Sermon: "The Way of Jesus"
The Right Reverend Charles G. vonRosenberg
Third Bishop of East Tennessee

I read a story recently that was supposed to be true. Whether it actually happened or not, I do not know … but it's still a good story.

It seems that a French priest was walking along a street in Paris one night. He came to a particularly dark corner, and he was approached by another man. This man suddenly pulled out a gun and demanded that the priest give up his money. The priest became upset, but he managed to unbutton his overcoat in order to reach for his wallet. However, when the coat fell open, his clerical collar was exposed. Then the would-be robber stopped him and said, "Never mind, Father, I won't rob from you."

The priest was greatly relieved at this change in the encounter. In fact, he was so relieved that he lighted a cigarette, and then he asked the other man if he wanted one, too. But this was the man's reply: "No thank you, Father. I gave up smoking for Lent!"

It seems to me that our observances of Lent - and indeed, our practice of Christianity - sometimes exist about at the level of that robber. We often miss the point - or, at least, part of it - in what we say and do. We sometimes don't get the whole story. At such times, we do not allow Lent to influence our entire lives. Nor do we allow Christianity to be the driving force behind everything we do.

This kind of problem may be with us as we read the passage from St. Matthew's Gospel this morning. We only want to hear part of the story - not all of it. The baptism of Jesus by John and, then, Jesus' time of preparation for his ministry in fasting and prayer - those are fine, in terms of the things that we want to hear. But the temptation of Jesus in the wilderness - this seems unacceptable. We only want to hear part of the story today.

A great heresy in the Church through the years is to make Jesus into something different from a human being. After all - so the argument goes - Jesus was God's only-begotten Son. How could he really have been a human being, like you and like me?

However, the faith of the Church is that Jesus was very God - truly God - and, at the same time, he was very man - truly human. Now the scientific explanation of that statement of faith eludes me. It really cannot be explained. The Virgin Birth address this doctrine - very God and very man … that is, one parent God, the other parent a human being. When all is said and done, though, the circumstance remains a mystery. Neither are there other examples that can shed any light on the subject. Greek mythologies of the day included stories of gods that took on human forms. But in those stories, the characters actually remained gods. Thus, the Christian claim about the identity of Jesus is different from those stories. This incarnation of God as a real human being was a once-for-all-time occurrence.

Further, you see, not only is this idea about very God and very man impossible to explain scientifically or by example. It also presents us with something quite uncomfortable. Actually, at least for most of us, we are more comfortable with Jesus being God - up there in heaven somewhere … removed from everyday life. The argument might be that God only seemed to live a human life on earth - and many people have made that argument. Surely, they would say, he was not actually a person - one like you and me.

I read recently about a man who wanted to learn what it was like to be a hobo. Therefore, he put on the clothes of a homeless man - a drifter - and he adopted that way of life. Eventually, he won the confidence and the friendship of others with whom he shared his daily experience.

To be prepared for emergencies, though, the man had sewn a hundred dollar bill in the lining of his coat. And one day, one of his new friends became seriously ill. The man tore open his coat to get the hundred dollar bill so that his sick friend could receive medical attention.

However, the incident destroyed the relationship between the man and the hoboes. The real hoboes knew what true poverty was, and they also knew that someone who went around with a hundred dollar bill in his coat was not one of them.

That man pretending to be a hobo is the kind of Jesus that we might like to have - one who only seemed to be what he was, one for whom there was a way out of the difficulties and the temptations and the pain of this world.

But that is not the kind of Jesus we have. He did not have a hundred dollar bill sewn into his coat lining. He was not exempt from true temptation. He was very man, very human. He did truly suffer, and he did actually die.

After Jesus was baptized by John, the Spirit led Jesus into the wilderness. And there he was tempted by Satan - really and truly tempted. Just as you and I are tempted, so also was Jesus - very man, very human, Jesus.

Now, why is this important? Many of us have faced the death of a loved one - and all of us will sometime. In addition to usual stresses at such times, we church people often take on an added burden. And that is the perception that a faithful church person should not question why things happen, nor should a Christian be angry about some tragedy.

But, you see, the religious issue confronting someone in that situation has to do precisely with the subject of today's Gospel. Jesus - our Lord - was truly a human being. Human beings do questions why; and human beings do become angry about apparently-senseless tragedy. If our Lord was completely human and if human beings feel those things, then Jesus felt them too. And, according to our faith, he did.

In considering this matter of faith, we need to remember Jesus' struggle with his own faith and with God at the time of his passion prior to his death. Jesus said, "Father, remove this cup from me" - that is, "Don't make me go through with this!" And later, he said, "My God, why have you forsaken me?" Jesus questioned why, and it is clear that he was upset about the way things were going in his life.

The fact that Jesus was human - truly human - makes our relationship with him different. He is accessible to us precisely because he was tempted as we are … and because he did question why … and because he was upset, particularly about senseless tragedy.

Our awareness of the human Jesus does not change the fact that we walk this life surrounded by hardship and tragedy and by things we do not understand. But this fact is changed: we are not alone. Jesus - truly human Jesus - has walked this way before us. Jesus, who is one with God the Father, understands.

Finally - mystery above all others - this same Jesus is Lord of life, and he is our Savior. In walking with him, we do walk the way of suffering and of temptation and of doubt and of questioning why, for that is the way of all humanity. But we also walk with him the way of eternal life, for that is the way of Jesus Christ.

Copyright © 2002 The Episcopal Diocese of East Tennessee