Reflections...

A sermon preached at Kowloon Union Church on Sunday 15th October 2006 by Rev. Kwok Nai Wang.

Mark 8:27-9:1

Two Sundays ago, Mainline Protestant Churches throughout the world celebrated the 67th worldwide communion Sunday. Though divided and scattered, we were bold to affirm once again that there is only ONE Church, namely, the Church of Jesus Christ.

Is it not a fact that historical churches, the Eastern Orthodox, the Roman Catholic, Episcopalian, Lutheran and sometimes, Presbyterian and Reformed Churches often recite in public services the 391 version of the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed: “Credo unam sanctum catholicam apostolicam ecclesiam” or “I believe in one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church”.

At the same time, as we say our creed, we are reminded that not only our world, but also our Christian Church is fragmented. Moreover, many divisions within and outside the Church to-day are caused by us Christians!

Have we not seen enough wars and serious conflicts often instigated by Christians in our life time? The World War II in the 1940s, the Korean war in the 1950s, the war in Vietnam in the 1960s, the religious conflicts in Northern Ireland in 1970s, the incessant extreme violence in Palestine, the genocides in Uganda, in Sudan…. the recent wars in Iraq, in S. Lebanon. We do not have to go very far to-day to see horrid conflicts and violence .They are in our doorsteps as well. Do we sometimes have a selfish heart and a selfish mind, full of hatred and jealousy? Do we sometimes condone violence?

We are called to be peacemakers on this earth. We are called to be ambassadors of Christ – reconciling humankind to Christ. But how often do we take this vocation seriously? We may not have committed the sin of commission; but how about the sin of omission?

Why is this so? Why are our thoughts and our actions contrary to what we believe? What is the Christian faith all about?

Let us go back to see the Gospel reading a while ago.

The first part consists of two statements: Peter’s profession of faith (8:27-30) and Jesus’ first prophecy of his passion (8:31-33). In a way, they pose no contradiction to one another. As a matter of fact they are two components which constitute the basis of our Christian faith.

However, as we study the text, we notice that there’s a big gap between Peter’s perception of Jesus and what Jesus actually said and did. Peter’s confession, “Jesus is the Christ” was both superficial and conceptual. To borrow John Henry Newman’s terms, Peter’s confession was at best “intellectual assent” Peter did not and could not go deeper than that. That explained why Peter remonstrated Jesus when Jesus predicted he himself was destined to suffer and die.

Peter’s remonstration immediately drew rebuke from Jesus. For to Jesus, as the Lord, he must suffer and die. In his own words, “I did not come to be served, but to serve, to give my life as a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:45)

This indeed is what constitutes the crisis of our faith today. We think always in terms of ourselves and our rewards. We choose to be Christians, because in becoming Christians, one way or the other we will be better off, if not materially, at least mentally or spiritually. Was it St. Augustine who said that everybody wants to go to Heaven, but nobody wants to take up the cross?

To be a Christian is to be a disciple or a follower of Christ. Jesus laid down certain conditions for his disciples, “If anyone wants to be a follower of mine, let him/her renounce himself/herself and take up his/her cross and follow me” (8:34).

Jesus himself took up the cross and served others all his life. Thus, Dietrich Bonhoeffer described Jesus as “the man for others”. The Gospel according to Matthew summed up Jesus’ ministry in these words, “he went around all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the Good news of the Kingdom and curing all kinds of sicknesses and diseases (Matt. 4:23; 9:35). Jesus was busy serving others all the time.

One of the best known hymns of Christ in the New Testament is Philippians 2:6-11. Jesus was divine. Yet he did not cling to his equality with God; but gave up all this to become a slave; suffered and died on a cross ( the most humiliating way to die, to be nailed on a cross, together with two robbers). He was buried, and the Apostles’ Creeds hurriedly added, he was descended into hell. In a word, Jesus was in the highest in Heaven, beyond our imagination, yet he became the lowest, again beyond our imagination, he was in “Hades”.

Jesus was full. Yet he emptied himself totally for the sake of the humankind; so that we all could be full.

This indeed is the mystery of the Christian Faith. It has deeper meaning than to profess or acknowledge that Jesus is the Christ. To use Cardinal Newman’s terms again, the Christian Faith is about “Real Assent”. It has claims not only on our intellect, but our total life. Faith means faithfulness. It demands our total obedience and following to Christ. Martin Luther suggested that Christians are the “little Christs”. It means as Christians, we say the words of Jesus (Jesus’ words are those of hope and encouragement); we also do the deeds which Jesus did (Jesus worked towards a more just society and individuals becoming more wholesome); and above all to witness to Jesus’ total sacrificial love.

A Christian must move from self-centeredness to God-centeredness, hence others-centeredness. A Christian must not seek for his or her own interests and benefits, but the well-being of the whole humankind. This is what it means to bear the cross, to live a sacrificial life.

Here lies the mystery and meaning of life. Jesus said, “For anyone who wants to save his life will lose it; but anyone who loses his life for my sake, and for the sake of the Gospel, will save it.” (8:35).

The Gospel is not cheap. It calls us to give up our whole life. In doing so, we can live meaningfully. We live a fulfilled life. This is the Christian Gospel. It’s the Gospel of Renunciation. It is what this world needs. The Church must try its best to preach this gospel. But first, it must put this gospel into practice. The Church must convince the world that it exists for the world. The Church is here to serve the world’s needs.

Unfortunately, the Church today is far too preoccupied with its own business interests. As we go around the world, we see many churches amassed great wealth, social status, and moral as well as political influence in the pretext of serving the world. “Sacrifice”, the core of the Christian message is indeed quite foreign to the church’s practice today. As a matter of fact, those churches which are so preoccupied with preserving their own lives that they are quite prepared to allow or even ask those in need to sacrifice for them.

By and large, the socio-economic-political systems throughout the world are far from just. Oftentimes many are extremely repressive. As a result, the powerless and the “have-nots” suffer. But churches throughout the world, which often benefit from the existing systems, are quite reluctant to have this “status quo” changed. Some say that as the churches are so very “status conscious” that they actually follow an 11th commandment, “Don’t rock the boat, play it safe”. The Church throughout the world needs to be transformed, in its faith and in its mission. The Presbyterian Church, U.S.A. states clearly in its motto, acclesia reformata semper reformanda, the church renewed, ever renewing. The Church of Jesus Christ, wherever it may be must constantly renew itself, by relearning once again the meaning and implications of the Gospel of Renunciation. Every Church, including the Kowloon Union Church, must continuously learn how to sacrifice itself so that it can serve the world more relevantly. Would you accept this challenge?