Sermon – John 20: 1-18 “I Have Seen the Lord”

 Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard
Sermon – John 20: 1-18 “I Have Seen the Lord”
Presbyterian Church of Easton
Easter Sunday, April 17, 2022

Watch our Easter Service

Happy Easter!  This is the day we have been waiting for.   Jesus Christ is risen!  He is risen indeed.  Let's pray.  Jesus, victorious Lord, We exult in your resurrection. As we sing “alleluia” with our voices, let our lives embody “alleluia” as a testimony to your love and a witness to your eternal life. Amen.

Let's start by reviewing what has already happened.  Jesus was arrested, tried and executed on a cross.  A couple of the religious leaders, who believed in Jesus, removed him from the cross and placed him in a nearby tomb.  There is no question about it.  Christ was dead.  There were plenty of witnesses.  His disciples then took their usual sabbath rest at sunset.  Let's see what happened early Sunday morning.

 

NIV John 20:1 Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance.  2 So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, "They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don't know where they have put him!"  

 

Mary made her way to the tomb in the dark.  All of her hopes and dreams had been crucified the previous Friday.  She had spent the weekend in the fog of grief for the death of a loved one.  Then when she arrived at the tomb what she saw, or more specifically, what she didn't see scared her to death.  Jesus was missing from the tomb.  So she ran to get help.  Here is what happened.

 

3 So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb.  4 Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first.  5 He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in.  6 Then Simon Peter, who was behind him, arrived and went into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there,  7 as well as the burial cloth that had been around Jesus' head. The cloth was folded up by itself, separate from the linen.  8 Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed.  9 (They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.)  10 Then the disciples went back to their homes,  

 

Let's take a look at the evidence.  The two disciples have seen the empty tomb and discarded grave clothes.  The head cloth was neatly folded.  And we are told that one of them believed. What did this disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, believe?    I think that he believed what Jesus had told him at the supper on Thursday night.  Listen to what Jesus had said.

 

John 7:33 Jesus said, "I am with you for only a short time, and then I go to the one who sent me.  34 You will look for me, but you will not find me; and where I am, you cannot come." 

 

So the disciple must have believed that Jesus had died, and that his spirit went to heaven to be with God.  This would have been consistent with first century thought.  Our bodies die, return to dust, and our spirits go to heaven.  Most people today would be comfortable with this belief as were the two disciples. So they went back home to grieve the death of their dear friend, Jesus.    But as Paul Harvey used to say, let's look at “the rest of the story.”

 

11 but Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb  12 and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus' body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot.  13 They asked her, "Woman, why are you crying?" "They have taken my Lord away," she said, "and I don't know where they have put him."  

 

Mary's grief is almost overwhelming.  Not only had Jesus died, but now something has happened to his body.  Mary must have been very frightened by what was happening.  Everything was spiraling out of control.   Then, the most surprising thing in the Bible happened.

 

14 At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus.  15 "Woman," he said, "why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?" Thinking he was the gardener, she said, "Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him."  16 Jesus said to her, "Mary." She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, "Rabboni!" (which means Teacher).  

 

Suddenly Mary's grief turned to joy.  Jesus was alive!  He was right there in front of her.  She recognized his voice.   All she wanted to do was give him a big hug.  But let's hear what Jesus has to say.

 

17 Jesus said, "Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet returned to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, 'I am returning to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'"  

 

Jesus is doing what he said he would do.  Death on a cross could not stop him.  He was alive, physically alive.  He was not a spirit or ghost.  He was physically alive, resurrected from the dead.  Let's get back to Mary.

 

18 Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: "I have seen the Lord!" And she told them that he had said these things to her. 

 

The Gospel of John is filled with twists and unexpected endings.  But no ending is more surprising than this one.  Jesus' spirit had gone to heaven, paradise.  But then his soul returned from heaven and entered his dead body again.  God made his dead heart to beat and cold blood to flow.  His lungs filled with air.  He stood up, folded his grave clothes, walked out of the tomb, got dressed in gardener’s clothes he found, and waited around for a chance to talk with Mary.   

At first Mary did not recognize him.  She thought he might be a gardener or something.  But when she heard his voice she recognized it.  By seeing and hearing Jesus she became the first of many people who witnessed his resurrection from the dead.  Jesus told her not to hug him because he had not yet ascended to heaven.  We learn from this that Jesus will ascend to the father in his physical flesh and blood body where he lives today in heaven at God's right hand.

The resurrection of Jesus Christ is a sign or miracle.  Its purpose, as is the purpose of all signs in the gospel of John, is to bring people to faith.  People see the sign and hear what it means and then come to believe.  So what does this all mean?  And what is it we should believe?  

