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Let me know what you think. The church Email is: slumc@direcway.com, Phone: 480.895.8766

Sunday, June 5, 2005

Sermon: “Drop What You Are Doing”

Scripture: Matthew 9-13, 18-26

Reverend Larry Gerber

Who are the most important people of history? Consult the latest list, and you’ll be surprised at the rankings.

He’s not Number One.

Or Two. Or even Five. or Ten.

He’s 21.

Check it out. In a recent issue of Details magazine, every pastor’s Bible on what is Very Important, Jesus is listed as the 21st most powerful person under age 38.

At the top of the list are the Abu Ghraib prison scandal soldiers, infamous for their powerful cruelty. At No. 2 are the Google guys, incredibly wealthy because of their powerful Internet search engine. At No. 3 is the mastermind of MoveOn.org, famous for his powerful political movement.

All politics is local. Abu Ghraib soldiers ahead of Jesus?

Also beating Jesus in the list game are Nelly and Usher, celebrities who — like Jesus himself — don’t even need to bother with last names. Supposedly one knows who the are. Better ask your grandkids to help you out here.

Halfway down the list you get to Jesus. “The reason Jesus is on the list is partly tongue in cheek,” admits Details editor Brian Sarnham, “but obviously there’s Mel Gibson’s film ... as well as the 40 million evangelicals who vote.”

At least Jesus beats out rapper Eminem, who hits the list at No. 22.

But if you take a look at today’s passage of Scripture, it’s hard to believe that Jesus would be anywhere but at the top on anyone’s power list. Our text includes several power stories, including the account of his calling of a tax man in a toll booth. “Follow me,”Jesus says, and immediately Matthew gives his one-second notice and follows Jesus (Matthew 9:9).

That’s persuasive power.

Then Jesus sits down to dinner with a group of tax collectors and “sinners,” — people in those days had this habit of calling social outcasts sinners (have things changed?) — earning the disdain of the purity-conscious Pharisees. But Jesus turns the tables on these critics, telling them that he has come to call not the righteous, but sinners. “Go and learn what this means,” he orders them, “‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice’” (vv. 10-13).

That’s transformative power.

Then a leader of the synagogue pulls Jesus away, begging him to lay hands on his dead daughter and bring her back to life. Jesus follows him, and on the way he encounters a faith-filled woman who reaches out and touches his garment, hoping that she can somehow be cured of her horrible hemorrhages. Jesus turns on his heels, and, sensing her faith, pronounces that she has been made well.

Then Jesus continues on to the house of the leader of the synagogue, brushes away the mourners, and brings the dead daughter back to life (vv. 18-26).

That’s death-defeating power.

Taken together, this string of events demonstrates that Jesus has the power to persuade people to drop what they are doing and follow him ... the power to turn the tables on conventional religious wisdom and transform lives ... the power to heal the sick and bring the dead to life.

You can argue all you want to about who’s got the most power, but at the end of the day you’ve got to answer the “So what?” question.

So what if the Google guys invented a newer and better search engine? So what if a political visionary created MoveOn.org? So what if Nelly and Usher sold a limo-full of CDs? So what if Jesus attracted disciples, corrected Pharisees, healed the sick and raised the dead?

What did these power plays really accomplish? This is a critical question to answer, because the definition of power is the ability to perform effectively.

What’s the effect of all this power?

Sometimes, it’s not much. MoveOn.org quickly moved off the front pages after the November election, and artists like Nelly and Usher are hastily ushered off the stage by the next rising stars. People even ask if Jesus accomplished much, since he performed his entire ministry in a fairly insignificant outpost of the Roman Empire, and he isn’t mentioned in any Jewish or Roman documents written during his lifetime. He lived his short life and was crucified, probably not even rating an obituary in The Jerusalem Post.

Because of his failure to shake up society, Jesus is sometimes downplayed by historians. In Michael Hart’s book The 100: A Ranking of the Most Influential Persons in History, the top spot is held by Muhammad, because of his combination of secular and religious influence. Muhammad gets top billing because he preached a religion, founded a state, established a moral code, and promoted social and political reforms.

At No. 2 on Hart’s list is Isaac Newton, the most influential scientist who ever lived. His achievements in mathematics, optics and physics provided a foundation for modern science and changed our understanding of the world.

Jesus comes in at No. 3. Apparently, he wasn’t as effective as Muhammad or Newton — not as powerful in terms of secular influence or scientific insight. It is certainly true that Jesus had little interest in establishing earthly kingdoms, and he gave more attention to parables than to physics.

But if you’re talking about persuasive power, transformative power and death-defeating power, Jesus is No. 1.

Persuasive power. The call to “Follow me,” drop what you are doing, comes to any and to all, bringing together a mosaic of Christians and followers we call the church. It’s a call that comes to bankers, lawyers, shopkeepers, clerks, teachers, politicians, revenue agents, computer programmers, scientists, northerners, southerners, high-brow, low-brow and rednecks. Did I leave someone out?

