September 27, 2009 Sermon
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Seventeenth Sunday after Pentecost
Given at United Campus Ministries
Mark 9:38-50 September 27, 2009
Gary Sanford San Angelo, TX
Let the words of my mouth and the meditations heart of my be acceptable in your sight O Lord, my strength and my redeemer. Psalm 19:14
An author known only by the name of Durango tells this story:
I sat down to dinner last night and sitting there on the table was the most beautiful freshly tossed salad I had ever laid my eyes on. (Mrs. Durango had truly outdone herself with this masterpiece). It consisted of a variety of vegetables...
There was radicchio, iceberg and romaine lettuce, there were Vidalia onions, fresh scallions and radishes...mushrooms, artichokes, plum tomatoes and just a hint of garlic. It was a sight to behold, all those different vegetables and the variety of colors mixed together in that big salad bowl.
I sat there thinking about that big bowl of salad sitting in front of me...all those different vegetables, all the different colors and all of the different tastes mixed together to make that perfect salad. I thought about how each vegetable played an important roll in the make up of that salad.
I thought about how Our Lord made each of those vegetables with a particular flavor of its own, and how that salad wouldn't have been the same without each and every one of those flavors. The salad wouldn't have been the same had any one of those ingredients been missing. Together though, they were the perfect salad...with anything missing it would have been something less.
Then I thought about how God created each and every individual to be a little different...each individual having a "flavor" of their own. I thought of the various denominations, races and religions...all different...but each a vital part in the big ‘salad bowl’ of Our Lord's perfect plan. And as such we are all equal "ingredients" in the perfect Will of God...
So where do any of us get off harboring prejudices against any other individual?
Just a thought.
Today's gospel lesson reminded me of Durango's little story. Indeed we are all different. We don't all believe in the same things or belong to the same groups. Yet, Jesus' disciples didn't seem to understand this. They questioned the validity of someone outside of their little 'click' performing acts in Jesus' name. Because this man, and the Bible makes no mention of whom this person might have been, was not part of their group the disciples felt that he had no right to perform acts in the name of their leader.
Jesus was quick to rebuke his disciples for their blind, unforgiving exclusiveness. He told them that this man was doing good things in the name of Jesus and that that by doing so he was not speaking evil against the Lord. He concluded by saying that, "Whoever is not against us is for us."
Jesus made it clear to his disciples that they were not an exclusive group, working only in their own little area of comfort, isolated from the rest of the world. Jesus knew that God's actions were not limited solely to the ideals to which his disciples were accustomed.
The Rev. Karen Kesselus asks, "Don't Jesus' words ring true as a rebuke of our often blind and unbending exclusiveness, our arrogant assumptions that God's action among us is limited to forms which we are most comfortable and familiar?"
The lesson that Jesus taught his disciples is also a lesson for us. We, as Christians, cannot isolate ourselves from others who may have a different way of following Jesus and knowing God. Anyone who is not against Jesus is on the side of God. In other words, guys, this is not an exclusive society. Otherwise there would be only one church, not the many varied denominations that we have today.
This lesson also gives us a guide for how we should live our lives in a broader sense. It brings up the issue of tolerance. This lesson should cause us to stop and think when we fall into the trap of considering others in terms of "us" and "them". But fall we do, and it is often all too easy to see life from the perspective of our own little groups.
The disciples were thinking in terms of "us" and "them" when they tried to stop the man from casting out demons. Possibly they considered him a threat to their inner circle. Jesus, however, was quick to tell them that this intolerance would not be accepted. Jesus made it clear that only in a more narrow sense could he be considered an outsider.
Sadly, what was true then has been true throughout history and is even so now. The world and the church have fought for centuries to build their own exclusive circles, rejecting those who do not believe as they do or who are different. Stories of schism and division are infamous within the church...and within our secular lives. These divisions have led to wars, suffering and the exclusion of races and even whole nations. Yet, we still tend to form our own little groups, rejecting those who we feel don’t belong, don't we?
Jesus reminds us that anyone seeking to do the Lord’s work belongs to the kingdom or God and that kingdom is not just for the privileged few. He bids us to welcome all people who are willing to follow the Lord. His are words of inclusion--not exclusion. His words should be a strong reminder to us any time we turn against others just because they are different. He taught us over and over again how to live in harmony with each other. Why won't we listen? Why must we continue to judge others based solely on abstract values?
To be fair, there is another side to this. Sometimes we must, because of conscience and practicality, separate ourselves from others. Christ's message, however, is that this should not be done lightly. We should resort to division only as a last resort. There may be many who work or think differently than we do, but we shouldn't conclude that this makes them against us--or against Jesus.
Jesus reminds us that there are no simple solutions to complex problems. He helps us see that the truth is always greater that any one person's, or group's ideals. We need to be flexible in thought and deed, to embrace tolerance as a way of life. His words remind us that diversity is not a bad thing, it is necessary for the health of the Body of Christ. As Durango said, "...each vegetable played an important part...with anything missing it would have been something less."
Today's Gospel lesson is about how the disciples tried to draw a circle around Jesus and themselves--shutting out "the one who was casting out demons in his name".
In his poem "Outwitted" Edwin Markham writes:
"He drew a circle that shut me out -
Heretic, rebel, a thing to flout.
But love and I had the wit to win:
We drew a circle that took him in."
Glory to God: Father, son and Holy Spirit. Amen
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The Lord's Salad Bowl
by Durango
Outwitted by Edwin Markham
Copyright © 2003 Emmanuel Episcopal Church. All rights reserved.
Revised: 10/08/09