Responsive Reading: Psalm 118: 1-2, 19-29
​Gospel Lesson: Mark 11: 1-11

Grace and Peace from Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,
​
“Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth.  But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things– and the things that are not– to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him.”-1st Corinthians 1:26b-29. 

“Jesus plus nothing equals everything; everything minus Jesus equals nothing[1].”–Tullian Tchividjian

Shortly after graduating from Seminary I worked as a substitute teacher.  One day I was filling in for 9th Grade math class.  On this day, there was one kid who I’ll call Alfred that was short and small with red hair and freckles who proceeded to interrupt me at every opportunity.  So I sent Alfred out in the hall.  As soon as I did this the other kids were aghast; they couldn’t believe I would be so foolish to do such a thing.  The kids explained that Alfred had a really bad habit, whenever he was out in the hall.  Alfred would always run his mouth to passing seniors.  Alfred’s mouth would get him in trouble to the point where fights would quickly break out.  As I pictured Alfred, I couldn’t believe the other kids.  Alfred was giving away several inches of height, all sorts of weight, and probably a good deal of muscle to the average senior at North Branch High School.  Ten minutes, later I hear a ruckus brewing in the highway.  Open the door, and there is Alfred surrounded by a group of senior boys with unfriendly intentions, because his pride just couldn’t help itself.   

Now I want to tell you a similar story that ties into our Palm Sunday Gospel lesson.  Wayne Rice tells the following story[2].  Once upon a time, there was a donkey.  The donkey woke up the day after Palm Sunday.  The donkey had given a ride to a man they call Jesus.  The donkey for the first time in its life felt the cheers of an adoring crowd.  Never before had the donkey felt such pleasure.

So the donkey figures Monday morning is going to be the same.  So the donkey wanders into town, sees a group of people by the well. “I’ll show myself to them,” he thought.

The people see the donkey and just mind their own business.   The donkey gets mad.  “Throw your garments down, don’t you know who I am.”

The people are dumbfounded by the lip on this donkey.  Someone slaps him on the tail and tells him to move along.

The donkey stormed away angry.  “Miserable heathens, I’ll just go to the market where the good people are.  They will remember me[3].”

The scene is just the same at the market.  The donkey strutted around like he owned the place, only to be ignored, again.

The donkey gets mad at this point and begins to lash out. “The palm branches!  Where are the palm branches!” “Yesterday, you threw palm branches down for me to walk on[4]!”

The donkey’s feelings were really hurt at this point.  The donkey walks home to see his mother.  The donkey describes what happened and how foolish the people were. 

The donkey’s mother finally sought to set him straight.  “Foolish child, don’t you realize that without Him (Jesus), you are just an ordinary donkey[5]?

So if the donkey isn’t at the center of our story, how does the donkey fit?

For years and years, the people of Judea where Jesus walked on Palm Sunday were awaiting a conquering hero, a larger than life figure to drive the Romans off the land[6].  The Romans were known for their impressive war horses.  You saw a Roman war horse; you knew you were coming face to face with an imposing solider.
Donkeys were just like Alfred, short, small, and slow seemingly unable to match Roman might.  If Jesus wanted to make a dramatic entrance, he’d find a war horse. Instead, he found a donkey.

You see donkeys were the symbol of servanthood.  Rich people owned horses; poor people owned donkeys[7].   Kings certainly would never ride into town on a donkey, especially a young one. 

Centuries before Jesus marched on Palm Sunday the prophet Zechariah had predicted the following: “Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey[8]!”

The donkey would serve as a reminder to the people that Jesus over the course of Holy Week was about to turn the whole world upside down.   Donkeys triumphing over stallions would seem ridiculous.  The seemingly wise would look foolish and the seemingly foolish look wise.   

 David Letterman was born in Indianapolis in 1947.  Letterman soon rose to fame as one of the most famous television stars in the country.  Letterman also was known for being one of the most difficult T.V. Stars around a man whose fame like the silly donkey easily got to his head.  Letterman though several years back was interviewing a reality T.V. Star regarding all the drama within her life. 

Letterman made the following observation. “For a long time, I thought ‘geez people are idiots.’  Then it occurred to me, ‘Is it possible that everybody’s an idiot? Maybe I’m the idiot, and it turns out that I am.[9]”  

For we are broken people in this world, left in continual search of answers about both sin and salvation, yet perhaps these answers always point in the same direction of a cross. 

To quote the Apostle Paul: “For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.  I came to you in weakness with great fear and trembling.- 1st Corinthians 2:2-3

Let me close with the following story to illustrate how one very wise King had learned differently from the Silly Donkey or David Letterman when it comes to knowing your place and the source of your hope within this world.

