Cheap Faith

Rev. Mary Kay Sauter

August 3, 2025

Text: Luke 10:1-11

Faith is simple and it is complex. Faith, in part, is about trust. When I surprised myself by going back to school in 1979 to work toward an MBA, I suggested to Orv that we could save money if he cut my hair. He agreed. One evening I sat on a stool in the middle of the bathroom while he gathered comb, scissors and prepared to cut my hair. He raised his arms, poised, ready to cut and then said, “Now what do I do?” He’d grown up in a home where his dad cut their hair, so I figured he knew. I had this moment of absolute panic, picturing myself with a shaved head and then just as quickly I thought about Orv and our relationship. He is precise, thorough, and careful. And he loves me. I knew he would do nothing that would hurt me even in giving me a fine “do.” I gave a few suggestions, and he began. And he did a beautiful job. Several women even inquired as to where I got my hair cut. I miss those hair cutting sessions.

As I sat there, I realized that I was experiencing faith. I had faith in Orv and his love and care for me. Now, if I could believe in Orv enough to trust him, a human being with human strengths and weaknesses, then why couldn’t I place the same kind of trust, the same kind of faith in God who loves me. (God is a word I use for something that is more than we are, something spiritual.) I believe God loves all of us with a love that is beyond human understanding. Doesn’t God want the very best for all of us as well? And doesn’t God understand every one of us better than we do? And doesn’t God know what the world needs in order for there to be true peace and harmony throughout the world? Yes, yes, yes. It is up to us to be open to God’s influence in our lives because I don’t believe God controls us. As we are open, as we place our faith in God’s love for us and hear and answer God’s call to ministry in everything we do, we can make a difference.

I was reminded the other day about the story of the man of great faith who got caught on his roof in a flood. He knew God would take care of him. As the water rose, first rescuers in a boat came by and he refused help, knowing that God would save him. Another boat came by and finally a helicopter because the water was getting so rough and high and was continuing to rise and each time he refused, knowing that God would save him. Not too much later he was face-to-face with God complaining: “God, I trusted you, I believed that you would save me, why did you let me drown?” God said to the man, “I do love you, and that’s why I came by for you three times, but you refused me every time.”

As we place our trust in God, we then open our hearts and minds to hear the voice of God around us. Through the voice of a child, we hear hope. Through the voice of a dear friend, we hear comfort and challenge. Through the voices of family, we hear love and compassion. Our leadership, along with JT, during this interim time, are challenging us to be open to God’s influence, listen with each other and seek God’s wisdom as we look to shape a new future for this amazing faith community, Plymouth Congregational Church. Our voices speak words of challenge and hope. Our presence gives comfort and compassion. The voice we hear, the presence we experience is God. This openness to God is about faith, believing in God and then putting that faith into action in all our relationships, in all our actions, in all our living.

Jesus did that. We don’t know who the 70 were. Seventy—I thought for most of my life there were only 12. Actually, there were probably more than the 70. He sent them out. He said, if you have faith, then YOU put that faith into action and YOU go out into the world and share the good news of God’s love with others. Through you, God will work—God will speak to those who need healing, need challenges, need a relationship with God. And they listened to him, because they had faith in him, they heard God’s voice through him and were willing to put their faith into action.

Jesus gave them clear instructions, “Don’t take anything with you, no baggage, nothing that will burden you and get in your way of doing ministry. Baggage we’re carrying can get in our way of putting our faith in God. Or too often we think answering God’s call in terms of what we must give up instead of what we give or what we will receive. Living our faith means we give without thought of getting back and yet we do get something in return, a closer relationship with God, a sense of meaning, the satisfaction of meeting a challenge, an understanding of community and an awareness that the world is a better place for others.

Jesus told them to stay at the first place they were welcomed. Why? Imagine these folks coming here to Plymouth. They were strangers. Transients. Vagrants. They had “no purse, no bag, no sandals.” Who would take them in? Yes, in many ways we try to welcome all people here at Plymouth, but how about our homes? I am not sure—my home? According to this story, hospitality, if it came, would come from just plain folks. But once the disciples brought healing, preached the good news, and they became celebrities— the rich and famous would open their spare bedrooms. “Don’t go,” says Jesus, “Don’t show by your behavior, that you think more highly of one person than another. Stay where they first offered you hospitality, no matter how humble.” One more piece of advice Jesus gave the 70 was, “If you’re not welcomed, shake the sand from your sandal and move on.” If people cannot or do not want to hear God’s word, don’t waste your time—move on to those who are willing to listen. Put your faith into action, but be practical about it. In their time there was an urgency about this—as we have now, a deep desire for as many people as possible to hear God’s word. What if we had the same sense of urgency? How different would the world be if more people knew about God’s love and grace for them and that it is a free gift for all people regardless of their religion, or the rules or rituals they follow, or no religion.

Cheap faith is about wanting our way no matter the cost to others and rationalizing it as God’s way. Cheap faith says that everything that happens is God’s will, and that gets us off the hook from having any responsibility for our choices. Cheap faith is believing that our nation is God’s Christian nation and therefore, the only country God cares about and the only people of faith God cares about are those who agree with this. That we are to be a Christian nation only. That makes God smaller, when many of us, believe God is more than any one of us can imagine and that God is all about love for the whole of creation. The danger in this cheap faith is believing that God is on our side, as a nation, and therefore, no matter what we do it is what God wants us to do—kicking people out of our country, not letting people from certain countries into our country—truly working to make us a white Christian nation. I find this particularly disturbing when we care more about making millions than we care about people; when we risk polluting large bodies of water with oil so that we can maintain our lifestyle; when we care more about power than justice. When we want to deny our slavery past and its continuing consequences rather than learn about and acknowledge that some of our history is horrendous. God’s love is for all, and our choices as individuals, as a community of faith and as a nation matter. I believe we are people of faith when we choose to help those in need, whether it be the poor who need medical care, and food, people suffering from various environmental disasters, children starving because of needless wars, governments suddenly cutting programs. We are people of faith when we choose to share with others the incredible love and challenge of following in God’s way and care for the hurting people throughout the world. I do not believe God is working so that our nation can prosper alone; God is working for peace and harmony throughout the world. God is working through us as a nation, as communities, as people of faith, as individuals when we are working for peace and harmony as well.

Real faith is about a gut level trust in God’s love and care for all people—all creation; that God truly wants what is best for everyone throughout the world and knows what that is and can bring it about through faithful people. We come together as a community of faith because of our faith in God and a desire to deepen that faith so that we can do more ministry, so that we can be increasingly aware of the power of God’s healing love in our lives and so that we can share that love with each other and together share that incredible love with a hurting world. As Paul said, “to work for the good of all.” Let us live our faith for the sake of the people of the whole world. God needs us, people need us. We already do a lot. The Campus Task Force 2.0 will be coming out soon with its report, and it explores new ways to be involved in our community. During this interim time, we can explore who we want to be as a faithful community. Let’s put our faith in God.