| Previous Sermon |
 |  |  |  |  |  |
| Previous Sermons |
| 16 Pentecost 24 September, 2006 The Rev. Robert C. Granfeldt |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
I don’t know exactly when it was, or even where – I think, it was at our Calvary Day
celebration, but I’m not sure – that I heard myself say, to someone, “Money is the root
of all evil.” I wish I had a nickel for every time I’ve heard that, though I try never to
say it, myself. It’s a little trite! Nevertheless, it must be true – ‘cause it says so in the
Bible. Everybody knows that!
I’ve always found it amazing how many things “everybody knows” are “in the Bible…,”
that aren’t! This one, at least, is close.
It’s actually a misquote of St. Paul’s Letter to Timothy, Chapter 6, verse 10, in both the
King James and the Revised Standard Versions of the Bible, which actually say, “the
LOVE of money is the root of all evil.”
Once in a great while, someone actually quotes it that way. But, then, that’s not really
right, either. You see, the King James translation was done nearly four hundred
years ago, when not a whole lot was known about the ancient, Koine Greek of the
Bible, and the Revised Standard Version of 50+ years ago just followed suit. But now
we know that what the original text really said – and meant – was, “the love of money
is a root of all kinds of evil.”
“For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, and in their eagerness to be rich
some have wandered away from the faith…,” is what it really says – which is not
nearly as impressive as what we’ve always thought it was, is it? So the adage that
“everyone knows” turns out to be neither as catchy as we’d like, nor as profound --
nor even a valid representation of what the Bible says.
The problem is, Truth is seldom to be found in a catch phrase; and, in fact, truth,
itself, is often not very popular.
Today’s Gospel, picks up a little bit later than where last week’s left off. Jesus is
drawing near to the end of his last journey, which will bring him, soon, to Jerusalem
and the Cross. It’s been an eventful journey, and as he’s traveled, he’s performed a
number of miracles: healings of the deaf and the dumb, the feeding of the five
thousand, the stilling of the sea; he’s been transfigured on the mountaintop, in sight
of his four closest friends; he’s been declared by Peter and the others to be the
Messiah; and through it all he has been telling his followers to keep quiet; to NOT tell
people what they’ve witnessed; to NOT proclaim who he is! “Tell no one” has been
his constant refrain.
In today’s Gospel, he has left off his public teaching and arrived in Capernaum, which
has been like the home base of his ministry – his retreat, if you will. When he leaves
Capernaum, it will be to travel directly to Jerusalem and his death. This is a pause
before the end.
They’d been walking all day, Jesus leading – in silence, lost in thought – the Disciples
following and talking amongst themselves as they go. When they reach the house,
they find that Jesus was not quite as lost in his own thoughts as it seemed, when he
asks them, “What were you discussing on the way?” (By the way, that’s another
mistranslation: he actually asked them what they were arguing about, which is not at
all the same thing!) They thought he hadn’t noticed their argument! And they don’t
answer him.
What, after all, can they tell him: the truth? That all of his teaching; all of his humility;
all his refusal of honors; all his pleas NOT to fuss, NOT to proclaim him Messiah, NOT
to spread word of his miracles, NOT to call him king, that all of this has been
completely lost on them, and that they spent the day arguing who amongst
THEMSELVES was the greatest?
“Where there is envy and selfish ambition, there will also be disorder and
wickedness of every kind,” writes James in this morning’s Epistle, and here it is:
envy and selfish ambition, right here in the ranks of the Apostles and closest friends
of Jesus!
“The Son of Man is to be betrayed into human hands, and they will kill him,” he had
told his best friends. And as if he hadn’t said a word, they proceed to argue which of
them was to be greatest!
Sometimes you look at Jesus’ disciples and you’ve gotta wonder: how in the world
did he put up with them?
But then you look again and you realize it’s not them, really. It’s the nature of sin –
and it’s human nature. OUR nature!
