Sermon 25, Job 6:13-23
In today’s sermon Job vents against his friends. Calvin preaches on Jobs friend’s inadequacies.
Firstly, loud and clear, is the teaching that I must be more kind and compassionate when dealing with others. I wrote yesterday about my OPP and how yesterday’s sermon provided a way forward. That is to treat every interaction with folks as though it were an interaction with God himself. That relationship has to consume me. Something that’s been on my mind for months is to be more charitable. I will try to implement that soon.
Also of interest in today’s sermon is the dovetailing of Calvin’s ideas with my interest in being the grey man. My interest in prepping originally lead me to the grey man, namely attempting to go unnoticed. After all, invisibility is safe. Don’t draw attention. I doubled down on the grey man philosophy after thinking about absurdism, which I find parts of attractive. My whole life sometimes seems completely meaningless but, to take that further, maybe that’s ok. Maybe embrace the meaningless. Find pleasure in the mundane and ordinary, again don’t draw attention. This approach doesn’t seem that crazy. However, I can’t be a hermit. With my new realization of the work of God I know that I have to try and be better which, in action, means being kinder and more charitable. More Christian!
But in today’s Sermon Calvin makes comments that are still consistent with my interest in the grey man:
“It is much better to be small like that [small spring] and remain persistent than to gush forth with great display and dry up.”
“…for those who walk with restraint and prudence, they practice humility and do not put on a great show or make a loud noise. They will not put a lot of effort into extending their sphere of influence; they will be like a spring of water which is covered and hidden…”
Calvin tells us that more important than the big show and the glamor is the consistency. Calvin calls it “resolute constancy” and “steadfastness”, or “serving in lowliness”. In other words,I should make reliability my goal, not glory. Being the grey man is not inconsistent at all.
I am reminded of the older guy in my neighborhood that runs about one mile one to three times a week. I used to look down on him when I was running long distances. Now I don’t run long distances, but he still runs one mile one to three times a week. Humbling and admirable.
There is even a note in the sermon about fame and social media. “…we must always take great care…not to love those who prosper and are comfortable and at ease and not to applaud them at every opportunity because they put on a good show in the eyes of the world.” The sermon speaks to hypocrisy. Great stuff.