Just by a show of hands, who has ever taken dance lessons, and not or like ballet, but like dancing with a partner? And did anyone try to take lessons by themselves, that is not with an instructor there with you, but maybe with like the footprints you put on the floor to try and do it yourself? I’m guessing that the second way probably wasn’t very effective. Linda and I took dance lessons in preparation for our wedding and our wedding dance, which was to Frank Sinatra’s It Had to Be you, and included a dip at the end. And we did it at an Arthur Miller Dance Studio, which has you in private lessons and then in group lessons because it’s one thing to dance by yourself, but it’s entirely different to do it with lots of other people dancing too, that’s a whole other level of dancing of trying to pay attention and watch others and move as needed in order to keep going. And I can tell you that that requires instruction, as well as a partner to help you to learn how to do it, and to do it well. And what it also takes is learning how to let go to be in sync and make changes as they come, and that’s for everyone. And so, when you are dancing, it is not about submission, for either party, the one leading or the one following, but about learning to partner together in the movements, to be in tune with each other, to know what the other is doing, and as you get better, to begin to anticipate what might happen to be ready for it, to be prepared for it in order to respond properly.
I began this series on dancing with God by telling a story about a colleague who was learning to dance being called out by her instructor for not being able to follow guidance, and wanting to be in control, and being told he thought she wouldn’t have any problems with this since she was clergy and was used to following God’s lead. And that’s why I think this metaphor of dancing with God is a good one because it’s not just about God saying do this, and us doing it, but about working together, moving together with God, in order to do the work, to do the dance that we are called to do. And so that leads us to today’s dance, which is dancing with guidance, although I might have also called it dancing with the Spirit, which certainly sounds better, but might not be direct enough. I got that idea of guidance from that passage that we just heard from Acts involving Philip, an Ethiopian eunuch and the Spirit.
But, to get at that question of guidance, we have to get
back in Acts to see some of the things that led to this interaction even
happening. Just before Jesus’ ascension in chapter one, and ascension Sunday is
in three weeks, Jesus says to the disciples “you will receive power when the
Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in
all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” But where have all the
disciples been staying? In Jerusalem. Has anyone yet gone to Samaria? Not until
the passage that we heard today. And is it the disciples? Not at first. But as
the work on the disciples increases as the church continues to grow, the Hellenists,
which is probably best understood as Greek speakers or those who participated
in Greek culture, complained that they were not getting the attention that the
Hebrews were receiving. And so 7 new leaders are chosen, as Samantha mentioned
in the introduction, including Philip. Although it doesn’t say it, presumably
these seven are chosen with the direction, or assistance of the Spirit, based
on how other leaders have been chosen, including the disciples themselves. And so,
they seek guidance, receive an answer, and these seven also agree to do what
they are being asked. For the sake of our metaphor, they agree to move onto the
dance floor and join the dance. But they are still in Jerusalem. It takes the
stoning of Stephen to cause some to leave, and where do they go? Judea and
Samaria, just as Jesus has originally instructed them.
Philip makes his way to Samaria, again I am assuming that
the Spirit leads him there, that it is more than just fear that drives him out
of Jerusalem. He begins preaching the gospel and making converts, although apparently,
they only have one car since they were all of one accord, and upon hearing of
his success, Peter and John come and lay hands on those who have been baptized
and they receive the Spirit, and then they go back to Jerusalem. Then an angel
of the Lord, a little more direct than just the movement of the Spirit it
seems, tells Philip to go south to the road that leads between Jerusalem and
Gaza, and Philip gets up and goes. Now, I could see an argument for why he
might want to stay, after all his missionary activities are highly successful,
so why doesn’t he resist and argue that there is still work to be done? But he
just gets up and leaves, and Luke, the author of Acts, then tells us that this is
a wilderness road, although all evidence we have is that it is not. And so
perhaps this aside is more about this being a liminal space, or an in-between
space where this encounter is about to occur, it is, metaphorically, the
mountaintop where divine encounters happen and transformations can occur, and
what happens in this moment is truly remarkable. And it all starts with Philip
being willing to follow the lead of God in going somewhere different, and that
may be the hardest part of learning this dance. Of being willing to follow the
lead, rather than being the leader, because as I’ve said before, we all say we
want to serve God, but the truth is we would rather serve in an advisory
capacity, rather than in following. But Philip is going to follow wherever it
leads him, and if you are familiar with the story of the prophet Elijah, you
will hear echoes in this story.
