St. John’s Episcopal Church
Tallahassee, FL
Isaiah 53:4-12 Hebrews 5:1-10 Mark 10:35-45
Today I want to talk about a word
that you may hear a lot
this time of year.
That word is pledge.
“Pledge” is an old word,
a medieval word.
Today, we think of a pledge
simply as a promise or an oath,
but in the old, old days,
a pledge was like cosigning yourself;
it was like being human collateral.
If I pledged myself for the sake of another,
that meant that
if they did not come through
on their promise,
you could take it out on me.
But these days,
the word “pledge”
has broader, softer meaning.
A pledge can be part of our civic life . . .
“I pledge allegiance to the flag
of the United States of America.”
A pledge can be financial . . .
a commitment to give over time
to the Seminole Boosters,
or to Second Harvest,
or our local public radio.
A pledge can be political . . .
like all the promises
that all the candidates make
about what they will do
if you elect them into office.
Newlyweds pledge their fidelity.
College students pledge their fraternities.
Companies make pledges about your satisfaction.
But the thing about all of these
is that they almost all have something to do
with the idea of becoming “greater.”
A greater individual.
A greater company.
A greater nation.
A greater team.
But what about us Christians?
What does the word “pledge” mean to us?
Well I think today’s readings
take that very idea,
flip it on its head
and give us a whole new meaning
to what it means
to be “people of the pledge.”
* * *
In our first reading,
Isaiah tells the famous prophecy
about “the Suffering Servant” . . .
someone who will one day pledge himself
to take on all the suffering of the world.
We Christians believe this passage
points to Jesus, who came 600 years later.
In the letter to the Hebrews,
the writer talks about how Jesus—
even though he was the Son of God
and our Great High Priest—
never glorified himself
but instead pledged himself
to go to the lowest depths
and the hardest places
that even we did not want to go.
And finally, in today’s Gospel,
James and John beg Jesus
to pledge that they can each sit by his side—
one on his right and one on his left—
once he conquers the world
and assumes the throne.
To which Jesus says,
“Guys, you have no idea
what you’re asking.
“My throne is not a gilded chair,
but a wooden cross.
“The pledge I am making
is not to overthrow power with power,
but to overthrow hatred with love,
to overthrow death with my life.
“What I am pledging is myself.
“For the Son of Man came
not to be served but to serve,
and to give his life a ransom for many.”
You see,
when the world makes a pledge,
there’s always some catch.
It’s always transactional.
There’s always the question of,
“Yes, but what’s in this for me?”
When Jesus makes a pledge,
there is none of that.
When Jesus makes a pledge,
he pledges himself.
When Jesus makes a pledge,
it is pure gift.
* * *
So what does this mean for us?
Well, number one,
it means that we are made
in the image of a loving, giving God
and redeemed by a loving, giving Christ,
motived by a loving, giving Spirit,
which means all of us
have deep within us
a yearning spiritual need
to be loving, giving people.
Loving and giving is just part of who we are, y’all.
It is simply written on our spiritual DNA.
We don’t do it to become greater.
We don’t do it to become better people.
We don’t do it to be seated at the right or left hand of Jesus.
We do it because we love,
and we love because he first loved us.
This time of year,
part of what we do with that love
is we look at our community here together . . .
take in what it means
for us to be the Body of Christ together . . .
and we ask ourselves,
“What can I pledge?
What can I give for the sake of love?
I’ve got a little time.
I’ve got a little talent.
I’ve got a little treasure.
Jesus gave it all,
so what can I give?”
One way you can do that
is to pledge to give in 2025
for St. John’s.
No one expects you to be Jesus.
No one needs you to give
your whole self,
your whole life.
In fact, if you’ve never done it,
my advice is to start small.
Start where you are.
Even when we give
just the tiniest portion of ourselves,
we experience what it’s like
to be like Jesus.
So take the spiritual leap
and see what it means
to be “people of the pledge.”
* * *
But here’s the deal, y’all.
Here’s the grace for us today,
no matter who you are.
Whether you ever pledged
a fraternity or sorority . . .
whether you pledge
to NPR
or to Second Harvest
or to the local library . . .
whether you
pledge allegiance to the flag
or have never pledged
anything to anyone
in your whole entire life . . .
Jesus has pledged himself for you,
and in the end,
that is what it means
to be “people of the pledge.”
We are people of his pledge,
loved and redeemed
simply because he pledged himself
and loved us first.
Jesus doesn’t give two toots
about how great any of us are—
he just loves us—
which actually means
we’re all just free
to be ourselves.
To pledge ourselves.
To give ourselves.
To be loving, giving people,
made in the image
of a loving, giving God.
Because of the pledge he made for us,
we are free to love and free to give,
and that is good news you can take
all the way to the bank.
Amen.