A Sermon presented to St. Timothy Lutheran Church, Charleston, WV on Super Bowl Sunday, February 6, 2011
Grace to you and peace from God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit!
I'm honored to be here on this 'secular high holy day', Super Bowl Sunday -
and very honored to be filling in for Pastor Mahan while he's away. It's a little like stepping into the (very big) shoes of a famous quarterback- a great privilege, but kind of intimidating too! So – pray for me as I speak to you and we'll make it through just fine.
You know, the Super Bowl is the biggest sporting event of the entire year.
Last year more than 106 million Americans tuned in – qualifying it as the Most Watched event in US TV history. It’s possible that the Super Bowl may also be the most-watched event globally as well. Even people who don't like football tune in to watch the half-time show and the commercials!
A couple of weeks ago, I talked with Frank Giardinia, who has been to the Super Bowl many times as a Christian Broadcaster. He informed me that the Super bowl is not just the Super bowl of Football, but it's also the Super Bowl of Advertising, of Broadcasting and of Celebrity Gathering.
It's a HUGE EVENT!!! Everybody pulls out all the stops in an effort to make a Deal, make a Name or make History. The Super Bowl embodies all the glamour – and dark underbelly - that any worldly event could possibly offer. It's the epitome of worldliness if you will.
By way of contrast, what we do here every Sunday at the Lord's Table is really the epitome of the Christian Life. Our worship of God is the high-point of our existence and the source of our ongoing renewal as Christians. So we have a clear distinction between the World System and its outlook on the one hand, and the Christian understanding of reality on the other.
So what I'd like to talk to you about today is the topic, 'Eucharist, Super Bowl for the Ages”, comparing and contrasting the Super Bowl with the Eucharist, drawing out a few similarities and differences, and in the process, showing that the Eucharist is where we as Christians experience weekly the victory of the Lord Jesus Christ over sin, death and hell.
First Comparison: Time of Event
With Green Bay playing at Dallas, and with it being so cold in Dallas this week, it brings to mind a memory that is really seared into my consciousness: It's 1967. I'm 11 years old and my dad and I are watching what has become known as the “Ice Bowl”. The Green Bay Packers are playing the Dallas Cowboys at home in Green Bay.
It's snowing to beat the band and 15 degrees below Zero. Dallas has a 3 point lead, and in the last few seconds, Green Bay quarterback Bart Starr takes the ball and lunges over the end zone to score a touchdown and win the game. ...And the crowd goes Wild!!!
That memory has a place in my psyche that lives outside of time. I can recall it vividly, and it's almost as if it happens anew every time I think about it.
Here's another memory. It's really a series of memories – sitting down at my grandmother's table and eating Thanksgiving dinner – but before we eat, we always have to take The Picture. It's always the SAME Picture – always taken from the same point of view – only the faces change from year to year.
It's almost like all those years of memories meld into ONE essential memory – and time sort of becomes irrelevant.
I tell you these two stories to help us begin to understand that there's something unusual going on with our perception of TIME – both in the Super Bowl and the Lord's Supper.
The first painfully obvious thing about the Super Bowl is that it's not a one-day, three-hour event, but a veritable 'season' unto itself. We have the two-week media lead-up to the event, the pre-game advertising for it, the pre-game analyses on game -day, the Game itself, and then the post-game shows and replays, the Sweatshirts, Mugs and Poster commemorating the event – all of which is designed to illustrate the nature of Eternity for us!
Only a little more seriously, I've also been talking with my daughter, Leah, who lives in Ft. Worth. She refers to 'Super Bowl Week” - or really about ten-days which incorporate all manner of training sessions, broadcasts, and partying leading up to the Main Event. Apparently, if you want to go to an exclusive party with players and other celebrities, you can buy your way in for about $2500! – just for an average ticket!
The partying lasts the whole week. In this way, it's really like a Jewish feast, lasting many days. And like a Jewish feast, it happens annually. Once a year, we are subjected to the run-up to this Grand Sporting Event – and all the hoopla that goes with it.
Those who play the game and those who get caught up in the game participate in a Great Tradition that is renewed each time the Game is played. That story about Bart Starr and the Green Bay Packers is part of that Great Tradition – an event that becomes larger than life, somehow existing outside of Time. In a way, every Super Bowl game becomes part of that larger-than-life Tradition.
It doesn't seem to matter whether the game itself is boring, whether the half -time entertainers come out on stage on walkers, or whether or not there are wardrobe scandals – The Great Game goes on, and the Tradition is renewed.
And if for some tragic reason your team doesn't get to the Super Bowl or loses, Hope continues to spring eternal and the fans look to Next Year, imitating the Jewish people, who always hope to celebrate Passover in the Holy City and say to one another, “Next year in Jerusalem...”
The point is that participation in the Super Bowl alters our perception of Time and illustrates for us the concept of 'Anamnesis'. This is the Greek word used to translate Jesus' word, 'remembrance', as in 'Do this in Remembrance of me.”
