Sermon Tone Analysis

If you are like me then you have had a few jobs in your day.

Especially if you look back on the whole of your life…

·        My first job at 12 - was as a paperboy for the Toronto Star

·        I was a farm hand on weekends and babysitter in the evening

·        a dishwasher

·        a cook

·        I have mowed a lot of grass

·        loaded boxes

·        worked in a daycare

·        was a janitor

·        Then a highlight, my longest job ever - 6 years - at the Beer store…

·        I worked in sales - first selling trash compactors

·        Then inside sales for a couple of distributors

·        then in outside sales for - not one - but three computer dealers

·        and finally here as your Assistant Curate

 

            Bet you didn’t know it was “get to know your clergy day”…

 

All these jobs have shaped me

            Have helped to form me - to who I am

                        And in many ways, to what I know

 

For nearly all of these Jobs I had to apply and submit a resume

            In applications and resumes we tell the story of who we are and what we are

                        We look into our own personal history and present a picture based on                                 the past

                                    Sure we pick the high lights

                                                Take our accomplishments and make them look as pretty as                                                   we can

                                                            I heard once that 30% people write completely false                                                                information on resumes - not merely creative license                                                               but complete lies - they do this because they know                                                                   that people often don’t check up on them

Many of you are employers and I know at least two of you here today are in human resources

            You are on the other end of the story - you read and review other people’s histories

You are faced with the task of determining what in one person past will be suitable for the position that you need to fill

            Much of how we start out in jobs and roles is proving our past is a suitable fit        for our future

                        In today’s job market most people will change careers or at least                                           employers - multiple times

                                    And we keep needing to prove ourselves

                                                Or justify ourselves worthy…

 

And that is precisely where we meet up with our New Testament reading today

            Our passage from Philippians 3 is a memorable passage where we hear *all              about* St. Paul

                        Paul addressing one of the reoccurring problems that he had as an                                        evangelist for this new movement - this movement of followers of Jesus

                                    Paul was addressing the Philippians people - who were being                                                             influenced by the Judiazers

                                                The Judiazers were those that made claims that people                                                                        needed to first practice Jewish traditions before becoming                                                      a disciple of Jesus Christ

            So St. Paul lays it all out

                        Tells us about all his credentials

                                    /Circumcised on the eighth day, /

/                                    A member of the people of Israel, /

/                                                Of the tribe of Benjamin no less/

/                                                            A Hebrew born of Hebrews; /

/                                    As to the law, /

/                                                A Pharisee; /

/                                    As to zeal, /

/                                                A persecutor of the church; /

/                                    As to righteousness under the law, /

/                                                Blameless/

As an Aside - I know that this is a helpful rhetorical device - a technique of speech to proving his case - but I have always found Paul to be bragging a bit

            I mean it’s hard to boast about your own humility

But this boasting builds up the moment

            Paul looks at the claims of the Judiazers and ups the auntie

                        And takes the wind out of their sails

                                    - By seeing their claims and raising them

                                    - placing his credentials out and presenting himself as Super Jew

Like our own resumes - prettied up to make us look as good possible

            To make us as worthy as possible

                        To justify our cause…

 

Then comes the incredible flip flop,

            The inside out and upside down, twist in St. Paul’s life

                        And the twist in our passage today

Paul is called by the very one in whom he is persecuting

            And he is transformed

                        His zeal is converted from one direction to another

And he realizes that all his efforts towards self-made righteousness are -…nothing

            All *his* credentials are nothing towards *true* righteousness

                        And he sees and shows the Philippian people ‘and us today’ that his                                                self-made righteousness - his efforts can only be viewed as loss

                                    Loss - which is worse then nothing

                                                Loss … a detriment

                                                            In the end to be justified to the ways of the world or the                                                          standards of humanity is not true righteousness

                                                                        These privileges have no saving power…

                                                                                    It’s facing the wrong way

                                                                                                That is why it is …Loss

                                    He realized that God is the one that justifies

 

            His eyes were opened to the truth

                        And he recognized Jesus of Nazareth - as the Christ

                                    Emmanuel - God amongst us - God in the Flesh

                                                And he changed directions and faced God instead of trying                                                    to justify himself

 

We modern day followers of Christ need to take a page out of our apostolic fathers and mothers

            We consider ourselves Christians

                        And the term ‘Christians’ has a certain connotation

                                    Like, we have arrived - that we are already complete

The first ‘Christians’ were know as ‘people of *the way*’

            People on a journey - or - if you like ‘a pilgrimage’

                        Being discipled - taught - following - learning

 

And this is the final point that Paul drives home in our reading today

            A point that is made with two elements

 

/Forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus./

God provides us with a ‘reset button’

            We forget the past

                        When our resumes show the pretty parts of our life - we know that there                             are unmentioned failures there too

                                    And we are to forget

                                                *Turn* from facing back to straining forward

                                                            Toward the goal

                                                                        The prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ                                                                          Jesus

Pulsing through these verses are the ideas of growth and progress in Christ

            Jesus was victor over death.

That *power of the resurrection* both energizes the life and sets its hope

                                   

 

This the 5th Sunday in Lent