18th Sunday After Pentecost -
Year B September,
27, 2015
Numbers 11:4-6, 10-16, 24-29 , James 5:13-20, Mark 9:38‑50 Patch
Protestant Congregation
Preaching the Lectionary is helpful in so many ways. We can
read through most of the major stories of scripture in a three year cycle and
like today, exposing us to passages that we might be tempted to pass over as too
hard or controversial. But it can also
give us a false sense that these short passages which can be read and
contemplated in isolation from one another. Nothing could be farther from the
truth. All the parts and pieces stand together as a complicated, beautifully
woven tapestry of what it means to be a member of the Kingdom of God.
Today’s lessons are a great example, weaving together a coherent theme that reflects
the challenges and joy of ministry in the world and in our own spiritual lives.
The Old Testament lesson from Numbers and the gospel reading from Mark each
show a portrait of dissatisfaction and misunderstanding of God’s plan for us.
And the reading from James reminds us of the solution to our problems, prayer
for and service to those in need. But we're going to focus on this interesting and disturbing lesson that Jesus is trying to teach.
For the past several weeks we have watched the disciples
follow Jesus around as they try to figure out what it means to be a disciple. And
it has become abundantly clear that they continue to define the Kingdom of God in
very narrow ways. They have missed the major message of Jesus' coming... that
the world order has been redefined and all expectations for behavior and future
endeavor have been reassessed.
A passage like this is really a nightmare for preachers. It
contains enough material for at least four morning sermons, or one really rip
rousing revival message, where everyone would expect to be here for a while. I
promise not to do that to you all today. But let me a least give a shot at
summarizing the main points of Jesus' encounter with disciples, and why they (and
we) struggle with what it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ.
Last week's controversy involved the disciples' need to be
"number one." This week, they encounter people who are healing in the
name of Jesus, and they want it stopped, because they have not given them the
authority to be doing such things. But Jesus explains to them why their
thinking is backwards. "These people are not our enemies, nor are they
God's enemies, for whoever is not against us is for us,” and I think implied in
that is “And we need all the help we can get."
How many times have we encountered someone who "stepped
in on our territory"? It feels like they are not only stealing our opportunity
for service, but also the glory that goes along with it. It was as if the
disciples were saying, "You are not an authorized dealer of Jesus’ message,
so go away." But Jesus reminds them that they do not control the ministry
of God. They do not get to define what it a good deed and what is not. Jesus
declares that God's work done in his name is to be honored, not scrutinized for
credentials. Jesus' principle is to include, not exclude."[i]
Even simple acts will not go unrewarded. Every act of kindness matters.
And then comes this tricky “stumbling block” part of the passage.
The penalty for getting in the way of someone’s journey in the Kingdom is high.
Jesus tells us our first concern must be keeping the path clear for anyone and
everyone to get to him. And we are asked to go to terrifying extremes to keep
ourselves from pulling others off the path.
I like to think of this as Jesus’ way of helping his followers
in making a course correction. Jesus calls us to see and welcome and love
others, even if they are not like us and not a part of our particular tribe or
denomination or flavor of Christianity. He reminds us that our saltiness – the
contribution we make to the world that gives it flavor and brings a word of
grace – is a gift we can only bring if we are willing to live at peace with one
another.[ii]
The events of the world make this passage really come alive
for me. The refugee crisis in the Middle East, and now in Europe, tells the
stories of families and individuals who are literally running for their lives.
And when they hear that there is even a small possibility that someone might be
willing to help them, people have shown that they will do almost anything to
begin again. And I think as much as we want to help, that makes us afraid.
I’ve been trying to analyze what that fear is about. I think
there is fear of people we don’t know… People who dress differently and maybe
worship differently – they seem to us as “other,” not one of us. I that that
fear is also about sharing our resources. Some of us are happy to go through
our closets and cabinets to give away things which are no longer necessary to
us, but when it comes to parting with our money, or donating things which we
think we need, we are at best cautious, and maybe even unwilling to pitch in to
help. I think that we are also afraid that their presence will change us, or
make our part of the story less than what we have imagined it to be.
But their story is also our story. We forget that the
Christian story, in fact the whole story of God’s followers, is a story of
people on the run. From the Hebrew Bible stories of Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Ruth
and Moses, and the ministry of Jesus, the disciples and Paul, we see again and
again evidence that God’s people have always been on the move.
The disciples here are fully invested in their experience of
Jesus and their experience alone. We can be just like them, defining what it
means to be Christian and then casting away anyone who doesn’t agree with us,
down to the most minute detail. If we’re not careful, we make the Church nothing
more than an exclusive club with elaborate initiation rituals and codes of
behavior. But that is not the gospel.[iii]
I’ve been watching the coverage of Pope Francis’ visit to the
United States this week. He’s quite the media darling. And people on opposite
sides of the political and religious spectrums have dissected his speeches,
prayers and sermons, plucking out quotes which defend their own particular
beliefs and interpretations. But the speeches stand on their own, as a whole.
Perhaps the thing I appreciate the most is how eloquently he has articulated
that some things in our lives must be held in tension with one another.
