September 15, 2019 - Twenty-fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time

"Our Grandest Vision"

Audio Clip

It's easy to see that we live in a secular society which promotes the self above all else --- a quick Google search of today's most popular book titles confirms this --- we find "Madly in Love with ME" and "Choosing ME Before WE" and, recently, an article entitled "Confessions of a Self-Centered Teen" caught my eye.

The motivation for the piece came from conversations in which the author had been described by acquaintances as "critical, controversial and outspoken" and finally, "that self-centered witch." To which the author responded, "having that title was certainly NOT in my grandest vision of myself, but, yes, I confess, I am self-centered. But is this really so bad?"

What would the "grandest vision" of ourselves look like? Would we be considered self-centered?

The "self-centered" article continues , "There is absolutely no problem with being self-centered and believing that through self-respect, self-esteem and self-actualization, our highest understanding can be reached --- faith in ourselves."

This is quite a statement. As Christians, is faith in ourselves our "highest understanding"? When we wake-up in the morning, is our first thought to hold ourselves in high esteem or is there One we seek to hold in esteem above ourselves?

In our Gospel passage, Jesus shares the parable of the Prodigal Son. Hidden within the greater story are two revealing statements, one from each brother, which open a window into what we may say are the sons' "highest understanding" or better stated, their misunderstanding, of what is due them according to their lofty position in life. First, the younger son says to his father, "give me the share of your estate that should come to me." And, following the younger son's return, the resentful elder son complains, "you never gave me even a young goat to feast on with my friends."

What was true two thousand years ago, remains true today. When people consider themselves priority #1, they are keenly aware of what's "mine" and "what I have coming to me." It's what happens when our "grandest vision" is what we see in the mirror.

What about us? The greatest gift we Christians have is born from the life and sacrifice of Jesus, it's the forgiveness of sins and the invitation to eternal life. We've done nothing to deserve them, they are free gifts which have been given to us by God. As we heard in today's reading in Timothy, "Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners," to save us from being our own priority #1. In recognizing Jesus' mercy and purpose, we begin to recognize how vulnerable we are.

Let's return to the "Self-Centered" article --- "with a sturdy foundation in self, everything we experience in life is merely building upon ourselves." This is the key point, "Building upon ourselves", is this enough? Many of us can answer this through our own experiences --- in my case, I know that when you're in an operating room for the third time and you're looking up at surgeons and nurses, you're certain that "I" am not enough.

As Christians, we know that "our story" isn't self-centered, it's "Christ-centered". In the book, "A Purpose Driven Life", author Rick Warren shares, "Humility is not thinking less of yourself. It is thinking of yourself less . . . and thinking more of others . . . You cannot fulfill God's purposes for your life while focusing on your own plans . . .(if you fail to worship Him, you will create other things (idols) to give your life to)." And, the first lesson of our Baltimore Catechism says, "God made man to know Him, to love Him, and to serve Him in this world, and to be happy with Him forever in heaven." --- in these sources we find both the purpose and the potential for our lives, for God is not an outside group or power, He is our foundation, God is our savior who seeks to live within us and to lift us up, if we allow him.

While preparing this sermon, I found a beautiful description of how different and fulfilling our Christian purpose can be from those who don't know Jesus, it reads --- "The tragedy of a self-centered life is that in centering on ourselves we ultimately wind up alone; isolated from others and God. The reality is that our lives aren't even about us. God is both the author and the central character of our story, for our stories are but a part of His. As Christians, we do not live or work for ourselves, or for any other person in this world. We have been created, and put where we are, for the glory of the One who made us in His image and redeemed us from sin through His Son. Yes, there is only one me, but I exist for Another. (I am the supporting cast member in the divine drama)."

My friends, in our prayers this week, let us ask Jesus to share His grace with those who don't know Him, and with everyone, including ourselves, who, at times, struggle or are unwilling to look beyond their own person and gain. May Jesus give us the wisdom to know how truly dependent we are on Him for happiness. And, let us pray, that, one day, our "grandest vision" will not be of ourselves, but of Jesus Christ in His eternal kingdom. We ask this through Christ Our Lord. Amen.