| October 11, 2009 - "It's Hard to be Humble" - Rev. Victoria Ney | ||
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October 11, 2009 “It’s Hard to be Humble” The Rev. Victoria Ney Text: Matthew 5:3 & Luke 18:18-27 A middle-aged woman suffered a heart attack and was taken to the hospital. While in intensive care she had a near-death experience and saw God. She asked, “Is it my time to go now?” God answered, “No, you have another 43 years, 2 months and 8 days to live.” When she had made a full recovery, she made up her mind that if God was going to give her so many more years, she was going to make the best of them and be happy. Her first decision was to have a total makeover. She decided to have a facelift, liposuction, tummy tuck and a nose job. She even had someone come in and change her hair color, hair style, and new makeup—a total extreme makeover. When she left her doctor’s office after her final check-up, she stepped out into the street and was hit by an ambulance and killed. She stepped into eternity and felt very confused as she stood before God. She said, “God, you said I had another 40 or so years ahead of me. Why didn’t you save me from that ambulance? To which God replied, “I didn’t recognize you.” Obviously, that lady thought a total make-over would make her happy. Many people think in similar terms. So, tell me this morning, what would it take to make you happy? Fifty-two thousand Americans were asked that question in study done for “Psychology Today” magazine. These are some of the answers people gave for what makes them happy: Friends and social life, having a good job, being in love, recognition and success, sex, personal growth, good financial situation, having a nice home or apartment, finding a mate, being attractive and beautiful. The interesting thing about this survey is that almost all of the people thought happiness comes through external means—outside ourselves. I came across an old song the other day from the musical “Oklahoma”—O what a beautiful morning, oh what a beautiful day. I’ve got a wonderful feeling, everything’s going my way.” A lot of people today tend to think of happiness that way. “When everything’s going my way, when circumstances are right, I’ll be happy.” This is known as the “when/then thinking.” I’m sure you’ve heard these kinds of statements: When I get married, then I’ll be happy. When I get a new job, then I’ll be happy. When the kids go to college or leave home, then I’ll be happy. When I lose 20 pounds, then I’ll be happy. When I win the lottery, then I’ll he happy. The list of when/then’s goes on and on. We each have our own set. And we all try to catch happiness. We work, we save, we spend, we buy, we travel, we give, we search, and we strive. Happiness becomes something we try to acquire or catch or package—but at some point we realize that no matter what we do, we still aren’t happy. We all long for the secret of true happiness. We want happiness that lasts, that no discouragement, no frustration, no grief, no life storm can destroy. Jesus knew that 2000 years ago—and that’s what he was trying to address with the first part of his Sermon on the Mount. Happiness is not based on circumstances—it is based on Attitude. The problem with Jesus’ Beatitudes, is that his words that tell us what happiness is, his words of instruction on how to find true happiness sound like oxymorons—the opposite of what we think might be true. And nowhere does any verse sound more like a contradiction than this first Beatitude—“blessed are the poor in spirit.” “Happy are the poor in spirit?” Being poor in anything doesn’t sound like it would make you happy. A few other translations may give us a better idea of what Jesus was really saying: The Living Bible reads, “Humble people are very fortunate, for the Kingdom of Heaven is given to them.” The Message (by John Peterson) really captures the meaning well: “You’re blessed when you’re at the end of your rope. With less of you, there is more of God and His rule.” Jesus is saying that humility, spiritual poverty, not being so full of ourselves, is the beginning of happiness. In fact, it’s the only way to begin to hear God’s words to us. Let’s go back to the story of the rich young man who came to Jesus. Can you picture him? He’s rich. Italian leather shoes. Tailored suit. His money is well invested. American Express gold or platinum card. He lives like he flies—first class. He’s young. He’s got a great physique and a shrewd intellect. He’s got all the answers. If you don’t think so, just ask him. He’s the new generation. Death, in his young mind, is an eternity away. He has mastered the three “Ps” of yuppiedom. Prosperity. Posterity. Power. He’s the rich young ruler. Now until that day with Jesus, his life was great. But now he has a question for Jesus about the future. Was it a casual concern or a genuine fear? We don’t know. Hearing Luke’s description of him as “a rich young ruler,” I wonder if it bothered him to ask a carpenter’s