Readings: 1
Corinthians 2:1-12, Matthew 5:13-20
Let us pray:
May the word of my mouth and the
meditations of our hearts be acceptable in your sight O God, our rock and our
sustainer. Amen.
Do you ever wonder why we say a prayer
before the sermon, a prayer that asks God for my ability to speak and yours to
listen with discerning minds and hearts to the word of God for each of us? Is it one of those unfathomable things that
are just ‘done’ in a service? Actually
no – each time I pray that prayer I get to remind myself that it is not all
about me. And I hope that it reminds you that God’s word is speaking to each of
you in different ways. Whether my
thoughts are muddled or flow well, my words tentative or passionate, my
interpretations spot on or completely off the radar for you, you will still be
fed by the word of God if you listen with an open heart and mind. Because, as Paul says, it is not my words but
the work of the Holy Spirit in this time to write God’s truth upon our hearts
and bring us to faith. It doesn’t mean
that any preacher is to do less than their best, but the prayer reminds us all
that the word preached in human wisdom only lays itself wide open to
abuse and misunderstanding.
Paul’s letter to the Corinthians is strong
on this point – as he responds to the unlooked-for adulation being given him as
preacher, as he comments on the unhealthy way he and Peter and Apollo are
pitted against each other by some of the community by valuing their
impressiveness as preachers. Paul almost
gleefully highlights his frailty and unimpressiveness. He himself, he says, brought people into
relationship with God despite this weakness of speech and proclamation because,
through the Spirit, the wisdom he spoke from was the wisdom of the cross, a
wisdom not of this world but of God.
Not that he either is holding up poor
preaching as the way to go but rather to debunk the myth that it is human
wisdom and clever rhetoric that brings people to Christ Jesus –as some of the
people of Corinth seem to be saying.
Neither is Paul anti-intellectual, suggesting that we give up all wisdom
and thinking and just pop out whatever comes to mind. He is rather choosing to
let God’s wisdom drive his thinking than that of the world. The foolishness of the cross exposed the
wisdom of the world for what it is: destructive of life and love – and so he
would follow the cross.
And this is our constant tension isn’t it
as we seek to live in Christ’s way. For
we are pulled one way, the wisdom of the world, and the other way which the
world calls foolishness and we call the wisdom of God.
Where might this play out for us? Well Mike and I went to the movie ‘The
Railway Man’ earlier in the week (excellent movie by the way) – based on the
true story of an Englishman who was tortured and abused, along with many
others, by the Japanese whilst building the Burma railway. As one of the other returned servicemen said
‘We don’t talk about what happened because no-one would believe us’. And this is just a small thing, something
that happens often when bringing a book to the screen, but apparently in the
book when he returned to Burma to confront his nemesis, now a tour guide of the
area, he brought forgiveness with him without knowing if this man was sorry for
his actions, whereas in the movie he went with a heart full of revenge and
hatred, only to find when he met him that he couldn’t carry this out and found
he could forgive. The Japanese man was
full of contrition and sorrow and one got the impression from the movie that the
forgiveness was earned, rather than given freely, unconditionally as in the
book. The wisdom of the world versus the wisdom of the cross.
At our Parish Council retreat we all
recoiled a little when the word ‘marketing’ was brought up. And yet we had to
talk about ways of letting people know we are here and what we believe and how
we live that belief. But at the same
time we had to understand the difference between trying to get people to sample
our ‘product’ solely through our ability at being good sales people, producing
the right programmes, worshipping well and find the right words to convince
- and the understanding that the Holy
Spirit is at work in the hearts and minds of people to create and grow
community, without which all the expert marketing in the world would fall flat.
People don’t come to faith in God because our logo is stunning or our web
presence in the best money can buy – they come with hearts seeking Christ and
look for community where they can grow in Christ and find Christ alive and at
work.
But again it doesn’t mean we do nothing,
that we sit on our hands and wait for the explosion of numbers, -, we still
need to articulate and share and live our faith, be a welcoming and inclusive
community of faith. But this will be
as nothing without the power of the Holy Spirit to open people’s hearts to the
message of the cross. We can’t make it
happen just by our initiative, our persuasion.
The wisdom of a world that persuades and cajoles and markets versus the
wisdom of the living Lord present and at work among us.
It can also be seen in how we understand
Church – is it a place where acceptance is earned by right behaviour and right
believing (whatever that might be) ie are we setting the membership rules or is
God? Is it a club where only particular
people can feel comfortable, where outsiders must do it right to be accepted,
where advancement comes to those who conform only, ie the way of the world, or,
if we believe that God draws hearts and lives to Christ, is it a place where
all people are welcome, where love for God and each other transcends all
difference, values all people, offers all gifts unconditionally - the wisdom of
the cross. I think not. It will be
very interesting to see the ongoing development of the movement called ‘Sunday
Assembly’ developed in the UK by a couple of comedians apparently – but it had
grown throughout the world. Where people
gather on Sunday mornings to share inspirational stories, gather round to sing,
reflect and go out to do good things. A good
and very caring approach to right living. The difference is: this is all
without God. Whilst our track record as
a church is not brilliant at being inclusive, I wonder what rules for exclusion
might occur in this gathering without the wisdom of the cross: I wonder if they will simply dispense charity
or realise that people, all people, have something to give each other, I wonder
if they will continue to offer help when there seems no returns, no rewards, if
they will understand the amazing power of love to change lives and the
intrinsic value of each and every human being as they are! Maybe they will and maybe there they will
find God.
We who choose the wisdom of the cross, we
who look to Jesus to show us the way of foolish love, unconditional mercy and
amazing grace – we who are called to be the light that shines
that the darkness cannot put out, the salt to the earth in desperate need of
goodness, will we hear that prayer for our words to be acceptable in God’s
sight and our hearts to be opened to
God’s guidance and call, to live in the wisdom of the cross, the wisdom of the
living Christ.
I finish with the words of C S Lewis: “I believe in Christianity [in Christ] as I
believe that the sun has risen: not only because I see it, but because by it, I
see everything else”. Amen
Margaret Garland
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