The Gospel of John is about belief.  The key text in this important book comes from the third chapter and the sixteenth verse “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.” The promise of Easter is that you will have eternal life.  You will live forever in the presence of God.   

But before we receive this promise we must first do something.  We must believe.  But believe in what?  What are we supposed to believe to receive this wonderful gift of eternal life?  The content of our belief is what we celebrate on Easter.  We believe that Jesus was resurrected from the dead.  

But how does someone come to this belief?  What is the process of conversion from unbelief to belief? The twentieth chapter of John gives us two examples of people coming out of the darkness of unbelief into the light of faith.  

Sometimes we come to believe in Jesus, like the disciple whom Jesus loved,  by seeing God in the world around us.  We see God in the beauty of our forests and streams and rivers and coastlines.  We see God in the faces of believers as they volunteer in church.  We see God in the stories shared by seniors in nursing homes.  We see God in the children as they learn Bible stories.  We see God as we share bread and wine in the Lord's Supper.  God has blessed us with eyes with which we can see him through the world he created.  The disciple Jesus loved saw an empty tomb, he remembered Jesus' teachings and he knew that Jesus had been resurrected from the dead.  He believed that Jesus Christ was raised from the dead.   And he was promised eternal life.

So I urge you this Easter to look for Jesus in the world around you.  Look for Jesus when the children enjoy their chocolate bunnies and jelly beans.  Look for Jesus when your family sits down for a meal.   Look for Jesus in the loving eyes of those caring for children or for aging parents.  Use your eyes to look for Jesus in the world and you will be blessed with the belief that he was truly resurrected from the dead with the promise for you of eternal life.

But seeing with our eyes is only one of the two ways we have of coming to belief.  Mary Magdalene saw Jesus with her own eyes, but even though she saw she still did not believe.  For some of us we need more than just seeing God at work in the world around us for us to come to belief.  Sometimes we just don't believe what we see.  Like Mary we need something more.  Mary turned away from Jesus and was not looking at him when the following happened.  Jesus spoke to her and said her name.  Mary Magdalene came to belief in the resurrection of Jesus Christ not with her eyes but with her ears.  She believed in Jesus Christ when she heard Jesus say her name, and she received the promise of eternal life.

We can hear God's voice calling us through the scripture we read and hear proclaimed.  We come to belief in Jesus Christ by allowing God's voice to speak to us through the Bible.  That's why it is so important to start every day with God's word and prayer.  That's why it is so important to study God's word.  That's why it is so important to hear God's voice through the proclamation of the Gospel each Sunday morning.  Through all of these things we can hear God call our names and like Mary Magdalene come to believe in the resurrection of Jesus Christ, with the promise of eternal life.

Once Mary Magdalene heard Jesus call her name, her eyes were opened and she could see him in the world.  This is what happens to us.  After we hear God's voice in our meditations, study and worship we then begin to see God in the world around us.  The Bible was written by people who had heard God's voice and saw God doing things.  They wrote these things down and the church has preserved them for us.  So as we are immersed in the Scripture we are better able to see God in our world.  Our study of the word of God helps us to see God in the world around us.  So our eyes and our ears work together to bring us to belief in the resurrection of Jesus Christ.  With our ears we hear God speak to us in church through the pages of the Bible.  This helps to recognize God in the world we see with our eyes.  Through hearing and seeing we come to belief.

Later that night the disciples gathered back in the upper room.  They heard Mary Magdalene's report of her encounter with the risen Jesus.  Then they saw Jesus in the room with them.  They heard with their ears and saw with their eyes and came to belief.  

Like these disciples, we are a people who have heard God speaking to us through the scripture.  We are also a people who can see God at work in the world around us.  So we are a people who believe.  And on this Easter Sunday we believe with the disciple that Jesus loved and with Mary Magdalene and with the other disciples that Jesus was resurrected from the dead.  This belief comes with a promise.  Because we believe in the resurrection of Jesus Christ, God has promised us eternal life.  This is what we celebrate at Easter.  

And like Mary Magdalene and the disciples we just can't wait to proclaim to the world what we have heard and seen.  “I have seen the Lord”, said Mary to the disciples.   What will you say to the people you meet about what you have seen and heard?  I urge you to go and tell everyone the good news that Jesus Christ has been resurrected from the dead.  All who believe this, receive the gift of eternal life.  This may sound like something too good to be true.  But it is true, we have heard it and seen it.  So proclaim it as the truth to everyone you meet so they will hear it too and come to belief.  

