October 19, 2003

Nineteenth Sunday of Pentecost

Mark 10:35-45

 “A Matter of Position or Conviction?”

     Mark 10:43-44: “But whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all.”

     “The first shall be last and the last shall be first.”  Jesus liked to turn things around to show people that the way God sees things is often the reverse of the way people see things. 

     “The first shall be last and the last shall be first.”  But it’s just too bad this reversal doesn’t seem to apply to the Boston Red Sox!  Geesh!  What happened?  A homerun in the eleventh inning and 85 years of hoping went right down the drain for Boston fans.  The Red Sox have been anything but first for a long, long time. 

     If only this year the last could have been first and the first last!  But the Yankees just keep coming back for more.  They’re the ones to beat, top of the heap, the “Evil Empire!”  Oh, the Curse of the Bambino! - The Sox should never have sold them Babe Ruth in 1920!

     Big league sporting events don’t exactly operate on the philosophy that the first shall be last and the last shall be first.  There wouldn’t be much incentive to compete if the pennant wasn’t handed to the first place club each year.  We recognize winners.  Like the T-shirt message I saw a while ago that read, “Second place is the first loser.”  The strong survive.  The powerful rule.  The dominators dominate.  That’s sports, that’s business, that’s politics.  Some might say that’s life.

     Life might seem like a pennant race at times where lines are drawn between winners and losers and we all fear ending up on the wrong side of the line.  Life might seem to be like that but Jesus says it doesn’t have to be because God sees things differently.  He wants us to know that in the end, God’s way of seeing things will be the way things will be anyway, so in the meantime, we’d all be better off to follow God’s way in the here and now.

     Jesus shows us God’s way is one of peace and justice and that justice just might require a reversal of fortune.  The powerful shall be brought low.  The poor shall be lifted up.  Christ calls us to be rich in the things that really matter, things that become possible when people choose not to take advantage of each other, but rather, to serve one another.

     Marti Doyle, a childcare provider and aspiring poet, puts it this way in her poem, “Touching the Future”:

I don't wear power suits,
make speeches,
or drive a fancy sports car.
I've never talked on a car phone,
made a big sale,
or been elected to the Senate.
I don't "do lunch",
have a big impressive office or carry a beeper.
I spend my days wiping away tears,
giving hugs,
and serving chicken nuggets.
A good day is when I go through a whole day
without a temper tantrum, bite mark
or a toilet training accident.
My "office" is a room full of brightly colored toys
and laughing children.
You may not think that what I do is very important
and you may even whisper behind my back
"What a waste of a good mind."
But I know better.
I make a difference
because I'm changing the world
one child at a time.
Everyday I'm getting the once in a lifetime chance
to touch the future.
I'm proud to say "I'm a child care provider".

     It’s not about position, but conviction.  We can really waste our time fretting over how well we stack up against our neighbors and trying to get ahead of them because the good life, the truly good life that is centered in God’s purposes, is not about being somebody according to popular culture, but about being the people God wants us to be - servants, humble hearted, good spirited, giving, caring, compassionate servants, people of conviction. 

     Wouldn’t the world be a better place if this were the way people chose to be?  Would we, could we, be at war if power struggles ceased?  What would our families be like if we didn‘t jockey for position the way we so often do?  Where could our discussions with Second Church go if we worried less about our place and focused more on our purpose?

     Jesus saw firsthand in James and John, his own disciples, just how difficult it is for people to find their sense of worth and self by their convictions rather than their status.  Still, he was gracious with them.  The cross reminds us that the Savior is gracious with each of us, too and that indeed, the last can be first, that even when life is lost it can be gained.

     Forgiven now, walking daily in the grace of Christ, we are equipped with his amazing grace so that we are empowered by love to turn this world around.  We are Christ‘s instruments of justice and peace.

     But how, just exactly how, can the grace Christ gives combine with the convictions of our hearts to make a real difference in today’s world?  Well…maybe one shawl at a time, until there are one hundred shawls, until there are more, until those who suffer are enfolded with the warmth of human compassion, with divine love.

     Barbara Jones is a disciple of Jesus Christ.  She is one of many good and faithful servants of Christ in this place and she and others are changing the world for the better.  Many of you have been a part of this faithful endeavor, knitting or crocheting shawls for the Community Cancer Center.  Thanks to you, many people in their hour of greatest need have been comforted, have been reminded they are not alone.

     Maybe with all the international turmoil in the world today this doesn’t seem like all that big a deal to you.  Don’t kid yourself.  This is where it’s at.  This is exactly what Jesus was talking about when he said, “Whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant.”  No amount of service is a small thing - great things happen through people who serve.