A WORD FOR TODAY, October 1, 2025
Peggy Hoppes
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Blessings. Peg
A WORD FOR TODAY, October 1, 2025
Lectionary Scriptures for October 5, 2025, Seventeenth Sunday after Pentecost: Habakkuk 1:1-4, 2:1-4; Psalm 62; 2 Timothy 1:1-14; Luke 17:1-10
The book of Habakkuk is a conversation between God and the prophet which serves as an oracle for the people of Israel. This oracle is a burden for the prophet. As we read the text, Habakkuk appears to be a whiner, crying out to God about His slow response to the injustice in Israel. “How long?” he asked. Habakkuk was speaking for all the righteous in Israel who have waited so long to hear God’s answer to the wickedness in His people. Habakkuk simply cannot understand why God allowed evil to rule in the world. He did not understand why God was not disciplining His people so that they would turn back to Him.
Does that sound familiar? How many of us have cried out with the same sense of wonder at the delay of God’s justice? We are frustrated by the suffering we see in the world, uncertain how God could seemingly have no concern for His people. Habakkuk knew that the people sinned against God, but he also knew that God could make them turn back. He asked, “How long?” He wanted to know how long it would be until God brought His people to repentance.
The answer that he received was even more shocking. God answered that the Babylonians would discipline the people of Israel. Habakkuk was upset by this answer because he could not understand how God could use an even more ungodly nation to do such an important work. Here is the burden that Habakkuk suffered: He could see the future of His people, a future that would include pain, exile, and more injustice. This was not pleasant for anyone to hear, but prophets are often burdened with visions of things they would rather not see. God’s answer was not what Habakkuk wanted to hear. It was shocking and disturbing to thing that God would use wickedness against His own people. But God assured Habakkuk that this was just the beginning of the story.
God works in His own time. We look around us and see a world that is full of injustice and suffering, and we wonder when God will bring change. God answers our cry with a promise, “Though it takes time, wait for it, because it will surely come.” Babylon would bring Israel to her knees, but God had not forgotten His people: Babylon would eventually see God’s justice and Israel would be restored. God knows what He is doing, and He knows the time. We only know a see a small part of God’s plan and we are called to trust that God does know what He is doing. We do not want to wait, but that is why we live by faith. Our faithful and faith-filled response to God’s grace is trusting that He will do what is right when it is right.
You may have heard recently that NASA is planning to return to the moon. It has been more than fifty years since the last men returned form a space walk on the desolate lunar surface. They are planning to shoot a rocket early next year that will travel as far as, and beyond, the moon in preparation for further trips that will lead to a moon landing in 2027. People ask why, after all, they say, “Been there, done that.” Others wonder why it has taken so long. A number of reasons have been suggested: money, apathy, and focus on other programs like the Space Shuttle and International Space Station. It doesn’t help that the accidents and disasters in the decades since the last man walked on the moon have taken our courage and the heart for exploration. Why now? I suppose the private companies that have developed new technology has made NASA more willing to take the chance now. The closure of other programs has opened resources to try again.
How did this all begin? On October 4, 1957, the Russians shot a reconfigured missile into space to set into orbit the first human produced “moon” around the earth. Sputnik set off a race for space that brought about some amazing technology. Most of our favorite modern conveniences are in some way credited to the space program. The scientists were developing technology necessary for space travel like the computer, cell phone, and microwave, but it was then adapted for common use. However, it is not just electronics that have benefited. Fabric, food, and even leisure products like toys and sports equipment have seen amazing development because of science that has come out of our race for space.
It was eventually revealed by the men who made Sputnik happen that the satellite was not really what we thought it was. We thought it was a highly developed satellite, or at least more highly developed than our own work in the field. In reality, the scientist in charge of the program has admitted that it was little more than a toy. The satellite had only few bells and whistles. The point of sending it to space was not to establish a working satellite in orbit. Instead, the point was to be the first to make it happen. Sputnik was developed in less than three months and was sent into space two days early to ensure that the Russians won the race.
