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The Gospel of Matthew Bible Studies
The Gospel of Mark Bible Studies
January 2007
February 2007
March 2007
April 2007
May 2007 Ordination of Louise Christensen
June 2007
July 2007
August 2007
September 2007
October 2007
November 2007
December 2007
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Time after Pentecost #22 (C) Grace, mercy, and peace be with you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen! I would like to begin my sermon today by telling you a story. It is a true story that happened at a church in Springfield, Ohio – not far from where I used to be a pastor in Dayton, Ohio. The story goes like this… "She had been baptized at First Lutheran in Springfield in 1904 and five years later, at age fourteen, began to teach Sunday School to the Kindergarten Class. Seventy-five years later, with her eyes growing dim, she decided to retire. The congregation wanted to show it's affection to and esteem of her by erecting a stained-glass window to God's Glory and in her honor. Her favorite image of the Lord was to be the scene: Jesus and the lambs. She knew of course that a window was being put in, but she did not know it was for her; the secret was well kept. It was at a special Service that the window was unveiled and Myrtle Grace Rogers found out that she was the recipient of such a tribute. The pastor escorted her to the window for the dedicatory prayers to the thunderous and tearful ovation of the congregation. When it became time for her to say her "few words", Miss Rogers looked up through those thick glasses of hers and said, "OH, HOW SPECIAL THAT YOU HAVE ERECTED A STAINED GLASS WINDOW OF ME". There was an embarrassed silence, broken by those coughs that seem to accompany embarrassed silences. Everyone thought that with her eyesight so dim, that she had mistaken the seated figure of Jesus as herself. The pastor broke the silence, "MYRTLE GRACE, THAT'S A STAINED GLASS WINDOW OF JESUS". "OH, I KNOW, PASTOR,” she said in that voice that the congregation so loved that they listened to it in a deepening silence, "I SEE THAT IT IS MY LORD. I'M IN ANOTHER PART OF THE PICTURE, THERE IN HIS LAP. I'M ONE OF THOSE LITTLE LAMBS." It is truly a beautiful story, and one which eloquently speaks about the kind of humility that Jesus refers to in our gospel lesson today. For instead of thinking about the recognition and praise which she undoubtedly deserved for 75 YEARS of teaching Sunday School and influencing the lives of hundreds and even thousands of people, Myrtle Grace Rogers only saw herself for what she was...as being one of Jesus' little lambs. Knowing that this was so was all the "recognition" that she needed. How different this is from what people usually do in daily life! It seems that many people spend so much time watching and being concerned about what they think about other people and about what other people think about them. Magazines and tabloid newspapers often publish lists categorizing people...such as the 10 best dressed and 10 worst dressed people...the 10 most admired and the 10 least admired people...and so on and so forth. At work and at school, we are always looking at and evaluating as to who's "in" and who's "out...who's popular and who's not. And we often do a lot of worrying as to how WE are doing in the eyes of others as well! Jesus, however, wants us to refrain from "categorizing" and comparing ourselves with others. Because when we do that, this is when bad feelings and conflicts arise. The scene in today's gospel of people trying to fit themselves into a social hierarchy (with themselves at or near the top, or course!) is one that has been repeated over and over again even today! But Jesus suggests another way for those who would be his disciples. He says that we should start at the bottom of the hierarchy and be satisfied with wherever we are. No one can get upset with us then. And we don't have to worry about how much recognition we may or may not be receiving. And then (who knows?!), perhaps we may end up receiving honor, recognition, and love beyond anything we have ever dreamed of! One point of Jesus' illustration however, is often subject to misinterpretation. It almost sounds as if Jesus is telling us that we should TRY to be humble. As he says, "When you are invited, go and sit in the lowest place, SO THAT when your host comes, he may say to you, "Friend, move up higher". It almost sounds that if we try hard enough to be humble we will then be rewarded later. A lot of people have what I call FALSE HUMILITY. What I mean here is that some people, even though they may know that they are talented or good in something, will deliberately try to "poor-mouth" themselves and not acknowledge and accept the praise of others. They want to always pretend that they are not deserving. That is FALSE HUMILITY! And false humility is just as bad as false PRIDE! It is not wrong to receive and accept thanks and praise from others. In fact, it WOULD be wrong to NOT graciously receive and accept thanks and praise! If Myrtle Grace Rogers at that church had said something like, "Oh, you really shouldn’t have done this - I don't deserve this at all!", she would have hurt the feelings of many people who wanted to express their love and affection for her. It is a good and godly thing to graciously receive and accept praise and recognition from people who honestly want to show their love and thanks to you – as was the case with Myrtle Grace Rodgers. The people of First Lutheran in Springfield, Ohio certainly received a LOT from doing what they did to honor their beloved Sunday School teacher – and she, by saying what she did, gave the people of that congregation a very holy and special moment in their history. No, there is nothing wrong about RECEIVING honor and recognition. But SEEKING honor and recognition – especially at the expense of others – is! That is what the Pharisees and lawyers and other religious people were doing at that meal in today's gospel lesson. And that is what Jesus warns against in his parable. For when we SEEK honor, we are focusing upon ourselves. But when we graciously RECEIVE honor which has not been sought, then we – like Myrtle Grace Rogers – can be a blessing to others – and God will receive the glory! Through Jesus, we know that we are people who are of great value to God. We do not need to be falsely humble. Nor do we need to exalt ourselves and compare ourselves to others. Instead we, like Myrtle Grace Rogers, can be content in simply knowing that God loves us...that we are Jesus' little lambs! Because we belong to Jesus, we have all the prestige and recognition and love that we ever need. Thanks be to God! Amen! -------------------- George R. Karres, Pella Lutheran Church 418 W. Main Street Sidney, MT 59270
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