And so the Spirit, not an angel this time, then tells Philip
to go to the chariot he sees, and not only does he go, but he runs. This is not
something that dignified people do; it’s an act of foolishness. That’s why the
father running to the prodigal son as we heard in that parable last week, is so
striking because it was just not something done by men in the ancient world, or
again, respectful men. But Philip runs to the chariot, and there he meets an
unusual figure. This is an Ethiopian, he serves in the royal court, he is rich,
he can read and he is a eunuch, which is probably not naturally occurring but
was done surgically for him to serve in the court. And so, he is non-normative
ethnically, although Africans would not have been unknown, he is non-normative
in education, position and status, and he is non-normative in his gender and
sexuality. In most ways he is the consummate outsider, at least where he is,
because in his own home he is the consummate insider. It is not known whether
he is Jewish or just a God-fearer, and I’m not going to speculate except to
make this point by asking a question. Are gentiles allowed to enter into the
Temple in Jerusalem? No, they would have to stop at what was called the court
of the gentiles, which was on the mount, but in the outer area. Women were
allowed to go further into the temple complex then gentiles were. And even more
importantly, are eunuchs allowed into the Temple? According to Deuteronomy, the
answer is no. and so what then are we to make of the fact that we are told that
he had gone to Jerusalem to worship? What does that mean? If he was not Jewish
he could not get into the Temple to worship, and if he was known to be a
eunuch, even if Jewish, he was probably not allowed in either. Was he going to
see if he could be allowed? Was he going to see if he was included in God’s
kingdom? Was he going to seek guidance about he relation to God and the people?
Those, and many others, I think are important to ask because they are important
for what happens between these two men, and I think the big part is about
guidance and God.
So, Philip runs up to the chariot, and hears that he is
reading from the prophet Isaiah, as people didn’t read silently, and it’s not
believed that becomes an ordinary practice until the monastic movement comes
into full shape. Which leads to the aside to know or remember that all of the
books of the Bible were meant to be read and heard out loud. And Philip says to
the eunuch, which is how the man is always described, “Do you understand what
you are reading?” and the man replies, “How can I unless someone guides me?”
Unless someone guides me. And he then invites Philip into the chariot. That
means the man is also open to the movement of the Spirit in seeking this
guidance. When we were working with our youth and confirmands in Lent on Christian
beliefs, and when we were talking about prayer and listening, one of the youth
asked, and I keep thinking about this question it was such a good one, “How can
you listen to someone who can’t speak to you?” My response was that there are
times in which I have heard a voice that I attribute to God through the Spirit,
but those are very limited. More often, I hear God through the words and
actions of others, which means I have to be paying attention to them. And so
that’s what leads me to believe that the eunuch has asked God for guidance, and
he is paying attention to the movement of the Spirit in answering that
question.
And so, he invites Philip into the chariot. That is, I think
both men here are being guided by the Spirit, both are seeking something from
God, both are engaged in this dance with God. Lao Tzu said that when the
student is ready, the teacher will appear, and, then he continues, and when the
student is really ready, the teacher will disappear. A-ha. And my contention is
that while Philip has more potential knowledge here, that both are students
because they sit next to each other. In the ancient world students sat at the
feet of the teacher. Now perhaps it’s just the logistics of where they are, but
I like the fact that they sit side by side as equals in exploring scripture.
