Day 1089 - “The Good Samaritan was not living in today’s world”

A Sermon given at New Hope Presbyterian Church, Nov. 22, 2015, Chattanooga, TN.

OT reading: Psalm 93

NT Reading: John 18:33-37

This is “Christ the King Sunday.”

How often do we hear the words, “The Lord is King” or “Jesus is Lord?” What is our frequent reaction? Do we take the words somewhat complacently thinking this is a nice but dated proclamation? Or do we take the words as a serious and timeless truth about our obligation and blessing to serve The Lord?

A friend who attends another church here in town made a comment in reaction to the terrorist attack in Paris, “If a Syrian refuge came knocking at my door, I am glad to help God out by defending myself.”…Let me repeat it, "I am glad to help God out by defending myself.” 
I suspect many people feel this way to a greater or lesser degree, or have expressed a similar reaction in the heat of the moment without thinking about what it means. Certainly when we are facing the potential for violence we have to let our sense of prudence guide our steps. But think about that comment. Usually someone suggests they can "defend" God against some secular attack, seldom do we hear someone suggest they can do God's job as well as God can.  Both ideas turn the reality of God and being on its head.

This sermon is not about the God-awful tragedy that happened in Paris last week. But on the other hand it is about this idea that we don't need God to defend us. It is about the way so many people see these horrible events of violence as a challenge to their comfortable, complacent living in the world of flesh. It is a wake-up call of a different sort. Let me explain how.

From the beginning of his ministry, Jesus made it clear that he inaugurated a kingdom whose values are quite different from those of worldly powers. That makes being a Christian servant a hard decision to proclaim the good news to the poor, liberty to the captives and sight to the blind. The challenge is where do we place our loyalty? 

Jesus proclaimed the Kingdom of God on earth is at hand. It is a kingdom where we are encouraged to share, give of one self, go the extra mile, care for the poor, the imprisoned, the outcasts that the world ignores or abuses.

Throughout the gospels especially in this reading in John about the last day of his human life, Jesus tells us that the earthly world constantly strives to persuade us that its material things are the important stuff.  We find it hard to resist the subversive claim that the things of this world are what is important.

When Jesus says, “The kingdom of God is at hand,” he does not mean some future apocalyptic Armageddon that will befall the world. He said he is “God of the Living.” We should live the citizen life of the Kingdom of God looking forward to coming home proclaiming “Jesus is Lord.”

The fact is when we hear these words “The Lord is King” or “Jesus is Lord” the world of flesh is often whispering in our other ear, “Don’t listen to Jesus. Ego and power are what is important.” It is no wonder our reaction tends to split between complacency giving lip service to “The Lord is King”, and taking and living, the words as a serious truth.

Where do we stand in this? Is this an out-of-date passage of a simpler time that we take with a ”ho-hum” complacency? Or do you believe it is a serious message that forms the basis of our faith by contradicting every value that the world of flesh wants us to hold as dear?

To understand “The Lord is King” we really need to think a little bit about what is his kingdom is not. Paul frequently described the world of Christians as being caught in two worlds, the new Kingdom of God, and the entire world around us that forms the reality of physical existence. Paul describes as a struggle as the world of flesh is being pushed aside by the Kingdom of God.

The word, flesh, does not have some prurient meaning.  The word encompasses the entire fabric of our existence. It is our possessions, our relationships, our pride, our politics, our family, loved ones, our enemies, our oppressors and our servants. It is every iota of our experience that forms our physical reality and shapes our values.

That world is very powerful. It relentlessly desires to seduce us to its values and resists intensely the Kingdom of God that opposes to it.

The presence of Jesus (that we celebrate on 12/25) means the Kingdom of God has broken in to this world of flesh and is slowly pushing it aside. Paul described this struggle by the world of flesh against the Kingdom of God as the groaning of a woman in childbirth. He said that we live in the in-between time with a foot in each world. The events of the last several months emphasize that point.

Even the disciples, to the very end truly believed this Kingdom of God that Jesus proclaimed was the kingdom of material things. Jesus would be the new David. Disciples would sit at his left and right hands on a throne in the Temple and Rome would be overthrown. The disciples marched in Jerusalem in the last week of the life of Jesus debating these very points. The people in the street who shouted hosanna thought that liberation from the oppressive power of Rome was at hand.