This week I have seem so many reflections of what it means to
open up the Kingdom… in a police officer who goes into the subsidized housing
neighborhoods of his patrol after hours with juice boxes and snacks to sit with
kids in a local playground and share about their days… in the actions of Pope
Francis as he welcomed children and others who his security detail tried to
keep away… in the multi-faith service at Ground Zero in New York City… in the
gathering of donations in our own communities for those who are living in
migration centers as the German government and local churches seek to offer
shelter and hospitality to those who have such great need.
And some needs are even closer to home. I think we can all
agree that offering leadership to the children among us is of great importance.
And we have a pool of dedicated volunteers who have poured their spirit and
their soul into this ministry. But to be blunt, we need more adult people to
help out. The current Army regulations are difficult and annoying, but we get
to choose whether or not it keeps us from doing something important, something
eternal. And the only tool we have to combat them is more vetted volunteers.
I know what some of you are thinking. You’re thinking that you
don’t know enough about the bible to teach it to children. You’re thinking that
you just want to spend an hour in church taking care of your own spirituality.
You’re thinking that living in Europe provides such great opportunities for
travel, you don’t want to pin yourself down to a volunteer job on the weekends.
Or maybe you’re thinking that you want to be able to skip church whenever you
want.
I know that’s what you’re thinking because that’s what I’m
thinking, and those are just the ones I’m willing to share.
But here’s the problem with all of those arguments. They are
about “me”. Maybe the stumbling block is not just about what we do to get in
the way, but also about what we don’t do. And maybe Jesus’ definition about
hell is not about ending up in a particular place of physical pain, but living
outside of the presence of God, in this life and in the life to come. Jesus
didn’t just say, “Let the children come to me.” He also said, “Don’t get in the
way.” These days I wonder if not
volunteering is what’s really getting in the way of the Kingdom of God.
In my first appointment as a relocated military spouse, I
served a church in Alton, Illinois. Our congregation became a part of a network
of churches trying to meet a particular need, and stepping pretty far outside
their comfort zone in the process.
The Temporary Lodging Center was initially described as a
homeless ministry... as Madison County's answer to a homeless shelter for
families with children. But eventually we started thinking of doing more than
just providing shelter. We talked about it as our ministry of hospitality. And
it totally changed the way we understood what we were doing. This wasn’t a
passive handout. Instead, it became an expression of our faith as individuals
and as a congregation.
Instead of preparing a meal for a few and serving it in a
stark setting, we started thinking of the families as guests in our homes. We shared
a meal around the same table. We had conversation. We played games with their
children. As they prepared to settle in, we made sure they had what they needed
for a comfortable night’s sleep. We stayed the night with them, sometimes
rocking crying babies so that moms and dads could get a good night’s sleep. We
prepared breakfast for them and helped them get out to work or wherever they
needed to go for the day. And each night for a week, every ten weeks, we
repeated the same rituals, making connections along the way.
Gradually, we understood that the TLC was a ministry of
presence, not conversion. Judgement about circumstance was put aside. What we
shared was concrete... shelter from the cold, a warm and hopefully friendly
meal, and safety from the street. What we gained was immeasurable, as we were
able to share a little of ourselves in order to help a family in need. Sometimes
it seemed our efforts were not appreciated. But more times than not, our
volunteers came away with a greater appreciated for the realities of the world
and the blessings we have to share.
The task that Jesus gives us is difficult, and often we don’t
know where to begin. Rather than getting caught up in the things that make us
different, Jesus asks us to think about the ways that we are the same… people
who need the Lord.
I close with the quote from Jorge Mario Bergoglio, Pope
Francis, our brother in Christ:
We need to avoid a common temptation nowadays: to discard
whatever proves troublesome. Let us remember the Golden Rule: “Do unto others
as you would have them do unto you” (Mt 7:12)… This Rule points us in a clear
direction. Let us treat others with the same passion and compassion with which
we want to be treated. Let us seek for others the same possibilities which we
seek for ourselves. Let us help others to grow, as we would like to be helped
ourselves. In a word, if we want security, let us give security; if we want
life, let us give life; if we want opportunities, let us provide opportunities.
The yardstick we use for others will be the yardstick which time will use for
us.[iv]
In the name of the Holy Trinity. Amen.
Peace in Christ,
Deb
[ii]
Dawn Chesser, Discipleship Ministries of the UMC, September 27, 2015, http://www.umcdiscipleship.org/worship/lectionary-calendar/eighteenth-sunday-after-pentecost3#preaching
[iii]
Robb McCoy & Eric Fistler, Pupit Fiction Podcast #134. Show Notes for
Proper 21B http://www.pulpitfiction.us/show-notes
[iv]
Pope Francis, Speech to US Congress, September 24, 2015. http://politics.blog.ajc.com/2015/09/24/read-the-full-text-of-pope-francis-speech-to-congress/
With help from This Week’s Focus by The Reverend David
F. Sellery http://us6.campaign-archive2.com/?u=dbffd2070718c7bb6a1b9b7e0&id=5c4e2b6c43&e=ff815e8710 and
Thought provoking...have you been in my prayer journal?!
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