King Canute of Denmark was one of the greatest kings of the Middle Ages sitting on the thrones of England, Denmark, and Norway all at the same time[10]. Canute was known for rebuilding English churches in the wake of previous Viking plunder, while he was king he oversaw the continual Christianization of his native Denmark.   King Canute like Solomon was not a perfect man, yet he was a wise man!

King Canute had an extensive court.  The court would praise Canute at every opportunity[11]. 

“You are the greatest man that ever lived…You are the most powerful king of all…Your Highness, there is nothing you cannot do, nothing in this world dares disobey you.”

Canute eventually grew tired of such foolish flattery, for he was a mere mortal.  Canute decides to teach his court a lesson.

“So you say I am the greatest man in the world?”- Canute said.

“O king, there never has been anyone as mighty as you, and there never be anyone so great, ever again.” They cried.

‘And you say all things obey me?”- said, Canute

“Yes, sire…“The world bows before you, and gives you honor.”

“I see,”’ In that case, bring me my chair, and place it down by the water[12].”

The servants go and get Canute’s royal chair and place it at the water's edge. 

Canute sits down and looks at the ocean before proclaiming “I notice the tide is coming in. Do you think it will stop if I give the command?”

“Give the order, O great king, and it will obey,”- cried out his court.

“Sea. I command you to come no further! Do not dare touch my feet.”

Next thing you know, a wave touches Canute’s feet. 

“How dare you! Ocean, turn back now! I have ordered you to retreat before me, and now you must obey! Go back[13]!”- Canute cried out.

Another wave touches Canute’s feet.  Canute kept sitting on his throne all day, shouting at the sea, pretty soon Canute’s throne was completely soaked with water. 

Finally, Canute realizes his point has been made,  Canute then turns the crowd and gives the following speech: “It seems I do not have quite so much power as you would have me believe. Perhaps now you will remember there is only one king who is all-powerful, and it is he who rules the sea, and holds the ocean in the hollow of his hand. I suggest you reserve your praises for him[14].”

Holy Week is coming, pretty soon all our foolish pride will be put to death.  We will soon see that we are not quite as tough as our mouths make us be.  No different than the silly donkey, our role in the salvation story is often inflated.  As the very wise King Canute makes us know.  A great king journeyed into Jerusalem on this day, the king may not have looked like much riding in on a slow, small donkey, yet this king is mighty enough to command the sea and soon to triumph over the grave.  Holy Week reminds us as Our Lord is soon to be put to death, a new creation shall soon emerge.  A world of forgiveness and hope.  A world that will shout “Hosanna!” in the very direction of the one who deserves it. 

Amen
           
           


[1] Stier, Leon. “A Foolish Donkey.” Email Mediatations. 21. May.2017. Web. Mar.19.2018. 
[2] Rice, Wayne. Illustrations for Youth Talks. Youth Specialities. 1994. Print. page.138. Taken from Leon Stier “A Foolish Donkey.” on Mar.19.2018. 
[3] Rice, Wayne. Illustrations for Youth Talks. Page.138. 
[4] Rice, Wayne. Illustrations for Youth Talks. Page.138. 
[5] Rice, Wayne. Illustrations for Youth Talks. Page.138. 
[6] Dale, Martin. “Palm Sunday and the Donkey.” Sermon Central. 29. Mar.2007. Web. Mar.18.2018. 
[7] Dale, Martin. “Palm Sunday and the Donkey.”
[8] Zechariah 9:9. 
[9] Duke, Annie. Thinking in Bets: Making Smarter Decisions When You Don’t Have All the Facts. Portfolio/Penguin Publshing. New York. 2018. Print.p.120. 
[10] “Cnut the Great.” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation. 2.Mar.2018. Web. Mar.18.2018. 
[11] Higgins, Scott. “King Canute.” Stories for Preaching. Web. Mar.18.2018. 
[12] Higgins, Scott. “King Canute.”
[13] Higgins, Scott. “King Canute.”
[14] Higgins, Scott. “King Canute.”

First Lesson: Jeremiah 31: 31-34
Responsive Reading: Psalm 51: 1-12
Second Lesson: Hebrews 5: 5-10
​Gospel Lesson: John 12: 20-33

Grace and Peace from Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,
​
Let me begin with a story.  Once upon a time, there was a bank president[1].  The man was no different than most bank presidents you know.  He was somewhat stiff and very formal in how he communicated.  The bank president seeking to be well-mannered had heard two bits of news in the past week.  Number one- a competitor bank had recently moved into a new building. Number two- a loyal customer and valued member of the community had recently passed.  The bank president decided that he needed to send floral arrangements to both the other bank and the customer’s family as a way expressing well-wishes.  He calls the flower shop; only the florist manages to get the card messages confused.  The bank president receives a call from the other bank president wondering exactly why he received a floral arrangement stating “With our deepest sympathy.”  The bank president upon hearing this turned white as a ghost.  He had never been more embarrassed in his whole life.  He knew his customer’s family was now going to receive at the funeral home a floral arrangement in their loved one’s memory that said “Congratulations on your new location!”
Now we hear this story and we sense the embarrassment felt by the bank president.  We know by instinct that death is something that is no laughing matter.  The pain, the separation, and the grief haunt those who encounter.  We should try to run from death with every fiber of our being.

