Sermons for the Month
See Hope with Enlightened Eyes
DATE: November 23rd, 2008
SERVICE: Christ the King Sunday
TEXT: Ephesians 1:15-23 and Matthew 25:31-46To all of you Saints here this morning, grace and peace to you from God our Father, from His Son, Jesus Christ and His Holy Spirit. AMEN
These eyes connected to this brain often have trouble seeing hope. I guess that's because too much logic or realism or pessimism or past memories cloud my vision. I need enlightened eyes, that is, eyes that see more clearly, that see the true nature of things, that see the way God sees. However, I'm not sure it would work to attempt to correct these eyes, although that's a great idea. Wouldn't it be wonderful if I could put on a pair of "enlightening glasses", just like I put on sunglasses, and I would be able to see the world in an enlightened way? Can you imagine what it would be like if every Christian had a pair of sight transforming glasses? WOW life as we know it would be no more. But, unfortunately such a miraculous innovation does not exist. So, instead, what I need, what we all need, is to strive to fulfill Paul's description in today's first lesson and have the eyes of our hearts enlightened. We think of the heart as the source of love, compassion, devotion, sympathy and acceptance. So, when the eyes of our hearts are enlightened we see the world with those emotions. And, when the eyes of our hearts are enlightened we have hope because we can see that the immeasurable greatness of God's power is available to us These days especially we need help in order to see hope; everywhere we look there are challenges - in our homes, our jobs, our community, and yes, our church. Our vision gets clouded and it's hard to see the immeasurable greatness of God's power at work among us. So, there's no doubt about it, I - we - need enlightened, internal eyes. It's people with enlightened eyes that Jesus is describing in today's Gospel lesson. I have to tell you that when I read this passage I always get bogged down in theological wrestling concerning the fact that we are saved by God's grace through faith, not because of what we have done or failed to do, and yet this story describes people being blessed or punished based on their actions. It's a dilemma that's not easily explained. It does help, though, to remember the context when Jesus first told this parable. It's the last week of his life and he'll soon be leaving his followers. Are they ready for his departure? Will they remember what he has taught them, live it and pass it on? So, at this crisis point, Jesus tells several parables that emphasize making the best possible use of the time between his departure and his return, what we call the second coming. Today's Gospel is the last of those teachings in which Jesus is emphasizing what actions will be considered faithful. He makes his point clear in an unforgettable judgment account. It's a vivid scene that Jesus paints with his words; he returns not as a helpless human baby, but as a Divine King, accompanied by the angels and the brilliance of the sun. He is the Lord of all who owns the world and all that is in it. The nations are gathered before him. The dead have been raised. Those who were alive at the time of his coming are there. Then he will separate the people into two groups, those who are blessed and those who are not. Can't you just see his first listeners hanging on his every word? How might they end up at Christ the King's right hand? It was being merciful that made the difference; those in the King's favor had provided for the most basic of needs - food, drink, welcome, clothing, nursing care and visitation. But then the story takes an interesting turn. The King in all his Glory says that they did these things for him. They did? When? Their surprise makes it clear that they were not generous because they knew they would be rewarded for serving the King. Instead, they served because the eyes of their hearts were enlightened to be compassionate, sympathetic and accepting. They drew on the immeasurable greatness of God at work in their lives. And, the happy ending for them was that when they showed mercy to anyone in need it was as if they had been merciful to Jesus. On the other hand, if they had refused to show mercy to those in need, it was as if they had rejected Jesus. The purpose of a parable is to teach a lesson, and no doubt his followers got the point of this vivid story; to be a disciple is to be merciful, and if doing so is difficult, then remember that the person who you are serving is none other than Jesus himself. In all of his final teachings in Matthew Jesus is making a strong point, to be faithful is to act faithfully. It's not enough to feel compassion. As one writer put it, the Divine Judge does not congratulate the people on his right by saying, "When I was hungry, you felt bad for me; when I was thirsty, you felt sad for me; when I was in prison, you felt awful about it." It's when the compassion becomes compassionate action that a person is being faithful. The kingdom becomes present on earth not because of the way people feel but because of the way they act. (1) So, I'll say it again, it order to see the world clearly - as Jesus would - and to act faithfully we need to have the eyes of our hearts enlightened. Then we can both receive and give hope. A new church year begins next Sunday, the First Sunday in Advent. This year unfolded in some unexpected ways, and I imagine that will be true in the year to come. While we need to pray specifically about the now delayed church building project and balancing the budget and finding our ministry niche and gathering and growing disciples and expanding our ministry beyond this setting, the overarching need is for us to live up to our name, to be people of Faith who are faithful. For that, we need enlightened eyes that not only see the world the way Jesus does, but that grasp the immeasurable greatness of God's power that is FOR US WHO BELIEVE. Did you hear that? God's power is FOR US WHO BELIEVE. What better source of hope could there be than that? If we look at our ministry with these eyes and this brain, it may be difficult for us to see the immeasurable greatness of God's power that is at our disposal. And, therefore, being filled with hope will also be a challenge. But if we pray for enlightenment from the inside out, our vision will clear, hope will rise, and we will live out our faith in surprising ways, no doubt encountering Jesus in unexpected people and places. We will truly be the people of Faith. So, keep praying as we did early today open the eyes of our hearts, Lord, and fill us with hope.
AMEN
(1) From Holidays to Holy Days: A Benedictine Walk through Advent by Albert Holtz, O.S.B, 2008, Morehouse Publishing, New York, pg. 12