Red Letter

I have to admit, I have been thinking about this sermon for a number of weeks now. And as I sat down to organize my thoughts it became a struggle. I knew it might be difficult but was not sure how. Two things made it difficult, the topic and the amount of information that exists in society today. Tying all that together is having three young kids and multiple nieces and nephews, this hits home hard. The fear that falls upon you as you think of those suffering today is almost paralyzing.

I played with the idea of interviewing Emily and asking her why this is so important to her but then realized, our time is limited and between the two of us we could preach probably for an hour each and still feel constrained on time. There were a number of videos I wanted to show along with a song or two but some of the stuff in them were just too shocking and I questioned if the information needed to be put out the way it was in the video.

Let’s jump into our text for the day and then discuss the Red Letter with sex trafficking. Turn with me to and read the Beatitudes with me. This week I am reading from the NRSV with Jesus’ words in Red. Now, hear the Gospel reading.

Matthew 5:1–12 NRSV

When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. “Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy. “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. “Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

I feel I need to remind you why we are talking about our topic today. I am challenging us to not remain silent on these matter of Social Issues any more. If we truly want them to end then we must speak up. Remember our Bonhoeffer and King Jr. quotes! “Silence in the face of evil is evil: God will not hold us guiltless. Not to speak is to speak. Not to act is to act.” “Our lives begin to end when we become silent about the things that matter.”

The idea for this sermon came as I read the scripture and talked with Emily. I was instantly drawn to verse three, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” I really like the CEB’s translation for this verse “Happy are people who are hopeless, because the kingdom of heaven is theirs.” Hopeless is something I think of when talking about human and sex trafficking. Many who are in these situations have lost hope. They cannot see a way out or even having a normal life. They might have lost hope of ever seeing their family and friends again.

Friends, human and sex trafficking are an epidemic in our society today. It is hard to read a paper, watch the news, or surf the web without reading a story regarding sexual exploitation of children or trafficking incidents. I know, for me, every time I hear of a child or teenager missing I automatically think human trafficking, because in a lot of cases that is what has happened. It is time for us to speak up about this but in order to we must recognize the evil that exists around us and stop thinking that because it doesn’t directly impact us we don’t have to worry about it.

Human and sex trafficking is the new slavery of the day. This slavery is just like that of the past just there is no discrimination. Those who are trafficking keep these kids and use them to make money. They drug them, they beat them. they train them to be used to the environment so they don’t feel anything or think it is a problem. This is a big money maker for traffickers. It is estimated that trafficking is a $150 billion industry. It is the second largest industry in the world, right behind drugs. There are between 30 and 40 million people enslaved by this industry. This is more slaves than there have ever been.

The numbers are crazy and sicken. It is said that 1 in 4 girls and 1 in 6 boys will be sexually exploited by the age of 18. That means, each of us probably knows someone who has been sexually exploited. Someone I know has been sexually exploited. So those who are sexually exploited are around us but they are afraid to speak because they don’t think they will be believed and were probably threatened with harm by the person who did this to them. They are hopeless.

Our society does not speak out enough for these hideous acts. Especially against those who are profiting from them. Sex trafficking was first driven by the pornography business. As pornography spread on the internet, those making the videos and taking the pictures were searching for new “talent” and turned to sex traffickers as it meant an increase in profits. Let me say this if you are looking at or watching pornography today, you are part of the pandemic that exists. Not only is pornography against biblical teachings but it drives the trafficking industry too.

Trafficking is happening in our backyard friends. Atlanta and the surrounding counties are one of the largest sex trafficking areas in the world. With access to three major highways and an international airport, it is easier for traffickers to get out of town quickly. Just to talk numbers wise, leading up to the Super Bowl in 2019, there were 169 arrests made by local and FBI officials in Atlanta. The year before in Minneapolis there were only about 30. As of the time I wrote this sermon, there were no numbers out for Miami’s Super Bowl this year

It is frightening as a parent to know the numbers and the questions arise on how I can protect my kids from this horrific industry. In fact, I do not like using the word industry because it gives it a feel of legitimacy when there is no legitimacy found anywhere in the arena of trafficking. The problem is there really is not another word that can be used to describe it. These traffickers are always changing their tactics. They build relationship through games and online interactions and the kids think it is just another kid their age. They kidnap in plain sight. The latest I have heard is they are targeting fathers with kids shopping. A woman will grab the child in amongst all the screaming, the woman is believed over the man and the child. Then the woman disappears with the child.