The passage from Mark has a lot to
challenge us and maybe even frighten us.
These are not the kind of teachings we like to have from Jesus. All too often I think people imagine Jesus as
this all around nice guy who never really says anything mean. But today we read him giving a blanket
condemnation of divorce and remarriage.
He talks about cutting off limbs and plucking out eyes. He has these strange teachings about salt
losing its saltiness – that is chemically impossible. And there is the scene where Jesus is mad
because the disciples couldn’t cure the epileptic boy. He tells them, “You faithless generation, how
much longer must I be among you? How
much longer must I put up with you?”
(Mark 9:19)
You may remember me mentioning when we
started Mark’s gospel that this writing will pull the rug out from under your
feet time and time again. Every time you
think you understand and you think you have Jesus figured out Mark will upend
your understanding. I think that is part
of his point. He wants us to know that
God is deeply loving, and that God is very generous, and that God’s cares for
all people. But we cannot think that
because this is God’s nature that we can figure God out or control God or even
intellectually understand what God is up to.
Instead, we are called to trust, and trust God more deeply than our
brains can comprehend.
Let’s look at some of these scenes in
reverse order. Some Pharisees attempt to
trap Jesus by asking him about divorce.
It’s an entrapping question because there’s no way out. If he says no then he has gone against
Deuteronomy 24:1 which says that a man may divorce his wife for any
reason. The exact wording is, “…she does
not please him because he finds something objectionable about her…” That’s it – grounds for divorce were simply
failing to please a man. You may
remember me joking that a man could divorce his wife on the grounds that he
doesn’t like her meatloaf!
On the other hand, if Jesus says yes a
man can divorce his wife then he’d get into trouble with the powerful Essene
community, a large Jewish sect that forbade divorce under any circumstances.
Jesus’ answer rightfully turns the
question on its head. Marriage is based
on God’s order of creation, not about rules and regulations. Jesus’ private teachings to his disciples
about remarriage being adultery are also rooted in God’s order of creation, not
rules and regulations. His teachings
acknowledge the emotional feelings of betrayal, hurt, and shame that any
emotionally healthy person feels at the break down of an intimate relationship
and the beginning of another.
Notice Jesus does not say people who
remarry will burn in hell forever. He
simply roots the situation in God’s order of creation and names the pains that
go with it.
The scene prior to that talks about
dismembering yourself if part of you causes you to sin. Fortunately I see you have not followed that
advice or I’d be talking to a bunch of blind people without arms and legs. I’d be like that too. Remember, Jesus often uses exaggerated
language in his teachings. And here he
is picking up on an ancient Greek teaching, “Cast away every part of the body
which leads you to intemperance; for it is better to live temperately without
it, than to live whole.” (Sextus
Sentences 13)
It reminds us of the seriousness of
sin. A person who takes his or her sin
lightly also takes God’s grace lightly.
A person who takes his or her sin seriously also appreciates the
undeserved-favor-that-is-God’s-grace as a wonderful gift. Again, can you see that this is rooted in
creation and right relationship with God.
Going back another scene we have the
disciple John wanting to stop who’s doing good work in Jesus’ name. John is acting like Jesus’ name is
proprietary and this other guy hasn’t paid the licensing fee. Once again we see how human logic wants to
put limits on God. The same can be said
for the scene previous to that where the disciples are arguing over who was the
greatest. This is a human tendency to
always want to rank and measure ourselves against other people. We want to feel like we are better than them,
and we certainly don’t like being beneath others. But this is all thinking from the human point
of view. It is not God’s way. As I said before, Mark’s gospel will always
witness to the abundance of God’s love, but never let us think we have control
over it, or that we can limit it, or predict it.
And I think that leads us to the very
first scene we read from the gospel. The
disciples are unable to cast a demon out of a boy. Based on his symptoms we can conclude he has
epilepsy. The whole scene is filled with
anger and chaos. There’s a crowd, there
are religious experts, there are the disciples, there’s this father, and his
boy who he wants to have cured. Jesus
enters the scene as well and he seems angry at everyone, calling them a
faithless generation. Then the boy has a
seizure right then and there and Jesus forcefully drives it out.
In the midst of all the chaos the
boy’s father says something that has become famous. “I believe; help my unbelief!” What a strange thing to say! But it is an authentic and deeply revealing
truth. I think we all have felt just
like that man. We want to believe. We need to believe. But it just seems so impossible and we want
to have solid assurance right then and there.
The boy and his father are fortunate that they get it from Jesus.
The final word on this scene is an
interesting one. The disciples ask Jesus
why they could do nothing. He replies, “This
kind can come out only through prayer.”
I think Jesus’ word on prayer and the
father’s words that he believes but help his unbelief go hand in hand.
Prayer is definitely powerful, but
many people treat it like a magical formula:
It is as if God was a divine magician who is available with miraculous
powers if and only if you call upon God correctly. You have to say the right words and say them
in the right way and be thinking the right thoughts and if and only if you do,
then God will act.
But what have we been talking about
Mark’s gospel? God is guaranteed to be
loving, but is God able to be predicted, controlled or understood? No.
Never. Prayer is not a human
being’s ability to dictate to God what God should do. Prayer is a conversation of trust between God
and people.
I suppose we could ask the question,
do we trust in the power of prayer, or do we trust in the one to whom we
pray? If you say you trust in the power
of prayer I’d suggest that is coming from a human point of view. It is as if prayer in and of itself has
power. But if you trust in the one to
whom you pray then you are trusting in God.
When Jesus says this kind only can
come out by prayer he is not suggesting that with the correct prayer technique
the demon, or the epilepsy could be cured.
He is saying that God should be trusted to have the power to cure.
The cure then, is God’s, not ours.
Now don’t get me wrong in what I say
about prayer. Many a hurting and angry
Christian has swallowed their hurt and anger and prayed to God, “This is what I
want, but thy will be done and I’ll be okay with whatever it is.” That is a commendable thought, but is it a
true prayer?
When you’re scared or hurting or angry
then is not the time to pray prim and proper prayers. A prim and proper prayer with fear and anger
subdued within yourself is a very weak prayer indeed. Martin Luther taught to let it out. If you’re scared let God know it. If you’re angry let God know it, even if
you’re angry at God! And if you’re
hurting let God know it.
God knows what you’re trying to hide
in your mind. True prayer, powerful
prayer, is when you are bluntly honest and truthful with God. Then is when you trust not in the power of
your prayer but the power of the one to whom you pray. Then you are bold to trust that God’s love
has a hold of you and won’t let go.
All of today’s gospel reading is about
not legislating how God should act, but knowing with surety that God will act
with love. It’s easier said than
done. The disciples messed up plenty,
and we do too. But God’s love always
gets the final word, and in that we rest our hope.
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