Sermon - 2013-03-17
Lord, if you would have been here my brother wouldn’t have died. Mary and Martha had faith in Jesus, who he was and what he was doing within the world. When Jesus came Lazarus, the brother of Mary and Martha, had already died. However, death is not something that separates us from God. Jesus called Lazarus out from the tomb and into the very presence of himself. To have a loved one return and seeing them once again when you expected never to see them again, may sound too good to be true, but that is the gift that Jesus gives to us.
Mary and Martha are so filled with joy that their brother who had been dead is now back and living among them. No not as some zombie but actually alive, back to his old self. They could not put into words how grateful they were for what Jesus had done for them. So instead of words, Mary showed Jesus just how truly grateful she was. She took perfume and cleaned his feet. Not simply with water but instead she used perfume. She used a perfume that was made with pure nard, costly nearly 300 denarii. Ok, so big deal, how much can a denarii be in modern times? The figure really does depend, but at the low end, we are looking at $8,000 and at the high end around $25,000. This depends mostly on the work that you do, because a denarius would be a daily wage. The main point is, this perfume was not cheap, at all. In fact the gift was an attempt to show Jesus just how grateful the family was that Lazarus was with them. I mean how much would you pay to enjoy the love and time with family?
Yet as so often happens within the Gospels, the disciples do not understand what was actually going on. Judas responds that the perfume should have been sold and the money should have been placed to help the poor, those who truly needed the money. The story reminds us about the past that Judas can not escape, he was a thief and would often steal from the poor box at church. In this light, Judas is speaking out of his own greed, that he could have gotten the money in some way. This greed and desire for what he wanted is something that will often blind Judas in what he does. It has a way of doing the same within our own life.
Does this sound at all familiar? Within this world, I see this all over the place, people striving to build their companies, their lives and legacies on the backs of others. They work so hard for the glory, honor and things of this world that they do not focus on things that truly matter. There are times that we create our own god, we create our own hell, we create our own world and yet, we do not even realize that we have done it. When someone points out the truth, we become scared that what we have created will come crashing down around us and we will have nothing. Yet it is here that we shall find God, the truth and the world that to which we have longed to be a part.
Judas needed this, we need this. Jesus reminds Judas that the poor you shall always have among you, but I will not always be with you. Jesus is not saying that the poor are not important, but that we should be giving thanks to the one who has done the work. We should be reminded of the gift given to us constantly, because this world will always try to take you away from that gift. It is one of the reasons, I prefer to preach from the pulpit. To remind you that the Word of God is more important than your own understanding of things, because often that Word comes and breaks into your life to tell you the truth. Standing in the pulpit, standing above you, you can be reminded that you are part of this world. Yet you have a God who is speaking directly to you and giving you the message you need to hear. Not the message you want to hear but the message that you need to hear. Judas was given Jesus to receive that message, and he did not want to hear it. We have been given Jesus Christ. However, Christ was not just a messenger. Christ is not Jesus’ last name but the title that was given to him. Christ is Latin for Christos meaning Chosen One, Anointed One. It has the same meaning as Messiah.
Christ comes, stands before us, and shows us who we are. Living in the message of Christ, we begin to see who is the god that we worship on a daily basis. We begin to realize where we are at, for what reason, we are constantly running around from this thing, to the next, to the next. We return home at the end of the day wondering. Asking the questions, why I am so tired, and why don’t I have time for, (you can fill in the blank). Christ stands before you and asks you the question, are these things you are doing truly helping you in your life? Are they helping you to grow and become the better person I have created you to be, better than I could? Finally, Jesus puts down the mirror that is being held up to you and reminds you. I have created you exactly as you are, not to fit into some other mold. But so that you can live serving those people around you, who can enjoy your gifts, your talents, and your love. I called you and anointed you long ago within your Baptism and now, it is time for you to get ready. To go down the path and follow the way so that you may live in the love and life that I have given to you. So what is God’s message of truth? What is God giving to you? What is God calling you to do within the world? If you are struggling to hear it, begin by reading the Word, spending time with God in prayer, and dive into the Small Catechism. For one often goes astray when being guided by a heart, a mind, and life that is clouded.
