Sermon – 07-09-23 – Proper 9 – Cycle A
Scripture: Zechariah 9:9-12; Psalm 145:8-14; Romans 7:15-25a; Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30
Sermon Title: “Loving God Above All Else”

What else is there to love? Name the things in your life on which you spend time or energy or money. Compare them to each other.

In my own life, I spend most of my time in a week serving God in various ways. At least I say I am serving God. At least I say it is most of my time. If someone were to do a time study on me for a week, which task would really come up the winner. Which tasks give the most pleasure to me? When do I feel close to God? Is it washing dishes, or doing the laundry, or using the vacuum cleaner?

Or is it writing a sermon or the service? Which task do I love? Having a clean house gives me much pleasure. Working in my yard, makes me feel really good. But, writing a sermon, with God prompting me, gives me great pleasure. Writing the service usually pleases me. Do you remember that, in this church, the person who preaches is the person who write or finds the service? So that when Pastor Ben leads the service, those are my words and when I lead the service, those are words that Pastor Ben wrote or found in a good resource. We believe that God is inspiring us in our preparation of both the service and the sermon.

But, I must say it is not only in worship that God shows up. In some of our recent meetings, which could have been very humdrum, they were filled with the presence of God. There have also been recent meetings which I dreaded because I was angry. I did not know how God could possibly make my anger go away. How could I stand firm without my stubborness showing? Lo and behold, there God came and settled in with an unexpected turn-around of emotions and outcomes. How can I not love our God above all else?

In our Zechariah passage, God is speaking through Zechariah saying, “Rejoice greatly, O daughter Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter Jerusalem? Lo, your king comes to you; triumphant and victorious is he, . . .” Victorious – that means being a winner. What does this mean? Does it mean that we should have winning as our goal no matter how we win or what the cost is?

But, God did not stop with the word “victorious.” The next words seem to be in opposition to being victorious. This king is a winner because he is humble and rides on a donkey instead of a white stallion. Being humble allows God to take charge.

When we want America to stay on top in the world, can we love a God who urges peace instead of war, humbleness instead of pride, obedience to his commandments, but love above all else?

You know the saying, “pride goes before a fall.” God wrote that script even if you may not find those exact words in the Bible. We are not pliable when we are proud. Remember the words “God is the Potter, I am the clay.”

Surely you are remembering that the words, “humble and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey” are from our Palm Sunday words and actions! But in our passage today they came from Zechariah’s mouth way before Jesus lived on earth.

How do these words fit with the idea of loving God above all else? In one breath, God is calling this new king triumphant and victorious but he is not riding on a white stallion. He is not proud. This new king is just the opposite. Being victorious and humble can happen together because humbleness is the key to being victorious. You say, no way! How can anyone be victorious while being humble? How can being in a loving relationship with God win our wars for us?

Somehow over the years the wrong model for solving disagreement between people has developed – whether it be countries or states or brothers and sisters or political parties. You may want to tell me that God the Father used wars to control nations before Jesus Christ was sent to earth. That is true. I will never understand why that had to happen. Oh, you may be saying, “Because people sinned.”

But then Jesus arrived – a humble, little baby – in a manger! Grown to be a man without a home. Grown to lead people in humbleness, yet earnestness. This earnestness led this Jesus to the cross where he died humbly. Here is when Jesus came into town to be crucified riding on a donkey, not a white stallion, just like we read in Zechariah. Instead of punishing people for their sins and our own sins, he bore the punishment. How can we not love this son person of God?

In our Romans passage today, Paul is chastising himself, saying he does what he does not want to do and he does not do what he wants to do. Sounds like me. Does it sound like you? But our passage ends with Paul saying it is God through Jesus Christ who rescues himself, Paul.

And what does Jesus say about our inability to rid ourselves of the chains of sin? In our Matthew passage we hear the salvation clearly and invitingly. “Come to me., all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

Why then do my past sins, my past unkindnesses, not fly away? Why am I still reliving those instances of unkindness when I could feel free? I think God just gave an image to me that will help me. I do really like chocolate cake – nicely moist chocolate cake with icing shaped into 3-D flowers. So God is holding a plate in front of me with a luscious piece of chocolate cake on it. God is saying, “Take and eat. Jesus earned this piece of cake for you. Enjoy without reservation.”

And yet, I keep my sins instead of enjoying this cake, this freedom. This is not a case of temptation and calories. This is a case of saying no to freedom. I refuse to let go. Then God says to me, “Why are you living life from the bottom up, trying to grasp that breath of fresh air but never breaking free? Why not live life from above the prison? And I finally get the message. I can be free! I say, “Breathe on me, breath of God.” I exclaim with Paul’s words, “Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!” Now I can truly say, “I love God above all else!” Amen