Year B
Second Sunday in Lent
March 1, 2015 and March 8, 2009
Cross~Wind UMC
Title: Creative Insecurity
Going deeper
Mark 8:31-38
Mark
8:31-33 is the first prophecy of the passion. It presents a summary of the
gospel message as Mark understands it. Paul offers a similar summary in I
Corinthians 15:3-4, Luke will offer a similar summary several times: Acts
2:23-24, Acts 3:15, 3:18, Acts 13:27-31. The emphasis of the summary in Luke
refers to the sinful actions of people, “but God” raised him to life. In both
Paul and Luke, the emphasis is the fulfillment of scripture. Here is the two
steps of suffering and resurrection as Mark understands it. 31 Then he began to teach them
that the Son of Man must [divine necessity for the innocent suffering and
death of Jesus in fulfillment of Scripture. This view of the death of Jesus
corresponds well with Galatians 5:2, which says that Christ loved us and gave
himself up for us. All of this would imply that Jesus made the cross and
resurrection the goal of his life, something that much of modern scholarship
would find difficult to accept.[1]]
undergo great suffering, and be rejected
by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, [here comes the second step]
and after three days rise again. [Mark
will compose his Gospel along the same lines, culminating in the last week of
the life of Jesus. He will portray the intensity of opposition of Jewish
leaders, the agreement of Roman justice in his death, and finally “but God”
raised him to new life. Thus, Mark
says that at this critical moment, Jesus began to teach his disciples that the
Son of Man must undergo great suffering. In doing so, Jesus would be taking an
active role in the suffering he will soon endure. Some scholars believe Jesus
concluded that the Son of Man and Messiah must suffer. Thus, although Mark has
framed the prophecy that reflect post-Easter faith, there is no reason to think
Jesus could not have thought creatively about his own fate, in light of the
prophets, the death of John, and the hostility of Jewish leaders. Jesus may
have surmised his fate, but the details may come from the early preaching of
the church. Thus, Mark will add that the elders, the chief priests, and the
scribes rejected Jesus. They had him killed. This entire portion is in the passive,
meaning it describes something Jesus must suffer at the hands of others. After
three days he will rise again, an action performed by God, although we should
note that he does not specifically say that this fulfills scripture. Paul will
do so in his summary of the gospel message. Though the text is framed in the
light of post-Easter events, it is likely that Jesus prepared the disciples
with the concept of Messianic suffering and later exaltation. This would mean that Jesus made the unique
combination of the Isaiah 53 passage with the apocalyptic hope regarding the
Son of Man. In this view, the Son of Man, even as Isaiah 53 points to the later
victory of the suffering servant, would find God exalting him. Note the
extensive treatment for suffering, rejection, and death, and the brief
reference to resurrection. Mark does not
want his church to use Easter to escape Lent and Good Friday. At the heart of the rejection of Jesus is the
rejection of the religious establishment.
One popular preacher said: “You cannot succeed preaching the cross. People do not want to hear that; they already
have enough problems.”32 He
said all this quite openly. [In each of the three Markan passion
predictions, this pattern continues: After every reference to his approaching death,
Jesus begins a new lesson on discipleship. Peter identifies Jesus as the
Messiah, and immediately Jesus turns around and challenges his understanding of
who the Messiah is. This is not what Peter expects to hear. Not only is the
prediction of the passion decidedly unwelcome news, but Jesus presents it in a
new manner.] And Peter took him aside and
began to rebuke him. [It seems hardly surprising that Peter takes exception
to the scenario Jesus outlines. After
all, Peter had finally caught on: He had confessed Jesus to be the
Messiah. Instead of congratulating him
on his insight or rewarding Peter for his faith, Jesus instead silenced him.
Peter’s reaction is life-like and patronizing.
Peter once again acts as the leader, but this time in an almost protective
way. Peter’s protective action both
challenges Jesus’ authority over his own disciples and denies the hard truth
that Jesus proclaims to them.]33 But
turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind
me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human
things.”[The education of the disciples continues. Jesus’ reaction suggests
he was tempted in much the same way as in the wilderness, to accept popular
definition of the Messiah. Jesus rejects both Peter's message and his attempt
to assume the role of teacher. Jesus
reasserts his leadership position by rebuking Peter and contrasting Peter's ill‑informed,
earthbound view of these events with the divine plan.
