Symbols Of Hope And Reality
Sermon
Ashes To Ascension
Second Lesson Sermons For Lent/Easter
We are about to embark on Holy Week. A period of time that will allow us to walk where Jesus walked. A time when we will go from the Upper Room through the Via Dolorosa to Golgotha and to the gravesite on Easter morning. We hope, during this journey, to gain insight to the heart and mind of Christ. How fortunate if we could gain some insight to Jesus' compassion, love, and grace, and to his self-giving creating in us something of the mind of Christ.
The form that Paul uses in our text is a hymn. It is not certain whether Paul composed it or if it is one already known by the Philippian Church. Craddock points out that the majority opinion is that Paul is quoting a hymn which arose in another context to address another problem, perhaps a christological question. It was not uncommon to quote from such a hymn from a common source of material used for worship in the Gentile churches. "It is a hymn that expresses the Christ story in movements: pre-existence, existence, and post-existence" (Fred Craddock, Philippians, John Knox Press, p. 40). By quoting this hymn, the church is reminded of the event that created and defined their life together. The apostle is saying to the congregation that in their life together they need to think this way, "Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus" (v. 5).
Many scholars feel that this is the most moving passage that Paul ever wrote about Jesus. His desire was for this congregation to capture the essence of the life of Christ. He wanted them to shed their personal ambitions of power and position, and humble themselves, gaining a selfless desire to serve as he set forth for them the example of Christ. He wrote this passage so that they would lay aside all discord, personal ambitions, and pride, and live in harmony by becoming Christlike. He points out that Christ had taken the initiative: "And being found in human form, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death -- even death on a cross" (v. 8).
The Ordinariness Of God
As we make this journey during Holy Week, one thing that will stand out in the life of Jesus is that he was "being found in human form" (v. 7b). There was an ordinariness about that life of Christ that we find difficult. In Christ, God becomes so near and ordinary "being found in human form." This is exactly why the hometown folks in Mark 6 had such difficulty in accepting Jesus as Messiah. He was too much like them. If this was God, then God was too down-to-earth. The town folks spoke up, saying, "We know who he is. He is not fooling us. He is the carpenter's son. That is Joseph's boy." This meant that he was from the side streets of Nazareth. He was from the industrial park area where he lived over the carpenter shop with his family. Immediately, this brings to mind train tracks, warehouses, cement mixers, asphalt plants, signs, and billboards. The folks of Nazareth said among themselves, "He is from the lower order. What does he know?"
You see, they had the facts on him. They knew his origins, his family, his name, and his occupation. There are those who, knowing the origin of someone, are convinced they understand all there is to know about that person. They are convinced that people from certain locations, families, races, cultures, or backgrounds are all alike and that no one of any importance can come from those kinds of roots. We have heard it all before, haven't we? As far as Jesus is concerned, they had the facts on him, but they did not really know him.
That day in Nazareth they stumbled over the truth because it appeared so ordinary, so obvious and familiar. Fred Craddock tells how, upon the death of a saint, those who visited his home after his death were surprised to find a broom, detergents, trash cans, old newspapers, an ironing board, dirty dishes, a worn sweater, toilet tissue, a can of tuna, Sweet and Low, and utility bills. With astonishment they gasped, "He was just like us!" How hard it is for us to realize that liberation comes to us on limping, human feet! It is hard for us to realize that God's presence among us is to be "found in human form."
The Need For A Sign
Holy Week is a time for us to enter into the life of Christ more deeply. Not only to remember his "being found in human form," but to capture the essence of the life of Christ and to see how he shed any desires for personal power and position, humbling himself to become the selfless servant of others. We must remember how essential it is for us to have this "same mind in you (us) that was in Christ Jesus" (v. 5), so that we, like the Philippians, will lay aside our discord and pride and live in harmony by becoming Christ-like. From the experiences of Holy Week, especially Maundy Thursday and Good Friday, we are left with vivid and rich symbols of hope and reality that will greatly help us in our desire to allow the mind of Christ to be in us.
Jesus etched some things indelibly upon our minds. He knew that he would be arrested and betrayed and that his friends would be scattered. After all that had happened how could he help them to remember his life and his death and what it all meant? How could they remember who they were called to be? A sign was needed that they could incorporate into their daily schedule. That evening in the Upper Room he took bread because it was so common. It was shared and eaten every day. He broke it, and while he shared it with his disciples he said, "Remember me when you share bread." He wanted them to remember every day at mealtime when they took the bread and broke it, to be reminded of his body which was broken for them. Then he took the cup of wine saying, "This cup which is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood."
