Living For Others
Sermon
Sermons On The First Readings
Series I, Cycle C
Harriet Tubman was born into slavery in Dorchester County, Maryland, in 1821. Like all slaves in that time period Harriet, together with her ten sisters and brothers and her mother and father, worked the fields, in this case a large tobacco plantation. Day after day, week by week over many years, slaves did the same thing. At sunrise work began and at sundown it ended; the monotony of existence was severe. Certainly slavery was an ignoble existence, not only because of the menial and backbreaking work, but more importantly because it was a life which degraded human dignity. Slaves were not only perceived as unimportant humans, they were considered as non-persons. Harriet Tubman never received a word of encouragement, welcome, or invitation in her early life, either from her white slave master or her fellow black slaves, who had been beaten down so severely by life that they no longer possessed any self-respect.
This was the life of Harriet in her early days, but in 1849 she managed to escape to the North and freedom. These were the high days of the American abolition movement, led by William Lloyd Garrison and Frederick Douglass. Harriet quickly joined this movement and soon thereafter became a "conductor" on what was known as the Underground Railroad -- a secret organization which smuggled slaves to freedom in the North. In the ten years prior to the commencement of the Civil War, Harriet Tubman made at least fifteen expeditions into the southern regions of Maryland and in the process rescued over 200 slaves. She continued her work even when a large reward was put forward for her capture and arrest. Harriet Tubman had never been given a word of kindness, welcome, or invitation in her days as a slave, but her life as a "conductor" with the Underground Railroad exemplified these important qualities. Slaves called her Moses, not only because she was their deliverer, but more importantly because she cared about them. John Brown, the one whose failed raid at Harper's Ferry focused the nation's attention on the issue of slavery, called her General Tubman.
Harriet Tubman risked her life on numerous occasions to bring to freedom those who were oppressed. She was a deliverer, as Moses was to the Israelites when they were in bondage in Egypt. She serves as a good example of a person who lived for others by her courageous life.
How can one define the divinity of God? Many of us might respond by saying God is omniscient, omnipotent, full of love and compassion. These are certainly attributes of God, but the question needs to be repeated -- how do we define the divinity of God? One possible answer to this seemingly simple but actually quite difficult question would be this: The degree that we live for others is the degree to which we become God-like. Since God always has and always will live totally for others, namely for us, it makes sense to say that to the extent we live for others we live like God. Thus, to define the divinity of God, in a way, is to live for others.
Today's powerful reading from First Kings demonstrates how people lived for others. Elijah, whom we encountered last week and will see again in the coming Sundays, has just predicted a great drought that will strike the land of Israel. God will take care of Elijah, his chosen prophet; God will live for him. First, Elijah is sent to the Wadi Cherith where he is fed by wild ravens who bring bread and meat, both morning and evening. Then God sends the prophet to the widow of Zarephath about whom we hear today. This woman has nothing, barely the basics to live for one day. Besides lack of food I suspect she possessed little hope as well. Yet, despite her desperate condition, she assists Elijah when he calls upon her. She goes out of her way to meet the prophet's needs, even when she has nothing to give. She meets his needs before her own and those of her son, the one who probably should have been first on the priority list. Because the woman in a very real way gives her life for Elijah, she, in turn, is rewarded by God, just as the prophet predicted. The jug of oil does not go dry nor the jar of flour meal go empty. Because she took care of God's messenger, God, through the prophet, takes care of her.
The second half of the story shows how Elijah goes out of his way, in a special manner lives for the widow. Elijah was the "man of God," the one recognized as a prophet who had a special relationship with God. We recall how he called upon God to ridicule the false prophets of Baal and to expose their misguided message and their ill-founded allegiance to their deity. Now Elijah calls upon God to restore the life of the widow's son. His faith is rewarded as he provides for the woman's needs. In a special way, Elijah lived for the woman, but God lives for all for all time.
The common Christian vocation to holiness demands that we respond to the needs of those around us; we are to live for others. We are called to be present to others' needs, to assist them in their burdens, and to love people as we love God. We must never lose sight of Jesus' response when asked how to live. His answer was clear in articulating the Golden Rule: Love God with your whole being and love your neighbor as yourself (Mark 12:28-34). This rule of life seems so simple, because the words are few and uncomplicated, but we all know that as complex as the idea of love can be so too can be the difficulty in loving God and our neighbor as ourself.