Sputnik spurred scientific discovery and development that has led to the creation of the International Space Station, the Space Shuttle, and the new rockets slated to return to the moon and then eventually they want to take it to Mars. Out of that development came so many wonderful things that many of us can’t imagine living without. It all came out of a 184-pound ball of metal that was shot into space in a refurbished missile. It had no real value, and many people today are shocked to discover how little value it really had. Yet, that humble satellite helped bring about incredible change.
In today’s lesson from Luke, the disciples asked for greater faith. They were shocked and disheartened by Jesus’ comments that preceded the request. He told them that they should forgive seventy times seven times. We demand true repentance from those who have hurt us, and it is hard to trust someone when they have repeated the sins over and over again. It is hard enough to forgive someone once or twice, but Jesus expected His disciples to keep on forgiving. How can we do that if we do not trust them? So, the disciples asked Jesus to increase their faith. The problem is that they wanted Jesus to increase the faith they had in people, but people will never be trustworthy. All it really takes to move mountains is to have a little bit of faith in the only one who is trustworthy: God.
So, Jesus reminded the disciples of their position in this relationship. He tells us that we are no better than slaves; we have done only as much as is expected of us. We aren’t of more value because we do good things. We aren’t better because we can forgive someone four hundred and ninety times. We aren’t more righteous. We aren’t better Christians. We are only doing what God expects of us. Jesus is our example, and He calls us to follow Him. He established in Jesus the forgiveness we are expected to give. We might ask God, “How long,” wondering if God will truly turn the person who continues to hurt us to repentance, of if He will ever respond to the injustice against us. We are reminded that God is faithful in His way and in His time. The true answer to our prayer and our ability to forgive as we are commanded is answered in the life, death, and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Jesus gave the Kingdom to the disciples who gave the kingdom to the early Christians who gave the kingdom to the subsequent generations. He is the source of forgiveness. He is the foundation of forgiveness. Everything we give comes from Him. He lived like a servant, doing what He was sent to do. We can only follow the Master. As we share the Kingdom, and the forgiveness that comes from it, does not make us more valuable. Like Sputnik, we have no real value. However, the forgiveness we share, like the forgiveness that has been shared with us, will bring great things to future generations, all thanks to the humble servanthood of Jesus Christ, who came first to bring God’s grace to the world.
In a sermon about today’s Gospel lesson, St. Augustine said, “We must believe, then, in order to pray; and we must ask God that the faith enabling us to pray may not fail. Faith gives rise to prayer, and this prayer obtains an increase of faith. Faith, I say, gives rise to prayer, and is in turn strengthened by prayer... Mark the apostles: they would never have left everything they possessed and spurned worldly ambition to follow the Lord unless their faith had been great; and yet that faith of theirs could not have been perfect, otherwise they would not have asked the Lord to increase it.”
Jesus said, “If you had faith like a grain of mustard seed, you would tell this sycamore tree, ‘Be uprooted, and be planted in the sea’ and it would obey you.” What is the object of faith in this verse? Is it the sycamore tree? Is it the person having faith? No, the object of our faith is God. If we have faith in God the size of a mustard seed, we will see amazing things happen. With faith in God, we will trust that He knows the whole story, and then we can continue to forgive. Faith means giving God control. It means even giving God control over those things that have harmed us, even if it seems like God is not doing anything to make things right. We ask, “How long?” but faith waits.
Talk about moving mountains! The point of this passage is not that you only need a little faith to do the miraculous. We are quick to assume that if we can’t make a sycamore tree leap into the ocean that we do not have enough faith. However, faith is not something that can be measured. Nothing we do is enough. We, like the disciples, can only say, “We are unworthy servants. We have done our duty.”
One of the most blatant examples of recurring sin has to do with the language we use. Oh, I don’t know if bad words are really harmful to others, but there are definitely words that are bothersome. Curse words are just words, but what about when we cry “God damn you.” What does that do to the listener? We know that God will not damn someone based on our out-of-control tongue, but does the listener know that? Does the listener brush it off as being a meaningless comment? Does our bad habit of damning everything that upsets us glorify God?