The Easter story in John begins with the darkness of unbelief.  But then through hearing and seeing belief comes into the world.  This belief is that Jesus Christ, the light of the world, has been resurrected from the dead.  He lives!  Believe in your heart what others have heard and seen that Jesus conquered death.  As believers you will now receive the promise of eternal life.  Let’s pray.

Lord Jesus, we thank you for the gift of faith.  Through your voice in scripture and through your work in the world we have heard you and seen you.  So we believe in your resurrection from the dead and anticipate our own resurrections when we will live forever with you, and God the Father, and God the Holy Spirit. Help us to proclaim this good news to everyone we know.  This we pray in your holy name.  Amen.

Sermon – John 13:21-30 – Betrayal

 Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard
Sermon – John 13:21-30 – Betrayal
Presbyterian Church of Easton
Maundy Thursday 4/14/2022

John 13:21-30

21 After saying this Jesus was troubled in spirit, and declared, “Very truly, I tell you, one of you will betray me.” 22 The disciples looked at one another, uncertain of whom he was speaking. 23 One of his disciples—the one whom Jesus loved—was reclining next to him; 24 Simon Peter therefore motioned to him to ask Jesus of whom he was speaking. 25 So while reclining next to Jesus, he asked him, “Lord, who is it?” 26 Jesus answered, “It is the one to whom I give this piece of bread when I have dipped it in the dish.” So when he had dipped the piece of bread, he gave it to Judas son of Simon Iscariot. 27 After he received the piece of bread, Satan entered into him. Jesus said to him, “Do quickly what you are going to do.” 28 Now no one at the table knew why he said this to him. 29 Some thought that, because Judas had the common purse, Jesus was telling him, “Buy what we need for the festival”; or, that he should give something to the poor. 30 So, after receiving the piece of bread, he immediately went out. And it was night.

Jesus and his disciples have gathered for dinner.  They are arranged in a configuration common for Roman meals called a triclinium.  There is a central table with couches assembled in a horseshoe manner around the table.  Jesus and his disciples have reclined on the couches.  They are resting on their left elbows and eating with their right hands.  With this arrangement the disciples clearly see people to their right, but those on their left would be behind their backs and out of sight.  

Jesus and two disciples are reclining at the position of honor at the head of the table.  The other disciples are in groups of five along either side of the table.  They eat by picking up a small piece of bread with their right hands, dipping the bread in a bowl of olive oil, and eating it.

During the supper Jesus was very troubled.  He realized that his death was at hand, and this affected him as much as the death of his friend Lazarus did earlier.  Jesus told his disciples that someone would betray him.  

The Greek word that is translated as “betray” in your Bibles is paradidomi.   This word means that you hand over something of personal value to someone else.  For example, if you go to settle on a house and you are the seller, you hand over the deed of your house to someone else.  

In ancient times, if your brother was captured in battle you would redeem him and hand him over to his family.  Paradidomi would be translated here as “deliverance”.  

But if you handed someone on your side over to the enemy, paradidomi would be translated as “betrayal”.  Bible translators have assumed that Jesus is talking about Judas handing Jesus over to the authorities in the Garden of Gethsemane.  So they have translated paradidomi in this instance as “betrayal”.  

But we can’t be so sure that this is correct.  Jesus’ own disciples have no idea what Jesus was talking about.  So how could we know if Jesus was talking about deliverance or betrayal without looking at this passage a little closer?

Peter was sitting on the right side of the table.  He was in the line of sight of the disciple on Jesus' right hand.  The disciple to the right of Jesus was called “the disciple that Jesus loved”.  We don’t know who this was, but tradition says that this is John the son of Zebedee who had earlier asked Jesus to be permitted to sit at his right hand in heaven.  And here he is at the right hand of Jesus.  Tradition also tells us that John the son of Zebedee was the author of the fourth gospel, the one we are reading.  

It is possible that Peter gave some kind of hand signal to John the son of Zebedee to ask Jesus what he was talking about.  John leaned his head back so he could see Jesus sitting behind him and asked him to explain.

Jesus then picked up a small morsel of bread with his right hand, dipped it in the olive oil and said that he was talking about the one to whom he would give this bread.  Jesus then leaned back and offered the piece of bread to the disciple reclining at his left.  This disciple was Judas Iscariot, who was seated at a place of honor to the left of Jesus Christ.  We are then told that Jesus told him to do his deed quickly.  At this point the other disciples still have no clue what Jesus is talking about.  All they could do was to speculate on what Judas might be doing.

This is a very confusing passage.  It is about handing over something of personal value.  But from the way it is written we don’t really know who is handing over what and to whom.  We can read ahead and see Judas handing Jesus over to the authorities in the Garden of Gethsemane.  This is the traditional interpretation.   But remember, Jesus is under the authority of God.  How could Judas take Jesus away from God and hand him over to the Sanhedrin contrary to God’s will?  Judas just doesn’t have that kind of power, to hand over the very Son of God.  

