Juneteenth Sermon

Juneteenth

In the United States it is customary to go and commemorate a loved one by putting flowers on their grave. I learned on my trip to Israel in 2009 that you cannot do such a thing in the middle of the desert. Instead, what they do it stack stones on the grave. In Joshua 4:9-23 we read of Joshua commanding the Israelites to take the twelve stones they had gathered from the Jordan and stack them in order to commemorate the Lord’s allowing them to cross it on dry ground; just like He did when he parted the Red Sea so that his people could escape slavery in Egypt.

In Exodus 13 God commands the Israelites to “give over to the Lord the firstborn of every womb…and…Redeem every firstborn among your sons.” In Exodus 13:14-15 we read: “In days to come, when your son asks you, ‘What does this mean?’ say to him, ‘With a mighty hand the LORD brought us out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.  When Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let us go, the LORD killed the firstborn of both people and animals in Egypt. This is why I sacrifice to the LORD the first male offspring of every womb and redeem each of my firstborn sons.’ And it will be like a sign on your hand and a symbol on your forehead that the LORD brought us out of Egypt with his mighty hand.”

The Israelites probably took this a little too literally, there exists a couple of things, even today, in the nation of Israel. One is called a phylactery or Tefillin; a set of small black leather boxes with leather straps containing scrolls of parchment inscribed with verses from the Torah. They are worn by Jewish men during weekday morning prayers. The scrolls of parchment have the following verses inscribed: Exodus 13:9 (This observance will be for you like a sign on your hand and a reminder on your forehead that this law of the LORD is to be on your lips. For the LORD brought you out of Egypt with his mighty hand); Exodus 13:16 (And it will be sign on your hand and a symbol on your forehead that the LORD brought us out of Egypt with his mighty hand); Deuteronomy 6:8 (Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads) and Deuteronomy 11:18 (Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads).

The second thing is called a mezuzah; a small decorative case which Jewish households attach to the right doorframe of the entrance to their home. It also contains a piece of parchment with scripture: Deuteronomy 6:9 (Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates); and Deuteronomy 11:20 (Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates). When you look at it, it symbolizes the Exodus Story. The last plague that God sent to convince Pharaoh to let his people out of slavery in Egypt was to kill every firstborn in Egypt EXCEPT for the homes of the Israelites whose doorframes were marked with the shed blood of a perfect lamb.

I have said before that Jesus used the passover celebration as a basis for instituting the Sacrament of Holy Communion. It’s a sacrament for Protestants because it’s one of two things in the Bible that Jesus commands us to do. “Do this as often as you would in remembrance of me.” Here’s your public service announcement for the day. Normally we would celebrate communion next week; but I’ll be on vacation. I have, therefore, pushed it back to July 9th.

We human beings do things to commemorate important events. It’s Biblical; the Israelites had several festivals that would remind them of important events where God moved in their lives. Jesus established Holy Communion AND commanded us to go and baptize in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. We are getting ready to celebrate a huge event as a nation next weekend. And we have traditions in place that commemorate the occasion. For Independence Day we have pool parties, barbecues and fireworks…oh…and a day off.

This past Monday was a federal holiday. It’s a fairly new one. I watched one of my neighbors walk down to the post office to get their mail to find out they were closed. This past Monday was Juneteenth. The Smithsonian describes Juneteenth as America’s second independence day. Their article on their website says the following: “On “Freedom’s Eve,” or the eve of January 1, 1863, the first Watch Night services took place. On that night, enslaved and free African Americans gathered in churches and private homes all across the country awaiting news that the Emancipation Proclamation had taken effect. At the stroke of midnight, prayers were answered as all enslaved people in Confederate States were declared legally free. Union soldiers, many of whom were black, marched onto plantations and across cities in the south reading small copies of the Emancipation Proclamation spreading the news of freedom in Confederate States. Only through the Thirteenth Amendment did emancipation end slavery throughout the United States.

But not everyone in Confederate territory would immediately be free. Even though the Emancipation Proclamation was made effective in 1863, it could not be implemented in places still under Confederate control. As a result, in the westernmost Confederate state of Texas, enslaved people would not be free until much later. Freedom finally came on June 19, 1865, when some 2,000 Union troops arrived in Galveston Bay, Texas. The army announced that the more than 250,000 enslaved black people in the state, were free by executive decree. This day came to be known as "Juneteenth," by the newly freed people in Texas.”

Just as the Israelites created a day to commemorate their own salvation from slavery in Egypt, so our great nation has created a day to commemorate our own salvation from slavery in Juneteenth. You might think that salvation from slavery only applies to a certain ethnic group. You would be wrong. Slavery was an awful institution that drove a wedge in our nation and created a Civil War. It had brothers fighting against one another. And it’s ripple effects created things like segregation and racial profiling. The wounds of slavery on our nation run deep. And there’s still healing that needs to take place. But with God’s help; I know we’ll get there.

Now, let’s think about this for a minute. We are commemorating a date where people who were FORCED THEIR WHOLE LIVES TO WORK AGAINST THEIR WILL were set free by giving them A DAY OFF. Now, that makes a world of sense, doesn’t it? It’s a nice start anyway.

What’s all of that got to do with you? I’m so glad you asked! Surely there are some significant milestones in your life that you might like to commemorate. Has the Lord Your God brought you through some stuff?!? Maybe he didn’t free you from slavery; but He has brought you through some tough trials, right? Have you given any thought to how you might make that occasion an annual remembrance? A monthly remembrance? A daily remembrance of what the Lord has done? Would you stack some stones? Would you build Him and altar? Would you wear a piece of jewelry or carry something in your pocket that would remind you of what you are celebrating every time you touch it?

We Christians have a ceremony that we perform once a week that celebrates the good work that God is doing in our lives. We gather together with other believers. We sing some songs. We pray together and help to bear one another’s burdens. We celebrate the joy that God brings into our lives because we KNOW that God answers prayer. We sings some more songs and we go out into the world empowered by the Spirit that brings life and freedom from slavery to sin. And, I’ll remind you, it’s supposed to be a day off of work. We worship on the Sabbath; a day which God says is Holy and during which we are to do no work.

So, uh, get out there today and celebrate your second independence day first? (We’ll celebrate the first one next week). I’ll say this, as I’m writing this, the forecast for June 25th is 88 degrees; that sounds like pool weather to me. It’s also some pretty nice barbecue weather. You might even shoot off some fireworks; just don’t tell your neighbors that I said to do it. LOL. I’ll leave you with this: In John 8:34-36 Jesus himself says this about slavery to sin. “Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” And THAT, my friends, is something to celebrate!