The Power of a Name (10/25/15)
On Sunday, October 25th, I celebrated the baptism of two babies: Dexter Robert Demian and Lennox Elias Stevens. Each child comes from a family with a long relationship with First United Presbyterian Church. These are the very first baptisms that I had the privilege to celebrate.
In this picture, I'm holding Dexter Demian. Clearly, I'm more excited about this than Dexter is. It's a day I'll never forget! The text of my sermon from that Sunday is included below.
The
Power of a Name (10/25/15)
Good
morning! Wow! It’s so nice to see so many new faces here in the congregation
this morning. Is something special going on? Oh, right! Baptisms! We’re
celebrating two baptisms this morning. All kidding aside, I’d like to welcome
all of you who are new to First United Presbyterian Church, and also those of
you who don’t make it in as often. We are delighted to have you here in worship
this morning. And on a personal note, I am thrilled that I get to celebrate
this sacrament and officiate this service of baptism this morning. I am sad to
say that a lot of my colleagues in ministry don’t get many opportunities to
celebrate baptism. I’ve been your pastor for about two months; I was ordained
two weeks ago. Today I get to celebrate two baptisms. I am honored and blessed
and incredibly fortunate to have this opportunity!
Earlier
this week I met with each of these families. It was great to meet them and hear
their stories. Each family has a long history with First United Presbyterian
Church and it’s really wonderful that each of these children is connected to
this congregation. And today we are all here to share in this sacrament and
affirm our own past, present, and future in Christ.
I
believe that connections are very important. I also believe that names are very
important—they can connect us to our past and to the identities our parents
wish to create for us. Often children are named after beloved members of the
family. In this way, parents connect a child to his or her past and offer their
hopes for the kind of person the child might grow up to be.
Writers
do this, too. Think of some of your favorite books and movies. One of my
favorites is Star Wars, which
features one of the greatest villains in the history of cinema, Darth Vader. Star Wars creator George Lucas has
stated that the name Darth Vader means dark father.[1]
And that’s who Darth Vader is: the evil father of the hero, Luke Skywalker. Wait.
I’m not giving anything away am I? This isn’t a spoiler for anyone, right? And what
a menacing villain Darth Vader is!
As I
was writing this, I also thought of another great villain, Bill Sikes, from the
musical Oliver! Are you folks
familiar with that play? If you are, you’ll remember that Sikes is a violent
criminal from the streets of Victorian London. He’s also a menacing character.
His presence is felt before he is seen. In fact, he doesn’t come on stage until
the second act, and then he announces himself with the song, “My Name.” In that
song he tells the audience who he is and just how tough he is—he might cut your
throat, just for the sport of it—death is the penalty for not knowing his name.
This
brings us to the story of blind Bartimaeus. It’s worth pointing out that
Bartimaeus isn’t really a name, it’s a relationship. You see, in Hebrew, or in
Aramaic, which is the language that Jesus spoke, the prefix bar, B-A-R, means son. So the gospel
writer literally introduces this man as “Son of Timaeus, the son of Timaeus.”[2] So
we know that Bartimaeus is blind and his father is named Timaeus. That’s it!
Then
this blind man, without a name calls out to Jesus. He calls him, “Jesus, son of
David.” Instantly, without laying eyes on Jesus, blind Bartimaeus knows who
Jesus really is. He recognizes that Jesus is descended from David, that Jesus
is the Messiah! Keep in mind that blindness in itself is usually a metaphor; it
suggests a spiritual ignorance.[3] But
Bartimaeus can see what others cannot, and Jesus recognizes this and calls to
the crowd to bring Bartimaeus to Him.
Bartimaeus
responds by casting off his cloak and going to Jesus. Bartimaeus is a beggar.
He is entirely dependent on the generosity of those around him. Bartimaeus
occupies the lowest rung in society. He has nothing and he can do work. He is
of no use to anyone. His cloak may be the only possession he has and he casts
it aside. It’s as if he expects that Jesus can and will change his status.[4]
And Jesus does!
This
is a stark contrast to the gospel lessons we’ve heard in the last several
weeks. We’ve heard stories of the disciples arguing which one is the greatest.
We’ve heard James and John ask for Jesus to give them the places of greatest
honor at Jesus side when He comes into His kingdom. Over and over we hear Jesus
say, “Guys, don’t you get it?” And now, blind Bartimaeus stops Jesus on the
road to Jericho and recognizes that Jesus is the messiah! He doesn’t even have
a name, yet he knows who Jesus truly is and he drops everything to follow him.
