SPIRITUAL SURRENDERING Prayer: A sermon preached by the Rev. Aaron Billard St. John s United Church, Moncton, NB April 17, 2011 Holy God who hovers daily round us in fidelity and compassion, this day we are mindful of another, dread-filled hovering, that of the power of death before which we stand thin and needful.... So we come in our helpless candour this day... remembering, giving thanks, celebrating... but not for one instant unmindful of dangers too ominous and powers too steady and threats well beyond us.... It is in your power and your promise that we take our stand this day. We dare trust that Friday is never the last day, so we watch for the new day of life. Walter Brueggemann, Awed to Heaven, Rooted in Earth Recently, the side of St. Matthew s United Church in Halifax was spray painted in black paint with graffiti that read, God is dead. The church had a few options, and to be sure a few people were upset. However, rather than simply be a victim to another vandal, as churches usually are in downtowns, the minister there, Betsy Hogan, decided to use this moment as an opportunity. In the colour green, she had spray-painted over the message God is dead the words, Not so fast Happy Easter! There s something in that which catches our attention.
Yet, on the sidelines, within the crowd, behind other people, are the ones starting the whisper campaign. They are casting doubts on this Jesus. Yet, the crowd seems to know exactly who he is and what he is about. The parade was provocative. Jesus followers and disciples didn t want him to do it. Ched Myers describes this parade as political protest. Jesus insisted on riding into the city on a donkey, although he walked everywhere else. Think about it: 250,000 pilgrims in a city whose permanent population is 40,000, there to celebrate Passover, to remember Israel s liberation from bondage in Egypt. Think about it: a celebration of political freedom and independence in the capital city of a nation that is not free or independent but part of the Roman Empire, governed by Rome s appointed officials, occupied and controlled by Rome s army. That is the situation into which Jesus decides to ride in the very way the Bible says a king will come. (J. Buchanan) There is a spiritual notion of surrender that I would like to talk with you all about this morning. There is so much within us that fights in this world. We fight the organizations we work for in order to get our work done. We seem to be in a constant tension with family members over this and that. We use war language each and every day: we struggle to get out of bed; we fight cancer; our politicians speak of battlegrounds; we fight traffic to get to work; we wrestle with our weight; we have to push in order to get ahead; we get cut off in line at the grocery store; you don t just lose a job you get fired. Part of that language is cultural and yet part of it is learned. Perhaps if politicians stopped fighting for our votes and actually led campaigns based on ideas rather than fear tactics, voter turnout might increase and young people wouldn t be so disillusioned with the process; and perhaps we should stop talking about diseases as things to be fought as opposed to 2
things to be lived through. It s hard to hear when someone says that a person has lost their battle with cancer because it implies they did something wrong. It s not always holding on that makes a person strong, sometimes it s letting go. Gandhi referred to Jesus as the most active resister known to history this is non-violence par excellence. And he s caught people s attention. Because despite what everyone in that era expected a messiah who would arrive as a king Jesus arrives at the gates of Jerusalem riding a donkey. Jesus has planned this moment. He has told two of his disciples to go on ahead to make preparations. They ve brought him this donkey. It s street theatre. It s designed to make a statement. It s a joyful scene in which people dance, and shout, and despite what happens in this moment, we know what lies ahead for Jesus. Yet, despite knowing what lies ahead, he arrives peacefully on a donkey. People often say over and over again that if Jesus came back today, the first place he would be fired from is a church. We all have our version of who we think Jesus is and in reality we can t really claim who he is because Jesus in the Bible resists people doing that. He s never what people expect. And therefore, he s never what we expect. A Jesus who refuses to be an insider but who always sides with the outsider, as Richard Rohr puts it, will always upset our carefully laid tables and status quo. Martin Luther King Jr. said, The truth will set you free, as Jesus said. But first it will make you very angry! This story, this experience, has the power to change our lives if we let it This is more than an old story about a marginal rabbi who rode a humble donkey into Jerusalem. What do you see? What do you choose to see? Who does Jesus become for you? 3
Two men, both seriously ill, occupied the same hospital room. One man was allowed to sit up in his bed for an hour each afternoon to help drain the fluid from his lungs. His bed was next to the room s only window. The other man had to spend all his time flat on his back. The men talked for hours on end. They spoke of their wives and families, their homes, their jobs, their involvement in the military service, where they had been on vacation. Every afternoon when the man in the bed by the window could sit up, he would pass the time by describing to his roommate all the things he could see outside the window. The man in the other bed began to live for those one-hour periods where his world would be broadened and enlivened by all the activity and color of the world outside. The window overlooked a park with a lovely lake. Ducks and swans played on the water while children sailed their model boats. Young lovers walked arm in arm amidst flowers of every color and a fine view of the city skyline could be seen in the distance. As the man by the window described all this in exquisite detail, the man on the other side of the room would close his eyes and imagine the picturesque scene. One warm afternoon the man by the window described a parade passing by. Although the other man couldn t hear the band he could see it. In his mind s eye as the gentleman by the window portrayed it with descriptive words. Days and weeks passed. One morning, the day nurse arrived to bring water for their baths only to find the lifeless body of the man by the window, who had died peacefully in his sleep. She was 4
saddened and called the hospital attendants to take the body away. As soon as it seemed appropriate, the other man asked if he could be moved next to the window. The nurse was happy to make the switch, and after making sure he was comfortable, she left him alone. Slowly, painfully, he propped himself up on one elbow to take his first look at the real world outside. He strained to slowly turn to look out the window beside the bed. It faced a blank wall. The man asked the nurse what could have compelled his deceased roommate who had described such wonderful things outside this window. The nurse responded that the man was blind and could not even see the wall. May God be with you. And may we all explore the spiritual surrendering that requires us to let go of a good many things, and behaviours, and to become something new. And as Christ enters our hearts in humility, may he show us a better way to live, and a better to help others to live too. Because, this faith isn t about us, it s about the ones Jesus tried to show us. 5