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Rev. Tom Lenhart
Sermon
July 9, 2006
“Why Would Anyone Be A Prophet?”
Ezekiel 2:15 and Mark 6: 1-13
Let us pray.
O God you are behind us
and before us. Lay your hands upon me as I utter these words. And may we all
feel your presence in our souls. Amen
When I read
today’s scripture lesson from Mark I smiled. That is an odd reaction I
admit, especially to the first six verses of chapter 6 that chronicle
rejection of Jesus ministry by his family and by those in his hometown –by
those who knew him best and longest. Think about your own life. At least for
me the rejections and criticisms of those I am closest to hurt the most.
They are the ones that keep me up at night -- tossing and turning. While
we expect at times blunt honesty from friends and loved ones we do not
expect harsh criticism and total rejection. I think that is why Jesus is
described as being amazed at the unbelief of his family and friends.
So why my smile and
amusement when I re-read this passage this week? I grew up in a household in
which the most common family activity was arguing. Let me hasten to add that
by that I do not mean jelling at one another in anger. No, I mean arguing in
the sense of debating. These family debates ranged far and wide over ideas
and issues -- from the merits of a current movie, to the significance of the
latest political or social movement, to the necessity of war or other
government actions. Lead by a father, who was an intercollegiate debating
champion – these were serious and passionate affairs with no quarter given
or asked for. Rarely, did one change the mind of one’s opponents on a
particular issue. So it was that the unsuccessful proponent -- the one being
out voted but never defeated --would often end the discussion quoting
loosely from our passage from Mark by saying, “well you know a prophet is
not without honor except in his own country.” A somewhat polite short hand
for the blunt assertion: “I am right and you are too thick to get it.” So it
was that I smiled when I re-read this scripture passage. But when I read it
with closer attention I saw that it is wonderfully insightful and
provocative.
This phrase about
prophets being without honor in their own country is found with slight
variations in all of the gospels. Indeed, it is found in the non canonical
Gnostic Gospel of Thomas where it is rendered, "A prophet is not acceptable
in his home town; a doctor does not heal those who know him." (Gospel of
Thomas, 31). It was clearly an expression in common currency in Jesus’ day.
Why did Jesus utter it or better why does Mark report Jesus’ uttering it?
What was the point?
Before we
turn to understanding what was going on in Jesus’ hometown, we need to start
out with a couple of preliminary points. A prophet in the Bible is not a
fortune teller. Whether we are talking about Moses, Ezekiel, Jeremiah or
Isaiah, as prophets they are not simply or principally predictors of the
future. That is not to say, however, that on occasion they did not predict
the future – because they did --often with respect to the fate of the people
of Israel in the short and long term. Indeed, in Deuteronomy Moses counsels
against too quick acceptance of individual prophetic claims saying “if a
prophet speaks in the name of the Lord but the thing does not take place or
prove true, it is a word the Lord has not spoken.” (Deuteronomy 18:21) The
essence of a biblical prophet is not predictions but that a prophet speaks
the word of God –whether it is about the past, present or future. As
Jeremiah’s report of God’s call of him poignantly reports, “Then the Lord
put out his hand and touched my mouth and the Lord said to me, ‘Now I have
put words in your mouth.’” (Jeremiah 1:9)
Additionally, no one ever
chooses to be a prophet. Virtually every report describes the target of
God’s call making every possible argument and objection as to why he is ill
equipped or unworthy. In the book of Judges Gideon seeks to avoid God’s call
because his tribe is weak. (Judges 6:15) Moses raises a series of objections
to his call, including his lack of ability to speak publically. (Exodus
3:11, 4:1, 10) Jeremiah seeks to avoid his call, invoking his youth and
inarticulateness. (Jeremiah 1:6)
Thus, a prophet is called
by God and speaks God’s words. Moreover, a prophet is not in it for personal
gain or because he wants to be one. Indeed, I suspect to paraphrase W. C.
