Question From Jesus #6: Will You Lay Down Your Life?
[Preached March 30, 2008; Based on John 13: 31-38]
Words of Meditation - “There is only one way to love God: to take not a single step without him, and to follow with a brave heart wherever he leads.” [Francois Fenelon, Devotional Classics, edited by Richard J. Foster and James Bryan Smith, page 49]
So, here’s the scene: Jesus is in the Upper Room with the disciples and when Jesus said that one of the disciples would betray him, Judas left the building. A weight was lifted off Jesus’ shoulders: Jesus said, "Now is the Son of Man glorified and God is glorified in him. (31) He told the remaining disciples that his time with them would be short and that when he left, they would not be able to accompany him.
Now, what happened next is very important. The next two verses are vital to the our living the Christian life: A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another. (34-5) These are very familiar verses to us – right? They’re pretty important – in fact, they are the verses leading to the naming of Maundy Thursday. The word “maundy” comes from the Latin “mandatum” meaning commandment. Maundy Thursday commemorates the giving of this very commandment. However, Peter didn’t hear these verses at all. He was caught up with the previous statement: Where I am going, you cannot come. (33)
How do I know that? Well, look at Peter’s question: "Lord, where are you going?"
Peter may not have been daydreaming, but he was stuck with the thought that Jesus was going somewhere that he couldn’t go.
Maxie Dunnam tells about a little church not far from the city of Rome that bears the interesting name The Church of the Quo Vadis. The Latin words, Qou Vadis mean “Where are you going?”
A
legend suggests that a few years after the crucifixion of Jesus, Peter had been
in Rome and was under the threat of persecution. He was leaving the city in
fear, when he met Jesus. Jesus was headed into the city, so Peter asked Him the
question "Lord, where are you going?" And the Master answered: "I go to Rome, to
be crucified again."
The legend has it that the answer so pierced the heart of Peter that it turned
this cowardly fugitive into a hero, and he followed his Lord back into Rome,
where he gladly died. You may know that tradition has it that he was crucified
upside down on a cross at his own request, because he felt that he was not
worthy to die as the Lord had.
So, a little church has been built on that spot where Peter fleeing Rome met the
Lord coming back into the city. He asked the Lord Quo Vadis, "Where are you
going?"
While this is a
legend - the church is there: the Church of the Quo Vadis. I share it because
the question that Peter asked the Lord in that story is the same question he
asked Him in our Scripture lesson. Peter didn't understand where Jesus was going
because Jesus told him he couldn't go with Him. And Peter thought he was
prepared to die for Jesus... or so he thought!
Jesus knew Peter well;he asked him a tough question in return:
"Will you really lay down your life for me? I
tell you the truth, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times!”
(38)
Over the past 6 weeks, we have looked at questions that Jesus asked others in
the Gospel of John. "Will you lay down your life for me?" That’s our question
this morning. Could there be a tougher question? The question is not merely for
Peter, but for all of us. During Holy Week we saw Jesus lay down his life for
us; are we willing to lay down our lives for him?
This is such a huge question. Let’s look at it from a variety of
perspectives.... Perhaps you’ve seen the movie, Vantage Point,
where an assassination attempt on the President of the United States is viewed
from a variety of perspectives – from different people’s viewpoints. It’s a
suspenseful movie. A variety of perspectives help us see the whole picture, so
Vantage Point #1: Will you make my will your will?
Dr. Carl Barth
was one of the premier theologians of the twentieth century. He refused to take
himself so seriously that he could never change his mind. Dr. Paul Tillich said
that Dr. Barth "refused to become his own follower." Isn’t that a good thought?
"He refused to become his own follower." In other words: Just because I said it
doesn’t mean I’ll always see things that way.
I think about how Mahatma Gandhi said something and one of his followers got upset. That’s not what you said a couple of weeks ago. Gandhi responded, “I’ve learned some things since then.”
Don’t we all face the same challenge; will we become our own follower? Will all that matters be that we do our own will? Whose will are you following with your life? How do we answer Jesus: "Will you make my will your will?"
Another Gandhi story. A noted theologian visited Gandhi and after a time, the conversation turned to spiritual matters and the theologian tactfully shared with Gandhi his own personal experience of the Lordship of Jesus Christ. Gandhi quietly thought for a moment and then lamented, "My own throne is still vacant." (Bruce Demerest, Who is Jesus?, page 102, quoted by Hal Brady, "Do You Really Know Me?")