It doesn’t take long for those words to become constants in our vocabulary. Most of us have heard comedians or internet “influencers” who can’t tell a story without using the “f” word. It might have began as part of their shtick, but it quickly becomes part of their character. It does nothing for the stories or jokes, but it does cause me to change the channel or turn off the video. In our day, most people see that word as acceptable, even cool, so it becomes part of their vocabulary, too. You can hear it spoken on street corners in conversations that make no sense because the “verbal pause” of that word has no purpose. It is not edifying, and it causes many who need to hear a good word to turn us off.
We all have habitual language that we use, words or sounds that automatically enter our conversation, and they aren’t really harmful. The point is that it is easy for us to get into habits that are hard to break, and some of those habits are truly harmful to others. What driving habits are dangerous? What lies have become a daily part of our lives? What habitual use of foods or drinks or other substances affects our family and neighbors? It is easy to get caught up in habits that seem insignificant that become overwhelmingly difficult to overcome.
Thank goodness Jesus commands us to forgive repeatedly, or we would destroy every relationship with our bad habits. I cringe when I hear bad language, and I want to leave the room. I’d rather not be with the person who uses it. Families fall apart because someone is excessive at work or play. Little white lies become natural part of our conversations but create distrust between people. In most cases it is easy to forgive one another of these little things, probably because we know we are guilty, too.
The bigger things are more difficult to forgive. How often can we forgive someone who hurts us? How many times can we forgive the person who leads us down a dangerous path? How often should we forgive the neighbor who takes what is not theirs or does what makes life more difficult for us? Do we really have to forgive the co-worker who has lied to get another promotion over us? Do we really have to forgive the violent person that killed another innocent person?
God calls us to forgive, but it is not a blind forgiveness that ignores the reality of sin. His Word brings light to reveal our mistakes, our errors, our sins. His Law is a mirror that reflects that we are sinners in need of a Savior, we make mistakes that need to be rectified, and we have habits that need to be overcome. God calls us to help one another become the people He calls us to be, and we do so by revealing to one another our failures, calling one another to repentance and forgiving one another when we do. Remember, we are not only called to forgive our neighbors, but they are also called to forgive us. Together we will overcome those habits that do not glorify God.
I don’t blame the apostles for asking Jesus to help them do it. “Increase our faith,” they asked. I don’t like to call out my neighbors on those things that disturb me, because so much of it seems so unimportant; it doesn’t cause me any lasting physical, mental, emotional or spiritual harm, right? We just brush it off, but as the behavior continues, over and over again, we lose control of our emotions and find the little things become big. That’s when relationships die and when we do the things that are more obviously against God’s will.
And how do you go on forgiving and forgiving the same things? How do you forgive anything seventy times seven times? Really? At what point do we think that repentant words no longer repentance? At what point do we stop trying to help one another overcome those habits that do not glorify God? Perhaps the better question to ask, however, is how many times do we want our neighbors to forgive the habits that we are having trouble overcoming?
Jesus tells the apostles that this is an expectation of those who have been forgiven. After all, God has forgiven us all our sins. Jesus died to make things right between our Father and His children. He has forgiven, and forgiven, and forgiven even though we continue to sin against Him. He forgives us our trespasses even as we forgive those who trespass against us. This we do not forgive others to earn our forgiveness; we forgive because it is our duty.
Ah, there is yet another word that bothers us: duty. We think of duty as it is defined in today’s language, “An act or a course of action that is required of one by position, social custom, law, or religion.” Those of us who understand our inability to live up to the Law cringe at the idea that God requires anything of us. But what it means in the Greek is more subtle. We are bound by God’s forgiveness to forgive. We are obliged by God’s grace to be gracious. That’s our duty, and in the end, we do not deserve a seat at the table in heaven for doing what we owe to God for His mercy.
What God knows and we often forget is that people are simply not trustworthy: we will, until the day we die, fail to live up to anyone’s expectations. We can try. We can work through our failings and overcome our habits, but we will fall again. And again. And again. That doesn’t mean that we should not trust. Talk about moving mountains! What matters is that God is trustworthy, and He has forgiven us seventy times seven times and more for failing to live up to His expectations.