I believe that the author of the fourth gospel is a sort of magician.  He makes you think that something is in his right hand when it is really in his left.  Someone has handed over something of personal value here but it may not be who or what we think.  We think that we see Judas handing Jesus over to the Jerusalem authorities.  But really it is Jesus who has handed over something of personal value, his friend and disciple Judas, to the authority of Satan, by casting him out into the night.  And Judas has handed over to Satan something of great personal value, his faith in Jesus Christ, the light of the world.

Like Judas, we are offered a choice between light and darkness, between belief and unbelief.  If we believe in the death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus Christ, then we walk in the light and receive the blessings of eternal life.  But if we walk away from belief in Jesus then we also walk away from the light and we return to the darkness of sin and death. 

A few years ago, I was asked to do a funeral for Mark.  Mark was a homeless man who spent most days sitting on a stone wall next to my apartment building in Los Angeles.  Mark was an alcoholic and was addicted to painkillers.  I got to know Mark and his wife Kathy from conversations we had whenever I walked over to the church.  He came, a couple of times, to a Sunday Night dinner that we served.  But he was not active in church and I saw no evidence that he believed in Jesus Christ.  

Mark died one morning from an overdose of painkillers.  I remained on the sidewalk with his wife, Kathy, until the medical examiner came to take away the body. I allowed Kathy to use my cell phone to call his family.  

The next day Mark’s brother called me on that cell phone to talk with me about Mark.  He wanted a funeral for Mark, but was very concerned for his brother because of his lack of faith in Jesus.  

I did the funeral and talked a lot about God’s love that day.  But sadness permeated the family because they knew that Mark had no faith. And I was sad because I could not assure them about his eternal life.  

Don’t let this happen to you.  Hold onto your faith in Jesus Christ.  Encourage others to believe in Jesus Christ.  Always remain in the light of faith.  Continue in your baptismal belief in the death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus.  And then I can assure you of the blessing of God of eternal life. Amen.

Grace and Peace Episode Season 2 Episode 11

 Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard
Grace and Peace Episode Season 2 Episode 11
Presbyterian Church of Easton
April 3, 2022

Watch this episode

Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ. (Romans 1:7)

Romans 2:25 Circumcision has value if you observe the law, but if you break the law, you have become as though you had not been circumcised. 26 So then, if those who are not circumcised keep the law’s requirements, will they not be regarded as though they were circumcised? 27 The one who is not circumcised physically and yet obeys the law will condemn you who, even though you have the written code and circumcision, are a lawbreaker.

28 A person is not a Jew who is one only outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward and physical. 29 No, a person is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a person’s praise is not from other people, but from God.

Circumcision was a Jewish practice that originated in Abrahams’ circumcision.   God and Abraham had made a covenant.   In this covenant God promised to give Abraham children and land to become a great nation.   In return God expected obedience.  Circumcision was a sign of that covenant.  We read this in Genesis 17:11 “You are to undergo circumcision, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and you.”  

So circumcision was supposed to be a sign of a covenant relationship between God and his people.   But over time the people forgot their promise of obedience.   They thought all they had to do was to be circumcised.

But Paul is pointing out that the sign of something is only as good as the reality it points to.   Suppose your favorite dry cleaner has gone out of business.  A locksmith has moved in, but as of yet has not replaced the sign.   The sign still says dry cleaners.   So when you go into the store with your dirty clothes you are disappointed.

So too with God.   God sees someone who is circumcised and assumes obedience.   Imagine God’s disappointment when the sign of circumcision points to someone who ignores God’s law.    But if God sees someone who is obedient, then God is thrilled and no sign is needed.

So don’t think that baptism or church attendance is enough.   They are certainly signs pointing to a reality.   And the reality, baptism and church attendance point to, is obedience.

Let's pray.   Heavenly Father, bless us not only with outwards signs of our covenant with you,  but also with true repentance of heart and an obedient spirit.  This we pray in our Lord Jesus’ name.  Amen.  

Sermon Philippians 2:3-4 “Humility”

 Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard
Presbyterian Church of Easton
Sermon Philippians 2:3-4 “Humility”
April 10, 2022

Watch our worship service

Today we are receiving the One Great Hour of Sharing.   This is a special giving opportunity of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.).   Through the One Great Hour of Sharing we support the Self Development of People program, the Presbyterian Hunger program and Presbyterian Disaster Assistance.

“Presbyterian Disaster Assistance enables congregations and mission partners of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) to witness to the healing love of Christ through caring for communities adversely affected by crises and catastrophic events.”

