A Thought For The Week Of November 28, 2016

"... Moses said before the Lord, “Listen! I am unskilled in speech, so how will Pharaoh listen to me?”" (Exodus 6:30) Speaking truth to power. This was the dilemma that was facing Moses at that moment. God had asked Moses to speak the truth to power: to go to Pharaoh with the demand "let my people go." And - understandably enough - Moses was hesitant. "How will Pharaoh listen to me?" he said. And it was a good question. And it remains a good question for people of faith today - why would "power" listen to us? And it seems to me that - with tragic consequences - the question causes people of faith (and the church corporately) to react in one of two ways. First, we can become very insular. So we think only about ourselves and we care only about ourselves and we stop trying to make any sort of difference in the world around us - because why would anyone who matters listen to us anyway? Or there's the second option. Sometimes we choose to accommodate ourselves to or even ally ourselves with those in power.We become a part of the power structure. But when you're a part of the power structure it's hard to hold the power structure accountable. So we might be listened to, but what we're saying isn't the radical, world changing message of Jesus. This was the tragedy of christendom: the church gained worldly power and then compromised itself to try to hang on to it, choosing not to speak the truth to power but to turn a blind eye to power. Moses had to face this dilemma. "How will Pharaoh listen to me?" Well, maybe Pharaoh wouldn't.  But God freed the people anyway. And maybe the powers today won't listen to us. But God will still be active. We should never be afraid to speak the truth to power, or despair that we can make a difference when we do, or just give in in the hopes of sharing in worldly power. We should simply speak the truth - God's truth - to power. The results of that witness we leave in God's hands.