Sermon by: Rev. Craig N. Goodrich
May 18, 2008
CLAIMED BY THE NAME
Scripture:
Psalm 8, Matthew 28:16-200
The Biblical account of the
resurrection is different in each gospel. Here in Matthew Mary Magdalene and
woman known only as “the other Mary” go to the tomb on the Sabbath, and are
actually present for the resurrection. Described as a great earthquake, (maybe the
only time something good came of an earthquake), the stone is rolled away by
and angel who tells the women not to be afraid for Jesus has been raised. The angel
tells them to go and tell the disciples that Jesus is headed to
Then here comes this fascinating
interlude with the story of the guards, who had been knocked over as dead by
the earthquake. The elders concoct a cover story and pay the soldiers to say
that the disciples came in the night while they were asleep and stole the body,
and the gospel writer, with a telling aside, says the story is still
circulating at the time he is writing.
Well the disciples did as the
women told them. They meet Jesus on the mountain in
This scripture in Matthew is
2000 years old and these verses at the end, often referred to as the “Great
Commission” have been preached from pulpits for centuries and have sent
countless missionaries around the world.
Today is Trinity Sunday and the
lectionary prescribes this passage, the “Great Commission,” presumably because
as part of that Commission is the command to ”baptize in the name of Father, Son
and Holy Spirit.” The doctrine of the Trinity holds that God is three persons
of one substance and known to us as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. It is, in fact,
a doctrine supported by Scripture but it was really forged in two separate councils
of bishops in the 4th century. It took years to develop amid much
controversy.
In a recent Presbyterian
study paper, it was stated “the doctrine of the Trinity proclaims to us the
very heart of God...using the language of Christian tradition, we proclaim that
the Father so loved the world, sending the Son for us and our salvation, which
we receive in and through the presence and power of the Holy Spirit.”
In recent years many have
encouraged the use of other Biblical ways of referring to God, so sometimes we
hear the Trinity identified by function: creator, redeemer and sustainer, which
true as this may be, loses the personal and relational aspects of the Triune
God.
It’s the three-in-one and one-in-three
that gets confusing. Indeed, no less a luminary than Thomas Jefferson
proclaimed that he could not believe in the doctrine of the Trinity because it
was not logical.
There have been many attempts
to provide analogies or explanations for the Trinity of how God could be three
persons and one substance, but I particularly like Barbara Brown Taylor has
said about the Trinity. She says, “Preachers tie themselves into knots trying
to explain what all of this means” and so there are the examples of ice, water,
and steam, or electromagnetic force or shamrocks. The challenge becomes solely
intellectual and it becomes all too easy to miss the point and the experience
of God...
C. S. Lewis once said
“Doctrines are not God; they are only a kind of map, but the map is based on
the experience of hundreds of people who really were in touch with God.”
He goes on to say “But you
will not get anywhere by looking at maps without going to sea. Nor will you be
very safe if you go to sea without a map.”
Sometimes it is experience
that drives the truth home to us.
We are very fortunate in this
Church to have many baptisms, almost every Sunday.
It is in baptisms perhaps
where we most clearly experience the Trinity.
We had an experience this
morning, right out of Matthew’s gospel. Did you see it?
This morning we saw it, these
verses in action. The baptism of Marin Gayle Wolfe, baptized in the name of the
God who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
What happened here?
Marin’s parents made promises,
and you the congregation made promises, and we welcomed Marin into this family
of faith.
We baptized her in the name
of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. And this Triune God claimed her. The
overflowing, overwhelming love and grace of God reached out to her before she
could even respond.
God claimed her by name.
But baptism is just the
beginning, isn’t it?
If we go back to the end of
Matthew, we see that Jesus is saying something more.
Jesus said to “make disciples
of all nations”, baptizing, but also”
teaching them to obey all that I have commanded.”
“To go and make disciples of
all nations…”
These verses have launched
great missionary movements, in 1800’s particularly among Presbyterians, and no
doubt we are here today because some who went before us took seriously the
great commission. We should be grateful. But it has also been abused particularly when connected with coercive
power or commercial interests.
I recently read a wonderful
book by Laurence Bergreen entitled Over
the Edge of the World: Magellan’s Terrifying Circumnavigation of the Globe.
It tells the story of Portuguese sailor and Captain General, Ferdinand Magellan,
who was commissioned by King Charles of
When Magellan set sail he had
been given authority to claim for Spain all lands not ruled by Christian kings,
and as the armada sailed west across the Atlantic, and then through the
straight at tip of South America that bears his name and then into and across
the Pacific ocean, that is precisely what he tried to do, in some cases
conducting mass baptisms and erecting giant crosses overlooking the harbors. His
methods were not what Jesus had in mind. Here’s a description of one such
encounter in the
“At last the general baptism
was ready, and Magellan, dressed in splendid white apparel presided over the
throng. ‘A large cross was set in the middle of the square. The Captain General
told them that if they wished to become Christian as they had declared on the
previous days, they must burn all their idols and set up a cross in their
place. They were to adore that cross daily with clasped hands, and every
morning after their custom they were to make the sign of the cross (which the
Captain General showed them how to make): and they ought to come hourly, at
least in the morning, to that cross, and adore it kneeling.’ Magellan also
explained that he was dressed in white “to demonstrate his sincere love toward
them” -- his recent threat to kill them notwithstanding. He continued to bestow
Christian names on the converts. Five hundred men were baptized before mass.”