Specifically, Presbyterian Disaster Assistance “focuses on the long term recovery of disaster impacted communities. Provides training and disaster preparedness for presbyteries and synods.  Works collaboratively with church partners … internationally, and nationally with other faith based responders, World Food Program, Red Cross, FEMA and others.

As of the end of March, around 10.5 million people – more than a quarter of the Ukrainian population – have been forcibly displaced by the ongoing military offensive, including nearly 6.5 million internally displaced and more than 4 million displaced across international borders – including 204,000 third-country nationals. Over 2.3 million people are seeking refuge in Poland alone.”  https://pda.pcusa.org/situation/ukraine/

“As the violence in Ukraine continues, the number of people being displaced internally

and fleeing to neighboring countries increases by the day. And in the midst of the chaos,

there are sibling churches and ecumenical partners who are already providing assistance

with basic items for survival. Our first priority is to provide funding to these partners

on the ground. While the scale of this crisis is new, receiving refugees from Ukraine and

other countries in Central and Eastern Europe is not, which means we have trusted,

established partners with the knowledge and expertise to carry out this important work.

Our response will include both financial and technical assistance as the network of faith

communities providing humanitarian assistance grows in the months ahead.”  https://pda.pcusa.org/pda/resource/ukraine-bulletin/

The Presbyterian Disaster Assistance is our way of helping displaced people in Ukraine.   If you would like to participate in this effort please make a generous contribution to the One Great Hour of Sharing.

This will be my final sermon in the series on spiritual practices and Christian virtues.   Last winter we talked about spiritual practices, Worship, Prayer, Bible Study, Single-Mindedness, Total Surrender, Biblical Community, Spiritual Gifts, Offering My Time, Giving My Resources and Sharing My Faith.   This spring we have talked about Christian virtues, Love, Joy, Peace, Self-Control, Hope, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, and Gentleness.   As a result of our faith and spiritual practices we become virtuous like Jesus.  Today we turn to the final Christian virtue, humility.   We will get to this, but first, let’s pray.

“Grant unto us, O Lord, to be occupied in the mysteries of thy Heavenly wisdom, with true progress in piety, to thy glory and our own edification. Amen.” (John Calvin)

Let’s hear some biblical wisdom:

Psalm 18:27 You save the humble but bring low those whose eyes are haughty.

Psalm 25:9 He guides the humble in what is right and teaches them his way.

Psalm 147:6 The Lord sustains the humble but casts the wicked to the ground.

Proverbs 3:34 He mocks proud mockers but shows favor to the humble and oppressed.

Proverbs 11:2 When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.

Proverbs 16:18 Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.  19 Better to be lowly in spirit along with the oppressed than to share plunder with the proud.

Proverbs 18:12 Before a downfall the heart is haughty, but humility comes before honor.

Proverbs 22:4 Humility is the fear of the Lord; its wages are riches and honor and life.

So God saves, guides, and sustains the humble.    And God gives to the humble wisdom, riches, honor and life.  There is no question about it.   It is wise to be humble.   Let’s look at the Christian virtue of humility.

Suppose you are part of a group.  You have high self-esteem.  You are strong, smart and educated.   You have been richly blessed.  You realize that you are stronger, smarter and better educated than anyone else in the group.   And you lord it over them.   You always tell others what to do.   You criticize them when they are doing it wrong.   You are always on them to get better.

Is this humility?  No.  This is arrogance.   You think that your superior gifts entitle you to boss everyone around.   They won’t like it.  They think you are arrogant.   And arrogance is the opposite of biblical humility.  You don’t want to be seen as being arrogant.

Now suppose you are part of a group, but you have low self-esteem.   You do not consider yourself to be very strong or smart or educated.   You don’t think that God has blessed you very much.   And you get pushed around by others.  You are a wimp.   Is this biblical humility?  No.  This is humiliation.  You don’t want to be a humiliated wimp.  

Humbleness is the opposite of being arrogant as a result of high self-esteem and is also the opposite of being a wimp from low self-esteem.  So, what is humbleness?   

To be humble you must have high self-esteem.   You must think of yourself as strong, smart and educated.  But unlike the arrogant person, you do not compare yourself with other people.   You do not think of yourself as being better than others.   Rather, you compare yourself with God.  

When you compare yourself with God,  you find that God is much stronger than you.   God is much smarter than you.   God is more educated than you will ever be.   You are pretty good but God is a whole lot better than you.  And when you realize this you will be humbled.   This is the virtue of biblical humility.