Mark 8:34-9:1 is a collection of
sayings around the theme of following Christ. They have to do with loyalty and
fidelity by the followers of Jesus when faced with circumstances that call for
courage and sacrifice. The focus of the rest of Mark is the prediction of the
passion and the recognition that the passion is part of the pattern for
discipleship. 34 He called the
crowd with his disciples, and said to them, “If any want to become my
followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. [In
context, Peter's self‑interested rebuke of Jesus' first passion prediction
appears to be the inspiration for Jesus' first discipleship topic‑‑learning to
leave the self behind. Jesus defines
true disciples as those who can drop their self‑centered concerns and who are
able instead to "take up their cross." Only then, Jesus insists, can
a disciple truly "follow me." The Jesus Seminar says this saying
appeals to the fate of Jesus as the standard of commitment. It reflects a time when the Christian
community was exposed to the pressures of persecution. They claim no evidence exists that the cross
served as a symbol of radical self-denial outside the context of the
crucifixion of Jesus or prior to that event. Further, instead of a soon return
of Jesus, the saying seems to expect the cross to be a long-term proposition.
The verse suggests that the way of the cross was for the multitudes and not
just for the disciples. Following Jesus in this service means co-crucifixion
with Jesus. Paul, in fact, suggests this in Galatians 2:19-20, where he says
that he has been crucified with Christ so that now, his life is a matter of
Christ living in and through him. Pannenberg says that the focus on
discipleship is identification with the destiny of Jesus. This is in keeping
with the sayings of Jesus about the discipleship of the cross, of which this is
one, in which Jesus required his disciples to bear his cross, but only insofar
as they were to bear their own. The bearing of their cross is the consequence
of the special calling and sending they received from God.]35 For those who want to save their life will lose it, and
those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will
save it. [Luke 17:33 is a similar secular proverb. How can one save one’s
life by losing it? “Soul,” meaning even if death is the result, the disciples
has preserved the true self. The saying expresses the supreme value of the true
self. There is no greater gain and no price to be put upon it. Pannenberg notes
that this saying is true first of Jesus. Had Jesus saved his life at the cost
of his proclaiming the divine lordship, he would have actually made himself
independent of God and put himself fin equality with God. He could not be the
Son of God by an unlimited enduring of his finite existence. No finite being can
be one with God in infinite reality. Only as he let his earthly existence be
consumed in service to his mission could Jesus as a creature be one with God.
He did not cling to his life. He chose to accept the ambivalence that his
mission meant for his person, with all its consequences. He showed himself to
be obedient to his mission.[2]
36 For what will it profit
them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life? 37 Indeed, what
can they give in return for their life? [Verses 36-37 are a piece of
proverbial wisdom. This saying extols the supreme value of one’s true self. The
Jesus Seminar says these are sayings of secular wisdom consistent with
Jesus. Acquiring the whole world but
losing the soul would be a bad exchange.
Both are general statements and would find general acceptance. Jesus
offers a pair of rhetorical questions that deepen the new understanding of
"self" that his disciples must grasp.
Clearly, Jesus does not consider the "self" to be a false,
valueless identity that needs to be shrugged off. On the contrary, the "self" is
beyond all value, and thus can only be freely given and freely received. 38
Those who are ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful
generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in the
glory of his Father with the holy angels.” Pannenberg says such a saying
stands at the beginning of Christian confession. It refers to publicly taking
sides in a conflict, in this case, the conflict relating to the message and
person of Jesus.[3]
Here, Jesus attributes the judgment that the Son of Man will pronounce in
correspondence to the message of Jesus and hence according to the criterion of
confession or rejection of Jesus.[4]
The passage draws a parallel between response of people to Jesus on earth and
the reception they can expect from the Son of Man. Here, he is an apocalyptic figure. There is a
parallel in Matthew 10:32-33 and Luke 12:8-9. Daniel 7:13-14 influences
it. Jesus becomes the head of the elect
community. The saying would find particular application to a setting in which
external forces forced the followers of Jesus to acknowledge or deny Jesus. The
possibility of the words of Jesus causing embarrassment implies the absence of
Jesus. Of course, the Gospel of Mark arises out of a community undergoing
persecution. The final directive on discipleship that Jesus extends to this
crowd takes the form of a "sentence of holy law." This distinctly recognizable literary type
promised definite eschatological ramifications to the fulfillment of particular
earthly actions. In general, such
statements of "holy law" offered strength and solace to early
Christians, many of whom faced horrible persecutions and temptations. In this
particular case, however, Jesus gives only the negative side of his "holy
law." He promises that any who are ashamed of him now, as the suffering,
dying Messiah, will be held in shame upon the return of the glorified Son.
While the shame any disciples may display for the crucified Messiah will be
played out only before an "adulterous and sinful generation," the
shame these disciples will suffer at the hands of the glorified Son will take
place before the Risen One, "his Father" and all "the holy
angels"‑‑obviously a far more important crowd!
