Sermon - 9-11-22

<p>I don’t know about you, but I am increasingly appalled by some of the public rhetoric we hear these days.  I find it disconcerting the way name calling and verbal attacks on others have become a mainstream component of public discourse.  In fact, every day brings a new barrage of verbal bullets that dominate the headlines and take this vocal warfare to a new, unprecedented level.  And, quite frankly, I don’t see it getting better over the next couple of years.  This war of words does nothing but categorize and diminish others, and at the same time create increased brokenness in our culture and society.  And the brokenness spreads like a virulent virus into other facets of life, into our communities, organizations, our schools, our local governments and even our families.  All the name calling, the vicious verbal attacks, and the spoken forms of assault only breed violence, hatred, fear, and contempt.  </p> <p>In the depth of this present cultural context, one name calling word used all too frequently is the word “loser.”  And in a culture which places high value on winning and succeeding, a culture in which being on top and gaining first place are what we teach our children to strive for, the concepts of losing and lostness are not only looked down upon, but they are also truly despised. </p> <p>Well, today, Jesus has something to tell us about losing and being lost.  Jesus is on his way to Jerusalem and he has been teaching about discipleship.  He has much to say about the way we treat the least of those among us and, in that context, he has a great deal to say about what it means to be a disciple.  All along the way he has been saying things like, “If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all.” Or, “He who is the least among you is the one who is great.”  And, just last week we shockingly heard him say, “Anyone who does not carry his cross like a common criminal and follow me cannot be my disciple.”  None of these words describe winning as perceived within our current cultural context.