The Price Of God's Glory
Sermon
Sermons on the Gospel Readings
Series I, Cycle A
Long ago, on a high mountaintop, three trees were speaking about their future dreams. The first tree said, "I would really like to be made into a cradle so that a newborn baby might rest comfortably and I could support that new life." The second tree looked down at a small stream that was flowing into a big river and said, "I want to be made into a great ship so I can carry useful cargo to all corners of the world." The third tree viewed the valley from its mountaintop and said, "I don't want to be made into anything. I just want to remain here and grow tall so I can remind people to raise their eyes and think of God in heaven who loves them so much."
Years passed and the trees grew tall and mighty. Then one day three woodcutters climbed the mountain in order to harvest some trees. As they cut down the first tree one of the men said, "We will make this one into a manger." The tree shook its branches in protest; it did not want to become a feed box for animals. It had grander ideas for its beauty. But the woodcutters made it into a manger and sold it to an innkeeper in a small town called Bethlehem. When the Lord Jesus was born, he was placed in that manger. Suddenly the first tree realized it was cradling the greatest treasure the world had ever seen. As the woodcutters cut down the second tree they said, "We will make this into a fishing boat." The tree shook its branches in protest; it did not want to become a simple fishing boat. The woodcutters did as they planned and a man named Simon Peter bought it. When the Lord Jesus needed a place from which to address the crowds that were pressing upon him, he got into the little fishing boat and proclaimed the good news. The second tree suddenly realized it was carrying the most precious cargo, the King of heaven and earth.
The woodcutters then came to the third tree and said, "The Romans are paying good money these days for wooden beams for their crosses. We will cut this tree into beams for a cross." The tree protested so hard that its leaves began to shake and then fall onto the ground, but it was cut down, nonetheless, and made into beams. One Friday morning, the third tree was startled when its beams were taken from a woodpile and shoved onto the shoulders of a man. The tree flinched when soldiers nailed the man's hands to the wood; the tree felt shamed and humiliated. But early on Sunday morning, as the dawn appeared, the earth trembled with joy beneath the tree. The tree knew that the Lord of all the earth had been crucified on its cross, but now God's love had changed everything. The cross from that third tree stands tall to remind people to raise their eyes and think of the God in heaven who loves them. Did you notice, how in each case, being cut down was the price that was paid for entering into God's glory?
Our journey of Holy Week has reached a critical point. Today we commemorate an event, which on the surface is filled with remorse and sadness, as the Savior of the world, Jesus Christ, is put to death by angry men. What had Jesus done that was so onerous that it led to his crucifixion? The answer is that Jesus had done nothing that would merit such punishment, yet in obedience to the Father's will, he was cut down in the prime of life, as the one acceptable sacrifice for the salvation of all humankind. We must understand that if we truly wish to follow in the footsteps of the Master there will be a measure of dying along the way. Jesus says it so plainly: "Very truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls in the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. Those who love their life lose it, and those who hate their life in the world will keep it for eternal life" (John 12:24--25).
The price that must be paid to find the glory of God is to a large extent not what we want or are often willing to pay; we must be open to what is not expected and what we would rather avoid. We must be willing to suffer. But people today ask why should one suffer? Why would anyone willingly pay the price of the trees so as to enter into God's glory? We hear an answer in the gospel we have heard proclaimed. In Saint John's portrayal of the crucifixion, the high point and greatest achievement of Christ's life, is his death on the cross. Contrary to what most might see, namely the resurrection as Jesus' greatest triumph, Saint John sees the suffering Christ as the epitome of the Christian call. Jesus not only goes to the cross willingly, as depicted by the synoptic evangelists, he finds his greatest exaltation in his willingness to sacrifice his own desires and needs for the betterment of all. Jesus finds his glory in being cut down for all. If we wish to be true disciples, then we must follow, fully. If we believe that Jesus' death is salvific, then to follow his lead will assist us along our journey home. Yet, many are unwilling to suffer. Obviously, no one seeks to bring pain upon oneself, but the question remains - do we avoid such pain at all costs; do we run and hide from its manifestations? Or, can we realize that the road may be difficult, but for those who hold out, the greatest of all treasures, eternal life with God will be the reward? G. K. Chesterton summarized the dilemma in 1910 when he wrote, "The Christian ideal has not been tried and found wanting. It has been found difficult and left untried."