Mary and Martha are so filled with joy that their brother who had been dead is now back and living among them. No not as some zombie but actually alive, back to his old self. They could not put into words how grateful they were for what Jesus had done for them. So instead of words, Mary showed Jesus just how truly grateful she was. She took perfume and cleaned his feet. Not simply with water but instead she used perfume. She used a perfume that was made with pure nard, costly nearly 300 denarii. Ok, so big deal, how much can a denarii be in modern times? The figure really does depend, but at the low end, we are looking at $8,000 and at the high end around $25,000. This depends mostly on the work that you do, because a denarius would be a daily wage. The main point is, this perfume was not cheap, at all. In fact the gift was an attempt to show Jesus just how grateful the family was that Lazarus was with them. I mean how much would you pay to enjoy the love and time with family?
Yet as so often happens within the Gospels, the disciples do not understand what was actually going on. Judas responds that the perfume should have been sold and the money should have been placed to help the poor, those who truly needed the money. The story reminds us about the past that Judas can not escape, he was a thief and would often steal from the poor box at church. In this light, Judas is speaking out of his own greed, that he could have gotten the money in some way. This greed and desire for what he wanted is something that will often blind Judas in what he does. It has a way of doing the same within our own life.
Does this sound at all familiar? Within this world, I see this all over the place, people striving to build their companies, their lives and legacies on the backs of others. They work so hard for the glory, honor and things of this world that they do not focus on things that truly matter. There are times that we create our own god, we create our own hell, we create our own world and yet, we do not even realize that we have done it. When someone points out the truth, we become scared that what we have created will come crashing down around us and we will have nothing. Yet it is here that we shall find God, the truth and the world that to which we have longed to be a part.
Judas needed this, we need this. Jesus reminds Judas that the poor you shall always have among you, but I will not always be with you. Jesus is not saying that the poor are not important, but that we should be giving thanks to the one who has done the work. We should be reminded of the gift given to us constantly, because this world will always try to take you away from that gift. It is one of the reasons, I prefer to preach from the pulpit. To remind you that the Word of God is more important than your own understanding of things, because often that Word comes and breaks into your life to tell you the truth. Standing in the pulpit, standing above you, you can be reminded that you are part of this world. Yet you have a God who is speaking directly to you and giving you the message you need to hear. Not the message you want to hear but the message that you need to hear. Judas was given Jesus to receive that message, and he did not want to hear it. We have been given Jesus Christ. However, Christ was not just a messenger. Christ is not Jesus’ last name but the title that was given to him. Christ is Latin for Christos meaning Chosen One, Anointed One. It has the same meaning as Messiah.
Christ comes, stands before us, and shows us who we are. Living in the message of Christ, we begin to see who is the god that we worship on a daily basis. We begin to realize where we are at, for what reason, we are constantly running around from this thing, to the next, to the next. We return home at the end of the day wondering. Asking the questions, why I am so tired, and why don’t I have time for, (you can fill in the blank). Christ stands before you and asks you the question, are these things you are doing truly helping you in your life? Are they helping you to grow and become the better person I have created you to be, better than I could? Finally, Jesus puts down the mirror that is being held up to you and reminds you. I have created you exactly as you are, not to fit into some other mold. But so that you can live serving those people around you, who can enjoy your gifts, your talents, and your love. I called you and anointed you long ago within your Baptism and now, it is time for you to get ready. To go down the path and follow the way so that you may live in the love and life that I have given to you. So what is God’s message of truth? What is God giving to you? What is God calling you to do within the world? If you are struggling to hear it, begin by reading the Word, spending time with God in prayer, and dive into the Small Catechism. For one often goes astray when being guided by a heart, a mind, and life that is clouded.
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