Maundy Thursday / Holy Thursday
Preaching
Lectionary Preaching Workbook
Series VI, Cycle C
Object:
COMMENTARY ON THE LESSONS
Lesson 1: Exodus 12:1-4 (5-10) 11-14 (C); Exodus 12:1-8, (11-14) (RC); Exodus 12:1-14a (E)
This story records what for our Jewish friends is a powerful memory. God has ordered that each Israelite family or household select an unblemished lamb, either sheep or goat, preserve it for fourteen days, then the lamb is to be slaughtered and eaten according to some very elaborate instructions. This is to be done hurriedly since God was, apparently, in a hurry. The blood from the lamb was to be placed on the door or lintel of each home to identify the residents as innocents. Following that, God would then pass throughout the land killing all first born children and animals. This entire celebration was to be observed throughout time as a reminder of the greatness of God, and of God's redemptive power. The passing over of the innocent residents would be celebrated as the Passover.
The Christian reader must be respectful of this Jewish tradition, and remind oneself of the awesome suffering which characterized their early history. The desire for vengeance, if not admirable by today's standards, is understandable. How literally we are to read this is a difficult problem. Assuming that things happened as reported, we must gently remind ourselves that these instructions were in fact given, not by God, but by men who assumed they were receiving instructions from God. From our present perspective, we wonder why God would slaughter innocent children, not to mention animals, no matter what wrongs their parents may have committed. If I may suggest an alternative, better that God should have dealt with the guilty Egyptians or whomever, not the babies.
Maybe a twenty-first century Christian simply cannot think himself or herself back into the minds of the people of that time. Perhaps such as we cannot judge. Yet, if one were to preach on this passage, perhaps as an effort to instruct our congregations about the religion of our Jewish brothers and sisters, it would be necessary, I think, to reject the idea of vengeance. Jesus would teach a better way.
Lesson 2: 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 (C, RC); 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 (27-32) (E)
Every minister who has served a church for a few years, especially churches which have frequent church suppers, will get a smile by reading the prior few verses to this passage. Those wonderful, irrepressible, disreputable Corinthians. I know a bunch like them and you may too. They show up at the supper, get first in line, fill their plates, and by the time the more mannerly folks get to the table, the good stuff is gone. Also, since wine in church was more fashionable then than now (I write as a Methodist), it seems that some of those folks were boozing it up. All in all, Paul was pretty upset. That's why the Lord's Supper which used to be a full scale meal became a symbolic meal. So Paul has written what has become the liturgy of many a Christian Church. The bread symbolizes Jesus' body "broken" for us. The "wine" symbolizes Jesus' blood. We won't struggle here with the question of whether the elements "are" the body and blood or whether they are "like" the body and blood. Earlier generations got pretty excited over that issue. I'm quite happy to leave each believer to his or her own faith in the matter.
In preaching, there are two central points. One, we are to contemplate our conduct and attitudes and be healthily self-critical. Two, having confessed to ourselves and to God the wrongs we may have done (or the good left undone), we can then accept forgiveness.
Gospel: John 13:1-17, 31b-35 (C); John 13:1-15 (RC, E)
Jesus, realizing that the end is near, that not long afterward he must die, gives a vivid example to his beloved disciples, demonstrating that if you truly love someone, you serve that person. Never do you exalt yourself above someone you love.
Foot washing was an ultimate act of subservience in that day. Most people wore sandals, or perhaps were barefoot. Roads were dirt, and keeping one's feet clean was -- well -- impossible. When a man of prominence visited another such person, a servant was often called to wash the visitor's feet. Only a person of lowly estate would ever be asked or expected to do such an act. What Jesus did must have stunned his followers. Peter could no more allow that than any of us would at first permit such personal service from our most admired person.
Jesus explained. This was an example. If he, the Son of God, could bow to such service, then his disciples could follow suit. It was the very opposite of self-importance. To set aside one's powers, one's status, and to bow down in this way was a gift of love. The disciples would never forget this remarkable action.
When we turn to the final verses of this passage, John 31-35, we find the ultimate statement of the Christian faith. "Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples...."