Field’s famous epitaph each doubtless would have answered that all things
being equal they’d rather have been in Philadelphia than a prophet. But in
all seriousness these are remarkably appealing individuals -- people with a
special relationship with God, speaking the truth and humble to boot. Yet,
the reality is found in the statement Jesus quotes -- they were often not
accepted by those who knew them best. Why did the people then and do we
now have so much trouble accepting Jesus?
Our passage from Mark is
helpful. First, Jesus was rejected because he was too familiar. This was
Mary’s son -- the kid who had grown up in the neighborhood -- down the block
-- and become a carpenter or at least one who worked with his hands. "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? (Mark 6: 3) To paraphrase
the old cliché, familiarity breeds if not contempt at least devaluation
here. And how true is that. Two of my college roommates are doctors and
good ones. And yet I am not sure that I could go to them – for I have seen
them in very non-doctor like circumstances. The problem for Jesus was that
he was also breaking away from the norms and roles that were placed upon
him. One was not to preach about the law – let alone do miracles -- unless
they were learned and educated; and certainly no carpenter could be in such
a position. It is speculated also by scholars that Jesus was breaking the
then current norms in another way. The absence of any mention here of Joseph
may mean that he was dead. As the eldest son Jesus was expected to take care
of his mother. Yet, here was Jesus the itinerant preacher passing through
town and not taking care of his mother. So at least in part the problem was
one of familiarity and the rending of societal norms that generated the
hostility toward and resentment of Jesus.
Stated in a different way
I think it had to do with Jesus identity. In Mark’s Gospel Jesus is
portrayed in very human terms. Theologians and biblical scholars often
describe Mark as the gospel reflecting a very low Christology -- that is
reflecting a greater emphasis on Jesus humanness than certain of the other
gospels. There is no birth narrative -- no virgin birth in Mark –it starts
with Jesus’ ministry and portrays a very human Jesus. That humanness – that
he was like, indeed, was one of and known by his kinsman and neighbors
contributed to his rejection.
While there may be some
in this day and age who find acceptance of Jesus difficult because he is too
human, I suspect that this is not for most of us the identity problem.
Rather our problem comes from the other end. We are most comfortable with a
Jesus, who is human, who is like us – just better. It is the divine part
that is hard for us. The point of John’s famous prologue -- “In the
beginning was the Word and the Word was with God, and the Word was God”
(John 1:1-3) – the divinity of Jesus – that is for us the hard part. We are
most comfortable with a Jesus that is an exemplar -- the one who sets this
marvelous example for how we should live. And yet if that is the case then
we need no Cross and Easter becomes not a triumphant but simply the fate of
a good man in a bad world. The challenge for those who see only Jesus’
humanity and not his divinity is that the ultimate outcome is hardly bright.
Emerson and other preachers in the 1820’s were disillusioned by the fact
that their congregations -- who were trying hard to live rightly -- were
nonetheless not transformed nor was the world around them. Good works and
intentions were insufficient. Now don’t get me wrong, I believe in the
humanity of Jesus. It was and is an essential part of God’s gift that the
One sent to us shared our humanity – our joys and sorrows and pains. Yet, it
was equally essential that the gift was more than just that but also divine.
A second reason for
Jesus’ rejection is the substance of his message. Here was the man next
store telling his friends and family that much they believed in was wrong.
First, at least some of their religious rules were not so sacrosanct. Yes,
the Sabbath was holy but illness and infirmities could be healed and other
important activities could take place then. The existing rigidity of
religious ritual and rule was challenged by Jesus. Moreover, there were
challenges to the mores and practices of society. Those that were shut out
of society were to be embraced. And these prescriptions were hard. While it
might be possible to love one’s neighbor -- to love one’s enemy that was
going too far. I can hear the response: “you have to be kidding –to love a
Canaanite or a Samaritan that could be dangerous. And what is this about it
being easier for camel to go through the eye of needle than for a rich man
to get into heaven.” Each of us could probably recite some wisdom or
parable in the gospels that despite the attempts of preachers to explain and
put them in context --still give us pause. I have my list. So I think for
Jesus’ kinsman this was an additional factor that led them to say, “Who does
he think he is.” And I dare say it is Jesus’ message as well as his identity
that causes us doubt and unease.
