LIVING THIS SIDE OF THE CROSS: CONCLUSION
Paul Harvey was a 20th century radio personality. He was probably most famous for the line, “Now you know the rest of the story.” Back in 1964 he delivered a profound speech entitled, “If I Were the Devil.” What I want to present to you now is Paul Harvey’s updated version of that speech, rewritten in 1996. Listen closely to an essay by Paul Harvey entitled, “If I Were the Devil.”
If I were the Prince of Darkness, I would want to engulf the whole world in darkness. I’d have a third of its real estate and four-fifths of its population, but I would not be happy until I had seized the ripest apple on the tree – thee. So, I would set about however necessary to take over the United States.
I’d subvert the churches first, and I would begin with a campaign of whispers. With the wisdom of a serpent, I would whisper to you as I whispered to Eve: “Do as you please.” To the young I would whisper that the Bible is a myth. I would convince children that man created God, instead of the other way around. I’d confide that what’s bad is good, and what’s good is square. And the old, I would teach to pray after me, “Our Father, who art in Washington…”
Then I’d get organized. I’d educate authors in how to make lurid literature exciting so that anything else would appear dull and uninteresting. I’d peddle narcotics to whom I could. I’d sell alcohol to ladies and gentlemen of distinction. I’d tranquilize the rest with pills.
If I were the devil, I’d soon have families at war with themselves, churches at war with themselves and nations at war with themselves until each, in turn, was consumed. And with promises of higher ratings, I’d have mesmerizing media fanning the flames. If I were the devil, I would encourage schools to refine young intellects, but neglect to discipline emotions. I’d tell teachers to just let them run wild. And before you knew it, you’d have drug-sniffing dogs and metal detectors at every schoolhouse door.
Within a decade, I’d have prisons overflowing and judges promoting pornography. Soon, I could evict God from the courthouse, then from the schoolhouse, then from the houses of Congress. In his own churches, I would substitute psychology for theology, and deify science. I’d lure priests and pastors into misusing boys and girls and church money. I’d make the symbol of Easter an egg and the symbol of Christmas a bottle.
If I were the devil, I’d take from those who have, and give to those who want it, until I had destroyed the incentive of the ambitious. And what’ll you bet I couldn’t get whole states to promote gambling as the way to get rich? I’d convince the young that marriage is old-fashioned, that swinging is more fun, and that what you see on T.V. is the way to be. Then I could undress you in public and lure you into bed with diseases for which there are no cures. In other words, if I were the devil, I’d just keep right on doing what he’s doing. Good day!
Paul Harvey addresses what the Apostle Paul calls the wiles of the devil in an essay entitled, “If I Were the Devil.” What are the wiles of the devil? Keep that thought in mind as we move on.
This is the last in a series of sermons entitled, “Living This Side of the Cross.” The thesis of the series is pretty much summed up in verses 14 and 15 in the 4th chapter of the book of Ephesians. There the Apostle Paul writes, “We must no longer be children tossed to and fro and blown about by every wind of doctrine. But speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the head…into Christ Jesus, our Lord.” In other words, this is a sermon series on growing up in Christ.
We talked about how the church is meant to represent the kingdom of God on earth. We said that the kingdom is here, but not fully here. Thus, could it be that the church we have is exactly what God intended when he created the church? Could it be that the church we have provides the very conditions necessary for growing up in Christ? While we live in a throw-away society these days, perhaps there are some things we should not throw away. After all, the providence of God means that wherever we have gotten to – whatever we have done – that is precisely where the road to heaven begins.
We talked about living a worthy life. A worthy life – a life that is truly growing up in Christ – is a life formed in community. Christian maturity develops as we form friendships with the friends of God…not just the friends we prefer. You see, God chooses to act and intervene in the world through us. We see God acting in the world today when we witness the heartfelt convictions of those who serve him.
We encountered what we called Paul’s roadmap through the cosmos. He tells us who we are and where we are going as Christians. We are blessed by God, chosen in Christ, destined for adoption, bestowed grace, lavished forgiveness, made to know the will of God through Christ, and gathered up to God in the end. We are precious children of God – created in the image of God – and destined for eternal life. Do not let anyone ever tell you otherwise.
We noted how Paul refers to us as saints. Paul deliberately chooses a word that identifies us not by what we do for God, but rather, by what God does for us. He is retraining our imaginations to understand ourselves not in terms of how we feel about ourselves – and certainly not in terms of how others might feel about us – but rather, he is retraining our imaginations to understand how God feels about us. In God’s eyes, we are saints. In God’s eyes…we are holy.
We discovered that God bestows grace to sinners like us. Yet the grace of God is a lot like water to a swimmer. It seems as though there is no possible way it could support us. So like the swimmer, we have to lean forward, lift up our legs, and let ourselves go. To coin a phrase, we need to learn to let go…and let God.
We learned that the church is the gift of Christ to the world. Yet there is more to the church than meets the eye. The church is not just bricks and mortar. The church is not just a collection of faithful people. The church is the body of Christ in the world. And it is through the church – and only through the church – that Christ bestows his peace upon us.
