March 7, 2004
Trust the Journey
Luke 13:31-35
31 At that very hour some Pharisees came and said
to him, “Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill
you.”
32 He said to them, “Go and tell that fox for
me, ‘Listen, I am casting out demons and performing cures today
and tomorrow, and on the third day I finish my work.
33 Yet today, tomorrow, and the next day I must be
on my way, because it is impossible for a prophet to be killed outside
of Jerusalem.’
34 Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the
prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often have I desired
to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her
wings, and you were not willing!
35 See, your house is left to you. And I tell you,
you will not see me until the time comes when you say, ‘Blessed
is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.’ ”
Loving God, open me to hearing your
Word addressed to me, touching my hurts,
nudging my dreams, guiding my steps. Amen
Lord of the Rings was
the big winner last week at the Oscar awards. 11 nominations, 11 wins!
If you have not seen the movies, it is worth the time and effort to do
so. And if you do not watch the movies, read the series, starting
with the Hobbit.
The tale is all about a journey, a journey that
calls a hobbit out of his comfortable hole in the shire, to take on the
great power of evil, Sauranan. It does seem ridiculous that a small
creature would ever have a chance against the mighty enemy. Almost as
ridiculous as the image of God as being a hen who gathers her chicks
under her wings. How ridiculous! How could this image of God ever stand
up to the evil of the world, which is so often so potent and so
powerful. This is almost as ridiculous as an image of one man taking on
the Roman Army, the Established political system of his day. How could
one man make such a difference against the vast legions of Rome, the
power of so many individuals that ruled every territory with power and
might? And if that was enough to contend with, how could one man try to
fight this battle while at the same time taking on his own religious
tradition? A place where he could find sympathetic ears for his cause
against the Romans? Instead of finding protection, he speaks a message
that irritates and infuriates the leaders of the very tradition he grew
up in. How could Jesus sustain such a life? How could he not give up
hope?
I know that there have been times in my own
personal journey to seek and serve God to live in hope, that I have
struggled with despair, given up hope. This is not an easy thing to
admit, since I have professed many times that I follow a risen Lord,
one who triumphed even when all hope was lost, but it is a fact of my
journey. Now how did I lose hope?
First, I am tempted by distractions to forget who
God is and how God is protecting me, and nurturing me. There is so many
things I ought to be doing, should be doing, could be doing, yet I do
so few things on my ‘to do’ list. I get pulled in so many
directions, and feel stretched thin. If you think of a rubber band, it
can be stretched out to fit over something, but if it is too stretched
it eventually begins to show wear and tear, and then cracks, then
finally gives out. However, if you do use a rubber band, it is good to
use the right size one so it does not over expand, beyond what it was
created to be, and it is good to see that it will return to its
original shape once it has completed its task. I tend to think that
salvation really has to do with what we do for ourselves more than with
what Christ has done for us on the cross.
Second, I often let fear rather than trust rule my
heart. When the Pharisees come to warn Jesus about Herod, I am afraid
for Jesus when he not only refuses to run, but calls Herod a fox.
Receiving this death threat from those who may or may not of been
politically connected to those who wanted Jesus out of town, those who
may or may not have had a genuine concern for Jesus, is no small
matter. When I have been threatened in the past, I usually respond with
panic and fear, more times than not. I do not turn to God, I turn and
run.
Thirdly, I tend to lose focus on what I am doing, I
cover by keeping busy, running from one thing to another, but without a
clear sense of why I am doing all that I have to do. I forget to spend
time in prayer, and study. I misjudge how much energy I have and think
I can get it all done.
Lastly, I can find myself in a sort of tug a war
with myself, and instead of feeling good about the decisions I make, I
start to second guess myself. I become obsessed with mistakes I have
made, and revisit the past instead of being present for the moment.
Instead of trusting God for the future, I try to maintain control,
determined not to make the same mistake again.
You may or may not identify with these ways that I
lose hope. You may have other temptations, and other ways of thinking
that lead you to despair. The point is that as humans we can fall into
the pit of despair, lose hope in the good times and the tough times of
our lives.
We all can learn from the example of Jesus as he
continues his second leg of the journey to Jerusalem. We can learn what
he does, not to lose hope, not just here in the village, but all the
way to the empty tomb. Make no mistake, Jesus was human, and even if he
knew what his purpose and mission on earth was, he could of lost hope.
I can remember when the movie, “The Last Temptation of
Christ” was released. I remember I preached about the human
nature of Jesus and for me it was not a far-fetched idea to think that
Jesus was tempted in all the ways I am, and that if he was somehow
specially protected from that temptation, he would not really
understand my sins, and the purpose of his life and death to save me
from those sins. Well, someone who was visiting for the day took
exception to that notion and argued that Jesus was not human, but
divine, and would not of been tempted by worldly desires. As though
Jesus was not flesh and blood, but a sort of cosmic being just walking
on earth, but did not feel pain. Now that the Passion of the Christ has been
released, it is interesting to note that I have not read one review, or
heard a religious figure say that the suffering of Jesus was not real.
So it seems people have come to accept the humanity of Jesus.
With that said, how does Jesus not lose hope. There
are hints of his trust in God, even in the tough times of his life and
ministry. Today’s gospel lesson gives us clues to the character
of that trust.
First, Jesus does not let the death threat
interrupt his ministry of healing. Death, suffering, danger, all of
these Jesus faces again and again, and yet does not lose his focus on
his purpose in life. He does not retreat in fear, and he reaffirms that
he will only go when his ministry in this place is finished on the
third day. In the face of danger, Jesus acts with boldness and openly
criticizes those who mean him harm. Jesus keeps focused on his pace and
God’s plan for his ministry.
Second, Jesus affirms that God is in control. In
the chapter previous, Jesus preaches to his disciples, “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your
life, what you will eat, or about your body, what you will wear.”(Luke 12:22). Even though he knows that he will
face uncertain dangers, Jesus does not run. He stands with the faith
that God will bring him through. When he states “it is impossible for a prophet to be killed outside of
Jerusalem,” we know that Jesus
expects the worst that those in Jerusalem will throw at him. He knows
that the death threat is not empty. But even still, he does not hide,
he is not dissuaded from his calling.
Third, Jesus does not fight quite the way others
might expect him to. He does not amass an army to take on the Romans,
he does not work through political channels to find ways to reform the
government. He does not rally other Pharisees to his side to challenge
the authority of the High Priest. Rather, Jesus uses a power that is
greater than all other to bring his message of hope to the world. This
power is as delicate as the love of a mother hen gathering her chicks
to her, and powerful enough to erase the sins of those who crucified
him. Love is greater than any power, to truly trust God is to trust in
love no matter how tempting it is to think that some other power is
greater.
We cannot stop all the bad things from happening in
our lives. We cannot know all the dangers we may face, the storms we
must weather. Yet through it all, what really helps us through these
tough times, is the love that surrounds us, the love of God, the love
of family, the love of friends, and the love that comes from unexpected
places in unexpected times. As that old Beatles song says, “We’ll get by with a little help from our
friends”... and with God. Amen
