Reflection on John 6:24-35

 

Looking out the tent opening, all she saw was a vast expanse of…well…nothing.  How long had they been stuck out in the wilderness?  As she nursed her baby in the first hints of light on yet another day that would be meager wilderness wandering, she feared that she had little nourishment to provide the child.  She could already see her own bones.  This wilderness was something quite short of bountiful as far as food was concerned.  Looking at her child, she wondered who would take care of him after she died from starvation.  Would he survive?

There were grumblings from others in the group that maybe everyone should turn back and return to Egypt.  At least slaves got a regular meal.  They slept on their deliberations while she exhaustedly struggled to think clearly early in the morning as she nursed her child.

She did not know what to think.  All she knew was that she loved her little boy, and she wanted to protect him; but when there is no food, there is no food.  Zero plus zero equals zero.  That is really pretty simple math.

That very moment is when she saw the first flake laying on the ground.  She might have mistaken it for an insect, but she saw another and another further still.  She was the first to see the grace of God, though she did not yet know that.  She was the first to witness the gift that would save them all. 

Reaching out the tent opening in curiosity, she picked up one of the accumulated flakes.  

“What is it?” she whispered…in her language the question sounded like, “Manna?”  She smelled it.  It was like bread; bread from heaven.  She tasted it and her stomach jumped with delight.  The nursing session was cut short as she gathered a handful and put some in her baby’s mouth.  The Lord had provided them bread from heaven.

The manna was a gift of bread for the stomach, that is true, but it was also a gift of trust.  If you remember the story from Sunday School, or have read it recently, you will remember that the bread from heaven only lasted for a day.  It spoiled if you tried to keep it for the next.  But, there was no need to keep it for the next because God provided more the next day.  The people had no choice but to trust that the Lord would provide.  The manna provided the gift of trust in God during a time of struggle in the wilderness.

We still hear the voices of people struggling in the wilderness, people who could use the gift of trust in God.  They are people close to us.  They are neighbors who struggle to get by in life.  They are family who struggle with the affects of addiction.  They are friends whose lives have been upended by unforeseen events.  They are us when we fail to see a glimmer of hope in the future.  They are people who look at the clock and see dust collecting on the hands, as if there is no turning…as if there is no future. 

Would it not be nice to see a little manna falling from outside the tent door?  Would it not be nice to be given a little bit of that trust that God has it all handled?

The problem with struggle is that it is sometimes hard to see the provision of God while in the middle of the struggle.  It is as if we are walking around with telescopes attached to our eyes, and all we can see it what is directly in front of us.

This was the case with those 5000 people who ate their fill from the five loaves of bread and two fish that Jesus handed to them with his own hands.  Even after that glorious event of bread from heaven, they still asked if they could have a sign from God.  This may seem ridiculous to us, one of the greatest miracles ever to occur on the face of the earth just happened, and they ask for a sign?

It reminds me of a great Red Skelton joke.  I know that I have told it to you before, and I know that you probably have the thing memorized, but I will tell it again anyway because it is about floods and flooding was on my mind with this week’s rains.  A flood surrounded a man’s house and the waters had reached the edge of the porch.  A rescuer came in a row boat and said, “Climb on in!” but the devout man said, “Oh no, the good Lord will take care of me.”  The water continued to rise to the level of the porch roof and a rescuer in a motor boat came by and said, “Climb on in!” but the devout man said, “Oh no, the good Lord will take care of me.”  Soon the man found himself on the roof of the second story and a rescuer came by in a helicopter and said, “We can pull you up!” but the devout man said, “Oh no, the good Lord will take care of me.”  Well, the man died you see, and when he got up to heaven he asked God, “What happened?”  “I don’t know,” God responded, “I sent two boats and a helicopter for you!”

The 5,000 people who ate their fill of bread from Jesus and asked for yet another sign were like that man.  They had tunnel vision.  They were not able to see God’s provision happening right around them.  Sure they were amazed and ate their fill, but they only received the gift of bread.  They failed to receive the gift of trust.

Jesus seemed to know that though.  He does not chastise them for failing to believe.  He does not chastise them for continuing to worry as they wander in their own personal wilderness seeking nourishment.  He does not chastise them for wanting more bread.  Jesus is not in the business of kicking people while they are down.

Instead, Jesus offers them the gift that will get the hands on the clock moving again, knocking off the dust.  He offers them the gift that will give them hope for the next day, just as God did long ago for that mother out in the wilderness who had her fill of bread.  Jesus offers us the gift of trust.  Jesus offers the gift of himself.

"I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.”

