Where are you setting your mind?

 

In this morning’s Gospel (Mark 8:31-38) reading we hear that Jesus has decided that it is now time for him to begin sharing with his Disciples and followers just what the future would have in store for him as well as what they should be preparing themselves for.  Jesus knew that he was going to have to suffer greatly.  He also knew and understood that both he and his teachings where already being openly and vehemently rejected by the orthodox religious leaders.  But then he crossed the line.  He began speaking to them about how he would be killed, and how he would then rise up again after three days.  It is not at all surprising to many of us that Peter had attempted to take Jesus aside so that he could rebuke Jesus.  Nor is it at all a surprise to any of us that it was Jesus who ended up rebuking Peter.

When we read this story, when we study this text, it is so easy for us to see why Jesus would identify Satan as the real source of the conflict.  We know that Jesus is not really claiming that Peter is Satan; rather we know that Jesus is identifying that the real source of the Peter’s actions is being driven by Satan.  And yet it is often so hard for us to identify when Satan is being an active force within our own lives and actions.

Remember that it is Jesus then who tells Peter, “For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.”[1]  It is all too easy for many of us humans to become distracted by side issues rather than keeping our focus on the true objectives.  If you are having some difficulty believing this, than watch closely the next time you are with a friend and their grandchild; observe how easy it is for the child to bait and switch the adult.

Jesus than quickly uses this confrontation as a teachable moment.  He turns to all of those who are gathered around him and tells them some of the key points of this lesson.  If we want to truly be followers of God’s will, then it cannot be about ourselves!  We are going to have to learn how to set our egos aside, and we are going to have to be prepared to make sacrifices for others.  If what we are worried about is how to live the “good life” as taught by either our local community or the world at large, then we have already lost sight of being a part of the Kingdom of God.

One of the key questions asked by Jesus in all of the Gospels is this, “For what will it profit them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life?”[2]  Most of us would not be willing to trade our lives here on earth for a few brief moments of pleasure.  But then that’s not the way to advertise a product that will destroy your life.  Drug dealers do not want you to know about the side effects and the health costs of their products and activities … and neither does Satan.  Why is it that the unhealthy and unsafe habits are so easy to learn and practice, while the good habits are so hard to learn?  Learning to reach out to those in need around us with true love in our hearts is not easy to learn or to remember to practice … but it is what Jesus and God are calling us to do.

Being in relationship with God is not as much about laws and rules as it is about love and respect.  If we truly want to be with God both now and forever, then what we need to do is to remember to reach out to God and all of God’s chilren with genuine respect and with true love.

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[1] Mark 8:33c NRSV

[2] Mark 8:36   NRSV

“… in the wilderness forty days”

In this morning’s Gospel reading (Mark 1:9-15) we discover that after Jesus was baptized, after the voice from heaven declared “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased [1]”; it was then that Jesus was driven by the Spirit to go out into the wilderness for 40 days where he was tempted by Satan, and he was waited upon by the angles.

Our traditions of the Season of Lent have been with the Christian Community for many years.  The beginning of the season is marked by Ash Wednesday, and its end comes 47 days later on Easter morning.  Since there are 7 days of Sabbath between Ash Wednesday and Easter, and since the day of Sabbath is considered to be a day of rest, the length of the Season of Lent is commonly referred to as 40 days. 

I would encourage each one of you to observe some or all of the Christian Traditions of Lent.  For each of the 40 days of Lent you are encouraged to practice the following some or all of the activities: Prayer, Penitence, Self-denial, and Good Works.

For this season of lent I encourage all of us to say at least one prayer each day.  It is not necessary to say a formal or complex prayer each day; rather you are encouraged to speak at least once each day with the Creator.  Maybe you could say a grace or even a thank you before you eat a meal.  Maybe you could pray each day for guidance, strength, or patience.  Some individuals would say that they do not know how to pray, but the truth so far for me has been that every individual I’ve ever meet, even those who have lost their power of hearing or speech, know how to articulate or express, “Now I lay me down to sleep … I pray the Lord my Soul to keep …”

I would also encourage each one of us, for the forty days of Lent, to make reparations for wrongs that we have done; the fancy word used is penitence.  The simplest examples I would share with you would include:

(1) Making an honest admission of having done something wrong,

(2) Giving a truly honest apology,

(3) Doing something “creative” to correct a wrong

(4) Accepting the “punishment” when the wrong cannot be “corrected.”

