I hope this post finds you well! It's been a busy few weeks here in Pelican Rapids - this past weekend my aunt, mom, cousin, and grandmother made the trek to PR to spend a few days in town - and it was a blast! We got to get out on a hike at a nearby state park, look around Pelican Rapids, eat at our beloved local Cornfield Cafe, and attend church Sunday morning at Zion. Here's the manuscript from this Sunday's sermon:
Sisters and brothers, grace to you and peace from God our
Creator and the Son of David our Healer. Amen.
One
summer day, after I had just finished my fifth grade year in elementary school,
my dad decided that he wanted he, my brothers, and myself, to go to our local
barber and get a flat top haircut – where the hair is simply buzzed flat at the
top of your head. My dad thought it would be neat if we all looked the same.
Well, I tell you what. I came out of that barbershop that
hot summer afternoon looking like a total fool. I had large glasses to boot and
looked pretty ridiculous, while my dad stood beaming at his three sons whose
haircuts all matched. “Isn’t this cool, guys?” he asked. “This is awesome.”
Well, at least, he thought so. The way we saw things, the way we perceived
things in this situation was a night and day difference.
We encounter this same dynamic in our gospel text for today
– Jesus is working in a situation where different people have different
opinions and they see things differently from person to person. Jesus is in his
last days of public ministry, for soon he will be going to Jerusalem,
participating in the Triumphal Entry into the city, and a week later be handed
over to the Roman government at the call of the Jewish people to be flogged and
hang on a cross and die. He has told his disciples two times already that this
must come to pass, forewarning them of his death and resurrection. There’s an
interesting response from the James and John, two of the disciples, here:
“Teacher, we want for you to do for us whatever we ask of you” – and what they
want is an increase in status, an increase in favor from the rest of his
followers.
The disciples have a hard time understanding and seeing
what Jesus has been trying to teach them – and this gets at the core of our
text for today. While the disciples want to sit in glory and drink the same cup
of suffering that Christ has been given, they don’t understand that Christ has
a radically different message. The way of following Jesus is not looking for
prestige or power, but rather living a life of servanthood, a life committed to
mercy and grace. As Jesus instructs his disciples, “but whoever wishes to
become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first
among you must be slave of all.” – Jesus does this to remind his disciples, and
even us today in the pews – that living a life of importance or status does not
rest in claiming glory in religious terms or expectations, but in how you serve
and live for others in a broken world yearning for wholeness.
This comes to fruition in the story at the end of our
passage for today – the disciples perceptions of prestige and power are totally
turned over by a blind man named Bartimaeus. This blind man, a beggar to boot,
gets it. He understands, calling Jesus the Son of David and asks for mercy, for
him to heal his blindness – “My teacher, let me see again.” The disciples – who
want their status elevated, are face-to-face with Bartimaeus, who wants his
status erased. There’s a disconnect here. The disciples cannot see in terms of
faith, while Bartimaeus cannot physically see. Immediately Jesus heals him, and
sends Bartimaeus into the world as a man who can see clearly.
In the story of Bartimaeus, we see the kingdom as it
should be. The last, a blind man and a beggar, are made first. The disciples,
who desire power, are left to question their motives and wants. This is just as
true in our society today – different churches, class structures, and people of
God have vastly different opinions on what it means to be a person of faith,
and everyone interprets faith with a different understanding. Today, we baptize
Lydia Andrienne Gilbert as a child of God, called by the Spirit, and welcomed
into the faith journey that some days she will see clearly, while others there
will be struggles and questions. It’s difficult wrestling, but extraordinarily
meaningful, as we ponder what it means to see Jesus and his work among us.
This begs the question, then, my friends. Who are you? Do
you see yourself in James or John, who desire power and glory for the sake of
importance? Or are you more like a Bartimaeus, who sees clearly what a life of
faith should be like? We are all disciples, yes, but the way that we look out
into the world after hearing the Gospel is so incredibly important. How do you
respond to what God is doing in your life? The Spirit is moving, each and every
moment. How do you see? Amen.
God's peace, friends -
Dean
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