Reflection: Guaranteed Greatness (September 23, 2012)

The 17th Sunday after Pentecost
Jeremiah 11:18-20; James 3:13-4:10; Mark 9:30-37

Watch any world class sporting event and you’re bound to see athletes who have achieved greatness — and many more aspiring to greatness. Even at the highest levels of competition, most of the athletes participating will fade into obscurity. Despite their natural talent, whole-hearted dedication, and lifetimes of training, nothing guarantees even the best athletes that they will be great — let alone the greatest — in their sport or event. Imagine what would happen if a coach came along who could honestly guarantee an athlete greatness. How much money could he or she demand? How many athletes would be contending with one another to have this person as their trainer? How inspired and motivated would those fortunate enough to be under this coach’s leadership be? What would people be willing to do for guaranteed greatness?

 

Of course, no one can guarantee greatness in the world of sports. In fact, no one can guarantee greatness in business, academics, science, medicine, or any other sphere of human activity. But there is one exception to this rule. There is one person who can guarantee greatness. However, the greatness that this person guarantees isn’t a greatness that most people want. It’s not becoming a superstar in sports or a Nobel laureate or a wealthy business person. But it’s a greatness that will long outlast and far outweigh any worldly greatness.

Jesus guarantees greatness. So, why aren’t people flocking to Jesus as they would a coach who could guarantee them greatness in sports? Why aren’t people competing to be under His leadership? Why are so many of His followers unmotivated and uninspired when it comes to following His way to certain greatness. It’s because Jesus doesn’t guarantee the greatness that we want. Instead, He offers us a greatness that contradicts earthly greatness. Even less appealing to us is the way to this greatness: “If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all.” Spiritual greatness through self-sacrifice, humility, and serving others may not be the greatness that we desire, but it is the greatness that is guaranteed by Jesus, who served us in humility and offered Himself as the sacrifice for our sins to free us from death and make us great in His Kingdom.

Audio file of the sermon "Guaranteed Greatness."

Journal: A Dubious Scrap of Papyrus vs. the Bible

How can one make an unauthenticated 1 1/2 by 3 inch scrap of papyrus with no context capture the attention of academia, the media, and millions of people?  Make sure that it has a sensational claim.  Not to disappoint, the latest emergence from the innumerable fragments of papyri includes one of the most sensational musings about Jesus -- one that has been the stuff of lore for centuries and made Dan Brown a wealthy man: Jesus was married.

Never mind that the fragment is a Coptic work (which means it is not an original source of information about Jesus), is supposedly from the 4th Century (which means it was written or translated hundreds of years after the New Testament's eyewitness accounts of Jesus' life), and that it has no provenance (which means it cannot be authenticated as a reliable historical document), people all over the world are already pointing to it as proving or disproving their views of Jesus -- views which are based on any of number of sources, from what the church has taught them to what they've consumed as entertainment.  Every source, it seems, expect for reading and studying the Bible.

It's disheartening to realize that many people have spent more time reading articles, watching reports, and listening to interviews about this fragment than they have read, studied, or listened to the Bible.  With the most accurate, best authenticated, and verified authoritative accounts of the life, teachings, and works of Jesus completely accessible and available, why do people insist on ignoring the rich feast of the Bible and chasing after the scraps that occasionally rise up from the waste heaps of secular history?

Long known by any credible scholar, theologian, or pastor, the plethora of extra-biblical writings that capture so many people's attention today were originated as attempts to draw people away from the Bible and into false teachings that rob them of the hope, joy, and peace of Jesus.  How is it that these thoroughly debunked writings have proven to be so effective in carrying out their intended purpose in our culture? Simply stated, when it comes to the Bible we are as a people ignorant and illiterate.

Unfortunately, our biblical ignorance and illiteracy is as much a problem among confessing Christians as it is in our culture.  This is evident when things like this Coptic fragment surface and by the way that Christians respond to them.  Some attack the news defensively, as though their own faith is on the line.  Some make simplistic assertions about relying on the Bible even though it's evident that they are not sure how the Bible speaks to the issue at hand.  Some - a seemingly increasing number - are just as intrigued and swayed by the "discovery" as non-Christians are.  Few speak to the issue as informed defenders of the Bible.

The advent of this Coptic fragment is a wake up call for Christians who have neglected God's Word.  The desperate need for a reliable foundation of truth in our postmodern world calls for us to be well versed in, equipped by, and articulate with the Bible.  After all, if we can't speak to the predicable and well-worn issues raised by this fragment, how will we be able to answer the greater needs of those who are perishing because all they know of Christ is the latest sensational counterargument enjoying its fifteen minutes in our culture's limelight?

Reflection: The Tell Tale Tongue (September 16, 2012)

The 16th Sunday After Pentecost
Isaiah 50:4-10; James 3:1-10; Mark 9:14-29

In Edgar Allen Poe’s classic short story “The Tell Tale Heart,” a man commits the perfect murder only to give himself up to the authorities and confess his crime. Why? Because he could hear the heart beat of his victim and it drove him to reveal his crime. While Poe’s story is fictional, it gets close to the point of James 3:1-10 which tells us about a part of our body that reveals our inner sins and exposes our evil thoughts. But rather than the heart, which can be hidden away, James identifies it as the tongue. Through our words we show people our true motives and intents. Even when we watch what we say, we each have a tell tale tongue.

 

Actually, a tell tale tongue can go either way. James focuses on the tongue revealing the evil in us, but Isaiah speaks of “an instructed tongue” that brings God’s Word of hope to people. But the Gospel lesson has the most interesting example of how what is inside of us often comes out through a slip of the tongue — words that we say that we didn’t necessarily think through before speaking them. It happened when a man was seeking relief for his demon possessed son. After Jesus’ disciples tried and failed to heal the boy, the man approached Jesus. His tell tale tongue showed the doubts and weakness that he didn’t dare speak plainly — maybe didn’t even realize were in him. “If you can …” the man said to Jesus, who pounced upon the words to the man’s surprise and horror. His tell tale tongue had given voice to his doubts.