Weather warnings have long been a thing in our household.  There was one day a few years back that we had a tornado warning, and the kids all learned how to go down into the basement in order to take shelter.  They also learned to fear the weather warning. 

Even to this day, whenever a weather warning in issued, the fear level raises to somewhat inappropriate levels in our house.  Granted, I am from Nebraska where tornado warnings are regular enough that they are not a cause of seeking shelter but pulling out the lawn chairs to take a look.  So, I guess levels of inappropriateness are probably a subjective thing. 

But, when a flood warning came blaring from our phones a few years back, Ember gave a sweet gift to everyone in our household who was quaking with fear.  “Don’t worry.  Remember, Jesus is always there for us.”  That is the gift of trust.

"I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.”  Those words are a gift of trust.

Are you struggling to find your way forward in life?  Then come and eat the bread of life. 

Are you wandering in your own wilderness of suffering?  Then come to Jesus and eat the bread that gives life to the world. 

Today, Jesus provides you words that can open up that precious, vital gift of trust.  "I am the bread of life,” he promises.  “Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.”

Reflection on John 6:1-21

 

John 6:1-21

¹Jesus went to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, also called the Sea of Tiberias. ²A large crowd kept following him, because they saw the signs that he was doing for the sick. ³Jesus went up the mountain and sat down there with his disciples. ⁴Now the Passover, the festival of the Jews, was near. ⁵When he looked up and saw a large crowd coming toward him, Jesus said to Philip, “Where are we to buy bread for these people to eat?” ⁶He said this to test him, for he himself knew what he was going to do. ⁷Philip answered him, “Six months’ wages would not buy enough bread for each of them to get a little.” ⁸One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to him, ⁹“There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish. But what are they among so many people?” ¹⁰Jesus said, “Make the people sit down.” Now there was a great deal of grass in the place; so they sat down, about five thousand in all. ¹¹Then Jesus took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were seated; so also the fish, as much as they wanted. ¹²When they were satisfied, he told his disciples, “Gather up the fragments left over, so that nothing may be lost.” ¹³So they gathered them up, and from the fragments of the five barley loaves, left by those who had eaten, they filled twelve baskets. ¹⁴When the people saw the sign that he had done, they began to say, “This is indeed the prophet who is to come into the world.”
 ¹⁵When Jesus realized that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, he withdrew again to the mountain by himself.

 ¹⁶When evening came, his disciples went down to the sea, ¹⁷got into a boat, and started across the sea to Capernaum. It was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. ¹⁸The sea became rough because a strong wind was blowing. ¹⁹When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they were terrified. ²⁰But he said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” ²¹Then they wanted to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat reached the land toward which they were going.

Reflection

Ah, the miracle of the loaves and fishes.  In my house of four children, this miracle is one of the most beloved stories in the entire Bible.  The miracle, as told by John, features a child’s lunch being multiplied to help others, and what child does not desire to be a part of something big that helps other people? 

The miracle, as told by John, features the famous green pastures of Psalm 23 where God’s people are restored, and that is just plain cool.  The miracle, as told by John, has Jesus himself feeding his people lots and lots of food with his own hands, and what child does not like lots and lots of food.  One of my children is a teen, need I say more. 

The miracle has that big number in it: five thousand.  I loved big numbers as a kid.  “They sat down, about five thousand in all,” the Bible says.  The number five, tipping us off that this story is going to be about God’s grace.  Five is the number of grace in the scriptures.  By the way, if you multiply five by five you get Twenty-Five, which in the Bible is “grace upon grace.”  Math is fun. 

Parents like the story too because the miracle, as told by John, has people obediently cleaning up after the meal, and what parent does not love help when cleaning up.  As I said, in my house, this is a beloved Bible story. 

But, what struck me the most about this famous miracle is that John is clear that what happened that day on the green pastures was not a miracle.  Rather, what Jesus did was a “sign.”  John 6:2 says, “A large crowd kept following him, because they saw the signs that he was doing.”  And, again in verse 14 we hear, “When the people saw the sign that he had done, they began to say, ‘This is indeed the prophet who is to come into the world.’”  John wants us to know that this was not a miracle.  It was not a onetime event at which we all just get to marvel.  Rather, it was a sign.  It was something that point to an eternal truth.

Signs.  You know what signs are: a sign participates in the things to which it points.  This may seem like a pedantic definition from an English teacher who simply likes to torture you with overcomplicated grammatical information.  But, we intuitively understand signs and how they function.