'Anamnesis' comes from the same root word as ‘Amnesia’ – but it's the opposite and more. If Amnesia is 'forgetting’, 'Anamnesis' is not just simple 'remembering', but it's the sort of remembering you practice when you gather around the Table at Thanksgiving or at a family reunion – and you recall family members from the past.
It's almost as if they are present during the event – whether it's my saintly but strong-willed Grandma Walker, or family outlaw Uncle Ben, who used to run moonshine during the depression, or Great Aunt Maxine who died of cancer when she was in her 30's, or Walt, myfather, who died in 2009 of ALS – they're all mystically present in that ongoing celebration of the Thanksgiving meal. And it's the same way with the Lord's Supper - the Eucharist: 'Thanksgiving' in Greek.
At the Lord's Table, we're at the Great Thanksgiving meal of Christians. Just like Thanksgiving at Grandma's house gathers all the generations together into one great memory, so too, all the saints that ever lived are gathered together in a Great Cloud of Witnesses, (Heb. 12:1) joining with the Angels and Archangels and all the host of heaven who forever sing Holy! Holy! Holy! to proclaim the greatness of God's Name.
At this meal the past is transformed into the Present. It is as if Jesus himself were saying the Words of Institution and we are gathered with him around the table. When he says 'Do this in remembrance of Me’, he asks us – right now- to join with Him in his Passion, to radically identify with him as joint-heirs of the Grace of Life, to be united with him, and to let His Life unite us with God.
But it's not only the past that is transformed, but the Future as well. Paul tells us in I Corinthians 11: 26 that “as often as [we] eat this bread and drink the cup, [we] proclaim the Lord's death until he comes.” (ESV)
We look forward to the future when He returns and we sit down with him at the Marriage Feast of the Lamb and celebrate his Ultimate Victory over Sin, Death and Hell. The Meal we eat today not only brings the past into the present and anticipates the future, but also Participates in the Future.
When we eat this Thanksgiving Meal, we get a 'foretaste' of the feast to come. This is what we sing about at the Offertory: ...'Grace our table with your presence, and give us a foretaste of the feast to come.' It's like when my Dad would raid the dressing as Mom was making it. He tasted the same dressing we would eat at the meal. So too, the taste you get at this table is the same stuff you will eat in Heaven! In fact, during this brief time of ‘Eucharist’, we actually enter that heavenly realm as we 'lift up our hearts to the Lord.'
The Past the Present and the Future all come together in a kind of 'Super Bowl of the Ages' where Jesus, our Victor, leads us and all the Saints and Angels in a celebration of his death, resurrection and ultimate triumph over Sin, Death and Hell.
All of this is what happens when we eat this Eucharistic Meal together. We step out of “Chronos” – regular time, and enter “Kairos”, God's Time. And when we do, the Kingdom of God Comes. Christ, the conquering Hero sits on the right hand of God the Father Almighty and reigns as Lord of the Universe, not only in Heaven, but wherever human beings put him on the Throne of their lives. And that brings me to the next major comparison -
The Nature of the Conflict
It's been said that one of the reasons Football is so popular is that it's really about War. In Football, two teams strap on their armor and implement their strategies and defenses against each other, hoping to prove who has the better stuff, who is the Victor. As a spectator, watching the game gives me an opportunity to invest ultimate passion in my team without consequence. If my team wins I'm happy, if it loses, I'm sad – but the next morning I get up and go to work, do some arm-chair second-guessing, and get on with life. Barring some craziness from drunken fans, no one will burn or pillage Charleston as a result of the Super Bowl!
By contrast, the consequences of the Eucharist are Real and potentially life-threatening. When you eat that bread and that drink that wine, you declare that you’re in the Lord's Army.
When you eat this meal, you take up 'The Sword of the Lord' and put on the uniform of the King; you take the field on the Lord's Team. There is no War by Proxy here! We are all on the starting team, and we are all on the field of battle all the time! As the saying goes,” We're IT. There is no B Team'!”
And Thanks be to God, every time we eat this meal, we are reassured that 'our team wins'! I don't know about you, but I desperately need that reassurance. Life is hard and it often seems like the Devil is winning.
It's tempting to forget who I am in Christ and what he has done for me; tempting to give in to despair when the hard times come and I suffer without knowing why; tempting to give up believing that Christ will come again and set everything to rights.
I need to have my confidence restored, to know that my team wins – that I’m still on the team and that my Captain cares for me. I need for my wounds to be healed, to be nourished and to have my gumption pumped up so that I can go out there and do what he has told me to do – love and serve Him in the World! All this is what I get when I sit down and eat with Jesus and my brothers and sisters in Jesus.
But I would be remiss if I did not mention a caution in all this.
