how to sustain the weary with a word. Jesus has the tongue of a teacher and he sustains the weary. He balances grace with truth.

Transcription

1 In Search of a Theme Song for the Messiah Campaign (a dramatic sermon) Matthew 21:1-11 Dr. Christopher C. F. Chapman First Baptist Church, Raleigh April 13, 2014 (enter singing) Every day with Jesus is sweeter than the day before; every day with Jesus, I love him more and more; Jesus saves and keeps me, and he s the one I m living for; every day with Jesus is sweeter than the day before. It needs a little work, and I am not sure it is the song we want, but you folks could help. We are working with a number of focus groups to find just the right theme song for Jesus campaign. He is running for Messiah, you know, I am managing his campaign, though he has not really asked me to do this, and every campaign needs a theme song, something memorable and uplifting, something hopeful and tied to the message of the candidate. So what do you think? (singing) Every day with Jesus is sweeter than the day before... I think he has a good chance to win, really I do. I mean, we re not sure exactly how he will be elected. He will not have to win a party nomination, thank goodness for that! Nothing but torture, those campaigns before the real campaign! When it comes to the role of Messiah, it is the Big Election that really matters, you know, being elected by God, but how do we know who has been elected by God, who really speaks for God? Many people make that claim. So, there has to be a human element, a process of discernment, an election, if you will. That is where I come in, someone with political expertise, a professional in the realm of the ultimate oxymoron political science! With or without my help, Jesus has made a number of good moves to win this election. For one thing, he is a good teacher and what he teaches is in synch with what and how a Messiah ought to teach. The prophet Isaiah says this of the servant of God the Lord God has given me the tongue of a teacher, that I may know 1

2 how to sustain the weary with a word. Jesus has the tongue of a teacher and he sustains the weary. He balances grace with truth. He speaks of the need for individual piety and social responsibility. Most of all, he says he has not come to do away with the law and yet he gives the law new meaning. In so doing, he appeals to the old school traditionalists while keeping the interest of newcomers and outsiders and all who want change. It is a smart strategy. All of our studies indicate that people are high on his teaching. Now, our data seem to indicate that he is doing better with women than men and he is doing better with younger men, especially those from the liberal Northern Kingdom. Those older Southern Kingdom folks, the Judeans, are suspicious of anything and anyone new. And yet, he has made some inroads with older, more established folks too. Nicodemus is a prime example of someone who has responded to Jesus teaching. You have heard of him, I gather. Jesus has also done a great deal of healing and this is a good move for any would-be Messiah. Some people call what he is offering Jesuscare but no matter what you call it, what sick people want more than anything else is to get well, blind people want to see, deaf people want to hear, lame people want to walk. And Jesus is able to give people what they need most in the way of healing. You have heard about some of these folk too, like the man born blind. Jesus healed him. Jesus has even brought back to life a man who died, perhaps you have heard of him, Lazarus was his name. Talk about your quintessential Messiah move, your gold-standard Messiah move, this is it - raising the dead! Some detractors have murmured that Jesus is so young and inexperienced, only 33. He did not study with a prominent rabbi like Rabbi Dukestein or Rabbi Harvardwitz or even our own Rabbi Lolleyovich. It is true. But none of these rabbis ever raised the dead. Maybe our theme song should be (singing) Healer of our every ill, hope of our tomorrow, give us peace beyond our fears, and hope beyond our sorrow. I don t know. Every day with Jesus is sweeter than the day before still works. 2

3 He has done so much to get this job. He has done some fine teaching and some fine healing, and then he has identified with the poor, spent time with the outcasts lepers, tax collectors, prostitutes better be careful with that one strike that for now, timing is everything. He has spent time with lepers and tax collectors, the lame, the blind. You know what I mean. A Messiah must have a special concern for the marginalized because God has a special concern for the marginalized like the woman at the well. You have heard about her too, how Jesus valued her with his conversation and friendship and offer of the water that quenches our deepest thirst. In the words of a new prophet, he has emptied himself into the form of a slave and stood side beside people others avoid. That s better than giving candy to children! That s the way to win the hearts of the people. (singing) Every day with Jesus is sweeter than the day before Of course, he has made a few wrong turns along the way, he is young, after all, but he has been unwilling to listen to reason. He is so stubborn, so bullheaded, so one-way perhaps we should call this conviction yes, he is a man with convictions, with backbone. But still, he has made some mistakes or what in my considered judgment are mistakes. For one thing, he has confronted the Pharisees, responded to their questions with a bit too much visible anger, even called them names you brood of vipers I m still trying to find a way to spin that line. If you have any suggestions He was also a bit harsh with Peter, one of his closest followers. He actually called Peter Satan or said that Satan was in Peter when he argued with him. This temper of his will have to be managed. He needs some coaching though maybe we could turn this around A Messiah doesn t always have to be gentle and mild. He can be strong. Jesus is not your customary nambypamby Messiah. He is a tough-guy Messiah, don t mess with him. Think Arnold, think Jean Claude. Mel Gibson could work with this kind of Jesus! We could even find just the right song for this view of Jesus (singing) A mighty fortress is our God no 3

