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By Allen McGraw, on April 24th, 2009
I had someone tell me recently that, “It’s all well and good to worry about your neighbors needs, but in the end a person needs to make sure they’re right.” Right, as in “right” with God. Ever since then I can’t seem to get this out of my head. I can’t be sure, but I think they may have been trying to say that I spend too much time preaching about serving others rather than personal holiness. Maybe that’s true, I do tend to focus more on the Christian life being most fully expressed when we deny ourselves and serve others, better known as “loving your neighbor.”
Mark 12:28-34
28One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?”
29“The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ 31The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.”
32“Well said, teacher,” the man replied. “You are right in saying that God is one and there is no other but him. 33To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.”
34aWhen Jesus saw that he had answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.”
Pay particular attention to verse 33. This teacher of the law had come to the realization that there was something more important than acts of personal holiness. That is, loving God, and loving neighbor. Because of this, Jesus tells him that he is “not far from the kingdom of God.”
Now don’t get me wrong. I am after all a Methodist. I believe in holiness of heart and life. I just don’t believe that you can separate holiness from serving others.
And what about Matt. 25:34-46? Here the disciples have gathered with Jesus for the last supper. Jesus is teaching them, trying to prepare them for what is to come. And he washes their feet. This is a supreme act of subservence. The washing of someone elses feet was a task reserved only for slaves. Jesus tells them to go and do likewise. He wasn’t telling them to go around and start washing everyone’s feet. He was telling them to serve.
Mike Waters, in Spreading the Word, wrote, “Our Lord and Savior set a superlative example of serving others during his brief three-year ministry… A study of the life of Christ will reveal a character unconcerned with the serving of self. Jesus took advantage of every opportunity to instill this same trait in his disciples Christ wanted his disciples to understand that they must learn to think little of serving self and much of serving others” (Spreading the Word, Vol. 3, No. 8, March/April 1991).
And for reflection consider the following verses…
James 2:14-17
Matthew 25:34-46
I’d love to know what you think. Follow this link or the comment link at the end of the post and tell me.
By Allen McGraw, on April 14th, 2009
Matthew 14:22-33
Ever since learning of John the Baptist’s death, Jesus has been seeking a moment of solace, away from the crowds, away from the pressing obligations of ministry. But the people just won’t leave him alone. Jesus even tries to flee, well maybe not flee, but he withdraws to an out of the way place. The crowd following him must have known a shortcut, because they beat him there and are waiting when he arrives. Instead of sending them away, Jesus ministers to them. He shares with them the good news and heals them.
This goes on well into the evening and the disciples begin to worry. It’s suppertime and here they are with thousands of other people in the wilderness. Where will their evening meal come from? The disciples, moved with compassion for the people, ask Jesus to send them away. But instead of sending them away, he tells them to feed the multitude of people. Matthew tells us that it was five-thousand men, plus women and children. All these people and he wants us to feed them? That had to be what the disciples were thinking.
You know the rest of this story. The disciples say that they only have five loaves and two fish. Jesus says, “Bring them to me.” He blesses the loaves and fish, and then begins to divide it among the disciples who then give it to the people. It’s an amazing miracle, included in all four of the gospels, but it’s not nearly as dramatic as the miracle from our gospel reading, but it sets the stage for what happens next.
Mat 14:22 Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd.” (v. 22).
After the feeding of the multitude, Jesus finally has the opportunity to be alone. He stays behind and sends the disciples on ahead of him. At Jesus’ direction, the disciples get into a boat and begin to cross over to the other side of the Sea of Galilee. Jesus then dismisses the crowd
Mat 14:23 After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. (v. 23a).
Now he finds the opportunity to pray. He goes up on a mountainside to be alone.
“When evening came, he was there alone,”(23b)”but the boat was already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it. ” (v. 24).
Jesus is alone on the land, separated from the disciples by about three miles of rough water. Matthew tells us that the disciples were having a rough time. They were diligently trying to carry out Jesus’ directions, but found themselves unable to make much headway. The wind and the waves were beating against the boat keeping them from their destination. Try as they might, they just couldn’t make it.