Bread And Wine
Think of the lowliness and humbleness that are reflected in these two symbols. Their appropriateness are seen in the words of the prophet, "he had no form or majesty" (Isaiah 53:2b). The symbols that Jesus presented to his disciples in the Upper Room were not monuments in stone, no massive shrine, but merely bread and wine. Consider how commonplace they are -- they link Jesus with every home. Consider their appropriateness. The bread comes from the seed that died to live, and the wine was wrung from the winepress. People will quarrel over creeds and doctrines, but who could quarrel over bread and wine? By taking the bread and wine we have an opportunity to transcend our differences and discover our unity in Jesus Christ as our Lord. I was pastor of a United Methodist church in Miami that was a multiracial and multicultural congregation. Not everyone spoke English. Because of our history of depending on verbal communication, basically English, many people could not understand or participate in the service. Many felt awkward and strange. When we decided to celebrate the sacrament at every service, we immediately communicated, and all were able to participate. When each person took in his or her hands the bread and the cup, it communicated in a very dramatic and vivid way the presence of Jesus Christ among us. Our cultural and racial differences sought to divide us, but our sharing together in the body of Christ united us. The sacrament of the bread and cup provided for us a non-verbal means of communication that was powerful.
The Towel And Basin
Jesus gave us the sign of the towel and basin. Just after the feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that the end was near and knowing that he had come from God and was going to go to God, he got up from supper and laid aside his garments. He then girded himself with a towel and took a basin and filled it with water. He proceeded to wash the disciples' feet and wipe them with a towel. Notice the sequence of events here. It was just after the disciples had a quarrel as to which of them was the greatest. Think how Jesus must have felt. He was facing Jerusalem, and the cross was imminent, and his disciples were arguing about who was the greatest. Dramatically, he takes a basin full of water and washes the disciples' feet. Jesus declared that the greatest of all is the servant of all, and he said, "I am in the midst of you as one who serves."
It appears that in the chronology of the synoptic gospels this event took place immediately following the Lord's Supper. They were still under the spell of Jesus' words and actions at the table as they were sharing the cup and loaf together. But the mood was rudely broken. Jesus moved swiftly from the table to the towel and the basin. It tells us the kind of Lord we worship and serve. Jesus dramatically brought together faith and ethics, belief and behavior, piety and service, prayer and action, devotion and duty. After the moment of worship and inspiration, it became the time to take the basin and the towel and put faith into action.
Are you aware of the dynamic that is taking place here? Jesus went straight from the table that is the symbol of his sacrifice for us to the towel and basin that is the symbol of our sacrificial service in his name to others. He saw nothing incongruous in passing from the solemn breaking of bread and the pouring of wine to the towel and basin, from instituting the sacrament of his body and blood to scrubbing the dirty feet of the disciples. Jesus has left us the symbol of a towel and basin so as to remind us that he came among us as a humble servant, to give his life as a ransom for many. If "the same mind is in us that is in Christ Jesus," then our lives are committed to practical, humble, and costly service to one another.
The Cross
The third symbol, the cross, was not chosen by Jesus, but forced upon him by those who sought to destroy him. The cross is the "emblem of suffering and shame." How scandalous that this is the place where the Son of God is to end his life. At the cross on Good Friday, the world thought that it was done with this Jesus of Nazareth. The cross even appeared to his disciples and closest friends as the end of everything.
Hans Kung, the Catholic theologian, points out that anyone who thinks that all religions and their "founders" are alike will see the difference which appears if one compares the death of such men. Buddha died at the age of eighty, peacefully, surrounded by his disciples. Confucius returned in his old age to Lu, spending the last years of his life editing the ancient manuscript writings of his people. Muhammad, after enjoying his last years as political ruler of Arabia, died in the midst of his harem in the arms of his favorite wife. Jesus is a young man of 33, who after a brief span of three years of public ministry is expelled from society. He is forsaken by his disciples, mocked and ridiculed by his opponents, abandoned by his closest friends, even by God. He goes through a ritual of death that is one of the most atrocious and enigmatic ever invented by man's ingenious cruelty. His death is described briefly and with staggering simplicity: "Then Jesus cried again with a loud voice and breathed his last" (Matthew 27:50).
How incredible that Jesus would go from angels announcing his birth from on high to shepherds and wise men, to the time of the Spirit of God descending upon him at the time of his baptism, to the confession of Peter at Caesarea, to Philip confessing to him, "You are Christ, the son of the living God" and to the "Hosannas" from the crowds on Palm Sunday to death on a despised cross erected on a lonely and barren hill called Golgotha, the place of the skull, where he cried alone, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" (Matthew 27:46). The cross is the emblem of God's love and hope for a dying world.