Sarah Pardee was born in New Haven, Connecticut in 1840[2].  Sarah marries a gentleman named William Wirt Winchester.  Winchester was the primary heir to the Winchester firearms fortune.  William Wirt Winchester died young at the age of 43 from tuberculosis.  Becoming a widow left Sarah Winchester with all sorts of money.  Winchester inherited 20 million dollars which would be the equivalent of over 500 million dollars in 2018[3]. Besides this, Winchester received a fifty percent ownership stake in the firearms company, earning her 1,000 dollars a day or the equivalent of 25,000 a day in 2018[4].  Winchester was never going to have to worry about money the rest of her life.

In 1884, she decided to seek out advice moving forward after the recent death of her husband, a young child and father in law[5].  Winchester believes her family is cursed because of people killed by the family rifles.  She decides to consult a medium to contact her dead husband.  The medium’s advice was that she needed to build a home to honor her husband’s memory, as long as she was building this home that she would never die. 

So in 1884, Winchester buys a farmhouse on the other side of the country with eight rooms in San Jose, California[6].  She purchased the house on top of 161 acres.  She was going to spend every cent of her twenty million dollar inheritance expanding this house to ward off death.  So construction began shortly after, laborers worked twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, three hundred and sixty-five days a year, for nearly forty years as a way for Sarah Winchester to ward off death.

The house is like nothing you could ever imagine.  The house consists of 161 rooms, 40 bedrooms, two ballrooms, 47 fireplaces, 17 chimneys, and two special basements[7].  The house was built seven stories high.  The house contained numerous staircases and doors that lead to absolutely nowhere.  Winchester poured millions upon millions of dollars into this house, believing that she could ward off death. 

1922, Sarah Winchester dies in the middle of the night due to heart failure.  Here is the interesting thing about Winchester at the time of her death, she had purchased enough building materials that further construction of her home could have continued for an additional eighty years[8].

For plenty of people are like Sarah Winchester in fearing death almost to the point of it holding them bondage[9].  While Sarah Winchester took her fear of death to an extreme end, in some ways, she’s no different than many of us.    

Sarah Winchester’s story leads us into Our Gospel lesson for Today from John 12[10]. 

Our lesson takes place during the Holy Week of Passover.  So people from all over the world were coming to Jerusalem for religious pilgrimage.  In our lesson, a group of Greeks approaches Jesus’ disciple Phillip.  The Greeks were religious outsiders during Holy Week; they were not Jews because they did not descend from Abraham, they rather converted at some later point in time.  The Greeks have a request for Phillip “Sir; we wish to see Jesus[11].” 

Jesus’ response to such a request was interesting.  He tells a story to his disciples.  “I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed.  But if it dies, it produces many seeds.[12]” 

Jesus is making a point within our lesson to not only the Disciples, but also the Greeks, Sarah Winchester, and the Bank President.  The point has to do with the nature of death, specifically his death later that week. 

Daniel Habben describes it as such “Just as the purpose of a seed is to be buried into the ground where it can germinate and grow into something productive, Jesus wants us to know that the purpose of his coming into this world was to be buried[13].”

Upon his death, many new seeds will spring to life.  The point of this passage is through his death; many resurrections would soon take place. 

Death being the way to Resurrection is made even more clear in the next verse.  John 12:25: “Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.”

Jesus’ point here is that hope does come from where Sarah Winchester believes it comes.  Hope doesn’t come from money; hope doesn’t come from youth or beauty, nor does hope our best of deeds[14]. 

Once upon a time, there was an old man who made an agreement with the Grim Reaper[15].  He told the Grim Reaper that he would gladly accompany him when it’s his time to die, the only condition is the Grim Reaper give him sufficient warning.  The man and Grim Reaper agree on this deal.  The man doesn’t hear back from the Grim Reaper for years and years. 

Finally, one night the man is sitting at home when the Grim Reaper taps him on his shoulder, the man gets annoyed saying “You said, you would warn me.”

The Reaper responds “I’ve kept my part, look in the mirror, your thick black hair is now thin and white, look how you need to turn your head in my direction to hear me because your hearing has started to go.  Perhaps you’ve noticed how year after year, you need to stand slightly closer to the mirror to see yourself better.  I’ve sent plenty of messengers to warn you. Your time has come.”

We’ll often be like the man in this story, think of every way to deny death’s pending arrival. 