“And early in the morning” (v. 25a).
And then, “early in the morning” – it is the fourth watch between 3:00 and 6:00 a.m., the disciples have been at this for several hours now, they’ve already had a big day, they must be exhausted. It’s dark, the wind is blowing, and the waves are crashing against them.
And…
“Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake.” (v. 25b).
Jesus walks to them on the water.
” When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear. ” (v. 26.)
Somehow, someway, in the middle of their frantic efforts, they manage to notice this figure approaching. They strain their eyes in the dark of night as they frantically work the rigging of their boat. They are desperate to keep things under control. They have to keep the boat moving in the right direction.
The storm, while dangerous, is familiar. While they may have been frightened by the wind and the waves, it was the sight of Jesus coming to them, walking on the water that terrified them.
Jesus responds with a threefold statement: “But Jesus immediately said to them: ‘Take courage! It is I. Do not be afraid.’” (v. 27).
“Peter answered him, ‘Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water’” (v. 28).
“He said, ‘Come.’ So Peter got out of the boat, started walking on the water, and came toward Jesus” (v. 29).
And with one word, Jesus answers Peter’s fear and doubt. “Come,” he says. Peter gets out of the boat and begins walking to Jesus on the water.
For Peter, this is a moment of both weakness and strength. He doubts – “if it is you”, but he wants to believe. He fears, but steps out of a perfectly good boat into the storm. What must that have looked like? I wonder what Hollywood and their computer graphics would do with this one – Peter stepping out of the boat and the swirling water bearing his weight. And then, step after step, his faith is tested and the authority of Jesus is proven, as Peter walks toward Jesus.
“But when he noticed the strong wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’” (v. 30).
But then, Peter remembers where he is. What am I thinking, this is impossible, I can’t walk on water. And he feels the strong wind and sees the waves, and he begins to sink beneath the waves. In desperation, he cries out, “Lord, save me!” Jesus reaches out to him, lifts him up, and sees him safely to the boat.
Jesus says, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?” (v. 31b). Jesus first saves Peter, then gently rebukes him.
“When they got into the boat, the wind ceased” (v. 32).
“And those in the boat worshiped him, saying, ‘Truly you are the Son of God’” (v. 33).
Wow! What a story.
But you know, I have a problem with this story. It’s that everything turned out okay. In fact, in most of scripture, things turn out okay. Or at least that’s what we like to remember.
The blind man gets his sight,
the adulterous woman receives forgiveness,
the Prodigal Son returns home,
Doubting Thomas gets proof,
the hungry are fed,
Peter is safe in the boat,
and Jesus calms the stormy sea.
And the problem is, in our own lives, solutions don’t seem to come that easy. And even if we are blessed to experience calm waters on occasion, there’s always a storm cloud on the horizon, threatening our safety.
We row our boats as the storms of life rage.
But I know this; that the same Jesus who drew near to the disciples in that tiny fishing boat also draws near to us when the storms come. Offering us words of hope, “Take courage! It is I. Do not be afraid.”
Author Robert Capon says that “most of us would like to think of Jesus coming to the rescue in some heavenly tow truck, offering us hot chicken soup as he tows us to safety.” In reality, Capon writes, “Jesus does come to us in the storm, and he sits and suffers with us until the storm has passed. Jesus draws near to those who are hurting.”
And it’s a good thing that he does draw near, because this was not the last storm that the disciples would face… they would see their messiah crucified, they would witness his resurrection, and then be sent into a harsh world to share good news, and be persecuted and killed for their trouble.
Remember – Jesus sent the disciples into the stormy seas, so it’s not surprising that we find ourselves there as well.
And in the midst of our storm, as Jesus draws near, he calls out to each of us to step out in faith.
Even when faith seems unreasonable, and even when we can’t see any possible solution on the horizon, he invites us to not be afraid, to trust in him.
