Focus
Sermon
Surviving In A Cordless World
Gospel Sermons For Sundays After Pentecost (Middle Third)
A recent visit to the ophthalmologist became quite an eye-opening experience. Signs and images had been a problem for some time. The thorough exam revealed that the prescription lens, allowing vision at a distance to be improved, needed strengthened. New glasses were ordered. When they arrived I was thrilled. The thrill was short-lived. When I put the glasses on, the clarity of distant vision improved immediately. However, there was a downside. Everything within six feet was a blur. Reading while wearing the new glasses was virtually impossible. In discussing this uncomfortable dilemma with the physician, it became evident the difficulty in this situation was strictly a matter of focus. No longer were my eyes able to focus on objects near and far through lenses designed for one kind of visual need.
The scriptural text also has to do with vision. The text speaks of the kind of focus we must have if we are to remain faithful to the call of God upon our lives. The text describes the position Christ asks us to take if we are to remain true to the mission and ministry of God.
The setting of the lesson finds Jesus passing through Galilee with the disciples. Jesus was trying to travel in a discreet way. He didn't want anyone to know his travel route or his agenda. Jesus was attempting to use this private time to teach his disciples about his pending suffering, death, and resurrection. This wasn't the first time Jesus tried to explain what the call to follow God involved.
In the preceding verses of this particular chapter of Mark, Jesus has been to the mountain top with Peter, James, and John. Through the transfiguration experience, God has given the disciples a portrait of Jesus as the beloved son. That portrait revealed Jesus as the one to whom the disciples and each of us need to listen. Jesus is the one example we must follow as the people of God. Jesus is the one we are to focus on in our faith response to God. Our Lord's purpose and calling to be a servant to all was explained to his followers several times. He had spoken to the disciples before and after the transfiguration. His conversation with them was about God's intention for his life and theirs. Now on the journey to Capernaum, he tries to get his disciples to understand the servant-role of living for God. Jesus is attempting to emphasize that serving God is not about who will be the greatest. However, the disciples didn't get it. As the text reveals, "They did not understand what he was saying and were afraid to ask him" (Mark 9:32).
We, too, often misunderstand Jesus' servant principle. The lens God hopes we all would view life through is not ground or made in a way that allows us to have life both ways. The same optical lens can't be used to correct nearsightedness and farsightedness. Similarly, we can't concentrate on serving others when our efforts and energies are selfishly concentrated on establishing our own greatness.
The problem Jesus had with his first disciples is the problem we are facing today. We, like the disciples, love transfiguration-like events that take us to pedestal heights. We enjoy the special privileges, which often come with power, prestige, and social status. Yet, these special privileges often bring about an attitude of exclusiveness of others instead of the spirit of inclusiveness, which Jesus fostered. This is what led to the disciples' debating and arguing about who among them was the greatest.
Like the disciples, we don't understand Christ's servant principle. Our mind's eye is blurred to Jesus' teaching about his Messiahship. Often our intentions to follow Christ are good. We believe we are faithful, well meaning, and active Christians. We struggle over our Mondays through Fridays, working hard every week. We visit our places of worship seeking to be ministered to but forgetting that we are called to minister to others. We like being served and having our needs catered to and met. Like Jesus' disciples, we cherish most those things that best serve us. However, Christ calls us to a life of service. Duty and responsibility, reality and necessity call us back to the stations of our lives. The benediction and postlude after worship signal that our service for God hasn't ended but is about to begin. When worship concludes, we walk through the church parking lot. We enter our vehicles and direct our cars and our energies back to the real world.
Did you ever notice how we always return to the real world where we are to be a Christ-like presence to others? Yet somewhere between our sanctuary worship and our Sunday lunch the vision of serving God becomes distorted. The clarity of what God wants versus what we want becomes blurred. The joy of tranquil worship settings and spiritual highs begin to fade. The world shows us things and asks us to do things that are not in keeping with the mandate of Jesus Christ. Certainly being a servant is not as exciting as holding positions of popularity, power, social status, and greatness. Being the greatest is much more appealing than being second best.
