The Nail Of Infidelity
Sermon
SIX NAILS OF THE CROSS
Sermons For Lent
Friendship is an ancient virtue, highly valued among
believers. The writer of Proverbs said, "A friend loves at all
times, and a brother is born of adversity." The desire of
everyone is to make each friend a brother or sister, and, while
there is little hope of attaining this ideal, the failure to make
an attempt is wastefulness and shame. To call someone our brother
or sister is to put into words what our Lord desires in action.
There is a story about the conversation held one day between the
body and the shadow. The shadow was reminding the body how good a
friend he was to go wherever the body went in sunshine or
moonlight. But the body knew the true makeup of the shadow and
reminded him of such when he said, "You are a friend in the
sunshine and the moonlight but where are you when they do not
shine and there is only darkness around me?"
The stories of David and Jonathon, Ruth and Naomi are glorious
examples of the value which God places upon our human
relationships. Jonathon was willing to face more than the wrath
of an angry and jealous father, for he was willing to give up his
inheritance as king and all of the power and prestige that went
with being the first man of Israel. Friendship was never
restricted to the unrelated. By law, in marriage men and women
were expected to be friends as well, and to treat each other with
respect and generosity. A common blood shared with other men and
women, brothers and sisters, was and is an advantage to
friendship and not an obstacle. Friendship -- fidelity -- is
strongly desired by God and never overlooked in the teachings of
humankind.
There are many true stories which tell the meaning of
friendship better than any definition. The time will never come
that the story of a daughter-in-law and her mother-in-law, both
widowed, will not be related to a new generation. Separated they
would have passed into oblivion, but together they became an
example to all who needed courage when left alone in a world that
seems a lot harder than it really is.
You won't find these names in the Bible, but in the 1960s you
can be sure that Stokes and Twyman were words synonymous with
friendship. Two men, professional basketball players, were good
teammates and as such played well together. Returning home from
an away game, Maurice Stokes was struck with a paralyzing
disease. In a very short space of time this giant of a man had no
control of his body or mind. No parent or relative, employer or
lawyer, moved with such swiftness or desire as did Jack Twyman.
At first he used his own personal resources, and then, when the
situation demanded, he raised funds so that his friend could be
rehabilitated to at least a partial form of what he once was. The
fact that Maurice eventually died, or that he was black and Jack
was white is irrelevant to the meaning of their friendship. Their
relationship became the symbol for thousands of how to relate as
friends as well as the goal for groups concerned with racial
harmony.
Contrast this desire for brotherhood and true friendship with
the horrifying situation of Judas' treason. Judas, disciple and
confidant of Jesus, appeared at the garden of Gethsemane with the
temple guard and some Roman soldiers to betray the one whom he
said he loved with a kiss. No greater sign of love and affection
can be given by one to another than a kiss, for it seals the very
nature of two people into one intention. We are still shocked by
the gall it took for Judas to finger Jesus out as the one the
authorites were interestd in through the use of a kiss. He didn't
point, or lay his hand upon his shoulder or sit beside him. He
kissed him, and in so doing designated Jesus as the one to be
arrested and crucified. It was a despicable act. No reason,
excuse or frustration seems
adequate or justifiable to account for Judas' action. If it
wasn't the 30 pieces of silver, then whatever the reason was, it
wasn't good enough. His betrayal, this act of infidelity, was
like driving a nail into the flesh of Jesus.
It wasn't that Jesus had never known or experienced hatred
before. How well we remember all of the incidents of displeasure
that he received from those who hated him. But Judas was a
friend. He shared bread, shelter, moments of laughter and sorrow
and the innermost thoughts of Jesus. Judas was not an enemy who
wanted to savor victory in battle or triumph in debate. Judas was
a companion to whom Jesus entrusted his earthly life.
Think of Jack Twyman refusing to use the money raised for
Maurice Stokes' rehabilitation, and instead for his own personal
gain. Make yourself imagine Jonathon leading his father Saul to
David's hiding place. Picture if you possibly can a Ruth turning
out her mother-in-law after her remarriage and you can gain a
small measure of what Judas did to Jesus. The nail never entered
Jesus with a clear and decisive stroke. The nail of infidelity
split and crushed every morsel of flesh that it contacted. Judas
betrayed Jesus with a kiss, a kiss.
We, too, are driving the nails of infidelity into the flesh of
Christ with our own incomprehensible acts of betrayal. Whatever
our reason, excuse or frustration, it is not good enough.