You may be going through a difficult time in your life right now. The wind is against you, and it’s been that way for awhile, and you are weary, or discouraged, or lonely, or afraid. Jesus approaches, walking upon the very circumstances that frighten us.
“Take courage! It is I. Do not be afraid.”
By Allen McGraw, on April 14th, 2009
To all MethodistCorner subscribers:
I am sorry about the multiple emails you have received. I’ve been doing some behind the scenes work to the website and inadvertently sent out multiple emails.
Allen
By Allen McGraw, on September 20th, 2008
Human relationships can be quite complex can’t they? Psychiatrists, psychologists, psychoanalysts, and even used-car salesmen spend untold hours delving into the human psyche; hoping to find even the smallest clue, which might somehow open for them the door to the inner workings of our complex minds. “What makes us tick?” they ask. Biologists study brain waves, tele-marketers evaluate speech patterns, preachers study faces. You know what I’m talking about don’t you? Biologists – scientists- want to know what chemical or electrical signals snap our synapses. Tele-marketers want to know what would be the best way to attack our defenses when we “just say NO!” And preachers, (you know, preachers?) we watch for the slightest nod or shake of the head, or maybe we’ll catch the upturned corners of a mouth, hinting at a smile. Or maybe, we’ll be blessed to hear, the sweet-sweet sound of “AMEN”, from the parishioner, three pews back, on the right. We hope for something, anything, to let us know what’s going on behind those glassy stares.
We are creatures in community, so complex that we could never hope to fully understand what makes us act the way we act, say the things we say, or do the things we do. Jesus dealt with all the complexities of humans in relationship. The eighteenth chapter of Matthew is, if nothing else, a study in human relationships. I guess that could be said of most, if not all, of the Bible, but Matthew 18, with its twists and turns offers us a snapshot of humans in relationship. And more specifically, we see the added dimension of disciples/church members/children of God, in relationship.
In the very first verse, Jesus is asked a very human question. “Who is greatest in the kingdom of God?” Of course, the disciples, expecting Jesus to be their new king, are anxious to know which of them would be his generals. They are okay with Jesus being at the top of the ladder, they just want to make sure that there is also room enough for them, somewhere near the top. All of their lives, these nobodies from nowhere, had been struggling to survive on the rung they had been assigned. So who could blame them for hoping for a littler larger piece of the pie. But Jesus, being Jesus, turns all of that upside down. He takes a small child, places the child in there midst, and says, “Okay, you want to have a place in the kingdom of God? Then become as humble as this little child.” Suddenly, there was no top, no bottom. If they even wanted a seat at the table, they would have to drastically alter their way of seeing the world.
After expressing the importance of entering the kingdom of heaven, Jesus goes on to tell the well-known parable of the ninety-and-nine. If a shepherd has one-hundred sheep, and loses one, will he not leave the ninety-and-nine, find the lost sheep, and rejoice when he finds it? The answer is – No, probably not. The human reaction is “circle the wagons”, protect what we have left, “cut our loses”, work with the 99 we have left and maybe we can salvage what’s left of the year. But Jesus says risk it all, for even one. Reminding us of the sacred worth of all God’s creation.
Jesus then offers some practical advice for dealing with conflict in the church. Well, it seems like practical advice, but it’s actually a re-ordering of human nature. Jesus says that if someone offends you, go to them in private and try to work it out. If that doesn’t work, take someone with you and try again. If that doesn’t work, take it before the church. If that doesn’t work, you’ve done all you can do, cut them off. Seems pretty simple and straight-forward doesn’t it? But we should know that when things look simple, there must be something we’re missing.
Notice that at the very beginning of the process, Jesus puts the burden on the one offended, not the one giving offense. He tells us to go to the person who has offended us and attempt reconciliation. And if all fails, how are we to treat them. He says they are to be as “gentiles and tax collectors.” And what exactly was Jesus’ record of dealing with tax collectors and gentiles? He forgave them, and called them to be disciples. So, what seems to be practical tips for dealing with conflict, is actually a call to followers of Christ to posses a scandalous capacity for forgiveness?