Let us take a stop sign for example.  A stop sign definitely participates in the thing to which it points.  What does a stop sign mean?  It means, “stop” of course.  It points to the idea that stopping actually keeps people from crashing into each other and dying.  Stopping is a way of loving the neighbor.  So, how does the sign participate in this idea?  Obviously, people would not stop unless the sign was there to tell you to stop.  In other words, the sign literally participates in the act of stopping.  It tells you to stop, and people stop.  Signs participate in the things to which they point.

So, if this story is a sign, to what idea do the bread and the fish point?  The bread and the fish point to the fact that God/Jesus provides enough.  The bread and the fish point to the abundant grace of God as Jesus himself hands out food for the 5,000 people gathered there.  And, bread and fish are signs because they participate in it by actually being the food for the people.

When most of us think of the primary sign for Christianity, we think of the cross.  We wear them around our necks and adorn our churches with them.  But, the earliest followers of Jesus used the bread and the fish.  Mosaics within people’s homes using the bread and the fish would alert others that this was a safe place of abundant grace.  People drawing fish in the dirt would alert others that they are among people of grace and generosity. 

And, that makes me wonder about this last thing that Jesus says to his followers.  Jesus says, “Gather up the fragments left over, so that nothing may be lost.”

What if you are a sign?  What if you participate in the thing to which you point?  What if you were created by God to be the image of God, the sign of God, right here and right now?  What if you were put here by God as a gift, as a sign that participates in the thing to which we point?

“Gather up the fragments left over, so that nothing may be lost.”  It seems to me that, as Jesus’ people, we are given the gift of being the ones who gather all who Jesus has fed so that none are lost.  We are the clean-up crew!  Millions and millions of people are now a part of the clean-up crew.  See, I told you that parents love this story too!

We are the clean-up crew.  We gather together each and every person that Jesus has fed with grace, so that no one will be lost. 

We are signs.  We participate in the very thing to which we point.  We are signs.  We are grace and abundance with feet, grabbing by the hand all who Jesus loves so that none will be lost. 

You are a sign.  You participate in that thing to which you point.  You are God’s grace-filled clean-up crew.  You gather together all who Jesus loves, even if they appear to be leftovers, no, especially if they appear to be disregarded leftovers.  If they need cleaned up and cared for, you have been given as a gift, as a sign to them that though no one else cares, God still cares.  That is who we are, O people of the bread and the fish.

The dirty man was sitting on the side of the street, alone.  No one approached.  No one stopped, except for a little boy, whose mom was busy talking with a store owner just behind. 

The little boy did not know any better.  The little boy did not know that we do not connect with one such as this. 

The little boy stopped what he was doing, sat down, said “Hello.”  The little boy put his bag of gold fish in front of the dirty man.  “You can have some, mister,” he offered.  And, so, that day on the side of the street, a little boy was a sign of God’s abundance and grace, gathering up the leftovers so that no one might be lost.  He sounds like a little boy that I know, with bread and fish, from one of the best stories that my family knows in the Bible.

Reflection on Mark 6:30-34, 53-56

 

Mark 6:30-34, 53-56

When Jesus sends his disciples out to teach and heal, they minister among large numbers of people. Their work is motivated by Christ’s desire to be among those in need.

³⁰ The apostles gathered around Jesus, and told him all that they had done and taught. ³¹ He said to them, “Come away to a deserted place all by yourselves and rest a while.” For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat. ³² And they went away in the boat to a deserted place by themselves. ³³ Now many saw them going and recognized them, and they hurried there on foot from all the towns and arrived ahead of them. ³⁴ As he went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion for them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things.

  ⁵³ When they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennesaret and moored the boat. ⁵⁴ When they got out of the boat, people at once recognized him, ⁵⁵ and rushed about that whole region and began to bring the sick on mats to wherever they heard he was. ⁵⁶ And wherever he went, into villages or cities or farms, they laid the sick in the marketplaces, and begged him that they might touch even the fringe of his cloak; and all who touched it were healed.

Reflection

“I have no idea what to do!” he said, turning and exiting violently through the door.  The man was normally even tempered, but this was at the end of weeks and weeks of unending work and demand for his attention.  His brain was fried.  He could no longer make even the easiest of decisions.  “What do you want from Dunkin?” his wife asked that morning.  He did not know.  “Get me whatever you want, I don’t know,” he said a little too annoyed…a little too on edge.

As he sat in his desk at work, the man’s supervisor came to stand in front of his desk, looked him square in the eyes and said, “Your little outburst back there has led me to one conclusion.  You need to take the week off.  You need a vacation.  Go.”

When the man tried to protest, the supervisor stated it again as a plain fact, “You need to rest.”

