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“Major Change Was Entering the World” Sermon Delivered By Rev. Dick Stetler – January
13, 2019 Centenary United Methodist Church Psalm
34:11-20; Luke 3:10-18 This morning we are going to explore the responses of John the
Baptist's listeners who were hearing his words along the banks of the
Jordan River. He was so
threatening that everyone from tax collectors to members of the Roman
military were asking John what they should do to change the direction of
their lives. John the Baptist gave them the answers they were
seeking. His answers were good ones, however, they differed widely from
the message that Jesus was delivering. Perhaps
this is one of the reasons why Jesus told his listeners, "John the
Baptist is greater than anyone who has ever lived.
However, the one who is least in
the Kingdom of God is greater
than John." (Matthew 11:11) Why would Jesus make such a comment about his
cousin? John was teaching people
what to do to change their responses.
Jesus was teaching people
how to be a presence.
Rather than being able to list
countless noble deeds, Jesus began teaching people how to be kind,
humble, and forgiving. One of my tasks earlier in my career was to take
ministerial candidates through a process before the Annual Conference
would grant its approval for their admittance as one of our future
pastors. I was one of a number of people who performed this task. I knew
that the ministry was among the easiest careers to become
a religious functionary but
among the most difficult careers to be effective in being
the presence of a
patient shepherd. We had to determine what motivated them to leave a
former profession. What caused their marriage to fail?
How attractive was it for them to know that, once they received a
church, their appointment came with free housing or a housing allowance
along with having many housing-expenses paid for by the congregation?
Were they seeking job security since the United
Methodist Church guarantees a pastoral appointment until their
retirement, unless issues surface in their ministry that would make
additional appointments impossible?
If we detected that they had motivations other than
serving the needs of people, we would reflect our observation in our
report to the Board of Ordained Ministry.
This process sounds judgmental but our directive was to explore
every aspect of who these people are that were seeking entrance into our
Annual Conference. John the Baptist was not the ideal presence that
would open doors for other people to God's love.
He frequently used his position to be a judge, jury, and
executioner. He insulted
and verbally attacked King Herod at every public opportunity. (Matthew
14:4) He was often judgmental of those who came to hear his message.
(Luke 3:7) John recognized
his unworthiness when he claimed that someone else was coming after him
that would be much greater than he. John said: I baptize you with water, but someone coming after
me will be much greater than I am.
He will baptize you by awakening
the Holy Spirit within you.
He will teach you how to separate
the
wheat from
its husks so that you can
gather the
wheat and store it in your
barn. (Luke 3:16f) John was using cryptic language to describe
metaphorically what this person coming would teach people to understand.
However, agricultural people understood what he was saying. As
challenging as it was for people to hear John's message, like today,
many people actually prefer the
husks that have no value over the better choice of gathering
the wheat. I have been keeping a mental record of the number
of times motor cyclists choose to stay behind me and the number of times
they feel compelled to pass me in spite of the speed I am traveling.
On one occasion I was on a stretch of clear road when I got my
speed up to 60 km/h to see what the cyclist behind me would do. He had
to pass me even though he would have to speed way over the limit to do
so. As it turned out, he turned
on another road less than a quarter mile later. The urge to pass other drivers is not
gender-specific. Women are every bit as aggressive as their
counterparts. I have roughly
calculated that for every one that chooses to stay behind me, there are
well over one hundred that feel compelled to pass in spite of the yellow
lines, the twists, and turns of Bermuda's narrow roads.
The driving habits of motor
cyclists in Bermuda is common knowledge among most of us. The practice of people clutching on to
husks while overlooking the
wheat could easily be spread
over many other areas of our lives.
Last week, we used the metaphor of quartz and diamonds to explain
the same conflict of what is showing up in our spirits by the choices we
make. Luke wrote that Jesus used a
winnowing fork or shovel to
separate the wheat from its husks.
The Gospels reveal that Jesus used another tool to separate human
behaviors from each other.
Jesus said to his listeners: Do not think that I have come to bring
peace. I have not come to
bring peace, but a sword.
I have come with a message that will pit people against one
another. Those who try to
control their lives by gaining acceptance or approval from others will
lose their lives. Those who give up trying to please others
because they are my followers, will gain everything in life that they
need. (Matthew 10:34f)
When we enter into the physical world, the greatest challenge for all of
us while growing up is how to avoid being seduced by the world's many
talented and gifted alternatives that become available to us.
