Do you know what the Zen Buddhist said to the hot dog vendor? "Make me one with everything." English is a remarkably flexible language. You can play wonderful games with it. "Make for me one hot dog with everything on it" is a far cry from "to become One with everything," which is the Buddhist ideal. By that they mean to lose all sense of self-differentiation, to blend into a seamless union with an ideal "other" that is somehow the sum of everything that lives, like a single drop of water losing itself in a river and then finally arriving at fulfillment as an undifferentiated part of the ocean.
That’s not what Paul means when he talks about unity. Jesus does call us to give up our egos - that’s what he mean when he told his disciples that "those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it." [Mk 8:35] Yes, we’re to give up our preoccupation with self... but in that way we find our true selves, which are made whole in love and service. There are so many ways to understand - and to misunderstand - what Christian unity is all about. Is it about everybody looking and sounding alike? Is is about never disagreeing about doctrine or mission or the color of the choir robes? It’s like the argument about how to deal with immigration. Should we be the classic melting pot, or should we be more like Canada’s tossed salad?
One author describes the cultural mix in Los Angeles as being even more divided than a Canadian salad - she describes it as a smorgasbord or buffet, where the only thing the different dishes have in common are the table the plates are put on. And at the other end of the spectrum is the puree, where the soup gets cooked down until everything is mush and then gets forced through a food mill so that it all becomes practically the Buddhist "One".
I think Christians belong somewhere between soup and salad ... Close enough together so that they change and enrich the other, but not so mushy that you can’t tell one bite from another. But it’s easier said than done, isn’t it. What’s important enough to argue about? What can we compromise on? Who gets to join? How hard is it? What do you have to believe, or do, or be?
There’s a lot of talk about ecumenism in all denominations nowadays, with most Christians beginning to understand that historic antagonists like Quakers and Catholics, Baptists and Episcopalians, Pentecostals and Presbyterians have a whole lot more in common with each other than with non-Christians, as for the first time in 1500 years people called Christians do not dominate Western culture. And so many well-meaning people talk about some kind of structural union, arguing over such things as Apostolic succession - which is extremely important to Episcopalians - and infant baptism vs. adult or believers baptism, and whether or not we should have bishops, and what happens when the celebrant blesses the elements at the Lord’s Supper. And so we seem to be stuck. How can we be united when there are so many things we can’t agree on?
Wrong question. The question is, how can we imagine that any of these differences can break the unity among us that God has already created?
Everyone who calls on God Father in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ is connected, willy-nilly, to every other Christian. We haven’t any choice about it. We are one, like it or not.
That’s the theme of the first three chapters of Ephesians. It’s what God has done for us. In Jesus Christ we have become heirs of the king of the universe, we have received the gift of eternal life, we have lines to learn and roles to play, we have all become adopted members of God’s own family. It’s done. The question before us now is, are we going to act like it or not?
You may remember that Paul is writing this letter from prison in Rome. Paul underlines the seriousness of what he is about to say by reminding the Ephesians, in case they are tempted to complain that he’s asking too much of them, that he is speaking from the highest possible moral ground. He wants you to be nice to the neighbor whose yappy little terrier keeps digging up your garden? He wants you to forgive the woman who spilled your deepest secrets to the whole neighborhood? Paul has forgiven the people who beat him up and put him in jail!
"I, a prisoner in the Lord," begins Paul, "beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling
to which you have been called." [v. 4:1] And then he tells us how to do it.
There are five habits that we have to develop if our lives are to reflect our new
status and identity. They are humility, gentleness, patience, love, and peace. I’m
going to take them in reverse order.
How many of you have heard of the Millennium Peace project? Over the past week I seem to tune into their ads every time I turn on the TV. It begins with the proclamation that all over the world people are becoming committed to peace and harmony in record numbers, and ends by promising world peace in three months. I hope you will forgive me for my cynicism for thinking that they’re promising more than they can deliver. I think, in fact, that they’re positively delusional.
A story I ran across while researching this sermon told of a visitor to a mental hospital who was astonished to note that there were only three guards watching over 100 dangerous inmates. He asked his guide, "Don’t you fear that these people will overpower the guards and escape?" "No," came the reply, "lunatics never unite."
