Will Rice- Sermon #19 - Lifted Up

Rev. Will Rice
Grace United Methodist Church
Corpus Christi, TX
pastorwillrice@gmail.com

Numbers 21:4-9

John 3:14-21

“Lifted Up!”

I have to admit, just like God’s people following Moses in the desert, I was grumbling a bit this week. While Moses’ followers were complaining about the eating and the living conditions, I was complaining about something else entirely. You may be surprised at what I was complaining about. I was grumbling because, out of a fluke of scheduling, I was given the gift of preaching today on John 3:16. Most preachers would be excited and happy about such a thing. I was not so excited. Many would consider it almost like getting a Sunday off. I mean John 3:16 nearly speaks for itself, you barely need to write a sermon. I did not share such a feeling.

I was grumbling this week about preaching on John 3:16.

Now don’t get me wrong, I don’t want you to go running to your friends and saying “Oh my gosh, Will hates John 3:16, he must hate Jesus!” let me explain. First of all, as a person who spent most of his life as a non-Christian, I had this scripture hurled at me a lot. Some of us Christians believe it to be some sort of conversion bomb. We figure if we just hurl it at someone, they will instantly understand the Christian faith, stop doing bad things and want to come to church with us.

I am not quite sure how it supposed to work, but this is how it was tried on me.

“Will do you know Jesus?”

“Yes, I am aware of who Jesus is.”

“But do you know him as your savior?”

“Not that I am aware of.”

“John 3:16”

Some pause while they waiting for it to sink in.

Seeing I wasn’t getting it, “For God so loved the world he gave his only begotten (people always included begotten) son so that all he believe in him will never die but have eternal life.”

“And?”

“Never mind.”

But still, I don’t dislike John 3:16. Despite the fact that some have hurled it around like a salvation bomb, it is actually a beautiful, deep, quite complex piece of scripture. Once you read it in its context, including the words that surround it, it becomes even more rich.

But, let’s go back to the snakes. I am glad we get to read from the book of Numbers today, for here is a scripture, unlike John 3:16 that many people have never heard.

God’s people Israel have been in the desert for a while, and God has been taking pretty good care of them, but they are not happy. They are constantly asking two questions that Moses was dreading as much as parents taking their children on a cross country car trip. “Are we there yet?” and “Manna again?”

⁵The people spoke against God and against Moses, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we detest this miserable food.”

Now where as a typical parent might respond with, “if you don’t stop asking that, I am going to pull this car over,” God responded with snakes.

Now I realize that I now live in South Texas. In Western New York we don’t like snakes so much, but here in South Texas, y’all think they are fun, you even race them.

But imagine for a moment that you don’t like snakes.

⁶Then the Lord sent poisonous serpents among the people, and they bit the people, so that many Israelites died.

Yikes.

The people going running to Moses. Remember that they had just complained against him and God.

⁵The people spoke against God and against Moses, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we detest this miserable food.”

But now they are quite repentant.

⁷The people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned by speaking against the Lord and against you; pray to the Lord to take away the serpents from us.”

I am sure Moses’ originally reaction was, “Oh, now you need my help.” But then he tries to help them:

So Moses prayed for the people.

Now in a perfect Bible story, God would say, “Presto” and the snakes would be gone. But, that is not quite what happens.

⁸And the Lord said to Moses, “Make a poisonous serpent, and set it on a pole; and everyone who is bitten shall look at it and live.” ⁹So Moses made a serpent of bronze, and put it upon a pole; and whenever a serpent bit someone, that person would look at the serpent of bronze and live.

A clearer picture of this story, adds a ton of depth to today’s passage from John’s gospel. Notice two things about what is going on in Numbers. First, when a serpent bites someone and they look at the bronze serpent Moses has made, they don’t die anyway and go to heaven. They actually live. Second, the serpents don’t go away. They are still around, possibly biting people. People probably got bit less because they starting carrying sticks and watching where they were going, but the serpents were still there.

Now, on to John’s Gospel.

¹⁴And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, ¹⁵that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.

Most people don’t start reading here, they start at verse 16. When they do start here, they are faced with the question, “what serpent?” A question to which you now have the answer.

Just as Moses lifted up the bronze serpent to save his people from the death brought about by the poisonous snakes, the Son of Man, Jesus Christ must be lifted up to save us from… well perhaps from ourselves.

Before we even get to John 3:16, let’s linger on this a moment. When we read that the “Son of Man” Jesus Christ must be lifted up, do we mean crucified? Do we mean resurrected? Do we mean glorified? Are we talking about his ascension into heaven, or all four? When we say that whoever believes will have eternal life, what do we mean eternal life?