Gospel: Luke 22:14-30 (E)
Jesus announces to his closest friends that the end is near for him, that suffering, then death are close. He will refrain from drinking and eating, but urges the others to do so as an act of oneness with him. So, again, we have the words attributed to Jesus instituting the Lord's Supper. Devout Christians are divided on the question as to whether this rather formal statement was literally spoken by Jesus, or whether later authors carefully rendered into a few words the statements, the teachings, and the actions of Jesus toward the end of his life. As with many biblical passages, we must pray for understanding, realizing that some equally sincere Christian people will find answers different from each other. Whether these words are those of Jesus, or a faithful summary of his teachings on the subject, we can hopefully agree that by this sacrament we are brought into very intimate relationship with him who died for us and, therefore, with God.
SERMON SUGGESTIONS
Title: "Something Good Will Happen"
Text: Exodus 12:1-14
Theme: There is good news and bad news in this passage. The good news is the promise that God, who assures us of justice in a world in which there seems to be no justice, promises ultimate consequences for wrongdoing, and ultimate justification for righteousness. The bad news is that this passage is suspect if we are to believe that God would punish the innocent to vindicate and avenge the wronged. One can only presume a certain amount of hyperbole (exaggeration) in this story. Or, one must assume that well-meaning Hebrew writers, in their zeal for justice, misunderstood God.
Having acknowledged the likelihood that this story of the Passover is a legend, we need also understand that it is a powerful story to a people who had suffered horribly, and needed a tradition to bind them together with hope and a sense of God's understanding and sympathy. A sermon based on this passage could emphasize:
1. There will finally be justice in God's world. As Christians we realize that justice does not always happen in this life, but ultimately, the universe makes no sense unless we can believe that eventually God will put all things right.
2. There is hope for tomorrow. The Passover is an assurance that good things lie ahead for those who are faithful to God's will.
3. God goes with us. In the text, the people had an unquestioned sense of God's intimate daily presence. He had empowered Moses and their other leaders. He did and will show the way in life for those who remain close to Him.
Title: "Being The Church While Being Human"
Text: 1 Corinthians 11:17-32
Theme: Some people can surely be cantankerous about church matters, Christian or not. I can name one church right now where there's quite a bit of controversy because the pastor conducts a traditional worship service one hour, and a contemporary service the other. They complain that "we're turning into two congregations." How that is true whereas it's not true if the services are identical is beyond me. But people are funny. Furthermore, we can sometimes be pretty selfish in the church -- pastors included, I fear. An ancient document dating from one of the very early centuries bore this sentiment: "The Church is like Noah's ark; if it weren't for the storm outside, you couldn't stand the smell inside." Selah.
1. The Church is where we encounter the Christ. Communion -- Mass -- Lord's Supper -- Eucharist -- Christ. It is, therefore, to be honored as a special place. Those well-meaning business types who argue on the Finance Committee that the church should be run like any other business are wrong. It is not a business, it is the embodiment of the Christ.
2. Jesus died for us so that our lives could be energized, filled with the joy of meaningful living and courageous suffering. To be a member -- a true member -- is to contribute to those qualities for those with whom we worship and serve. Self-interest, petty squabbles, have no place in the life of the church. Sure, we all have some of those characteristics, but when one is in the precincts of the church, we are to put our best foot forward, for the sake of the common good. That's not fakey. That's good manners. It is respectful, qualities Jesus epitomized.
3. In the Church we can find those resources which enable us in the living of this life. Through prayer, and fellowship, and opportunities to serve, we find ourselves.
4. The Church is where forgiveness is obtained. And where we learn to forgive. That's one measure of my Christian humanity, that I know myself forgiven, and I know how to forgive.
Title: "The Possible Impossible Love"
Text: John 13:1-17, 31b-35
Theme: Here we find ourselves at the very heart of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Love for others which takes the outward form of service which has no ulterior motive. That, in brief, is the form this faith is to take in our daily lives. This ethic, however, runs directly counter to all the acquisitive, competitive, selfish instincts which control our entire existence. Barring some profound alteration of our human impulse, it's virtually impossible for us to fulfill this commandment of Jesus. The Bible warns us of this truth over and over. "No one is good," said Jesus. "All have fallen short," said Paul. Many years ago, Reinhold Niebuhr defined the inner dynamic of the human spirit in these words: "The brevity of man is an inexorable fate which science cannot eliminate. But men will continue to exploit the possibilities of comfort and security above this limit. In this enterprise both the creative desire to master nature and the more egoistic impulse to achieve comfort and power are variously compounded."