I’m not sure that’s a true story - lunatics may not unite for long, but they can certainly form mobs that give a temporary illusion of unity. The fact is, however, even sane people can’t remain united without some pretty powerful unifying influences. Absent the working of the Holy Spirit, creating a common identity in Christ, peace between otherwise really different people is beyond our grasp. It’s no coincidence that the five basic requirements for Christian unity are gifts of the Spirit. They are not conditions we can establish by wishful thinking, or by passing laws, or by holding hands and singing Kumbaya. They are qualities that grow as we surrender ourselves to the transforming power of the Holy Spirit, as we seek to become closer to Christ in our minds and in our actions. Don’t worry if you’re not feeling the right feelings; if you start with a sincere desire to change and a love for Christ, the proper feelings will follow.
Peace... what a lovely word. What a lovely hope. But as long as people have different dreams and ambitions, needs and neuroses, values and world views, there will be conflict. Who decides on whose terms peace is to be made? Who decides who decides? That’s why nation-building always begins with conflict. What’s going on right now in Africa, as countries made by drawing lines on a map try to figure out who’s going to be in charge and who’s going to make the rules looks just like what was happening on the border between England and Scotland less than 400 years ago. It is only when people are voluntarily committed to the same cause that lasting peace between them becomes possible. And even then there will be conflict about how best to realize those goals.
Love. It makes the world go ’round, doesn’t it. But what is it? What is love, really? Last week’s entire sermon was about love, but I’m not sure I ever actually defined it for you. There are three different words in Greek that when translated into English all of a sudden become the same one. Suddenly the word means both more - and less. And so many of us have the mistaken notion that warm feelings, or sexuality, or permissiveness, are what Jesus was talking about when he told us to love one another. But what it really means is to seek the other person’s highest good, without seeking repayment. And we can’t do that. It’s not humanly possible, because without the continual re-filling of the Holy Spirit, even the most warm-hearted and generous person will run out. Goodness, even Christians run out because only Jesus managed to stay connected to the Father 24/7. The rest of us are always having to be reminded to fill up our tanks.
And then there’s patience. How many of you have prayed for patience? I don’t think I have to tell you than if you pray for patience you’ll be given lots of opportunities to practice it. The Greek word literally means "long- tempered." It’s the ability to endure discomfort without fighting back. Jesus is our best example of this, as of course he is for all the habits we’re looking at. "He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth..." [Is 53:7] Patience doesn’t come naturally. That’s why the book of Proverbs is filled with advice and admonitions to think twice. "Better a patient man than a warrior, a man who controls his temper than one who takes a city" [Pr 16:32] "A quick-tempered man does foolish things..." [Pr14:17 ] Impatience tries to rush God, tries to push God to act at our tempo instead of according to his timing. Remember that God is the one who holds the baton; let him direct. That’s the only way we can all manage to be on the same page, playing the same music. God will resolve the dissonance in his time, not ours.
Gentleness - what some translations call meekness - is, in a way, what patience and love together look like in action. Gentleness isn’t weak, far from it, but it is a quality that respects the value and vulnerability of each person we come into contact with. Echoing the Hippocratic Oath that physicians all used to take, the first requirement of gentleness is "do no harm."
Every one of these habits rests, ultimately, on humility. Love, peace, patience, all of these take being willing to step back and let someone else shine. It’s easier to be patient if you can admit that you’re not necessarily always right. It’s the opposite of pride, which is called the sin by which the angels fell, and may very well be the root of all the other sins. Pride says "me first." Humility says "after you." Humility lets other people have their say, admits imperfection, doesn’t push to the head of the line. It doesn’t mean letting yourself be a doormat, or badmouthing yourself, or denying your gifts. Instead, it means not thinking of yourself "more highly than you ought to think, but to think with sober judgment ... do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly; do not claim to be wiser than you are." [Ro 12:3,16] It’s no accident that Proverbs is even fuller of reminders about pride as it is about patience. "Pride only breeds quarrels, but wisdom is found in those who take advice.." [Pr 13:10] Humility is really tested when instead of being admired for having a "servant-like spirit" someone actually treats us like one. I remember being mortally offended when, traveling with the head of my department to negotiate Pillsbury’s new $20 million plus liability policy, I was mistaken for a secretary instead of the financial analyst. Steam came out of my ears for days. But why does it matter? You’re God’s daughter, Jesus’ brother. Let them have their little moment of superiority.