You see, it’s not Money that’s the root of all evil, or even the love of money. It’s not
really money, at all, that’s the problem. The real root – not of ALL evil, perhaps, but
surely of MOST human evil – is position (we love to be seen as “top dog”, #1, Top of
the Heap, king of the hill), and it’s prestige (we love to be honored, looked up to,
admired, envied), but most of all, it’s power! Power!
If our Lord’s life, his teaching, the constant troubles he had with his disciples and the
Apostles, and his death teach us anything at all, they should teach us that POWER is
at the root of most of this world’s evil.
If position has allure, it’s because the guy who’s at the top of the heap has power
over those down below. If prestige is attractive, it’s because those who are looked
up to have power over those who do the looking. If money evokes evil, it’s because
money buys, elicits, and confers POWER!
Power!; the most seductive element in all of human existence.
In international relations, in national politics, in the local arena, in our workplace, on
the road, in the pews and aisles of our churches, in our schools, on our playing
fields, in our families: power attracts us; power leads us on; power seduces us.
When we look around us – whether at war and strife around the world, at the
enormous amounts of money spent in the political arena, at the relatively new
phenomenon of “road rage” or the other kinds of violence that afflict our streets, our
workplace, our shops, our schools and our homes; at the conflicts and bickering that
so often disrupt our Churches; at the problems of racism, sexism, nationalism, or any
other of the “isms” that cause strife – particularly right now, in our own Communion;
at the various kinds of abuse that disrupt our workplaces, our sportsfields, and our
schools, and tear apart our families – what we’re seeing is the wages of the sins of
power – and the pain of powerlessness!
I don’t know how many sermons about power you’ve ever heard; not many, I’ll wager.
On the one hand, that strikes me as strange, because it is, in fact, abundantly clear
that in all that our Lord said and did, HE was first and foremost about the fighting and
the rejection of power; abundantly clear that the thing he had tried to drum into his
followers heads again and again, was his lesson and example of the rejection of
power. Yet we – and I include myself, in that “we” – so seldom– if ever – preach about
it. So seldom even talk about it. “If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and
servant of all;” that was his constant refrain; that was his message. How much more
clear could he be?
Perhaps that’s just it – the subject is SO central, SO basic, and SO enormous, that it’s
quite frankly overwhelming. Who can talk about it? Who can preach about it? It’s
involved in ALL human interactions, it touches every one of us. It’s so vast that most
of the time we can’t even SEE it.
Yet, what our whole tradition has been about – from the sin of Adam and Eve, the first
murder by Cain, the Tower of Babel, the great flood, the wanderings of Abraham, the
destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, the saga of Joseph and his brothers, of Moses
and Pharaoh, and the wandering in the desert, of the conquering of Canaan, Saul and
David and Solomon, the division of the Hebrew kingdom, the destruction of Israel,
the Babylonian captivity, the building of the second Temple, and ALL the Prophets – it
has ALL been about the misuse of Power, the abuse of Power.
And what our Lord’s teaching, our Lord’s example, our Lord’s LIFE was all about, from
beginning to end, was the REJECTION of power, and calling us to live the antithesis
of power: to live our lives in love! Calling us to learn that, “whoever wants to be first
must be last of all and servant of all.” It is Love that serves.
Love, I believe, is the answer to power – the only answer. Love is the antidote to
power – the only antidote. Love is the way of life that our Lord tried to show to his
Disciples, that our Lord has been calling US to for two thousand years, as the
antithesis of power. And we haven’t heard it, yet – not the Church, not you and I.
I wonder what it would be like to try it out. I wonder what it would be like, maybe, to
try to create, say, a single parish, for instance, that DIDN’T operate along the lines of
power – but according to the ways of love our Lord came to show us – with each of
those who would be “first”, serving all the others as last….
No, neither money nor the love of money are the root of all evil. The pride of THAT
place belongs to power, and to the love of power.
Jesus’ Disciples couldn’t learn that lesson two thousand years ago. Two thousand
years later, we still haven’t figured it out.