Now whenever, before becoming a Christian, I would hear the rest of this passage lobbed at me like a “salvation bomb” I would assume, and I think most of the people reading it to me assumed, that when we said “eternal life” we were talking about heaven.

¹⁴And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, ¹⁵that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.

“Whoever believes in him will go to heaven when they die.” Now I am not saying that those who believe in Jesus won’t go to heaven. I want to be clear, please don’t go back to your friends and say, “Oh my gosh, Will hates John 3:16, he must hate Jesus! And now he says we are not going to heaven, somebody call the Bishop!”

I am saying there is even better stuff going on here. When I thought this Jesus thing was just about going to heaven, I said, “I’ll take my chances.” When I realized that there was way more here, I said, “sign me up.”

Right there in verse 15, it is hard to see it in English, when it says,

¹⁵that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.

The word “have” is actually, in Greek, in the present tense. You see, Greek has verb tenses just like English, past, present and future. Sometimes we are sloppy in English.

Past	Yesterday I had some ice cream.
Present	I am having some ice cream right now. Or You may have some ice cream right now.
Future	Tomorrow, I will have some ice cream.

The Greek word for have is in the present, as in, “You may have some ice cream right now.” Or even better, you may have eternal life, right now.

Notice that in the wilderness, when those bitten by snakes looked at the bronze serpent, they didn’t die anyway and then go to heaven.

⁸And the Lord said to Moses, “Make a poisonous serpent, and set it on a pole; and everyone who is bitten shall look at it and live.”

They lived. They were saved right away. They were having life right now. Jesus explains what eternal life is all about in a prayer to God in heaven.

John 17:¹After Jesus had spoken these words, he looked up to heaven and said, "Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son so that the Son may glorify you, ²since you have given him authority over all people, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. ³And this is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.

Whatever eternal life may look like after this life is over, in this life it is about relationship, it is about knowing God and Jesus Christ and the abundance of life that comes from that.

You see just as the lifting up of the serpent in the wilderness saved the Israelites from death from the poison of the snakes, (The snakes that they brought upon themselves through constant grumbling) the life, death, resurrection, ascension, glorification of Jesus saves us from the poison and death of our own world. It gives us a chance to be lifted up ourselves from the sin of our world and live instead in relationship with God.

Just like the bronze serpent did not make the other serpents go away, it just saved those who were harmed by them, the sin of our world does not go away, but we can be saved from it simply by believing in, having faith in Christ, who offers to put us back into relationship with God.

I got a chance a few nights back to watch the movie, “Walk the Line” the musical biopic of Johnny Cash. I saw the movie as a tale of redemption of salvation, which seems to really match the life and story of Johnny Cash. Cash went from a rough and humble beginning to the peak of glory and then back down into the depths of depression and drugs and alcohol. The snakes in the wilderness were biting him pretty good.

Now anyone who knows much about Johnny Cash knows that I wasn’t reading too far into this whole thing as a spiritual matter. Cash was quoted in Rolling Stone Magazine in the year 2000 comparing drugs' spiritual consequences with their physical and emotional devastation

"To put myself in such a low state that I couldn't communicate with God, there's no lonelier place to be. I was separated from God, and I wasn't even trying to call on him. I knew that there was no line of communication."

Of his conversion experience that brought him back to God that brought him back from the very brink of a destruction of his own making, “The greatest joy of my life was that I no longer felt separated from Him. Now he is my Counselor, my Rock of Ages to stand upon."

¹⁶“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.

It took a savior to bring him back to life, not just eternal bliss after his death, but a new take on using his gift, becoming what he could truly become. This new life was something he couldn’t find himself. Just like the Israelites could not save themselves from the snakes, Cash could not save himself from the depths he had sunk into. While the movie is brief on the coverage of the experience of conversion for Cash, it is clear what it led to, renewed purpose, renewed mission a new chance to live abundantly, not in a world free of the biting snakes of drug and alcohol abuse, but to live abundantly with a relationship with God that was bigger than drug and alcohol abuse.

¹⁶“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.

Just like the snake was lifted up to save those bitten from death, Jesus was lifted up to save us from the death of all those things of the world that separate us from the abundant life that is lived in relationship with God.

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Will Rice- Sermon #18 - Choosing Something More

Rev. Will Rice
Grace United Methodist Church
Corpus Christi, TX
pastorwillrice@gmail.com

Mark 8:31-38

“Choosing Something More”

I spent most of this week in Kerrville at Mount Wesley, our United Methodist retreat and conference center. For the first two days of the week, I was attending something called the Bishop’s Convocation. That is basically an opportunity for clergy, pastors like John and I, from the entire southwest Texas conference, pastors from the valley, from Austin, San Antonio, San Angelo, all over the place, to get together and worship together, and meet in groups, and just be together.