Enter Peter. You have to love Peter don’t you? I for one can totally identify with Peter. On one hand, Peter displays a remarkable level of faith and commitment, a level of insight and understanding that is unsurpassed. When Jesus asks the disciples, “Who do you say that I am?” It is Peter that offers the wonderful proclamation, “You are the Christ, the son of the living God.” But on the other hand, in Peter’s denial of Christ, we see the depths to which we all can sink. And we see Peter at every level in between.
We often see Peter on the very verge of understanding. He’s almost there; he’s just about got it. If he could just take one more step; stretch himself just a little further. Peter, hearing all this talk of the importance of humility and the sacred worth of every individual; hearing how it’s not so important who’s right and who’s wrong, but healed relationships are of ultimate importance. He finally begins to get the picture. Or he thinks he does. He approaches Jesus and asks, “So let me see if I’ve got this right. If someone offends me, how often should I forgive them.” He is so sure that he’s got it right that he doesn’t even wait for Jesus to answer. “Whoa, whoa, whoa, Jesus, I think I got this. Seven times. I should forgive seven times.”
Sounds reasonable doesn’t it? It did to Peter. The other rabbis taught, based on a passage in Amos, that three times was adequate. So seven, that’s over twice what the other rabbis taught. In comparison, Peter was being pretty gracious. But Jesus, being Jesus, says “That’s not quite what I had in mind. It’s not seven, but seventy-times-seven times.” Jesus must have caught Peter searching for his tally book in the folds of his robes. Peter probably opened it up, counted the lines, and thought to himself, “You know, I’m going to have to add a few. I’ve room for seven, but not four-hundred and ninety” Jesus, being Jesus, must have seen Peter doing the math and thought it necessary to explain his answer further.
Jesus offers this parable, he said, “The kingdom of heaven is like a king, who decides it’s time to settle accounts with his servants. And after checking the accounts, he comes to a servant who owes him ten-thousand talents.” Now a talent would be about 15 years worth of this servant’s wages. So that’s one-hundred fifty-thousand years worth of wages. That’s in the billions to you and me. Now I don’t know what this servant was doing to amass such a huge debt, but that’s not the point. The point is – it’s enormous.
So this servant who owes the king a billion dollars is brought before him and asked to pay it all. “And, as he could not pay,” – of course he could not pay; not even if he added the accumulated wealth of his children, and his children’s children, to his own wealth, could he ever hope to pay this debt. “And, as he could not pay,” the king ordered that he, and his wife, and his children, and all his possessions be sold, to pay the debt.
It’s the end. Life for this servant is over. So in desperation, the servant falls on his knees, and begs the king for mercy saying, “Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.” Now hold on a minute, is there any way that this servant, given a little, could pay this debt? Absolutely not. The king knows it, and he knows it, but, the king, moved with compassion for the servant, orders that he be released and forgives him the debt.
It’s a miracle, and no minor miracle at that. It’s difficult for us to forget when it’s someone else’s turn to buy lunch, but her we have a king forgiving over a billion dollars worth of debt. I wish that I could stop here. It would be a fairytale ending. The king is gracious, and the thankful servant, along with his family, lives happily ever after. But sadly, the parable continues.
The servant leaves the presence of the king, and as he does, comes across a fellow servant who owes him one-hundred denarii. He seizes him by the throat and says, “pay me what you owe.” His fellow servant falls down and pleads with him, “Have patience with me, and I will pay you.” Do you notice anything here? It is the same request made of the king just a short time ago, but instead of being merciful, this unjust servant has his debtor thrown into prison.
What a startling contrast between the graciousness exhibited by the king and the utter lack of compassion shown by this unjust servant. To make matters worse, a denarius was roughly a days wages. So, one-hundred denarii would be about one-hundred days worth of wages. The unjust servant owed the king one-hundred fifty-thousand years worth of wages, an amount he could never repay, but he cannot bring himself to forgive a seemingly insignificant debt when it is owed to him.
