A sermon preached by the Reverend
Scott Dennis Nowack on May 15, 2011
at Abington Presbyterian Church,
Abington, Pennsylvania.
"The
Wounded Healer"
1 Peter 2:18-25
In
her book, "From Jerusalem to Irian Jaya", author Ruth Tucker writes
about Dr. Eleanor Chestnut. Dr. Chestnut
arrived in China in 1893 with the support of the American Presbyterian mission
board. She built a hospital, using her
own money to buy bricks and mortar. The
need for her services was so great, she performed surgery in her bathroom until
the building was completed.
One
operation involved the amputation of a common laborer's leg. Complications arose, and skin grafts were
needed. A few days later, another doctor
asked Dr. Chestnut why see was limping.
"Oh, it's nothing," was her terse reply.
Finally,
a nurse revealed that the skin graft for the patient came from Dr. Chestnut's
own leg, taken with only local anesthetic.
Later
during the Boxer Rebellion of 1905, Dr. Chestnut and four other missionaries
were killed by a mob that stormed the hospital.
Dr.
Chestnut sacrificed her own skin, her own health, her own life to share the
love and grace of Jesus Christ by helping people in need.
Why
would she go that far to help someone in need?
Dr.
Chestnut's goal in life was not about seeking public favor and admiration or
making lots of money and vacationing in the Hamptons, but rather seeking God's
favor, God's purpose for her life. She
was willing to forgo a comfortable, easy life for one with adventure and
amazement.
We,
too, have access to God's favor because of the self-sacrifice of Jesus; it
serves as an example on how to live life by God's will. It's a message for all ages now and for
future generations to come. It's a life
of courage, suffering and sacrifice that broaden and expand our hearts and
minds and we are drawn closer to God.
The
Apostle Peter is writing to the many churches established in the provinces of
Asia Minor, modern day Turkey. The issue at hand is the social tensions and
sufferings caused by the conversion of so many Gentiles in Greco-Roman culture
to Christianity. The Roman Empire
considered Christianity at this time a foreign religion that was not
welcomed. Many who converted were
ostracized from their own families. To
believe in and follow Jesus was seen as a threat to the patriarchal hierarchy
of Roman culture; that it caused immorality, insubordination within the
household and treason against the state.
1
Peter counteracts these expectations. He
emphasizes that those converted are to imitate Christ by doing good and not
retaliating against those who harm or slander their community. By his wounds you have been healed and have
returned like lost sheep to the shepherd and guardian of your souls living in
God' favor and promise.
And
this kind of living is not easy; it doesn't just fall into your lap without any
effort, discipline or sacrifice. Too
many of us in our world are afraid to live a full and abundant life. There are too many of us who rather play it
safe then take a risk.
There was once a young man who saw
that love made strenuous demands on the lovers. He saw that love required sacrifice
and self-denial. He saw that love produced arguments, jealousy, and sorrow. And
so he decided that love cost too much; deciding not to diminish their life with
love.
He saw people strive for distant and
hazy goals. He saw men and women strive for success and high ideals. He saw
that the striving was often mixed with disappointment. He saw strong and
committed men fail, and he saw weak, undeserving men succeed. He saw that
striving sometimes forced people into pettiness and greed. He decided that it
cost too much. He decided not to soil his life with striving.
He saw people serving others. He saw
people give money to the poor and helpless. He saw that the more they served,
the faster the need grew. He saw ungrateful receivers turn on their serving
friends. He decided not to soil his life with serving.
When he died, he walked up to God
and presented his life to him—undiminished, unmarred, unsoiled. The man was
clean and untouched by the filth of the world, and he presented himself to God
proudly saying, “Here is my life!”
And God said, “Life? What life?”
God doesn’t want us to insulate
ourselves from the pain and suffering of the world. When we love others, serve
others, and strive to be all that God wants us to be, we get dirty, we get
hurt, we get used. But those are the battle scars that God wants to see when we
face him someday. God wants us to get in the game and get our uniforms dirty.
That’s what Jesus did when he came into the world. He's our example to live by;
to model our lives after because he didn’t choose to play it safe; neither
should we. “To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving
you an example, that you should follow in his steps” (I Peter 2:21).