It was not a reprimand.  It was a gift.  Everyone needs to rest.  Everyone needs to clear their mind and get it grounded once again.  Even God rested on the seventh day after creating the world.  Even God gets tired.  I imagine that even God starts to make mistakes when too tired.  How else do you explain giraffes and mosquitoes?  I just know when I get to heaven and ask “Why the mosquitoes?” God is going to say, “You try creating an entire universe!”

The Bible tells us that “on the seventh day God finished the work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all the work that he had done” (Genesis 2:2).  God needed rest, and so do we.

And, so do the apostles.  They had just returned from the hard work of visiting stranger’s homes and figuring out ways to preach to them the good news of the kingdom; they had just returned from allowing oil to drip on people’s heads and instantly seeing their broken limbs heal and the milky eyes of the blind clear; they had just returned from the hard work of sitting with those who are not right in the head, and then discovering that they could cast out the debilitating demons, trusting that the power of Jesus’ name would accomplish it; they had just returned from doing all of this when Jesus rewards them and invites them to “Come away to a deserted place all by yourselves and rest a while” (Mark 6:31). 

“Come away to a deserted place,” Jesus invites.  In the Greek Jesus is actually inviting the apostles to “Come away into the wilderness” in order to rest.  And, that is so curious to me, because as a good buddy’s wife once informed him after he made the arrangements for their summer vacation, “The wilderness is not a spa.” 

She said that as they left for their vacation.  “The wilderness is not a spa.”  Except she did not say it a nice as I did, and she did not say it without swear words.

Apparently, hiking twelve miles in the wilderness, slathered in sunscreen and bug spray, was not on his wife’s list of top destinations for rest and relaxation.  As you can sympathize, there is no one to provide room service in the wilderness.  No one will rub the tension out of your back as you cut your way through the thickets of the wilderness.  There are no massages in the wilderness, unless you consider the work of a colony of mosquitoes to be a multi-therapist full body massage.  I will agree with her that the wilderness is not the first place most people envision when asking their husband to book a place where they can “rest.”

But, it is the place that Jesus invites his followers to go in order to find rest.  Do you not find that curious?  What is it about the wild chaos of the wilderness that Jesus finds particularly restorative?

Remember that Jesus says, “Come away to the wilderness all by yourselves and rest a while” (Mark 6:31).  And, the first thing that catches my attention in this command is the “all by yourselves” part.  The reason that particular phrase catches my attention just might be because I was in a house with four active and loud children while writing this sermon.  The “all by yourselves” part was really calling out to me.  I remember in ancient history, way back in the past, a time when I was able to sit and read a book, alone, in the quiet.  I remember when I could take a nap and not be awoken by, “She took my snack!”  “You said that I could.”  “No, I told her that she couldn’t take it and then she took it!”  I remember when I could go into the bathroom and be alone…actually alone in the bathroom.  Oh, the wilderness just keeps looking more and more like a spa, does it not?

But, that is just my own life influencing how I read the Bible.  I do not think that Jesus is talking at all about the annoyances of life when he mentions going into the wilderness. 

Rather, I think that Jesus has in mind that gift of bread, which floated down in little flakes and filled the bellies of the hungry and wandering Israelites; a gift of God in the wilderness.  I think that Jesus has in mind how those same Israelites only learned to trust God, and God alone, when they were helpless, searching for water in the dry wilderness.  I think that Jesus wants his apostles, more than anything, after tiring from a lot of work, to take some time to center themselves in God once again.  The busyness of life can so easily distract us from God and what God desires.  Life can become distracting and tiresome, even when you are doing God’s work.

Is that not why our minds get so flustered and discombobulated when we are busy?  Is that not why we start making really, really simple and dumb mistakes when we are plowed under in the busyness of life?  Is that not why the busiest and most hectic of times in life are when the bad choices in life are made?  Affairs, substances, withdrawing from things that bring joy, withdrawing from God, these all usually can find a root in a profound lack of rest. Ask any therapist and they will tell you again and again that they see all of these problems stemming from a profound lack of rest.  God is the one who told us that we need to rest.  All of these problems can find a root in a profound lack of trust in God.

Jesus does not want this for us.  Jesus goes out of his way to invite us to rest.  You are invited to go into the wilderness where you have no choice but to trust in God, and find some rest away from the world.  Jesus gives you the gift of a type of wilderness rest where you can finally learn about your place in God’s world once again.  “Come away to the wilderness all by yourselves and rest a while” (Mark 6:31). 

