Exceedingly Ordinary

This sermon was heard at the First Presbyterian Chruch in Berryville, Arkansas on Sunday November 2, 2008, the 31st Sunday in Ordinary Time.

Joshua 3:7-17
Psalm 107:1-7, 33-37
1 Thessalonians 2:1-8
Matthew 22:34-46

May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable to you, O Lord, our rock and redeemer. Amen

The pressure to be exceptional is a cause of many illnesses. When we put too much pressure on ourselves, we cause the stress in our lives to become amplified far beyond what is healthy. We make a swift move from the stress that we need in life to distress which can kill us.

What’s more, our attempts to be exceptional can actually lead to unhappiness. Lyndon Duke,[1] who studies suicide, has found that when people try to be extraordinary, nearly everyone fails. They end up feeling like losers for not being good enough, special enough, rich enough or happy enough. The result of trying to be exceptional is very often a life of unhappiness.

There has to be a better way. And fortunately there is; one that involves humility. Mr. Duke’s own story shows us the way.

Duke was moping around feeling unhappy one day, when all of a sudden he began to hear a neighbor singing while he was mowing his lawn. In a moment of clarity, he realized what was missing from his life: the simple pleasures of an average day. He realized that he needed to stop trying to exalt himself; simply accepting the ordinary life that he and his family had been given.

The very next weekend, he went to visit his son, who was struggling to excel in his first semester at college. Duke spoke very clearly to him, saying, “I expect you to be a straight C student, young man. I want you to complete your unremarkable academic career, meet an ordinary young woman, and, if you choose, get married and live a completely average life!”

His son, of course, thought he had flipped. But Duke was advising him to enjoy the height of humility; to be an average student, and enjoy an ordinary life.

The result of this advice was quite surprising. No longer feeling any pressure to be exceptional, Duke’s son did an average amount of studying for his final exams. His grades were outstanding: straight A’s.

He then called his dad and apologized.

This story points to the paradox of an average-life philosophy: If you focus on living an ordinary life, the cumulative effect of many average days becomes extraordinary. Little steps add up. Serving others produces great results. Those who humble themselves will be exalted, says Jesus. An extraordinary life usually begins with being exceedingly ordinary.

Notice this doesn’t say that we should be doormats for others. Jesus isn’t suggesting that we subject ourselves to abuse. No, he is saying that we should turn away from arrogance, and turn toward humility. Be a student he says; be a disciple of the Messiah, a humble servant. It’s through a life of ordinary service that we accomplish extraordinary things.

True story: Paul Farmer[2] grew up in a trailer park in Florida, went to Duke and Harvard Medical School, and earned an M.D. and a Ph.D. He could’ve decided to practice medicine in an elite and lucrative practice anywhere in the country, but in his mid-30s he was working in Boston for a third of the year, living in a church rectory in a slum, and the rest of the year he was working without pay in Haiti, providing medical care to peasants who had lost their land to a hydroelectric dam. In 1987, he helped to create a nonprofit organization called “Partners in Health,” with both medical and moral missions. By 2003, this group was treating 1,000 patients per day in the Haitian countryside, free of charge, and was also working to cure drug-resistant tuberculosis among prisoners in Siberia and in the slums of Peru.

The height of humility is a life of service that has created a world of good. And people have noticed this quiet work. Although not one to exalt himself, Dr. Farmer has received a “genius grant” from the MacArthur Foundation, and a $1.5 million Conrad N. Hilton Humanitarian Prize.

Of course, not all of us have degrees from Harvard and the resources of a genius grant. Regardless of who we are and how we make our livings, we can choose to live a truly humble life that is anything but average. Wherever we are on the socioeconomic spectrum, the words of Jesus ring true: “All who exalt themselves will be humbled, and all who humble themselves will be exalted.”