The king hears about this unjust treatment by the forgiven servant and has him brought before him. “Wicked” he calls him. “I forgave you all because you pleaded with me. Should you not have done the same?” he asks. “How could you do anything less?”
I can’t begin to understand the lack of compassion that this unjust servant exhibits, but I recognize it. It looks all too familiar. Having been the recipients of immeasurable mercy and grace, we in the Christian community often find it entirely too easy to hang onto the wrongs done to us, and we can be awfully slow to forgive. And who can blame us. It’s hard to forgive, sometimes impossible. Let’s not even talk about forgetting. When someone wrongs us it hurts. And the last thing we want to hear is that the Christian response is one of forgiveness. But that is exactly what the message of Jesus is for us today. Having been forgiven, we are to forgive.
But first, we have to experience forgiveness. Not just know it in our heads, but feel it in our hearts. And as we receive the peace that flows from the depths of God’s love, revealed to us through the miracle of God’s forgiveness, it opens for us the healing power that comes to us as we forgive others.
By Allen McGraw, on September 4th, 2008
There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus. (Gal 3:28)
“And the sign said long haired freaky people need not apply.”
You may recognize that as the first line of the song made popular by the Canadian rock group, The Five Man Electric Band in the 1970s. If I had even the least bit of musical talent, I would sing it for you, but with a tune or without, the words still speak truthfully concerning a fundamental flaw in our human nature. At its core, it is a problem of fear. Fear of the other; fear of the unknown; fear of anything that is different from what we judge to be acceptable. And because of our fear, we erect barriers – barriers between us and them.
They don’t look like us, act like us, sing like us, vote like us, love like us, worship like us, so they must not be us. And so we build barriers to keep them out… We erect border fences and membership vows, we erect gated communities and constitutional amendments, we erect no fly zones and political parties, we erect church doors and denominations. And we huddle in fear behind our locked doors, and hope that our gates are strong enough and our walls tall enough.
Maybe this time we have it right, just the right mix of mortar and brick, measured just so, a wall of just the right height. And so we begin to feel a little safer. Now, safe, secure, behind our locked doors, and impenetrable walls we breathe a collective sigh of relief. Thankful that God has for one more day protected us from the onslaught that rages beyond our boundaries.
But a strange thing begins to happen within our sanctuary, with no “enemy” present to command our attention; we have time now to examine these strange folk with whom we have cast our lot. Funny thing is, there not as much like us as we had originally thought. In fact, they are not anything like us. Maybe it’s time for another wall, or at least a small fence. That should be enough, to begin with, but one never knows. The more I think about it, the more I’m sure, that these people aren’t anything like me at all…
And we build our barriers higher and stronger, never stopping to consider where the madness will end.
You would think that we as members of the Christian faith, after two-thousand years, would have become pretty good at dismantling the barriers between us. But sadly, that’s just not the case at all. In fact, we seem to be well on our way to perfecting the art of wall building. Nevertheless, our inability to embrace the truth as written by the Apostle Paul makes it no less true. It only means it’s difficult. But, difficulty didn’t stop Paul, and it shouldn’t stop us.
You see, the Apostle Paul knew all about barriers. The eclectic group of people that comprised the first century church was as diverse as any that we could imagine. Male and female, young and old, rich and poor, Jew and Gentile, the differences were many. And they would build their walls. They’d build them up, Paul would tear them down. Some would even say that he built a few barriers himself, but that’s beyond the scope of this simple five minute sermon. But one thing is within its scope, and that is a simple but profound affirmation; an affirmation that transcends our differences and reveals the remarkable power of the Gospel. In a few short lines, it paints a vivid picture of a reality that most of us can only dream of, but dream we do. Or should I say hope? It is a reality that we hope for, a reality that we pray for, a reality that we work for- diligently chipping away, bit-by-bit, stone-by-stone, brick-by-brick, dismantling the barriers that divide us.
