Unless you pay particular attention to the rhythm of the scripture that 'the powers that be' have selected for each Sunday's reading (known as the Common Lectionary), you might have missed the tendency for the gospel readings in the Fall to get fairly edgy.
All those feel good healing and miracle and simple teaching stories happened during the summer while folks were vacationing or sleeping in or whatever they do when they take a hiatus from Sunday worship.
But that leaves us with the end of the church year lessons, and those are chronologically close to Jesus' arrest and crucifixion. Of course we don't actually deal with Jesus' death in these months - that is reserved for our Lenten season - but we run right up to the very edge. Time is coming to a close for Jesus and he engages in his final teachings about the Kingdom of God and his role as God's son.
These are demanding texts. They demand our attention, our consideration and then ultimately our commitment to the one who stands at the center. These texts are about taking up your cross, being obedient in righteousness, weathering the coming apocalypse, and then standing face to face with the cross.
And if you think that facing the cross is difficult, wait until October 7th: we get the text on divorce. Ain't nobody going to be singing after that one. So, just a fair warning....we are getting down to the wire and all that we think we believe will be challenged. God help us all to listen with an open heart.
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Monday, September 17, 2012
Who is the greatest?
Jesus is at it again. He keeps talking about his rejection, suffering and death. Now the disciples are worried about which one of them is the greatest!
It sounds like they are positioning themselves for power when Jesus is gone. But maybe they only want to receive special praise from Jesus if, indeed, Jesus' time is almost gone. Or maybe, when they heard Jesus rebuke Peter in last weeks lesson by telling him, "Get behind me Satan" they saw their opportunity to take Peter's pre-eminent place among the followers.
We can't really know for sure what they were thinking, but they are certainly caught red-faced when Jesus asked them. No one would own up to the conversation that had engrossed them all. Kind of like when we were kids and no one wanted to admit to Dad their guilt over some misdeed.
Jesus knew anyway. Jesus not only knew what they had been talking about, he also knew how little they understood about God's plan for the salvation of God's beloved people. Jesus knew they could not and did not understand how his own death could be a good thing - for the disciples or for the people.
And they hadn't even confronted the cross yet. In the gospel of Mark, Jesus only speaks of his death, not his manner of death. The cross is the final horrific, shameful detail in this ghastly sequence of death.
Jesus knew they didn't know, yet he kept teaching, loving, walking with them because they would need the memories of these last weeks together when the time came.
And, BTW, it is a child. Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all. Welcome a child and you welcome me, Jesus teaches them.
They don't understand that either. We don't either most of the time.
Sunday we are looking at Mark 9.30-37, the second passion prediction.
It sounds like they are positioning themselves for power when Jesus is gone. But maybe they only want to receive special praise from Jesus if, indeed, Jesus' time is almost gone. Or maybe, when they heard Jesus rebuke Peter in last weeks lesson by telling him, "Get behind me Satan" they saw their opportunity to take Peter's pre-eminent place among the followers.
We can't really know for sure what they were thinking, but they are certainly caught red-faced when Jesus asked them. No one would own up to the conversation that had engrossed them all. Kind of like when we were kids and no one wanted to admit to Dad their guilt over some misdeed.
Jesus knew anyway. Jesus not only knew what they had been talking about, he also knew how little they understood about God's plan for the salvation of God's beloved people. Jesus knew they could not and did not understand how his own death could be a good thing - for the disciples or for the people.
And they hadn't even confronted the cross yet. In the gospel of Mark, Jesus only speaks of his death, not his manner of death. The cross is the final horrific, shameful detail in this ghastly sequence of death.
Jesus knew they didn't know, yet he kept teaching, loving, walking with them because they would need the memories of these last weeks together when the time came.
And, BTW, it is a child. Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all. Welcome a child and you welcome me, Jesus teaches them.
They don't understand that either. We don't either most of the time.
Sunday we are looking at Mark 9.30-37, the second passion prediction.
Thursday, September 13, 2012
Oh no, not that!
In Sunday's lesson, Jesus issues his first 'passion prediction' which is the technical name for these passages where Jesus speaks of his upcoming rejection, suffering and crucifixion. There are 3 such predictions in Mark's gospel.
Each time Jesus talks about his eventual death by cross, the disciples respond poorly. In this first passion prediction there is an enormous swing from Peter's acclamation "You are the Messiah" to Jesus' rebuke of Peter "Get behind me Satan' in the very next paragraph.
It started with the question, "Who do people say that I am?" Peter's claims Jesus as his Messiah. The problem is, Peter has no idea what it will take to be the Messiah. God's plan for the Messiah includes the cross; there is no other way.
So Peter rebukes Jesus for this terrible predicted death. Jesus rebukes Peter in turn. Without the cross Jesus cannot be the Messiah. The two go together. If Peter is to accept Jesus as Messiah, he must also accept the cross.