Jesus has left us these three vivid symbols which speak to us of the reality of his life. The cup and the loaf, the towel and the basin, and the cross have a special meaning to us on this Passion Sunday because we are entering Holy Week. This week we will experience the reality of these symbols in a very dramatic way as we participate in Maundy Thursday and Good Friday. May they become for us symbols of hope and reality.
The form that Paul uses in our text is a hymn. It is not certain whether Paul composed it or if it is one already known by the Philippian Church. Craddock points out that the majority opinion is that Paul is quoting a hymn which arose in another context to address another problem, perhaps a christological question. It was not uncommon to quote from such a hymn from a common source of material used for worship in the Gentile churches. "It is a hymn that expresses the Christ story in movements: pre-existence, existence, and post-existence" (Fred Craddock, Philippians, John Knox Press, p. 40). By quoting this hymn, the church is reminded of the event that created and defined their life together. The apostle is saying to the congregation that in their life together they need to think this way, "Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus" (v. 5).
Many scholars feel that this is the most moving passage that Paul ever wrote about Jesus. His desire was for this congregation to capture the essence of the life of Christ. He wanted them to shed their personal ambitions of power and position, and humble themselves, gaining a selfless desire to serve as he set forth for them the example of Christ. He wrote this passage so that they would lay aside all discord, personal ambitions, and pride, and live in harmony by becoming Christlike. He points out that Christ had taken the initiative: "And being found in human form, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death -- even death on a cross" (v. 8).
The Ordinariness Of God
As we make this journey during Holy Week, one thing that will stand out in the life of Jesus is that he was "being found in human form" (v. 7b). There was an ordinariness about that life of Christ that we find difficult. In Christ, God becomes so near and ordinary "being found in human form." This is exactly why the hometown folks in Mark 6 had such difficulty in accepting Jesus as Messiah. He was too much like them. If this was God, then God was too down-to-earth. The town folks spoke up, saying, "We know who he is. He is not fooling us. He is the carpenter's son. That is Joseph's boy." This meant that he was from the side streets of Nazareth. He was from the industrial park area where he lived over the carpenter shop with his family. Immediately, this brings to mind train tracks, warehouses, cement mixers, asphalt plants, signs, and billboards. The folks of Nazareth said among themselves, "He is from the lower order. What does he know?"
You see, they had the facts on him. They knew his origins, his family, his name, and his occupation. There are those who, knowing the origin of someone, are convinced they understand all there is to know about that person. They are convinced that people from certain locations, families, races, cultures, or backgrounds are all alike and that no one of any importance can come from those kinds of roots. We have heard it all before, haven't we? As far as Jesus is concerned, they had the facts on him, but they did not really know him.
That day in Nazareth they stumbled over the truth because it appeared so ordinary, so obvious and familiar. Fred Craddock tells how, upon the death of a saint, those who visited his home after his death were surprised to find a broom, detergents, trash cans, old newspapers, an ironing board, dirty dishes, a worn sweater, toilet tissue, a can of tuna, Sweet and Low, and utility bills. With astonishment they gasped, "He was just like us!" How hard it is for us to realize that liberation comes to us on limping, human feet! It is hard for us to realize that God's presence among us is to be "found in human form."
The Need For A Sign
Holy Week is a time for us to enter into the life of Christ more deeply. Not only to remember his "being found in human form," but to capture the essence of the life of Christ and to see how he shed any desires for personal power and position, humbling himself to become the selfless servant of others. We must remember how essential it is for us to have this "same mind in you (us) that was in Christ Jesus" (v. 5), so that we, like the Philippians, will lay aside our discord and pride and live in harmony by becoming Christ-like. From the experiences of Holy Week, especially Maundy Thursday and Good Friday, we are left with vivid and rich symbols of hope and reality that will greatly help us in our desire to allow the mind of Christ to be in us.
Jesus etched some things indelibly upon our minds. He knew that he would be arrested and betrayed and that his friends would be scattered. After all that had happened how could he help them to remember his life and his death and what it all meant? How could they remember who they were called to be? A sign was needed that they could incorporate into their daily schedule. That evening in the Upper Room he took bread because it was so common. It was shared and eaten every day. He broke it, and while he shared it with his disciples he said, "Remember me when you share bread." He wanted them to remember every day at mealtime when they took the bread and broke it, to be reminded of his body which was broken for them. Then he took the cup of wine saying, "This cup which is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood."
