Bowed to Glory

16th Sunday after Trinity 2011
Bowed to Glory
Rev. Stephen E. Stults
St. Barnabas Anglican Church
October 9, 2011


Ephesians 3:13-15 1” Wherefore I desire that ye faint not at my tribulations for you, which is your glory. 14 ¶ For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, 15 Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named,”

Let me acquaint you with historical survey I once heard. You may be familiar with it. It was done by a historian some time ago and it asked, “Who is the most important or influential person in history?” Now, if you are a Christian, there is no question. It must be Jesus Christ. If you are a Jew, you might very well say Moses. If you are a Muslim, no doubt you would say Muhammad.

Here’s where it gets interesting. This particular historian thought that it was Muhammad. He thought so because Muhammad was both a spiritual leader and a secular leader. His name is Michael Hart, who said this: “There are two principal reasons for that decision. First, Muhammad played a far more important role to the development of Islam than Jesus did in the development of Christianity. Although Jesus was responsible for the main ethical and moral precepts of Christianity (insofar as these differed from Judaism), St. Paul was the main developer of Christian theology, its principal proselytizer, and the author of a large portion of the New Testament.”

One might suppose that if one looks at Christianity just from the worldly view, this opinion has some merit. After all, it is true that St. Paul was the principal proselytizer and that without him as the chosen vessel of God, Christianity might not have spread the way that it did. It is also true that Muhammad was a great secular leader, or better said, he was a conqueror, whereas Christ was a converter. Muhammad thirsted after earthly power, whereas Christ had no such aspirations. As he told Pilate, John 18:36 “My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence.” Thus, one might be tempted to buy into Hall’s argument; that is, if one ignores the Resurrection and the numerous miracles Jesus did throughout His ministry. Unfortunately, one cannot see Muhammad in the same light, for to my knowledge, Muhammad did no miracles, except, perhaps to appear at the head of an army to conquer the city that once thrust him out.

Thus, it comes down to a comparison of two gross inequalities. One side consists of a soul that has been, or rather, is being indwelt with the Holy Spirit; for as St. John tells us: “1 John 4:15 15 Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God.” The other is one who confesses a secular worldview, or one who cannot see Christ for what he is. Granted, the Muslims do not worship Muhammad, although they venerate him as the Chief Prophet of Allah. In fairness, they also venerate Prophet Jesus, as they term him, but cannot name him as God. The Koran itself expresses repulsion of the concept of God having a Son. Thus, this secular worldview, which seems so wise, is actually stunted and blind. That is why, in this priest’s opinion, one can be so cultured, so urbane, and yet be so utterly lost.

At the very heart of the matter, it seems that Islam cannot accept the mysterious truth of the Trinity. After all, it is beyond us and is an item of great faith. In this respect, it is like the confession of Jesus Christ as Lord. Yes, we can read the account of Christ’s baptism in Jordan in the synoptic gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke. We can see the three persons of the Godhead present at the same time. Finally, we can hear the voice of God the Father saying, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” It seems then, that despite the modernist tendency to explain away the duality of life, it comes again to the surface.

Let me issue a disclaimer here. My purpose here today is not to slam or defame a great world religion. That would be wrong and not Christian. My purpose is to simply point out the duality of life. There is a wrong side of things and there is a right side of things.

Thus, one can be married to the world in one’s spirit and reject the Spirit of God, who made all things. Or, one can seek the indwelling Spirit of God and freely inherit all things, including eternal life.

Returning to concept of Christ as the most influential person, one can absolutely say that He was not a powerful secular leader. That is not the record of history given to us in the Bible… Yet, it is a fact that Christ did more, so much more.

There has never been, nor will there ever be another being like Christ. No other figure in history did what He did. No one has ever performed the miracles He did, which were meant as signs to point to His Divinity. No one has ever led a completely sinless life like He did, which is a sign to point to His perfect humanity. Finally, no one has ever risen from the dead in glorified perfection like He did, which points to man’s ultimate state of being with God.

Yet one can accept none of these facts without the enabling of the Holy Spirit. As a child, I could not understand nor receive the reality of the Trinity. As an adult, while I still do not understand the concept of the Trinity, because it is beyond my limited powers of perception, I do receive it as an article of faith. I could not do so, however, without the help of the Holy Ghost. Only with Divine power can one receive Divine illumination. Only with the help of God, can one accept God.

Divine power is shown clearly in today’s Gospel, where we see Christ meeting the funeral bier of a young man’s funeral procession leaving the city of Nain. He was accompanied by a throng of people, as He often was, when He encountered this mournful occasion. Instead of simply commiserating with the widow, who was also accompanied by “much people of the city”, he had “compassion” on her. Luke tells us plainly that Christ had “compassion” on the widow. Why? Christ, knowing all things, knew that this woman had only one means of support, her son. According to the story, he was now dead in his youth. Recall that the state of widowhood was dire in 1st century Palestine. If a woman was young enough, she could remarry and be a wife. Her other option was to be a prostitute. Apart from these two options, poverty loomed over many virtuous but unfortunate women. Without family or riches, a woman’s place could be perilous indeed.


But, Jesus had compassion on her. He tells her, “Do not weep.” Then, he touches the funeral bier, causing those carrying it to stop. It is obvious what kind of authority Jesus Christ exuded. He stops the death procession with a mere touch, a word, and with his Presence. Then He commands the young man to arise from the grip of mortality: (Luk 7:15) “And the one who was dead sat up and began to speak. And He delivered him to his mother.’ Note that Jesus did not pray for, or supplicate some deity for the young man’s resurrection. No, as God Himself He speaks with authority and the young man arises immediately.

This story boldly illustrates why Christ is the true Messiah. It illustrates without fail or contradiction that Christ is the central figure of all time. No other earthly figure could possibly do this. No other earthly figure would do this, without some calculation of gain on their part. Yet, Christ did. Why? At the risk of seeming trite, or even to potentially trivialize something so monumental, it is because only Christ really cares. That is, only in Christ do we find a completely selfless love projected towards others. In this regard, note that Christ did not offer the widow food, or money, or even emotional support. No, He went right to the root of the problem and eradicated it. He told the man to come back to life. With a word, He defeated death.

The question is. why did He do this? If you will, why He bother with it? Could it seen as a sign of our own personal resurrections? Certainly. Is it a sign the points to Christ’s immeasurable love for us? Absolutely. This whole episode is caught up in the mystery of God. It involves issues such as God’s Glory and His magnificence, but most of all, it deals with His love. We don’t understand this love, nor are we truly able to comprehend it. We don’t understand a Being that truly loves us more and better than we love ourselves. How? Why? It is a mystery of the first magnitude.

Yet, although we truly cannot comprehend it, we can recognize a demonstration of it. For example, this love was demonstrated very clearly and tangibly in today’s Gospel. It is love that is universal yet incomprehensible; vast, yet localized; transcendent, yet immanent.

We must ask, is it enough merely to bask in the immensity and profundity of God’s love? Are we merely to be passive receptors of it? The question is rhetorical, but the answer is intensely personal. We will submit to you that Christianity is a call to action tempered by the Holy Spirit.

Rather than just be passive and appreciative; we ought to be active and reciprocal. May the light inside us be so intense that it shines through the fissures of our being to illuminate those around us. Let them see the light and want it too. Let it simply be that the world knows us by our love.

Therefore, we must leave it up to St. Paul to summarize this magnificent love, as he says from our Epistle for the day: (Eph 3:20-21) “Now to Him who is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, forever. Amen.” This is our Lord. This is our Christ. Is He the most influential figure in history? I leave that answer up to you.

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost.

Amen.