The choice to abandon the call of God often is made because the call of God requires us to give instead of receive. We abandon the call of God because God's call is often unpopular. Let's be honest: Jesus' agenda is not a fashionable agenda. Living for God requires focus! Our complete focus! We have a God who is clearly focused on us. We have a Lord whose sacrificial love was focused toward us. However, like the disciples, we fail to see this clearly. We are like those persons who put on a new pair of glasses for the first time. We expect everything to be perfectly clear at all distances, but we find our lives terribly out of focus. The ministry and mission of God's kingdom remains blurred only because it is impossible for us to engage in selfish pursuits to achieve greatness and be a servant of Christ at the same time.
In the text Jesus is talking about how serving others requires sacrifice. The disciples, however, are oblivious to his words. They are involved in arguing about their status, their position, and their own levels of greatness. The issue for the disciples is not one of knowing or not knowing what the Lord requires. The Lord has told them. The question wasn't did the disciples believe or not believe? The disciples knew what the Lord required and they deeply believed in God. Like the disciples, we also know what the Lord requires and we also deeply believe in God.
The issue for us isn't an absence of faith or having insignificant amounts of faith. The issue for us is that we choose to ignore the words of Christ who explains what it means to be his servants. More and more we are conforming to a world which emphasizes a "me first" philosophy of life.
Our passion for pursuing personal greatness and achieving positions of social status has become stronger than our passion for serving others and standing firm for social consciousness. We have continually expected to be served by others, instead of following the Christ who, by his own example, shows that we are to be serving others.
Again, focus is the key. Focus is everything. Entering the twenty-first century, as followers of Jesus Christ we must do more than simply state what we believe about God. We must undergo a transformation and accept a new vision as Christ's servant church. Our focus needs to go beyond what others consider greatness to understanding what the word of God defines as greatness. Our focus as Christ's followers must discern God's will, so we can effectively live doing God's will in the new era.
As the opthalmologist adds a lens to correct and give us brighter, clearer vision, Jesus placed a child into the midst of his disciples. Jesus, through the child, demonstrated that the focus of faithful mission and ministry must never be about personal greatness, prestige, power, or selfish pursuits. The focus of faithful mission and ministry must always be about humbleness, innocence, and serving others. What is most important as we enter a new era in our world and in our own lives is: How will we live for God and Christ? The image of the child gives us a sense of new hope. The child illustrates there will be a future. However, God's vision for us and God's vision for others will only become clear when we focus on Christ as Lord. Then and only then, shall we come to understand fully that if we want to be first we must be last of all and servant of all.
The scriptural text also has to do with vision. The text speaks of the kind of focus we must have if we are to remain faithful to the call of God upon our lives. The text describes the position Christ asks us to take if we are to remain true to the mission and ministry of God.
The setting of the lesson finds Jesus passing through Galilee with the disciples. Jesus was trying to travel in a discreet way. He didn't want anyone to know his travel route or his agenda. Jesus was attempting to use this private time to teach his disciples about his pending suffering, death, and resurrection. This wasn't the first time Jesus tried to explain what the call to follow God involved.
In the preceding verses of this particular chapter of Mark, Jesus has been to the mountain top with Peter, James, and John. Through the transfiguration experience, God has given the disciples a portrait of Jesus as the beloved son. That portrait revealed Jesus as the one to whom the disciples and each of us need to listen. Jesus is the one example we must follow as the people of God. Jesus is the one we are to focus on in our faith response to God. Our Lord's purpose and calling to be a servant to all was explained to his followers several times. He had spoken to the disciples before and after the transfiguration. His conversation with them was about God's intention for his life and theirs. Now on the journey to Capernaum, he tries to get his disciples to understand the servant-role of living for God. Jesus is attempting to emphasize that serving God is not about who will be the greatest. However, the disciples didn't get it. As the text reveals, "They did not understand what he was saying and were afraid to ask him" (Mark 9:32).
We, too, often misunderstand Jesus' servant principle. The lens God hopes we all would view life through is not ground or made in a way that allows us to have life both ways. The same optical lens can't be used to correct nearsightedness and farsightedness. Similarly, we can't concentrate on serving others when our efforts and energies are selfishly concentrated on establishing our own greatness.