son for help. But he asks his question: “Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?” Right away, the wording of his question shows he has a big misunderstanding here. He thinks he can get eternal life just like he gets everything else—by himself under his own strength. What are the requirements, Jesus? Tell me. No need for chitchat. Go right to the bottom line. How much do I need to invest to be certain of my eternal return? Jesus gave him a simple answer. “If you want to enter life, obey the commandments.” I can almost see this young guy grabbing his pencil and paper to write down the ones Jesus thinks are important. “Which ones?” he says. Maybe Jesus thought that a smart young man ought to know at least the Ten Commandments, but Jesus indulges him and says, “Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, honor your father and mother, and love your neighbor as yourself.” Max Lucado has a great way of going over the list in the young man’s mind. He thinks, “Great!...Let’s see if I pass. Murder? Of course not. Adultery? Well, nothing any red-blooded boy wouldn’t do. Stealing? A little extortion, but all justifiable and legal on my tax return. False testimony? Hmmm….let’s move on. Honor my father and mother? Sure, I see them on holidays. Love your neighbor as yourself…? Ok, I’ve got the gist of this Jesus. Any other important rules I need to know?” I wonder if Jesus felt like laughing or crying. The answer that was supposed to make the young man realize he falls short, only convinces him that he stands tall. So Jesus cuts to the chase. “If you want to be perfect, then sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven.” The young man who thought he had it all figured out, left upset. Even Jesus’ disciples seemed troubled and bewildered. Right here in this sanctuary this morning, we might even be a little nervous about that response from Jesus. Who in this room would be willing to give everything they have away? The disciples’ question could be ours: “Who then can be saved?” Jesus’ answer is shocking: “With man this is impossible…” Impossible? Then what are we doing here? Jesus didn’t even say improbable. He didn’t even use words like unlikely or it will be tough. He says it is “impossible.” All of us have grown up with the idea that we get rewarded according to our performance. We get grades according to how much we study. We get money for hard work. Maybe the rich young ruler thought heaven was just a payment away. You do the right things and your account is marked “Paid in full.” But Jesus says, “No way. It doesn’t work like that for God’s kingdom. What you want costs far more than what you can pay. You don’t need a system. You need a Savior. You don’t need a resume, you need a Redeemer. ‘What is impossible for human beings is possible with God.’” See, this is the most important part. We cannot save ourselves. Not through the right rituals. Not sitting in the right church. Nothing. It is impossible for us to save ourselves. The point here is that it wasn’t the money that hindered the rich young man; it was the self-sufficiency. It wasn’t his possessions; it was his pomp. It wasn’t his big bucks; it was his big head. Don’t get me wrong. It’s not just the rich who have difficulty entering God’s kingdom. It’s also the educated, the strong, the good-looking, the popular, the religious—all of us, if we think anything we do or have automatically qualifies us as a candidate for heaven, we are sadly mistaken. Mark this down: God does not save us because of anything we’ve done. Only a puny god could be bought with tithes. Only a temperamental god could be satisfied with our pain. Only a heartless god would sell salvation to the highest bidders. But a great God does for all his children what they can’t do for themselves. This is the message of St. Paul: “For what the law was powerless to do….God did in Jesus.” (Acts 22:16) That’s the message of the first beatitude. “Blessed are the poor in spirit….” When we realize we can’t do it by ourselves, then we are able to turn to God for what we need. The first step to joy is a plea for help, an admission of our helplessness before God. When we declare spiritual bankruptcy and realize that we stand before a holy God without anything, that’s when God can step into our lives. We plead for mercy—and then accept his love and grace and forgiveness in Jesus as God’s gift to us. These Beatitudes are anything but business as usual. It takes us down a path we aren’t used to. We don’t like to say we’re weak and helpless. It’s hard to be humble. Admission of failure does not usually gain us admission into joy. But that’s the promise here. What we see as impossible, is possible with God. Blessed are the poor in spirit, the humble, who see their need for God, for then the whole Kingdom of God’s love will be theirs. ********************************* i Max Lucado, The Applause of Heaven, W Publishing Group, 1990. ii Ibid. |
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