| Mark 12:28-34 "Like A Good Neighbor" |
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| Written by Rev. Don Lee | |
| Saturday, 22 September 2007 | |
28 One of the scribes came near and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, he asked him, ‘Which commandment is the first of all?’ 29Jesus answered, ‘The first is, “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one; 30you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.” 31The second is this, “You shall love your neighbour as yourself.” There is no other commandment greater than these.’ 32Then the scribe said to him, ‘You are right, Teacher; you have truly said that “he is one, and besides him there is no other”; 33and “to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the strength”, and “to love one’s neighbour as oneself”,—this is much more important than all whole burnt-offerings and sacrifices.’ 34When Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, ‘You are not far from the kingdom of God.’ After that no one dared to ask him any question. Prayer: Speak O Lord, for we your people are listening. Amen. I asked my 9 year old son last week if he could ask God any question what would it be? Chris replied that he would ask two questions. “Okay, what two questions would you ask God?” I replied. He said “I would ask God what kind of job will I get later in life. And the 2nd is, “If it doesn’t work out, what am I supposed to do about it?” Never in a million years would I have guessed my 9 year old would come up with those questions! I guess, as my daughter says everyone needs a fall back! “We grow not by getting answers but by asking the right questions.” That’s been my experience. So I’d like you to consider a question. What is God like? That’s an incredibly important question to consider in light of today’s gospel reading. The question naturally segues to the question, “In light of who God is, who are we to be?” If God loves the stranger, the enemy, the poor as our last two weeks of scripture readings have claimed, and if we love God with our entire being, then we will love the stranger, enemy, and the poor too! Sounds good in theory, but why do this? An easy answer is, “God has his reasons!” Not a very satisfying answer, is it? My dad was a photographer. His work as a printer involved creating art work, photographing it, and making it into a negative that could be burned into a printing plate. As a child, I used to watch my dad in develop exposed film in his darkroom. In the eerie red light of the dark room, the exposed photographic paper was immersed into a tray of developer. Slowly, over a period of time, an image would gradually emerge. I think that’s a good image for the journey of faith. It’s a gradual unveiling. What is hidden is slowly revealed over time. And while it may not be very clear why God asks us to do something incredibly difficult things as “loving people we find hard to love” or denying ourselves certain privileges so we can be about more important Kingdom issues, eventually, given time, it will all make sense! 12For now we see in a mirror, dimly…” says 1 Cor. 13:12. “What does God expect of me in light of who God is?” That’s a good paraphrase of the question the scribe asks of Jesus in v. 28: ‘Which commandment is the 1st of all?’ It’s the same question the gospel narrative has breached the last 3 Sundays. In each case someone well respected in the community approaches Jesus, asks him a question, basically “What does God expect of me?” That’s a question we all ought to be asking ourselves. And a discussion of the requirements of the law ensues, basically love God, love others. Yet despite the similarity in these three stories, today’s reading has a far different resolution. Jesus tells the scribe: V. 34, ‘You are not far from the kingdom of God.’ Makes you wonder what earned this inquirer such praise from Jesus? One answer might be to say that he came to Jesus for the right reasons. • There is no evidence he is trying test or trap Jesus. • Nor is there any sign the Scribe is trying to justify himself before Jesus. • Rather there’s a certain sense of humility in the Scribe’s dialogue, an “open-heartedness.” One other major difference: He moves from abstract theological concepts to concrete life application. V.32-33: 32Then the scribe said to him, ‘You are right, Teacher; you have truly said that “he is one, and besides him there is no other”; 33and “to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the strength”, and “to love one’s neighbor as oneself”,—this is much more important than all whole burnt-offerings and sacrifices.’ The scribe takes an abstract concept, the emulation of God’s self-giving love and applies it to everyday life, the change of one’s behavior. The offering of a sacrifice in Jewish temple worship was a sign of repentance. So in answer to the question, “In light of who God is, what does God expect of me?” Repentance, yes, but God prefers we learn to make good choices, (to borrow words from Brother Lawrence) “for the love of God.” God prefers that we learn to be kind to one another, for the love of God. God prefers that we forgive others, for the love of God. God prefers we learn to live generous lives, for the love of God. Ever heard the phrase, “It’s easier to ask forgiveness then to get permission.” Why is that? Because permission is not a given! But try applying this philosophy with your mortgage company or your significant other or your employer and see where it gets you! Seeking forgiveness instead of permission. Have I ever done with God? Sure. We all have at one time or another! But all the repentance in the world isn’t as good as doing the loving thing. The scribe’s epiphany? The true measure of spirituality is not obedience to the law but our ability to love others.” Given this I want you to consider two additional questions: 1) What does it mean to live in authentic Christian community? 2) What characteristics do we as a community of faith want to embody? Authenticity is not always getting things right. Rather authenticity means honesty and transparency. We don’t hide who we are. Authenticity also involved. It is the realization I am just as much a flawed, failed, human being as the person next to me. So I owe it to myself to treat others the way I would want to be treated. In fact Jesus commands this. (The so-called ‘Golden Rule’) The basis for authentic Christian community is that we love one another. Love sees beyond tribal loyalties, politics, personal agendas. It focuses on what we have in common, not on what we disagree about. So what characteristics do we as a community of faith want to embody? Have you ever noticed how often Jesus’ disciples did exactly the opposite of what Jesus asked of them? • They fight over who gets the closest seat to Jesus at meals, • When people reject their message they ask God to torch them! • they shoo children away from Jesus, instead of toward him; • Steal from the group’s communal purse • They sleep during his sermons, • desert him when he needs them the most, • and deny even knowing him to save their own skins. And how did Jesus handle their failures? He celebrated every little victory; every act of kindness, every expression of faith no matter how miniscule. Is that how we treat others? Celebrate every little victory, every act of kindness, every expression of faith no matter how miniscule? Or do we conclude they ought to do better and thus, judge them by their perceived failures? What if we were to change our thinking and assume that people are doing the best they know how? In light of who God is, what does God expect of me? The basis for authentic Christian community is that we love one another. This last week Abu Risha, a tribal leader in Iraq who has been credited with bringing together Anbar sheiks into an alliance against Islamic extremists was killed by a bomb, along with two of his body guards. Unfortunately, it’s the kind of story we read so often in the newspaper we quickly pass over it, especially in light of the death toll in Iraq, of both American forces and the Iraqi people. I don’t know much about Risha; his life or Sunni faith, what his politics were or even how he felt about American forces in his country. But what I do know is that he saw extremists killing innocent people and he used his influence to bring tribal leaders from different backgrounds, even former enemies, into an alliance for the purpose of protecting innocent life. He got them engaged into dialogue and helped them see that what was ultimately at stake was the sacredness of human life. He created community where there was formerly brokenness and dissension. And in my opinion, the world has lost one of its great peacemakers. One last story: Gasan Joseki was a 14th century Buddhist Zen master. During a visit, a university student asked him, “Have you even read the Christian Bible? “No, read it to me…” said Gasan. The student opened the Bible and read from Matthew: “And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow. They toil not, neither do they spin, and yet I say unto you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like on of these…Take therefore no thought for the morrow, for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself.” Gasan said: “Whoever uttered those words I consider an enlightened man.” The student continued reading: “Ask and it shall be given you, seek and ye shall find, knock and it shall be opened unto you. For everyone that asketh receivth, and he that seeketh findeth, and to him that knocketh, it shall be opened.” Gasan remarked, “That is excellent. Whoever said that is not far from Buddhahood.” You know it wasn’t until I placed this story in a historical context; something that really happened, that it took on profound meaning, that someone from a completely different faith tradition could see the universal truth and wisdom in what Jesus taught. And if our community can live by those teachings, to love as God loves, with authenticity, honesty, and integrity. To assume that people are doing the best they know how, and instead of judging their failures, celebrating their victories. We will not be far from the Kingdom of God. So I ask you again, in light of who God is, who are we to be? |
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