Jesus’ point is that to inherit eternal life; we need to die.  We need to die to our success, our failures, our sins, and our selfishness.  When we die we are reminded that we are no longer at the center of the universe, only when we come to this realization will we begin to anticipate inheriting eternal life[16]. 

Holy Week will soon be upon us.  The most real judgment of death will shortly be upon us.  Judas will hand Jesus over for money, the rest of the Disciples will fear and cower, Peter will deny knowing him.  The Disciples will display a discomfort in the presence of death no different than any one of us. 

Jesus doesn’t want to us to look at his death like this; Jesus wants the Disciples to know early in Holy Week that his death will be the means by which the many, many seeds of salvation will be spread throughout the entire earth.  Seeds to die to produce harvests[17].  The harvest to come will be one of forgiveness and eternal life. 

Let me close this morning with one final story, a preacher one time lost his wife[18].  He was driving his young children to the funeral.  On the way to the service, they saw a truck ahead of them stop at a red light.  The truck was the biggest truck  that dad or the children had ever seen in their life.  On this day, it was sunny.  The sun hit the truck at just the right angle, so a giant truck shadow shined upon a nearby field.
 The preacher pointed this out to his children by saying “Look children at the truck and look at its shadow.  If you had to be run over, which would you rather be run over by?  Would you rather be run over by the truck or the shadow?  The youngest child pointed out “The shadow couldn’t hurt anybody.”

To which the preacher nodded in agreement, to which he said to his children here’s the thing “Death is a truck, but the shadow is all that ever touches the Christian.  The truck ran over the Lord Jesus; Only the shadow is gone over (your) mother.” 

It was on days such as this one.  The Bank President’s words rang true.  The customer was indeed moving to be a better location.  Sarah Winchester would not be able to avoid death, yet she should not tremble because of it.  No matter how old we grow, we are reminded that life in this world merely paves the way to eternal life.  Resurrection spreads many, many seeds over the Earth. What we are reminded as we prepare for Holy Week to witness Jesus’ death and resurrection up-close.  The truck shall not touch you, but only its shadow.  Amen
 
 
 
 
 


[1] The following is taken from May 25th, 1992 edition of Daily Bread. The illustration was accessed on Sermon Illustrations.com on Feburary 20th, 2018. 
[2] “Sarah Winchester.” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation. 19. Feb.2018. Web. Feb.20.2018. 
[3] Sarah Winchester.” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia.
[4] Sarah Winchester.” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia.
[5] “Winchester Mystery House.” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation. 19.Feb.2018. Web. Feb.20.2018. 
[6] Winchester Mystery House.” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia.
[7] Winchester Mystery House.” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia.
[8] The following is taken from the April 2nd, 1994 edition of Daily Bread. The factoid was found on Sermon Illustrations.com on Feburary 20th, 2018. 
[9] Hebrews 2:15. 
[10] John 12:20-33. 
[11] John 12:21. 
[12] John 12:24. 
[13] Habben, Daniel. “What’s Eating Jesus?” Sermon Central. 20.Mar.2006. Web. Feb.19.2018. 
[14] Habben, Daniel. “What’s Eating Jesus?”
[15] The following illustration comes from the Feburary 29th, 1991 edition of Daily Bread. Illustration was accessed on Feburary 19th, 2018 from Sermon Illustrations/death. 
[16] Markquardt, Edward. “If a Seed Dies.” Sermon from Seattle. Series B. Lent 5.  Web. Feb.20.2018.   
[17] Haugen, Roger. “5 Lent B.” Sermon Central. 6. Apr.2003. Web. Feb.20.2018. 
[18] The following illustration comes from Donald Grey Barnhouse and was found on Sermon Illustrations under death.  Website was accessed on Feburary 19th, 2018.  

First Lesson: Numbers 21: 4-9
Responsive Reading: Psalm 107: 1-3, 17-22
Second Lesson: Ephesians 2: 1-10
​Gospel Lesson: John 3: 14-21

Grace and Peace from Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,
​
This morning I want to begin by telling you the stories of three unique individuals, who would seem to have nothing in common.  There is ultimately a common bond tying them together with Nicodemus the lead character from Today’s Gospel Lesson from John 3[1].

R.J. Palacio tells the story of Augie Pullman a ten-year-old boy born with a craniofacial disorder[2].  Things like swallowing and breathing that we take for granted were challenges for Augie as a young child.  Growing up Augie had numerous surgeries to live a normal life hopefully.  Augie because of his medical condition was never going to look normal.  Kids would make fun of him at the local park growing up.  Augie as a self-defense mechanism proceeded to wear a space helmet over his head in public for two years.  Augie was asked if his face was a result of being in a “fire.”  Augie was home-schooled because both kids and adults can be continually cruel.  Augie was quite bright and loved Star Wars.  The insults would sting Augie every time he’d be compared to zombies or various hideous looking Star Wars characters on account of his face.  Augie had grown up being left out by other kids[3].  Augie expected to be picked on when he started going to school.  Augie saw all the ways in this life he seemingly didn’t measure up, so he knew what exactly it felt like to be lonely and unloved. 

