I Didn't Realize How Many Things I Drop on the Floor Until I Was Unable to Bend Down and Pick Them Up.

"No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God"    Luke 9:62

 Somebody asked me what I've learned following major back surgery. 

 The first thing I learned is you don’t leave a telephone within reach of someone who is on I.V. morphine and valium after surgery.  Not a good idea. Anything can happen! 

 But more importantly I learned this:   "I didn’t realize how many things I drop on the floor until I was unable to bend down and pick them up."  - the title of this sermon.

 It's unbelievable… it really is… I never realized… I had no idea!

 (At this point I drop a bulletin on the floor) 

 You see, now I have a problem.  When you cannot bend to pick something up it presents a crises of sorts; and by crises I mean not a major catastrophe, but a crossroads where I am presented choices of response.   

One choice in response might be to complain and fuss and feel sorry for myself - and I did my share of it!  Ask Marcia.  I would outwardly say something like "Oh, not again!  This is terrible not being able to bend over and perform a simple task as picking something off the floor.  I feel helpless.  It makes me nuts."  That was on the outside.  But what was really going on?  Inside my soul and psyche I was grieving.  Yes, I was grieving - grieving for the days of yesteryear and youth when my back was strong and there was no task that seemed insurmountable.  I was grieving the loss of my pride – pride based on not having to rely on anybody else for anything. 

 A second choice in response might be to get creative and employ the latest technology to help me.  (hold up grabbers)   This is actually a pretty cool device and it comes in pretty handy.  One can pick almost anything up with it unless the item is too heavy.   However, any of you who know me well know that at any given time there is only about 40% chance I know where this thing is when I need it - which means I could easily regress back into option #1 complaining and fussing and feeling sorry for myself – and I did. 

 Of course there is a third choice.  It's the most difficult choice of all.  It looks like this: (ask someone to come forward and pick the item up)   Holy cow!  That is so hard!   That is incredibly difficult.  I’m not joking.  This option means that we have to become a community.  It means I have to let go of my pride and stubborn self-reliance and open my life to you, even make myself somewhat vulnerable.  We have to come together in a way that allows you to minister to me and me yield to you.  I have to admit I need you in my life to fill a gap and meet a need I cannot fill myself.  And you, you have to make room for me.  You have to take some time out for me.  You may have to alter well laid plans; it may be an inconvenience, even require a risk on your part. Let’s face it!  It’s hard, but do you know what we are called, and who we are when we do it?   The church!  That’s right, the church - the body of Christ.  We become the hands and arms and legs and body and soul, and even strong back,  of Jesus Christ to each other. 

  “Could you pick that up for me because I cannot?”  You say, “Why sure!”  We become the church - in action. 

 “I am a stranger in your midst today.  Will you welcome me?” You say,  “Welcome!  Make yourself at home.”  We become the church - in action.

 “I am hungry and sick.  Would you be so kind as to help feed me?  You say,  I will!  We become the church - in action.

 “I am lonely and troubled.  Would you take a moment to listen to me and pray with me?” You say,   “Of course I would.”   We become the church – in action.

 “I have wronged you.  Will you forgive me?” You say,  “You are forgiven.” We become the church – in action. 

 “I am dying and afraid.  Would you just sit with me and hold my hand, please” You say,  “I will. Give me your hand.”  We become the church in action.

 What words did we sing in our opening hymn?  “You are strong when you feel weak;  In your brokenness complete.”

 Do you get it?  Do you see it?   Do you know what the biggest enemy of the church and enemy of Jesus is?  I am sure if we took a survey this morning and displayed the results on a screen we would have all sorts of things up there. We probably have all sorts of nasty sins (like Paul's list in Galatians) and terrible people listed up there.   But I will tell you what I think the biggest enemy of the church most often is:   stubborn self-reliance.  Yes, you heard me right!  And we worship it!   We make it God!  We lift it up and bow down before it. We kiss its feet.   I say stubborn self-reliance because we all know self-reliance can be a very good thing, but so often we cross a thin line into stubborn self-self-reliance; stubborn self-reliance that keeps us separated from one another; stubborn self-reliance that keeps us from turning to each other in our weaknesses for strength and healing; stubborn self-reliance that sees others who are having struggles as weak and insufficient; stubborn self-reliance that even cause us to judge each other and condescend against one another. 