The classic practice during the season of Lent has been self-denial or sacrifice; which is not the same as penitence or punishment.  Many of us have in the past “given up something for Lent,” but we should be careful and honest in our choices.  We should “choose” something “meaningful” to give up.  We should not choose to give up “proper English,” rather we should give up cursing or swearing.  Don’t say that you are giving up “beats and turnips” for Lent, rather give up candy and wine.  One of my friends once told me that for Lent he was going to give up “going to bed early,” but I suggested that he should rather choose to “get up early in the morning.”  During this season of Lent, if you are going to give up something, then I’d suggest that it be something meaningful that will actually improve your relationship with God and with your sisters and brothers.

As for “Good Works” or the “Giving of Alms,” I’d suggest that for the next 40 days you look closely for ways to give someone else a “hand with their work,” or maybe you could give a little something special to someone else.  But the real key here is the motive for “Giving of Alms” or the doing of “Good Works.”  The best ones are done so that no one else knows about who actually did them; after all the Season of Lent is really about your relationship with the Creator.

Yup, I honestly believed that Jesus had a great idea when he went off by himself for 40 days.  But then he was really alone.  None of us are really ever alone if we are willing to be in relationship with the Creator, the Redeemer, and the Sustainer.  To be totally honest, those who are not in a relationship with God … they are the ones who are truly alone.

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[1] Mark 1:11b NRSV

The Temptation of Solitude and Isolation

     In this morning’s Gospel reading (Mark 9:2-9) we find ourselves no longer at the beginning of the ministry of Jesus.  Rather we now find ourselves somewhere in the middle of this fast paced, deeply personal, and yet openly pubic ministry of Jesus.  We have arrived at a point in this story which will rapidly become a transition point both for Jesus and for all of his followers.  Jesus is in deep need of time to seek rest, but more importantly he is seeking guidance and counsel.  He has left behind a large crowd of believers and doubters, and now he has taken only three of his disciples to be with him.  They now have gone in search of a place far away from the pressing crowds so that Jesus can freely have an opportunity to discern the true will of God for his future, his ministry, and for himself.

“And he was transformed before them, and his clothes became dazzling white, … And there appeared to them Elijah with Moses, who were talking with Jesus.”[1] To us these are not surprising events; after all, we’ve either read all of the Bible or at least the major parts of the New Testament.

But for these three disciples, at this time and place, this vision must have caused them to wonder at first if it was possible that they were seeing a false illusion.  However, I’m also sure that once the three of them agreed that they were all seeing the same event unfolding before them; it was Peter who was elected to interrupt Jesus and offer to build shelters for Jesus and his guests.

And this is where I pause to question the very motives of these three disciples.  When I read these passages, when I listen to this encounter unfold, I am reminded of the temptations of solitude and isolation.  Where the three disciples offering to construct a Holy Place of isolation for these three individuals?  Where they suggesting that Jesus, Elijah, and Moses should remain on this mountain top for the rest of eternity?  Where the disciples suggesting that they should also remain isolated from the rest of the world?  Where they suggesting that none of them should return to the world at large?

Now just to be sure that I’m not misunderstood at this point; I do believe that there is such a space as “sacred space.”  I believe that a Church’s Sanctuary is such a space, and that it should be treated with respect and reverence.  That said, I also believe that a Church’s Sanctuary should be open to all who come to worship God in respect.

It is my belief, and the belief of the United Methodist Church, that we, as a people of God, are called to be “Holy” and to be “set apart from the world.”  And yet we are reminded by Jesus and the Holy Spirit that we are also called to be within the world as a beacon of light and hope.  Our Sanctuary has been set aside as a place for us to worship, but it is also open to all people who would seek to be in relationship with the Creator and with each other.