Suppose you are part of a group.  You have high self-esteem.  You are strong, smart and educated.   You have been richly blessed.  You realize that you are stronger, smarter and better educated than anyone else in the group.   But you also realize that you are nothing when compared to God.  What do you do?   Let’s turn to today’s scripture.

Philippians 2:3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, 4 not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.

Again, suppose you are part of a group.  You have high self-esteem.  You are strong, smart and educated.   You have been richly blessed.  You realize that you are stronger, smarter and better educated than anyone else in the group.   You also realize that you are nothing when compared to God.  You have the virtue of biblical humility.    So now, you are concerned not with your own wants and desires but with the interests of the other members of the group.  You lift the group up by helping them use their gifts.   You are not arrogant.  You are not a wimp.   You are humble.  

Jesus was certainly humble.   He came as our king but was born in a stable, wrapped with rags, and slept in a feeding trough.  Jesus ate his last supper with us, but instead of sitting in the place of honor he washed our feet.  Jesus came into Jerusalem as a messiah but instead of leading an army he went to a cross, for us.   That is biblical humility.  And the apostle Paul tells us this.

Philippians 2:5 In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:  6 Who, being in very nature God,  did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage.  7 rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.  And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross!

Jesus had high self-esteem.   He was strong, smart and educated.   But he wasn’t arrogant.   And he wasn’t a wimp.  Jesus was humble and he sacrificed everything, even his life,  to serve us.  Let’s listen to Jesus’ own teaching on humility.

Mark 10:35 Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to him. “Teacher,” they said, “we want you to do for us whatever we ask.”

36 “What do you want me to do for you?” he asked.

37 They replied, “Let one of us sit at your right and the other at your left in your glory.”

38 “You don’t know what you are asking,” Jesus said. “Can you drink the cup I drink or be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with?”

39 “We can,” they answered.

Jesus said to them, “You will drink the cup I drink and be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with, 40 but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared.”

41 When the ten heard about this, they became indignant with James and John. 

42 Jesus called them together and said, “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. 43 Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. 45 For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

So humility is the Christian virtue that allows us to put the needs of others higher than our own needs.   We serve others instead of demanding that they serve us.

Let me tell you a story about a man who learned humility the hard way.   His name was Saul in Hebrew.   But you probably heard his Greek name, Paul.   Paul was a strong man, very smart and highly educated.   He had extremely high self-esteem.   And it came out as arrogance.   He heard about a Jewish sect in Jerusalem that was worshiping a man who claimed to be God.   And he decided that they had to be stopped.  

Paul was part of a mob that stoned a church deacon, Stephen, to death for his belief in Jesus Christ.    He persecuted Christians pulling them out of churches and throwing them in jail.  And when he had decimated the church in Jerusalem he received permission to carry his persecution of the church to Damascus.   On the way to Damascus, Paul met Jesus and was converted.  And as a Christian Paul, this strong, smart and educated man,  repented of his arrogance and became humble.   Let’s listen to his own words.

2 Corinthians 12:7 … Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. 8 Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. 9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 10 That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

So through a physical difficulty, Paul started comparing himself, not to others, but to God.  And this strong, smart, educated man realized that when he compared himself with God he was truly weak.   This created in him the Christian virtue of humility.   And it changed his behavior toward others.

2 Corinthians 13:9 We are glad whenever we are weak but you are strong; and our prayer is that you may be fully restored. 10 This is why I write these things when I am absent, that when I come I may not have to be harsh in my use of authority—the authority the Lord gave me for building you up, not for tearing you down.

So when we are humble we have high self-esteem and we use our gifts to build others up and not tear them down.   The Prophet Micah said that this was the essence of a faithful life.

Micah 6:8 He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you?  To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.

There are many people in this church with high self-esteem.  You are strong, smart and educated.   You have been richly blessed.  You realize that you are stronger, smarter and better educated than others in the church.   If you use your strength, intelligence and education to try to control others you will be seen as being arrogant.   But if you compare what you have to God you are actually very weak.  So use your strength, intelligence and education to serve others by lifting them up then you will be exhibiting the Christian virtue of humbleness.

Let’s pray.  Father in heaven, teach us to be humble.   Help us to be strong, smart and educated.   Give us high self-esteem.   But keep us aware that we are nothing compared to you.  And in our humility help us to lift others up.   Bless us we pray, in Jesus Christ.  Amen.

Sermon Philippians 4:5 “Gentleness”

 Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard
Presbyterian Church of Easton
Sermon Philippians 4:5 “Gentleness”
April 3, 2022

Watch our worship service

Next week, Palm Sunday, we will be receiving the One Great Hour of Sharing.   One Great Hour is a special giving opportunity of the Presbyterian Church USA.   It supports three important ministries of the denomination, Presbyterian Disaster Assistance, Presbyterian Hunger Program and Self Development of People.   Today I would like to talk about Presbyterian Hunger Program.   