Bread And Wine
Think of the lowliness and humbleness that are reflected in these two symbols. Their appropriateness are seen in the words of the prophet, "he had no form or majesty" (Isaiah 53:2b). The symbols that Jesus presented to his disciples in the Upper Room were not monuments in stone, no massive shrine, but merely bread and wine. Consider how commonplace they are -- they link Jesus with every home. Consider their appropriateness. The bread comes from the seed that died to live, and the wine was wrung from the winepress. People will quarrel over creeds and doctrines, but who could quarrel over bread and wine? By taking the bread and wine we have an opportunity to transcend our differences and discover our unity in Jesus Christ as our Lord. I was pastor of a United Methodist church in Miami that was a multiracial and multicultural congregation. Not everyone spoke English. Because of our history of depending on verbal communication, basically English, many people could not understand or participate in the service. Many felt awkward and strange. When we decided to celebrate the sacrament at every service, we immediately communicated, and all were able to participate. When each person took in his or her hands the bread and the cup, it communicated in a very dramatic and vivid way the presence of Jesus Christ among us. Our cultural and racial differences sought to divide us, but our sharing together in the body of Christ united us. The sacrament of the bread and cup provided for us a non-verbal means of communication that was powerful.
The Towel And Basin
Jesus gave us the sign of the towel and basin. Just after the feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that the end was near and knowing that he had come from God and was going to go to God, he got up from supper and laid aside his garments. He then girded himself with a towel and took a basin and filled it with water. He proceeded to wash the disciples' feet and wipe them with a towel. Notice the sequence of events here. It was just after the disciples had a quarrel as to which of them was the greatest. Think how Jesus must have felt. He was facing Jerusalem, and the cross was imminent, and his disciples were arguing about who was the greatest. Dramatically, he takes a basin full of water and washes the disciples' feet. Jesus declared that the greatest of all is the servant of all, and he said, "I am in the midst of you as one who serves."
It appears that in the chronology of the synoptic gospels this event took place immediately following the Lord's Supper. They were still under the spell of Jesus' words and actions at the table as they were sharing the cup and loaf together. But the mood was rudely broken. Jesus moved swiftly from the table to the towel and the basin. It tells us the kind of Lord we worship and serve. Jesus dramatically brought together faith and ethics, belief and behavior, piety and service, prayer and action, devotion and duty. After the moment of worship and inspiration, it became the time to take the basin and the towel and put faith into action.
Are you aware of the dynamic that is taking place here? Jesus went straight from the table that is the symbol of his sacrifice for us to the towel and basin that is the symbol of our sacrificial service in his name to others. He saw nothing incongruous in passing from the solemn breaking of bread and the pouring of wine to the towel and basin, from instituting the sacrament of his body and blood to scrubbing the dirty feet of the disciples. Jesus has left us the symbol of a towel and basin so as to remind us that he came among us as a humble servant, to give his life as a ransom for many. If "the same mind is in us that is in Christ Jesus," then our lives are committed to practical, humble, and costly service to one another.
The Cross
The third symbol, the cross, was not chosen by Jesus, but forced upon him by those who sought to destroy him. The cross is the "emblem of suffering and shame." How scandalous that this is the place where the Son of God is to end his life. At the cross on Good Friday, the world thought that it was done with this Jesus of Nazareth. The cross even appeared to his disciples and closest friends as the end of everything.
Hans Kung, the Catholic theologian, points out that anyone who thinks that all religions and their "founders" are alike will see the difference which appears if one compares the death of such men. Buddha died at the age of eighty, peacefully, surrounded by his disciples. Confucius returned in his old age to Lu, spending the last years of his life editing the ancient manuscript writings of his people. Muhammad, after enjoying his last years as political ruler of Arabia, died in the midst of his harem in the arms of his favorite wife. Jesus is a young man of 33, who after a brief span of three years of public ministry is expelled from society. He is forsaken by his disciples, mocked and ridiculed by his opponents, abandoned by his closest friends, even by God. He goes through a ritual of death that is one of the most atrocious and enigmatic ever invented by man's ingenious cruelty. His death is described briefly and with staggering simplicity: "Then Jesus cried again with a loud voice and breathed his last" (Matthew 27:50).
How incredible that Jesus would go from angels announcing his birth from on high to shepherds and wise men, to the time of the Spirit of God descending upon him at the time of his baptism, to the confession of Peter at Caesarea, to Philip confessing to him, "You are Christ, the son of the living God" and to the "Hosannas" from the crowds on Palm Sunday to death on a despised cross erected on a lonely and barren hill called Golgotha, the place of the skull, where he cried alone, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" (Matthew 27:46). The cross is the emblem of God's love and hope for a dying world.
Jesus has left us these three vivid symbols which speak to us of the reality of his life. The cup and the loaf, the towel and the basin, and the cross have a special meaning to us on this Passion Sunday because we are entering Holy Week. This week we will experience the reality of these symbols in a very dramatic way as we participate in Maundy Thursday and Good Friday. May they become for us symbols of hope and reality.