Humility, gentleness, patience, love, peace. Are we soup yet? Wrong question! We’re already soup. The only question is, what kind? What does it taste like? Are we bland, or over-spiced, or sour, or spoiled? Will people come back for more, or only show up when there’s nothing else? Or if you’d rather have a salad, these 5 ingredients make the dressing that change the meal from rabbit food to a gourmet meal. These not only display the unity we are called to, they create it. And they are only possible because of what God has already given us. But they are truly possible, because of what God has already given us. We have only to live as if we believed it.
We are already one body. But all too often we act out an autoimmune disorder - you know, where the body’s immune system attacks itself instead of targeting the real enemies. "Indeed, the body does not consist of one member but of many. If the foot would say, "Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body," that would not make it any less a part of the body. And if the ear would say, "Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body," that would not make it any less a part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole body were hearing, where would the sense of smell be? [1 Co 12:14]
We have the same spirit. That’s the Holy Spirit, of course... we each have completely different temperaments, completely different levels of tolerance and perception and energy. But the Holy Spirit is the one who keeps us from running into or over one another as we stumble around in the dark. It is the Holy Spirit who grows in us the five habits we’ve just looked at, as well as another four I’ve left for another day. And he does this by teaching us and by reminding us of all that Jesus said. [Jn 14:26] He does this by maintaining our connection to the Father, and by showing us our true selves in the mirror of Christ.
We have the same hope. Our hope is eternal life in Jesus Christ, a world and time when tears will be wiped away, when justice will reign, when true peace will fill the earth, when "the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea." [Hab 2:14] Because we can trust God to live up to his promises, we don’t have to wring status or possessions or any other source of satisfaction out of our equally fallible and hungry neighbors. And besides, It’s much harder to run over each other when we’re all headed in the same direction with the Holy Spirit as our tour guide.
We have one faith. Virtually every Christian in the world can say the Apostles’ Creed aloud with us. This body of doctrine that has been handed down to us through 2000 years of often fierce and bloody conflict is nonetheless still our common faith. The bloodiest battles, the most painful divisions, are always within families. The fact that over the centuries we have often condemned each other, persecuted each other, and even killed each other, does not mean that we do not share the same faith. It just means that during those times in our history we put other things first. If it’s not whether or not to eat food offered to idols, as it was during Paul’s day, maybe it was the divine right of kings, dancing, or stained glass windows.
We have one baptism. We may argue from now until the next millennium over whether or not we should baptize infants or wait until a person can make their profession of faith for themselves. We can argue for the next millennium whether or not we should sprinkle or immerse. But I believe that Jesus doesn’t really care how we do it. What Jesus cares about is that we do it, with as much integrity and trust as we can bring to bear. Because it isn’t the water that matters. What matters is that by receiving the sacrament we have declared ourselves dead to this world, and trusted Jesus Christ to make us alive to the next.
We have only one Lord. We answer to only one person. Each of us is responsible to Jesus Christ for our actions, for our words, for our spiritual growth. We are all under the same marching orders, sharing the same discipline and the same diet. Jesus assigns rank and position, hands out medals and missions, but we’re all on the same side, sharing in the same cause. Jesus calls the shots. The person on KP is as much under his orders as the glamorous special forces operator or the powerful general officer. And if we’re busy doing what he has told us to do, we won’t have time to stand around squabbling over whose turn it is to do the dishes or who gets the bottom bunk.
And we all have the same God. The same person made us all, for the same reason, from the same material. We are all his creatures, and he loves each one of us the same.
We are one family whether we like it or not. "There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all." [v. 6] We can spend our lives bloodying each others’ noses in the back yard, or we can gather around the table and - in unity, peace, love, patience, gentleness, and humility - give thanks.