Paul’s second letter to Timothy was written during a time when there was great persecution in the Church, most likely under the emperor Nero. Paul had been arrested again, but this time was not like before. Instead of living in a borrowed place under house arrest, Paul was being kept in a damp, dark dungeon. He was near the end of his life, and he knew it. He was concerned for his friend and for the Church. Heresy grows more quickly under persecution as people find justification and excuse for new ideas to spare believers of risk. Heresy often tries to meld together ideas from other religions to make them more acceptable to the non-believers.
Timothy learned about faith from his mother and grandmother. They brought him up in a Christian home, but the lessons learned as a child are often difficult to uphold as we get older. This is especially true in a time of persecution. The life of faith can dwindle under a burden of fear. We can fall for the heresies when we are vulnerable because they sound good to our ears even though they do not stand up to God’s word. This is why Paul encouraged Timothy and reminded him of the faith which he was given, a faith built on Christ. Following other teachings might sound good; they might even seem to be less risky and better than the sound teaching given to us by our forefathers. But like Chicken Little and her friends, the shortcut might just bring us to destruction. So, too, heresy leads us away from God’s grace, away from the treasure which we have been given. There is no need to fear the persecution that might come because God’s grace gives us a spirit of power and love and self-discipline.
The psalm begins with a confession of faith: “My soul rests in God alone. My salvation is from him.” It may seem as if God is not answering our prayers, and we lament in what we see around us. “How long, O Lord?” we ask. Yet faith means trusting that God is already at work, answering our prayers even before we cry out to Him.
The Psalm ends, “Surely you will reward each person according to what he has done.” This sounds like great news until we begin to think about what we have done. Have we earned our place at the Master’s table? Have we done more than the work He has called us to do? Have we shared His Gospel message of forgiveness with the world? Have we forgiven seven times seventy times? If we are honest with ourselves, the answer is “No.” We don’t deserve that place at the table. The Good News is this: we don’t have to earn it; Jesus has already done all that is necessary for us to sit with Him. He has not only made us a guest in His house, but He has made us His brothers and sisters. We are no longer strangers or foreigners, but children of God.
Our passages this week have faithful men crying out to God, “How long, O Lord?” and “Increase our faith!” How many times have you doubted your ability to accomplish the work God has sent you to do? We are reminded in this week’s lessons that we do not know the whole story. We cannot see what God has in store for us or for the world. We can only go forth in trust and hope knowing that God is faithful. When we cry out “How long?” or “Increase our faith” we do so from the humble position of being a slave to Christ.
Habakkuk needed encouragement. It didn’t come as he expected or hoped, but by the end of the conversation with God, he knew that God was at work among his people. In the end everything would be made right. The psalmist sought encouragement for God’s people suffering under the hands of their oppressors. Paul wrote Timothy to remind him to stay on course and do what he’d been taught to do. The disciples needed Jesus to increase their faith. God provides us all we need, if only we are willing to listen to what He has to say.
We may face persecution, heresy, and other problems that will take perseverance and trust. Our strength is not in our ability to make anything happen, but in God’s grace. As we take on the world in which we live, sharing God’s love, mercy, and forgiveness with all we won’t necessarily know where it is leading. However, God is faithful, and He knows the purpose for which we have been sent. It is to continue doing the work of Christ in this world, bringing restoration and peace with the Gospel, sharing faith and planting God’s love.
We are called to holy service, sharing the love and forgiveness of Christ with the world. The news we have may be rejected, but it is Good News worth sharing despite the risks. Most people don’t want to hear that they should forgive others. We would rather know that our enemies will suffer for their sin. We forget that we are sinners, too, in need of the love and mercy of God. But we are given God’s grace through Jesus Christ so that we will experience His forgiveness and boldly proclaim that God will make everything right, even when it seems impossible.
Ultimately Habakkuk believed God; he prayed for God to demonstrate His wrath and mercy and then confessed his faith. He rejoiced in the God of his salvation. We can join the psalmist in our cries for God’s encouragement as we face the difficulties of the world, but we are called to always remember that God is already at work and He is faithful. We have faith that leads us to prayer and prayer strengthens our faith. Our faith will never be perfect, but God has promised that He’s already at work establishing justice with mercy and forgiveness. He will make all things right despite the smallness of our faith, despite our doubts and fears and frustrations. He alone is our rock and our salvation. He is the rock of our strength. He is our refuge, and He is faithful.
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