Niebuhr went on to state in very practical terms where our psyches spend most of their time: "The poor man is anxious lest he lack sufficient income to satisfy the basic needs of his family. The rich man is anxious that he may not be able to conform to the living standards of his neighbor." Cynical? I think the older and more experienced (and, perhaps, honest) the reader may be, the more realistic this appraisal may seem. Even when we achieve a certain mature sense of communal responsibility, our selfish instincts reassert themselves and, again as Niebuhr put the matter in his classic observation: "As individuals, men believe that they ought to love and serve each other and establish justice between each other. As racial, economic and national groups, they take for themselves, whatever their power can command."
Jesus knew all of this. Yet he flew directly into the face of the reality of human sin and called us to struggle upward and out from it. But behind this clarion call to serving love is to be found the promise that those of us who try to wash the feet of those in our lives, will find a divine Spirit making the impossible possible.
If God has an essential part to play in my efforts to practice serving love, what are the characteristics of my part?
1. Humility. This doesn't come easily to most of us. While humility comes more easily to some than to others, it's necessary that we all are careful to resist the temptation to try to exalt ourselves in the minds of others.
2. Serving. Finding ways to practice this love in small, specific, daily ways is the best form this can take. Certainly, no day will pass but what an opportunity presents itself for just such serving love.
3. Honesty. This is an essential characteristic of serving love.
4. Sacrifice. Giving up what I might have had, what I wanted but saw to be the means to another person's happiness: that is serving love.
To act out this ethic of serving love inevitably involves an inner struggle for the individual. It will mean competition between the man I want to be and the man I am inclined to become. There will be wins and losses. But the ultimate hope for all of us lies in the enabling power of the Holy Spirit who will throw his weight on the side of the man I hope to become -- yet I must be willing to pay the daily price for this to happen. So serving love is not possible to sinful humanity, yet it is, too, possible if Christ is allowed to make the difference.
ADDITIONAL ILLUSTRATIONS
In 1943 the American troopship Dorchester was torpedoed by a German U-boat, with the loss of the lives of 678 men. Four of those men were chaplains, two Protestant, one Catholic, and one Rabbi. All four of them had life jackets, and those with life jackets survived. But all four gave their jackets to other young men who had none, then they stood arm in arm as the ship went down. Their heroism was one of the most inspiring stories from World War II. One of those men was Clark Poling. Shortly after his death, his father, Dan Poling, wrote a letter to Clark's little daughter, newly born, whom he had never seen. In it he wrote:
"Dear Susan. You were 'Thumper' to your Daddy -- he gave you the little rabbit's name from Bambi. And it is of Thumper he is thinking, along with your brother, in his last letter to your mother. He never saw you, but you were in his dreams, I know; and perhaps, my dear, as you were coming in and he was going out, your spirits met as ships that pass in the night. Perhaps he heard -- yes, Susan, I am sure he did -- heard your first cry and was glad. For such as he there is no death, no end of knowing. Absent he is, but not away; and you shall have him through the years till time and space shall meet the great Forever, and you shall know each other there."
____________
Our local newspaper related the story of a "street sweeper" in Maine named Skip Winslow who found a billfold containing quite a bit if money. A co-worker noticed a hard hat in a car parked nearby, which bore the same name as that in the billfold. Although there was more money than the finder earned in a week, he contacted the owner, a mill engineer named Andy Erick and returned the billfold. Erick offered Winslow a reward. He refused. He was quoted in the article as saying, "When you find someone in trouble, give him some money."
____________
One Charlotte Erickson, wife of a Seventh Day Adventist minister, wrote an article in Ministry magazine, telling of the time her family had moved into a new home. Heavy rains had drenched the area and water was beginning to seep into her new basement. She called the builder, who told her she should pack dirt around the foundation. He was kind enough to donate a dump truck full of dirt, which was dumped in her driveway. It so happened that her husband was out of town for several days, and more rain was predicted for late that day. She said that not wanting a basement full of water, nor black mud to be tracked into the house by two children and a cocker spaniel, she decided she would have to do the work herself. Unfortunately, she had recently recovered from major surgery, and after two wheelbarrow loads of dirt, she was exhausted. She dropped down on her sofa and just gave up.
Then there came a knock at her kitchen door. It was her next door neighbor, Sharon, come to help. But Charlotte said she just couldn't go on. Sharon, however, attired in dirty old jeans, said to come on, they could still get the job done before the rains began again. Somewhat rejuvenated, Charlotte joined her friend and for the next hours they toiled, loading the wheelbarrow, packing earth around the foundation. By the time the rains resumed, the work was done.
