McGraw Senior Sermon
Oct 06, 2009
Jean McGraw
The senior sermon of Jean McGraw, Class of 2010 from the Diocese of South Carolina, given on October 6, 2009, in Christ Chapel
Our scriptures today seem to be about law, commandments which we are expected to obey. Psalm 112 tells us that those who "delight " in the commandments will be happy. Their descendents will be mighty and have great riches. We are told in Matthew that if we are angry with our brother, we are liable for judgment, and if our sister has something against us, we are to be reconciled with her before we present our sacrifice at the altar. Jesus says everyone who looks at a woman with lust in his heart, has already committed adultery. I remember when Jimmy Carter was president, some reporter asked him if he had committed adultery, and he quickly replied, "Yes, I have committed adultery in my heart." And we are told if our right hand sins, we ought to cut it off so it does not contaminate the rest of our body. We are never to swear but keep all the vows we have made to the Lord. And if our brother strikes us on the cheek, we are to offer him our other cheek, and hardest of all we are to love not just our neighbors but our enemies.
I look at all these things and feel weighed down, because I know there is no way for me to keep all these commandments. I can get up each morning and "vow" to do my best to keep them and yet I am sure by the time I drive from Wells Branch to 32nd street I have broken at least one of them. It is virtually impossible for me to live up to this perfection.
But let's just imagine for a few minutes. How many people would have no right hands if we took this literally? And how many more people would be guilty of adultery just because their spouses divorced them or because they lusted in their hearts? How many of us actually pray for our enemies? Or much less try to love them? If God punished us each time we broke a commandment, we would all be in "time out" for all eternity.
Let's imagine again. What would the world be like if we did keep the commandments? The front page of the Austin Statesman would be a lot different. There would be no articles about last night's murder, or the hunt for the serial rapist. There would be no one in jail for abusing a child or a spouse or a partner. There would be a lot fewer lawyers or at least they would not have many clients. We would not see beggars on the street corners or under the overpasses because we would provide for those among us who are needy. There would be no need for orphanages because we would bring the orphans into our homes to be cared for. There would be no burned crosses on lawns because we would love our neighbors.
We would not be sending our young men to Iraq and Afghanistan because we would love our enemies instead of killing them. There would be no border guards or fences between countries. We would invite our neighbors to share in our abundance. We would not be fighting in Congress over new healthcare legislation. We would already have healthcare for all of our citizens. Instead of building bombs we would use our research to find cures for disease and to save our planet from destruction. Like a bumper sticker I once read, "wouldn't it be a great day if the schools had more money than they need and the air force had to have a bake sale to raise money for a bomber". We would take seriously God's gift to us of dominion over the fishes and the birds of the field and the creatures that crawl on the earth. We would understand dominion as the responsibility to love and protect them instead of destroying them and their environments in our greed.
But our world here on earth is not like we have just imagined. We have not loved God with our whole heart and our neighbors as ourselves. We still live in a fallen world, one that falls short of the world God created.
I read an article on the internet that described Christianity this way:
If you are looking for a nice, comfortable religion that doesn't call for too many demands on your life, makes you feel better when you're down, and will reserve luxury suites for you in heaven when you die, then you probably shouldn't try to be one of Jesus' disciples. He is demanding. He has the crazy notion that his followers should serve others rather than themselves. He expects them to show integrity when no one is looking. And he expects them to love. Not just people who only occasionally have a bad day. But enemies. Jesus expects you to love your enemies. Don't follow him unless you're ready to experience some discomfort.
Jesus' commandments which we find so difficult to follow do not use passive verbs but active ones. Such as:
Do good. When you find a way you can do something good for one of your worst enemies, do it.
Bless. When you think of the person who is slandering you, and saying untrue and nasty things about you, find ways to work blessing into your thoughts
Pray. Intercede. When you're praying, you probably pray for your family and your friends. Jesus says to pray and intercede for your enemies.
Love. Martin Luther King, Jr. once said, "it is love that will save our world and our civilization, love even for enemies." He goes on to say that "Love is a creative, understanding goodwill for all men. It is the refusal to defeat any individual".
But we alone are powerless to change. None of us is capable of enough good works to bring about God's kingdom. We can image what the kingdom of God is like and we can see glimpses of it. But we are powerless to bring it about alone. Each of us is in need of God's grace. Thomas Aquinus tells us that grace is communicated sacramentally. That is, the sacraments are the means by which God's grace is made available for the community of believers. As such, each one of us is dependent both upon God and upon the community for his or her reception of God's grace. Each one of us is dependent upon every other person. Grace is always, even if only indirectly, the activity of the whole community.
We here at LSPS and SSW are a community, and we partake of the sacraments together each and every week. We are the recipients of God's grace here and now. But we are dependent not only on God's gift of grace, but on each other to receive this gift. And, as in all relationships, being in a right relationship is a function of what is in our hearts, of willing to have faith and to love. It is not based on what we do but who we are in relation to God and each other. For Luther each one of us is a "graceful presentation" of God's love for us. This means that we must be sacraments of salvation for each other.
We are called to a love for each other in our community, and in the world that seeks nothing in return. It is an overflowing love; it is the love of God working in the lives of all people. And when we rise to love on this level, we begin to love others, not because they are likeable, but because God loves them. By our very presence here we are not looking for a nice comfortable religion that makes no demands on our lives. But are we ready to serve others rather than ourselves? To show integrity when no one is looking? And to love, not just people who only occasionally have a bad day, but our enemies? With God's help we can.
