A Sense of Place
Sermon
A Fine Gospel for Preaching
Cycle B Gospel Text Sermons for Pentecost Last Third
Object:
Novelist William Faulkner only knew about 100 square miles of rural Mississippi but he made it fascinating in his stories. Impressionist Claude Monet painted his backyard garden and rose to international acclaim. Indeed, the most interesting people of any generation have a sense of place. I call it roots and wings. A secure place from whence one springs -- roots. And the freedom to soar in exploration, wonder, and experimentation -- wings.
The trouble today is a generation by and large uprooted, unsettled, and afraid to try. For ours is a day that knows the price of everything and the value of nothing. We wolf down fast food without tasting, watch without feeling, and hurry on while neither seeing nor hearing.
Looking for Place
In the text, James and John are looking for place and they come to Jesus to make their desires known.
"Grant, Lord, that in your coming kingdom one of us sits on your right and the other on your left."
In ancient days a king sat upon a throne. To his left and right stood two secretaries. The left side administrator undertook all penalties, punishments, and executions meted out by the king. The right side assistant saw that all the king's rewards were recorded and properly handed out. So clearly James and John wanted a place for themselves in glory, in the middle of things, or as we say, where the action is!
They were ambitious. They desired authority. They wanted to be noticed, to leave their mark upon time.
Jesus answered their petition rather quizzically. "Oh, you want these two seats, do you? And you think you're ready for this?"
"Yes," they answered him.
"Can you drink the cup I shall drink? Are you ready to be baptized with the baptism wherein I shall be baptized?"
"Of course," they replied in their naïve, over-weaned opinion of themselves.
"Okay," Jesus agreed, "you will indeed drink this cup and be baptized in my baptism." He spoke of his shame, his own rejection, his crucifixion and death -- the crucible through which all disciples must pass.
"But," Jesus interjected, "the two seats you desire are not mine to give. They belong to God. They are his to decide."
Self-Surrender
When I was a teenager I imagined what my life would be. I made a list of the type of jobs I would work, the pay, the cars I'd drive, places I'd frequent, and the houses I'd live in. I went on to list the revivals I'd begin, the books I'd write, and the culture I'd sway. I even wrote down all I expected out of a wife, children, friendships, and family.
This is the list I presented to God for his agreement and blessing.
Do you know what he did? He took my list in his hands, smiled at what I had written, and tore it up.
Then he pulled out a fresh sheet of paper, handed it to me, and asked me to sign it myself at the bottom.
It was my ultimate crisis, one of self-surrender. To sign my name to a blank sheet of paper, to trust God to fill in what he wanted my life to be was a colossal act of trust on my part. That is exactly what God asked of me and that is what I did.
Servanthood
Now enter the other ten apostles. They quickly hear what James and John are asking of Jesus and they become indignant.
"These two clowns are trying to steal a march on us!" they fume.
Then Jesus begins to speak to all twelve. "You know how in the world the Gentiles like to lord it over others…"
Indeed. Titles, pomp, honors, limousines. Why, in Africa the culture is such that the nation's king is the "Big Man." He is expected to live large. So the leader has five palaces, he takes all the revenue from the mines himself, he never builds a school or a hospital or the economy. He simply lolls aboard his yacht, cruising his nation's rivers, and brutally crushing any critics.
When I was the pastor of a large, thriving church, a well-meaning deacon put a sign in the parking lot's best space, "Reserved for the Senior Pastor." I pulled it up and threw it away telling the staff we should park in the most distant lot and walk in with the rest of the people. We are not here to be served but to serve.
When I preached two weeks in Belarus it was obvious the church was dealing daily with poverty, persecution, and prison. Coming home to the United States it was a shock to see with fresh eyes that we were dealing with personality, popularity, and prosperity -- God help us!
Yes, "the Gentiles like to lord it over people." But Jesus said, "It shall not be so among you. But the greatest shall be a servant."
Bill Gothard defined a servant as someone who enjoys helping others succeed.
Think of it: The greatest deeds of human history were done for someone else.
Was Jonas Salk weak and crippled with polio when he discovered a vaccine to cure such an epidemic? No, he did it for somebody else.
Was Dr. Martin Luther King poor, living in the South, and powerless when he began the march for civil rights? No, he did it for somebody else.
Was Dr. Albert Schweitzer ignorant, sick, and without hope of Christ when he left Europe to establish a hospital in Lambrini, Africa? No, he did it for somebody else.
Was Jesus Christ a hopeless sinner when he left heaven and was incarnate of the virgin Mary, grew up to take on the task of a suffering servant, and died for sin upon the cross?
No, he did it for somebody else.
For me. For you and you and you… We are the somebody else! And now we are his servants.
Conclusion
I was sitting in a staff meeting of the church. You know, mostly overworked, underpaid, under-appreciated men and women. One young pastor was so overstressed with the weight of the parish and all that was expected of him that he blurted out, "What am I supposed to be, their servant?"
