God’s grace, peace
and mercy be with you. My sermon is entitled A Funny Thing Happened on the
Way to the Temple. It has three parts: Play, Passage and People. My
focus is our Gospel, Luke 9:51-62. … Let us pray. Heavenly Father, the psalmist
wrote, “I rejoiced when they said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of the
Lord.’” Now that our feet are
within your gates, we rejoice to hear your Word. As we listen, may your Spirit
enlighten our minds and move our hearts to love deeply as Jesus loved. This we
pray to you, Most Holy Trinity. Amen.
A
Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum is a musical
inspired by the farces of the ancient Roman playwright Plautus. It tells the
bawdy story of a slave named Pseudolus and his attempts to win his freedom by
helping his young master woo the girl next door. The plot displays puns,
slamming doors, cases of mistaken identity, and satirical comments on social
class. The musical's original 1962 Broadway run won several Tony Awards; and
the original lead, Zero Mostel, also starred in the successful film.
The title is
derived from a line used by vaudeville comedians to begin a story: “A funny
thing happened on the way to the theater.” Numerous individuals writing stories
on a variety of topics have repeated that line. Most recently, someone wrote of
the NBA Finals, “A funny thing happened on the way to that destiny.” Another
sportswriter penned an article about the US Open, “A funny thing happened on
his way to oblivion.” There is the TV program “A Funny Thing Happened on the
Way to the White House.” Finally, someone recently blogged, “A Funny Thing
Happened On The Way To Sainthood.”
Obviously, one can
repurpose comedy to fit any topic involving sports, politics and religion. So,
let me move to my second point and explain how my sermon title addresses our
passage.
Luke’s Gospel is a
narrative of the human life of Jesus and the message of the Son of God.[i] It began with an
introduction in chapter 4, and moved into an account of his mission in chapters
5 through 9. In those chapters, Luke showed how the Church originated in the
life and work of Jesus. Now, his story takes up the great journey to Jerusalem
that led him out of history and into the heavenly sphere. This journey is also
the journey of the Church, which accompanies Jesus on his way to God.
Our opening verse,
“When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to
Jerusalem” – introduces the journey and defines it in terms of its
destination. Jerusalem is not a mere geographical spot. The city marked the
journey’s end where Jesus was received up, an expression that referred to his
ascension. Thus, his journey is to a geographical spot and a symbol of its
heavenly fulfillment beyond every reality.
Although Luke
mentioned this journey repeatedly through the next ten chapters, he never
indicated that Jesus arrived. At a point when it seemed appropriate to announce
his arrival, Luke simply stated that Jesus entered the Temple. The journey
seems incomplete.
A funny thing
happened. Jesus set his face towards Jerusalem, and he never arrived. He simply
entered the Temple. … You may say, “Well, the Temple is in Jerusalem. It’s
implied he reached Jerusalem.” True. Yet, the more important point of verse 51
is not what Jesus was determined to accomplish – he set his face to go to
Jerusalem, but what God was going to accomplish – When the days drew near for
him to be taken up. Jesus accepted the event and its destination in order to
return to his heavenly Father.
Now, within our
passage are a number of people – Jesus’ messengers, the Samaritans and others.
So, for my third point, people, we will examine the people in our passage and
in our pews (or chairs, in this case).
Jesus sent the
messengers ahead to prepare the way. To prepare the way for what? For his
exodus-ascension. However, unlike John the Baptist, who also prepared the way
for the Messiah, the disciples could not embrace the apocalyptic judgment upon
the Samaritans who did not receive him. The fire associated with the Messiah’s
coming would have its place, but not here and now. That transforming,
sanctifying, empowering fire of the Holy Spirit would come upon the Church
after Jesus’ Ascension. Jesus rebuked the messengers for their desire to
destroy the Samaritans, and then they moved on.
As they moved on,
anonymous figures emerged as types of persons who considered following Jesus on
his journey. Those who wish to join Jesus must disengage themselves from any
earthly home, from former responsibilities and from past relationships. To
proclaim the kingdom of God, one must live in a manner befitting the kingdom
and bid farewell to the past.
Setting out on the
journey to Jerusalem and the Ascension, Jesus demonstrated a singular
detachment from earthly matters. The first people who followed him on his
journey had to reflect that detachment and the way of life.
What about people
who follow Jesus on his journey today? What about us? Do we reflect that
detachment and way of life? Do our lives demonstrate a singular detachment from
earthly matters? Do we disengage from our earthly homes, former
responsibilities and past relationships to follow Jesus? Do I live in a manner
befitting the kingdom of God in order to proclaim it? Is following Jesus any
easier or tougher for us than it was for the first People of the Way?
Following Jesus
today is no easier for us than it was for the first People of the Way.
Personally speaking, I do not always live in a manner befitting the kingdom.
Selfishness and self-serving interests tempt me constantly. I am engaged to
home, duties and relationships. In short, I am spiritually lazy.
You have heard me
mention spiritual laziness several times. If you have been through surgery that
requires physical therapy, you know that you reach a point when you quit doing
those exercises. After rotator cuff surgery, I dutifully exercised three times
per day for six months. It’s the same with spiritual exercises: reading
Scripture, reading spiritual books and periodicals, meditating on passages, and
so on. Experience tells me to prescribe something to counter spiritual laziness.
I have prescribed this before, but in case you need to refill your
prescription, here are the five P’s of Prayer: Passage, Place, Posture, Presence
and Passage. All these P’s are on my blog so that you can read them later.
Passage. Depending
on the circumstances, choose a Scripture passage. Slowly read it several times
until a word or phrase rises to the surface.
Place. Choose a
place where you will not be disturbed. It may be in your home or a quiet
church.
Posture. Find a
sturdy comfortable chair that will allow you to sit upright. Posture is
important. Do not slouch or lie down.
Presence. Set a
timer for 10 minutes. Start there and gradually increase your prayer time to 25
minutes. Close your eyes so you are not distracted. Be present to God as He is
present to you. Thoughts, feelings, physical discomforts and audible
distractions will occur. Stand firm in the stream and let these distractions
flow by as flotsam and jetsam go downstream.
Passage. When you
get distracted, return to the passage and refocus. When your minutes have
passed, close your meditation by reciting aloud The Lord’s Prayer.
Because Jesus
loves you, try this for 25 minutes a day for the next 30-some years – the
lifespan of Jesus. I guarantee you a deeper, richer, fuller, more intimate
relationship with our Triune God. If it does not work, you can return it for
your old relationship with God.
Friends, this
summer, as we journey to various destinations throughout the world, funny
things will happen. Life will pull us in every direction of the compass. That
is why it is necessary for us to set our faces like Jesus and follow him – for
only Jesus, Father and Spirit will provide true direction to our heavenly home.
As we encounter uncounted individuals seeking direction, prescribe to them our
Five P’s of Prayer and a relationship with the Three Persons of the Trinity.
And when you do, may the peace of God that surpasses all understanding, keep
your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.
[i]
Eugene LaVerdiere, Luke (Wilmington, DE: Michael Glazier, Inc. 1986), 138ff.
This accounts for the majority of this section.
No comments:
Post a Comment