Matthew 20:17-28 - What Kind of Christianity Do You Want? - March 22, 2020

We Americans love to have choices, and if our free-market capitalistic system is good at anything – it’s providing choices. (And if anything has been painful during this last week of the coronavirus, it’s the lack of choices. We are forbidden to choose whether or not we can gather together for worship; forbidden to send our kids to school; and, perhaps worst of all, lacking our choice of toilet paper – because it’s all gone!) We like choices. We want to choose where to live, where to work, where to eat, etc. Being an American is nearly synonymous with choice. So why should Christianity be any different? Well – in America, at least – it’s not. You have choices. But today we’re not talking about denominations, we’re talking about two competing “models” of Christianity (which cross denominational lines) and ask, which one do you want: a Christianity of glory or a Christianity of the cross?

Modern Americans tend to judge everything by their personal experience. When you come to church what do you expect to experience? Do you expect the service to be all about you, your individual wants and needs – an experience that coddles your human nature? Or do you expect a service that confronts your human nature by putting your sinful nature to death through the law, raising a new man to life through the gospel, and challenging this new man to follow Christ in the way of the cross? You have choices. The first model is grounded on what is called the “prosperity gospel”: that Jesus died to make you happy, healthy and wealthy in this life. In this model, the administration of the keys (confession and absolution), the preaching of Christ and the cross, and especially the administration of the Sacraments take a backseat to moving music and inspirational leaders. Why? Because they are pandering to consumer demand: giving people what they want (2 Timothy 4:3), not what the Bible says they need. When what Jesus has done takes a backseat to what I feel I need – that’s a Christianity of glory. In the Christianity of glory the purpose of going to church is not to confess sins or receive forgiveness or be guided in grateful Christian living, but to learn how to manipulate God for your own benefit. Now that sells…because who wouldn’t want to have the power to control God? (Little do most teachers of this doctrine realize that this has been the teaching of every false religion that has ever existed. That one of the fundamental doctrines of every false religion is following a set of rituals or sacrifices or obedience in order to control and manipulate God.) This is a message that is supposedly “relevant” and “appealing” to contemporary society. But you have to wonder: at a time when the concern is not “do I love my job,” but “do I have a job;” not “what trendy restaurant should I eat at tonight,” but “will there be any food at the grocery store;” not “am I happy with my life,” but “I could die from Covid-19, then what” – how “relevant” is that message today?

You have choices: what will it be for you? This morning Jesus makes it clear that he has nothing to do with the Christianity of glory. Jesus will have nothing of the warm, fuzzy religion that panders to human wants and desires. On the fourth Sunday of Lent, Jesus presents his disciples and us with the Christianity of the cross – because it’s only through the cross that Jesus meets our deepest needs: our need for mercy, forgiveness, and eternal life.

As Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside; and on the way he said to them, “Look, we are going up to Jerusalem. The Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and experts in the law, and they will condemn him to death. They will hand him over to the Gentiles to mock, flog, and crucify him. On the third day he will be raised.” These words are very familiar. We confess them each week in the creeds. And there’s a danger in that familiarity; that we may grow bored and complacent with this message; to wonder why we can’t come up with some new material. But don’t overlook the hidden but profound implications of this prediction: Jesus knew ahead of time exactly what he would face in Jerusalem. He knew about every drop of spit that would run down his cheek, every fist that would take aim at his face, every lash that would tear his flesh, every tongue that would wag at him in mockery and scorn. He knew that at the end of it all stood a cross and a grave with his name on them. He knew every ugly detail of Holy Week. And he was willing to endure it anyway – because his Father’s will was not for him to find glory in a palace in Jerusalem but on a cross outside the city limits.

By this point, the disciples should have known this. This was now the third time that Jesus had predicted his suffering and death. But when we look back at his previous predictions, we see that it never really sunk in. After the first prediction, Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “May you receive mercy, Lord! This will never happen to you.” But Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a snare to me because you are not thinking the things of God, but the things of men” (Matthew 16:22-23). “You know Jesus, if you want to be popular, if you want people to follow you, you shouldn’t bring up things like suffering and dying – people don’t like that, it’s not a good church growth marketing strategy.” Peter was willing to follow Jesus wherever he led, as long as it was an easy, painless path that ended in glory.

The second time, Matthew tells us that [the disciples] were greatly distressed. (Matthew 17:23) They weren’t just distressed that Jesus was going to die. They were distressed that all of their dreams of power and riches and glory would be dashed on that rock with the ugly name of Golgotha (Matthew 27:33). Instead of thanking Jesus for his willingness to die for them, they curled up in a safe space of self-pity because Jesus wasn’t going to give them the glory they wanted.

But, without question, their response to this third prediction is the most appalling: Then the mother of Zebedee’s sons came to him with her sons, kneeling and asking something of him. He said to her, “What do you want?” She said to him, “Promise that in your kingdom these two sons of mine may sit, one on your right hand and one on your left hand.” But Jesus answered, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink?” They said to him, “We are.” He said to them, “You will indeed drink my cup, but to sit at my right hand and on my left hand is not for me to give; rather these places belong to those for whom they have been prepared by my Father.” Can you imagine having the guts to ask Jesus for high-ranking positions in his cabinet moments after he had predicted his suffering and death? Neither could they. That’s why they had mom do it. (Who, by the way, we have reason to believe was Jesus’ aunt, Salome. see Matthew 27:56 & John 19:25) Who could say “no” to their own aunt? They completely ignored what Jesus had just said about his arrest, torture, and death. They were after the easy life – the life where they could recline on thrones next to the guy calling the shots with all of the power, honor, and glory that would bring. (Incidentally, do you know who God had planned to give the seats at Jesus’ right and left in his glory? Two convicted criminals (Matthew 27:38).)

