New Beginnings?
Been a while since I posted a sermon reflection, but I guess Palm Sunday is as good a time as any.
The speaker began by comparing Jesus' entry into Jerusalem to a number of other watershed moments in our more recent history, and what they meant to the people affected. The end of apartheid to the people of South Africa. The fall of the Berlin Wall to the Soviet states. The election of Barack Obama to the African-American community. In the journeys of these peoples, these events mark pinnacles of achievement, of progress, of climactic moments in history.
These events do not, however, mark the end of the journey. Racism still exists in America and South Africa. Eastern Europe is still recovering from the cultural and economic consequences of decades of Communism. And as powerful as Palm Sunday was, it did not indicate the conclusion of Jesus' ministry. As the speaker pointed out, he then had to pass through death, and reach the cross.
But what is the cross, then? Is that the end? Do we look to the cross, receive our salvation, and then conclude that we are finished products, perfect and no longer in need of anything? I'm afraid sometimes I do. But that's not true, is it?
Salvation is not an end. The cross is not the culmination of our faith. If it were, we would be just fine accepting his grace, taking our spot in the line to heaven, and waiting till we die. But that's not what we're called to do. The cross, instead, is an invitation, a doorway, the start of an entry into a larger world. The cross gives us the opportunity to transition from a life obsessed with self, trapped in sin, eyes cast downward in hopelessness, into a life full of joy, of meaning, of communion with God and spiritual growth.
They say in theater that every exit is an entrance. The cross, in a way, is an end- the end of an old way of life. But we are blind if we do not see that it is also the fiery, brilliant start of something new. I know I'm blind to this much of the time. Lord, give me eyes to see.
The speaker began by comparing Jesus' entry into Jerusalem to a number of other watershed moments in our more recent history, and what they meant to the people affected. The end of apartheid to the people of South Africa. The fall of the Berlin Wall to the Soviet states. The election of Barack Obama to the African-American community. In the journeys of these peoples, these events mark pinnacles of achievement, of progress, of climactic moments in history.
These events do not, however, mark the end of the journey. Racism still exists in America and South Africa. Eastern Europe is still recovering from the cultural and economic consequences of decades of Communism. And as powerful as Palm Sunday was, it did not indicate the conclusion of Jesus' ministry. As the speaker pointed out, he then had to pass through death, and reach the cross.
But what is the cross, then? Is that the end? Do we look to the cross, receive our salvation, and then conclude that we are finished products, perfect and no longer in need of anything? I'm afraid sometimes I do. But that's not true, is it?
Salvation is not an end. The cross is not the culmination of our faith. If it were, we would be just fine accepting his grace, taking our spot in the line to heaven, and waiting till we die. But that's not what we're called to do. The cross, instead, is an invitation, a doorway, the start of an entry into a larger world. The cross gives us the opportunity to transition from a life obsessed with self, trapped in sin, eyes cast downward in hopelessness, into a life full of joy, of meaning, of communion with God and spiritual growth.
They say in theater that every exit is an entrance. The cross, in a way, is an end- the end of an old way of life. But we are blind if we do not see that it is also the fiery, brilliant start of something new. I know I'm blind to this much of the time. Lord, give me eyes to see.