10.07.07; Rev. John An and Michael Kim
(Written by me after collaborative exegesis between John, Mike, and myself, and subsequently edited by the three of us to be preached alternately in English and Korean. Sermon by committee...how very Presbyterian!)
Everything in this country seems to get more and more casual.
It used to be that when you went to work, you’d dress for work.
It was work!
If you showed up wearing jeans and a t-shirt
Your colleagues and your customers would think that you didn’t take them seriously.
What?
You can’t even bother putting on the proper clothes?
So you’d put on that stern business suit
You’d wear a collar shirt and a bright red tie
Which wrapped around your neck like a silk boa constrictor.
You’d have on a dark jacket
That jacket meant you were freezing in winter
And in summer you’d show up for meetings soaked in sweat.
But you had to wear it.
It meant you were at work.
But something changed.
Suddenly, wearing the suit meant you weren’t “being real.”
Being formal meant being false.
Taking things seriously meant that you were joyless.
So suddenly in businesses everywhere, you have casual Friday at work.
Then Relaxed Monday.
And informal Tuesday.
And Baseball Cap Wednesday.
Fortunately, Wear-Your-Pants-On-Your-Head Thursday never caught on.
It becomes hard to tell whether someone’s at work at all.
That casualness is everywhere.
At work, we’re casual.
In our relationships, we’re casual.
Even here at church, we’re supposed to be casual.
It gets harder and harder to find churches with traditionally dressed pastors.
Why wear a robe?
Why wear a stole?
It’s too formal!
It’ll make people feel uncomfortable.
And why should anyone dress up for church?
People should come as they are.
It’s more real.
There is some truth in that.
But there is also a danger.
Is what we’re doing here today the same as every other moment of our life?
Is the service of the Lord’s Supper just like going to Burger King?
Today is World Communion Sunday.
All around the world today,
Hundreds of millions of Christians are sharing in this meal.
They’re breaking the bread
They’re drinking from the cup.
And though it doesn’t matter whether you’re wearing a suit
Or jeans and a t-shirt
A light floral dress
Or a hanbok
It does matter that you take it seriously.
Why?
Because some things are worth treasuring.
Some things are worth setting aside as precious.
That’s the message that we hear today from 2 Timothy.
This letter was written to guide the ancient church.
It’s purpose was to explain how to be a church.
And to help deepen our appreciation for what Christ has done for us.
It comes from a time when Christians had to stand up for their faith.
It comes from a time when following Jesus meant sacrifice.
For some, it meant death.
It wasn’t something that you took casually.
In this letter, we hear two very important things.
In verse eight of chapter one, we hear the following:
“Do not be ashamed, then, of the testimony about our Lord”
“Or of me his prisoner”
“But join with me in suffering for the Gospel”
“Relying on the power of God.”
As we tell the world about Jesus Christ
In our words
In our lives
The way that we endure trials and hardships tells much about our faith.
Can we speak blessings, even as Christ did from the cross?
That’s certainly something worth taking seriously
Because we know that suffering is not a casual thing.
Have you endured the suffering of a loved one?
It’s not a casual thing.
Have you struggled with illness?
It’s not a casual thing
Have you known loneliness and rejection?
It’s not a casual thing.
Have you known real hunger or thirst?
It’s not a casual thing.
Here in this meal today, we’re remembering the suffering of one who loved us.
Loved us enough to forgive us from the cross.
In the bread, we have his body.
In the cup, we have his blood.
If we are really taking it seriously
If we really remember what it means
We know that this act cannot be casual.
The second thing that 2 Timothy teaches us
Is in verse 10 of chapter 1.
In that verse we are told that Jesus Christ did this for us:
He “abolished death.”
He “brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.”
This is a great gift.
This a blessing of impossible worth.
If your best friend in the world came to you
And gave you a gift of breathtaking value.
Like a new house in
Which was yours completely, bought and paid for.
You’d know that it was worth every penny they had.
Would you say to them,
Well, yeah. Whatever.
No big deal.
No, because you’d know how much they’d sacrificed.
You’d know that everything they had went in to that overwhelming present.
You couldn’t be casual about it.
It’s that kind of gift that we have here in front of us.
It is eternal life and joy with God forever.
It is ours completely, bought and paid for.
2 Timothy reminds us that we’ve been given a good treasure.
Here in this meal
And in the sacrifice that lives within it.
From generation to generation, that gift has been passed down.
Through the power of the Holy Spirit
Christ has entrusted his greatest gift to us
In this simple bread
And in this simple cup.
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