We observed what Jesus Christ came to earth to accomplish. He established the church and gave it a commission. That commission is to make God’s wisdom known to the world. What is God’s wisdom that we might make it known? We see God’s wisdom when we possess inscape. Inscape is the capacity to see the God in everything. Inscape is the ability to put on the eyes of God and see the world as God sees the world.
We noted how we describe Jesus Christ as being fully human and fully divine. As the church is referred to as the body of Christ in the world, it follows that the church must also be both human and divine. Thus, while we come to church to encounter the word of God, we also come to church to be transformed by God.
We heard Paul beg us to lead a life worthy of the calling to which we have been called. We do so by way of paraclesis – which has to do with the Holy Spirit. In other words, we strive to get the words of Jesus Christ inside of us so that they become us. We condition ourselves to look at the world through the eyes of love.
We learned that because we are Christian, there should be something different about the way we live our lives. As Cardinal Suhard put it some one hundred years ago, “It means to live in such a way that one’s life would not make sense if God did not exist.” In other words, we are called to put off the ways of the world…and put on the way of God.
We saw what happens when we fail to put off the ways of the world and put on the way of God. As C.S. Lewis so eloquently put it, “There are two kinds of people in the end: those who say to God, ‘Thy will be done,’ and those to whom God says, ‘Thy will be done.’” In other words, sin has its consequences.
Finally, we saw Paul tackle the relationship between a husband and a wife, the relationship between a child and a parent, and the relationship between a master and a slave. It all seems to come down to mutual submission. One’s faith must inform one’s family life, one’s work life, and one’s personal life. After all, if we’re not faithful in the little things, how could we possibly be trusted with big things?
Now, at the end of the book of Ephesians, Paul urges us to be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his power. Why? That we might stand against the wiles of the devil. Paul Harvey eloquently described the wiles of the devil in an essay I read to you earlier. The devil makes to seem good that which really isn’t. Of course, these days, a lot of people see the devil as nothing more than a charming myth from days gone by. Regarding that thought, perhaps I could quote a 19th century French poet named Charles Baudelaire. He once said, “The devil’s first trick...is to convince us that he doesn’t exist.” Paul seems to believe there is a devil, and he urges us to stand against his wiles. And if we take Paul at face value, there seems to be only one way that can be accomplished.
The only way to stand against the wiles of the devil…is prayer. Yet there are different levels of prayer. For example, many years ago, I asked one of my confirmation classes if they prayed. A young man in the class surprised me. He did not attend worship. The only time I ever saw him in church was when his parents forced him to go to confirmation class. Yet to my question he quickly replied, “I pray all the time! Prayer is great, man! You can ask God for anything, and he’ll come through!”
I did not want to discourage this impressionable young man. After all, he was only part way on his journey of faith. We’re all only part way on the journey of faith. Yet it seemed the only thing he could pray for was himself. Regarding that issue, I pose to you what has become my favorite question in recent years. That question is, “Does God exist to serve us, or do we exist to serve God?” Praying for nothing but ourselves might be described as immature prayer. While that may be appropriate at times, it is not appropriate all the time. Our goal in this series of sermons is spiritual growth. Our goal in this series of sermons thus becomes mature prayer. So what exactly is a mature form of prayer?
I think Paul answers that question in the 18th verse of chapter six. He writes, “Pray in the Spirit at all times in every prayer and intercession.” I think he’s addressing two important aspects of mature prayer in that sentence. First, intercession is prayer for others. I am far less likely to wish someone ill if I am praying for them. And second, Paul says to pray in the Spirit. In other words, we leave ourselves open for God to move within us. When we pray in the Spirit we are saying to God, in essence, “Thy will be done.” That, my friends, is a mature form of prayer.
A friend of mine has a son who was facing a sentence to the Erie county jail. I assure you, he prayed long and hard before his son went to jail that his son might be spared the pain and humiliation. Yet my friend also managed to conclude his prayers with the words, “Not my will, but Thy will be done.” In the end, the boy spent a year in jail. Yet my friend also sees that his son gets it now. It took a year in jail for him to figure that out. You see, God may not always give us what we want, but the mature Christian comes to realize that – in the end – God gives us what we need.
So how do we get there? How do we achieve spiritual growth through mature Christian prayer? Theologian Eugene Peterson seems to believe that it’s something better rubbed off on us, rather than consciously learned. In his book, Practice Resurrection, he writes:
Prayer is the language most congruent with practicing resurrection. As in learning any language, keeping company with those who (use) it provides the most congenial companionship for becoming proficient. Unconsciously, we acquire fluency in our mother tongue long before we enter a school, simply by being talked to and talking with our parents and siblings and neighborhood children. When we keep company with Moses and his stories, David and his psalms, the preaching of Isaiah, our Lord himself in his parables and prayers, pastors and priests who lead us in the church’s common worship, singing hymns with Wesley and Watts, we are praying and learning to pray…even when we aren’t aware of it.
The Apostle Paul wrote, “We must no longer be children, tossed to and fro, and blown about by every wind of doctrine. But speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the head…into Christ Jesus our Lord.” Eugene Peterson seems to think that we learn it best when it rubs off from others. I can think of no better place for that to happen…than the church. How ‘bout you? Amen.
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