As Paul wrote, “For we do not proclaim ourselves, we proclaim Jesus Christ as Lord and ourselves as your (servants) for Jesus Sake.”[2]  There is a temptation of retreating into solitude and isolation which comes to every community of faith.  When struggling against worldly temptations and sins, some individuals have found it much easier to retreat from the world and thus surround them-selves with a faith that does not call for them to reach out to their brothers and sisters.

But the voice of God is still calling to us: “This is my Son, the Beloved; listen to him!”[3]  Jesus called his disciples back into the world, and he is still calling to us today.  Jesus is calling to each one of us to reach out in understanding, compassion, and love to all of our sisters and brothers.

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[1] Mark 9:2c, 3a, 4 NSRV

[2] 2^nd Corinthians 4:5 NRSV [Use of the word “servant” in place of “slave” for a positive implication. Rodger White]

[3] Mark 9:7b NRSV

“so that … I myself should not be disqualified”

In this morning’s Gospel reading (Mark 1:40-45) we heard about the response of Jesus to a single man who had come before him begging to be made clean once again because he was suffering with leprosy.  Most of us gathered here today, though we may not have ever meet face to face with anyone who has been suffering the devastating effects of this seriously infectious skin disease, we do know and understand something about the effects upon an individual when they have become an outcast of their society.  Jesus warned this man to tell no one what had happen; he was to only quietly present himself to the local priest and make the required offering for his cleansing.

But this man could not contain himself.  We have no idea how long a time he had been suffering, nor how many times he had asked others to cure him, and so he now spreads the truth far and wide within his own community.  As a result Jesus could no longer openly go about within this community, and he was forced to stay in the country-side.  However, even then he found it hard to find solitude, for the people from all over would continue to seek him out.

And when they eventually discovered where he was staying, he could not turn his back upon them.  Jesus understood that he was sent to be among the people to help them, to encourage them, to heal them, and to lead them into a close relationship with God.

This brings me now to our reading this morning from Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians (9:24-27).  We must be very careful in how we interpret what he has written.  He has chosen to use as an illustration at this point in his writing, the concept of individuals running in a race.  I have only ever had a very limited personal contact with racing.  As a high school student, I was required to take Gym as was everyone.  Over the course of nearly ten years I was slowly introduced to the very subtle differences between running and racing.

Indeed Paul’s statements are correct; there is only one racer who will receive the prize.  I can remember being entered into a cross-country race while I was a Boy Scout in Syracuse.  We all lined-up in an open field, and when the director of the event said, “Ready – Set – GO!” we all ran as fast as we could to finish the two mile race.  During the first half I was among the top five boys, but at the half way mark I began to pull ahead until I was about a hundred yards in front of everyone else.  Then I discovered that the last two hundred yards of the race where uphill to the finish line.  I remember that I finished seventh, and that our Troop received no award; nor even recognition.  Paul was right, “but only one receives the prize”[1]. 

However, there is another way for us to understand what Paul is writing about.  He also shared with his readers that he and they needed to “exercise self-control in all things … do not run aimlessly”[2].  I did not finish in first place for my troop, but I did finish the race. 

In life we have choices to make.  We can choose to live by the ever changing values and the continually shifting rules taught to us by our present day society or by the world at large.  However, I’d rather believe that Paul is encouraging us to choose to live by the rules given to us bu our true Creator; God.  I believe, like Paul, that the greatest values in life are ones shown to us by our brother Jesus.  And the greatest prize of all is the gift given to us by the true Creator; the choice is ours to make.

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[1] 1^st Corinthians 9:24b NRSV

[2] 1^st Corinthians 9:25-26[edited from] NRSV

Everyone is searching for ... ?

In this morning’s Gospel reading (Mark 1:29-39) we are continuing with Mark’s fast paced story of the ministry of Jesus, his first four disciples, and their mission to the world.  After preaching and healing in the local synagogue, they have gone to the home of Simon and Andrew to seek both refreshment and rest.  But first Jesus will have to heal Simon’s Mother-in-law of her affliction before she can prepare food and wait upon them.  And now, their time of rest can begin, but as the sun sets the whole city is gathering around the door, for they have brought those who are either sick or possessed.  Jesus would not turn them away, and so he must work late into the evening and the night.