When Charlotte's husband returned and heard what had happened, he said, "Sharon is certainly a wonderful Christian." Charlotte said she reflected that Sharon was Catholic and she was Seventh Day Adventist. They had many differences in their theology. But Charlotte said she began to wonder if she were nearly the Christian her neighbor was. She said she realized that Christianity isn't so much about what your theology might be as it is about what kind of person you are. She concluded her article by saying she hoped that when they finally moved away, people would say, "Those Seventh Day Adventists sure are good Christians."
____________
Many years ago, Frank Lloyd Wright, the renowned architect, stated that the rooms in a public building should never be more than twelve feet high, so that people would not be made to feel insignificant. However, a then-famous lady named Dorothy Thompson published a reply to Wright's advice. She wrote "The G.I. Joes whom I saw standing awe-struck in Salisbury Cathedral, or watching the robed procession climb the vast stairs of Canterbury, or kneeling under the lofty arches of Notre Dame, or staring upward at St. Peter's at Michaelangelo's immense dome were not feeling insignificant. On the contrary, they were realizing that life has a grandeur and a beauty and a significance above and beyond themselves that awakened in them high aspiration. The terrible heresy of our time is that everything must be keyed down to man's understanding, lest he get an inferiority complex. Books must be written in the language of the gutter. The height of inspiration must be put at twelve feet, twice the measure of man; one must not expect him to lift his eyes beyond his own stature.
"This is scientific dribble. Every boy or girl, be he mechanic's child, or hod carrier's, wants to be something better than he is and other than the mass. He does not want to have a ceiling put over his life. Emerson did not advocate a twelve foot ceiling when he said, 'Hitch your wagon to a star.' He knew the wagon would never reach the star, but it would stay out of the gutter. The height to which people grow is commensurate with their vision. Set a man's ceiling at twelve feet and he will eventually be living underground."
____________
Psalm Of The Day
Psalm 116:1-2, 12-19 -- "I love the Lord."
Prayer Of The Day
Create in us a kindly heart, O God. Supply us with ideals which weigh so heavily in our set of values that we will find ourselves, again and again, doing what we sincerely believe to be right, even when our sinful wishes threaten to control us. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.
Lesson 1: Exodus 12:1-4 (5-10) 11-14 (C); Exodus 12:1-8, (11-14) (RC); Exodus 12:1-14a (E)
This story records what for our Jewish friends is a powerful memory. God has ordered that each Israelite family or household select an unblemished lamb, either sheep or goat, preserve it for fourteen days, then the lamb is to be slaughtered and eaten according to some very elaborate instructions. This is to be done hurriedly since God was, apparently, in a hurry. The blood from the lamb was to be placed on the door or lintel of each home to identify the residents as innocents. Following that, God would then pass throughout the land killing all first born children and animals. This entire celebration was to be observed throughout time as a reminder of the greatness of God, and of God's redemptive power. The passing over of the innocent residents would be celebrated as the Passover.
The Christian reader must be respectful of this Jewish tradition, and remind oneself of the awesome suffering which characterized their early history. The desire for vengeance, if not admirable by today's standards, is understandable. How literally we are to read this is a difficult problem. Assuming that things happened as reported, we must gently remind ourselves that these instructions were in fact given, not by God, but by men who assumed they were receiving instructions from God. From our present perspective, we wonder why God would slaughter innocent children, not to mention animals, no matter what wrongs their parents may have committed. If I may suggest an alternative, better that God should have dealt with the guilty Egyptians or whomever, not the babies.
Maybe a twenty-first century Christian simply cannot think himself or herself back into the minds of the people of that time. Perhaps such as we cannot judge. Yet, if one were to preach on this passage, perhaps as an effort to instruct our congregations about the religion of our Jewish brothers and sisters, it would be necessary, I think, to reject the idea of vengeance. Jesus would teach a better way.