The Apostle Paul wages an all out assault on all the barriers that have been, and all the barriers that will be, with the simple affirmation that we are “one in Jesus Christ.” Barriers that we would seek to build crumble when we live into the truth that the Apostle Paul affirms – there is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female. For we are all one in Jesus Christ.
Paul opens to us a world without barriers, a world without divisions, a world united by the living Christ. And as difficult as that may be for some of us here to imagine, there are glimmers of hope. Signs, if you will – unlike the “signs” in the lyrics of the song by the Five Man Electric Band – these signs remind us what the world could be like. Last week I witnessed something that I never believed I would see in my lifetime – the nomination of an African-American by a major political party as their candidate for president of the United States. And now, this week, the other party nominates a female as their vice-presidential candidate. Politics aside, whether you support one or the other or neither, it is nevertheless, an incredible example of the breaking down of barriers and a reminder to all of us that anything is possible.
Some would say that this is only political maneuvering and has nothing to do with the teachings of Paul, and less still with what it means to be Christian, but I can think of no better example. When people stop judging others by the color of their skin or their gender, and instead try to hear the message they proclaim, God must surely be at work – dismantling the walls that we would so quickly build.
And even our friends, The Five Man Electric Band, by the end of their song recognize that God’s kingdom is one without barriers and leaves us with a glimmer of hope. The last verse says this…
And the sign said everybody welcome, come in, kneel down and pray
But when they passed around the plate at the end of it all,
I didn’t have a penny to pay, so I got me a pen and a paper and I made up my own little sign
I said thank you Lord for thinking about me, I’m alive and doing fine
By Allen McGraw, on August 29th, 2008
Lord, make me an instrument of Thy peace;
where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
and where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master,
grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console;
to be understood, as to understand;
to be loved, as to love;
for it is in giving that we receive,
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
–St. Francis of Assisi – 13th century
By Allen McGraw, on June 23rd, 2008
I’ve been working on a new website for the Courtland Charge. Let me know what you think.
http://www.courtlandumc.org
By Allen McGraw, on June 17th, 2008
 The 2008 Mississippi Conference of the UMC, began its legislative session on June 8 in Jackson, Mississippi. Guided by the theme “Arise, Shine, Magnify” members from across Mississippi gathered to discuss budget items, changes to the conference structure, “direct billing” of pastors insurance premiums, as well as many other administrative items. The Annual Conference ended its legislative session on June 10.
From the Conference website…
Mississippi United Methodists voted to change the conference structure for doing ministry and to begin a four-phase move to direct billing for clergy pension and insurance.
If you are interested, you can read a wrap-up of Annual Conference proceedings here.
Update 6/18/08: You can read in-depth coverage of the 2008 Annual Conference in the latest edition of the Advocate.
By Allen McGraw, on May 13th, 2008
Former Congressman Bob Barr has officially announced his candidacy for President of the United States. You can find more information about him at http://www.bobbarr2008.com/ . I wonder what this will do to the dynamics of the race. Most people view a third-party candidate as a “spoiler” for one party or the other. Recent examples would be Ralph Nader syphoning support from the 2000 Al Gore campaign and Ross Perot all but derailing the 1996 Bob Dole campaign. So, what do you think, could a third-party candidate make a successful run for the presidency?
By Allen McGraw, on May 12th, 2008
The highest policy-making body of The United Methodist Church, the 2008 United Methodist General Conference, began its legislative session on April 23 in Fort Worth, Texas and conducted its business around a communion table made from trees destroyed by Hurricane Katrina at the historic Gulfside Retreat Center in Mississippi. Guided by the theme “A Future with Hope,” nearly 1,000 delegates from around the world discussed budget items, restructuring the church and wrangled over wording in many of the 1,564 petitions submitted for their consideration. The General Conference, which convenes only once every four years, ended its legislative session on May 2, and will meet again in 2012.
If you are interested, you can read a wrap-up of General Conference proceedings here. You may also be interested in an archive of news articles related to the 2008 General Conference which were written by the United Methodist News Service.
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