 We live in a world of walking wounded!  I look out here this morning and I see a room full of wounded people.  Is there anybody in this place this morning that is not wounded in some way?  Is there anyone here who has not been injured in heart, mind, spirit or soul by life in some way: a hurt, a loss, a betrayal, an unfaithfulness, a breach of trust, an unkindness, an unfairness, selfishness, failure, indifference, victimized - whatever?  

 "No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God"  

 That’s an incredible verse.  Jesus is really on to something here.  Let me tell you what I believe it is.  First I believe this verse is warning.  A part of what Jesus is saying is simply you cannot go forward with your life while looking backward.  I would submit that whenever we are hurt or injured in any way we look backward.  We dwell on what has happened.  We may think we have our hand on the plow, but we look backward and remain entangled with what is behind us; entangled in grief, sorrow, anger, pain, resentment, guilt, remorse, regret.   We experience no healing, no peace, no joy, no contentment, no excitement for what is ahead of us because we are entangled with the past. 

 How many times have I heard the lament in congregations, “We can’t do that!  We tried it once and it didn’t work; or we failed; or there were problems; or we couldn’t afford it – whatever.”   

 And then Jesus gets in our face and says,  "No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God"

 In the kingdom of God Jesus is saying it doesn’t have to be that way, and if he has anything to say about it, it will not be that way.  

 "No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God"

 Jesus is not satisfied with disciples who are living life defined by past wounds, negative experiences, sorrow, pain, regret, guilt and failure. 

 I caught the last part of an interview of a professional woman tennis player at Wimbledon.  Since I don’t follow tennis I don’t know who she is.  But evidently she had just played the match of a life-time, playing lights out tennis.  Her next opponent was to be a woman she played at the French open a few weeks ago to whom she lost.  The commentator went into this big deal about now what was she going to do, as if it was hopeless for her?  How is she going to approach this opponent who beat her a few weeks ago?

 I really appreciated her answer.  In so many words she said,  "No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God" 

 What she really said was she was not going to let what happened three weeks ago shape her next match. 

 "No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God"

 But this verse is far more than a warning.  It implies a promise.  Our God is a forward looking God; that’s a great part of what forgiveness of sins is all about.  We don’t have to be terrorized and tyrannized by the past.  But often we live as if God is just that, a God who never forgets, and we believe the day is coming when he will hold our sins over our heads and crush us with the weight of them.  Sometimes that’s the way we live with each other; holding the sins of others over their heads – never forgetting – never letting go – applying the crushing weight. 

 "No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God"

 My dear friends:   You and I and we together are going to drop things, and for sure, things are going to perhaps even fall in upon us; perhaps terrible and grievous things. 

 So what are you going to do? 

 Are you going to look back and get entangled in it, and allow it to entangle you, and as a result not really live in the moment and certainly not be very enthusiastic about the future.  Are you going to fuss and fume and stew in it?  Sometimes people never get over things and are ensnared by them for the rest of their lives!   

Are you going to look within yourself and call upon your self-reliance?  (hold up grabbers)   Sometimes that’s a good thing to do.  Sometimes that is just the thing to do.   Self-reliance is a good thing and it can sustain you and get you through many things.  But what if the load is too heavy; too big; too overwhelming?  What if the load is breaking you and reducing you and dehumanizing you and haunting you?  Then what?  Live in denial? Cross over into stubborn self-reliance and find yourself alone in your delusions of strength; closed off even from those who love you?   Are you going to quote me the most famous verse that does not exist in the Bible, “God helps those who help themselves?”  Sorry it’s not in there!

 Or are you going to turn to the Lord?  As the Bible does say, “The Lord helps them… because they take refuge in him.”  (Psalm 37:40)

 Taking refuge in the Lord can look like a lot things:  turning to a brother or sister in prayer; talking to your pastor; asking for forgiveness; letting go of the grudge; it could take a thousand expressions.

 "I didn’t realize how many things I drop on the floor until I was unable to bend down and pick them up." 

 It’s going to happen.  How are you going to handle it?  I know what Jesus would say,   "No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God"