Listen to the Sermon.
I saw a great photo this past week. Jennifer Baskerville-Burrows, who is the bishop of Indianapolis, was preaching at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York City for the feast of Absalom Jones. While it was amazing to see my friend preaching at the grandest cathedral in the United States, what was really fascinating was the pulpit from which she was preaching. It was one of those pulpits that sits way up high. It must have 25 stairs up to it. She looked like she was suspended mid-air.
Maybe you’ve been in churches where the pulpit was set up high, or high and in the center front. Many of our churches around here have pulpits that are on the floor or just slightly elevated. And many preachers, those who can, choose to preach among the people.
As a preacher, and as a listener, I am intrigued by the question of how or whether the location of the preacher changes what we hear.
This very question of location comes to play in our gospel today. Both Matthew and Luke have sermons in which Jesus proclaims a series of beatitudes or blessings. In Matthew, they are part of the Sermon on the Mount. Matthew 5 begins: “When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying: Blessed are the poor in spirit” (Mt. 5:1-3a).
Did you notice where Jesus was when he began teaching? He went UP the mountain, away from the crowds. Yes, perhaps it was an acoustic choice, to be better heard. But does it change how we hear and internalize his words?
In contrast, the gospel passage we read from Luke today is part of the Sermon on the Plain. It begins: “Jesus came down with the twelve apostles and stood on a level place, with a great crowd of his disciples and a great multitude of people” (Luke 6:17).
Jesus comes DOWN from the mountain, bringing his newly named apostles, and enters into the crowd. That’s a whole different relationship with the people who have come to hear and see him. This crowd has come from near and far - Judea and Jerusalem, which were near, as well as Tyre and Sidon, which were Gentile cities on the coast some distance away.
Luke tells us, “They had come to hear him and to be healed of their diseases; and those who were troubled with unclean spirits were cured. And all in the crowd were trying to touch him, for power came out from him and healed all of them” (Luke 6:18-19).
Jesus comes down into the crowd. To be face to face with them, to SEE them, and know them. To heal them. To cast out unclean spirits. To touch and be touched by them. People crowding around, jostling to be near him, crying out for Jesus’ attention. Jesus seems calm. He seems to know this being WITH is vital to his ministry. On their level, he connects with them. He joins the crowd. We might imagine that his very presence is both magnetic and calming. Like a wave of healing and peace going out from him, rippling across the crowd.
When everyone is healed, then Jesus looks at his disciples. Disciples this time, not just his chosen apostles, but everyone who is there to learn from him. When their needs are answered, THEN Jesus begins to teach.
In his teaching about blessings and woes, he reminds us that every one of us needs healing and wholeness somewhere in our lives.
The beatitudes, or the ‘blesseds,’ reveal Jesus’ vision of the kingdom of God. A place where those who are poor are dignified, the hungry are satisfied, the sorrowful are at peace. Those who are marginalized find respect. A life of blessing does not mean a life without struggle. It does mean a life where we can be at peace, be satisfied with what we have.
The ‘woes’ offer a word of lament. Jesus reminds those of us who find ourselves rich in wealth and overflowing tables, in good times and social relationships, that we may be blinded by our good fortune. Jesus calls us to examine and change our behavior when we get too comfortable with what we have. Gratitude for moments of peace, dignity, and respect remind us to acknowledge God at work in our lives - and to ask for healing and wholeness.
Jesus looks us in the eye and reminds us that every one of us, no matter where we come from, no matter what our faith journey, every one of us have wounds that need and deserve God’s love and healing in our lives. The Good News for the world is that Jesus brings that healing as he comes down to our level, to the chaos of our crowded lives, with peace and patience to meet every one of us.
This coming week, I invite us to consider Jesus’ invitation to live lives of peace and satisfaction, with dignity and respect for ourselves and every other person. To humbly recognize and claim the places in our lives that need healing. To bring that need and hope for healing to Jesus. And, like the crowd on the plain, to be seen and known by Jesus who walks among us - so that we can go into the world and share our hope, our gratitude and satisfaction, with being God’s beloved, healed and whole.
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