Our Lord Jesus fed the hungry and told us to do the same.   This is the foundation of Christian hospitality.  This church has helped people with food insecurity for a long time.  When hungry people come to our church we give them a grocery gift card for $25 and refer them to area food pantries.  The Presbyterian Hunger Program supports local churches to feed the hungry, and searches for long-term solutions to end the root causes of hunger around the world. Specifically the Presbyterian Hunger Program seeks to do five things:  Direct Food Relief combined with Root Cause Work, Sustainable Development, Advocacy, Intentional and Sustainable Living, Education.

Nyapan Gai is the widowed mother of six small children in South Sudan.   When her husband died she was, by law, unable to inherit his cattle.  This left her completely destitute.  The Presbyterian Hunger Program has trained a group of 200 widows, including Nyapan Gai, to provide for their families.   They are trained in agricultural techniques and given seed to make their home gardens flourish with abundant food to feed their families.   

You can support these widows and their home gardens with contribution in the Presbyterian Giving Catalog.   And you also can support the Presbyterian Hunger Program with a generous contribution to the One Great Hour of Sharing.

We are continuing today with our look at Christ-like virtues.  These virtues are developed from our faith and spiritual practices.  So far we have talked about faithfulness, patience, kindness, and goodness.   Today we turn to the Christian virtue of gentleness.   

Philippians 4:5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.

We will talk about gentleness, but first, let’s pray. “Grant unto us, O Lord, to be occupied in the mysteries of thy Heavenly wisdom, with true progress in piety, to thy glory and our own edification. Amen.” (John Calvin)

When I was a kid I learned a very helpful proverb.  “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but names can never hurt me.”   The meaning of this proverb was that there was a distinction between words and violence.   And it was important to keep our disputes non-violent by using words.   This is the basis of our court system.  If someone does something violent to me or my property, I can go to court arguing for damages rather than responding with violence.   

But today in many universities children are being taught that there is no difference between violence and speech.   They say that some speech is a form of violence.   And they say that if speech is used violently then a violent response is justified.

An example of this happened last Sunday.   At the Academy Awards the comedian, Chris Rock told a joke.   Everyone laughed except the woman who was the butt of the joke.   Then this woman’s husband, the actor, Will Smith, stormed the stage and hit the comedian. 

Just a few years ago an insulting joke would have been considered funny.  Today it is seen as violence justifying a violent response.    This is dangerous because it means that we do, no longer, use speech to defuse violent situations.   If words are a form of violence then words cannot be used to stop violence.   And if we cannot talk non-violently about our problems then violence will get worse.  

Our only hope is that the Holy Spirit will develop in us the virtue of gentleness.  Only with the gift of gentleness can we respond to violence calmly, with thoughtful and considerate words.     We must remember this wisdom in the Book of Proverbs. 

Proverbs 15:1 A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.

In the New Testament, there are two Greek words which are translated into English as “gentleness”, prautes and epiekes.   These words both mean gentleness, but they have subtle differences in meaning.  Let’s first look at prautes.  Prautes is the virtue that you develop so that you are not overly impressed by your own self-importance. 

2 Corinthians 10:1 By the humility and gentleness of Christ, I appeal to you—I, Paul, who am “timid” when face to face with you, but “bold” toward you when away!

The Apostle Paul was the spiritual leader of the early church.   They accepted his letters as part of their Bible, the New Testament.   This position might have given Paul a big head.   But it didn’t.   Because God had given him the gift of gentleness he was able to respond to criticism with humility. 

While I was attending seminary I became the Multicultural Intern for Pasadena Presbyterian Church.  The church had three worshiping congregations.   Each worshiped in a different language, Spanish, Korean and English.   Pasadena is one church with three different language groups.  As the Multicultural Intern, I was to find ways of bringing the three groups together.   I was assigned the task of developing a Bible study for Lent.   We would intentionally form Lenten small groups containing Spanish, Korean, and English speaking participants.   

Usually, when you try to do this the English speakers dominate the discussions.   They already had mastered the language.  They had been born in America.  And they had been members of the church for many years.  They would speak first and dominate the discussion.

The Korean and Spanish speakers were new people with limited skills speaking in English.   So when the English speakers spoke they usually sat there quietly.  