And it’s crucial here that the eunuch is reading from Isaiah, because Isaiah
offers a different perspective and message for eunuchs than Deuteronomy does,
and so when he asks Philip is Isaiah talking about himself or someone else, Philip
takes it as an opportunity to talk about Jesus. But, I don’t think it’s too
much of a stretch, as some have speculated, that perhaps the eunuch might be
asking if this passage is about himself, as someone who has been shorn and
certainly has faced humiliation and injustice, perhaps when he was in Jerusalem
itself. And if we read just three chapters past the passage quoted from Isaiah,
in chapter 56, “Do not let the foreigner joined to the Lord say,
‘The Lord will surely separate me from his people’; and do not let
the eunuch say, ‘I am just a dry tree.’ For thus says the Lord: to
the eunuchs I will give an ever-lasting name… that shall not be cut off. To the
foreigners… these I will bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my
house of prayer for all peoples;… Thus says the Lord God, who gathers the
outcasts of Israel….” That is while Deuteronomy says the eunuch is excluded,
Isaiah says that he is not just included, but that God has a special word and
place just for him, the eunuch and the foreigner, and others who have been
disenfranchised and disinherited from the promise. And some may have noticed
Jesus quotes that passage in turning over the tables of the money changers in
the Temple. And so, when Philip begins talking about the good news of Christ,
which similarly sounds like the Emmaus story, the eunuch has to hear good news
in that story. He has to hear a story of inclusion, he has to hear the guidance
that he has been seeking and the call to participate in the dance with God, to
dream that dream bigger than he can imagine where the outsider is, in fact, the
insider.
And so, his response then in asking what is to stop him from
being baptized right then and there is completely appropriate. And I think this
is where Philip also learns something, where he receives guidance from the
Spirit because he could come up with lots of reasons why the eunuch might be
excluded, why he couldn’t just be baptized there, and yet he stops and baptizes
him, and then Philip is snatched away by the Spirit. I believe that Philip has
also received even more guidance from God, from the Spirit, in this moment to
be open to this moment because in doing so now the Eunuch goes away rejoicing
taking the good news, and the power of the Spirit, beyond Jerusalem and Judea
and Samaria, but taking it to the ends of the earth, which Ethiopia certainly
represented at the time. And it happens because both Philip and the eunuch are
not only seeking God’s guidance and looking for it, but are also open to
receiving it in the most unusual places and from the most unusual people.
Because it’s easy to say “I’m seeking guidance or help God,” but then being
completely closed off from receiving it, from not opening ourselves up to
seeing the answer, or listening to the answers from wherever they might come.
And it’s also easy to simply think we know it all, that we don’t need anymore
help, anymore guidance, that we’re done in our faith, that we know all the
steps. But even the best dancers in the world continue to learn and to grow and
to try new things, and the same has to be true for us as well. And to know that
just as the eunuch learns from Philip, I think that Philip learns from the
eunuch, and so to it is with us. That we sit side-by-side on this journey, a
radically inclusive journey in which all are invited to dance, because it is
God who is leading us in this dance, extending God’s hand and calling us out to
the dance floor of discipleship
Most of us have probably seen a western in which a cowboy villain pulls out a gun and starts shooting at the feet of his foe, and it is always a he, and says “dance.” And they have to start dancing, in order not to get a bullet in their foot, or at least that’s the plan. Some people think that’s how God operates as well. But that’s not my view of God, or my interactions with the divine. That God guides sometimes gently, and sometimes a little more forcefully, but that’s what a good a dance leader does, and the other partner follows, and sometimes they improvise together, but it is that give and take, of being able to say, I don’t know, please guide me, or asking what’s going to come next, what are the next steps, and it’s also the ability to be able to say “no, I don’t want to do this dance” and sitting it out. That’s what free will is all about, and rather than shooting at our feet to make us dance, God says okay, but stays there ready for when we are ready to engage again and come back onto the dance floor. And this dance is to know that it is God’s guidance that leads us each step of the way. That doesn’t mean there won’t be problems, or accidents, and that we may even trip and fall over our own feet, but it’s about knowing that our dance partner doesn’t let go. God is always there helping to guide us again, when we seek to be guided. So, what is keeping us from following God’s lead and guidance in this dance of faith? Or, as we have been quoting from Leann Womack, if given the choice between sitting out and dancing, I hope you’ll dance. I hope we will engage in this dance of faith with God, seeking God’s lead as we live and move and grow in faith. I pray that is will be so my brothers and sisters. Amen.
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