Lesson 2: 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 (C, RC); 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 (27-32) (E)
Every minister who has served a church for a few years, especially churches which have frequent church suppers, will get a smile by reading the prior few verses to this passage. Those wonderful, irrepressible, disreputable Corinthians. I know a bunch like them and you may too. They show up at the supper, get first in line, fill their plates, and by the time the more mannerly folks get to the table, the good stuff is gone. Also, since wine in church was more fashionable then than now (I write as a Methodist), it seems that some of those folks were boozing it up. All in all, Paul was pretty upset. That's why the Lord's Supper which used to be a full scale meal became a symbolic meal. So Paul has written what has become the liturgy of many a Christian Church. The bread symbolizes Jesus' body "broken" for us. The "wine" symbolizes Jesus' blood. We won't struggle here with the question of whether the elements "are" the body and blood or whether they are "like" the body and blood. Earlier generations got pretty excited over that issue. I'm quite happy to leave each believer to his or her own faith in the matter.
In preaching, there are two central points. One, we are to contemplate our conduct and attitudes and be healthily self-critical. Two, having confessed to ourselves and to God the wrongs we may have done (or the good left undone), we can then accept forgiveness.
Gospel: John 13:1-17, 31b-35 (C); John 13:1-15 (RC, E)
Jesus, realizing that the end is near, that not long afterward he must die, gives a vivid example to his beloved disciples, demonstrating that if you truly love someone, you serve that person. Never do you exalt yourself above someone you love.
Foot washing was an ultimate act of subservience in that day. Most people wore sandals, or perhaps were barefoot. Roads were dirt, and keeping one's feet clean was -- well -- impossible. When a man of prominence visited another such person, a servant was often called to wash the visitor's feet. Only a person of lowly estate would ever be asked or expected to do such an act. What Jesus did must have stunned his followers. Peter could no more allow that than any of us would at first permit such personal service from our most admired person.
Jesus explained. This was an example. If he, the Son of God, could bow to such service, then his disciples could follow suit. It was the very opposite of self-importance. To set aside one's powers, one's status, and to bow down in this way was a gift of love. The disciples would never forget this remarkable action.
When we turn to the final verses of this passage, John 31-35, we find the ultimate statement of the Christian faith. "Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples...."
Gospel: Luke 22:14-30 (E)
Jesus announces to his closest friends that the end is near for him, that suffering, then death are close. He will refrain from drinking and eating, but urges the others to do so as an act of oneness with him. So, again, we have the words attributed to Jesus instituting the Lord's Supper. Devout Christians are divided on the question as to whether this rather formal statement was literally spoken by Jesus, or whether later authors carefully rendered into a few words the statements, the teachings, and the actions of Jesus toward the end of his life. As with many biblical passages, we must pray for understanding, realizing that some equally sincere Christian people will find answers different from each other. Whether these words are those of Jesus, or a faithful summary of his teachings on the subject, we can hopefully agree that by this sacrament we are brought into very intimate relationship with him who died for us and, therefore, with God.
SERMON SUGGESTIONS
Title: "Something Good Will Happen"
Text: Exodus 12:1-14
Theme: There is good news and bad news in this passage. The good news is the promise that God, who assures us of justice in a world in which there seems to be no justice, promises ultimate consequences for wrongdoing, and ultimate justification for righteousness. The bad news is that this passage is suspect if we are to believe that God would punish the innocent to vindicate and avenge the wronged. One can only presume a certain amount of hyperbole (exaggeration) in this story. Or, one must assume that well-meaning Hebrew writers, in their zeal for justice, misunderstood God.
Having acknowledged the likelihood that this story of the Passover is a legend, we need also understand that it is a powerful story to a people who had suffered horribly, and needed a tradition to bind them together with hope and a sense of God's understanding and sympathy. A sermon based on this passage could emphasize:
1. There will finally be justice in God's world. As Christians we realize that justice does not always happen in this life, but ultimately, the universe makes no sense unless we can believe that eventually God will put all things right.
2. There is hope for tomorrow. The Passover is an assurance that good things lie ahead for those who are faithful to God's will.
3. God goes with us. In the text, the people had an unquestioned sense of God's intimate daily presence. He had empowered Moses and their other leaders. He did and will show the way in life for those who remain close to Him.
Title: "Being The Church While Being Human"
Text: 1 Corinthians 11:17-32
Theme: Some people can surely be cantankerous about church matters, Christian or not. I can name one church right now where there's quite a bit of controversy because the pastor conducts a traditional worship service one hour, and a contemporary service the other. They complain that "we're turning into two congregations." How that is true whereas it's not true if the services are identical is beyond me. But people are funny. Furthermore, we can sometimes be pretty selfish in the church -- pastors included, I fear. An ancient document dating from one of the very early centuries bore this sentiment: "The Church is like Noah's ark; if it weren't for the storm outside, you couldn't stand the smell inside." Selah.
