Grace, Mercy, and Peace to you from God the Father and our
Lord Jesus Christ,
We begin our
message this morning with a few words about the apostle James. He was a member of Jesus’ inner circle, along
with his brother John and Peter. He witnessed the Transfiguration personally
and also the healing of Peter’s mother-in-law and the raising of Jairus’
daughter from the dead. Jesus called him
aside with the two others who were closest to him to pray with him in the
Garden of Gethsemane on the night before he was crucified. James was the first
of the twelve apostles to suffer a martyr’s death and the only one whose
passing away is recorded in the New Testament.
We know a
few things about him other than this and if we look at the New Testament texts
that mention him, we can learn a lot about what it means to be a Christian and
a saint. James was a fisherman, an ordinary person. Jesus once called him and
his brother the sons of thunder because they were impulsive, strong-headed, and
full of zeal for the work Jesus gave them. Most people today admire different
qualities – polish, smoothness of manner, a quick wit, and the ability to
express yourself in public. Anyone who feels strongly about something is likely
to be called a fanatic, but firmness of purpose and refusal to bend can be good
traits, especially if God calls you to be a saint.
Now, we
should say a few words about what it means to be a saint. In everyday usage, a
saint is someone who tries hard all the time and has a pile of good deeds to
his or her credit. The Bible means something else when its writers use the word
saint: someone who keeps faith with God no matter what. A person who trusts
God’s word, who turns his or her cares over to the Lord, and who seeks and
accepts God’s forgiveness is a saint. This frame of mind naturally leads to
good works and a desire to please God. The disposition of the heart is what counts.
Faith makes a saint and faith creates eagerness to live with God. With this way
of looking at things, we can say that St. Peter’s people are saints. It’s a
high calling, and when we think about each other, I hope we’ll remember that
God looks on us as saints.
This may
surprise us when we hear it, because we know how sinful we are. We fall way
short when we measure ourselves against the Lord’s standards. And this is
exactly the point. Paul wrote that we are saints and sinners at the same time.
But we live in God’s grace and mercy, so the saint part predominates. We are
more saints than we are sinners. If we are still doubtful, it helps to recall
how we came by this calling, not as a result of our own works and deeds, but
because of God’s holy and unchangeable declaration. He declares that we are
saints. If we ever pass through a rough time and wonder what will become of us,
we have the right to remember that because of our faith and for the sake of his
Son, God has determined that we are saints. It’s like an invisible brand that
each one of us carries after our baptisms. God claims us as his saints whom he
loves.
Now, God
conferred the same high status on James that he bestows on us, and as we look
at the few gospel passages that refer to James, we learn something about what
happens as God’s saints live out their lives before him. To begin with, God doesn’t want us to rest
complacently in the gifts he has given us. He expects us to be spiritually
active. He wants us to grow and mature. We see this in the case of James.
There was
the time just after the Transfiguration when a certain Samaritan village
refused hospitality to Jesus and his disciples. James and his brother suggested
that they call down fire to destroy the town just as Elijah had called down
fire on a gathering of pagans. James didn’t consider that the situation was
much different in Elijah’s day. He acted in a very human way. Some people focus
on one thing and commit themselves to it completely. They wish to protect it,
even to the point of punishing others when they don’t have the authority to do
so. James felt that way about Jesus. His loyalty must have pleased the Lord,
but his understanding needed to be refined. Jesus pointed out that he didn’t
know the spirit that he was now made of. Christ’s disciples are agents of
salvation, not destruction. The gospel had not yet been preached in the
Samaritan village. The people there had not yet had the chance either to accept
or reject the Lord. They were still ignorant, and the Lord wishes to cut off no
one’s chance to learn. The Lord is patient and forbearing; he doesn’t act in
haste. He wants everyone to hear the gospel and to discover that it’s full of
grace and truth. This means that James – and all of Christ’s disciples – put up
with numerous inconveniences out of love for God and our neighbors. We try to
understand what other people are thinking and feeling and work to find
God-pleasing words that will reach them. this isn’t always easy. We sometimes must struggle to keep from
lashing out or expressing our personal opinions in full about one thing or
another. Sometimes we can be so devoted to what we know to be true that we give
offense without meaning to. There are times, of course, when people need to be
offended so that they will wake up. Again, what counts is what’s in our hearts.
