1 Samuel 3:1-10(11-20)  Psalm 139:1-5, 12-17 2 Corinthians 4:5-12 Mark 2:23-3:6

In Christian Ethics there is a value known as “the greater good.”  The greater good is a choice that perhaps defies convention or legalisms in the interest of compassion or hospitality – some human quality that, in a particular situation, takes precedence over the “rules.”

We seek the greater good when we tell a terminally ill friend that she looks beautiful, when she is actually obviously very near death.  We seek the greater good when we tell an elderly parent whose sense of time has been lost to dementia that a loved one should be returning “today or tomorrow” when, in actuality, we have no idea when or if the loved one will be returning; our hopeful words bring freedom from anxiety for one for whom all time is temporary. We seek the greater good when we open the food pantry doors before hours so that patrons can come in from the blistering heat or bitter cold.

Along the western border of Germany, the fast flowing Rhine River provides a significant fortress into interior Germany.  The Rhine River was a particularly important barrier in the waning months of World War II as allied troops were descending upon Germany.  The allies were aware that Hitler had ordered all bridges across the Rhine River to be destroyed in an effort to keep the approaching enemy at bay.

As fate would have it, however, as the US Army approached the town of Remagen, Germany, they were astounded to find the bridge across the Rhine intact.  The battle to take control of the Remagen bridge was bloody and lengthy, but in the end supplied the allies with a momentous passageway toward the defeat of German forces.

Why was the bridge not destroyed per orders of the high command?

Commanders at the site apparently chose the greater good. Masses of civilians were using the bridge to evacuate toward to the West, knowing that their homes and villages were sure to be leveled and civilian casualties enormous.  And, German troops were surrendering and retreating from the West in the face of slaughter; the bridge at Remagen was their only possible path to safety.  Yet, Hitler had demanded the bridge be destroyed.

Accepting the inevitable defeat of their forces, Four German troop commanders at Remagen chose to defy Hitler’s orders, delaying the destruction of the bridge out of compassion for their fellow countrymen and their comrades in arms.  Their delay allowed the US Army to penetrate Germany at this Rhine crossing; it likely brought about a significantly quicker German surrender and end to the war; and also perhaps, it saved the lives of numerous German civilians and soldiers.  And for their decision to keep the bridge intact, three of the commanders at Remagen were executed by firing squad; one was taken prisoner by the American Army and survived to share his story.

Day after day, we make decisions for the greater good, mostly without realizing it.  We make decisions in the better interest of hospitality and compassion.  Isn’t it better to make others welcome than to insist on legalisms that alienate and bring greater harm?

From our Old Testament lesson from First Samuel, we read of the calling of Samuel as God’s prophet.  We’ll follow Samuel for the next several weeks and talk about him in more detail.  Just for today, it’s important to note, that God called Samuel because it was Samuel that God needed.  Jewish tradition called for the sons of Eli to continue the priestly line of authority.  But, God dramatically and unquestionably called Samuel in defiance of Jewish legalisms.  Even Eli could not deny that God intended Samuel to replace Eli’s corrupted progeny.  God spoke for the greater good.

And, Jesus is speaking for the greater good in our Gospel lesson this morning.  The Pharisees, the keepers of the law, were standing on legalistic principles when they insisted that Jesus was violating Sabbath laws by allowing his disciples to gather and eat the wheat from the field on the Sabbath and by healing the withered hand of the man at Sabbath worship in the synagogue. But, Jesus’ concern was for his hungry disciples and the crippled worshipper; Jesus demonstrates the choice of the greater good.  And, I cannot imagine that any of us would bypass someone ill or injured and in need of our help on the principle that we are commanded to rest on the Sabbath.

And, yet, we do defy the Christian ethic of the “Greater Good,” often for our own self-seeking reasons – as we allow legalisms or our need for control to thwart the values of hospitality and compassion. Certainly, seeking the Greater Good is not a call to lawlessness; it is a call to allow love to prevail – weighing the greater good against the greater harm.  Paraphrasing Jesus’ words from this morning’s Gospel lesson, we could say, “God’s law was made for humankind, and not humankind for God’s law; Jesus is lord even of God’s law.”  Jesus is lord of hospitality and compassion; Jesus is lord of love; Jesus is lord of the Greater Good.