Journey to Jerusalem: Sacrifice

A Sermon Preached by the Rev. Dr. E. Scott Winnette

PALM/PASSION Sunday

April 6, 2009

Philippians 2:1-13

            I’m wondering, do we have any synchronized swimmers in the congregation? Some of you are likely into watching it, at least.   As I was looking for the scientific term to describe the synchronized blossoming of tree flowers, the Google search hit scores of synchronized swimming sites.  The cooperative dance & gymnastic-like swimming is rather fascinating to watch.   However, I was more interested in the science that describes a holy experience I had Thursday.   I woke before dawn and I sipped my coffee.   As the morning light grew I was amazed to see the Bradford pear tree outside my window. An amazing grace - overnight the bare branches burst forth in gorgeous white blossoms. And not only had the tree in my backyard burst, but every Bradford pear in Frederick magically blasted forth its whiteness.   I pondered how they became so like-minded. All the buds on every branch of every limb of every tree knew to pop simultaneously. It is an amazing conspiracy. The best explanation I could come up with, after I got past the synchronized swimming sites was circadian rhythms and the science of chronobiology. Life is subject to cyclical biochemical, physiological and behavioral processes. All of life has circadian rhythms, cool; God did say creation was good, how true.

            Now, what if like us humans the blossoms developed deference to their individualism. What if they developed a free will from their cooperative biology?   The magic would disappear as one blossom jockeyed to be the first. The beauty would die as some flowers spent their energies trying to grow larger petals to outdo their neighbors or to become red petals instead of white. What if the most selfish of the blossoms plotted ways to pluck away their closest neighbors so they would get more tree sap and become Americas’ Top Model Tree Blossoms? Tyra Blossom Banks, a disaster.

            Fortunately, the Bradford Pear blossoms do not have a reverence for individuality. They burst beauty together. Ponder for a minute the possibility that we humans reduce our reverence for self and heighten our deference for the common good. What if we synchronized our social selves? An amazing grace - we all simultaneously burst forth with blossoms of the Spirit.   We have been given an amazing freedom by God, free will. The good of free will is rooted in imago dei. We are made in the image of God, not to Lord over each other and creation, but to create peace, to create beauty, to choose love, and to choose life. We are free to dance apart and together. On the downside we are free to be centered in self, prone to isolating behavior. On the upside, we are free to cooperate for the greater good of human society and God’s beloved creation.

            There was an amazing discovery reported on NPR this week[1].   In the depths of the oceans herrings come together as a society. A half-billion herrings came together on a North Atlantic bank.   As the fish get closer together they begin to synchronize their movements, they create an enormous wave of motion cooperating in their movement. The scientists said it was like the wave we make in sports stadiums when we intentionally cooperate in standing and raising our arms. You know the wave… Once all the fish have arrived they move as a massive unit to an area where they spawn.   The greater the mass of fish the safer they are while mating -- synchronized into safety. If only we could synchronize humanity loving each other as children of God. If the herrings can choreograph a wave, imagine what we can do with our superior talents as we cooperate for the common good.  

            The Apostle Paul mirrors in the theology of today’s scripture the living parable of Jesus’ Palm entry into Jerusalem. Jesus lowered himself into the throng of people on a lowly donkey. Jesus inspired the crowd; they lifted their voices together in hosannas of praise and hope. They lifted their arms tossing up their cloaks and branches. Much like the synchronized blossoming of faithful pear and cherry trees, Jesus inspired them to a synchronized social action.  Sadly the action did not last as long as the cherry blossoms will in Kenwood, but it happened. Paul still teaches us that God works in us enabling us to think and work for God’s good pleasure.   “Make my joy complete, be of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves. Let each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others. Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus.” Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus. Let the same donkey-riding mind, the same speak-to-the-lowly mind, the same in-touch-with-God mind, the same love-self-and-neighbor mind, even if necessary let the same willing-to-give-life-for-others mind be in you.   

            When we are filled with Christ, we synchronize ourselves in the Spirit of God. Paul was writing to the community. The text today was not for the building up of individuals, it was for the Christian society, the Body of Christ. They were to unite in purpose confessing Jesus as Lord and giving glory to God. Just imagine what Bradley Hills, our middle-sized congregation of 640, can do. We can burst forth blossoms of the Spirit together. We can change Montgomery County, and DC. We can beneficially impact the lives of Pakistani women.   To be most effective we sacrifice the passions within us as individuals that imperil God’s promised society of peace. We sacrifice the passions within our congregation that deter us from God’s society. Following Jesus, we learn to sacrifice our regard for ourselves as equals to God. 