Exactly. In your job. In your country. At home. For your spouse, your children, your neighbor, the stranger in your midst.
Jesus Christ… for somebody else.
Suggested Prayer
Father, give me your heart to feel, your eyes to see, and your hands to serve. Amen.
The trouble today is a generation by and large uprooted, unsettled, and afraid to try. For ours is a day that knows the price of everything and the value of nothing. We wolf down fast food without tasting, watch without feeling, and hurry on while neither seeing nor hearing.
Looking for Place
In the text, James and John are looking for place and they come to Jesus to make their desires known.
"Grant, Lord, that in your coming kingdom one of us sits on your right and the other on your left."
In ancient days a king sat upon a throne. To his left and right stood two secretaries. The left side administrator undertook all penalties, punishments, and executions meted out by the king. The right side assistant saw that all the king's rewards were recorded and properly handed out. So clearly James and John wanted a place for themselves in glory, in the middle of things, or as we say, where the action is!
They were ambitious. They desired authority. They wanted to be noticed, to leave their mark upon time.
Jesus answered their petition rather quizzically. "Oh, you want these two seats, do you? And you think you're ready for this?"
"Yes," they answered him.
"Can you drink the cup I shall drink? Are you ready to be baptized with the baptism wherein I shall be baptized?"
"Of course," they replied in their naïve, over-weaned opinion of themselves.
"Okay," Jesus agreed, "you will indeed drink this cup and be baptized in my baptism." He spoke of his shame, his own rejection, his crucifixion and death -- the crucible through which all disciples must pass.
"But," Jesus interjected, "the two seats you desire are not mine to give. They belong to God. They are his to decide."
Self-Surrender
When I was a teenager I imagined what my life would be. I made a list of the type of jobs I would work, the pay, the cars I'd drive, places I'd frequent, and the houses I'd live in. I went on to list the revivals I'd begin, the books I'd write, and the culture I'd sway. I even wrote down all I expected out of a wife, children, friendships, and family.
This is the list I presented to God for his agreement and blessing.
Do you know what he did? He took my list in his hands, smiled at what I had written, and tore it up.
Then he pulled out a fresh sheet of paper, handed it to me, and asked me to sign it myself at the bottom.
It was my ultimate crisis, one of self-surrender. To sign my name to a blank sheet of paper, to trust God to fill in what he wanted my life to be was a colossal act of trust on my part. That is exactly what God asked of me and that is what I did.
Servanthood
Now enter the other ten apostles. They quickly hear what James and John are asking of Jesus and they become indignant.
"These two clowns are trying to steal a march on us!" they fume.
Then Jesus begins to speak to all twelve. "You know how in the world the Gentiles like to lord it over others…"
Indeed. Titles, pomp, honors, limousines. Why, in Africa the culture is such that the nation's king is the "Big Man." He is expected to live large. So the leader has five palaces, he takes all the revenue from the mines himself, he never builds a school or a hospital or the economy. He simply lolls aboard his yacht, cruising his nation's rivers, and brutally crushing any critics.
When I was the pastor of a large, thriving church, a well-meaning deacon put a sign in the parking lot's best space, "Reserved for the Senior Pastor." I pulled it up and threw it away telling the staff we should park in the most distant lot and walk in with the rest of the people. We are not here to be served but to serve.
When I preached two weeks in Belarus it was obvious the church was dealing daily with poverty, persecution, and prison. Coming home to the United States it was a shock to see with fresh eyes that we were dealing with personality, popularity, and prosperity -- God help us!
Yes, "the Gentiles like to lord it over people." But Jesus said, "It shall not be so among you. But the greatest shall be a servant."
Bill Gothard defined a servant as someone who enjoys helping others succeed.
Think of it: The greatest deeds of human history were done for someone else.
Was Jonas Salk weak and crippled with polio when he discovered a vaccine to cure such an epidemic? No, he did it for somebody else.
Was Dr. Martin Luther King poor, living in the South, and powerless when he began the march for civil rights? No, he did it for somebody else.
Was Dr. Albert Schweitzer ignorant, sick, and without hope of Christ when he left Europe to establish a hospital in Lambrini, Africa? No, he did it for somebody else.
Was Jesus Christ a hopeless sinner when he left heaven and was incarnate of the virgin Mary, grew up to take on the task of a suffering servant, and died for sin upon the cross?
No, he did it for somebody else.
For me. For you and you and you… We are the somebody else! And now we are his servants.
Conclusion
I was sitting in a staff meeting of the church. You know, mostly overworked, underpaid, under-appreciated men and women. One young pastor was so overstressed with the weight of the parish and all that was expected of him that he blurted out, "What am I supposed to be, their servant?"
Exactly. In your job. In your country. At home. For your spouse, your children, your neighbor, the stranger in your midst.
Jesus Christ… for somebody else.
Suggested Prayer
Father, give me your heart to feel, your eyes to see, and your hands to serve. Amen.
