A sermon preached at Old South Congregational Church, United Church of Christ,
October 15, 2006.
Text: Mark 10:17-31
The Rev. Susan Reisert, Minister
Sermon prayer: G and M God, in whom is the fullness of light and wisdom, enlighten our minds by your Holy Spirit and grant us grace to receive your Word with reverence and humility. Amen.
In my grandmother's house, there was a picture of Jesus on the second floor at the top of the stairs. Jesus was placed in such a way that he could watch over the three bedrooms that form a cluster on that level of the house. When I was young, I would sometimes spend weekends at my grandparents' house and I would stay in one of those bedrooms that was under the careful watch of the picture of Jesus. The picture is one of those common depictions of Jesus that I am sure most of you have seen. Jesus has long, slightly wavy, light-brown hair, fair skin, and lovely blue eyes. The light is sort of focused on the top of his head and on his face. The expression on his face is one of complete serenity and gentleness. He is the perfect image of the loving and peaceful shepherd.
As I have grown up, I have struggled with that sort of image; it does not reflect the Jesus that I have met in my adulthood. The image of the kind and gentle Jesus has taken hold in a lot of different places and it still influences how a lot of people perceive who Jesus was and is. I know that I have had lots of conversations where people only describe Jesus as gentle and nice. The problem, though, arises when we try to place that gentle and kind Jesus alongside the images presented in a story like the one I read this morning from the Gospel according to Mark. Time and time again, as we enter into the accounts of Jesus' life, we encounter a different Jesus, a Jesus who is more difficult to describe. We encounter a Jesus who brings a very challenging and unsettling message. This is not to say that Jesus wasn't nice and kind, but there is much more to Jesus as he is depicted in Gospel stories.
The Jesus that I see in the picture in my grandmother's house is not the Jesus I experience. The Jesus I experience is, at times, at least slightly stern. He pushes and challenges me to think and to act in new and uncomfortable ways. He expects more from me than I think I can give. He looks into my heart and touches those places of weakness and brokenness.
This week, we encounter a Jesus who defies our desire to find neat definitions to how we should live in this world. We encounter a Jesus who, while he encourages, is also asking for a lot. We encounter a Jesus who names those things to which we cling, those things that we think will make us happy and safe.
This week's story is about the rich man who wants to know how he can inherit eternal life. He is looking for reassurance. He has followed the commandments. He has not murdered or committed adultery. He has not stolen or lied. He has not defrauded anyone. He has honored his father and his mother. Surely, he has done all the things that God expects of him. He wants a magic checklist-a simple way of knowing that he is following God's way. Yet, Jesus looks at him and even as he loves him, he knows what is lacking. Jesus knows what this man clings to: his possessions. So, Jesus tells him to sell everything he has, to give the money to the poor and to follow him. The man is shocked by this news and he goes away without even asking for clarification.
Jesus uses the occasion to teach the disciples as well: "How hard it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God. It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God."
Peter then reminds Jesus that the disciples themselves gave up everything to follow Jesus. Jesus responds by saying that everyone who gives up their house, their family, their fields for his sake and for the sake of the good news will receive a hundredfold in this age and in the one to come, although they should expect to suffer persecution.
What is going on here? What is Jesus really trying to teach? Is this story just about rich people not getting into heaven? Is this story about leaving your family? Is this story just about selling your possessions and giving the money to the poor? Is this story about finding the new magic checklist, that in following it we can be assured of God's approval of us?
One might be able to argue for all of those things, but I don't think that is really what is going on in this passage. In fact, I think that believing that this lesson is only about selling your possessions and giving the money to the poor may place you in the same trap that the man fell into in the first place. The point is that there is no one thing that you need to do to enter the kingdom. There is no check-list, if you will, with your name on it and someone keeping score. We need to be careful not to fall into the trap, as if selling our possessions would be the ticket to the kingdom. We need to look deeper.
Certainly, this story is about fear of death. The very first question proves this: "Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" But, perhaps most of all, this story is about fear of life itself and relationship with God. This story is about confronting those things to which we cling, those things that make us feel safe or successful, those things for which we strive, in order to fill or relieve the emptiness of this life. Whether it be money, status, possessions, land, and even some forms of relationships where we attach ourselves to other people as if they can complete that which is incomplete in us-- they can all be dangerous if we solely rely on them to fulfill our needs, to fill the emptiness that is part of our humanity. When we think that we can fulfill our own needs, when we think that we are self-sufficient, we are fooling ourselves.
The lesson in today's story involves the naming of those things which keep us from experiencing the fullness of God's love. The man had followed the commandments, but Jesus knew that he was not following those commandments in order to develop his relationship with God; his only concern was about inheriting eternal life. The man was selfish, and even though Jesus showed love for him in his misguided attempt to fulfill God's expectations of him, the man could not even consider for a moment giving up those things that made him feel safe.
This story is about confronting those earthly things that make us feel safe. This story is about bringing those things into God's care and asking for help and guidance. The eye of the needle is having the courage to confront our weaknesses, our tendencies toward sinfulness, our unhealthy relationships. The eye of the needle is to see how our society defines success and how God defines success and to know that there is a radical and profound difference between the two. This story is not so much about giving things away as it is about letting go. Giving things away is like.
The situation of the church is very different than it was in the first century when Mark wrote his Gospel for a fledgling church full of people who had left their families in order to pursue the new life, only to find, of course, that leaving those safe relationships was harder than they had anticipated. Our society is also very different. But the story in so many ways is not different at all. Most of us do not have to leave our families to become Christians, but we do struggle with the demands of faithfulness. We also struggle to experience a "thumbs up," a star on the forehead from God in how we conduct ourselves. We also struggle with the tension between our lives of faith and the standards of the society in which we live.
So, what are the implications for us in this life? We do need to confront those things that keep us from experiencing the fullness of God's love for us. We cannot experience the joy of that presence when we are bound to earthly things. We need to confront those things honestly whether they are money, status, possessions, a job, friends and family and we must bring them into God's care. All things are possible with God's help.
This is the way of discipleship-- to let go of those things which bind us, those things that we think will make us comfortable and safe but never really do-- and to follow God, to follow God in the life of a community of faith. Why we should do this should be quite clear. The possibilities for building the kingdom in our own midst, in this world, are real. That is part of God's promise to us as it has been carried to us through Jesus Christ. In confronting and asking God to help us let go of those earthly things which bind us, we receive a hundredfold.
Our call is to do our part in bringing the kingdom into our midst, to resist the temptation of despair, to resist the temptation to be selfish and to only seek our own salvation. The challenge is to witness to our experience of God's profound love for us, to share the gift so that it may take root. This way of discipleship is our only hope in making this world a better place, our only hope in transforming the brokenness, the violence, the fearfulness which tears our fragile existence.
May God be with us as we continue to struggle with our lives of faith-- as individuals and as a community. May God be with us as we continue to strive for the kingdom of God in our midst by being a people committed to justice and compassion. May God be with us as we continue to struggle against the temptation of despair, as we attempt to let go of our fears and as we struggle not to walk away from God's challenges. May God be with us as we endeavor to share the wonderful gift of God's love and as we participate in the transformation of this world. Amen.