And, that would be a lovely ending to a sermon, would it not?  I could release you all from here, telling you to find a place of rest in the wilderness of these Pennsylvania mountains so that you might learn to trust God once again.  Then you would go off for a while and be restored.  “Amen, go in peace, find your rest” I could say right now, but I will not.  As much as I want that for each of us, and I truly do want that for each of us, myself included, Jesus wants you to know just one more thing before you go.

It is the same truth that I learned while on vacation twenty-three years ago.  Randele and I were taking a break from studying and working and had gone on a trip to a lake in the desolate sand hills of western Nebraska.  While wandering from our campsite, down to the edge of the lake to soak up some sun and rest, I heard a young voice say, “How are you mister?”

I was shocked.  Number one, twenty-three years ago I was not a “mister.”  Number two, I was there to rest.  But, an elementary aged girl sat down next to me anyway.  I guess God was just trying to prepare me for the rest of my life; no peace and quiet.  She jabbered on about nothing for a while, and I just nodded in silent agreement, trying to wish her away, when she suddenly started telling stories about the kind of abuse that she had suffered at the hands of her mother’s various boyfriends.  They were not stories of the worst kinds of abuse, but they were stories of complete indifference to her and rude comments designed to drive her away so that the mother and her boyfriend could exist in a world without the likes of her.  It had to be true.  How else did she end up sitting by the edge of a lake, talking with a complete stranger?

As I was wishing to be alone, was I quietly wishing the same as her mother’s boyfriends?  Was I just prolonging the general desire that she go away? 

As God allowed this to dawn upon me, I sat up and listened while she told her story.  I wondered, has anyone else had ever taken the time to listen to her story before?  And, while she talked, Jesus created in my heart a gift that overcomes our personal annoyances and selfish desires.  That gift is called, “compassion.”  Suddenly, I was looking upon this young girl with compassion.

Compassion.

Compassion is the type of grace that teaches us to care deeply about others.  Compassion is the type of grace that Jesus shows when he and the disciples arrive in the wilderness to get their rest, but rather than finding isolation they are encountered by an abundance of people in desperate need.  Mark tells the story:

“And they went away in the boat to a deserted place by themselves.  Now many saw them going and recognized them, and they hurried there on foot from all the towns and arrived ahead of them.  As [Jesus] went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion for them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things” (Mark 6:32-34).

All of this makes sense.  If our intentional time in the wilderness is supposed to restore us and, once again allow us to trust God and care about all that God cares about, then it makes perfect sense that while in the wilderness Jesus will remind us how to show compassion.  It makes sense that a bunch of people will be there in need of a compassionate shepherd.  It makes sense that a little girl will be there, needing someone to listen and prove that she is worthy of love.  It makes sense that our wilderness rest is so much more than a day at the spa, rather it is a day of being drenched by Jesus with the waters of compassion.

Go ahead, take a vacation into the wilderness.  Learn how to trust Jesus once again.  But, do not be surprised if you find someone there.  Learn, as if for the first time, just how essential compassion is for our lives.  Find your rest in the grace and compassion of Jesus Christ our savior.

Reflection on Mark 6:14-29

 

Mark 6:14-29 (NRSV)      

14 King Herod heard of [the disciples’ preaching,] for Jesus’ name had become known. Some were saying, “John the baptizer has been raised from the dead; and for this reason these powers are at work in him.” 15 But others said, “It is Elijah.” And others said, “It is a prophet, like one of the prophets of old.” 16 But when Herod heard of it, he said, “John, whom I beheaded, has been raised.”

 17 For Herod himself had sent men who arrested John, bound him, and put him in prison on account of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, because Herod had married her. 18 For John had been telling Herod, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.” 19 And Herodias had a grudge against him, and wanted to kill him. But she could not, 20 for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and he protected him. When he heard him, he was greatly perplexed; and yet he liked to listen to him. 21 But an opportunity came when Herod on his birthday gave a banquet for his courtiers and officers and for the leaders of Galilee. 22 When his daughter Herodias came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests; and the king said to the girl, “Ask me for whatever you wish, and I will give it.” 23 And he solemnly swore to her, “Whatever you ask me, I will give you, even half of my kingdom.” 24 She went out and said to her mother, “What should I ask for?” She replied, “The head of John the baptizer.” 25 Immediately she rushed back to the king and requested, “I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter.” 26 The king was deeply grieved; yet out of regard for his oaths and for the guests, he did not want to refuse her. 27 Immediately the king sent a soldier of the guard with orders to bring John’s head. He went and beheaded him in the prison, 28 brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl. Then the girl gave it to her mother. 29 When his disciples heard about it, they came and took his body, and laid it in a tomb.