I wanted to avoid this situation.   I wanted people from all three language groups to participate in the discussion equally.   So I used a technique called “Mutual Invitation” developed by the author, Eric Law.   A group facilitator would welcome the group and see that they were all seated comfortably.   Then the facilitator would pray, read scripture and ask a question.   The facilitator would then invite someone to speak.   The rules were simple.  Only one person could speak at a time, and everyone else had to remain silent when someone was speaking.   The person speaking could take a few moments of time to compose his or her thoughts;  this was very important for the Korean and Spanish speakers to get their answers into English.    No one could interrupt the person speaking.  And when that person was finished he or she would invite the next person to speak.  This process was repeated until everyone had spoken.   Then the facilitator would ask the next question.

The results were amazing.   The English speakers who wanted to interrupt had to remain silent until they were invited to speak.   The Spanish and Korean speakers had time to think before speaking, and they could speak without being interrupted.   Everyone had an equal opportunity to speak.  Through Mutual Invitation the dominant group learned to be gentle, and the less powerful groups had opportunities to participate in the discussion.   This is what the Greek word Prautes means.  Prautes means that you are gentle; you do not think of yourself too highly.    

Let’s now turn to the other Greek word translated as “gentleness”.   This is the Greek word, epiekes.   Epiekes means that you exhibit gentleness by not insisting on your rights.

Suppose you are in a crowded parking lot.   You have been driving around looking for a parking space.   Then you see someone get into her car and begin to back out of a space very near the store you are about to visit.   You thank God for this blessing and turn on your turn signal telling everyone that this is your parking spot.   

Then you see a car coming from the other direction.   You see an older man behind the wheel.   You see that the car has handicapped license plates.   There are no handicapped spaces available.   Your parking space is the only one close to the store.   What do you do?   Do you take the parking space right near the store as is your right?  After all, you were there first and your turn signal is on.   Or do you let the elderly driver with the handicapped plates use this spot while you find another?  If you have developed the Christian virtue of gentleness, then you will give up your right to the parking space and give it to the elderly driver who needs it. 

Of course, all this is hard to do.   We have difficulty giving up our privileges and giving others a chance.   This is especially true at church.   When someone comes to a church they want to participate in decision making and use their spiritual gifts.   In a growing church, older members will give up some of their own prestige and power to the newcomers.  This is why leaders of the church should not be an elder, trustee or deacon forever.   It is important to cycle off these boards so the newcomers can cycle on.  

If you are organizing fellowship activities or VBS or mission projects, your job is to get new people involved so that they will replace you.   This will only happen if you have the Christian virtue of gentleness, and are willing to give up some of your rights and privileges so that others can participate in decision making and use their gifts

So what are some practical things we can do to nurture the virtue of gentleness?  The first thing we can do is to be thoughtful.   In every situation, we take time to think about the proper thing to say and do.  We don’t act like a bull in a china shop pushing everything over, trying always to get our own way.  Rather, we try to always encourage others and do little things to help them.

We also need to be considerate.   Whenever we have an important decision to make we think about the impact it will have on others.  We get input from other people and take their opinion seriously.  And we follow our Christian role model, Jesus, to learn how to be gentle.

And finally, we must remain calm.  We have to let the passions of the moment dissipate and then act in confidence.  When someone comes at us filled with anger, we need to resist the temptation to respond violently.  Rather we try to diffuse the situation with gentle words before it can get worse.   

If Will Smith had the gift of gentleness he would have remained in his seat.  He would have thought about what Chris Rock had said.   He would have thought about his wife’s reaction.  And later, after thoughtful reflection he said this:

“Violence in all of its forms is poisonous and destructive. My behavior at last night’s Academy Awards was unacceptable and inexcusable. Jokes at my expense are part of the job, but a joke about Jada’s medical condition was too much for me to bear and I reacted emotionally,” Smith wrote. “I would like to publicly apologize to you, Chris. I was out of line and I was wrong. I am embarrassed and my actions were not indicative of the man I want to be. There is no place for violence in a world of love and kindness.”  (https://variety.com/2022/film/news/will-smith-apologizes-chris-rock-slap-oscars-statement-1235216526/)

So, with the Christian virtue of gentleness, we are to calmly be thoughtful and considerate in everything we do.   We are not to think too highly of ourselves.   And we are to forgo our rights and privileges in order to benefit others.  

The reason we are to be gentle is so everyone will know that Christians have something good to offer.  We are willing to give up our rights and privileges to lift others up.   We do not think too highly of ourselves.   And we always act calmly with thoughtfulness and consideration of others.  We do this because our Lord is here with us, watching us and guiding us.  We act as he did.   And we do what he told us to do.

Matthew 11:29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

Let’s pray.   Lord Jesus, we thank you for teaching us how to be gentle.   We promise to give up our rights and privileges to benefit others, and not to think too highly of ourselves.   With your help, we will remain calm, thoughtful and considerate.    This we pray in your gentle name.  Amen.