The Old South Church in Boston

The Old South Church in Boston

“Our Highest Ambition”

Sermon by Lael P. Murphy

August 6, 2000

Mark 10: 35-44*

Ambition. Success. The drive to excel, improve, exceed. Between the political conventions going on and the Olympic sporting events gearing up, forces of competition constantly surround us. Whether it’s the record-breaking performances of athletes like Tiger Woods, Pete Sampras or even our own Pedro Martinez, or the successful business enterprises of so many new, young Wall Street or dot.com executives, the fruits of ambition are in front of us all the time. It’s the survival of the fittest in entertainment, business, and sports. As Vince Lombardi said years ago, “Winning isn’t everything, but wanting to win is.”

In contrast to such public contests, when it comes to the private arena of our faith we rarely talk about competition or ambition. Given the importance of humility in our Christian practice and the more liberal, low-pressure mood of our denomination, the importance of spiritual aspirations are seldom discussed. Having the freedom to explore our faith at our own pace, in our own way, we find ourselves living in a kind of “I’m Okay, You’re Okay,” free-to-be-you-and-me religious climate. What do we lose, I wonder, in such an independent and potentially complacent culture? How might our faith be strengthened by asking, as we do of nearly every other aspect of our lives, just what our goals are? When it comes to our faith and the way we put it into action, shouldn’t we have some ambition?

It was the former Archbishop of Dublin, Richard Whately, who once said, “To know your ruling passion, examine your castles in the air.” Like Christ’s words from the Sermon on the Mount that claim, “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:21), our religious aspirations are clear when we take a good long look at the way our greatest hopes structure the way we fill our time. Appreciating the very practical ways we choose to either put our faith into practice or permit it take a back seat to the many other activities in our lives, we can see that while we may not always be conscious of our highest aims, they are constantly at hand with us, shaping the present, molding the future. Our “ruling passions,” as Whately calls them, beckon us daily to compete in a variety of ways. And so we can ask ourselves, when we look closely at those drives, do we see our faith in them? Is Christ’s presence and prodding among the dreams that fill our days?

Finding one’s clear aim is an important lesson in our scripture reading this morning. Witnessing James and John and the other ten disciples interact with Christ in this story we’re given solid teaching about what it means to be a Christian disciple. Mediating a tense situation, Jesus says to the ten disciples in so many words, “Our ambitions are not like the ambitions of this world. I have come not to make a mogul out of myself or an empire out of you. I’ve come to build up all people by serving them.” Then he adds, “So you see, to follow me means to serve as well.”

I have to admit I’ve grown to love this scene. While some commentators call it “The Inappropriate Request of James and John,” I’m more apt to think of these verses as an honest depiction of our often divisive human nature. Written at a time when competition among early converts was growing, at a place where political and religious persecution was becoming less a threat and more of a painful reality, this story gives us a vision of what it was like to live in early Christian community. People were vying for power, others were angered by their arrogance, and there, at the center, was Christ, offering calm guidance and help. He doesn’t blow up at James and John, these brothers seeking glory though they were the first to abandon him in the Garden of Gethsemane. He doesn’t mock the other ten because of their frustration. No, in this text Jesus remains focused on his heavenly aim, the greatest ambition of his life. Remaining true to his goal of building up the kingdom of God he says to them all, “We’re here to serve. If you’re ambitious for my sake you must lead through your service.”

Martin Luther King, Jr. once wrote, “Every [one] must decide whether he will walk in the light of creative altruism or the darkness of destructive selfishness. This is the judgment. Life’s most persistent and urgent question is: What are you doing for others?” King’s words serve to illuminate the central focus of Christ’s teaching here. As we see in this reading, Jesus intently brings followers along on the path of sacrifice and caring, not for his own sake but for the salvation of all. To the brothers’ appeal for what we might consider self-centered and eternal glory he simply says, “Can you follow in my footsteps?” To the indignant rage of the other ten he states, “We’re all in this together.” To King’s question, “What are you doing for others?” we see this Savior building a team of servants, a team that will then go on to build the loving realm of God. Christ’s service of the highest aim.