Reflection

The words of Matthew 6:24 have been ringing in my head all week, working on me, moving me, and getting my attention again and again.  All week, my mind has imagined Jesus’ lips teaching that “No one can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other” (Matthew 6:24).

“No one can serve two masters,” Jesus teaches.  And, though Jesus was very explicitly teaching about wealth when he said this, “You cannot serve God and wealth,” I cannot help but think about how there are so many other influences, alongside money, that compete for our devotion in daily life. 

My mind wanders to the gunman who chose violence over peace yesterday, choosing to shoot at former President Trump, as the pressures of national politics filled his mind.  He chose violence over the ways of God.  “No one can serve two masters.”

My mind wanders to King Herod who respected the man of God, John the Baptist, even after John called him out publically for sinning against God’s ways by marrying his brother’s wife.  Maybe, King Herod even respected (with fear) the man of God who would stand up to him and who obviously stood by God’s principles in the face of possible retaliation from the powerful king.  Because of that respectful fear, the Bible says that King Herod “protected” John the Baptist. 

Unfortunately, King Herod ultimately chose to act in violence against John at the request of his wife in a gruesome act that involved his daughter carrying in the head of John the Baptist on a platter.  “No one can serve two masters.”

What Jesus says is true, despite the fact that most of us believe to our core that we actually can serve two masters.  “There is enough time in the day to serve two masters,” we fool ourselves into believing.  “I have enough talent in multiple areas to get it all done,” we convince ourselves as we try to be all to all people and do all for all people.

However, it always seems to come to a head where we have to choose who our real master is.  When working two jobs at the same time, the moment inevitably happens when both employers expect something important to be done at the same time.  “I need the proposal typed and emailed by 7pm.  You have one hour” one boss says.  “I need you to drive our honored guest to the airport by 7pm,” the other boss demands.  And, then you have to decide.  Which task is the one you will do?  Which master is more important to follow?  How do you decide?  Is it the job that pays more?  Is it the job that impacts most your reputation in the community?  Serving two masters never, and I mean never, ends up going well.

“No one can serve two masters.”

Herod had a choice, he could show respect to God and God’s prophet by continuing to protect the prophet and listen to his words of admonishment, or he could appease his wife and save face in front of his guests. 

You see, Herod promised his daughter Herodias that she could have whatever she asked after she danced beautifully for him and his honored and highly respected guests at a banquet.  After her young body finished twirling and spinning rhythmically, the guests looked on as the promise rang through the hall.  “Whatever you ask me, I will give you, even half of my kingdom” (Mark 6:22).  All heard the king’s promise.  They also all heard daughter’s request, who after consulting with her mother, asked for John’s head on a platter. 

When pressed with two competing masters, which one prevails?  God or wife?  God or honor in front of the guests? 

“No one can serve two masters.”

As the young girl walked gingerly toward her mother, the head still dripping with blood pooling on the ornate serving tray, all of us can see who Herod’s true master is.

“No one can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other” (Matthew 6:24).  Violence often follows when the wrong master is chosen.

The gunman yesterday had a choice, trust in Jesus’ ways of peace and trust in the democratic process, or use violence to force what he thought was right. 

He is not the only one to be trapped between two masters.  Whenever peace is fractured and people are harmed, just before the violence there is always a choice that was made between two masters.

And, that is why this terrible story of John’s beheading is smack dab in the middle of the story of Jesus sending out the apostles to heal people and save them from demons.  That story begins with Jesus telling the disciples to go and minister to the people carrying nothing with them but a staff; no food, no overcoat, and no bag.  They have one singular job, to be reflections of Jesus’ healing and grace.  No other masters are allowed to be on the journey with them, only the good news of Jesus.  Jesus is their only master.  Jesus is their only influence.

“Take this food over to the neighboring tribe,” the pastor in Africa asked two of his brothers in Christ.

“But, they are evil.  They will kill us,” the two church members retorted.  “They hate us.  Why take them food at all?  Just let them die and we will finally live in peace.  At least allow us to take a sword for protection.”

“Take only the food,” the pastor said again.  “Those who are hungry will not harm the ones who bring a gift.  Jesus gave us a gift of salvation as the Bible says, ‘While we were still sinners;’ while we were still enemies of Jesus.  Grace always comes first.  Jesus is our teacher.  Jesus is our master.  We will do the same.  We will care for them.  We will help them.”

They did as they were told.  They were allowed only one master: Jesus.  All others had to be abandoned. 

The woman from Africa, a classmate of mine who told this story, said that the gift of food to her people was the beginning of a long friendship with their former enemy.  In coming years, they helped each other direct water to their crops during a drought.  They cared for one another as brothers and sisters.  And, it was all because two men were only allowed to have one master: Jesus. 