And bikers. Christian Motorcycle Clubs. “Bikers for Jesus,” “The Gospel Riders” and “The Fellowship Riders” — groups that combine a passion for Jesus with a passion for motorcycles. The response that Jesus gets today from leather-bound bikers is just one example of how his power can cross any barrier and grab any human heart. As the members of one motorcycle club say, “We know that bugs always move toward the light. We want to be the light that points the way to Jesus!”

Pastor Scott Herr tells the story of a great big guy in full leather, bandana, beard and tattoos who sat proudly at a traffic light on his absolutely gorgeous Harley-Davidson bike. This was one of the most beautiful motorcycles in town, not to mention fast. Everything about it displayed power.

It was at that moment an older man in his 80s drove up on a mo-ped.

He commented on what a beautiful bike the Harley was.

“Mind if I take a look?” said the older gentleman.

“Go ahead,” came the grunted reply.

“This sure is a beautiful bike,” said the older man.

He got within inches of the bike and went over it from top to bottom. “I bet it’s fast, too.”

“You bet,” said the owner.

With that the light turned green and the biker popped a wheelie, racing off down the road. Zero to a hundred in no time flat. Grinning, he looked back to see the old man was just a speck in his mirror.

Suddenly, however, the speck grew larger and larger until the man on the moped went flying past him at incredible speeds. It was amazing. The older man kept going until he was just a speck in the distance and then turned and headed back right toward the Harley.

Again, he went zooming past the Harley, this time in the opposite direction until he was just a speck.

The biker brought the Harley to a screeching halt, deciding he was going to wait for the old man. The mo-ped came up from behind with amazing speed and slammed right into the back of the Harley.

The man was thrown from the mo-ped onto the ground and lay there, stunned. The biker started to say, “What is going on?” but stopped, realizing the man might need help. “Old man, are you okay? What can I do to help?”

To which the man replied, “You could start by unhooking my suspenders from your Harley!”

The moral of the story is simply this: Who we are connected to determines, to a great extent, where we are going in life.

Persuasive power. Getting our suspenders hooked on Jesus.

Transformative power. At the same time, Jesus shows real transformative power when he surprises the Pharisees with a call for mercy, not sacrifice. Jesus knew that it was a religious violation to break bread with tax collectors and social outcasts and misfits, not to mention to be in close contact with a diseased woman, but he did both. He did these things because he believed that showing mercy is never against the law of God.

Today, we, as the church, reach out to diseased persons, the poor and the down trodden: Wesley CC, UMOM, etc.

Death-defeating power. All of which bring us to the most impressive aspect of the ministry of Jesus: his healing and death-defeating power. Jesus was passionately committed to overcoming sickness and death throughout his earthly ministry, and his healing work continues today as people lift their needs to him in prayer.

All across the country now, churches are offering services for wholeness, and people are testifying to the power of prayer in the healing process. Researchers are assembling data on prayer and illness, and some doctors are even getting into the habit of praying for their patients.

Prayers are being offered for whatever is broken in people’s lives, not just for physical illness. Craig Barnes, a Presbyterian pastor who has participated in many healing services, reports that prayers are lifted up for healing of broken hearts, lost relationships, broken marriages, childhood abuse and lost jobs. He believes that God may answer these prayers in different ways, even using the brokenness of the body to heal our spirits. “The promise is that God will give us himself, and that is what is needed,” he concludes. “The spirit is healed, no matter what happens to the body.”

In times of personal brokenness, God gives us the gift of himself — a gift that is seen most clearly in the life and ministry of Jesus Christ. We are never completely powerless in the face of illness or loss, because we can always tap into the power of Jesus — a power that can give us peace and comfort, healing and hope.

Jesus can change our lives for the better, whatever we are facing today. That’s why, when you’re talking power issues, you can’t avoid the greatest power player in history: Jesus Christ.

***Today, we need to transition from the sermon into a Service of Holy Communion; a service for healing and forgiveness. Let us begin with a prayer of intercession for healing, lifting up all who are disabled by injury or illness ... all who are troubled by confusion or pain ... all who are wearied by aging ... all who are about to undergo surgery ... all who cannot sleep or be at peace .... “Into your hands, O God, we commend all for whom we pray, trusting in your mercy; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.”

“May the God of all mercy forgive you your sins, release you from suffering, and restore you to wholeness and strength. Amen.

Let us come to the water, so to speak. Let us drink from the cup of healing, and let us eat from the loaf of wholeness. Let us turn our fears and sins over to Jesus. Let us receive the gift of completeness…. The gift of wholeness…the love of self….and others…let us come to the water….let us drink…..let us pray the prayer of humble access as found on page 4 of the bulletin.
``````````````````````````````````````````````` Sources:

“A service for wholeness for use with a congregation.” Book of Common Worship. Louisville, Ky.: Westminster/John Knox Press, 1993, 1009-15.

Details, “Power Issue.” October 2004

Let me know what you think. The church Email is: slumc@direcway.com, Phone: 480.895.8766