The great trial we have on earth, the test that comes to us from God, can be well-illustrated by an Asian tale. The contrast between heaven and hell can be described in this way. The image of hell, so says the tale, begins with the description of a long banquet table around which many are seated preparing to eat. The meal is ready, abundant, and has been prepared by the finest chefs in the world. The plates, cups, and saucers are made from the finest china and the glassware is Waterford crystal. The scene seems normal except the silverware is unusual; each utensil is three feet long. In the scene nothing is happening; nobody is eating. Instead of eating, all of those at table are bumping into and hitting each other with their silverware. The guests almost come to blows from their anger with each other. The utensils are so big that one cannot feed him or herself and, thus, nobody gets anything to eat. Chaos is the result. The image of heaven begins with the same banquet table. The meal is prepared; the people are present. Again the plates and glassware are the best money can buy and the silverware utensils are three feet long. All in heaven are eating, however. These people have learned that the only way they can eat is by feeding each other. Mutual cooperation allows all to be fed.
This Asian tale says something very powerfully, I think, about our need to live more fully for others. Those who live in hell never come to the knowledge that the only way to exist and live fully is by living for others, by meeting their needs and assisting them with their burdens. Those who live in heaven, in contrast, have discovered what is truly important -- namely, that to live for others is the one and only way we can find life and most especially the eternal salvation which is our goal.
We are all called to live for others in the various ways we lead the life God gave us. Parents probably demonstrate the concept of living for others best. Parents sacrifice for their children, often denying themselves some of the goods of this world -- their precious time or even opportunity -- so that their children can have more. Loving and understanding parents work hard so that their children can become more productive members of society. This task becomes increasingly more difficult with time as the demands of this life never seem to become less but only grow greater and more complex. The human drama of a father living for his son was played out many years ago in the annual Iron Man competition held on the island of Oahu in Hawaii. One man entered the contest with his crippled son. During the 2.5-mile ocean swim, the man towed his son behind him on a rubber raft holding a tow rope in his mouth. From the ocean the competition switched to a 125-mile bike ride over the lava beds of the island. The man placed his son in a specially designed basket on the handle bars. Then, after all this, the man ran a 26.2-mile marathon with his son strapped to his back. When he finished the grueling race, reporters gathered around and asked, "Why did you do it?" The man answered, "I did it for my son who will never be able to do it." The man's heroic and herculean effort was for him an act of love, a way of living for his son, which he felt privileged to complete.
Living for others can and must also be part of our daily work routine. A good employer or supervisor is one who encourages, nourishes, and assists junior personnel so they can learn and have full and productive careers with the company. Mentoring is important. We can all remember that special teacher or coach in school who went out of his or her way to assist us, whether it was with a concept we could not understand or the encouragement necessary to continue to persevere on the field of play. Sharing our lives, expertise, and experience with others is critically important and is the way we live for others.
We must never forget our duty to live for one another in the civic community that we share as citizens of this great land. Fraternal groups such as the Lions, Kiwanis, Rotary, and a host of others get involved to make things better for others, especially those who might benefit most from some extra assistance. All of us must get involved to assist the stranger, the outcast, and in general those who live on the margins of society, not by their own choice most times, but rather, because we have placed them there. Meals on Wheels, volunteering at a local soup kitchen, participating in a neighborhood clean-up project are all ways we can live for others in our local community.
We certainly cannot forget our responsibility to live for our brothers and sisters in the Church. The ways one can assist are innumerable as are the opportunities, but we must first take the initiative. Local churches and parishes have many programs and groups that reach out to our brothers and sisters and serve them, but the greatest way we can help might simply be the attitude we bring to any endeavor we engage. If we are committed and enter our varied apostolic works with a welcoming and friendly attitude, then most assuredly, this will be communicated to those we serve. Sometimes living for others can be done on a grand scale and other times it is simple and almost effortless, if we only think about what we are doing and the one for whom we live. We must realize that since all is gift from God, all must be shared -- time, talent, and treasure -- but most especially our lives. Living for others is not easy and, if done well, will certainly cost us a great deal. In fact, if we live for others fully, it will cost us our lives. Jesus makes this absolutely clear: "For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will save it" (Luke 9:24). Harriet Tubman was only one woman but through her sacrifice, her ability to live for others, many of her sisters and brothers in the bondage of slavery experienced a new beginning. May we who seek to follow the Master always give our lives for others and in the process find the eternal reward which only God can give.
