Calvin Synod Herald, 1985 (85. évfolyam, 1-5. szám)
1985-06-01 / 3. szám
CALVIN SYNOD HERALD — 7 — REFORMÁTUSOK LAPJA OBEDIENCE (Preached at the installation service of the Rev. Louis Medgyesi on May 19, 1985, at Fairport Harbor, Ohio) By Paul Kantor Bible Reading: Numbers 32:6—27, Text Numbers 32:25 "Your servants will do as the Lord commands. ” cCS It was the custom of President Coolidge to attend church regularly. One Sunday he went without his wife. Upon returning Mrs. Coolidge asked him: “Was the sermon good?” “Yes,” he replied. “What did the minister preach about?” “Sin.” “What did he say?” “He was against it.” Today my sermon topic is about obedience. In case any one of your friends asks what I preached about, you can say that I am for it. I begin my meditation with a funny story about obedience in the military service. One day during an inspection tour a general met two rookies with a large soup kettle at the kitchen door. He commanded one of the soldiers to get him a ladel. The general reached into the boiling liquid and took a mouthful and screamed: “You call this soup?” “No sir,” replied the soldier. “This is dish water, we are carrying out for dumping, sir.” The soldiers obeyed the command of the general blindly, and almost got into trouble. There is a story about another general, in whose case the subordinates queried every command to the point of disobedience. The hero of this story is General Montgomery, who believed in obedience to God. When he came to command in North Africa, during World War II, the allied forces lost several battles because the subordinates questioned, queried every command they received. General Montgomery soon realized that disobedience was the cause for the losses, and from that point he expected his commands to be carried out. Today’s message is based on Numbers 32:25, in which Gad and Reuben had a heated debate with Moses regarding their desire to settle down east of the Jordan. Reuben was the first born son of Jacob, and Gad was the seventh son. They wanted to stay behind, but when they were told that they were needed in the conquest of the promised land they informed Moses that they will do what he will command them. They were obedient and said, “Your servants will do as my lord commands.” Let us examine the story of Gad and Reuben and use it for our own edification. During the exodus of the Israelites the tribes of Gad and Reuben approached Moses and the tribal leaders, and requested that the land east of the Jordan river would be given to them. They did not want to cross the river. They wanted to take possession of the land and settle down. Moses felt that their request was selfish. While the others still had to fight for their new homeland Gad and Reuben wanted to stay behind. Moses became angry at the request because it seemed to disregard the interest of all the people, that is the whole community. Even in our time it is difficult to co-ordinate the individual interest with the interest of the community. In our congregations we often face conflicts when the church requires obedience against the selfish interests of the individual members. In our Bible story the individual interest of the two tribes was to remain on the east side of the Jordan, while the corporate responsibility required that Gad and Reuben would help with the conquest of the new land and cross the Jordan. The possibility for compromise started to develop with a dialogue, which teaches us that the individual and the community interests can be co-ordinated. Gad and Reuben were very honest about their request. They liked the land east of the Jordan and they wanted it for themselves. They wanted to stay. They felt that the land was good for their cattle and the possession of the land determined their attitude toward the future. Our properties often determine our residence in this country. Our belongings can even determine our political or economical positions. It is not an accident that the one and a half million Hungarians who came to the USA at the turn of this century had little, or no belongings. They left the old country in search of a better life, a bigger slice of bread, and more material possessions. During the 90 years of our Hungarian church history here in the USA there were many occasions when many individual goals had to be given up for the sake of the corporate goals of the church. More than 200 Hungarian Protestant and Catholic churches were built in this land before many of the people had their own homes. Many of our ministers earned a lot less in our Hungarian Churches than our colleagues in American congregations. When most of us elected to stay within the Hungarian Reformed Churches, we did it because we love our people and we want to serve God by serving our churches. During my ministry I have met many dedicated Christians who surrendered their individual goals for the sake of a corporate community, and for the sake of unity. Iam quite certain that your pastor could have found several locations where the benefits would have been greater, but his obedience to God, and his bilingual ability kept him within his own people. There are many church members who would have more benefits and an easier time with the American churches, but their loyalty keeps them within our ethnic congregations. There are many occasions in this life when the individual interests must be surrendered for the sake of the community. In our Bible story we see the struggle of Reuben and Gad. They come to Moses with a request. They wanted to settle down. It was for the benefit of the individuals and two tribes. It seemed like a reasonable request. But Moses upon hearing what they wanted rejected it because it disregarded the interest of the whole people He said to the sons of Rueben and Gad, “Shall your brethren go to the war while you sit here?” By not crossing the Jordan with the other people, the power of the Israelites would have been reduced, and they would have had less courage to conquer the promised land. By applying the question to our time, we may ask, “Are you going to sit at home, while your brothers and your sisters work diligently within our churches?” We may even ask, “Are you going to sit in idleness while some people give their lives for our land?” The sons of Reuben and Gad listened to Moses and came to the realization that Moses was right. They were needed in the conquest of the new land. So they modified their request by saying that, “Your servants will do as my lord commands. Our little ones, our wives, our flocks and all our cattle shall remain there in the cities of Gilead; but your servants will pass over, every man who is armed for war, before the Lord to battle, as my lord orders.” The descendents of Reuben and Gad showed flexibility in their discussion with Moses. From the dialogue comes a compromise. If the sons of Gad and Reuben will cross the Jordan and fight on the side of the Israelites they will receive the land east of the river. If they would refuse to go with the people of Israel, then the leaders would refuse to give them the land. So out of the discussion a solution was bom. The individual desires were co-ordinated with the interest of the community and unity was achieved. In our churches the individual desires of the members and the pastors should be coordinated with the interest of the whole congregation and the community. Only by
