The Anti-Hot-Take Gospel

A sermon on Matthew 17:1-9.

[for an audio recording of this sermon, click here. Photo by Nick Fewings on Unsplash.]

So, I have a couple of questions today.

First, I’m wondering how many of you watched the Superbowl, at least in part that week?

Ok, what about the halftime show?

The next question is a little bit different: is there anyone who has NOT, in the last 7 days, heard any “hot-takes” on the super-bowl halftime show?

There have been a lot, right?

I think probably the ones I’ve encountered the most are about whether or not it is a problem that virtually the whole show was in Spanish.

With a subset of those takes about what the lyrics actually meant in English, and whether they were appropriate.

There’s also been the common reactions we get from every halftime show about the outfits and dancing styles.

And also some chatter about the inclusion of flags from all of the countries in the Americas

To clarify. I don’t classify all comments on the show as “hot-takes.” I saw a number of posts from members of this congregation that invited thoughtful reflection and conversations, or that shared posts from Puerto Rican sources offering in-depth cultural context to understand the imagery and references in the show.

Those kinds of responses are not hot-takes. They foster the kind of discussion that deepens engagement.

By hot-takes I mean the kind of reactionary position-taking (either for or against a given moment in popular culture) that invites snap-judgement or knee-jerk reactions. 

Rather than creating space to learn and explore, they urge immediate response.

And in doing so, they tend to spark antagonism and debate…

And thus often, unhelpfully, distract for the focal point or issue.

In the case of the Superbowl half time show, for example, the fact that there was a massive jumbotron message written in English near the end suggests that this was the message everyone was meant to take from the show:

“The only thing more powerful than hate is love.”

I so wish that THIS message is what everyone was talking about this week.

We could dig into that message in really fruitful ways.

Talk about the different ways that power can operate, and the ways that love really does have power to push back and even overcome the work and mindset of hate.

What is more, this is a message deeply consistent with the gospel of Jesus Christ, which is why it is now on our church sign.

Speaking of the gospel, I have one more question for you: Did anyone notice the hot take in today’s gospel reading?

It might not technically meet all of the characteristics of a hot-take that I just laid out, but there was a moment marked by a quick, non-deliberated reaction to the unfolding event that was rather a distraction from what God was trying to do.

Any guesses now?

You gotta love Peter, right?

I certainly do, because I know I am a lot like him.

I have worked over the course of decades to nurture my capacity to pause, and deliberate, and listen before responding to potentially evocative moments.

But I still know that when I feel overwhelmed or uncertain in an unexpected situation it makes me anxious, and my go-to response to anxiety is to try assert some control, ideally involving a task I can undertake.

Like, you know, witnessing the sudden apparition of two long-dead prophets alongside your teacher and blurting out the GREAT insight that your presence in that moment is crucial to what is happening, because you have solid construction skills to build everyone their own little house on the mountain top.

Of course, God knows how to handle a distracting hot-take.

The voice from heaven doesn’t even let Peter finish what he is saying.

The cloud descends, the voice speaks, and gets everything back on track by saying two things that get everything re-focused on what is actually happening.

First, “This is my Son, the Beloved: with him I am well pleased.”

Which I interpret to mean: Jesus and I are in this together and we have everything handled just fine – you really don’t need to take over right now.”

And second, “LISTEN to him.”

That part doesn’t need any interpretation.

But it is helpful to obey the command and actually listen to what Jesus says in the rest of the reading.  

I think the first words out of his mouth need to be pictured as much as heard:

The disciples have fallen to the ground in response to God’s voice from the cloud… because that’s scary!

So, Jesus moves over to them and touches them, offering the reassurance of his presence and his care, before he tells them to “get up.”

Just like a parent who gather’s a child close in comfort before telling them, “you’re OK. You can do this.”

Jesus knows they are feeling vulnerable, so he reassures them that they don’t need to hold a defensive position. They can get up. He is with them.

He follows this up by telling them “do not be afraid,” which is a biblical command that I sometimes take issue with…because telling someone to “not be afraid” almost never actually works. People are usually scared for a reason.

But in this case, Jesus has already offered them presence and reassurance to address their fear.

And he knows that fear really is the root of the problem they are dealing with.

Peter volunteered his tent-building scheme because he was anxious.

Because hot-takes are usually about feeling unsettled and wanting to impose a simple explanation that makes us feel like we have a handle on things and know where we stand.

And Jesus doesn’t want his disciples to acting out of anxiety and fear. He wants them centered, and listening, so that they can be his witnesses.

That’s the third thing he tells them.

At first glance it might seems like he’s saying the opposite: “Tell no one about the vision…”

But we need to keep listening. The injunction on witnessing is only “until the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.”

Until the revelation has been completed.

Until they have the context to understand what they have just witnessed.

Until they have the whole story.

Jesus wants his followers with him on that mountain because he wants them as witnesses,

But that does not mean their instincts will always be right on how to go about telling his story, so they need to wait.

They need to lean into the comfort of his presence, and trust him enough to let go of their fears.

And they need to keep listening until they are clear on what they are actually called to say in their witness.

Because witnessing is as much, if not more, about listening than it is about speaking.

That caution is, I think, at least as important for us as it is for Peter, James, and John.

In our hot-take culture we can feel so much pressure to have an immediate position on everything we encounter.

Constant overwhelm, and the 24-hour news cycle, and a seemingly intentional shock and awe campaign from powerful people to silence us by drowning us in a constant flow of issues to react to.

It can feel like we either need to concede to the silencing or else yell, immediately and loudly, about everything!

But when we feel that pressure, I think today’s gospel offers us a helpful corrective – an image and teaching on which to meditate.

We can image Jesus drawing near to us, to touch us gently with reassurance.

Saying, “you don’t have to cover, you can get up. You can face this.”

“And you don’t have to be driven by fear.”

“You have the revelation of who I am, but you don’t have to turn it into a hot take.

Instead, take some time.

Make sure you are clear on what my teaching really is.

Ground yourself in my whole story, not just a moment or a proof text.

Listen to me. And then speak. You are my witnesses.”

Thanks be to God.