The problem Jesus had with his first disciples is the problem we are facing today. We, like the disciples, love transfiguration-like events that take us to pedestal heights. We enjoy the special privileges, which often come with power, prestige, and social status. Yet, these special privileges often bring about an attitude of exclusiveness of others instead of the spirit of inclusiveness, which Jesus fostered. This is what led to the disciples' debating and arguing about who among them was the greatest.
Like the disciples, we don't understand Christ's servant principle. Our mind's eye is blurred to Jesus' teaching about his Messiahship. Often our intentions to follow Christ are good. We believe we are faithful, well meaning, and active Christians. We struggle over our Mondays through Fridays, working hard every week. We visit our places of worship seeking to be ministered to but forgetting that we are called to minister to others. We like being served and having our needs catered to and met. Like Jesus' disciples, we cherish most those things that best serve us. However, Christ calls us to a life of service. Duty and responsibility, reality and necessity call us back to the stations of our lives. The benediction and postlude after worship signal that our service for God hasn't ended but is about to begin. When worship concludes, we walk through the church parking lot. We enter our vehicles and direct our cars and our energies back to the real world.
Did you ever notice how we always return to the real world where we are to be a Christ-like presence to others? Yet somewhere between our sanctuary worship and our Sunday lunch the vision of serving God becomes distorted. The clarity of what God wants versus what we want becomes blurred. The joy of tranquil worship settings and spiritual highs begin to fade. The world shows us things and asks us to do things that are not in keeping with the mandate of Jesus Christ. Certainly being a servant is not as exciting as holding positions of popularity, power, social status, and greatness. Being the greatest is much more appealing than being second best.
The choice to abandon the call of God often is made because the call of God requires us to give instead of receive. We abandon the call of God because God's call is often unpopular. Let's be honest: Jesus' agenda is not a fashionable agenda. Living for God requires focus! Our complete focus! We have a God who is clearly focused on us. We have a Lord whose sacrificial love was focused toward us. However, like the disciples, we fail to see this clearly. We are like those persons who put on a new pair of glasses for the first time. We expect everything to be perfectly clear at all distances, but we find our lives terribly out of focus. The ministry and mission of God's kingdom remains blurred only because it is impossible for us to engage in selfish pursuits to achieve greatness and be a servant of Christ at the same time.
In the text Jesus is talking about how serving others requires sacrifice. The disciples, however, are oblivious to his words. They are involved in arguing about their status, their position, and their own levels of greatness. The issue for the disciples is not one of knowing or not knowing what the Lord requires. The Lord has told them. The question wasn't did the disciples believe or not believe? The disciples knew what the Lord required and they deeply believed in God. Like the disciples, we also know what the Lord requires and we also deeply believe in God.
The issue for us isn't an absence of faith or having insignificant amounts of faith. The issue for us is that we choose to ignore the words of Christ who explains what it means to be his servants. More and more we are conforming to a world which emphasizes a "me first" philosophy of life.
Our passion for pursuing personal greatness and achieving positions of social status has become stronger than our passion for serving others and standing firm for social consciousness. We have continually expected to be served by others, instead of following the Christ who, by his own example, shows that we are to be serving others.
Again, focus is the key. Focus is everything. Entering the twenty-first century, as followers of Jesus Christ we must do more than simply state what we believe about God. We must undergo a transformation and accept a new vision as Christ's servant church. Our focus needs to go beyond what others consider greatness to understanding what the word of God defines as greatness. Our focus as Christ's followers must discern God's will, so we can effectively live doing God's will in the new era.
As the opthalmologist adds a lens to correct and give us brighter, clearer vision, Jesus placed a child into the midst of his disciples. Jesus, through the child, demonstrated that the focus of faithful mission and ministry must never be about personal greatness, prestige, power, or selfish pursuits. The focus of faithful mission and ministry must always be about humbleness, innocence, and serving others. What is most important as we enter a new era in our world and in our own lives is: How will we live for God and Christ? The image of the child gives us a sense of new hope. The child illustrates there will be a future. However, God's vision for us and God's vision for others will only become clear when we focus on Christ as Lord. Then and only then, shall we come to understand fully that if we want to be first we must be last of all and servant of all.