The second character I want to tell you about is one of the most remarkable men in American history.  John Quincy Adams was born in Quincy, Massachusetts in 1767 the son of Abigail Adams and future president John Adams[4].  At the age of 26, the Ambassador to the Netherlands.  At the age of 36, he would be elected to the United States Senate.  He served as a Professor at multiple Ivy League schools in Harvard and Brown.  His later career would see him serve as Ambassador to Russia, Secretary of State, he served as the sixth President of the United States, and afterward went on to serve an additional nine terms in the U.S. Congress until his death in 1848.  Perhaps no person in American history has served in more varied and important offices than John Quincy Adams.  In the years before his death, Adams sat down reflecting on his life with the following observation “My whole life has been a succession of disappointments.  I can scarcely recollect a single instance of success in anything that I ever undertook[5]. “

The third character is remarkable in some ways, unremarkable in many others.  There was no finer Christian at Saint Martin’s Lutheran Church than Mildred[6].  Mildred would be the first person to let you know of this.  Mildred could quote her Bible better than many a minister.  Mildred had never smoked, nor ever touched alcohol. Mildred would skip “Hollywood” movies because they glamorized sin.  Mildred wouldn’t even touch a deck of playing cards.  No one had ever heard Mildred utter a cuss word.  Mildred’s family life though was a mess.  Mildred’s son didn’t speak to her over her continual shaming of his sinful, hedonist ways.  Mildred barely talked to her daughter after her interference ruined her marriage[7].   Mildred’s husband had not felt joy the last thirty years of their marriage.  Mildred’s gossip had wounded people far and wide within her community.  Here’s the thing about Mildred she was good at avoiding sins in which she didn’t have much interest, Mildred though was unable to recognize the true nature of sin within her life.

So what do Augie Pullman, John Quincy Adams, and Mildred have in common?  They all struggled in their unique ways with perfectionism.  They all see their world as ruled by harsh judges, demanding taskmasters, and rules over how they’re supposed to look, succeed, and behave. 

Into their stories comes a similar story in our Gospel lesson for Today from John 3.  Nicodemus was one of the biggest religious big-shots in Jesus’ day.  He was a member of the Jewish Sanhedrin or the religious ruling council that would eventually sentence Jesus to death.  But Nicodemus was also curious about the nature of Jesus’ ministry.  Nicodemus approaches Jesus at night because it wasn’t safe to be seen talking with Jesus because of building tensions between Nicodemus’ fellow Pharisees and Jesus[8]. 

Nicodemus was pious like Mildred with the power of John Quincy Adams.  The Pharisees took how they lived seriously; they weren’t satisfied with Ten Commandments, so they expanded them by 613.  They prayed at every meal, and never worked under any circumstances on the Sabbath day[9]. 

So Nicodemus needed to know how Jesus’ differed from all this.  Jesus speaks to Nicodemus his famous words “Unless a man is born from above, he cannot see the kingdom of God[10].”

Nicodemus can’t initially make sense of Jesus’ words.  How exactly do you choose to get born?

So Jesus sums it all up to Nicodemus in our lesson for Today: “For God so loved the world,[i] that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life[11].”

When you consider Nicodemus’ background until meeting Jesus, he is a highly unlikely convert much like Saul who became Paul.  What Nicodemus hears about being “born from above” presents him with a new understanding of grace then he had previously ever heard.

Nicodemus appears later in the Gospels as evidenced by his new “birth from above[12].” In John 7[13], when the Council wants to arrest Jesus, Nicodemus speaks in his defense.  In John 19[14], Nicodemus along with Joseph of Arimathea helps arrange for Jesus’ burial. 

Nicodemus moved on from perfectionism to grace.  Nicodemus came to believe that his God was not a harsh judge nor a stern taskmaster, but rather a God of love and forgiveness who welcomes sinners like Nicodemus or Mildred into his presence[15]. The point of our lesson is whether you’re Augie Pullman, John Quincy Adams, Mildred or Nicodemus you will not be excluded from the love of God given in Christ Jesus.  Jesus’ promises are big enough to overcome your lack of perfection.   Nicodemus saw how God reaches down to us in the midst of our imperfection.  Nicodemus’ new conviction was the meaning of him being “born from above.”

So what does Nicodemus’ story mean for our story?  Homer Simpson is a member of the First Christian Church of Springfield.  Homer certainly has his share of faults: he’ll have his many moments of being both selfish and lazy.  One time, Homer fell asleep in church.  It wasn’t just any snooze though; it was a mouth-wide open, drool coming out of it snooze.  The following Sunday: the Church puts on the bulletin a picture of Homer sleeping, big belly on display asking the question “Jesus died for this[16]?”