4 How Firm a Foundation, ye saints of the Lord no I ve got it Onward Christian soldiers marching as to war Still, I don t think we need him biting the head off of his own disciples So, he has confronted the Pharisees and shown a temper even with his own followers and maybe he has spent a bit too much time with the marginalized and outcast. This is a part of what a Messiah should and must do, but he needs to spend time with the established folks too, those who have paid their dues and who pay the bills around here. What if he needs to launch a capital campaign to pay for major repairs on our boat or to buy a new lute? He cannot spend all of his time with lepers and tax collectors, not to mention all of these women he allows to follow him almost as if they are disciples, almost as if they are equal... And yet, all of this added together confronting the Pharisees, blowing a fuse with Peter, hanging out with the marginalized all of this concerns me less than his obsession with death, his own death. Obsession is a strong word but I don t know what other word to use. Three times he has predicted that he will suffer and die in Jerusalem. I realize that powerful public figures, especially change agents, run the risk of being assassinated, but it is almost as if he is trying to get himself killed! Consider his decision to enter town today to this big hero s welcome, parade, celebration, whatever you want to call it. I don t know what to make of this day, and I m not even talking about this crazy marathon you people are having! I m talking about the craziness of Palm Sunday! It could be a momentum builder that leads directly to the role of Messiah. I see and hear what you see and hear. The crowds are genuinely behind him. And yet, to stir up a crowd like this here in Jerusalem where all of his enemies are is it wise? Does he have a death wish? Now, if he were willing to rethink his position on military matters, things might be different. We could round up an army strong enough to threaten the Romans, maybe not in numbers, but in passion and determination. If David could beat Goliath, we can beat Rome. What was that song we were considering? (singing) 4

5 Onward Christian soldiers marching as to war Yes, that would be great! But alas, Jesus will not reconsider his position. He is so opposed to violence in any form. Turn the other cheek, he says; do not resist evil with evil, he says; forgive seven times seventy, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you What are we to do? Such an anti-military position will not help him get elected much less keep us secure when he is in charge. I have tried to reason with him, talk some sense into him. He is so young and inexperienced, you would think he would listen and not just to me but to the wealth of information we have from all of our focus groups and surveys. People really like him, they want to get behind him, if he will only adjust a few of his positions on power and money and the military and, well, there are a few other issues, but these are the key issues. And yet, I suppose I am back to one of the questions with which I began how do we choose a Messiah? Do we elect a Messiah or does God? Even if God chooses, how do we know who God has chosen? And if a Messiah is one who will save us from all that harms us, including ourselves at times, do we really want to shape the character and work of the Messiah? Shouldn t a Messiah be different, self-defining in ways we do not understand? There is a tension here, a real tension between our need to know what we are getting in a Messiah and the reality that we may not know what we need. Do we know? Oh, we know we are needy, but do we know how to fix our problems? Do we know exactly what we need as individuals, as a community, as a nation, in the world? Do we? Have our ways of trying to solve the big problems worked? If they have, we don t really need a Messiah, do we? But have they? So, if we were to suspend our judgment here, acknowledge that all of our expertise added together isn t worth much, if we were to assume he is the Messiah God has chosen and thus he knows what he is doing, what might we learn? How does he think a Messiah ought to behave? Well, God s way of conquering is 5

6 through love, not power. God s way of leading is through service, not domination. God s way of ruling is through emptying self and allowing others to become more not by demanding anything of anyone. God s final words are love and forgiveness. If Jesus is the Messiah, these are the qualities that will guide him. And if they are, who knows how it is that he plans to conquer, lead and rule? It probably won t look anything like what we would expect. It may involve sacrifice and self-giving rather than fighting back. Who knows? Maybe this is why he is willing to come to town today and risk suffering and death? In his eyes, it may not be a risk. Yet, if all this is true, I don t know that my song works. (singing) Every day with Jesus is sweeter than the day before. Today it just doesn t seem right. What is this song you folks are going to sing? (singing) O sacred head, now wounded, with grief and shame weighed down, now scornfully surrounded with thorns, thine only crown: O sacred head, what glory, what bliss till now was thine; yet, though despised and gory, I joy to call thee mine. I don t know what to make of that. It doesn t seem right for a theme song. But maybe there is something there, something that will make more sense to me later. Maybe it doesn t have to make sense. He is the Messiah, after all. Maybe we should take our cue from him But give it some thought, would you? Depending on how things go this week, I m going to need a good song or two for this campaign. What song do you think fits Jesus? What is a worthy song for a Messiah? What do we want people humming in the heads to feed their souls deep down? (exit humming O Sacred Head) 6