I have to be honest, for a young, up and coming pastor in the Southwest Texas Conference, this is an extremely dangerous place to be. If I let them, other clergy members will lay in front of me the glory to come. Not necessarily, the glory of the Kingdom of God, or the glory of a world of mercy and justice, but rather, the glory of a fruitful, successful future in ministry. “Look Will, let me take you to the top of the mountain and show you the power and glory you may some day have.” I can listen to them tell me about the large congregations I may someday serve, congregations that offer equally large salaries. I can even hear about my future as a district superintendent, serving over the pastors of my assigned district. If I really let it get thick, I can hear about the thought of me as Bishop, with an entire annual conference as my kingdom!

Last week, in his sermon, Pastor John took us into the wilderness with Jesus. We heard the wilderness story from Mark’s Gospel, and heard that Jesus was tempted by Satan. Mark 1:12-13:

¹²And the Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. ¹³He was in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan; and he was with the wild beasts; and the angels waited on him.

Mark has the most barebones description of Jesus time in the wilderness. In Matthew and Luke’s gospel, Mark’s words are expanded. We get some details of the temptation. Matthew 4:1-11.

In Matthew’s account, the tempter offers Jesus three temptations. For simplicity, I will call them the temptation to comfort, security and glory.

³The tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.”

Comfort, something to eat after 40 days without. Security:

“If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down; for it is written, ‘He will command his angels concerning you,’ and ‘On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.’”

Security, testing God to be sure God will protect him physically; and glory, having power and recognition.

⁸Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor; ⁹and he said to him, “All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.”

I read that this weekend as I was considering my future glory a pastor in the Southwest Texas Conference.

¹⁰Jesus said to him, “Away with you, Satan! for it is written, ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.’”

Before we spend too much time on last week’s text, let’s take a look at this week’s Gospel reading.

³¹Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. ³²He said all this quite openly.

Remember, the disciples didn’t know the end of the story like we do. In fact, in Mark’s gospel, this is the first time Jesus is bringing up all this stuff about rejection and death and resurrection. No doubt they might be a little surprised.

OK guys, I realize that you have all left your homes and jobs and have been following me around for some time now. I realize you have witnessed some strange and amazing things and have been put in some particularly difficult and frightening situations. I know that over the last couple of years I have taught you some really tough stuff, some stuff that you have had a hard time grasping. It seems like you are finally starting to catch on, and now I have some good news. I, the guy you have been following, the guy you thought was going to change the world am going to undergo a bunch of suffering, get rejected by all the important religious people and then, well, die. In case that doesn’t freak you out, three days after that I will rise again. Who wants to go get some lunch?

Peter really has a reaction.

And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him.

It seems pretty shocking to hear that Peter began to rebuke him. Rebuke is such a strong word. It translates literally as “to assess a penalty” or “charge someone as blamable.” It is a strong word of warning, almost a threat.

Remember, Jesus does a lot of rebuking. Back in the first chapter of Mark, Jesus rebukes a spirit:

^1:25But Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be silent, and come out of him!"

Jesus threatened the wind in chapter 4:

^4:39He woke up and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, "Peace! Be still!" Then the wind ceased, and there was a dead calm.

And just a verse before where we began today, after Peter announces the Jesus is the Messiah,

^8:30And he sternly ordered (rebuked) them not to tell anyone about him.

So far in Mark’s gospel, Jesus has been doing all of the rebuking. But now:

³²He said all this quite openly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him.

You know, you can’t really blame Peter for wanting to rebuke Jesus. We all have to occasionally get our friends back on track. I remember going through the painfully enlightening process of writing and submitting my examination for commissioning as a probationary elder in the United Methodist Church. I sat down the first day with my exam and my laptop. Across from me at my dining room table was my friend Tina who was working on her written examination for ordination. We were sharing books and coffee while we worked. I flipped open the exam, looked at the first five question, closed the exam, shut off my laptop and laid down on the dining room floor and began moaning. Tina asked, “What’s wrong?” I said, “I don’t know any of the answers, I must have slept through seminary. I’m quitting.”

Tina rebuked me, in other words, sternly ordered or warned me to get my butt off the floor, back onto the chair and start working on my exam. She was just pulling me out of my own pathetic self loathing and putting me back on track. I imagine that is what Peter thought he was doing.

There is a big difference here between the rebuking Jesus does and the rebuking Peter doesn’t do. It is very clearly written in English and in Greek that Peter only began rebuking him. He starts, but Jesus finishes.