Because newcomers often succeed in making the same mistakes as
those before them, it is critical that they be taught the freedom they
gain through their responses like forgiveness, kindness, and generosity. Most irritating, toxic, and venomous personalities
have evolved that way because of the spirit their choices have created
in them. The
sword Jesus brought was verbal.
His teachings made the choices for people very clear. When people honestly believe and feel that the
world is against them, the world is against them.
What convinces people that their
understanding is correct is a result of how they are defining
their experiences. The
world and its people could not care less how any of us feel or think.
There were other descriptive words that John the
Baptist used to define the one coming after him. He would bring a
different type of baptism that would awaken people's spiritual energy.
We do not need the word "Holy" or the word "baptism" to describe Jesus'
mission. In fact, there is
no reference in the Gospels that Jesus ever baptized anyone. The sword
that Jesus brought is a violent symbol.
The translators of these Gospel
references wanted readers to understand how different love is from fear,
how far generosity is from being miserly, how distant compassion is from
being judgmental, and how superior courtesy and kindness are from
hostility and rudeness. One Saturday I was on a retreat with people in my
church. During our lunch
break, a woman seated at my table began discussing various qualities of
her boss. Her comments grew
from the topic that had been chosen by our resource person for the
occasion. She said: The word that sums up the spirit of my boss is that
he is as nice as anyone I
have ever met. Every day,
all of us in the office can count on him being consistently
nice.
I just love him to pieces as we all do.
It is so refreshing to find someone who is supportive, caring,
and who offers ideas that motivate all of us to perform our tasks more
efficiently. I told her that her boss had found
the pearl of great price and
was using it in the office whether he realized it or not.
He was bringing a presence
that was positive, optimistic, kind, and relentless in its forgiving
nature. He overlooked
the flaws in people by
choosing to see their potential.
He understood that most people are still in the process of
maturing and are trying to make more choices that better serve
their own presence in life. Quite often during my life, more conservative
Christians have challenged me by saying, "Dick, you have boiled down
Christianity as a faith that describes
decent people." I answered,
"What else is there?" They
were often shocked at such a response. They ascribed to a lot of
theology that people have to accept to be saved. I reminded them
that Jesus taught nothing of the kind. I told them that if a person can
be nice consistently while serving others, they are living what Jesus
came to teach. Not happy with my simplicity, they labeled me as
a false teacher.
My consistent response was, "If
people have learned to love others as they love themselves, think of how
wonderful life would be on our planet."
They said that they would pray for me, which is a typical
response from people absolutely wedded to their beliefs and practices. I welcomed their prayers and reminded them that
Jesus' message was more about changing people's attitudes than about
developing a theology that would
insure their personal salvation.
(Matthew 23:2-3) In spite of what various Christians believe, our
task is to continue refining the
presence we present to others.
Let us all keep striving to make visible what
living in Heaven looks like
while we are still alive here to make a difference.
Loving God, you
created us to live with simplicity and we often appear driven toward
what makes life complicated.
You created us with a remarkable capacity for learning new ways
to order our lives, while we cling to old patterns of thinking.
You created us to find fulfillment by reaching new levels of
understanding, while we often choose to move toward goals that preserve
our comfort, security, and well-being.
Guide us to grow in trust that wherever our seeds bloom,
they will make the garden
more beautiful.
As new adventures come, spare us from finding contentment in
remaining as we are.
Amen. PASTORAL PRAYER We enjoy these moments, O God, because of what
they allow us to experience. Most of us realize that we do not take
enough time for healing and nurturing our spirits during the course of
our week.
There are so many
unrecognized needs that inflame our passions, siphon away our patience,
and cloud our vision of tomorrow.
For this one-hour there are no demands being made of us. There
are no vital decisions we need to make. We do not need to vent our
opinions about anything. We can doze if our bodies need that. Yet we know that there is a part
of us that never sleeps. And we know that you are everywhere, always
ready to support us with your guidance. We recognize that our fears come
in many forms.
We are
artists at resisting, at making excuses, of being too busy at the
present time, and yet we know the world needs more hands-on compassion
instead of our choosing to remain on the sidelines of living. You
created us to be the wind in someone else's sails. Help us to understand
our identity with greater clarity.
We are your sons and daughters.
Today we pray for people passing
through fragile moments, for people facing challenging decisions, for
those whose bodies are broken by disease or war and for nations who
cannot move beyond their violent power struggles. We call upon you, O
God, for your patient guidance toward a tomorrow that is filled with
hope and peace.
Guide us to
do our part to bring those qualities into our lives every day. We pray
these thoughts through the spirit of Jesus, who taught us to say when we
pray . . . |