In our lesson today, in particular in THE MESSAGE
version, the word virtue
appears. “There’s no particular virtue in accepting punishment that you well deserve,”
writes Peter, “But if you’re treated badly for good behavior and continue in
spite of it to be a good servant, that is what counts with God.”
Virtue
is a very old word. A
quick glance in a dictionary we discover that virtue means “morally good character”,
and “uprightness”.
Since it’s the merry month of May, I am reminded of the
virtuous character Lancelot in the musical Camelot who croons, “A knight of the
Table Round should be invincible, succeed where a less fantastic man would
fail. Climb a wall no one else can
climb, Cleave a dragon in record time, Swim a moat in a coat of heavy iron
mail. No matter the pain, he ought to be unwinceable, Impossible deeds should
be his daily fare. But where in the world Is there in the world A man so*extraordinaire*? C'est moi! C'est moi, I'm forced to admit.
'Tis I, I humbly reply. That mortal who these marvels can do,C'est moi, c'est
moi, 'tis I. I've never lost in battle or game; I'm simply the best by far…”
The best at what, we might ask. According to
Lancelot, some muscle (toppling other knights, slaying dragons), some might
(swim a moat in record time while wearing heavy armor, climb a wall), and some
loyalty to that which is right, which is the king. As a knight of the round table, Lancelot
defends the king’s honor and the king’s property, in this story, Camelot.
Who are our modern day Lancelots on the big
screen—the strong, confident morally good heroes? Perhaps Batman who defends the good people of
Gotham City against a host of characters bent on being the most powerful person
on earth? Spiderman? Wolverine?
All of these heroes, so to say, are considered the good guys—the virtuous
ones.
In some ways discipleship is all about some muscle, some might,
and some loyalty to what is right. But
there are some important differences.
*First, the muscle Christ
is interested in is faith in God to act—as opposed faith in ourselves to
act.
*Second, the loyalty Christ is interested in is loyalty to God’s
job description (God’s purpose in Jesus) which Jesus introduced in the
synagogue in his hometown of Nazareth, saying, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring
good news to the poor. He has sent me to
proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the
oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” Easier words might be end injustice,
violence, and oppression of all kinds.
*THIRD, as disciples, we’re not called to defend God, God can take
care of God’s self. What we are called
to do is to LISTEN to Jesus. How many times in the scriptures do we
hear God say, “This is my son, listen to him”?
By listen God means more than just hear his words. God means follow; become Christ—including a
willingness to suffer for God’s purpose in the world.
Where the virtuous Lancelot is gallant,
displaying his mighty physical ability,
the virtuous Christ is humble,
refraining from revenge– “When he was
abused, he did not return abuse; when he suffered, he did not threaten; but he
entrusted himself to the one who judges justly,” writes Peter.
What you and I are beginning to understand is that in the
Christian tradition, virtue means strength,
but not an outward strength; it’s an inward strength—an inward strength that is
rooted in one’s ability to detect and trust God at the core of one’s being and
to act on that relationship and purpose and that relationship and purpose alone
. Who other people are is up
to them.
As contemplative practitioner and teacher Thomas Keating
observes, “Virtue,
true strength, is not controlling or dominating other people. It is moderating
our own excesses and respecting the basic goodness of other people and their
needs.”
As Peter concludes, it’s this kind of virtue,
or strength, when offered to a world that’s far from perfect, that provides the best opportunity for
change to take place—moderating our own excesses and respecting the basic
goodness of other people and their needs—not controlling or dominating other
people.
Here’s another way to enter today’s
story. Instead of seeking revenge, Jesus sought repair; instead of
participating in destruction, Jesus sought construction. What is meant by
the words revenge and destruction is hurting someone who hurts you; destroying
someone who wants to destroy you.
Another word is retaliation.
What is meant by the words repair and
construction is fixing things so that no one will ever hurt, or get hurt,
again.
At the end of his life, when Jesus was surrounded by his enemies
and abandoned by his friends, Jesus didn’t develop amnesia and suddenly become
something else other than God’s beloved. It was obvious to him and to others that many
persons in Jerusalem that day had lost sight of their best self; the one loved
by our God who acts justly in the world.
They were lost to that other self—the one who puts their faith in the
world’s treasures—or perhaps the one that thinks they are truly alone and
therefore defenseless—or yet the other self who needs to feel in control. The
answer wasn’t to join them in their sickness.
The answer, for Jesus, was to join God in God’s wholeness, or
health. This is what Peter means by
letting God keep our soul—staying grounded in God’s wholeness, God’s
health. For Jesus this meant choosing
God’s character, forgiveness and humility, and in the end he most respected. Here we are wanting to be
LIKE him; balanced, wise, healthy, whole, faithful, helpful not hurtful, an
agent of peace and not violence.
In today’s superhero movies, what happens? I’m most familiar with Batman so I’ll use the
Batman as an example. In Batman movies, an enemy emerges such as the Joker or the Penguin, enticing
Batman to exit the bat cave with all of his amazing toys. They are great but they do break. After a long you fling this and I’ll fling
that duel, Batman wins at the end of the film, but we’re always introduced to
the next villain hiding in the shadows—the next battle of muscle and
might. The story of muscle verses muscle
continues, and Gotham City remains dark, anxious, fearful.
Yes, Batman is good looking and every one
covets Batman’s toys—but to a world that longs for peace and prosperity for ALL
and a little light to see that possibility by—and knows they’ll never have
those abs AND those toys—perhaps Jesus’
example of relying on virtue, the ability to refrain from control and
domination OVER people--the ability to participate in repair over revenge and
construction over destruction—is much more possible, and hopeful.
Forgiveness and humility are two things we can do.
“But you’ve got to be prepared,” writes Peter to us, “to suffer.” Not everyone welcomes God’s kingdom with open
arms. People will hurt you—bully you,
oppress you, seek control OVER you.
Prepare yourself so that you, too, will stay grounded in God’s
purpose—let God keep your soul…
How do you prepare yourself to survive suffering at the hands of
those most threatened by a just world-- while working for heaven come on
earth?
This past week the students at Will James
were treated to a visit by Jerry Taylor, a man who has lived with Cerebral
Palsy all his life. His message was
this, “My condition didn’t matter. What
mattered was trying. That’s how you win,
by trying.” Using special crutches Jerry
entered races. “Not to win,” he said,
“but to run.”
Isn’t that true for discipleship—isn’t that the message of the
cross? We can’t help the condition of the world around us in which we
answer the call to love God and neighbor, but we win by trying to live in the
world as Christ lived in the world—with great love, always love, and then
again, love.
When
it comes to discipleship Peter says we’re on a journey and we don’t know where
we are going. “But I can tell you
something you will want in your backpack,” he writes, “and that’s the ability
to suffer and still let God keep your soul.” Prayer: Amazing God, may we be strong enough to stay with you and work for your purpose even when people lash out at us for reminding them that everybody matters—like Jesus did. Amen.
(Reverend Dana Keener preached this sermon on May11, 2014 at Central Christian Church, Billings, Montana)
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