"Power Corrupts, Community Unites"
Scripture Reading: 2 Samuel 11:26-12:13; Ephesians 4:1-16
Rev. Ross A. Aalgaard
Sermon on Sunday, August 3, 2003

Everyone loves a good story. Because of our love for stories, movies are very popular. I love movies. I'm one of those people who can hear every detail of a movie and still enjoy going and seeing it. So today I am going to tell you about a recent movie that I saw and really enjoyed. It's called, "Seabiscuit." I'm sure after I give you a full overview you will really enjoy seeing the movie sometime soon.

Okay, I know some of you do not like to know about the movie before going. You say it ruins the story for you. So, I thought maybe it would be better if I told you about "The Pirates of the Caribbean." However, I haven't seen that one. So, instead I'm going to tell you about a movie based on a more familiar biblical story. I don't think this version has been made yet, because it was put into this sermon from my imagination.

Let's go to the movies. Lights, camera, action! Our story opens on a calm and quiet Spring day. The sun is out, the sky is blue, and the birds are singing in the unseasonably warm temperatures. It is a still late afternoon.  The camera pulls in on a strong and stately man who shows in his demeanor that he has not only years behind him, but also experience beyond the ordinary. It doesn't take long for us to figure out that this is a wealthy man. Only a few more moments pass before we realize that this man is a leader -- a national leader who possesses proven power. Nothing should prevent us from feeling affection toward this man. Positive energy seems to
flow through him and from him.

 The camera moves out and we see that this man is outside enjoying the beautiful spring day. He is lying on a lounge chair on top of his roof, an acceptable place in a metropolitan area that has little yard space. Still,
we have an uncanny feeling that the man is in the wrong place, at the wrong time. We are able to determine that he has been lounging for awhile. He moves out of his chair to stretch his body and give himself a slight change
of scenery. He casually walks around the rooftop patio. Then we realize that he has spotted something and is enjoying the view. The camera is kind enough to fill us in by showing us what this man sees. From the rooftop the man sees a woman during her personal clean up after a days work. She is taking a bath and we immediately see that she is very beautiful. She is not doing anything unusual or inappropriate. She is in her private property taking time for personal care. It doesn't take long for the man to call one of his assistants to find out who the woman is. That's when we are introduced to Bathsheba, the wife of a military man named Uriah.

 In the next scene an invitation is sent to Bathsheba from the man to join him for an evening to get to know each other. She is understandably excited to receive this invitation from King David and immediately accepts. That
night there is magnetism that is felt in their interaction. They dine and dance together. They have meaningful conversation and share a few laughs. We know that they like each other. And then it happens, the moment with all its romance pulls them into concluding the time together with a night of passion. Again, we feel King David is in the wrong place, at the wrong time. And even though we know how it happened, we feel disappointed that it did. Bathsheba is married to Uriah.

 The story moves us into the future. Time has passed, about two months has gone by. King David receives a note. It is from Bathsheba. He opens it up and all that is written in it are the words, "I am pregnant." However, we know along with King David that this changes everything. It creates a problem situation and we can see that King David is going to work at remedying the situation and keeping things the same, as much as possible. His leadership skills do not fail him now. He takes quick action and contacts the commander of his army. He tells General Joab to send the military man Uriah back to see him in Jerusalem. And just as any good
military functions, the order is carried out. A cover up has begun.

 Uriah comes to King David and the acting begins. King David pretends that he needs Uriah there to report how the war is going. But we are in on King David's secret. There is more to this meeting than that. King David sends
Uriah home. After being in the stress of war and its battles for so long, going home to his wife has got to be the greatest gift King David can give Uriah -- not to mention a solution to King David's problem.

 Although Uriah leaves, he doesn't return home. His loyalty as a soldier overshadows everything else. He could not enjoy the simple pleasures of life that he was fighting to protect while the other soldiers battled on. So,
instead of returning home while still on duty, he stayed with the king's servants in the courtyard. King David tried again two days later, but this time tried to impair Uriah's military loyalty and judgment by getting him
drunk. But it still didn't work.