This was the life of Harriet in her early days, but in 1849 she managed to escape to the North and freedom. These were the high days of the American abolition movement, led by William Lloyd Garrison and Frederick Douglass. Harriet quickly joined this movement and soon thereafter became a "conductor" on what was known as the Underground Railroad -- a secret organization which smuggled slaves to freedom in the North. In the ten years prior to the commencement of the Civil War, Harriet Tubman made at least fifteen expeditions into the southern regions of Maryland and in the process rescued over 200 slaves. She continued her work even when a large reward was put forward for her capture and arrest. Harriet Tubman had never been given a word of kindness, welcome, or invitation in her days as a slave, but her life as a "conductor" with the Underground Railroad exemplified these important qualities. Slaves called her Moses, not only because she was their deliverer, but more importantly because she cared about them. John Brown, the one whose failed raid at Harper's Ferry focused the nation's attention on the issue of slavery, called her General Tubman.
Harriet Tubman risked her life on numerous occasions to bring to freedom those who were oppressed. She was a deliverer, as Moses was to the Israelites when they were in bondage in Egypt. She serves as a good example of a person who lived for others by her courageous life.
How can one define the divinity of God? Many of us might respond by saying God is omniscient, omnipotent, full of love and compassion. These are certainly attributes of God, but the question needs to be repeated -- how do we define the divinity of God? One possible answer to this seemingly simple but actually quite difficult question would be this: The degree that we live for others is the degree to which we become God-like. Since God always has and always will live totally for others, namely for us, it makes sense to say that to the extent we live for others we live like God. Thus, to define the divinity of God, in a way, is to live for others.
Today's powerful reading from First Kings demonstrates how people lived for others. Elijah, whom we encountered last week and will see again in the coming Sundays, has just predicted a great drought that will strike the land of Israel. God will take care of Elijah, his chosen prophet; God will live for him. First, Elijah is sent to the Wadi Cherith where he is fed by wild ravens who bring bread and meat, both morning and evening. Then God sends the prophet to the widow of Zarephath about whom we hear today. This woman has nothing, barely the basics to live for one day. Besides lack of food I suspect she possessed little hope as well. Yet, despite her desperate condition, she assists Elijah when he calls upon her. She goes out of her way to meet the prophet's needs, even when she has nothing to give. She meets his needs before her own and those of her son, the one who probably should have been first on the priority list. Because the woman in a very real way gives her life for Elijah, she, in turn, is rewarded by God, just as the prophet predicted. The jug of oil does not go dry nor the jar of flour meal go empty. Because she took care of God's messenger, God, through the prophet, takes care of her.
The second half of the story shows how Elijah goes out of his way, in a special manner lives for the widow. Elijah was the "man of God," the one recognized as a prophet who had a special relationship with God. We recall how he called upon God to ridicule the false prophets of Baal and to expose their misguided message and their ill-founded allegiance to their deity. Now Elijah calls upon God to restore the life of the widow's son. His faith is rewarded as he provides for the woman's needs. In a special way, Elijah lived for the woman, but God lives for all for all time.
The common Christian vocation to holiness demands that we respond to the needs of those around us; we are to live for others. We are called to be present to others' needs, to assist them in their burdens, and to love people as we love God. We must never lose sight of Jesus' response when asked how to live. His answer was clear in articulating the Golden Rule: Love God with your whole being and love your neighbor as yourself (Mark 12:28-34). This rule of life seems so simple, because the words are few and uncomplicated, but we all know that as complex as the idea of love can be so too can be the difficulty in loving God and our neighbor as ourself.