Whether its our weaknesses or our bold sins, when our tongues pour out our doubts, evil thoughts, malicious feelings, etc. they paint an ugly picture of what’s inside of us. Only when we see this are we able to lament our horrible and helpless condition and call out to Jesus to do what no one else can do: deliver us. With the desperate father of the demon possessed boy, we cry out to Jesus, “I do believe. Help me in my unbelief.” Though seemingly nonsensical, this statement captures the conflict in our own hearts — the conflict stemming from what “should not be” but is. “Help me in my unbelief” turns us to our only source of hope and help. It, above everything else that we say, captures what we are like spiritually. It is the bold, confused, and hopeful confession of the tell tale tongue of one whose heart belongs to Jesus.

Audio file of the sermon "The Tell Tale Heart"

Reflection: Not Keeping Jesus a Secret (September 9, 2012)

The 15th Sunday after Pentecost
Isaiah 35:4-7a; James 2:1-10, 14-18; Mark 7:24-37

We might think that the Bible doesn't say that Jesus couldn’t do something, but today’s Gospel lesson says just that. After arriving in the village of Tyre, Jesus entered a house and tried to keep people from knowing that He was there, but “He could not keep His presence secret.” (Mark 7:24). It’s no surprise that Jesus was unable to move about secretly. He was very popular and people were seeking Him out. News of His teachings and healings were bringing people to Him from all over Galilee. Looking for rest, He journeyed to the Gentile territory of Phoenicia, but even there people had heard about Him. One of them, a woman whose daughter was possessed by a demon, showed her faith in Jesus by coming to Him and seeking His help. She was glad that Jesus couldn't keep His presence a secret.

Why do we try to do what Jesus was unable to do while He was in Tyre: keep His presence a secret? Although He has done even greater things for us than He did for the Syro-Phoenician woman, we hide Jesus in our lives and keep people from knowing Him. We have our reasons for being so quiet about Jesus, but in one way or another they all boil down to us being afraid. Whether we are afraid of being criticized, dismissed, ridiculed, or rejected, or if we face the unlikelihood of serious persecution and are afraid of bodily harm or death, fear drives us to keep Jesus a secret.

The book of James challenges us to confront our fears when it declares that “faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.” (James 2:17) God’s Word makes it clear that hiding faith (and, in turn, hiding Jesus) is not possible for us. Genuine faith in Jesus cannot be hidden by us any more than He could keep His presence a secret in Tyre. It’s true that fear always works and tempts us to hide our faith and hide our Savior, so God encourages us to set aside our fears and He promises us the strength of His presence. “Say to those with fearful hearts, ‘Be strong, do not fear; your God will come … He will save you.” (Isaiah 35:4) He has come. He has saved you. He does not keep His presence a secret, but shows Himself to you in many ways to ease your fears and give you the confidence to share, not hide, Jesus in your life — and to rejoice with those who are glad that we’re not keeping Jesus a secret.

Gracious Father, we rejoice that You did not keep hidden Your love for us, but while we were still Law breakers estranged from You and destined to eternal condemnation, You showed Your heart to us by sending Your Son into our world.  In His life You satisfied the righteous demands of Your holy Law.  Though His death, You revealed the full extent of Your love for us and rescued us by Your grace.  Grant us the courage, strength and faith to live our lives in ways that clearly reveal that Christ lives in us and we in Him so that others may also come to know Your love and grace.  Amen.

Audio file of the sermon "Not Keeping Jesus a Secret"

Reflection: Showing What's Inside (September 2, 2012)

The 14th Sunday after Pentecost
Deuteronomy 4:1-2, 6-9; Ephesians 6:10-20; Mark 7:14-23

From gift-wrapped presents to hidden game show prizes, we’re often eager to find out what’s inside of something. In much the same way, we may find ourselves wondering what’s inside of another person. We know that what’s inside of a person is far more important than what’s outside of him, like the contents of a box rather than its wrappings. But, unlike a gift-wrapped box, we can’t open a person up and look inside of him. External appearances can be deceiving, so how can we know what’s inside of a person?

After confronting the Pharisees over their traditions about what made a person clean or unclean, Jesus explained to His disciples how to know what’s inside of a person. He told them not to rely on external things like the rules and practices of the Pharisees, but to pay attention to what comes out of a person through their words and actions. What comes out of a person, whether good or bad, shows us what is inside of a person.

We understand what Jesus was talking about. When we observe people’s actions, listen to what they say, and watch how they live their lives we get a pretty good idea of what is inside of them. But we also know that people can act and speak in one way and actually be another way. Hypocrisy is widely practiced in our world and is widely accepted by people. It’s not uncommon for people to put on appearances, be careful with their words, and hide their true selves in order to project an image of themselves that they want other people to have. How can we really know what’s inside of someone?

Jesus knows what is inside of each person and He knows what is inside of every person. While it varies by the individual, each and every one of us is filled with sin. Look around and you’ll quickly see many ways in which the sin that is in us shows itself in our lives. The sins that Jesus cites in Mark 7:21-22 are just as prevalent among us as they were among the people of His time. He knows what is inside of us and deals with it by showing what is inside of Him. The love, grace, and mercy that we need is shown to us by Him in the vividness of the Cross, where what is inside of us is put to death and what is inside of Him comes to life inside of us and shown in how we live in response to His love.

Audio file of the sermon "Showing What's Inside"