“The ceremony ended on a
solemn note, with the king and the other chieftains, now Christian, declining
Magellan’s offer of dinner [aboard ship] but embracing as brothers in the same
faith, while the ships discharged their artillery and the jarring blasts
reverberated throughout the island kingdom.”
The author goes on to say, “The
scenes of conversion seemed touching and inspiring at first glance, but on
closer inspection, they were incongruous and improbable. Theater had won the
day. The rapidity with which the [islanders] accepted Christianity was suspect,
but … Magellan… [did not see]… beyond the outward signs of faith to the lack of
sincerity, conviction, and understanding that lay beneath.” (Pgs 169-170)
Well, that was then, but what
about now?
What do we do with the Great
Commission?
Are we afraid of being
perceived as pushy or intolerant? Does it really apply to us, we Presbyterians?
Our own Purpose Statement on
the cover of the worship bulletin says it is “our purpose to be and to become…Disciples
who proclaim and serve the Lord Jesus Christ in all we say and do to the glory
of God, the salvation of humankind, for the healing and hope of the city and
for the reconciliation and peace of the world.”
So what are we to do?
We can start by seeking to become
disciples ourselves, followers of Jesus.
By taking a disciple class,
by reading the Bible,
By understanding how great and
deep and wide is God’s love for us and for this world;
By engaging in disciplines of
prayer;
By looking for God’s grace in
our own life and then telling people about it;
We can ask ourselves, “Is Christ
the center of my life and our life together?”
But we also need to look at
what Jesus commanded. After all, that’s what Matthew is saying, make disciples…“teaching
them to obey all that I have commanded.”
And what is it that Jesus
commanded and taught?
Here are a few directly from
Matthew’s gospel:
Blessed are those who hunger
and thirst for righteousness for they shall be satisfied.
Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they shall be called children of God.
You are the salt of the earth.
You are the light of the
world.
Love your enemies, pray for
those who persecute you
.
Do not lay up for yourselves
treasures on earth.
You cannot serve God and
mammon.
Therefore I tell you do not
be anxious for your life.
Judge not that you be not
judged.
I came not to call the
righteous but sinners.
He who finds his life will
lose it and he loses his life for my sake will find it.
Come to me all who labor and
are heavy laden and I will give you rest.
If any want to become my
followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For
those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life
for my sake will find it.
Unless you change and become
like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
And our own Book of Order
says that faithful membership, which one could define as discipleship, includes
among other things:
a.
Proclaiming the
good news
b.
Praying and
studying Scripture and the faith of the Christian Church
c.
Responding to
God’s activity in the world through service to others
d.
Working in the
world for peace, justice, freedom and human fulfillment.
Seems like a tall order
doesn’t it? We didn’t sign up for this , did we?
Sometimes our own documents and
convictions betray us.
So what is it that holds us
back? From being the people God has called us to be?
I think fear is probably is a
big part of it, fear that we will fail. Or maybe fear that we may be consumed
by passion for God.
Our desire for security is
another. We want to be in control of our own lives.
Guilt is a good one. Or to
put it another way, not really believing in the mercy and forgiveness of God
And then there are our own
plans and desires.
One pastor has said, “We
prefer our material and physical security above all else, and we play it safe
all around.”
What must happen for us to
experience the grace of Jesus Christ?
Sometimes it takes adversity,
in fact, often it is only in those times of hardship, failure or pain,
helplessness, and despair when we cry out to God, when we are really up against
it, that we know we have to depend on God for help, then in those deepest
moment a light begins to flicker and to shine, and grace comes, god’s mercy and
with it, gratitude.
Craig Barnes, Presbyterian
pastor and cancer survivor writes:
“Gratitude may be the
ultimate vocation for the Christian. We engage in whatever mission the Lord has
given us not because we must, but because we may. People who are thankful for
all the grace they have received want more than anything to give gifts. But we
have to lose a great deal of life before we discover that the purpose of life
is to give it away to things that matter.”
“Once we have received grace,
we inevitably get passionate about helping the world to receive it. The more we
try to engage in missions, however, the more we realize how dependent we are on
God. If Christians try to make a difference in the world relying on their own
zeal (or worse yet on their guilt), they will inevitably fail. But once they
have become good at recognizing the Savior when he appears, they realize that their
mission is not to change the world. Their mission is to teach the world to see
the grace of God.”
Friends, we simply have to
stop holding back.
We have got to stop being so
self-reliant, trying to get life just right.
Maybe we all need to exhale and
to breathe deeply of the Spirit.
We have to trust. We have to
trust God and leave those things which we cherish the most in the hands of the
loving Father: With open hands we give to God our health, our children, our
money, our time, our sins that we want to hold on to, our dreams.
And maybe it does come back
to the simplicity of baptism, in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit., and
remembering that God has claimed us and will never let us go.
And don’t forget that Jesus
promised, “I will be with you always, even unto the end of the age.”
And if he is with us, that is
all we will ever need.
Thanks Be to God. Alleluia.
Amen