Building the realm of God. Not only is Jesus teaching the disciples to do this throughout their ministry, he’s modeling it in their midst. Creating unity between the twelve he works to bring together a community strong enough to endure the challenges of ministry and maltreatment. Instead of pitting one against the other, raising claims to counter claims, he strengthens their understanding by showing them the way of merciful, forgiving love. As servants together these men go forth to bring us the tradition we have today. It’s a story of sticking it out together by the grace and for the glory of God. It’s a tradition of putting aside less important differences to work for the higher good.

Ambition. Success. Webster’s Dictionary defines the former as the “desire to achieve a particular end.” Serving as disciples of the cross we realize that bringing to light the love God has for all creation is the greatest end to reach, requiring us to be unified with other Christian and caring servants throughout this world. Working to realize such a goal means that we reach out to those in need, volunteering our time and offering our talents to build up the Word, the truth, of Christ’s realm. Rather than seeking our own security or more self-centered goals we put God’s grace at the head of our plans, choosing to share our faith and our many blessings with those who need them. Being servants to all, as Jesus puts it in our text today, means that we care for others as much as we do ourselves, our own. It requires us to sacrifice security and comfort out of compassion for the suffering, the oppressed, and the abused.

Yes, building the realm of God. It’s our greatest ambition as Christians. Through the many small actions of kindness and compassion and the more substantial offerings of time and treasure we’re always given the chance to build the reality of Christ’s mercy in this world. No matter what our age or background, no matter how large or small the sum in our pocketbooks, no matter what our interests or aptitudes, we’re each provided countless opportunities to be servants of God’s mission in this world. What are we doing with these chances? How are we claiming this great ambition each and every day, each and every moment?

Turning once again to the words of the late Dr. King we remember that often, “We are prone to judge success by the index of our salaries or the size of our automobiles, rather than by the quality of our service and relationship to humanity.” Like James and John who seem more concerned with their place in God’s eternal realm than with the ministry that lies before them, we may under-appreciate our role in building God’s realm in this present time. Like the other ten disciples consumed by their judgments, we may be distracted from our call to proactive, positive response. Focusing on our relationship to humanity Christ beckons us away from such diversions. We see that we’re called to focus solely on the quality of our service, our determination to build the realm of God, in attitude and in action.

Richard Hamermesh, management consultant and author, understands the importance of having such vision. In his book, “Fad-Free Management: Six Principles that Drive Successful Companies and Their Leaders,” he stresses the need to help people understand and feel a part of an organization’s larger purpose. Getting his point across in a simple story, he writes,

There was once a young boy who was walking into town when he passed the local quarry. He saw a disgruntled man chipping away at a stone and asked, “What are you doing?” The man replied, “I’m chipping away at this wall of stone, trying to get a rock out of it.”

The boy walked on and saw a rather nondescript man. He asked again, “What are you doing?” The second man replied, “I’m chipping out a stone block that is going to be part of the foundation of a building.”

Finally, the boy came to a third man who’s whistled happily as he chipped away in the quarry. The boy asked one more time, “What are you doing?” The man replied, “I’m building a cathedral.”

This is the kind of vision Christ sets before us today. Calling us to put away our self-centered concerns he asks that we be ambitious about building up the realm of God. We’re not just uselessly, haphazardly, chipping away at a wall of stone. Rather, we’re reminded that as Christian servants we work side-by-side, with optimism and purpose, to build a great cathedral. By the grace and power of God we bring the reality of Christian love and compassion to this broken world. That is our greatest ambition.

Let us pray.

Gracious God, We hear your call to service. We sense your beckoning to live with greater caring and compassion. Strengthen us this day, that as we carry your truth in our hearts, it may inspire the work of our hands. Make us bold, determined disciples, builders of your loving realm, through Christ, our Servant, our Guide.

Amen.

SCRIPTURE READING

Mark 10: 35-44

James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came forward to him and said to him, “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.” And he said to them, “What is it you want me to do for you?” And they said to him, “Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory.” But Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?” They replied, “We are able.” Then Jesus said to them, “The cup that I drink you will drink; and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized; but to sit at my right hand or at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared.”

When the ten heard this, they began to be angry with James and John. So Jesus called them and said to them, “You know that among the Gentiles those whom they recognize as their rulers lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants over them. But it is not so among you; but whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all. For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.”