Before meeting Jesus, Nicodemus would have been appalled at seeing such a picture.  After meeting Jesus, Nicodemus came to believe that Jesus came into the world for failed believers no different than Homer Simpson or even himself. 

The meaning of Nicodemus’ rebirth is he was never going to understand God the same after his eyes were opened to the realities of God’s grace.

Let me close with one final story for this morning, Oliver Sacks is a professor of Neurology at Columbia and a best -selling author[17].  Oliver Sacks tells the story of a man named Virgil. Virgil had gone blind in childhood when he was fifty years old, he undergoes surgery and is given the gift of sight.  New eyesight would seem to be a joyous occasion for Virgil, yet in the initial days after his surgery life was quite awkward. 

Virgil had to be escorted up to the walkway to his house, be introduced to each chair[18]. Virgil had been born-again his body was fifty, but his eyes scanned the world trying to make sense of it no different than an infant.  For what we do thousands of times a day without a second thought, was seemingly next to impossible for Virgil to do.  

Virgil could identify colors and movements, but figuring out patterns was next to impossible because of prior lack of experience. 

Virgil eventually gets better with these tasks over time, as he grows more and more used to conditions of what he has now come to know. 

Dr. Sacks concluded: “One must die as a blind person to be born again as seeing person[19].”

Seeing, hearing, and experiencing the world in a new way takes time to adjust. 

“You don’t give yourself birth; Christ does it for you.” 

Your various imperfections whether they are sleeping in your pew,  a deformed face, a seeming lack of accomplishment, broken relationships with everyone around you, or being so scared of the consequences that you have to visit with Jesus in the secret of night. 

God gives, we receive.  God forgives, we heal. Christ dies, we are resurrected.  No matter how different Augie Pullman, John Quincy Adams, Mildred, Nicodemus, or any of us might be, it is the same Gospel message that we all receive.

“For God so loved the world,that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life[20]”- Amen.


[1] John 3:14-21. 
[2] R.J. Palacio’s book Wonder was published by Knopf Books in 2012. 
[3] Kooi, Nickolas. “You Aren’t Left Out.” Sermon Central. 13.June.2017. Web. Feb.19.2018.  
[4] “John Quincy Adams.” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation. 16.Feb.2018. Web. Feb.19.2018. 
[5] Sell, Charles. Unfinished Business. Multnomah Publishers. 1989. P.23 found on Sermon Illustrations website under perfectionism.
[6] Mildred is based on an woman described by Tim Zingale in his Feburary 19th, 2002 sermon titled “The Giving Tree.” The sermon was accessed on Sermon Central on Feburary 15th, 2012. 
[7] Zingale, Tim. “The Giving Tree.”
[8] Stier, Leon. “The First Saint Nick (a.) Email Mediatations. 18. Aug.2016. Web. Feb.19.2018.
[9] Stier, Leon. “The First Saint Nick (b).” Email Mediatations. 19. Aug.2016. Web. Feb.19.2018. 
[10] John 3:3. 
[11] John 3:16. 
[12] Stier, Leon. “The First Saint Nick (b).”
[13] John 7:50
[14] John 19:39. 
[15] Molin, Steve. “The Night Visitor.” Sermon Writer. 2006. Web. Feb.19.2018. 
[16] The following scene takes place in The Simpsons season 14 episode 10 “Pray Anything” originally airing on Fox Network on Feburary 9th, 2003. 
[17] Michaud, Jon. “Eighty-Five from the Archive: Oliver Sacks.” New Yorker. 22.Feb.2010. Web. Feb.19.2018. 
[18] Michaud, Jon. “Eighty-Five from the Archive: Oliver Sacks.”
[19] The following was sent into Sermon Illustrations under Born Again by Terry Seufferlein of Norman, Oklahoma. The website was accessed on Feburary 19, 2018. 
[20] John 3:16.  

First Lesson: Exodus 20: 1-17
Responsive Reading: Psalm 19
Second Lesson: 1 Corinthians 1: 18-25
​Gospel Lesson: John 2: 13-22

Grace and Peace from Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,
​
“Speak when you are angry, and you make the best speech you’ll ever regret.”-Laurence J. Peter

Let me begin by telling a story about Grandma.  One day, I was visiting Grandma at the nursing home.  Grandma asked me a question “How come no one from the church comes to see me?”  Now Grandma’s church has a good size membership perhaps 1500 plus.  The Visitation Pastor is going to be quite busy.  Everyone in town knows Grandma for being opinionated both appropriately and inappropriately.  Now assuming the church’s good intentions, I told Grandma to call the church office then call back in two weeks if she hadn’t received a response.  Grandma didn’t care for the patience involved with my suggestion!