In Jesus Christ’s Name. Amen.
celebration, but I’m not sure – that I heard myself say, to someone, “Money is the root
of all evil.” I wish I had a nickel for every time I’ve heard that, though I try never to
say it, myself. It’s a little trite! Nevertheless, it must be true – ‘cause it says so in the
Bible. Everybody knows that!
I’ve always found it amazing how many things “everybody knows” are “in the Bible…,”
that aren’t! This one, at least, is close.
It’s actually a misquote of St. Paul’s Letter to Timothy, Chapter 6, verse 10, in both the
King James and the Revised Standard Versions of the Bible, which actually say, “the
LOVE of money is the root of all evil.”
Once in a great while, someone actually quotes it that way. But, then, that’s not really
right, either. You see, the King James translation was done nearly four hundred
years ago, when not a whole lot was known about the ancient, Koine Greek of the
Bible, and the Revised Standard Version of 50+ years ago just followed suit. But now
we know that what the original text really said – and meant – was, “the love of money
is a root of all kinds of evil.”
“For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, and in their eagerness to be rich
some have wandered away from the faith…,” is what it really says – which is not
nearly as impressive as what we’ve always thought it was, is it? So the adage that
“everyone knows” turns out to be neither as catchy as we’d like, nor as profound --
nor even a valid representation of what the Bible says.
The problem is, Truth is seldom to be found in a catch phrase; and, in fact, truth,
itself, is often not very popular.
Today’s Gospel, picks up a little bit later than where last week’s left off. Jesus is
drawing near to the end of his last journey, which will bring him, soon, to Jerusalem
and the Cross. It’s been an eventful journey, and as he’s traveled, he’s performed a
number of miracles: healings of the deaf and the dumb, the feeding of the five
thousand, the stilling of the sea; he’s been transfigured on the mountaintop, in sight
of his four closest friends; he’s been declared by Peter and the others to be the
Messiah; and through it all he has been telling his followers to keep quiet; to NOT tell
people what they’ve witnessed; to NOT proclaim who he is! “Tell no one” has been
his constant refrain.
In today’s Gospel, he has left off his public teaching and arrived in Capernaum, which
has been like the home base of his ministry – his retreat, if you will. When he leaves
Capernaum, it will be to travel directly to Jerusalem and his death. This is a pause
before the end.
They’d been walking all day, Jesus leading – in silence, lost in thought – the Disciples
following and talking amongst themselves as they go. When they reach the house,
they find that Jesus was not quite as lost in his own thoughts as it seemed, when he
asks them, “What were you discussing on the way?” (By the way, that’s another
mistranslation: he actually asked them what they were arguing about, which is not at
all the same thing!) They thought he hadn’t noticed their argument! And they don’t
answer him.
What, after all, can they tell him: the truth? That all of his teaching; all of his humility;
all his refusal of honors; all his pleas NOT to fuss, NOT to proclaim him Messiah, NOT
to spread word of his miracles, NOT to call him king, that all of this has been
completely lost on them, and that they spent the day arguing who amongst
THEMSELVES was the greatest?
“Where there is envy and selfish ambition, there will also be disorder and
wickedness of every kind,” writes James in this morning’s Epistle, and here it is:
envy and selfish ambition, right here in the ranks of the Apostles and closest friends
of Jesus!
“The Son of Man is to be betrayed into human hands, and they will kill him,” he had
told his best friends. And as if he hadn’t said a word, they proceed to argue which of
them was to be greatest!
Sometimes you look at Jesus’ disciples and you’ve gotta wonder: how in the world
did he put up with them?
But then you look again and you realize it’s not them, really. It’s the nature of sin –
and it’s human nature. OUR nature!
You see, it’s not Money that’s the root of all evil, or even the love of money. It’s not
really money, at all, that’s the problem. The real root – not of ALL evil, perhaps, but
surely of MOST human evil – is position (we love to be seen as “top dog”, #1, Top of
the Heap, king of the hill), and it’s prestige (we love to be honored, looked up to,
admired, envied), but most of all, it’s power! Power!
