HARRY’S DILEMMA
A sermon by George R. Pasley Mark 8:31-33; 1 Corinthians 1:18-25
Harry had a dilemma.
Harry’s dilemma was very much like Peter’s dilemma, and it is very much like our own dilemma when we begin to take for granted Jesus’ death on a cross.
Harry is a real person. He is six years old and both of his parents, Steve and Heather, are Presbyterian ministers. Harry has a sister, Julia, who is eight years old.
Harry knows the stories of Jesus. He knows “Jesus Loves Me.” In fact, Jesus is pretty darned important to Harry. But there is one fact about Jesus that Harry seems to have missed, so his big sister was very glad to tell him.
It went something like this: “Harry, Jesus died. He was killed. He died on a cross.”
According to Harry’s mother, Harry was pretty darned inconsolable when he heard the news. When his parents told him, over and over again, that Jesus rose again on the third day, Harry resisted comfort. It was not a joyful night in the manse that evening. Harry could not get to sleep, and his parents were doing a lot of pastoral care and theological education.
The fact of the matter is this: we cannot tell the whole story of Jesus without telling the truth of the cross. But the greater fact of the story is this: The cross is the one part of the story by which every other portion must be seen if we are to understand all the parts correctly.
Even the Christmas stories must be heard in the context of the cross. Both of the Christmas narratives- in Matthew and in Luke- include plenty of signs that Christmas is not merely a warm, cute, magical story. Instead, they insist that it is the beginning of a dangerous story that involves death.
Sure, the story ends with resurrection, but the Resurrection story makes little sense without the cross.
To ignore the cross is to ignore the tumultuous and violent conflict between God’s righteousness and humanity’s sinfulness.
To ignore the cross is failure to see the great price of our redemption.
To ignore the cross is to deny the interplay of suffering and life.
To ignore the cross is to make grace cheap.
So, let’s look at the cross, and see what we see.
First of all, we see the truth. The cross is evidence and proof of human sin. It is not a pretty piece of gold jewelry on a gold chain. It is an ugly instrument of death in which an innocent man was executed in a ghastly and painful way, for reasons of jealousy and fear.
It is an ugly truth, but if we look at it we begin to see all sorts of ugly truths.
Looking at Jesus and seeing the cross reminds of that much sin in the world has a habit of hiding behind some very beautiful things.
For instance, we live in the beautiful state of
Life is beautiful, but it is definitely tarnished and even in peril. But look again at the cross, and you will see humanity’s one true hope, which is the grace and mercy of God.
That truth- and that hope- are the two things we need in order to live differently.
Traveling on the ferry I was treated to a loudspeaker announcement: YOUR ATTENTION PLEASE!
The announcer went on to tell us how to use our lifejackets, and informed us that in the event of an emergency we would be directed to gather at the muster station.
It seems to me that each human life is an emergency, and the church is a muster station which is spiritually located at the foot of the cross.
When we gather here as a people who experience suffering and who interpret our suffering through the lens of the cross, then we are gathered in a way that allows us to experience most powerfully the redeeming love of Christ, who died FOR US, on the cross.
We use certain words in church that we don’t often use outside of church, words like grace and faith, and we use some words here that we use differently outside of church, words like love.
So we say that grace abounds, meaning no matter how much the volume of human sin, God’s forgiveness can and does exceed it. One look at the cross compels us to say those words.
We say that Faith endures, meaning faith is the lifejacket to which we cling until we are rescued by God. We know that faith in God was the power by which Jesus stuck to his mission, even though it led to the cross.
And we say that love abides, meaning that love takes up residence in our life, no matter how dark the situation because the darkest situation ever was the cross, and Jesus took up residence there.
How then shall we live while we gather at the cross?
We shall live in deep awareness of both sin and suffering. We shall remember that our enemies are powerful foes.
We shall be aware of our human limitations, and we shall live more dependant upon the wonderful grace of God.
None of that should be taken to mean that we will become passive in the face of the difficulties of life. To the contrary, it will mean that we will do whatever we can, whenever we can, in opposition to sin and suffering. BUT WE WILL NOT DEPEND ON OUR RESULTS TO SUSTAIN OUR HOPE, BECAUSE WE KNOW THAT WHATEVER SUCCESS WE ACHIEVE ARE ALL PALE FORERUNNERS TO THE REDEMPTION.
So we will speak the truth about sin and suffering. We will acknowledge sin and the suffering it causes where there is war, genocide, abuse, addiction, hunger, poverty, greed, prejudice, discrimination, exploitation, violence, idolatry, hatred and even indifference.
But we will remember: Jesus died on a cross, because we are sinners.
So we will cling to that cross, and use it as we would a candle to illumine the dark places of life.
Our sin will not be explained, nor will we understand our suffering.
But hold on to that cross, and lift it as candle, and you will see very clearly that Jesus is beside us. Where we are, love abides, and the cross is our proof.
“For Jews demand signs and Greeks desire wisdom, but we proclaim Christ crucified, a stumbling-block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.”
That’s the Jesus I love, and without the cross I couldn’t see him.
In the name of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost. Amen.