What
prevents us from dropping everything and following Jesus, as blind Bartimaeus
did? As Christians, it’s often very easy—too easy, I think—to beat up on one
another and say, “Hey, you, with the Mercedes-Benz, you’re not living up to
Christ’s call to service.” We are so good at calling other people out. We are
not always good at pointing out our own shortcomings.
Remember,
Bartimaeus came to Jesus through his own suffering. And suffering causes a lot
of anxiety. Yes, it causes anxiety for those who suffer, obviously, but it also
causes anxiety for those who watch the suffering. We don’t always know what we
can do to alleviate the suffering. Sometimes we don’t think we can do anything,
or we can’t do enough. Other times, we want to blame the victim. We want to say
to the homeless person, for instance, “You did this to yourself; this is your fault.” If someone else is
responsible for the suffering and I can’t fix it anyhow, then maybe I’m off the
hook.
Certainly,
in Jesus’ day, the crowd would have thought Bartimaeus’ blindness was a
punishment from God for Bartimaeus’ sin. Perhaps they tried to keep him away
from Jesus because they thought Bartimaeus’ sin made him unfit or unworthy. But
Bartimaeus was undeterred. He called out, he was taken to Jesus, and then when
Jesus asked Bartimaeus what he wanted, Bartimaeus called for something that
Jesus could actually do. He doesn’t ask for power or privilege, he asks for
healing, and then he follows. He has more insight and he’s more faithful than
James and John; he follows.
We
are proud; all of us. We think we know the way to follow Jesus, but it’s hard
to let go of our pride and truly follow. So how do we do this? We have names;
we have stories. We cannot renounce our names or rewrite our histories.
Instead, we must remember the truest part of our stories—our identity in
Christ—and we must remember that it is first about Him, and then about us.
A few
weeks ago, I reminded you that we reaffirm our true identity when we participate
in our most ancient and vital traditions—the sacraments. A few weeks ago I
reminded you that we know who we are when we come to the table, eat the bread,
and drink the cup. We reaffirm our need for grace when we come to the table. We
reaffirm our need for grace when we eat the bread and drink the cup. And we
reaffirm our need for grace when Dexter and Lennox come to the baptismal font.
Baptism
is the sign and seal of our inclusion in Christ’s new covenant. We are baptized
into Christ’s life, death, and resurrection. We are cleansed from sin and we
are born again into a new life in Christ. In a few minutes, Dexter and Lennox
will be presented for baptism. I will ask you, the congregation of First United
Presbyterian Church of Houston if you will uphold and support Dexter and Lennox
in their Christian faith. Not only will you witness them as they are marked as
Christ’s own, you will be charged to participate in their journeys of faith.
This is an awesome responsibility. You will be charged with teaching them about
grace. You may do this by serving as Sunday school teachers. You may do this by
mentoring one of them through a confirmation class. Or you may do this by
simply being a friend, in Christ. Though all of this, you will remind them that
they are part of God’s covenant.
These
sacraments are all about what God has done for us, through Jesus. We must
always remember this; it is where we begin to respond in faithfulness to
Christ’s call. When we remember that, we become humble, we ask the right questions,
and we follow Christ’s call. So follow and teach and never forget that we are
all in need of grace. Thanks be to God. Amen.
BENEDICTION
Now, beloved,
as you depart from this place, remember that we are all reconciled to God and
to one another through the love of Christ and the action of the Holy Spirit. So
look for the ways that you can be agents of reconciliation. Go forth and be
instruments of God’s peace and reconciliation. Cast off the things that keep
you from following this call. Make yourself humble. Do not return evil for evil
to any person, but know that we are all loved by God, and that we are called to
reflect that love to everyone we meet. This is the truth and the love in which
we were created. Go forth and live fully and abundantly into that love. In the
name of Jesus Christ, our Lord, let all God’s children say, Amen!
[1] Gavin
Edwards, “George Lucas and the Cult of Darth Vader,” Rolling Stone, 6/2/2005; retrieved from: http://www.rollingstone.com/movies/news/george-lucas-and-the-cult-of-darth-vader-20050602
[2] Karl
Jacobson, “Commentary on Mark 10:46-52,” Retrieved from: http://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=1488
[3] Matt
Skinner, “Commentary on Mark 10:46-52,” Retrieved from: http://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=466
[4] Matt
Skinner. “Commentary on Mark 10:46-52,” Retrieved from: http://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=466
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