On electing a leader
From Wellington Cathedral of St Paul
On Electing a Leader: 23rd October 2011: am: The Very Revd Frank Nelson
- Psalm 90: 1 – 6, 13 - 17
- Deuteronomy 34: 1 - 12
- 1 Thessalonians 2: 1 - 8
- Matthew 22: 34 - 46
In five weeks’ time we will have elected a new government and prime minister. In five months’ time we will have elected a new bishop. The bishop will definitely be new; the prime minister, on today’s polling, is likely to be a familiar face. Both elections raise the question of what sort of leader we might want, and how to go about choosing such a leader. It is with these two elections in mind that I invite you to consider today’s readings, particularly the Gospel, but those from Deuteronomy and 1 Thessalonians too.
The Gospel reading from Matthew 22 could almost be part of an election debate. On one side of the stage are the Pharisees with their question. On the other is Jesus with his question. You and I are the audience, the voters, who have to decide which way to vote. So the first question comes: Which commandment in the law is the greatest? Jesus’ response is so well known we could probably recite it together. Quoting from Deuteronomy 6: 5 Jesus says the words that every single Pharisee worth his salt knew by heart: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.” We can see the Pharisees nodding, yes, he’ll do, he’s got his theology right. But Jesus isn’t finished yet, there is more to come, this time from Leviticus 19: 18. Again we know it well, as did the Pharisees: “You shall love your neighbour as yourself.” So far so good.
But don’t overlook the link words: “And a second is like it.” Those five words join the two concepts of loving God and loving neighbour tightly together. There’s no question but that religious people love God. In a way that is what defines being religious. But that’s not enough, suggests Jesus. It’s not new, Jesus was simply echoing the old cry of the prophets speaking centuries before him. Amos, Hosea, Jeremiah – all spoke out strongly against the practice of their day, where people went through the religious actions of worship, with little, if any, impact on the way they lived their daily lives. Unlike the peoples around them, true worship of God involved the whole of life – heart, soul and mind – and included an ethical dimension. “I hate, I despise your festivals, and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies” (Amos 5: 21), but “let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an everlasting stream” (Amos 5: 24). And it is Jeremiah who warns the people not to trust in those deceptive words, “This is the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord.” (Jeremiah 7: 4)
In St Luke’s version of Jesus’ comment on the greatest commandment the quotation comes, not from Jesus, but from the lawyer. And it is the lawyer who goes on to ask Jesus, “And who is my neighbour?” (Luke 10: 29) This question gives Jesus the opportunity to tell one of the best loved and most challenging parables – that of the Good Samaritan. Love of God – with heart, soul and mind – is worked out in the practical loving of neighbour. It is left to St John to state the obvious that “those who do not love a brother or sister whom they have seen, cannot love God whom they have not seen.” (1 John 4: 20b)
So much for making sure that our love of God is worked out in practical loving of our neighbour. What about the other way round? There are, as we well know, many people deeply concerned for their neighbour who want little, if anything, to do with God. Is the worship of God an unnecessary adjunct to caring for our fellow human being? Is it enough to fight for justice, to put service of others above self? Not so at all. The first commandment remains the first commandment. Love of God – focus on God – remains the ultimate point of reference for human life. It is through prayer and worship, through faithful reading and meditation on the Bible, through continuing, even aggressive, searching for the truth about God, that the reference point to all human life is nurtured. Perhaps it is again in one of those well-known biblical quotes that the ultimate truth about God is known – a truth that takes us straight to the cross. I refer to John 3: 16. “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.”
Which brings us back to the debate and the second question arising in today’s Gospel, this time from Jesus. “What do you think of the Messiah? Whose son is he?” (Matthew 22: 42) The Messiah, God’s anointed one, in Greek – the Christ. The Pharisees are quick to give the standard right answer – the Messiah is the son of David. Was not that the cry of the people when Jesus entered Jerusalem on the first Palm Sunday? “Hosanna to the son of David!” (Matthew 21: 9) But Jesus is not satisfied and quotes from Psalm 110 – one of the royal psalms, likely used at the coronation of the king. Bear with me while we get a little technical. The assumption was that King David wrote the psalms. The expectation was that the Messiah would be one like King David, most likely a direct descendant. This is the point of the rather contrived genealogy at the beginning of Matthew’s Gospel. Jesus’ ancestry is traced back to King David himself. But, says Jesus, in Psalm 110 King David does not call the Messiah his son, but his lord! How can this be? Can he be both son and lord? It is this question that the Pharisees refuse to answer. Indeed, it is this question – which focuses on the identity of the Messiah – that the Gospel writers see answered in the Crucifixion of Jesus.
It took a while, but in time Christians came to understand that the Messiah was not going to be an all-conquering military hero in the style of the ancient King David, but rather a suffering broken man, one who had time for people, even those seen as useless to society. The Messiah-ship of Jesus would be defined, not by power and might, but by love, humility and practical service such as foot-washing. This sort of Messiah-ship, kingship, lordship, leadership, would, ultimately, be far more threatening and life-changing than the model offered by King David.
Let’s finish by coming back to the electoral debate. What might be the outcome if we asked questions like those put to Jesus and by Jesus? What happens if we measure the worth of a candidate soliciting our support by the Great Commands to Love God and Neighbour; measure the leadership potential, not against a royal King David, but against Jesus the Christ, humble king riding on a donkey, foot-washing servant, friend denied, master betrayed, crucified, risen, glorified?