1. The Church is where we encounter the Christ. Communion -- Mass -- Lord's Supper -- Eucharist -- Christ. It is, therefore, to be honored as a special place. Those well-meaning business types who argue on the Finance Committee that the church should be run like any other business are wrong. It is not a business, it is the embodiment of the Christ.
2. Jesus died for us so that our lives could be energized, filled with the joy of meaningful living and courageous suffering. To be a member -- a true member -- is to contribute to those qualities for those with whom we worship and serve. Self-interest, petty squabbles, have no place in the life of the church. Sure, we all have some of those characteristics, but when one is in the precincts of the church, we are to put our best foot forward, for the sake of the common good. That's not fakey. That's good manners. It is respectful, qualities Jesus epitomized.
3. In the Church we can find those resources which enable us in the living of this life. Through prayer, and fellowship, and opportunities to serve, we find ourselves.
4. The Church is where forgiveness is obtained. And where we learn to forgive. That's one measure of my Christian humanity, that I know myself forgiven, and I know how to forgive.
Title: "The Possible Impossible Love"
Text: John 13:1-17, 31b-35
Theme: Here we find ourselves at the very heart of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Love for others which takes the outward form of service which has no ulterior motive. That, in brief, is the form this faith is to take in our daily lives. This ethic, however, runs directly counter to all the acquisitive, competitive, selfish instincts which control our entire existence. Barring some profound alteration of our human impulse, it's virtually impossible for us to fulfill this commandment of Jesus. The Bible warns us of this truth over and over. "No one is good," said Jesus. "All have fallen short," said Paul. Many years ago, Reinhold Niebuhr defined the inner dynamic of the human spirit in these words: "The brevity of man is an inexorable fate which science cannot eliminate. But men will continue to exploit the possibilities of comfort and security above this limit. In this enterprise both the creative desire to master nature and the more egoistic impulse to achieve comfort and power are variously compounded."
Niebuhr went on to state in very practical terms where our psyches spend most of their time: "The poor man is anxious lest he lack sufficient income to satisfy the basic needs of his family. The rich man is anxious that he may not be able to conform to the living standards of his neighbor." Cynical? I think the older and more experienced (and, perhaps, honest) the reader may be, the more realistic this appraisal may seem. Even when we achieve a certain mature sense of communal responsibility, our selfish instincts reassert themselves and, again as Niebuhr put the matter in his classic observation: "As individuals, men believe that they ought to love and serve each other and establish justice between each other. As racial, economic and national groups, they take for themselves, whatever their power can command."
Jesus knew all of this. Yet he flew directly into the face of the reality of human sin and called us to struggle upward and out from it. But behind this clarion call to serving love is to be found the promise that those of us who try to wash the feet of those in our lives, will find a divine Spirit making the impossible possible.
If God has an essential part to play in my efforts to practice serving love, what are the characteristics of my part?
1. Humility. This doesn't come easily to most of us. While humility comes more easily to some than to others, it's necessary that we all are careful to resist the temptation to try to exalt ourselves in the minds of others.
2. Serving. Finding ways to practice this love in small, specific, daily ways is the best form this can take. Certainly, no day will pass but what an opportunity presents itself for just such serving love.
3. Honesty. This is an essential characteristic of serving love.
4. Sacrifice. Giving up what I might have had, what I wanted but saw to be the means to another person's happiness: that is serving love.
To act out this ethic of serving love inevitably involves an inner struggle for the individual. It will mean competition between the man I want to be and the man I am inclined to become. There will be wins and losses. But the ultimate hope for all of us lies in the enabling power of the Holy Spirit who will throw his weight on the side of the man I hope to become -- yet I must be willing to pay the daily price for this to happen. So serving love is not possible to sinful humanity, yet it is, too, possible if Christ is allowed to make the difference.