Let me be clear it is
hard and difficult to follow Jesus successfully. I have no nice neat answer
on how to do that but I have some thoughts -- not entirely my own that may
be helpful. First, slow down and simplify your life. Ours is a much too
busy world. The demands of work are seemingly never ending. No one goes home
today from a job whether it be at 6 PM or 10 PM having finished all that
they had on their “to do” list. And how many come home to a desk of bills,
correspondence, or work for that volunteer organization or church to which
they belong. Even in retirement people are awfully busy today. I marvel at
all that our retirees are doing and much of it is important as we
successfully harness the talent and experience of those in their later
years. And yet I do worry that they too do not stop enough to smell the
roses. There is too little time to think, to prioritize, and to contemplate
what is important and what is not. How many of us are simply propelled from
one moment to the next by the demands of our unfinished tasks and work? I
am not suggesting that people tomorrow in a mass movement quit their jobs or
even worse stop volunteering at the church. No, I am suggesting that we all
intentionally build into our days moments in which the pace of life is
slower – indeed, maybe even a few moments in which we do nothing. Think of
some of the great historic moments of insight -- those eureka moments -- how
many came when the person had stepped back, slowed down and regained
perspective to see perhaps what had always been there. I think the same is
true of faith. I believe that it becomes clearer when we clear away a little
of the busyness and the business of life. As I said in my recent Carillon
letter, I found a clearer sense of faith -- a spiritual renewal -- in of all
things looking at a sunset. As Theodore Ferris, former Rector of Trinity
Church in Boston, wrote, “Don’t try to do everything; leave something to
other people and leave some things to God.”
Second, the way we live
life or as Ferris says our “style of life” is important. We have a better
chance of understanding and following Jesus when we step back from the press
of our culture to live life in an intentional way. The pressure to conform
– to have the latest -- can create a barrier to faith. For in sense we let
fashion dictate who we are. Are we really less if we don’t have the latest
electronic gear, the newest racket or club or that new designer dress? Now I
am not saying that we should never buy anything or that new items do not
improve the quality of our lives; they do. The trick, however, is to
differentiate among the choices and demands placed in front of us. The
challenge is for each of us to make the decisions about our lives and how we
live them -- not for those decisions to be thrust on us or made for us. And
in doing that we are challenged to live our lives as faith demands.
Echoing the Hebrew Bible, Jesus taught us that the guiding principle is
simple – to love our neighbors as ourselves.
At the threshold that
means, I believe, that we must love ourselves. God does --who are we not to?
That does not mean we are perfect – without sin but it does mean we are
ultimately loveable. And of course the same applies to our neighbors. So
easy to say and yet so hard to put into practice. But as we do I submit the
identity of Jesus and the clarity of his message will be clearer.
Finally, we
need to study. We need to know more about our scripture and theology, more
about Jesus and more about the history and development of our church. There
are four gospels. While they are similar, they are also marvelously
different and uniquely insightful. Why four gospels? Because the Good News
of Jesus' life, death and resurrection could not be captured in one; faith
must be understood and applied in the real world. Each of the four gospels
addresses a different community of Jesus’ followers; all in different places
geographically, socially, ethnically and culturally. They all speak to us.
We know and understand Jesus more completely the more we know. But the
knowing of Jesus is not simply to look backward but to look into our world.
Where do you see the image of God? Where is Jesus at work in our world? It’s
out there often in the least expected place -- in the work of an unnamed
saint who volunteers in a battered woman’s shelter or even in the anonymous
call to 911 by one homeless person to get an ambulance for a neighbor on
the street near death from exposure. It’s not easy to know and accept Jesus;
even his family and friends found it hard. Perhaps, focus on these three --
simplification, style of life and study -- may help.
Thomas Merton in his
book, No Man Is An Island, observes that the discovery of one’s call
in life is not “a sphinx’s riddle, which we solve in one guess or perish.”
Knowing Jesus is likewise not a riddle that we have one guess to solve. It
is for us, like the disciples, a life long journey during which God never
gives up on us no matter have far off course we get. My response is “thank
God.” And thanks be to God. Amen
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