She asked that I instead track down a piece of paper and a pen.  Grandma was going to fire off a letter.  Grandma’s strong suits have never been subtlety or diplomacy.  Grandma writes the pastor declaring she no longer considers herself a member of the Church.  She accused the pastor of caring more about more a paycheck than saving souls.  Grandma then concludes that if Jesus met the pastor, then Jesus would demand the white collar back.  Now, this letter was amazing, as someone who writes all the time I was impressed that Grandma was able to fire off the letter in one draft without edits.  As someone who is occasionally called to encounter difficult people, Grandma’s letter contained more high drama than most other people could even imagine with the angriest of their insults.  It probably didn’t help things that nothing gets Grandma angrier than woman preachers. 

Now here’s the thing about Grandma, she was right the church should have been making more of an effort to visit her.  It doesn’t matter if Grandma wasn’t the most regular church attendee or the most opinionated ninety plus-year-old woman in Chisago County.  Grandma was right to be irritated if not angry.  So the question about Grandma and the Preacher this morning for us to consider is “How should we handle our anger as Christian people?” Should we just fire off angry letters and hope they solve all our problems.  Or does our anger in many cases ultimately cause more destruction than we can imagine?

Second story for this morning, In the spring of 1894, the Baltimore Orioles were playing in Boston versus the Beaneaters who would come to be known as the Braves[1][2].  The game started off as normal.  In the third inning everything changed[3].  On a seemingly routine play, Orioles first baseman Tommy Tucker known as “foghorn” for his loudness on the field slid into Beaneaters third baseman John Mcgraw who would come to be known as “Little Napoleon[4].” While tagging Tucker, McGraw managed to kick Tucker in the head.  Tucker wasn’t going to take this from the smaller McGraw without retaliating, so he gets up to punch him.  Punches start to fly between Tucker and McGraw with the whole crowd cheering the hometown McGraw.

In all this distraction, a group of children sets a fire underneath the right field bleachers.  The fire quickly spread throughout the whole ballpark[5].  Seats are soon on fire and the stands began to empty.  Tucker and McGraw only stop fighting because the blaze threatens to consume them.  Pretty soon, Boston’s South End Grounds ballpark is destroyed.  The fire continues to spread though engulfing several city blocks.  The fire which would become known as the “Great Roxbury Fire” would end up destroying upwards of 170 buildings in South Boston[6]. 

Tucker and McGraw’s fight makes an important point about Anger that it doesn’t merely affect us, but instead everyone else with whom we come into contact and even those who we don’t meet.
The following stories of Anger’s dramatic effects bring us to our Gospel lesson for Today from John 2[7].  The lesson contains the famous Gospel story of Jesus in a fit of anger overturning the money-changers tables.   It’s the most notable example of Jesus showing anger throughout the Gospels. Here’s some background on what took place. 

Every Jewish male over the age of 20 was required to attend Jerusalem during the Passover which Christians now know as “Holy Week.”[8].  This trip had two requirements.  Number one, they were supposed to pay their annual Temple tax.  Number two, pilgrims were required to bring Animals to the Temple as a way of atoning for past sins.   These things would not have been unusual occurrences within 1st Century Judaism, Jesus is instead critiquing something else.

The problem with the Temple Tax was the political situation of Jesus’ day.  Jews were living under Roman rule, so all legal currency had the images of Roman emperors who considered themselves to be gods.  So because of this Roman money was banned within the Temple as a violation of the 1st Commandment “Thou shall have no other Gods before me.” So currency exchanges would take place outside the temple, where the Roman money would be exchanged for Temple money.  The problem is Temple money had no value, so the money-changers could claim what they wanted for themselves. The system was rife with abuse.   

The issues with animal sacrifice were similar.  People had the option of bringing their own animals to the Temple to be sacrificed, but in many cases, this required traveling hundreds of miles with sheep and oxen which wasn’t the easiest thing to do.  You couldn’t just bring any animals; the animals had to be inspected before the journey by a priest to make sure such animals were suitable for sacrifice.  Many animals that people brought would be disqualified because of minor blemish[9].  This background creates another financial opportunity for those associated with the Jerusalem temple.  So Temple authorities would sell animals within Temple grounds. 

Now I’m not a beer-drinker, but when I go to Vikings games, I can’t help but notice that beer sells for 9.50 for something like 16 ounces.  Any small-town bar would close if they tried such a thing since people couldn’t afford it.  Back to our lesson, when you’ve traveled hundreds of miles and can only get an approved animal inside the temple courts.  The price gets highly inflated and huge profits are made by religious authorities. 

