The Heart of the Cross

This is my sermon for the coming sunday, I would appreciate any feedback, posative or negative. Negative feedback is helpful to make changes so please leave any negative feedback you have whatever it is (even if it's grammer or spelling or structure). Let me know what you think. And sorry I copied and pasted so the verses came out a little wierd. I'm too lazy to fix them at this point... or ever.


Greg Boyd said “How might our churches be different if we took Paul’s teaching seriously? What would happen if the ultimate criteria we used to assess how “successful” or “unsuccessful” our churches were was the question, are we loving as Jesus loved? The truth of the matter is that we are only carrying out God’s will and expanding the kingdom of God to the extent that we answer that question affirmatively. No other question, criteria, or agenda can have any meaning for kingdom-of-God devotees except insofar as it helps us respond to that question.”

Section I: A call to Crossbearing.

As we move through this series we’re going to be building around Mark 8:34 where Jesus said “If anyone desires to come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.”
Mark 8:34 is obviously smack dab in the middle of a bunch of other verses so it’s probably a good idea to figure out why he is saying this. The ever astute Peter actually incited this response from Jesus. Jesus was telling his disciples that he would suffer and be killed by the powers that be when Peter pulled him aside and let him know he might want to tone it down a bit. Jesus response is swift. "Get behind me Satan! For you are not mindful of the things of God, but of the things of men."
He then gets the disciples and the crowd together and lays out something that I don’t tend to think much about. The cost of following Jesus. The call to carry my cross. The call to love like Jesus loved.

Section II: Voluntary and Involuntary Trials

I’m not sure where I got the idea but I always assumed that Jesus was just talking about going through difficult times in life and dealing with sin, and maybe once in a while feeling uncomfortable because other people are sinning around me. The problem is Jesus seems to be presenting an opportunity to voluntarily pick up something that is difficult. Bearing my cross is not so much being strong when difficult things happen to me, if you want to talk about that go to the book of James where he talks about enduring various trials. No this is talking about picking up a way of life, a path, in which I am knowingly placing myself in the way of difficulty. That way of life is answering that question "Am I loving as Jesus loved?"

Section III: The heart of the cross is compassion.

Compassion has driven the redemptive works of God from the beginning. The love and compassion burning in the heart of God is evident throughout the Old Testament.

Zech 10:6
"I will strengthen the house of Judah, And I will save the house of Joseph, And I will bring them back, Because I have had compassion on them; And they will be as though I had not rejected them, For I am the LORD their God and I will answer them.

Micah 7:18-19
18Who is a God like You, who pardons iniquity And passes over the rebellious act of the remnant of His possession? He does not retain His anger forever, Because He delights in unchanging love. 19He will again have compassion on us; He will tread our iniquities under foot Yes, You will cast all their sins Into the depths of the sea.
Lam. 3:19-23
19Remember my affliction and my wandering, the wormwood and bitterness. 20Surely my soul remembers And is bowed down within me. 21This I recall to my mind, Therefore I have hope. 22The LORD'S loving kindnesses indeed never cease, For His compassions never fail. 23They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness. 24"The LORD is my portion," says my soul, "Therefore I have hope in Him."

God’s compassion did not stop with the prophets. For 400 years after the closing words of Malachi, God was silent. Then redemptive compassion burst onto the scene when John announced "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world."
In Mark 1:40 Jesus, the lamb of God, the one called the Son of Compassion, encounters suffering in the form of a leper. The Holy and pure runs into the unclean and despicable.

Mark 1:40-41
40A man with leprosy came to him and begged him on his knees, "If you are willing, you can make me clean." Filled with compassion, Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. "I am willing," he said. "Be clean!" Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cured.


This is God incarnate. This is the creator of the universe, the very God who acted on behalf of the entire nation of Israel, who continually had compassion on them. That unending compassion that ripped dramatic holes throughout history moved within the gut of Jesus. The word here for compassion is splugnetzomai which means the gut. We talk about love and compassion and even anger coming from the heart. In Jesus time they talked about it from the gut, the place where you feel it. The gut of almighty God, all his compassion was moved, and the creator of the universe touched a leper, the one who was untouchable, unlovable, avoided. Jesus had compassion and touched him. Had Jesus only put his arm around him and never even healed Him, this story would not cease to be one of the most significant events in History.
This compassion, this love, this is what drove Jesus to touch the leper. This is what drove Jesus to take up his cross. Jesus is what happens when the compassionate heart of God encounters a wicked suffering world. Jesus death is what happens when the compassionate heart of God encounters a wicked suffering world. The heart of the cross is nothing less than the compassionate heart of God for a suffering people. To take up the cross is to take up the compassionate heart of God in a suffering world.