We don’t act so as to get our own back but to serve the Lord and to encourage
our neighbors along the road to salvation. This is part of what it means to be
a saint.
Jesus makes
a similar point in this morning’s gospel. James and his brother are concerned
about the very human question of who will be first. Some people love the
limelight and are most happy when their good deeds are recognized and they
reach positions of special prominence.
Jesus says
that the way of the saint is the way of suffering. The world takes one path,
God’s saints take another. Our age pays a lot of attention to celebrities. We
watch them and because of what seems like their wonderful lives, many people
imagine what it’s like to be in their places and live alongside them. An
experienced observer once said that everyone besides rock stars and movie stars
is deprived. Maybe so, maybe the rest of us have seeds of unfulfillment and
frustration growing in our hearts so that we long to be in first place. The
point is that saints work with earthly inequities and make something good out
of them for themselves, their neighbors, and the Lord. The strong oppress the
weak, but God, who is the strongest of all, lifts up the humble of heart. He
sustains and supports. He doesn’t ignore the poor. He blesses the faithfulness
of his saints as we give our testimony to a greater more, substantial reality
than the earthly one. Questions of prestige and precedence can be interesting,
but the affirmations of God are more substantial and trustworthy. The Bible
teaches us that a lot of life on earth is full of vanity. Nothing on earth will
endure forever. Many things are constantly changing. Our true home is with God,
who created us, who ransomed us by his blood, and who never changes. How valuable is the witness of God’s people in
a world that loves to chase fleeting things. Living as a saint does sometimes
call for putting up with inconvenience, especially when people reject the truth
and mock the Lord. God’s people endure the bad side of life on earth and keep
our minds fixed on Jesus – his mercy now and his promises of a better kingdom
to come in heaven. We keep on going with joyfulness. Our neighbors need the
steady light of faith that shines from us. Our lives as saints are much more
valuable than we may suppose.
This brings
us, then, to a third feature of our lives as saints that the Lord refers to –
the importance of service. The other disciples were angry with James and his
brother because they sought preference they weren’t entitled to. It’s always
vexing, for example, if someone jumps ahead of us in a line that we’re
patiently waiting in. One of the first things I learned when I came to Canada
was that Canadians generally disapprove of line-jumping and this is a good
thing. But competitive striving is a big part of the rat-race in the world we
live in. someone wants to rush ahead; others are bound to get crushed. The
situation is different in God’s kingdom, as Jesus said. He didn’t say it’s
wrong to want to be first, but the way to achieve first place is by service. The
one who serves rules.
Jesus is the
chief of servants. He set aside his divine status and took on humble human
flesh. Then he gave up his earthly life to redeem the world from sin.
Christians take the ideal of service from the Lord’s example.
St. Peter’s
people know a lot about being servants. The purpose of the gospel text for us
is to encourage us in our callings. There is no shame in being a servant, God
tells us. For Christians, service is the only way of life. How much better the
world would be if everyone submerged their love for power and prestige and
welcomed lives of service. Here again, God’s saints show the way. We know that
the ups and downs of earthly life can’t injure our immortal souls, so we serve in
joy, knowing that God is pleased and that our neighbors benefit. He calls us to
look ahead confidently to a better day when we will receive a reward that we can
now scarcely imagine. In the meantime, we have the reward of satisfaction that
comes when we know that we have carried out our tasks as well as we can.
Living as
saints; isn’t easy. We sometimes have to struggle to subdue the desire to be in
first place or to thirst for revenge. To accept the burdens of sacrifice and
service calls for a depth of character that only God can give. Jesus walked the
path ahead of us and shows us how it’s done. What’s more, he accepted death on
the cross so that you and I might find comfort and peace and the encouragement
to keep on. We bring our doubts to the cross and our feelings of failure and
our rebelliousness. Jesus pardons and gives us the hope and strength to go on. He
loves his saints and will not give up on us. He will carry us along every winding
road to the great day of his return that is to come. In his name, we give
thanks. AMEN.
No comments:
Post a Comment