Rev. George Miller
Jan 7, 2024
Mark 1:21-31
Last June we witnessed a horrific experience. 5 men went undersea to view the Titanic and
died in a catastrophic implosion.
There was a tide of reactions as it captured our worse fears
- deep, deep waters, claustrophobia, no way out.
It was chilling to think of those men under all that
water.
There were those who felt no sympathy- these men were
billionaires going on a foolish trip, spending foolish money.
Why were we discussing them dying horribly while the rest
of the world was horribly suffering- starving children in Somalia, 26 million
people in Yemen struggling to meet the most basic of needs?
5 men died underwater while in Haiti 51 people died in
floods and 6,000 were evacuated.
Where is our focus?
Who do we deem important and worthy of our collective attention?
Grace goes out equally to the families and children affected
by the lives lost in the Titanic tragedy, Somali, Yemen, and Haiti.
Today we continue journeying with Jesus as he travels
through the landscape of Mark.
After last week’s reading it has become clearer what an
amazing, unique message Mark has.
Mark does not begin with the birth announcement of Matthew.
Mark does not begin in the Temple with an angel like
Luke.
Mark does not feature profound poetry like John.
Mark starts in the bleakest, loneliest place one can be-
the wilderness.
Mark chooses to tell us the Good News of Jesus Christ by
first bringing us to a place of absolute nothingness.
In the wilderness where all the demons and wild things
run free. In the wilderness where
loneliness is real and comfort does not exist.
THAT is where Mark dares to begin and introduce us to the
Son of God.
From the wilderness, we see Jesus baptized, tempted. Then, he enters the land of the living. He proclaims, he tells.
He sees Simon and Andrew fishing and says “Follow me.” He sees James and John mending and says “Follow
me.”
He sees a man enslaved by an unclean spirit and sets him
free.
He enters the home of Simon and upon hearing that his
mother-in-law is unwell in bed, Jesus enters her room and gives her the gift of
wellness.
There is something astounding about this. As Jesus embarks on his ministry, note who he
interacts with and where he goes.
Jesus goes to where the people are. He goes to the most everyday, typical
locations, where everyday people are doing everyday things.
He goes to the lake where hard-working folk are trying
their best to earn a living.
He goes into the family home, the most basic and
important of all dwellings.
Jesus goes into this woman’s bedroom, the most intimate
and personal of spaces.
She has probably worked so hard and done so much that she’s
exhausted in bed.
Jesus dared to reach out a hand, lift her up, and she’s
made well.
She becomes the first person in Mark to experience a
non-demon related miracle of healing.
Side note- once the fever leaves, she immediately served
them. Ever wonder if she was like “Dang,
I really just wanted to sleep!”
But do you hear this?
How amazingly mundane this all is?
Jesus first comes to men who are fishing; meets men who
are mending.
He goes into a multi-generational household to heals the
matriarch.
The salvation of Heaven and gifts of the Good News are first
given to regular, everyday people who
have seen their share of storms, dealt with their share of
broken stuff, who tend to tasks like sweeping, washing, and figuring out how to
make a dollar feed a family.
It is to the people, the most vulnerable, the most
underappreciated that Jesus goes.
Yes, Jesus goes to the local synagogue, but he doesn’t first
go to the majestic and mighty Temple. He
does not go to the council of chief priests.
He does not go to the courtyard of Pilate or the backroom
where billionaires make deals.
Maybe if he had, he would not have been so feared,
perhaps he would not have been killed, perhaps he would have been instructed
how he could use his talents to make a buck.
That is not what Jesus does.
He goes out into the world, out to where ordinary life
takes place, and he sees, and he speaks, he hears and he offers a hand.
Jesus says to those who work and those who mend and those
who worship and those who are feeling unwell.
“Follow me. Be
made well. Sit up. Stand strong.”
Today we celebrate 34 years of serving Jesus. Today we celebrate 34 years of doing our best
to be Christ to the community.
Today we are thankful for all the ways in which Jesus has
met us, and continues to meet us.
There are those of us who have been following Jesus from
birth, those of us who are new.
There are those of us who found Jesus when we were the
most broken, the most unwell, the most tortured by spirits.
There are those of us who feel like we are following
Jesus anew with enriched insight and a different understanding.
Whoever you are, wherever you are- in the wilderness, by
the sea, in the church, at home, sick in bed, Jesus will meet you.
Jesus will come to you.
Jesus knows who you are.
And Jesus is ready to call, ready to hear, ready to extend a hand.
Jesus is ready to say “Bienvenidos- Welcome into the
Kingdom of God and welcome into the Extended Faith Family of Heaven.”
For that, let us say “Amen.”
No comments:
Post a Comment