A man, respected by all, was asked to betray his trust with
the promise of a better position, higher income and influential
friends. The price was to give up his role as an active member
and leader of a small congregation. It offended the boss' taste
and his conscience and he demanded this this employee join his
rank or the lines of the unemployed. When he measured the cost of
his family, the years of hard work, the possibilities of the
rewards, he accepted the offer and removed himself from the
community of Christians. Most of what he was promised was
delivered, but he regretted his act of betrayal far longer than
the rewards lasted.
Every day we hear and see people willing to drive the nail
into the flesh of Christ and we quietly acknowledge their
behavior with sadness and disappointment. With regard to
ourselves, we reduce the seriousness by calling our betrayal back
yard gossip, ensuring our children's future, or just minding our
own business.
All of the good examples of friendship will not make you any
more loyal unless you are willing to take the chance that you
will be used. Most people see their friendship as something of
value. Like other precious things, they want to save it on a
shelf for the right moment. Friendship is something to be used
time and time again. It is your willingness to be used that makes
your friendship so valuable. Once you have entrusted yourself to
another there is no turning back.
Judas was a good disciple and a trusted one. There was never
any question of his honesty for he was the treasurer of this
chosen group. He must have had compassion for the poor. On one
occasion he questioned the judgment of a believer who used an
expensive perfume in the adoration of Jesus. This luxury, if
sold, would have been a considerable amount as a gift to the
poor. He said it, and one seemed to question his motive at the
time or later. Save that one night or couple of days, Judas had
an honorable ministry full of joy and service. But he broke that
friendship with Jesus and with all others when he failed on that
one occasion. His infidelity is so obvious that it can never be
hidden.
What of the others? The scriptures tell us that the other 11
fled. Some put up a temporary struggle for the life of Jesus and
their own lives, but when they found out that they were not to be
arrested, at least then, they ran. Peter even denied Jesus three
times. They all broke the bond which had been established. Yet,
in spite of it all, we see them differently. All 12 fell away
from Jesus that night, but only Judas bears the burden of
infidelity. The reason is obvious. The 11 came back. They asked
and received forgiveness.
The nails in the flesh of Christ resulting from our sin of
infidelity are permanent only when we allow them to be.
Christ forgives the sin of broken friendship just as he forgives
all sins and all persons. Our reason for striking the nail
tonight is not to do permanent damage or to enforce our
individual sins of infidelity, but to impress upon us all the
need to repent for wrong, and to receive the forgiveness of those
whom we have sinned against, and ultimately the full forgiveness
from God.
believers. The writer of Proverbs said, "A friend loves at all
times, and a brother is born of adversity." The desire of
everyone is to make each friend a brother or sister, and, while
there is little hope of attaining this ideal, the failure to make
an attempt is wastefulness and shame. To call someone our brother
or sister is to put into words what our Lord desires in action.
There is a story about the conversation held one day between the
body and the shadow. The shadow was reminding the body how good a
friend he was to go wherever the body went in sunshine or
moonlight. But the body knew the true makeup of the shadow and
reminded him of such when he said, "You are a friend in the
sunshine and the moonlight but where are you when they do not
shine and there is only darkness around me?"
The stories of David and Jonathon, Ruth and Naomi are glorious
examples of the value which God places upon our human
relationships. Jonathon was willing to face more than the wrath
of an angry and jealous father, for he was willing to give up his
inheritance as king and all of the power and prestige that went
with being the first man of Israel. Friendship was never
restricted to the unrelated. By law, in marriage men and women
were expected to be friends as well, and to treat each other with
respect and generosity. A common blood shared with other men and
women, brothers and sisters, was and is an advantage to
friendship and not an obstacle. Friendship -- fidelity -- is
strongly desired by God and never overlooked in the teachings of
humankind.
There are many true stories which tell the meaning of
friendship better than any definition. The time will never come
that the story of a daughter-in-law and her mother-in-law, both
widowed, will not be related to a new generation. Separated they
would have passed into oblivion, but together they became an
example to all who needed courage when left alone in a world that
seems a lot harder than it really is.
You won't find these names in the Bible, but in the 1960s you
can be sure that Stokes and Twyman were words synonymous with
friendship. Two men, professional basketball players, were good
teammates and as such played well together. Returning home from
an away game, Maurice Stokes was struck with a paralyzing
disease. In a very short space of time this giant of a man had no
control of his body or mind. No parent or relative, employer or
lawyer, moved with such swiftness or desire as did Jack Twyman.
At first he used his own personal resources, and then, when the
situation demanded, he raised funds so that his friend could be
rehabilitated to at least a partial form of what he once was. The
fact that Maurice eventually died, or that he was black and Jack
was white is irrelevant to the meaning of their friendship. Their
relationship became the symbol for thousands of how to relate as
friends as well as the goal for groups concerned with racial
harmony.
