm glad that God doesn't restrict prophetic speech into the church building. No, God doesn't restrict prophetic speech in the confines of a building. But you can open up a book by James Baldwin and Toni Morrison and realize there's some prophetic speech. I'm grateful that you can read some poetry from Langston Hughes or Sonia Sanchez and realize there's some prophetic speech.

21:39 I'm grateful that you can look at civil rights leader like like Baynard Rustin and Fannie Lou Hamer and realize there's some prophetic speech. I'm grateful that you can look up to some athletes like Muhammad Ali and Maya Moore and realize there's some prophetic speech. because God doesn't restrict prophetic speech into the confines of a church. That whenever the church is too busy in bed with the country, whenever the church is too busy and complicit with the country, God will raise up leaders outside of the church in order to bring the church back up. I wish you would read your Bible and realize whenever Israel was acting up, God would raise up a nation outside of the calling of Israel to get people back on track because God doesn't only need the church in order to be God. I'm grateful that God raises up leaders outside of the confines of the church in order to bring the church back to its calling.

22:45 Here, I'm out of time. Haven't preached in a while and I'm out of breath too. The church is complicit in compromising its convictions. Here, here, here, I got to go. I won't take too long on this point. The third and final complicity that the text shows us is that the church has compromised its convictions. Maybe one of the most dangerous parts of our sermonic text today is that Amaziah the priest blackballs Amos from Bethel, the house of God, but goes even further. Watch this. Amos says Bethel is not a place for prophetic speech. It's the temple for the kingdom. Don't miss that. That's important. Remember, I told you that Bethel translates as the house of God.

23:43 And the priest, the one who's been called to shepherd God's flock, calls the sanctuary the king's sanctuary. Don't miss this. It's deeper than Amaziah just saying that it's no longer the house of God. I'd be willing to suggest that Amaziah has adopted a theology which views the house of God as second to the king's throne. It's one of the most confusing theological conundrums we see in today's society. That as a church, we've bowed down to the king's throne. It's confusing because we serve a heavenly king, but have blind allegiance to earthly kings. We love to quote Paul and embrace a theology that honors those in leadership and fail to embrace the prophetic nature and the prophetic voice of the minor prophets and major prophets. And one of the greatest problems we have as a church today is that our theology has been co-opted and we've adopted a theology of nationalism and not a theology of our Christ.

25:00 We are no longer preaching a message that is true to Scripture, but that is true and edifies the king's sanctuary. The church is complicit in abandoning the gospel of our Christ and adopting a gospel of Caesar. We've adopted a theology of nationalism and claimed it as gospel. We've adopted and placed more reverence to the red, white, and blue than to the Christian cross. And we've become a church where the king doesn't have a problem coming in. We've become a church where the king takes pleasure in coming into our churches. We've become a church where the king doesn't feel any type of skepticism or isn't afraid to come into the church because we've accepted everything the king has to say. And we've failed to be the mouthpiece of God. And whenever the house of God becomes the home for kings, you don't have a church anymore.

26:00 You have a political rally. Well, whenever the church, the house of God becomes the temple for the kingdom, the church has lost its power. But thanks be to God that God always sends some prophets like Amos to remind us that to say Jesus is king is a political statement. because it means Caesar is not. Thanks be to God that kings and kingdoms will pass away, but the realm of our Christ cannot be shaken. Thanks be to God that kings have term limits, but our God is outside of time. Thanks be to God that when some trust in horses and others trust in chariots, we put our trust in the name of the Lord, that we don't put our trust in a ballot.

26:58 We put our trust in prayer that we don't put our trust in a vote. We put our trust in prayer. And when we come to God, God works things out. That God sends some Amuses to remind us as a church that we've been complicit. And it's time to get back on track. Pray with me. Eternal God. we recognize that there's so much happening in our nation and our prayer is God we don't become a church that sits on the sideline that stands on the wrong side of history but we become a church who embraces what God has to say no matter how uncomfortable we are we become a church that is grateful for the Amuses that bring us and remind us of the word of God.

28:04 It's in Jesus' name we do pray. Amen.