Gandhi understood that Jesus wanted to sit on the throne of each Christian’s life. He stated that his throne was empty and what he meant was that Christ was not on the throne of his life – Christ was not his king. I wonder whether the throne can be empty. It seems to me that if Christ is not on the throne, that we are – that self is!
Look at this statement about who’s sitting on the throne of your life: "If Christ is to have the throne of your being, He will get it only one way. He won't take it because you happen to have left it vacant. He won't take it by storm. He will get it because you give it to Him by deliberate, conscious, willing choice." (Charter Piggot)
So, Jesus asks: "Will you make My will your will? Will you allow me to sit on
your throne?" And then, Vantage Point #2: "Will you make my style your style?"
Do you remember earlier in John 13 when Jesus washed the disciples’ feet? Think
about this a moment. This was before the Last Supper. This was before Judas left
for the betrayal. This was before he related what was on his heart. He was bound
to be heavy hearted... and yet, he served them anyway!
We tend to think/say: If you only knew everything I was facing you’d be kinder to me... right? And yet even in the midst of the foreshadowing of the cross, Jesus got up from the table, and took upon Himself the role of a servant - girded Himself with a towel, got a basin of water, and washed the disciples' feet – even Judas’ feet.
Jesus said: So if I, your Lord and Teacher,
have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have set
you an example, that you also should do as I have done to you. (14-15)
What is Jesus’ style? Jesus’ style is the style of a servant, even when you’re
not on the top of your game – even when you don’t feel well, serve others.
Jesus tied together: worship and work, receiving and giving, withdrawal and
involvement, communion and service. Jesus put the style of servant at the very
heart of what the Christian life is all about.
Martin Luther used to say: "Our neighbor is the next person we meet and for that person we are to be Christ." We are to live as servants. An African native was asked by a missionary, "Do you know Jesus?" "No," he replied, "but I know Tom Lamke, a friend of His." Tom was living the style of Jesus. Would your friends say the same of you? Wouldn’t that be a great epitaph? “A friend of Jesus.”
So as we think about the question: "Will you really lay down your life for me? (38) - Vantage Point #1: Will you make My will your will? And Vantage Point #2: Will you make My style your style? Vantage Point #3: Will you make My love your love?
If anyone says, "I love God," yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. And he has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother. (1 John 4: 20-21) A pastor named Dr. Babcock once restated this: "If men cannot believe in Christians, whom they have seen, why should they believe in Christ, whom they have not seen?” In other words, they will never see Jesus unless they see Him in us -- unless they see Him in the way we live.
Do any of you remember that the Apostle’s Creed used to include: "He descended into Hell"? The reason it has been removed is there is little clear Biblical evidence for it, but I believe it. That Jesus died for me is one thing and a marvelous sacrifice that was; however, that he took the full brunt of my punishment should really make a difference in my commitment to him. Jesus not only was willing to die for me but to go to the uttermost region of hell!
I
recently read a story about a slow moving panel truck and a narrow winding road.
A woman traveling got behind this slow moving truck, and because of the road,
never had a chance to pass the truck.
To make matters worse, the truck would stop and the driver would get out of the
cab carrying a broom and would beat on the side panels of the truck. After a few
moments of this, he would get back in and drive on for a few more miles, very
slowly, until he would stop and do the same thing with the broom again.
After thirty minutes of this, the woman finally got out of her car and went up
to this man hitting the sides of the truck with his broom. As calmly as she
could she asked him why he continued to do this every few miles. He replied,
"Ma’am, this is a one ton panel truck, and in the back here I've got two tons of
canaries. If I can't keep half of them up in the air I can't drive my truck."
As Christians, the load we bear is heavy at times, but
God’s Spirit actively works in us to keep things flying! Vantage Point #4: Will
you make My power your power?
One final story:
An Anglican Bishop was asked to speak at a Christian conference in England. For many weeks, he did not respond to the written invitation. Finally the correspondence secretary for the Conference wrote the Bishop an insistent note, "We must know," he said, "if you're coming. We need to make our plans." The Bishop wrote back that he was waiting for the guidance of the Holy Spirit on the matter. He would let them know in about four weeks. The exasperated secretary fired back this note: "Bishop, please don't bother. Cancel the invitation. We're not interested in having anyone speak to our Conference who lives four weeks away from the Holy Spirit!" (Brian K. Bauknight, "Stay on Track")
Are you relying upon God’s power... in the present? How many weeks away from the Holy Spirit do you live? Jesus asks: "Will you lay down your life for me?" Think about it:
And if all that is too complicated, let me suggest that you pay attention to the teaching that went right past Peter: "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (34-35) Love others as Christ has loved you!