Jesus did have a chance to sleep a little.  But well before sun rise he went out to be alone; to be in prayer.  If you have not made a point of setting aside, in your own busy schedule, a special time each day for prayer, then I would suggest that you consider beginning to do so soon.  Maybe you could start with this week, or maybe you might want to try setting aside a special time for prayer during this coming season of Lent.  It was during his time of prayer that Simon and his companions found Jesus.

“When they found him, they said, ‘Everyone is searching for you.’”[1]  Now, my first temptation is to question the word everyone that Simon and his companions have used for I’m sure that the Emperor of Roman was not searching that morning for Jesus.  I know that phrasing the use of the word this way so being a pain, but sometimes that’s the way I respond.  And then I realized that hidden within their question there is a much bigger question.  What is everyone searching for?

The truth is that almost everyone is indeed searching for something.  Maybe they are looking for where they have left the car key, or just where did they set down their wallet?  Maybe they are looking for massive piles of worldly wealth, or just how to find true happiness?  Maybe they know that deep inside there is an emptiness, and they are trying desperately to find sometime that will fill that great void within theirselves? 

If you really are searching for Jesus, God, and the Holy Spirit … if you are really seeking the will of God within your life, then you do need to find a closer relationship with Jesus.  You really are searching for the real Jesus.  There is a lot to be discovered by reading the Gospels and the entire Bible.  There is a lot to be learned by praying to be shown a clearer vision of what is the true will of God within our lives.

The choice is ours to make.  We can choose to listen to the loudly calling voices of this world telling us what are the greatest treasures and values to be possessed and practiced … or we can spend a little more time visiting with God … asking for a clearer understanding of what it means to be a part of the family of God.  Unlike the other life forms that share this world with us, we have been given the power of choice.  We can choose to search for worldly treasures, or we can search for a deeper and closer relationship with our Creator.  And the greatest of the God given gifts … it’s our choice.

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[1] Mark 1:37 NRSV

“Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up.”

In this morning’s reading from Mark’s Gospel (1:21-28) we hear once again the first account of Jesus healing an individual.  This particular man who was healed just happened to be possessed by an unclean spirit.  He came to the attention of Jesus, not because a loved one had brought him to be healed, but because in his own voice he cried out in protest and thus interupted Jesus and his teachings.  This morning I’m not going to ask us to focus as much on the miricle of Jesus healing an individual as I want us to look more closely at the nature of the response of Jesus to this dusruption.

Many of us gathered here today have experiences in our own personal past when we have seen the interruption of either a teacher or a leader while they were in the middle of a presentation.  Most “good educators” will evaluate the interruption quickly and directly answer the question being posed, and thus incorporate the question or disruption into their teaching.  Questionable teachers will instantly and severly reprimand the individual who has dared to interrupt their important lesson.  Now politicians, as evidenced by our recent election debates, have learned to turn such disrubtions into an opportunity to “preach their message!”

I guess you could say that I’m willing to count Jesus as one of the greatest, if not the best, teacher ever.  Jesus could have ended his command to this man with his first words, “Be silent!”  Did you notice that the evil spirit never truly uttered another intelligable word?  However, Jesus’ true intention was not to only silence this man possessed by an evil spirit.  Jesus knew that this man was possessed, and that this man needed to be set free.  Jesus understood that helping this man to become free at this moment was far more important than finishing a teaching moment with the other individuals present.  In truth, maybe setting this man free was the true lesson to be taught to those who where there to watch this event unfold.  Maybe Jesus wants all of us to remember that we too are called to help our brothers and our sister.  Maybe we need to be reminded a few times that God has sent even us here, into this world, to be witnesses to our brothers and our sisters about the love of God rather than about the coming judgment and condemnation.