³³But turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.”

It is easy just to read that “Get behind me, Satan!” as just unnecessarily harsh. I mean the guy just misunderstood, Jesus doesn’t have to go calling him Satan! But remember last week’s text of Jesus in the wilderness. Remember the passage from Matthew we read. Jesus is offered some temptations, the temptations of comfort, security and glory. But, Jesus chooses none of them, Jesus chooses the path that leads to the cross, the path that leads to discomfort, to insecurity, perhaps to glory, but not glory the way the world understands glory!

“Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.”

Peter couldn’t yet see that Jesus was choosing something more than what this world would measure as good: comfort, security, glory. Peter was tempting Jesus with the same worldly comfort, security and glory that Satan was. Jesus was facing again the same temptation and Jesus was choosing the path to the cross, a glory that mystifies this world.

And you see that is what I was considering while listening to my colleagues earlier this week. I find I really need to keep reconsidering what path I am taking. It can be really hard to tell. There could be a path that leads the way God is leading me, that takes me to larger churches, better appointments, maybe even to the role of Bishop someday, but why am I following the path I choose, am I seeking comfort, security and glory or am I truly seeking God?

³⁴He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.

Alright, there is a lot in that statement, but focus on one thing for a moment:

Get behind me (opisow mou), Satan

"If any want to become my followers (opisow mou)

The words for behind me in verse 33 and the words for my followers in verse 34 are, in Greek, exactly the same words. That “behind me” is, in essence, “follow me.” You see, here in lies the choice, do we follow the temptation to grasp for the values of the world, comfort, security and glory, do we get behind that or do we get behind Jesus, do we follow the way to the cross?

And that is one of the things that we get to think about in Lent. As we prepare to celebrate Easter, we decide if that is what we really want to do. You see Easter is all about glory, but what kind of glory. Do we want to follow the world and seek comfort, security and glory, or are we willing to begin letting go of the search for those things of the world and instead embrace the possibilities that God has for us in following Jesus.

This is not the question of whether or not we want to be Christians, but rather, what kind of Christians do we want to be.

I can still be a Christian and listen to my press and follow the path to larger churches with bigger salaries and more prestige. And I can still do God’s work in that. No matter what path I follow there, I will be a pastor, and I will be preaching the word and bringing people to the faith and encouraging spiritual growth and engaging people in mission. All that is good.

But what if… what if I truly follow, truly get behind Jesus and put aside thoughts of comfort, security and glory, truly give in to the possibilities of following Jesus, choose something more, even if that means less comfort, security, and glory. What if that means smaller churches and less prestige because that is what would better serve God.

This becomes a complicated struggle in our lives because it calls us to consider our own motives. We have to ask ourselves why we are following the path we are following. Are we hoping to find the best the world has to offer, or the best that God has to offer?

Some people mistakenly think that my main role as a pastor is to bring comfort, to bring people the good news of God to free them from the burdens of their lives. Sometimes I do that, but it is not really my task. My real role is to make you uncomfortable. The world teaches us that our true goal is comfort, security and glory. I am here to remind you that our true goal is to reach for God.

This discomfort can and should be part of our lives as individuals as we consider the path of our lives and the choices we make. Often we face tough choices in reconciling the decisions we make about how we make our livings and how we spend our time and money with what we believe as Christians because the things of the world come into conflict with the things of the Gospel.

Sometimes that really works itself out day to day. I just had to replace my vehicle and the world tells me I need the comfort of leather seats and power locks and windows, the security of 16 airbags, the glory of something that will turn heads. The gospel made me ask if I really thought my car payment should be bigger than my offering to do God’s work in the church.

This discomfort can and should be part of our life as a church as we consider and struggle with our future. As a church, we constantly struggle with our worldly desire to be comfortable and safe and even proud with the gospel’s call to be open to all. Here at Grace we are already struggle with the need to make more space for more people whose lives could be changed by the gospel fighting against the fact that we like things the way they are. The world tells me it is ok to embrace the comfort, security and glory of sitting in the same pew I have sat in for years, of being surrounded by people I know, of not facing the financial burden of building or expanding, of feeling like we are certainly doing God’s work because we are already full. The gospel tells me that, as a church, comfort isn’t important, discomfort is the better path when it leads to more people being invited to experience the grace of God, more people being nurture in that faith and more people feeling the call to reach out in mission to our community and world.

³⁴He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.

In Lent, I invite us all to choose that path that leads to the cross, I invite us all to choose something more. I invite us all to embrace the discomfort, to truly follow Jesus in the path that leads to life. Amen

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