To be the Messiah is to enter into the suffering that all humankind experiences. To be the Messiah is to walk forward into the deep abyss that we all fear: rejection, suffering and death. To be the Messiah is to know that it is coming and to continue on the road to Jerusalem regardless.
The tricky part is that to be a disciple is to take up your cross and follow where Jesus leads. We are called to let go of this life so to grasp the life that Jesus offers.
The cross might gross us out. Letting go of this life scares us to death - which is exactly Jesus' point: holding onto this life leads only to death. Never an easy message nor an easy task.
Tuesday, September 11, 2012
What the planet needs.....
"The planet does not need more 'successful' people. But it does desperately need more peacemakers, healers, restorers, storytellers, and lovers of every shape and form. It needs people who live well in their places. It needs people of moral courage willing to joing the fight to make the world habitable and humane. And these needs have little to do with success as our culture has defined it."
However, this might well describe the folks that take up the cross of Jesus for the love of the world.
"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God." Matthew 5.9
What do people want?
What questions are people asking?
As a teacher I learned that until I answer the question that YOU have, you have a difficult time listening to what I am saying. You get stuck on that question; it becomes a block to further enlightenment. Once it's answered you can go again.
I remember a cartoon from a long time ago where one character was carrying a sign which said 'Jesus is the answer.' In the next frame, another character has a sign which reads, 'What was the question?'
So it is important to answer the questions that folks are asking, which has a great deal with what folks truly want. I made a list: folks want life to be a little easier, to have their struggles have some meaning or purpose, to have their suffering acknowledged or mourned or at least to have someone walk with them through it all. People would like good to be rewarded and evil punished. People want to both be loved and feel loved. They would like to be blessed (however they might define that). *
All of this is background to Sunday's gospel reading (Mark 8.27-33) which is a pivotal text in Mark's telling of the gospel story. It begins with Jesus asking, "Who do people say that I am?"
It is important for people to understand what they are looking for when they turn to Jesus and call him Lord, or Son of God, or Savior. In this text, Jesus makes it abundantly clear that his definition of Messiah, Anointed One, includes more than just healing and teaching and extra bread. It includes suffering, rejection and a cross.
If you are looking for daisies and roses, then this Jesus just won't do. It is best to get that straight right up front, because from this point on, the pressure is on and the cross is on the horizon.
*When I consider folks who seem to embody evil, who do horrific things to one another, I wonder if a list like the one above is too 'pollyanna'. Do these folks want the same things? How do these folks end up consumed by such a destructive force that they are dangerous to themselves and others? Have these folks been so crushed by this world that they can only crush it back?
As a teacher I learned that until I answer the question that YOU have, you have a difficult time listening to what I am saying. You get stuck on that question; it becomes a block to further enlightenment. Once it's answered you can go again.
I remember a cartoon from a long time ago where one character was carrying a sign which said 'Jesus is the answer.' In the next frame, another character has a sign which reads, 'What was the question?'
So it is important to answer the questions that folks are asking, which has a great deal with what folks truly want. I made a list: folks want life to be a little easier, to have their struggles have some meaning or purpose, to have their suffering acknowledged or mourned or at least to have someone walk with them through it all. People would like good to be rewarded and evil punished. People want to both be loved and feel loved. They would like to be blessed (however they might define that). *
All of this is background to Sunday's gospel reading (Mark 8.27-33) which is a pivotal text in Mark's telling of the gospel story. It begins with Jesus asking, "Who do people say that I am?"
It is important for people to understand what they are looking for when they turn to Jesus and call him Lord, or Son of God, or Savior. In this text, Jesus makes it abundantly clear that his definition of Messiah, Anointed One, includes more than just healing and teaching and extra bread. It includes suffering, rejection and a cross.
If you are looking for daisies and roses, then this Jesus just won't do. It is best to get that straight right up front, because from this point on, the pressure is on and the cross is on the horizon.
*When I consider folks who seem to embody evil, who do horrific things to one another, I wonder if a list like the one above is too 'pollyanna'. Do these folks want the same things? How do these folks end up consumed by such a destructive force that they are dangerous to themselves and others? Have these folks been so crushed by this world that they can only crush it back?
Monday, September 10, 2012
Who do people say that I am?
This is the crux of the issue: who exactly is this Jesus? The disciples answered, "John the Baptist, Elijah, one of the prophets." We are no more agreed on the answer today than the people were of his time.
Christians have proclaimed this Jesus to be : Christ, the King (Chi Rho), the Alpha and Omega (God's first and last), and, using the fish symbol Jesus, the Christ, God's son, Savior. [that is what these symbols for Jesus Christ mean.]
Every believer needs to answer that question for themselves. Who is this Jesus? What is Jesus' relationship to the Creator God? What benefit is there for me in the life, ministry and death of this Jesus? How is my life changed by this one called Jesus?
Yes, the Church can give you answers, as the symbols above attest. But, it seems to me, until you wrestle with this question yourself those answers have little traction in your life. And as Jesus will begin teaching his disciples, without the cross, those answers mean nothing at all.
