Lent 2

The Reverend Martha Frances

Year B, Lent 2

8 March 2009 

Text:  Mark 8: 31-38; Genesis 17: 1-7, 15-16

Other Readings: Psalm 22: 22-30; Romans 4: 13-25 

      A farmer's finest horse disappeared one night.  His neighbors shook their heads & said, "What a terrible thing to happen to you."  The farmer said simply, "Perhaps so; perhaps not.  Time will tell."  A few days later, from over the hill behind the farmhouse came the horse, head held high, leading a whole herd of wild horses.  The neighbors exclaimed, "What great luck!"  "Perhaps so; perhaps not.  Time will tell," replied the farmer.  As the farmer's son began breaking in the wild horses, the most spirited one bucked him off, & he broke his arm.  Again, the neighbors bemoaned, "What terrible luck for your son."  Once again, "Perhaps so; perhaps not.  Time will tell."  The next day, the king's recruiter rode through the countryside, conscripting young men for the army.  The farmer's son was bypassed since he had a broken arm.  The neighbors, not the brightest lights on the tree, declared the farmer truly blessed.  "Perhaps so; perhaps not.  Time will tell," repeated the farmer wisely.

      How many times have we labeled something either very good or very bad, only to find that our first judgment of the situation sorely lacking?  Perhaps Peter could have sympathized with the farmer's neighbors in our gospel lesson today.  Just preceding today's reading, Peter has identified Jesus as the Messiah in what we call the confession at Caesarea Philippi.  We even celebrate a feast day on the 18^th of January each year to commemorate Peter's Confession of Jesus as the Christ.  Immediately, Jesus silences the disciples concerning his identity.  Then, Jesus explains what type of Messiah he is.  In the first passion prediction according to Mark, Jesus announces openly that suffering & death lie ahead for this Messiah.

      The disciples simply cannot imagine their leader Jesus suffering, being further rejected by the religious leaders, actually being killed, & then rising again.  In fact, Peter, usual spokesperson for the disciples, misses Jesus' resurrection prediction completely & takes him aside to rebuke him.  Peter dares strong language with Jesus as "rebuke" is a powerful word often describing Jesus' exorcisms, his casting demons out of a person.  Having just identified Jesus as Messiah, nothing in Peter's Jewish background has prepared him for such a Messiah who suffers & dies.  In defense of Peter, he & the other disciples have left homes, families, & professions to follow Jesus.  They've given three years of their lives to this itinerant preacher, looking forward to Jesus' power play when both the religious authorities & the Romans will learn just who is in charge. 

      Thus, Peter isn't prepared when Jesus, in turn, rebukes him with "Get behind me, Satan!"  What might this rebuke mean?  Could Jesus be tempted to become the conquering messiah they expect & satisfy the religious authorities as well?  Peter offers Jesus a way out just as Satan had in the desert, yet once again, Jesus resists.  No doubt he reminds himself as well as Peter that such is human & not divine thinking & behaving. 

      Jesus then proceeds to outline for his followers what his messiahship will mean for them as well as for him.  Jesus is actually pleading with Peter to continue to follow him when he says, "Get behind me," in much the same way we might ask someone to "back"—to support—us, in some endeavor.  Jesus realizes that he must suffer, not because God wants to see his Son suffer, but because Jesus' understanding of God's will for the people is diametrically opposed to that of the religious authorities.  Actually, Jesus is telling the disciples their responsibility isn't to protect, guide, or possess Jesus but to follow him—whatever the cost.

      Up until now, the disciples have enjoyed following a popular Jesus as he has healed, preached, & comforted the common people.  Now, Jesus' invitation to follow him leads them most likely not to earthly power but to death. Denying themselves, taking up their crosses, & following Jesus might not be too safe for them.  In fact, Jesus says specifically that those who want to save their life will lose it & those who lose their life for his sake will save it.  Wait just a minute now; all of a sudden Jesus is talking life & death, the disciple may say.  Does he mean others might have to forfeit their own lives also?

      In our reading from the Hebrew scriptures today, God changes Abram's name to Abraham & Sarai's name to Sarah as signs that they have been faithful to God thus far & will be called upon to trust God in the covenant God makes with them to parent multitudes which is what Abraham means.  Sarah, by the way, means princess, so God sees her as royalty in birthing Isaac & thus the Hebrew people. 

      But I get ahead of myself.  If you were 100 years old like Abraham, or even 90 like Sarah, & were told God's covenant with you would include child-bearing, would you consider it a blessing?  "Perhaps so; perhaps not.  Time will tell," Sarah might say, & if you know the rest of the story, you'll know that Sarah must have pondered the blessing of this covenant many times in the years following.  According to Paul in today's epistle reading, Abraham hoped against hope that he would indeed father many nations even though his body was as good as dead, & God reckoned Abraham's faith to be righteous & blessed him with sons as well as land.  Often, God's ways are certainly not our ways, are they?

      Certainly Peter had a hard time seeing that anything but horror would come out of the end that Jesus predicted for himself or for his followers.   I'm a bit like Peter here when Jesus says I have to deny myself, take up my cross, & follow him, even if it means following to my death.  I understand what Jesus is saying, but I don't want to believe it—I can't bear the thought.  What does Jesus mean that we have to lose our lives for the gospel's sake in order to save them?  Not many people in today's world have to literally sacrifice their lives for Christ's sake though we hear stories of people like Archbishop Oscar Romero in South America murdered for his faith.  Certainly in World War II, millions of Jews lost their lives in the Nazi gas ovens just because they were Jews. 

      And then I have to get honest with myself & realize that taking my Christian walk seriously meant I've had to die to old ways of living.  Over 20 years ago, I first mourned what I would miss when I gave up drinking alcohol, knowing that it was toxic to me.  Today, I can enumerate how many blessings of health & friends & abundance of life I've gained from being willing to give the booze up.  Over the years, I've explored other character defects & let go of them, submitted to spiritual disciplines to grow in discipleship, & returned to school to take up a new profession.  Basically, I had to die to being the center of my own universe in order to be born again to follow the Messiah. 

      The ancient wisdom which has provided us with this Lenten season & these Lenten lessons to ponder turns us year after year to explore how Christ calls us to be better equipped for discipleship.  Lent comes around once a year because we need to revisit ourselves & discover where the cobwebs are in our own attics.  What wreckage of the past is Christ calling you to surrender to God this Lent?  What cross would Jesus have you take up this year in order to follow him? 

      Amendment of life takes courage which we often lack on our own.  At such times we learn to rely on our Christian community to hold us up in prayer as we do the same for others.  Some people find that they need to make sacramental confession to a priest to prepare for resurrection at Easter.  Our home study groups exploring the nature of God & the necessity of forgiveness in discussing The Shack allow us to grow spiritually with the support of a small part of our community.  It's not too late if you would like to join one of the groups.  Certainly, you may metaphorically walk with Jesus toward crucifixion & eventually resurrection each Friday evening at the Stations of the Cross.  I also commend each of our Holy Week services to you prior to the celebration of Easter.  May we be blessed as a community in the path of discipleship as we move toward the hope of Easter!