In his first letter to the Corinthians, Paul cautions all who would read this letter that, “Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up.”[1]  Yes, knowledge is important and it is valuable, but even more importantly we must remember to remain in love with our Creator as well as with all of our brothers and our sisters.

Paul also wrote great words of advice to all of us who have been freed from the old set of rules, “But take care that this liberty of yours does not somehow become a stumbling block to the weak.”[2]  We have been called – we have been called to rise above our sense of personal freedom.  We have been called back into servitude.  We are also reminded that we have called to help our brothers and our sisters to become as free of “evil spirits” as the man that Jesus had set free.

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[1] 1^st Corinthians 8:1b NRSV

[2] 1 Corinthians 8:9 NRSV

Time to go fishing

In this morning’s reading from the Gospel of Mark (1:14-20) we hear the words of Jesus as he begins to proclaim the good news of God,  “The time is fullfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news.”¹ Okay, let me get this straight now, all I need to do is to announce to everyone around me that God’s Kingdom is near, that all they really need to do is to repent and believe in the good news, and then my work here is done.  I don’t have to do anything else, right?  Everything will be taken care of, right?  I can leave now, right?

Actually, it’s not that simple.  There is more, a lot more to this story.  In fact, there is still more to today’s message, and there is even more to the ministry and the lessons of Jesus.  Jesus understood that his was only one single voice.  Granted, his was a very powerful voice.  As an example, in this morning’s Gospel reading we hear about the time that Jesus was walking past two fishermen, Simon and Andrew, two brothers in business together.  Jesus called to them, “Follow me and I will make you fish for people.” ² 

Did you notice that they did not even hesitate for a moment?  They dropped everything in that moment and followed him.  They did not bother to store their equipment, nor did they bother to give it to relatives or sell to others.  Now this sort of reaction you might think strange, but imagine that it happens twice.  Mark tells us that Jesus only went a little farther, and then he call James and his brother John to leave their father behind with the nets and the boat.

Now I’ll be honest here with you, it would have taken a lot for anyone to have ever been able to call me away from working at my father’s side.  I like to think that it’s because I’m such a loyal person, but that might not be the whole story here.  Why would these four men leave and follow Jesus just because he called to them?  Simon and Andrew might have been tired of fishing; maybe they were looking for a change.  As for James and John, we weren’t told anything about the relationship they might have had with their father.  Maybe they too were looking for a change.

I’d like to also share with you a few additional points of interest.  First, most individuals who have read the entire Gospel of Mark in one or two sittings have commented that the author has a very “fast paced” story-line, especially when compared to either Matthew or Luke.  There seems to be many times when Jesus suddenly leaves one location and appears at another.  There are “extra details” to be found in other accounts that have been left out of Mark’s Gospel, and when we can compare a story with another Gospel we will discover that indeed there are a “few details” that Mark has often left out of his story or else the other authors have made up extra details.

Maybe the reality here is that Jesus had been in Galilee for several weeks.  Maybe these four men had heard Jesus preaching and teaching.  Maybe they had a chance to see that he was even more than just a man of words; maybe they saw Jesus in action affecting the lives of those gathered around him.  I can assure you that watching Jesus in action has affected the thoughts and actions of many of us alive today.  Some of us have been so strongly affected that we have been driven to answer our call.  Many of us have been called to become involved in the ministry of the local church as lay members.  And some of us resisted as long as we could, and then finally answered the call to be ministers.

Secondly, over the months to come we will hear many stories of the 12 Disciples; their callings, their answering, their following, and their missions.  But we should also remember that there were many … many more individuals whose lives where effected by Jesus and his teachings.  That’s still true even today.  Each of us, each of us here today, each one of us who has heard these words … has a choice.  We can share the calling of those who would answer Jesus, we can reach out to every one of our sisters and brother … to each and every child of God … or we can ignore this calling.  God has given each one of us greater freedom than the rest of creation.  We … we have the freedom of choice.  We can choose to turn our backs on Jesus, God, the Holy Spirit, and even our brothers and sisters … or we can choose to follow the teaching of Jesus.

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     ¹ Mark 1:15 NRSV

     ² Mark 1:17 NRSV