If our Lord’s life, his teaching, the constant troubles he had with his disciples and the
Apostles, and his death teach us anything at all, they should teach us that POWER is
at the root of most of this world’s evil.
If position has allure, it’s because the guy who’s at the top of the heap has power
over those down below. If prestige is attractive, it’s because those who are looked
up to have power over those who do the looking. If money evokes evil, it’s because
money buys, elicits, and confers POWER!
Power!; the most seductive element in all of human existence.
In international relations, in national politics, in the local arena, in our workplace, on
the road, in the pews and aisles of our churches, in our schools, on our playing
fields, in our families: power attracts us; power leads us on; power seduces us.
When we look around us – whether at war and strife around the world, at the
enormous amounts of money spent in the political arena, at the relatively new
phenomenon of “road rage” or the other kinds of violence that afflict our streets, our
workplace, our shops, our schools and our homes; at the conflicts and bickering that
so often disrupt our Churches; at the problems of racism, sexism, nationalism, or any
other of the “isms” that cause strife – particularly right now, in our own Communion;
at the various kinds of abuse that disrupt our workplaces, our sportsfields, and our
schools, and tear apart our families – what we’re seeing is the wages of the sins of
power – and the pain of powerlessness!
I don’t know how many sermons about power you’ve ever heard; not many, I’ll wager.
On the one hand, that strikes me as strange, because it is, in fact, abundantly clear
that in all that our Lord said and did, HE was first and foremost about the fighting and
the rejection of power; abundantly clear that the thing he had tried to drum into his
followers heads again and again, was his lesson and example of the rejection of
power. Yet we – and I include myself, in that “we” – so seldom– if ever – preach about
it. So seldom even talk about it. “If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and
servant of all;” that was his constant refrain; that was his message. How much more
clear could he be?
Perhaps that’s just it – the subject is SO central, SO basic, and SO enormous, that it’s
quite frankly overwhelming. Who can talk about it? Who can preach about it? It’s
involved in ALL human interactions, it touches every one of us. It’s so vast that most
of the time we can’t even SEE it.
Yet, what our whole tradition has been about – from the sin of Adam and Eve, the first
murder by Cain, the Tower of Babel, the great flood, the wanderings of Abraham, the
destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, the saga of Joseph and his brothers, of Moses
and Pharaoh, and the wandering in the desert, of the conquering of Canaan, Saul and
David and Solomon, the division of the Hebrew kingdom, the destruction of Israel,
the Babylonian captivity, the building of the second Temple, and ALL the Prophets – it
has ALL been about the misuse of Power, the abuse of Power.
And what our Lord’s teaching, our Lord’s example, our Lord’s LIFE was all about, from
beginning to end, was the REJECTION of power, and calling us to live the antithesis
of power: to live our lives in love! Calling us to learn that, “whoever wants to be first
must be last of all and servant of all.” It is Love that serves.
Love, I believe, is the answer to power – the only answer. Love is the antidote to
power – the only antidote. Love is the way of life that our Lord tried to show to his
Disciples, that our Lord has been calling US to for two thousand years, as the
antithesis of power. And we haven’t heard it, yet – not the Church, not you and I.
I wonder what it would be like to try it out. I wonder what it would be like, maybe, to
try to create, say, a single parish, for instance, that DIDN’T operate along the lines of
power – but according to the ways of love our Lord came to show us – with each of
those who would be “first”, serving all the others as last….
No, neither money nor the love of money are the root of all evil. The pride of THAT
place belongs to power, and to the love of power.
Jesus’ Disciples couldn’t learn that lesson two thousand years ago. Two thousand
years later, we still haven’t figured it out.
In Jesus Christ’s Name. Amen.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| Calvary Episcopal Church, Rockdale |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| | | | | |