This certainly sounds simple enough. Of course, sounds like this are deceptive. The phrase “easier said than done” comes to mind. There is a lot of pressure, some of it comes from family, colleagues, peers, and neighbors; and the rest is the pressure we put on ourselves. It’s a deceptive thing to say that “we’re just trying to be the best people we can be; it’s not like we’re trying to be God.” And that’s the big trap; the one we may not even know has a hold of us.

We testify that Jesus is now and has always been fully human and fully divine. We testify that he is without sin; until he takes our sin upon himself at Calvary that is. Then he feels the all too human pain of rejection crying, “Father, Father, why have you forsaken me?”[3] Even knowing all of this, this is going to sound a little strange: Not only is Jesus more divine than we will ever be, he is also more human than we will ever be.

One more time, not only is Jesus more divine than we will ever be, he is more human than we will ever be.

Because of sin, we can never be fully human. There is eternally a separation between the humanity we experience and the experience of humanity our Lord created for us. This perfect humanity is the life Jesus lived. This isn’t another invitation for us to make ourselves into doormats. No body can be all things to all people; it isn’t in our make up. It isn’t an invitation to beat ourselves up because we aren’t perfect either. After all, we can’t be perfect. This is instead the time to know that we all have limitations, not one of us does not.

Here’s the invitation, we are to be all that we can be in Christ, because in Him we can do all things. It is when we try to be extraordinary in ourselves that we will be humbled. The call Jesus lays upon our lives is to live where ordinary faithfulness leads to extraordinary things.

To live a humble life, it’s important to avoid the three mistakes that the scribes and the Pharisees make.[4] First, they do not practice what they teach. They are hypocrites, saying one thing and doing another. If we are to be humble servants of Christ and have a positive impact on the world, we need to make sure that our deeds are in line with our words. This is true because in this world people are always going to be watching to see if we are people of integrity, showing consistency between our words and our actions.

Second, the scribes and Pharisees lay burdens on the shoulders of others, burdens they are unwilling to bear themselves. These religious leaders apply the ancient purity laws of the Israelites to the people as a whole. Jesus clearly considers this an unfair burden. When people are in need, it is critical for us to go beyond giving advice; we also need to lend a hand.

Finally, they do all their deeds to be seen by others; being more interested in appearances than in having a relationship with God. Seats in the synagogue, fringes on prayer shawls and broad phylacteries, or in my case a robe and stole, can all play a role in good and faithful worship, but they lose their value when they are designed to exalt the person who is doing the praying.

Earlier in Matthew, Jesus condemns those who “love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, so that they may be seen by others.” Instead, he recommends to his followers, “Whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.”[5] Worship is about connecting with God, not impressing other people.

Avoiding these traps helps us to live a humble life, one in which the exceedingly ordinary becomes truly extraordinary. Practice what you teach. Offer a helping hand. Focus on God. These three tips are deceptively simple but deeply significant. They lie at the heart of a Christian life which makes a positive difference in the world.

In the end, we don’t get anywhere by exalting ourselves. The only real lift comes from exploring our humanity and the heights of humility. Instead of following the example set by the religious teachers, Jesus urges the crowds and disciples to understand that the kingdom is marked by humility. Those who would enter cannot rely on their own righteousness or piety.

Those who follow Jesus must answer to one Father, and not revel in any honor due on earth. Those who follow the Son must recognize only one Master, the Christ. It is not possible to be both self-serving and to practice God’s commandments. Those who follow the Lord must rely on the power of the Holy Spirit, and not on personal authority or status. This kingdom, as Matthew reminds his readers again and again, is one of reversal: “All who exalt themselves will be humbled, and all who humble themselves will be exalted.”[6]

[1] HomileticsOnline.com, http://www.homileticsonline.com/subscriber/btl_display.asp?installment_id=93040416, retrieved October 20, 2008.
[2] Ibid.
[3] Matthew 27:45
[4] HomileticsOnline.com, Ibid.
[5] Matthew 6:5-6.
[6] HomileticsOnline.com, Ibid.