Section IV: Jesus, the perfect picture of compassion.
I want to take a look at what the rest of Jesus life looked like. He was after all knowingly bearing his cross long before he was hung on it. Basically I want to know: if Jesus showed up here in Goshen, would I see him in the places and with the people I’m with, or would he have to come to me and get my attention so we could get to work? Preparing for this part of the sermon has been admittedly disheartening. I honestly have to answer that if he showed up today, he would be taking me to a lot of places to meet a lot of people and to do a lot of things I’m not even thinking about doing right now.
I went through the book of Matthew with three highlighters. Every time Jesus interacted or mentioned someone who was generally despised, poor, or considered sub standard by the general audience I used a blue marker. Every time it was the disciples or just a random crowd I used orange. Every time it was someone well to do, well liked, rich, religious person I used pink.
For the most part there was a good mix of each color; but a few things popped out to me. There were twice as many blue highlights as there were pink and orange. Roughly 30 references are made to Jesus interacting with or talking about the dregs of society and offering them immense compassion and hope. There are about 15 references to Jesus talking with the disciples and the crowds teaching them about the kingdom and calling them to kingdom work. There are also about 15 encounters with the well to do and religious leaders, in most instances he pretty much ripped them apart.
If my life were summarized like Matthew and I took a highlighter to it I imagine it would be mostly orange. Of course there would be some blue, maybe one or two times in my life where I actually gave myself and my compassion; but most the time I have put my arm around the physically suffering with a ten foot pole. And any pink would be brief encounters with the powerful and rich who I cater to and am impressed by.
If Jesus showed up here in Elkhart County. I’m sure I’d run into him. He’d probably come here to the church. I really do think he would, he’d teach us about the kingdom we would all worship the Father together; but then he’d get us all on the bus and head somewhere downtown to find some alcoholics and homeless, we’d probably stop by a burnt out neighborhood to play with some kids who didn’t have clean clothes, or dads for that matter. I’m sure there would be some big time TV preachers who would come to interview him and get frustrated when he put a baby with a poopy diaper on their Armani suited laps. If he stayed around for a while and worked at Schmidt furniture barn he’d be a pretty hard worker. He'd work with Joy, and over lunch he would get discussions going and start talking with his coworkers about all the things their hearts really wanted to talk about. He’d give his money to groups like the window, but he’d also come and hang out with the people over breakfast and invite them over for dinner that night. After all he did say “If you have a party, don’t invite those who can repay you, but invite those who can’t, this is true hospitality.” At the end of the day as we ate with our new friends that we met at the window His relentless gentle furious compassion would mingle with his words of truth and reveal more than just our immorality, but also our complacency, our gluttony, our greed. He would have us both crying because of our unfaithfulness but laughing joyfully because of His. We would be exhausted because the day was long and the work was hard, it is after all difficult to love people; but I think we would feel more purpose, more life, more joy, than we ever thought possible. If Jesus showed up here in Elkhart County.
My faith has become clean and pious. Jesus is messy. Soon before his death he cleansed the temple for the second time, flipping tables, chasing animals. And as they all left, the sick, the lepers, and children flooded the temple and praised God. To the people looking on, Jesus turned everything upside down.
This vision of what it would look like if Jesus showed up. I struggle. I do believe that in some sense this pattern of life is picking up my cross: laying down my daily rights, laying down my finances, having the compassionate heart of God in a world that suffers. At this point this is still a dream. The best way I can describe it to you is this: I am alive in Christ, He loves me immensely and his grace cleanses me from sin. I am alive but I am also sick. I have accustomed myself to my personal comforts and I have separated myself from the suffering of a dark world. I have ignored the starving, and suffering even in my own town. I am alive; but I can’t keep comforting myself with that thought. I am grateful to be alive, but I still must do something about my sickness. This world seems overwhelming but my purpose is simplified. Love like Jesus loved. That is the challenge. That is the goal. After all, when we love the down and out, the hurting, the starving, the dreggs of society, we love Jesus Christ himself. We are having compassion for the one who had so much compassion for us.

Matthew 25:31ff
31"When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. 32All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
34"Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'
37"Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?'
40"The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'
41"Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.'
44"They also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?'
45"He will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.'