Allowing only Jesus to be your master is not oppressive, divine overreach.  Rather, it is a gift that allows peace and grace to flourish.

When the disciples return from the mission, on the back side of the interruption of the Herod story where he chooses the wrong master, the disciples come back rejoicing because people were healed with their oil and evil spirits were cast out in Jesus’ name.  They come back rejoicing because goodness flourishes when we Jesus is our only master.

“No one can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other” (Matthew 6:24).

Praise be to God that we have been given the gift of a master who is the embodiment of grace and peace with hands and feet.  Praise be to God that the one who laid down his life for us is our master, even if we are still sinners.  Praise be to God that Jesus is our one and only master. 

Be at peace as you drop all others masters and follow the one who saves: Jesus Christ our Lord.

Reflection on Mark 6:1-13

This past week we just finished celebrating Independence Day.  When we think about Independence Day we often think about a characteristic that we call grit.  George Washington is often thought of as having a good amount of grit.  Before he spent eight years leading the Continental Army in order to gain independence from the British, he suffered a humiliating surrender and truce at Fort Necessity where he was accused of assassination.  This accusation of assassination was brought up again and again in French propaganda; a demoralizing assassination on his own character.  But, George Washington learned from his failures, and through a raw sense of grit, moved on to military victory and an honorable image in the nation’s memory.

Grit, of course, is a passion and perseverance toward a long term goal.  For George Washington grit was a determination to win independence, no matter how hard or how long the fight.  It is fighting, and retreating, and learning from failure, and reformulating a better battle plan, and trying again for years and years until the goal is accomplished. 

There is no doubt that George Washington had grit, and many patriots have looked to him for their inspiration as they continually work toward the fulfillment of the dream of freedom for all.  But, did you know that grit is also at the heart of the Christian faith?   Christian grit, though, has a different source.  It is driven by a more eternal source.

Actually, we can see this Christian grit at play in today’s gospel lesson.  It all starts out when Jesus visits his hometown in order to minister to the people there. 

Jesus enters the synagogue of his hometown and begins to preach.  Those who hear him are astounded.  They say things like, “Where did this man get all this?” and “What is this wisdom that has been given to him?” and “What deeds of power are being done by his hands!”  The people of his hometown are honestly impressed by all that Jesus teaches and the healings that he performs.  Then, it all turns sour rather quickly.

It turns sour in the same way that things turn sour when you have hit the homerun, brought the baseball team to the win, are hoisted on the arms of your teammates, and your Aunt Edna pipes up in front of everyone, “Look how wonderful you are!  I remember when you would just stand in the outfield picking flowers and allowing the ball to fly over your head.” 

“That’s quite enough Aunt Edna!  Thanks for coming to see the game.”

This sort of evisceration is precisely what happens to Jesus.  One minute those who know him and love him are congratulating him, and the next minute they put Jesus in his place.  “Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon, and are not his sisters here with us?” 

Now, this sentence is much more biting than it may seem on the surface.  Jesus came into town, teaching in the synagogue as a Rabbi, a teacher of divine things, but the people of his town are quick to remind him that he is only a carpenter, a day laborer, a simple fix-it man.  Like Aunt Edna, they are putting Jesus in his place. 

And, to make matters worse, they get very personal very quickly.  They call him “the son of Mary” and “brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon,” and they point to more relatives who stand nearby saying, “are not his sisters here with us?” 

“The son of Mary.”  Do you know who they fail to mention?  Joseph!  Did you catch the fact that they refuse to call him “the son of Joseph?”  That is biting.

Recall that Jesus’ beginnings are rather sketchy.  Jesus is conceived before marriage.  We know that he was conceived through the power of the Holy Spirit, but the townspeople do not know this…or they refuse to believe it.  The townspeople consider Jesus illegitimate, and illegitimate people stay in their illegitimate places in society. 

The short way to put all of this is that, like Washington’s battle at Fort Necessity, Jesus’ ministry to his own people is a complete failure.

To not be supported by your own people is enough to make most people quit.  Again and again we see talented people quit early on because their spouse or friends or parents did not support them in their interests.  I once helped a young woman who wanted to go to Tech School, but was discouraged by her family.  “Why would you do that?  You are not smart.”  Like Jesus, she not only lacked support, she was actively taunted by those who should love and support.

With that said, this taunting was not the end of Jesus’ ministry.  In fact, it was just the beginning. 

Not only did Jesus immediately heal some people of his hometown who were sick after these demoralizing events, but Jesus went further and encouraged his disciples to set out in this same ministry of healing and good news. 