            Do you remember the story of Jesus being tempted by the devil (Mt. 4:1-11). The devil tempts him to turn stones into bread.  Jesus sacrifices, empties himself of the power to disregard the rules of our world’s life together. He would like the rest of humanity plant wheat seeds, tend the plants, harvest their grains, prepare flour and bake bread. Or he would at least respect the growers and bakers by honorably purchasing it from them with thanks. In like mind we empty ourselves of the idols of food convenience respecting the growers and bakers of the world. The devil tempts Jesus to jump off a cliff and call angels to save him.  Jesus sacrifices, empties himself of the power of security. He refuses to call God’s angels to protect him and chooses to live his life as a vulnerable creature trusting in God. In like mind we empty ourselves of the idols of security and we grow as a community trusting in God. The devil tempts Jesus to bow before him and gain superiority over all the kingdoms of the world. Jesus sacrifices, empties himself of the power to be greater than his brothers and sisters.  In like mind we empty ourselves of the idols of superiority growing to see society greater than self.

            Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death – even death on a cross. Jesus was willing to sacrifice and suffer like us, for us. He became a nobody emptying himself of divine privilege that we might follow a Lord who suffers and weeps with us -- that we might follow a Lord who calls us to synchronize our minds and hearts with God’s.   As his Church we are called to make a great gospel difference in the world even to the point of institutional death, if that is what it takes.   

            In February Baptist pastor and sociologist, Tony Campolo preached on today’s passage. He said: There is a city not too far from Eastern University where they have a state hospital. In the state hospital they have people who are emotionally and psychologically disturbed. …the directors of the hospital wanted to start these halfway houses so that people who were on their way to full recovery could be nurtured from the hospital back into society, by first going to these halfway houses and from there they could get jobs and, little by little, … their own residences….Needless to say, the people in the city weren’t particularly thrilled with the possibility of this prospect. There was a city council meeting. The place was packed. Five hundred people plus squeezed into this hall, yelling and screaming their opposition to the (five) halfway houses. They didn’t want the, quote …,“crazies” living in their neighborhood.

            …the city council voted unanimously against the proposal. Not much discussion. A lot of yelling and a lot of screaming and the city council said no to the proposition. No sooner had they voted than the back doors of the auditorium were opened and in came Mother Teresa. She was in town for a ceremony dedicating a Sisters of Charity program and she heard about this meeting. She came down the center aisle and everybody gasped as Mother Teresa came to the front, got down on her knees in front of the city council, raised her arms and said, “In the name of Jesus, make room for these children of God! When you reject them, you reject Jesus. When you affirm them, you embrace Jesus.” And then with her arms upraised, five times in a row she said, “Please, please, please, please, please, in the name of God, make room for these people! Make room for them in your neighborhoods.”

            … What are you going to do if you’re on the city council? You guessed it! “I move we change the decision.” And then a second to the motion and they voted unanimously to reverse the decision they had made a few minutes earlier. The newspapers reporting on this the next day said the most remarkable thing is that of the five hundred plus people packed into that hall, not a one of them uttered a word of opposition to the motion. Why? Because of Mother Teresa. She spoke as one having authority. Where did she get that authority? On the streets of Calcutta, loving sacrificing for the poor and the oppressed of the world, giving of herself to meet the needs of others sacrificially. Sacrificial love earned her authority.

            Pastor Campolo continued: Whenever the Church speaks with authority, people listen. But the Church has to be sacrificial. And I’m afraid that the Church has not been sacrificial enough. In these days of an economic downturn there is a tendency in the Church to say, well, we’ve got to keep our own building intact, we’ve got to take care of our own staff, we have our own needs. And I’m telling you that the church that forgets itself and sacrifices for the needs of the poor and the oppressed—not only in their own neighborhood but around the world—that’s the church that will speak with authority.[2]

            We are a new hosanna crowd learning to synchronize our minds together with Christ. We, Bradley Hills, are called to sacrifice, to empty ourselves of any passions that imperil God’s peaceful society. We empty ourselves of the fear of cultural embarrassment. We don’t care if people criticize us for not having enough mulch around our plants – we gave that money to Bethesda Cares.  We are living boldly into our primary vocation, the reconciliation of a disrupted social and natural world.   We start new rhythms within our culture that choose life, that choose love. As we celebrate the Lord’s Supper, we grow in the same mind; we join Christ’s heart. We blossom together - beautiful petals of the Spirit of God. Amen.