Courage,
suffering and sacrifice of Jesus Christ is our prime example on how to live a
life in God's favor. It's a life filled
with amazement Mother Teresa once said, "I have found the paradox that if
I love until it hurts, then there is no more hurt, but only more
love."
Human
muscles, in order to get stronger and healthier, need to be worked and pushed
hard to actually break down the muscle fibers.
Only then can the muscle grow and become stronger and stronger. You have to lose some muscle mass before you
begin to build up your muscles.
Martin
Luther King Jr. and many civil rights supporters practiced non-violent resistance. They wanted to end segregation in the public
sphere. Rosa Parks refused to move to
the back of the bus where African-Americans in the south were to sit. African-Americans ate at separate lunch
counters and had to get their food from the back door of a restaurant. Martin Luther King Jr. became the leader of
this movement and their protests were met with police attack dogs, bully clubs
and tear gas. Our human tendency is to
retaliate with violence; to return evil for evil. It would be easy for them to counter violence
with violence, but they chose to react differently in a non-violent way. As protesters were attacked by police dogs,
beaten with bully clubs and knocked down by fire hoses, they did not retaliate
with violence against their oppressors. They
took the beatings and the punishment even time in a jail cell preferring to
patiently endure and suffer through the struggle rather than retaliate in the
face of unfair suffering. It takes great
courage to stand up amidst violent opposition and not return fire with fire.
Let's
not kid ourselves. We do not want
suffering; we want success. We identify
not with those who are low and hurt but with those who are high and
healthy. We don't like lepers or losers
very well; we prefer climbers and comers.
For Christians, the temptation to be conformed to this world is
desperately sweet and strong. Yet, as
the Apostle Peter puts it,
The
legendary actor John Wayne said, "Courage is being scared to death but
saddling up anyway." Christ is our
example on how to live a life filled with abundance and blessing and gives us
the courage to do so.
During World War II, a large British
military force on the European continent, along with some English citizens and
diplomats, retreated to the French coastal port of Dunkirk. With its back
against the English Channel, the British army faced a German army that
threatened to drive it into the sea. To save what he could of his army, British
prime minister Winston Churchill called for all available sea vessels, whether
large or small, to evacuate the soldiers and civilians from the besieged French
beaches and bring them back across the Channel to safety.
An
incredible array of ships and boats raced to the rescue—fishing boats and
cruise ships alike. As the flotilla made its way to the beach to pick up
soldiers and then move out again, Nazi aircraft set upon them like vultures
while German artillery pummeled them with shells. Ships were strafed with
machine gun fire, and some were blown out of the water altogether.
Three German fighter planes attacked
the defenseless Lancastria, a converted cruise liner, whose decks and
hold were packed with soldiers. One bomb dropped directly down the ship’s
smokestack, tearing a huge gap in her lower hull. Nearly 200 men were trapped
in the forward hold of the now severely listing ship. No one doubted that the cruise
liner was going down. The chaos, smoke, oil, fire, and blood, mixed with
terrified cries of the men trapped below, created pandemonium on deck as those
hopeful of surviving searched for lifeboats or simply leaped into the water.
Moving through the middle of this
living nightmare, a young Navy chaplain quietly worked his way to the edge of
the hold and peered in at the darkness below.
Then, knowing he could never get
out, he lowered himself in.
Survivors
later told how the only thing that gave them courage to survive until passing
ships could rescue them was hearing the strong, brave voices of the men in the
hold singing hymns as the ship finally rolled over and went to the bottom.
This true story testifies to the
courage and compassion of one faithful Christian who gave his life to provide
comfort, courage, and hope to the suffering of those trapped on that ship.
We are also called to demonstrate
that kind of love in our lost and dying world sharing the amazing love of God
with those facing hardships and difficulties.
We are called to live a life of
courage, suffering and sacrifice that broadens our hearts and minds and draws
us closer to God.
May
you have the courage to be willing to suffer and sacrifice your life in the
name of Christ as Dr. Chestnut did for the people of China. May you be willing and able to get in the
game. Don't be afraid to get your
uniform dirty. God wants us to model our
lives after Christ because Christ didn’t choose to play it safe; he took a
chance, remained obedient even in death and came out on top, the victor. Amen.
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