Contrast this desire for brotherhood and true friendship with
the horrifying situation of Judas' treason. Judas, disciple and
confidant of Jesus, appeared at the garden of Gethsemane with the
temple guard and some Roman soldiers to betray the one whom he
said he loved with a kiss. No greater sign of love and affection
can be given by one to another than a kiss, for it seals the very
nature of two people into one intention. We are still shocked by
the gall it took for Judas to finger Jesus out as the one the
authorites were interestd in through the use of a kiss. He didn't
point, or lay his hand upon his shoulder or sit beside him. He
kissed him, and in so doing designated Jesus as the one to be
arrested and crucified. It was a despicable act. No reason,
excuse or frustration seems
adequate or justifiable to account for Judas' action. If it
wasn't the 30 pieces of silver, then whatever the reason was, it
wasn't good enough. His betrayal, this act of infidelity, was
like driving a nail into the flesh of Jesus.
It wasn't that Jesus had never known or experienced hatred
before. How well we remember all of the incidents of displeasure
that he received from those who hated him. But Judas was a
friend. He shared bread, shelter, moments of laughter and sorrow
and the innermost thoughts of Jesus. Judas was not an enemy who
wanted to savor victory in battle or triumph in debate. Judas was
a companion to whom Jesus entrusted his earthly life.
Think of Jack Twyman refusing to use the money raised for
Maurice Stokes' rehabilitation, and instead for his own personal
gain. Make yourself imagine Jonathon leading his father Saul to
David's hiding place. Picture if you possibly can a Ruth turning
out her mother-in-law after her remarriage and you can gain a
small measure of what Judas did to Jesus. The nail never entered
Jesus with a clear and decisive stroke. The nail of infidelity
split and crushed every morsel of flesh that it contacted. Judas
betrayed Jesus with a kiss, a kiss.
We, too, are driving the nails of infidelity into the flesh of
Christ with our own incomprehensible acts of betrayal. Whatever
our reason, excuse or frustration, it is not good enough.
A man, respected by all, was asked to betray his trust with
the promise of a better position, higher income and influential
friends. The price was to give up his role as an active member
and leader of a small congregation. It offended the boss' taste
and his conscience and he demanded this this employee join his
rank or the lines of the unemployed. When he measured the cost of
his family, the years of hard work, the possibilities of the
rewards, he accepted the offer and removed himself from the
community of Christians. Most of what he was promised was
delivered, but he regretted his act of betrayal far longer than
the rewards lasted.
Every day we hear and see people willing to drive the nail
into the flesh of Christ and we quietly acknowledge their
behavior with sadness and disappointment. With regard to
ourselves, we reduce the seriousness by calling our betrayal back
yard gossip, ensuring our children's future, or just minding our
own business.
All of the good examples of friendship will not make you any
more loyal unless you are willing to take the chance that you
will be used. Most people see their friendship as something of
value. Like other precious things, they want to save it on a
shelf for the right moment. Friendship is something to be used
time and time again. It is your willingness to be used that makes
your friendship so valuable. Once you have entrusted yourself to
another there is no turning back.
Judas was a good disciple and a trusted one. There was never
any question of his honesty for he was the treasurer of this
chosen group. He must have had compassion for the poor. On one
occasion he questioned the judgment of a believer who used an
expensive perfume in the adoration of Jesus. This luxury, if
sold, would have been a considerable amount as a gift to the
poor. He said it, and one seemed to question his motive at the
time or later. Save that one night or couple of days, Judas had
an honorable ministry full of joy and service. But he broke that
friendship with Jesus and with all others when he failed on that
one occasion. His infidelity is so obvious that it can never be
hidden.
What of the others? The scriptures tell us that the other 11
fled. Some put up a temporary struggle for the life of Jesus and
their own lives, but when they found out that they were not to be
arrested, at least then, they ran. Peter even denied Jesus three
times. They all broke the bond which had been established. Yet,
in spite of it all, we see them differently. All 12 fell away
from Jesus that night, but only Judas bears the burden of
infidelity. The reason is obvious. The 11 came back. They asked
and received forgiveness.
The nails in the flesh of Christ resulting from our sin of
infidelity are permanent only when we allow them to be.
Christ forgives the sin of broken friendship just as he forgives
all sins and all persons. Our reason for striking the nail
tonight is not to do permanent damage or to enforce our
individual sins of infidelity, but to impress upon us all the
need to repent for wrong, and to receive the forgiveness of those
whom we have sinned against, and ultimately the full forgiveness
from God.
