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| 15th Sunday after Pentecost Christ Church Covington September 1, 2002 Well, the Church Publishing Corporation has done it again. They’ve gone and left out of our readings a part of the Bible that is important for my sermon this morning. When I tell you what that part is, you will no doubt understand why they might have seen fit to leave it out. It is a seemingly unimportant phrase at the very beginning of today’s Gospel. Matthew 16:21 actually begins, “From that time on, Jesus began to teach his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and undergo great suffering at the hands of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.” From that time on… From that time on, Jesus began to talk with his disciples about that which awaited him in Jerusalem, he started telling them about the cross. In the Gospel narratives of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, from that time on, the Cross becomes a focal image in Jesus’ discourse. In these three Gospels, the sequence of events is identical: something happens, and then Jesus starts talking about his fate in Jerusalem, that is death at the hands of men and resurrection. So, what precipitated or preceded the shift in Jesus’ teaching that we hear about this week? What marked the turning point? (Of course, we heard it in last Sunday’s Gospel) It was Peter’s confession that Jesus is the Messiah. That is the event that heralded the change in Jesus’ teaching “From that time on.” It’s as if the disciples’ understanding of Jesus’ identity and role in the history of God’s people signals to Jesus that it’s time to take things to the next level. In last week’s Gospel, Peter goes past the point of no return: “‘But who do you say that I am?’ [asked Jesus]. Simon Peter answered, ‘you are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.’” No, when you say that, there’s no going back. When you understand what Messiah is and then you say that Jesus is the Messiah – not just your Lord and personal savior, but the Messiah – you must follow him. There’s no way you can not follow him. You must follow him or reject God altogether. It is then, after the disciples reach this point of no return, that Jesus starts pointing to the suffering, death, and resurrection that is his destiny and theirs. No wonder Peter said, “God forbid it, Lord.” He didn’t know what he was really in for until he couldn’t get out of it. Poor fellow! “What a wily manipulator Jesus is!” you might say. He got those guys to sign on the dotted line (as it were) without explaining the terms of the agreement. Well, perhaps God is like that, perhaps he’s something of a trickster. I think most of the faithful through the ages would agree: unanticipated turns in the road, painful uphill climbs, and dark scary places punctuate our earthly pilgrimage, our following in Jesus’ steps. Often they seem to catch us off guard or unawares. Yet the Gospel image we are presented with today, with Jesus instructing His disciples to take up their cross, while it might seem like an image of slyness on the one hand, on the other hand it is an image of mercy and compassion. Jesus does not hide what is to come from those who have committed themselves to Him and His way and His protection. From that time on, it might have been too late for the disciples to turn back. But Jesus didn’t permit them, once they understood who he was, he didn’t permit them to operate under any illusion about what that meant. It meant then and it means now, those who follow Jesus are those who willingly, willingly empty themselves of self and offer their lives in sacrifice to God, those who place their feet in His footprints, regardless of easier, safer, more enjoyable trails.
There! Now you know it too (in
case you didn’t know it already)! You know what you’re in for and you know
what you have to do. Perhaps it’s too late to turn back (presumably most of
us identify ourselves as Christians, and therefore identify Jesus as the
Christ, the Messiah). So maybe it’s too late to not follow Jesus, but it’s
not too late to make ourselves ready for what lies ahead. And what lies
ahead? Well, you can just make it out behind the flower arrangement. We’ve
prettied it up a little, to make it more decorative, but, it is a cross, an
instrument of death. What you can’t see though, is what lies behind it,
what lies beyond the Cross. That is, Resurrection and new life. Behold the
cross – it awaits all of us here. Therefore, acknowledge Christ, deny
yourself, and take it up now, “From this time on…” Amen. |
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