ADDITIONAL ILLUSTRATIONS
In 1943 the American troopship Dorchester was torpedoed by a German U-boat, with the loss of the lives of 678 men. Four of those men were chaplains, two Protestant, one Catholic, and one Rabbi. All four of them had life jackets, and those with life jackets survived. But all four gave their jackets to other young men who had none, then they stood arm in arm as the ship went down. Their heroism was one of the most inspiring stories from World War II. One of those men was Clark Poling. Shortly after his death, his father, Dan Poling, wrote a letter to Clark's little daughter, newly born, whom he had never seen. In it he wrote:
"Dear Susan. You were 'Thumper' to your Daddy -- he gave you the little rabbit's name from Bambi. And it is of Thumper he is thinking, along with your brother, in his last letter to your mother. He never saw you, but you were in his dreams, I know; and perhaps, my dear, as you were coming in and he was going out, your spirits met as ships that pass in the night. Perhaps he heard -- yes, Susan, I am sure he did -- heard your first cry and was glad. For such as he there is no death, no end of knowing. Absent he is, but not away; and you shall have him through the years till time and space shall meet the great Forever, and you shall know each other there."
____________
Our local newspaper related the story of a "street sweeper" in Maine named Skip Winslow who found a billfold containing quite a bit if money. A co-worker noticed a hard hat in a car parked nearby, which bore the same name as that in the billfold. Although there was more money than the finder earned in a week, he contacted the owner, a mill engineer named Andy Erick and returned the billfold. Erick offered Winslow a reward. He refused. He was quoted in the article as saying, "When you find someone in trouble, give him some money."
____________
One Charlotte Erickson, wife of a Seventh Day Adventist minister, wrote an article in Ministry magazine, telling of the time her family had moved into a new home. Heavy rains had drenched the area and water was beginning to seep into her new basement. She called the builder, who told her she should pack dirt around the foundation. He was kind enough to donate a dump truck full of dirt, which was dumped in her driveway. It so happened that her husband was out of town for several days, and more rain was predicted for late that day. She said that not wanting a basement full of water, nor black mud to be tracked into the house by two children and a cocker spaniel, she decided she would have to do the work herself. Unfortunately, she had recently recovered from major surgery, and after two wheelbarrow loads of dirt, she was exhausted. She dropped down on her sofa and just gave up.
Then there came a knock at her kitchen door. It was her next door neighbor, Sharon, come to help. But Charlotte said she just couldn't go on. Sharon, however, attired in dirty old jeans, said to come on, they could still get the job done before the rains began again. Somewhat rejuvenated, Charlotte joined her friend and for the next hours they toiled, loading the wheelbarrow, packing earth around the foundation. By the time the rains resumed, the work was done.
When Charlotte's husband returned and heard what had happened, he said, "Sharon is certainly a wonderful Christian." Charlotte said she reflected that Sharon was Catholic and she was Seventh Day Adventist. They had many differences in their theology. But Charlotte said she began to wonder if she were nearly the Christian her neighbor was. She said she realized that Christianity isn't so much about what your theology might be as it is about what kind of person you are. She concluded her article by saying she hoped that when they finally moved away, people would say, "Those Seventh Day Adventists sure are good Christians."
____________
Many years ago, Frank Lloyd Wright, the renowned architect, stated that the rooms in a public building should never be more than twelve feet high, so that people would not be made to feel insignificant. However, a then-famous lady named Dorothy Thompson published a reply to Wright's advice. She wrote "The G.I. Joes whom I saw standing awe-struck in Salisbury Cathedral, or watching the robed procession climb the vast stairs of Canterbury, or kneeling under the lofty arches of Notre Dame, or staring upward at St. Peter's at Michaelangelo's immense dome were not feeling insignificant. On the contrary, they were realizing that life has a grandeur and a beauty and a significance above and beyond themselves that awakened in them high aspiration. The terrible heresy of our time is that everything must be keyed down to man's understanding, lest he get an inferiority complex. Books must be written in the language of the gutter. The height of inspiration must be put at twelve feet, twice the measure of man; one must not expect him to lift his eyes beyond his own stature.
"This is scientific dribble. Every boy or girl, be he mechanic's child, or hod carrier's, wants to be something better than he is and other than the mass. He does not want to have a ceiling put over his life. Emerson did not advocate a twelve foot ceiling when he said, 'Hitch your wagon to a star.' He knew the wagon would never reach the star, but it would stay out of the gutter. The height to which people grow is commensurate with their vision. Set a man's ceiling at twelve feet and he will eventually be living underground."
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Psalm Of The Day
Psalm 116:1-2, 12-19 -- "I love the Lord."
Prayer Of The Day
Create in us a kindly heart, O God. Supply us with ideals which weigh so heavily in our set of values that we will find ourselves, again and again, doing what we sincerely believe to be right, even when our sinful wishes threaten to control us. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.