Jesus kept going.  That is grit.  But, it is a particular sort of Christian grit.

What is behind Jesus’ grit?  We are given some clues right in the Bible. 

First, when Jesus sends the disciples out to do the same ministry as he, Jesus instructs them “to take nothing for their journey except a staff; no bread, no bag, no money in their belts; but to wear sandals and not to put on two tunics.”  Now, considering what Jesus just went through, making his disciples depend on the goodwill of others rather than making sure they can support themselves appears to be crazy.  But, if you read a little further it will all come into focus. 

Jesus says that if the disciples are not accepted by those to whom they are ministering, the disciples are to “shake off the dust that is on your feet as a testimony against them.” 

In other words, they are to trust that God will take them wherever they need to go, and they are to trust that God will provide for all their needs. 

What if evil gets in the way?  What if the disciples are not provided for?  What if they are not accepted?  What if they are taunted in the way that Jesus was taunted? 

Then they are to shake it all off and move on, trusting in God.  They are instructed to refuse taking even a single grain of negativity with them as they do God’s work.  Not even the dust of the town should remain on their feet.

A part of the wisdom of grit is understanding when what is happening to you is really because of someone else’s sin and is therefore someone else’s problem.  When you understand that what is happening is something that you are not able to solve, and that only God can solve it, then you can continue on despite the setback.  You cannot solve someone else’s lack of faith.  Only God can do that. 

The only thing that you can do, and the only thing you are asked to do, is sharing the good news of the kingdom.  What happens to it after that is not under your control.

The townspeople of Jesus’ hometown just were not ready to hear the good news.  Their lack of faith was their own problem.  Their lack of faith would in no way hinder Jesus or his ministry. 

And, a person refusing to be hospitable to Jesus’ disciples is that person’s own sin.  Their lack empathy and love has nothing to do with the disciples.  And, it has no bearing on the continuing importance of the mission of Jesus Christ to God’s people.  Certain people’s negativity cannot derail Jesus’ mission.

After-all, Jesus’ mission is to tell the good news of freedom from sin and evil; a freedom that comes from trusting in him. 

It is a mission of healing people of all that keeps them down. 

It is a mission of releasing people from all that holds them back and keeps them from being the people that God created them to be. 

It is a mission of salvation. 

It is a mission that has the potential to change the world. 

It is a mission that shows the world exactly what God’s heavenly kingdom is all about. 

It is a mission of eternal, everlasting love that the world desperately needs.

Jesus has the grit that it takes to overcome the setbacks of stuck up, sinful neighbors and relatives. 

In the same way, Jesus gives his followers the gift of a grit that trusts God and is able to move on when the negativity seems to be overbearing. 

Jesus says, “If any place will not welcome you and they refuse to hear you, as you leave, shake off the dust that is on your feet as a testimony against them.”  

With this special gift of Christian grit, “they went out and proclaimed that all should repent [and] they cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick and cured them.”

 

They have the grit of Jesus Christ, which will not be deterred from the divine task.

It is a special, heavenly grit that allows Jesus to face death on a cross, to face the sins of the world, to bear them all, to drag them all to the grave so that the world might be forgiven and might be free from all that holds it down and holds it back.  Jesus believes in this mission of love so much that nothing, not even death on a cross, and burial in a grave can hold him down.

And that, my friends, is the substance of Christian grit.  It is a deep trust that the end goal of saving the world with forgiveness, freedom, and love is the most important thing and nothing or no one will deter us.  It is the conviction that the good news of Jesus Christ, that the good news of healing, that the good news of freedom from chains, and that the love of all others, is the answer to the world which has been ravaged by the evil one. 

Will evil try to get in the way?  Will the accusers and pessimists try to drag the people of God down?  Will they try to drag Jesus down?  Of course!

But, Jesus Christ has given his followers a gift of grit that can ignore the ways of the evil one and continue on with the mission. 

It is a grit that believes evil will not get the last word, in fact; the word of evil can be ignored.  It is a grit that believes that death cannot win.  It is a grit that trusts God and trusts in God’s mission above all else.  It is a grit that defines who we are and gives us meaning and purpose. 

It is the grit that can only come from an eternal love which does not give up trying to set everyone free: free from illness, free from sin, free from walking in the wrong ways, free from chaos, free from oppressive people and systems, free from unsupportive relatives and neighbors, free to be the people of God who walk around as if the kingdom of God has come near, because it has. 

Jesus has given his followers the gift of a kind of grit that only comes from a faith that trusts in the one who is never held down for good or destroyed; Jesus Christ our Lord.