As I approach the end of a six year adventure toward being ordained a priest, I can’t help but look back over the time Cassie and I have spent on this journey. To say the least, the ordination process is full of hoops and puzzles. One of the earliest steps is a psychiatric evaluation. That was a lot of fun; eight hours with a psychiatrist and his post-doc assistant doing all sorts of tests. Ink blots, personality profiles, loaded conversations, on and on; all to make sure I was just crazy enough to pursue ordination. In the midst of this 8-hour marathon I was put in a very awkward position; as I stared at a computer screen taking yet another personality profile in hour number five, an interesting question appeared before me, “Have you ever heard voices?”
“Hmmmm,” I thought, “This raises a bit of an issue. If I say ‘yes’ I’ll be deemed crazy. If I say ‘no’ I’d be lying; since I heard a clear and distinct voice telling me that business was not where my gifts would be best utilized.” I had to spend some time thinking about it before I pressed the y key. That question still gives me pause, how, as Christians who believe that God continues to reveal himself by spoken word, do we toe the line of social science which, for the most part, associates the hearing of voices with various mental illnesses? As Doctor House put it on Fox a couple of seasons ago, “If you talk to God, you’re religious. If God talks to you, you’re crazy.” It is a question that is relevant for us in all four of our readings for today.
First, Isaiah, like all of Israel’s prophets, acts as a conduit for God. He has heard God’s voice and been called to share that Word with the rest of Israel. Secondly, The Psalmist has heard the voice of the Lord and in the Psalm for today takes the time to proclaim the majesty of that voice. Thirdly, Peter is at the house of Cornelius because both men had plainly heard the voice of God in the middle of the day. Finally, John the Baptist experiences the fullness of the Trinity while hearing the voice of God in two distinct persons in just four verses. First, he hears Jesus, God the Son, speaking to him; man to man. Secondly, he hears the voice of God the Father coming from heaven, affirming Jesus as the Son.
For the most part, we mainliners get nervous when talk turns to the voice of God speaking directly to us, but it is clear from our lessons today that hearing the voice of God was important, is important, and will continue to be important for those who strive to follow God. It is important, but it sure is scary. Hearing the voice of God is not something we take lightly. Listen again to the Psalmist, “The voice of the LORD is a powerful voice; * the voice of the LORD is a voice of splendor. The voice of the LORD breaks the cedar trees; * the LORD breaks the cedars of Lebanon; He makes Lebanon skip like a calf, * and Mount Hermon like a young wild ox. The voice of the LORD splits the flames of fire; the voice of the LORD shakes the wilderness; * the LORD shakes the wilderness of Kadesh. The voice of the LORD makes the oak trees writhe * and strips the forests bare.” It is clear that we are rightfully afraid of the voice of God. Couldn’t each of us add to this Psalm? “The voice of the LORD makes us move to South Alabama.” “The voice of the LORD calls us to minister to prisoners.” “The voice of the LORD calls us to bounce between a biker meeting and Draughting Theology.” “The voice of the LORD calls us to pray without ceasing.” And on and on. When we hear the voice of the LORD in our lives we can be sure we aren’t being called to easy street. No, instead our lives will be turned upside down so that we too might take part in the “fulfillment of all righteousness.”
It is also clear in all four readings that this fulfillment of all righteousness, this setting the upside down world right side up didn’t begin when Jesus was born in Bethlehem and it didn’t end when he died on a cross at Calvary. It is the whole of the story of salvation; from God’s Word spoken at Creation to Jesus’ triumphant return to usher in a new Creation. It was the work of Noah. It was the work of Abraham and Sarah. It was the work of Isaiah and all the prophets. It was the work of John the Baptist and of Peter and of Martin Luther and his namesake Martin Luther King, Jr. And it is the work of you and me. We are called to listen for the voice of the Lord so that we might fulfill our role in the larger story of God’s righteousness.
Where will we find the voice of the Lord? For some, it will be audible. It will make it hard to answer that question poised to me during my psychiatric evaluation. For others, it will be in relationships. Spouses, coworkers, friends, acquaintances; God has been known to speak through them all. Still others will find the voice speaking directly to them in Scripture; as the Bible, the Word, remains alive and continuously reveals the will of God. The voice of the Lord can be found in many, many places.
When we hear what we think is the voice of the Lord, we are then called to test it; to make sure. We get two lessons for this work of discernment from our Gospel lesson; in some cases we can rely on our history with God while in others we will need to turn to the Word of God as it is revealed for us in the Scriptures. John and Jesus seem to have a pretty good relationship; we get the sense that they have hung out at family gatherings over that past 30 or so years. John who while in his mother’s womb knew that Jesus as someone special must have honed that feeling over the years; he knew when Jesus was speaking Truth to him. He could trust his gut. And so when Jesus comes to him asking to be baptized John needs to ask only one question, “Are you sure?” The feeling is there, but he wants to make sure it is accurate. Jesus responds, “let it be so for now…” John knows this is Truth; it will fulfill all righteousness to do this; it will help to set things right even if it makes no sense in the here and now. John knows because of a longstanding personal relationship with Jesus. He can tell by the way Jesus says it. He can see it in Jesus’ body language. He can feel it in his gut. Over time we too can learn how to discern based on our relationship with the one who speaks. As we grow in faith it becomes clear to us based on our gut feeling, based on the tone of voice God is using, based on the body language of family and friends as they speak Truth to us. But getting there takes a long time. That is not where we begin and is not the norm.
Where our discernment starts is in the one place we can be sure that the Word we will hear is of God, in the Scriptures. The Bible, a set of texts honed over centuries, put into writing by those who knew God well, is where our discernment begins. Our test of whether or not our word will “fulfill all righteousness” is to see whether or not it is in accordance with the Word, the continuous revelation of God through the scriptures. If all else fails us, the Bible will not. If our heart and our mind lead us astray, the Spirit can refresh us anew in the reading of the scriptures. This is where our discernment begins. This is where we first test the voice we hear. This is where we bring the Word we receive from family, friend, neighbor, pastor. This is where we hone our skills so that later, in due time, it is the comfort of our relationship with this same living Word that will make us sure.
The voice of the Lord is dangerous. There is no question as to why we associate hearing voices with mental illness; the voice of the Lord calls us to do some crazy things. Ultimately, however, that same voice is leading to the restoration of all things. When we follow the voice of the Lord we have the honor of joining with God in the work of putting the world back in order. What a blessing. What a gift. What a responsibility. Listen carefully. Test accordingly. Join in on the crazy work that God is doing. Amen.
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