Jesus used his gift of free will to carry the cross of others and in the process set them free from all their burdens. We must be willing to do the same. Almost every day God provides opportunities for us to assist others to carry their burdens. In our lives we encounter people who are terribly burdened. It may be a youth who needs more than our assistance in the academic realm, but wants a person to listen and possibly offer a word of advice about the many things young people deal with these days. The cross we lighten might be showing others the need to release the baggage that they carry from past hurts, and telling them that holding onto grudges and bad memories does nothing to punish those who caused the problem, but only hurts those who carry the burden today. We may even be able to assist a member of our family, a close friend, or a colleague at work, to shoulder the burden of ill health, to meet the challenges associated with various problematic neighborhood situations, or even reconciling differences between ourselves and others.
The price to pay as a disciple of Christ is high - in fact, if we follow well, it will cost us our whole lives. Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the famous Lutheran pastor and theologian, wrote in The Cost of Discipleship, a book that has been influential to many, "When Christ calls a man, he bids that man to come and die." Bonhoeffer lived his Christian call to holiness without counting the cost, and he did what God asked of him without qualification, reservation, or question. He did not look over his shoulder and wonder why, but rather, he lived what he wrote, for his call to discipleship cost him his life. Staying one step ahead of the Nazis, Bonhoeffer courageously maintained an underground seminary and wrote in opposition to Hitler's regime and his ideology of anti--Semitism. In the end, he was incarcerated and executed on April 9, 1945, only days before the allied liberation of his concentration camp.
God will always be with us to assist and encourage, especially when things get rough and the path is often obscured and even invisible. Today, a day of remembrance for how our inattention and sinfulness has been hurtful to the Lord, is also a day when we see that it is only through the suffering of life that we will find the eternal reward we seek. However, we must have complete trust and confidence in the Lord. We can trust the Lord, and willingly use our free will to accept Jesus' invitation and to suffer for the good of the world. If we have any doubt that this is true, picture this image: It is a hot, beautiful summer day, and a little girl stands on the edge of a large swimming pool. She looks out at the shimmering water and her eyes well up with tears. She is afraid because she does not know how to swim. Then, she raises her eyes, looks out and sees her mom, with her arms outstretched. Mom says, "Go ahead, jump in, there is nothing to fear; I will hold you up." In a similar way, my friends, Jesus has his arms outstretched on the cross and he says to all of us, "Go ahead, take a chance, shoulder the burden of others. I will hold you up; I will bring you to eternal life."
Years passed and the trees grew tall and mighty. Then one day three woodcutters climbed the mountain in order to harvest some trees. As they cut down the first tree one of the men said, "We will make this one into a manger." The tree shook its branches in protest; it did not want to become a feed box for animals. It had grander ideas for its beauty. But the woodcutters made it into a manger and sold it to an innkeeper in a small town called Bethlehem. When the Lord Jesus was born, he was placed in that manger. Suddenly the first tree realized it was cradling the greatest treasure the world had ever seen. As the woodcutters cut down the second tree they said, "We will make this into a fishing boat." The tree shook its branches in protest; it did not want to become a simple fishing boat. The woodcutters did as they planned and a man named Simon Peter bought it. When the Lord Jesus needed a place from which to address the crowds that were pressing upon him, he got into the little fishing boat and proclaimed the good news. The second tree suddenly realized it was carrying the most precious cargo, the King of heaven and earth.
The woodcutters then came to the third tree and said, "The Romans are paying good money these days for wooden beams for their crosses. We will cut this tree into beams for a cross." The tree protested so hard that its leaves began to shake and then fall onto the ground, but it was cut down, nonetheless, and made into beams. One Friday morning, the third tree was startled when its beams were taken from a woodpile and shoved onto the shoulders of a man. The tree flinched when soldiers nailed the man's hands to the wood; the tree felt shamed and humiliated. But early on Sunday morning, as the dawn appeared, the earth trembled with joy beneath the tree. The tree knew that the Lord of all the earth had been crucified on its cross, but now God's love had changed everything. The cross from that third tree stands tall to remind people to raise their eyes and think of the God in heaven who loves them. Did you notice, how in each case, being cut down was the price that was paid for entering into God's glory?
