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The Gospel of Matthew Bible Studies
The Gospel of Mark Bible Studies
The Book of Acts Bible Studies
January 2009
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5th Sunday in Lent (B) Phillips Brooks, who lived from 1835 – 1893, was one of the most famous religious leaders of his day. For many years he served as the pastor of Trinity Episcopal Church, one of the largest churches in Boston. He also served as Bishop of the Diocese of Massachusetts. He also composed the well known and still beloved Christmas carol “O Little Town of Bethlehem.” But there was one thing about Phillips Brooks that was not so well known, but was perhaps the most important part of his ministry. Inside the pulpit at Trinity Church, he had carved the words from today’s gospel: “Sir, we would see Jesus.” He carved these words so that every time he entered that pulpit, he would be reminded of why he was there. Phillips Brooks knew that his preaching and indeed his entire ministry was not about him – it was all about Jesus. “Sir, we would see Jesus.” Or as our more modern translation has it, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” These words were spoken by some Greeks who had come to Jerusalem to worship at the festival of Passover. These Greeks (or Gentiles) were part of a movement known as the “God-fearers”. Even though they were not Jewish, they nevertheless had a great fascination for learning about and observing the teachings of Judaism. Immediately before today’s gospel text, Jesus had entered Jerusalem while riding a young donkey as a great crowd waved palm branches and shouted “Hosanna!” John’s gospel also says that many people were testifying about how Jesus had raised Lazarus from the dead – indeed, that was why the crowd had gone to meet him. Needless to say, when these God-fearing Greeks heard about all this, they wanted to meet Jesus personally. That is why they came to his disciple Philip and said, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” This sounds like a simple and straight forward request. But in John’s gospel, everything also has a deeper meaning. It was not just that these Greeks wanted to “see” Jesus or even to “meet” Jesus. Most of all, they wanted to “experience” Jesus – because they believed (or at least hoped) that through him they could experience the love and glory of God. When Philip and Andrew told Jesus that the Greeks had asked to see him, Jesus answered, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Very truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. Those who love their life lose it, and those who hate their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am, there will my servant be also. Whoever serves me, the Father will honor.” The point of this saying is that Jesus’ idea of glory was radically different from what people had been expecting. To most people glory means having more: more money, more prestige, and more power. Perhaps that is what the crowd was wanting from Jesus when they had greeted him during his Palm Sunday entrance into Jerusalem. Perhaps that is what the God-fearing Greeks had been seeking as well. To Jesus, however, glory was not about having more – but rather about giving more. To Jesus, God’s glory is experienced through the giving of oneself in service to others (such as when later he would wash his disciples’ feet) and even through the giving of one’s life (as he would on the cross). Yes, it is when we stop focusing upon having for ourselves and instead focus upon giving of ourselves that we finally begin to truly see and experience the glory of Jesus. When preparing for this sermon, I began thinking about two illustrations of this truth that have occupied our news lately. The first illustration – a negative one – involves the executives at AIG who have received those huge “retention” bonuses at taxpayer expense – and the accompanying outrage of so many American citizens (including myself personally). Perhaps what has gotten so many people upset is not just the money, but the attitude exhibited by the corporate culture at AIG – the attitude of “heads I win, tails you lose” and “I’ve got mine, and I don’t care about anyone else.” Their idea of “glory” seems to be about having more and focusing upon their own benefit. In contrast to this – this time in a positive way – we have also been hearing about the hundreds and thousands of volunteers who have been working to save the cities of Fargo and Moorhead from flooding. So many of them have worked to the point of exhaustion and beyond for absolutely no pay – and nothing in it for themselves. Their only motive has been to serve and to help their neighbors. Their idea of “glory” is about giving of themselves rather than about having for themselves. That understanding of glory is what Jesus was referring to in today’s gospel. “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” People throughout the world are making this request. They want to see Jesus, not just through our preaching, but also through our loving and self-giving service day by day. In a world that far too often has extolled greed and a “me-first” kind of attitude, people are longing to see and experience the kind of life that Jesus has to offer. “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” Phillips Brooks kept those words as the mantra of his ministry, and as the goal of who and what he was as a pastor. May this also be so for all of us who are called by the name of “Christian.” May we see and experience Jesus not just for ourselves, but so that others can then see his love and experience his glory through us. “Sir, we wish to see Jesus. We wish to see Jesus.” Amen. -------------------- Pastor George Karres 418 W. Main St. Sidney, MT 59270
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