Paul warns us in 1 Corinthians 11:27-30, that “Whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and blood of the Lord.” We are to examine ourselves before eating and drinking. 'For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself.”
If you take the bread and cup in an unworthy or thoughtless way, you can get sick or even die! (v 30). Unlike the Super Bowl, whose heroes may live on in an ultimately inconsequential Hall of Fame, there are Real and Eternal consequences at the Eucharist. And unlike the Super Bowl, where we have to wait till Game Day to see who wins, we KNOW the Outcome of our contest. Our side WINS!
And that brings us to our Third and last comparison:
The Impact of the Contest.
We've said before that the Super Bowl does not impose Life Changing Consequences on its spectators. That may not necessarily be true for those on the field. They experience countless sprains, breaks, bruises and traumas - …..and that's just among the cheerleaders! … It's much worse for the actual players!
Playing the game can have life-changing consequences for those on the field.
And the same is true for us Christians who participate in this Eucharistic Feast. If you join the army, you will fight, and will probably get hurt. You may even die. This is what we call being a Martyr – being a witness for the Faith, even to the point of death.
Being a Martyr means living “Eucharistically” - being driven to Mission out of thanksgiving to God for what he has done for us.
For example - Bruce Olsen was an 18 year-old Lutheran from Minnesota. One day at church he heard a dynamic missionary presentation that changed his life and propelled him go the Motilone Indians of Columbia. In his first contact with the Indians they shot an arrow through his leg and left it to fester until it just about killed him. With God's help, Bruce managed to flee his captors and return to safety, where he healed and eventually went back to live among this same tribe!
For FIVE YEARS he lived quietly with the Motilones, never mentioning Jesus Christ. At last he found the opportunity he was looking for, and he was able to share the Gospel of Christ with 'Bobbie', a key member of the clan. Bobbie understood the Gospel and decided to 'hang his hammock in Jesus”, finding safety in God. He in turn told the story of Jesus to the rest of the tribe and helped them understand the mystery of death, suffering and rebirth in Christ. As a result, nearly the entire tribe became Christians.
As a result, they stopped their constant war with neighboring tribes and even shared the Gospel with them, learning how to exist peacefully, and with Bruce's God-Inspired help, making the transition from Stone Age to Space age in a matter of a few short years.
Bruce Olsen paid a high initial price to bring the Motilone Indians into the Kingdom of God.
Not only was he shot, but he was separated from his family for years at a time. His beloved fiancé also died along the way, and there were many times he thought about quitting and going home. But his sacrifice paid off; the people came to Christ in droves and he himself eventually became an advocate for the indigenous peoples of Columbia and a nationally recognized spokesman for them. In the process, he became a political force to be reckoned with - and a target for rebels intent on fighting for their anti- government cause.
So although he had already paid a price for the Gospel, Bruce paid yet another martyr's price on behalf of the native peoples of Columbia. He was kidnapped by rebels and held captive for many months. He was forced to cook for his captors and be their medic when they were hurt. And he was tortured nearly to death in an attempt to convert him to the rebel's side. At one point, he was bleeding badly, and because the rebels wanted to use him as political bait, one of their own gave blood to keep him alive.
It was truly a schizophrenic experience; one day being tortured and the next day healed by the very same captors.
But the Lord was with him and in the process of enduring these hardships he became a 'blood brother' to the rebels. They allowed him to teach them to read, and hundreds eventually accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior.
Bruce Olsen joined the Army of the Lord. He went into battle and he endured suffering and hardship on behalf of his Captain, Jesus. And through Him, the Lord Jesus has won decisive victories. This was his calling. But it's also your calling and mine as well – to strap on the battle gear and to win mighty victories for our God out of Thanksgiving for what he has done for us.
And that's what you sign on for when you sit down at this table!
Listen to what we will pray during Communion. This comes from Setting 5 in the blue book, 'With One Voice', pg 37.
'It is he, our Lord Jesus, who fulfilled all your will and won for you a holy people: he stretched out his hands in suffering in order to free from suffering those who trust you.'
'It is he who [was] handed over to a death he freely accepted
in order to destroy death,
to break the bonds of the evil one,
to crush hell underfoot,
to give light to the righteous,
to establish his covenant and
to show forth the resurrection. '…
(And the crowd goes wild!!...)
Christ the Victor has accomplished all this on our behalf; this is what we celebrate at His Table!
At the Eucharistic Table, we step out of human time and into God's time. We become what we eat, The Body of Christ. We renew our covenant with God, and we raise the Victory shout of the Army of the Lord.
When you watch the Super Bowl this afternoon and evening I hope you enjoy it and that your team wins. But I also hope you remember that Greater is He who is in us – who died for us, was resurrected, who ascended into heaven and ever lives to make intercession for us - than he who is in the world!
Greater is our Eucharistic Jesus-Feast than the other guy's Super Bowl, both now and ever and unto the ages of ages.
In the Name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. AMEN.