Our journey of Holy Week has reached a critical point. Today we commemorate an event, which on the surface is filled with remorse and sadness, as the Savior of the world, Jesus Christ, is put to death by angry men. What had Jesus done that was so onerous that it led to his crucifixion? The answer is that Jesus had done nothing that would merit such punishment, yet in obedience to the Father's will, he was cut down in the prime of life, as the one acceptable sacrifice for the salvation of all humankind. We must understand that if we truly wish to follow in the footsteps of the Master there will be a measure of dying along the way. Jesus says it so plainly: "Very truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls in the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. Those who love their life lose it, and those who hate their life in the world will keep it for eternal life" (John 12:24--25).
The price that must be paid to find the glory of God is to a large extent not what we want or are often willing to pay; we must be open to what is not expected and what we would rather avoid. We must be willing to suffer. But people today ask why should one suffer? Why would anyone willingly pay the price of the trees so as to enter into God's glory? We hear an answer in the gospel we have heard proclaimed. In Saint John's portrayal of the crucifixion, the high point and greatest achievement of Christ's life, is his death on the cross. Contrary to what most might see, namely the resurrection as Jesus' greatest triumph, Saint John sees the suffering Christ as the epitome of the Christian call. Jesus not only goes to the cross willingly, as depicted by the synoptic evangelists, he finds his greatest exaltation in his willingness to sacrifice his own desires and needs for the betterment of all. Jesus finds his glory in being cut down for all. If we wish to be true disciples, then we must follow, fully. If we believe that Jesus' death is salvific, then to follow his lead will assist us along our journey home. Yet, many are unwilling to suffer. Obviously, no one seeks to bring pain upon oneself, but the question remains - do we avoid such pain at all costs; do we run and hide from its manifestations? Or, can we realize that the road may be difficult, but for those who hold out, the greatest of all treasures, eternal life with God will be the reward? G. K. Chesterton summarized the dilemma in 1910 when he wrote, "The Christian ideal has not been tried and found wanting. It has been found difficult and left untried."
Jesus used his gift of free will to carry the cross of others and in the process set them free from all their burdens. We must be willing to do the same. Almost every day God provides opportunities for us to assist others to carry their burdens. In our lives we encounter people who are terribly burdened. It may be a youth who needs more than our assistance in the academic realm, but wants a person to listen and possibly offer a word of advice about the many things young people deal with these days. The cross we lighten might be showing others the need to release the baggage that they carry from past hurts, and telling them that holding onto grudges and bad memories does nothing to punish those who caused the problem, but only hurts those who carry the burden today. We may even be able to assist a member of our family, a close friend, or a colleague at work, to shoulder the burden of ill health, to meet the challenges associated with various problematic neighborhood situations, or even reconciling differences between ourselves and others.
The price to pay as a disciple of Christ is high - in fact, if we follow well, it will cost us our whole lives. Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the famous Lutheran pastor and theologian, wrote in The Cost of Discipleship, a book that has been influential to many, "When Christ calls a man, he bids that man to come and die." Bonhoeffer lived his Christian call to holiness without counting the cost, and he did what God asked of him without qualification, reservation, or question. He did not look over his shoulder and wonder why, but rather, he lived what he wrote, for his call to discipleship cost him his life. Staying one step ahead of the Nazis, Bonhoeffer courageously maintained an underground seminary and wrote in opposition to Hitler's regime and his ideology of anti--Semitism. In the end, he was incarcerated and executed on April 9, 1945, only days before the allied liberation of his concentration camp.
God will always be with us to assist and encourage, especially when things get rough and the path is often obscured and even invisible. Today, a day of remembrance for how our inattention and sinfulness has been hurtful to the Lord, is also a day when we see that it is only through the suffering of life that we will find the eternal reward we seek. However, we must have complete trust and confidence in the Lord. We can trust the Lord, and willingly use our free will to accept Jesus' invitation and to suffer for the good of the world. If we have any doubt that this is true, picture this image: It is a hot, beautiful summer day, and a little girl stands on the edge of a large swimming pool. She looks out at the shimmering water and her eyes well up with tears. She is afraid because she does not know how to swim. Then, she raises her eyes, looks out and sees her mom, with her arms outstretched. Mom says, "Go ahead, jump in, there is nothing to fear; I will hold you up." In a similar way, my friends, Jesus has his arms outstretched on the cross and he says to all of us, "Go ahead, take a chance, shoulder the burden of others. I will hold you up; I will bring you to eternal life."