So Jesus enters our Temple on the day of our lesson and hears an odd mix of commerce and religious ritual[10].  So Jesus gets mad just like Grandma, John McGraw or Tommy Tucker, he grabs a rope uses it like a whip and no different than the Great Roxbury Fire quickly empties the Temple.  Jesus then comes across the money-changers tables and flips them over knocking coins all over the place. 

Now back to My Grandma.  Grandma hands me the letter tells me to deliver the letter.  I figure I should give the letter to my Dad.  I get Grandma to agree to let my dad handle the letter.  Dad figures the letter is probably best not delivered.  Dad didn’t want to burn a lot of bridges at a Church where he had been a member for some sixty-five plus years and Grandma had belonged for ninety plus years.  Grandma never brought the letter up ever again. 

Now as the Disciples are witnessing this scene, they probably had a similar reaction they were worried about all the burnt bridges that such an outburst was going to cause. They were worried that Jesus like Grandma was just going to provoke the religious authorities of his day unnecessarily[11]. 

Jesus’ outburst though was more than him just getting steamed at the moment.  Jesus’ outburst was intended to make a very definite point about the nature of his kingdom. 

Jesus in Mark’s Gospel gives the reason “My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations[12].”

Jesus’ outburst took place not because there were animals near the worship space, or even because of the nature of a temple tax.  Jesus’ outburst was driven by the fact that good religious leaders were profiting on making it more difficult to have access to God’s house.  Jesus got mad because such a system was made to exclude non-Jews and other assorted sinners from his house. 

To quote: Pastor Daniel Habben “God’s house was no longer a refuge (for sinners); it had been turned into a den of robbers) and Jesus was not going to put up with this[13].”

So Jesus got mad and flipped the money-changers temple’s because he saw the message of God’s grace being corrupted on Temple grounds.

So Jesus gets angry in our lesson for Today, we often get angry throughout our lives.  So is our anger one in the same?

Here’s where our anger is different.  We get angry when someone upsets us.  We get angry when we want something for ourselves that we don’t receive[14].  

I have a family member who is known for every time she goes to a restaurant, she finds something to complain about with the meal, with the wine, with the waiter, and people dining with her fear what minor flaw that she might point out next.  Anger in cases such as this one are all about us: our wants and our desires then turning around and claiming them as God’s. Anger in many cases is all about “What’s in it for me[15]?”  If I can lash out at someone else’s failings to make myself feel better, then all the better. 

Here’s what makes Jesus’ anger different.  Jesus’ anger was all about human sin.  Jesus knew of the destruction even worse than the Great Roxbury Fire that human sin causes day and day out.  Jesus’ anger was all about setting the world right again, anger at a restaurant waiter is not a good comparison.  The thing about Jesus’ anger is that it wasn’t fully taken out on this day, it would instead be taken out later on Holy Week as he journeyed to the cross. Jesus knew that imperfect religious authorities alone would not be enough, he knew a different answer was ultimately needed in response to our anger. 

So if Jesus flipping tables at the Temple the journeying to the grave is his response to anger, how should we respond to Anger within our own lives? We shouldn’t lash out in angry letters nor start brawls at Baseball games.  Perhaps instead, we need to take a step back look at anger’s destructive consequences in the world around us and see that Jesus does not endorse the anger which is too often in this world.  Jesus instead seeks to triumph over anger for our sake, no matter how opinionated my Grandma might be at any given moment.   Amen
                   


[1] Published in Daily Bread on August 13th, 1992.  Analogy was founded on sermonillustrations under anger on Feburary 12th, 2018. 
[2] Hill, David. “Braves History: Fight, Fire Mar Game Against Orioles.” Call to the Pen found on Fansided network of webblogs. The article was accessed on Feburary 12th, 2018 and published nine months prior according to website. 
[3] Hill, David. “Braves History: Fight, Fire Mar Game Against Orioles.”
[4] Hill, David. “Braves History: Fight, Fire Mar Game Against Orioles.”
[5] Hill, David. “Braves History: Fight, Fire Mar Game Against Orioles.”
[6] Hill, David. “Braves History: Fight, Fire Mar Game Against Orioles.”
[7] John 2:13-22. 
[8] Habben, Daniel “What's Eating Jesus?” Sermon Central. 20.Mar.2006. Web. Feb.12.2018. 
[9] Habben, Daniel “What's Eating Jesus?”
[10] Habben, Daniel “What's Eating Jesus?”
[11] Habben, Daniel “What's Eating Jesus?”
[12] Mark 11:17. 
[13] Habben, Daniel “What's Eating Jesus?”
[14] Graham, Billy. “I admit I get angry fairly easily, but why is anger supposed to be a sin? After all, the Bible says that God sometimes gets angry, doesn't it? And wasn't Jesus angry when He drove those moneychangers out of the Temple?” Billy Graham Association. 7.Oct.2016. Web. Feb.12.2018. 
[15] Habben, Daniel “What's Eating Jesus?”