Sermon "The Christian Life Revealed"
Rev. Lonnie Richardson
Sunday, August 30, 1998
The Christian Life Revealed
One sabbath when he went to dine at the house of a ruler who belonged to the Pharisees, they were watching him. Now he told a parable to those who were invited, when he marked how they chose the places of honor, saying to them, "When you are invited by any one to a marriage feast, do not sit down in a place of honor, lest a more eminent man than you be invited by him; and he who invited you both will come and say to you, `Give place to this man,' and then you will begin with shame to take the lowest place. But when you are invited, go and sit in the lowest place, so that when your host comes he may say to you, 'Friend, go up higher'; then you will be honored in the presence of all who sit at table with you. For every one who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted." He said also to the man who had invited him, "When you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your kinsmen or rich neighbors, lest they also invite you in return, and you be repaid. But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. You will be repaid at the resurrection of the just."
Luke 14:1, 7-14
Whenever I read this passage I am reminded of the answer of Leonard Bernstein, when asked what was the hardest instrument to play. His answer: "Second fiddle. I can always get plenty of first violinists, but to find one who plays second violin with as much enthusiasm or second french horn or second flute, now that's a problem. And yet if no one plays second, we have no harmony." Where is your seat, your chair?... Is it at the place for great blessings from God. Or does it seek immediate satisfaction at the place of honor and possibly at the expense of others?
Jesus was invited to a feast. The feast was given by one of the leaders of the Pharisees. Now we might think this strange. So often the Pharisees seem to be enemies with Jesus. But Jesus was a common topic of discussion. What better entertainment than to have the Nazarene at your party. He told such spellbinding stories. And everyone was talking about the miracles he did and the things he said. Why, what a better evening's entertainment than to get to know a potential messiah than at a dinner party.
Well Jesus arrived at the party and watched the people. Jesus was a people watcher. He observed things that people did and from his perspective as the son of God he saw things others didn't. He saw how the guests were trying to get the best places the places of honor at the head table for themselves. He also noticed the host had invited the prominent movers and shakers. But more importantly Jesus noticed who was not invited.
I imagine that as the guests began to make their way to be seated at the table Jesus took the lowest place at the table. The host, recognizing that Jesus had done this called to him, "Rabbi, why have you sat there?" "Come here and sit next to me." Then realizing that some upwardly mobile Sadducee or scribe had sat in that seat he turned to him and said, "You don't mind if the rabbi sits hear now do you?" And not wishing to make a scene the man gets up and finds the only place left is the lowest one and so he takes it.
Now Jesus was always sensitive to people: their interests and needs. Since it was a party he thought he should talk about a party and since the people were interested in having the best place with the best people he would talk about that too. So Jesus spoke to the people and he said, "When you are invited to a wedding banquet, don't choose the best places for yourself. You take the lowest place: the table in the back corner by the kitchen. And leave the better places for others. After all if you choose the best spot and someone more famous comes late you may be asked to move and wouldn't that be embarrassing. And if you sat in a lower place they might ask you to move up." Then Jesus turned to his host and said, "When you have a party don't invite your friends and relatives; the rich and famous. After all they will probably return the favor and invite you to their next feast. Instead invite the poor and lame; people who cannot return the favor. If you do that God will repay you at the end of time and God can do a much better job at blessing than any of your affluent friends.
Jesus' point was not so much how we should act at a party but how one can be in general. In our time people are looking out for number one. They are trying to get what is best for themselves. Jesus was saying that we can be concerned for others. Instead of seeking only our own advantage we can seek advantage for others. Our thoughts for others should not be how they can bless us. It should be how we can truly help them and who better to truly help than those who truly need it. Doing this in the name of Christ is the Christian life revealed.
One afternoon in 1953, reporters and officials gathered at a Chicago railroad station to await the arrival of the 1952 Nobel Peace Prize winner. He stepped off of the train - a giant of a man, six-feet-four, with bushy hair and a large mustache. As cameras flashed, city officials approached with hands outstretched and began telling him how honored they were to meet him. He thanked them politely and then, looking over their heads, asked if he could be excused for a moment. He walked through the crowd with quick strides until he reached the side of an elderly woman who was struggling as she tried to carry two large suitcases. He picked up the bags in his big hands and, smiling, escorted the woman to a bus. As he helped her aboard, he wished her a safe journey. Meanwhile, the crowd tagged along behind him. He turned to them and said, "Sorry to have kept you waiting." The man was Dr. Albert Schweitzer, the famous missionary-doctor, who had spent his life helping the poorest of the poor in Africa. A member of the reception committee said to one of the reporters: "That's the first time I ever saw a sermon walking." Not only was it a sermon walking, his life is an example of the Christian life revealed.
The words of Thomas Merton are appropriate when he said that
"The humble person receives praise the way a clean window
takes the light of the sun. The truer and more intense the light
is, the less you see the glass." A saintly Christian life is
a life where one sees only God and not the vessel. May we see God
in our lives. Amen.