Bless us in our seeking O Lord. May we see your presence each day. AMEN
Thursday, September 6, 2012
Who gets to sit at the table?
Thanksgiving at my grandmother's house meant sitting at the kids' table. There were simply too many of us to fit around the other table. I always felt slighted. (I have often been prone to feeling slighted, but that's for another day).
My grandmother did not own a fancy dining room table, used only on Sundays and holidays. In fact, my grandmother did not own anything fancy.
Hers was a 'farm table' - that enormous kitchen table that dominates a farm's kitchen. It was the center for all life in my grandmother's house. It was where bills were paid, arguments were started and resolved, forgiveness handed out. There local stories were told, tragedies remarked on, children reprimanded, and of course, hardy meals of meat and potatoes accompanied by rhubarb or apple or cherry or quince pie were served.
In my mind, having a seat at the 'big table' meant belonging to this family. Whether distant relative, cranky neighbor or complete stranger, being invited to a seat at the big table meant being a part of the family for this meal.
That is what it means in Jesus' mind as well. It took a foreigner and sometimes enemy, a woman who would not take 'No' for answer, to bring this to Jesus' attention. She knew that what Jesus was offering at his table could bring new life - and that's what her daughter needed right at this moment. All she wanted was a few crumbs - because crumbs from this table were enough - and in her asking, Jesus begins to understand that the new life that will come through him is open to all.
All are welcome at the table. Strangers, foreigners, children, cranky neighbors......sinners. Come and eat and be whole again.
My grandmother did not own a fancy dining room table, used only on Sundays and holidays. In fact, my grandmother did not own anything fancy.
Hers was a 'farm table' - that enormous kitchen table that dominates a farm's kitchen. It was the center for all life in my grandmother's house. It was where bills were paid, arguments were started and resolved, forgiveness handed out. There local stories were told, tragedies remarked on, children reprimanded, and of course, hardy meals of meat and potatoes accompanied by rhubarb or apple or cherry or quince pie were served.
In my mind, having a seat at the 'big table' meant belonging to this family. Whether distant relative, cranky neighbor or complete stranger, being invited to a seat at the big table meant being a part of the family for this meal.
That is what it means in Jesus' mind as well. It took a foreigner and sometimes enemy, a woman who would not take 'No' for answer, to bring this to Jesus' attention. She knew that what Jesus was offering at his table could bring new life - and that's what her daughter needed right at this moment. All she wanted was a few crumbs - because crumbs from this table were enough - and in her asking, Jesus begins to understand that the new life that will come through him is open to all.
All are welcome at the table. Strangers, foreigners, children, cranky neighbors......sinners. Come and eat and be whole again.
Wednesday, September 5, 2012
What truly gives us life?
This Sunday's gospel lesson led me to this quote from the prophet Isaiah
"Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy?" Isaiah55.2
And, frankly, that is the big question, isn't it?
Why would we expend any amount of energy, resources, or time on pursuing things which do not feed us or satisfy us? Probably because it takes us a while to come to the realization that we are chasing after ephemeral things: (love that word: ephemeral) - things that are all smoke and mirrors; things that once obtained reveal themselves to be of no value or use.
For some of us, it is not until our last moments, our final months of life that this wisdom becomes a reality for us. For many, a tragedy will bring this into focus. For the few, that which is cosmically valuable is clear from an early age.
Sunday we are invited to our Lord Jesus' table, to eat again the bread and wine, to be made one with the Son of God and become the body of Christ. Most days we don't really understand exactly what that all means (even we who can explain it with $5 words) - but we are sure that in this meal, at this table, we are connecting with something/someone whose value extends beyond all time.
The Syro-Phoenician woman [Mark7.24-30] was willing to accept crumbs from our Lord's table; she was convinced that Jesus' crumbs would be sufficient. For me, crumbs are generally all that I am able to handle. Grace can be overwhelming to we mere mortals.
"Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy?" Isaiah55.2
And, frankly, that is the big question, isn't it?
Why would we expend any amount of energy, resources, or time on pursuing things which do not feed us or satisfy us? Probably because it takes us a while to come to the realization that we are chasing after ephemeral things: (love that word: ephemeral) - things that are all smoke and mirrors; things that once obtained reveal themselves to be of no value or use.
For some of us, it is not until our last moments, our final months of life that this wisdom becomes a reality for us. For many, a tragedy will bring this into focus. For the few, that which is cosmically valuable is clear from an early age.
Sunday we are invited to our Lord Jesus' table, to eat again the bread and wine, to be made one with the Son of God and become the body of Christ. Most days we don't really understand exactly what that all means (even we who can explain it with $5 words) - but we are sure that in this meal, at this table, we are connecting with something/someone whose value extends beyond all time.
The Syro-Phoenician woman [Mark7.24-30] was willing to accept crumbs from our Lord's table; she was convinced that Jesus' crumbs would be sufficient. For me, crumbs are generally all that I am able to handle. Grace can be overwhelming to we mere mortals.
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