Fifteenth Sunday after Pentecost
September 13, 2009
The Gospel: Mark 8:27-38
Sermon: "Power of Words"
The Rev. Dr. Vicki L. Smith, Rector
The Gospel: Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way he asked his disciples, "Who do people say that I am?" And they answered him, "John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets." He asked them, "But who do you say that I am?" Peter answered him, "You are the Messiah." And he sternly ordered them not to tell anyone about him.
Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. He said all this quite openly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. But turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, "Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things."
He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, "If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it. For what will it profit them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life? Indeed, what can they give in return for their life? Those who are ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels."Mark 8:27-38
Fifteenth Sunday after Pentecost - "Power of Words" September 13, 2009
“Sticks and stones may break my bones but names will never hurt me.”
We’ve all heard it; we’ve all said it, and it’s a lie. It’s a childhood lie right up there with “shots don’t hurt” and “try this, you’ll like it.” This “sticks and stones” rhyme is often said to a weeping child, hurt by another’s words, and it’s meant to dis-empower those words—to say that they don’t mean anything and therefore help the child be less hurt. But you and I both know that it doesn’t work that well. As someone whose name rhymes with any number of unfortunate choices, I can tell you that even that small thing provided me a tiny taste of the strength of simple words. No matter how much we try to deny it, our words have power, sometimes lots of it. They have power for good and for ill, power that is positive and power that is negative.
The Bible often warns us about the words we use, and Jesus and the writer of James were both especially aware of how our words both reflect our souls and influence our actions. James, particularly, warns us of the negative impact our words may have.
James writes: “The tongue is a fire…. It stains the whole body... With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse those who are made in the likeness of God.” That’s nicer language for “you kiss your mother with that mouth?!”
Like James, we have all experienced the power of words, ours and others. We know that words can be hurtful, and that they have the power to sabotage, damage and wound. Whenever we interact with other people, be it family, church, work or the grocery store—the words we hear and say are powerful. And even when we have no other power, we have the power of our words.
And as James says, while we may use our words for prayer and praise, we too often use them to curse those made in the likeness of God. We try to minimize it with childhood rhymes or saying “it’s only words” but the words we choose not only reflect what we think, they also impact our future thoughts, decisions and actions; they can determine ultimately how we will treat another. For example, a child who is always considered and called “stupid” may very well become so. If we identify someone by an ethnic slur or a racial stereotype, how will we ever learn to know them as another child of God, as loved and valuable as we are? There was a time in this country when the term “white trash” was used a lot. When we look at another and label them like that, we surely don’t respect them, let alone care for them with Christian love. Truly our words are powerful for they both reflect what we already believe and influence what we will believe and do in the future.
That’s why, interestingly enough, that Jesus asked his disciples, “Who do you say that I am?” Jesus knew the power of the answer to that question. Jesus knew that it matters what we call him; what words we use to describe him and his ministry. To say that Jesus was John the Baptist or Elijah, that’s partially right—Jesus was a preacher like John the Baptist and a prophet like Elijah, but to say that he is the Messiah, as Peter did--- that’s a powerful statement of new understanding and growing faith.
As with our other words and names, what we call Jesus matters tremendously because the words we use may narrow or broaden our perspective; they both reflect our belief and influence it. Jesus has many names in Scripture and each one describes a portion of who he is; each one offers an opportunity to know Jesus more thoroughly and deeply. And as we know from Adam naming Eve and Jacob wrestling with the angel, to know another’s name is to be in relationship with them. When Peter names Jesus as the Messiah, he begins to relate to him as the promised divine leader of Israel—a new step in faith. When we name Jesus as our Redeemer, we begin to know him as the one who saves us from sin, who “buys us” as it were, out of a sinful world into his kingdom. As we come to know Jesus as our Savior, our brother, our teacher, as the son of man and the son of God, with each name, each description, we learn more of him, and our relationship with him grows stronger, broader and deeper.
Our Muslim brothers and sisters have hundreds of names for God, each one offering an occasion for deeper learning and understanding. Because we can only understand a little bit at a time, we need all these names and images of God—we need to know our God as Father and Mother, as Creator and as Judge; we need to know Jesus as the Good Shepherd, as well as the Messiah; we need to know the Spirit as both passionate fire and gentle dove. Each image and name we know helps us to draw closer to our God.
Jesus and James are right-- words are powerful things, for good and ill. Words can hold us back or move us forward; they can deepen our relationships or damage them irreparably; they can broaden our perspectives and nourish our compassion or they can close our hearts and make us angry. The Epistle of James says, “From the same mouth comes blessing and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this ought not to be so!”
Brothers and sisters, this ought not to be so. Let us use our words for blessing, let us use our words for praise and prayer and spiritual growth. Let us use our words to glory of God and the loving care of all his people.