“Then the prophet Miriam, Aaron’s sister, took a tambourine in her hand;
and all the women went out after her with tambourines and with dancing.
And Miriam sang to them: Sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously;
horse and rider he has thrown into the sea.”
(NRSV EX 15:20-21)
This is a moment of unbridled joy for Miriam. She had a life changing event that could not keep her from dancing in full and total abandonment. I like to call these “joy” attacks. I had them a few times in my youth, when life was wonderful, and I just had to jump and run and dance around the house and backyard singing, before I sat down to do my algebra homework. Those moments were sometime conditional on something going right in my life, but they were also just sparked by inner joie de vivre for no apparent outward reason. They are “dance as if no one is looking” moments that affirmed my life.
The passage occurs after Moses sings a song of praise to God for delivering this band of Jewish slaves he was leading out of captivity in Egypt across the Red Sea and to freedom. It was in the Red Sea that the people claiming to belong to the God of Abraham witnessed where Pharaoh’s soldiers, chariots and horses drowned by a miraculous intervention. Moses spends 15 verses in Exodus extoling the Glory of God for this act of salvation. He also squarely put the blame for these drownings on the God he worshiped. That is something which repels some people and speaks to the need for apologetics: the discipline of explaining in reasoned arguments or writing the justification for a theory or religious doctrine. I would like to share my perspective on two items this passage brings up.
First, Miriam had a life changing event! Let’s not forget this. She was Aaron’s sister and had some access to the spiritual aspects of the inner circle of Moses and Aaron. She witnessed the plagues. She witnessed God’s deliverance in the Passover, and she was probably intimately involved in prayers for the deliverance of herself, her sisters, children, cousins and family and her people in general. She watched Paraoh’s refusal to believe all the warnings he was given. In this Patriarchal society it is amazing beyond belief that they recorded her song (even if only in 2 verses) and her role in leading all the women who sang with unbridled joy at not only their deliverance to dry land on the other side but also the total destruction of their oppressor’s military. She is called a prophet in the passage and that is an authoritative religious role rarely attributed to women in Old Testament times. She has seen it all and this deliverance to her is the proof of God’s faithfulness to her and her people. Proof of faith is always going to be life changing!
Second, in our 21st Century lives of faith, we sometimes downplay the role of God’s wrath. I have also had “woe is me” moments where I realize how badly I have messed things up. I know that my thoughts, words, and deeds are not usually 100% pleasing to God. I recognize my potential to sin every day. We forget just who God is if we don’t understand how abhorrent sin is to God. Sure, we are all trying our best to make a way in this world. We all may measure success differently. God has always requested (not demanded) our obedience, however that has been for our own good. It’s kinda the way things were created to exist. God doesn’t need us. The Triune God probably has plenty of meaningful relationship within itself. The funny thing is that God wants to relate to us but giving us the choice also required that we have sin as a consequence in our lives. Sin is something God does not and will not tolerate because God is holy, holy, holy. Holy means separate from evil (sin). This may seem like a no-win situation that God has set up and possibly set us up to fail. The good news (literally) is that God has the solution!
The crucifixion and resurrection are meant to be your life changing faith events! This solution, chosen by God, as the crossroads of wrath and grace gives you direct access to God through faith in Jesus- God’s Messiah. In this work of Jesus, God fulfilled all the prophets’ promises and provides a mediator to direct relationship with God. God sees each and every one of us through the lens of Jesus who lives eternally within the Trinity. An empty tomb was an unexpected miracle. No one drowned, yet God provided a way for us to be in relationship. We come to the baptismal font to drown the power of sin in our lives with God’s promise. The disciples struggled with an empty tomb until He appeared to them several times before He ascended. It’s all about God. Not about us. In the Small Catechism Luther gives a simple and powerful explanation to the First Commandment: “We should fear, love and trust in God above all things.” There will always be an aspect of awe when considering the topic of God. And there is forever the concept of God’s grace being sufficient in our lives and in our relationship with God. The empty tomb is once again God’s open invitation to come closer.
Like Miriam, we have access to information about God’s faithful events on earth. She had Moses, Aaron, plagues, the Passover and the escape through the Red Sea. We have the New Testament that shares stories about Jesus’ teaching, healings, miracles, parables about the Kingdom of God, and his death, resurrection, ascension, and the promise that He will return. We also have the Holy Spirit as a guide. Sometimes we don’t have eyes to see or ears to hear it all, yet on Easter we celebrate what it means and maybe what it could mean if everyone on earth was living in obedience to the Triune God. Today we need to remember that God can take and give. Don’t blame God for being God. Wrath is real and so is Grace. We live in the reality that both exist holding the tension until Jesus comes again. We still have the choice before us each day. I choose to devote time and attention to God. God’s work in the resurrection is worthy of my attention and worship. An empty tomb does mean something for human existence. This has only happened once, for all! So, I hope you also think God deserves some attention. Sunday is a good day to worship. You don’t really need to bring a tambourine. All God wants is you.
For your consideration:
Please choose at least one to consider more deeply or do:
1. There is a petition in most worship books that states, “Lord, shield the joyful..” It is a prayer for protection for those who are having a “joy attack”. This suggests that such attacks are over the top and hard to watch. Have you ever had an honest “joy attack” that risked making you look like a fool to others?
2. Is there one significant event in your life that like Miriam was life changing? What was it and how does it inform your witness of faith to others?
3. How do you understand God’s wrath? How do you feel God’s wrath? Do Lutherans put too much emphasis on Grace?
4. Share this blog with someone who might be struggling with the issue of God’s wrath.
5. Have you ever experienced dance as part of worship? Do you think we should start doing that?
6. Pray for the Holy Spirit to shower world leaders with the desire to achieve peace for Ukraine and an end to war.