My friend essentially said, “I’ll keep my handgun ready to defend my possessions, my wealth, my home, my life, because I’m not sure about God’s defense of my fleshly things.” The world of flesh has a strong appeal even God’s chosen. But…who will have the last say, the World or the Word?

Pilate examining Jesus says Power will have the last say. Jesus says no, revelation will have the last say. Everything about the message of Jesus challenges rational thinking. His message of revelation subverts our rational thinking. Why is it subversive?

For Paul, Ancient Rome perfectly represented the kingdom of flesh. If we want to understand the underlying message of the world that Jesus gives us. We have to understand Rome in Paul’s time was the antithesis of the message Jesus proclaimed.

Power was the most highly regarded Roman virtue. Power is the ideal ethical imperative, the perfect virtue. “I have no fear, can crush you with my fist, or my armies.” Pilate was the representative of that Roman world in Jesus’s time.

Jesus on the other hand said that the most highly regarded perfect virtue is humility. “I have no fear, I came to serve.” His humility directly challenged the virtues of Rome because in Rome, humility was the virtue of a slave.

In the last day of the life of Jesus, Pilate questions Jesus after the Sanhedrin examined him. Pilate assumes confidently that power will have the last word in this pesky affair.

The exchange went this way, Pilate summoned Jesus and asked, 33 “Are you the King of the Jews?’” 34 Jesus answered, ‘Do you ask this on your own, or did others tell you about me?’ 35 Pilate replied, ‘I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests have handed you over to me. What have you done?’

Pilate does not seem to take this matter seriously. It is another bothersome interruption in his day of ruling Jerusalem for Rome that he must resolve. His questions clearly acknowledge that this is the case.

Jesus responded, “My kingdom is not from this world. If my kingdom were from this world, my followers would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not from here.”  Jesus in his own special way is saying that crying, death, and oppression as embodied by Rome will not have the last word.

Does this mean if Pilate or the Sanhedrin invaded the Kingdom of God, the followers of Jesus should fight? Not really.

Recall the reply to Pilate. “You say that I am a king. I was born and came into the world to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.” That truth is humility towards everyone. Love God the way God loves you. Love your neighbor the way God loves you. Who is my neighbor? Everyone is my neighbor, even Pilate standing before Jesus with the Power of Rome at his back.

Fight to defend the Kingdom of God? No, the Kingdom of God is not founded on physical power and strength to overwhelm people. It is founded on faith in his message of salvation through humility of a servant that will overwhelm the world of flesh.

This is why when we hear the words,” the Lord is King,” or “Jesus is Lord,” we should always ask of our self, “Do I accept it with complacency or as serious truth?” This kingdom of God is the place where the important things that sustain life are found. My life, my soul, my strength, my salvation are gifts by grace of the Kingdom of God.

Jesus and Pilate confronted the question of which Kingdom do we want? Do we want the kingdom where Grace is found in humility before God and fellow, or do we want the kingdom where Grace is found principally and fundamentally in earthly power and preoccupation with power?

The message of the Kingdom to my good friend who said he would help God out by defending himself, is that if we rely on our own strength we are lost before we begin to defend our self.

Jesus made it clear. Power does not reside in one’s ability to overwhelm, or defeat another person. Power resides in our ability to proclaim and live a life that proclaims God’s grace. God’s Grace trumps power. It trumps the world of flesh. God’s Grace trumps human judgment.

It’s normal human emotion to fear and avoid people who present threats to our lives, and prudence is a good attitude when fear and violence threaten.  But the essence of Christianity is rooted in two great commandments.

As told in the gospels the first is, ”The Lord is one. You should love the Lord with all your mind’s soul Power and strength. The second is that you should love your neighbor the way the Lord loves you.”

Yes violence and strife in other lands create fear in our own hearts that it will visit us. We impulsively seek power motivated by the world of flesh to defeat the threats to our complacent existence and all the things that world says are important to us.

But I ask you what if Jesus had succumbed to those worries of the world of flesh?  Would we celebrate our salvation with the proclamation, ”Jesus is Lord and I shall Live and love my Brother as I love God?” Would we be able to voice the words of Martin Luther King, Jr, with their true meaning, “Free at last! Thank God Almighty I am free at last!” 

The Lord is King, and Jesus is Lord of all.

AMEN