King David comes up with a new plan that should solve everything. King David contacts General Joab. The order is given, "Put Uriah in the fiercest fighting with limited reinforcements." General Joab obediently follows the command of his leader. In a violent battle scene, we see Uriah killed in action. Even though King David was no where near the fight, we feel that he might as well had been the one to stab Uriah in the heart. General Joab, in his faithful military way, reports to the press that the deaths of the soldiers, including the great Uriah, were not able to be prevented.  King David in all his strength as a leader reminds everyone that, though it's difficult, it's the peril of war.

 The problem is now solved. After a short time of required grieving, Bathsheba becomes King David's wife. Not only is the pregnancy covered up and King David has a very beautiful woman added to his household, but to all
the people it looks that David is a man of chivalry. What a great spin. What a wonderful story - for King David. You see, it's the story written by David.

If we are looking for the lesson learned in the story of David and Bathsheba, we ought to avoid getting bogged down with the details or putting our moral values into the picture. Yes, we find abuse, adultery, deception,
war, violence, and misuse of power. But if we move back from the details far enough, we will find the bigger picture, the lesson that is often overlooked. David's story conflicts with the story God is writing.*

In today's lesson found in 2 Samuel 11:26-12:13, the prophet Nathan loudly comes unto the scene declaring the story God is writing. What David did in secret, Nathan declares boldly. What individuals do in secret, God does in the open. David's story is an individual story centered on self. David's story is filled with the delight of desire and power with its potential of death. God's story, as told by Nathan, is a story of gifts -- good gifts
from above. It is a story of trust -- trusting a good, gracious and loving God. It's a story of community, not looking at what is best according to the individual alone, but what is best for everyone as a whole. David wrote a
story of misuse of power by one, God's story is about the Spirit empowering everyone.

In David's story, the man with the wealth receives all the attention while Uriah and Bathsheba, are nobodies given little attention. But in Nathan's parable of the lamb the description of the wealthy is flat and boring, while
the poor receive far more detail and a picture far more interesting. The lesson we learn is using individual power to write the story or even to avoid a story all together often leads to corruption, while seeking the story God is writing leads us into a shared community that gives us wholeness. Power corrupts, community unites.

With the shooting of the 20 month old little girl in the Jordan neighborhood last Tuesday, Minneapolis City Council member Don Samuels has been acting as a modern day Nathan. He is declaring that this incident matters and all the rest of the random acts of violence matter too. That those without a voice, with little money, have a place at the table, a part in the community. He is declaring that everyone matters! It is from this incident that we see what happens when people ignore or miss the story, or attempt to write their own story - corruption and destruction. The effort to achieve power corrupts and harms. Community unites and helps.

There is a story being written by God that is counter-cultural but brings the wholeness that we are longing for. God's story is a story of humility, gentleness, patience, love, unity, and peace. It's a story of what we share
together in community as spiritual beings. We can strive to write our own stories and end up trying to use our power to cover up our last mistake or we can look at the story already written. The story Ephesians 4:1-6 reminds us we are called to live out.

"I therefore, the prisoner in the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, making every effort to
maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and [Parent] of all, who is above all
and through all and in all."

It's a united community - a covenant community we're called to. A community once found in the Torah, now for those who call themselves Christians, found in the Christ. It is good to pause every so often and ask, "Am I writing my own story or am I joining in God's story?" In my city or neighborhood, am I seeking to live out the story God has already written? How about in our church, am I joining God's story or writing my own? In my work or family, whose story is prevailing? Is it the story of power, desire, and violence or the story of the covenant Christ - the story of love, grace, and peace?

Power corrupts, community unites. Let it be so. Amen.

* The concept of "story" used in this sermon is based on "A Peculiarly Christian Account of Sin," William H. Willimon, Theology Today - Volume 50, No. 2, July 1993.
 

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