Shame on them…shame on James and John for being so selfish and power-hungry and foolish! But…do we ever do the same thing? Do we ever ask for or expect special treatment from Jesus – and fall into the doctrine and practice of the theology of glory? Have we ever been stingy with our offerings, and yet expect Jesus to keep his spigot of blessing flowing full stream (which is a unique temptation for us today when no one is going to pass the offering plate)? Have we ever gone days or weeks without praying, but expect Jesus to keep his ears open just in case we decide we need a favor? Have we ever intentionally disobeyed God’s commands, and then expected him to swoop in to save us from the consequences of our disobedience? Have we let worldly concerns crowd out opportunities to daily gather as families around God’s Word then wonder why our children abandon the church after they are confirmed? Shame on James and John? No, shame on us! They certainly aren’t the only ones who expect glory without the cross.

But there was a deeper problem. By volunteering to share Jesus’ cup, James and John thought they were asking for cushy jobs as Jesus’ closest advisors. But they didn’t know what [they] were asking. They were acting like little children who day-dream aloud about being grown-ups. A child thinks that being an adult is all about calling the shots and getting as much “screen time” as you want and eating greasy fast food whenever you want and going to bed when you want. In reality, that child doesn’t know what he’s talking about. The aches and pains, the arbitrary work rules, the wishing you didn’t have to spend so much time in front of a screen and that you could eat healthier and wanting to go to bed early. That’s the reality of adulthood. James and John wanted to bask in glory at Jesus’ side, but the grown-up reality was that Jesus’ reign was never going to be on a glorious throne in Jerusalem.

No, Jesus’ reign consisted of drinking the cup the Father had given him. What was in that cup? Adam and Eve’s rebellion (Genesis 3:6). Noah’s drunkenness (Genesis 9:21). Abraham’s lies (Genesis 12:13). Jacob’s deceit (Genesis 27:19-24). David’s adultery and murder (2 Samuel 11). Matthew’s greed (Matthew 9:9-13). Peter’s denial (Luke 22:54-62). Judas’ despair and suicide (Matthew 27:3-10). Paul’s persecution of the church (Acts 8:3). All of it was in that cup – and more…The sins of the past we are desperate to keep hidden – in that cup. The thoughts in our heads that would make even Hollywood directors blush – they’re in the cup. Our lack of faith in God’s providence in these days of fear and panic – in the cup. The lack of love we’ve shown to our neighbors by hoarding necessities or failing to share what we do have – in the cup. What have you thought or said or done this week that’s in the cup? And yet, the One who had no sin, drank that cup overflowing with our sin – becoming sin for us (2 Corinthians 5:21).

But there was more in this cup. The final, bitter ingredient was justice. God’s justice demanded that sin be punished – that your sins and mine be punished – but instead of raining down his wrath on our heads, he rained it down on Jesus. As God unleashed the sledge hammer of his justice on Jesus, he cried out in agony we cannot imagine: my God, my God, why have you forsaken me? (Matthew 27:46) He drained the cup of God’s wrath to the last drop. That’s how Jesus rules. As he said: the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many. That’s why the cross is the beating heart of genuine Christianity. Because of what Jesus accomplished on the cross, we don’t have to pretend that everything in life is sunshine and rainbows – when anyone can see that it’s not; we can really rejoice – not because there’s any guarantee that we won’t get sick but because God is not angry at us anymore. Jesus has extinguished God’s wrath and delivered to us mercy, forgiveness, and eternal life. When you come to church, that’s what you should expect to receive – and that’s why the cross must remain at the center of Christianity, because that’s what you and I need most of all.

But Christ and his cross offer so much more. The Christianity of glory may promise you whatever meager handout of wealth, health or happiness you believe will complete your life (although, oddly enough, I haven’t heard any false teachers promising to remove the current restrictions on gatherings of 10 or more people – I really wish they’d get on that) but the cross assures us that the same God who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all – how will he not also graciously give us all things along with him? (Romans 8:32) The Christianity of glory will offer you free childcare while you enjoy a cup of gourmet coffee and a concert; but only Christ’s promise connected to the water of Baptism assures you that your child is safe in the care of their Father in heaven. The Christianity of glory tries to trick you into “feeling close to God” through manipulative music and messages; in Holy Communion, Jesus offers you the real presence of his very body and blood (Matthew 26:26-29). The Christianity of glory prefers to pretend that disease and hardship and disappointment and suffering don’t happen to believers (at least, not the good ones); the Christianity of the cross believes Jesus when he said: in this world you are going to have trouble. But be courageous! I have overcome the world (John 16:33). The ultimate goal of the Christianity of glory is to give you your best life now; Christ, who took up his cross for you, tells you: be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life (Revelation 2:10).

All those things – and countless other blessings – Christ has won for you and for me; and he did it through the cross. So what will it be? Which model of Christianity do you want? Let the pagans and false teachers have their easy religion, their best life and their glory now; we’ll take the cross and the mercy, forgiveness and never-ending glory Jesus won for us there. Amen.