The great trial we have on earth, the test that comes to us from God, can be well-illustrated by an Asian tale. The contrast between heaven and hell can be described in this way. The image of hell, so says the tale, begins with the description of a long banquet table around which many are seated preparing to eat. The meal is ready, abundant, and has been prepared by the finest chefs in the world. The plates, cups, and saucers are made from the finest china and the glassware is Waterford crystal. The scene seems normal except the silverware is unusual; each utensil is three feet long. In the scene nothing is happening; nobody is eating. Instead of eating, all of those at table are bumping into and hitting each other with their silverware. The guests almost come to blows from their anger with each other. The utensils are so big that one cannot feed him or herself and, thus, nobody gets anything to eat. Chaos is the result. The image of heaven begins with the same banquet table. The meal is prepared; the people are present. Again the plates and glassware are the best money can buy and the silverware utensils are three feet long. All in heaven are eating, however. These people have learned that the only way they can eat is by feeding each other. Mutual cooperation allows all to be fed.
This Asian tale says something very powerfully, I think, about our need to live more fully for others. Those who live in hell never come to the knowledge that the only way to exist and live fully is by living for others, by meeting their needs and assisting them with their burdens. Those who live in heaven, in contrast, have discovered what is truly important -- namely, that to live for others is the one and only way we can find life and most especially the eternal salvation which is our goal.
We are all called to live for others in the various ways we lead the life God gave us. Parents probably demonstrate the concept of living for others best. Parents sacrifice for their children, often denying themselves some of the goods of this world -- their precious time or even opportunity -- so that their children can have more. Loving and understanding parents work hard so that their children can become more productive members of society. This task becomes increasingly more difficult with time as the demands of this life never seem to become less but only grow greater and more complex. The human drama of a father living for his son was played out many years ago in the annual Iron Man competition held on the island of Oahu in Hawaii. One man entered the contest with his crippled son. During the 2.5-mile ocean swim, the man towed his son behind him on a rubber raft holding a tow rope in his mouth. From the ocean the competition switched to a 125-mile bike ride over the lava beds of the island. The man placed his son in a specially designed basket on the handle bars. Then, after all this, the man ran a 26.2-mile marathon with his son strapped to his back. When he finished the grueling race, reporters gathered around and asked, "Why did you do it?" The man answered, "I did it for my son who will never be able to do it." The man's heroic and herculean effort was for him an act of love, a way of living for his son, which he felt privileged to complete.
Living for others can and must also be part of our daily work routine. A good employer or supervisor is one who encourages, nourishes, and assists junior personnel so they can learn and have full and productive careers with the company. Mentoring is important. We can all remember that special teacher or coach in school who went out of his or her way to assist us, whether it was with a concept we could not understand or the encouragement necessary to continue to persevere on the field of play. Sharing our lives, expertise, and experience with others is critically important and is the way we live for others.
We must never forget our duty to live for one another in the civic community that we share as citizens of this great land. Fraternal groups such as the Lions, Kiwanis, Rotary, and a host of others get involved to make things better for others, especially those who might benefit most from some extra assistance. All of us must get involved to assist the stranger, the outcast, and in general those who live on the margins of society, not by their own choice most times, but rather, because we have placed them there. Meals on Wheels, volunteering at a local soup kitchen, participating in a neighborhood clean-up project are all ways we can live for others in our local community.
We certainly cannot forget our responsibility to live for our brothers and sisters in the Church. The ways one can assist are innumerable as are the opportunities, but we must first take the initiative. Local churches and parishes have many programs and groups that reach out to our brothers and sisters and serve them, but the greatest way we can help might simply be the attitude we bring to any endeavor we engage. If we are committed and enter our varied apostolic works with a welcoming and friendly attitude, then most assuredly, this will be communicated to those we serve. Sometimes living for others can be done on a grand scale and other times it is simple and almost effortless, if we only think about what we are doing and the one for whom we live. We must realize that since all is gift from God, all must be shared -- time, talent, and treasure -- but most especially our lives. Living for others is not easy and, if done well, will certainly cost us a great deal. In fact, if we live for others fully, it will cost us our lives. Jesus makes this absolutely clear: "For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will save it" (Luke 9:24). Harriet Tubman was only one woman but through her sacrifice, her ability to live for others, many of her sisters and brothers in the bondage of slavery experienced a new beginning. May we who seek to follow the Master always give our lives for others and in the process find the eternal reward which only God can give.