Introduction
“This particular road was one which
must be walked by every group of disciples in every generation.”
The description of the Messiah Jesus provides is in line
with Isaiah 53 and the suffering servant. Jesus
tells his followers:
“the
Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the
chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again”
(v. 31).
“If
any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their
cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and
those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will
save it” (Mark 8:34-35).
World
events have thrust upon us the question of national security. We have
legitimate concerns about the future, with terrorist actions overseas and their
promise of terrorist action here. Many of us also wrestle with financial
security, whether we are in our working years or in retirement.
Ibis Tek is
a company committed to security. It develops vehicles for police and other
organizations that require them to upgrade vehicles for both defense and
offensive capability. They have a most unusual SUV. This particular sport
utility vehicle rolls out of the Ibis Tek shop in Butler , Pennsylvania United States Middle East , where the expression, “Have a
safe trip,” is more than a pleasantry. It is more like a prayer.
Peter
wanted a secure journey in discipleship. When Jesus said the Son of Man must
suffer, experience rejection, and die, Peter makes it clear he does not want
that journey. He might have liked that Ibis Tek vehicle for this journey to
Jerusalem. He might have liked to become the head of security and design
protective measures for Jesus and the disciples.
Of course,
as it turned out, according to John, Peter had to settle for a simple sword,
which he swung in a desperate attempt to protect Jesus from arrest. Yet, Jesus
did not even want that, as he told Peter to put his sword back in its sheath,
for he must drink the cup the Father has given him (John 18:11).
In fact, we
might suggest that Jesus, far from a focus on security, laid out a course for
some creative insecurity.
Application
The
question for us is this: What weapons are we, as those who seek to follow Jesus , going to use to fight the good fight?
First, Jesus challenges us to make
the cross the center of our arsenal.
Frankly, the way of the cross is
difficult for Christians to understand today, just as it was for the disciples.
The cross was difficult for Peter as well. One popular preacher said:
“You cannot succeed preaching the
cross. People do not want to hear that;
they already have enough problems.”
A Pastor on Northern Vancouver Island
wrote to an online study group this message:
"I'm having difficulty with the
Gospel this week; what is this cross that I am to take up, and what am I to
deny in following Jesus ?"
Another Pastor, a student minister in the United States
"I find this a hard gospel
text because it talks about suffering rather than joy."
The cross has always caused
problems to people.
The cross is a strange weapon, to
be sure, but hear these words again:
“If
any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their
cross and follow me” (v. 34).
When we do this, we put the will of Christ ahead of our own
will; it is to place the needs and desires of others ahead of our own personal
needs and desires; it is to see the world through the cross of self-sacrifice.
You have
probably heard of Gale
Sayers Brian Piccolo
Second, Jesus invites us to install a most unusual guidance
system: one that we program with a willingness to lose our life (v. 35).
None of us
wants to lose something precious. Our lives are precious to us, or at least,
they should be. In particular, if it gives us a sense of security, and we lose
it, we will become anxious. Security is important to us.
Jesus is saying that we should not
value anything more highly than discipleship — even our own lives. Following Jesus is supposed to be our Number One priority,
higher than success, security, wealth, health, power, and prestige.
I think the
notion of denying self is difficult for many people in America
Therefore,
we hesitate to deny self.
Yet, do you not agree that if we
focus too much upon self, if we protect self too much, if we seek security in
self, we open ourselves to the possibility of losing who we are? I understand
it seems paradoxical. We may find our purpose in life as we move beyond self
and have a genuine concern for the lives of others. In giving yourself, you
find yourself. In losing your life to God and the purposes of God, you find
your life.
I recently
came across a prayer of theologian Reinhold Niebuhr
O Lord, who has taught us that to gain
the whole world and to lose our souls is great folly, grant us the grace so to
lose ourselves that we may truly find ourselves anew in the life of grace, and
so to forget ourselves that we may be remembered in your kingdom.
A few years
ago, a group of monks went to southwest Kosovo. At a time when Serb forces were
pillaging their village, the abbot of the Serbian Orthodox monastery took in
scores of the predominantly Muslim ethnic Albanian villagers and sheltered them
within the walls of the monastery. Serb forces came looking for the
townspeople, but the monks told them there was none there. Now these acts could
have cost the monks their monastery, or perhaps even their lives, but they were
willing to lose their lives for Christ ’s sake, and
for the sake of the gospel. The abbot said later that this act was simply the
“Christian thing to do. It was the human thing to do.”
Doing the
“Christian thing.” Doing the “human thing.” That is what it means to walk into
the future without regard for self-preservation. When you travel in this way,
you carry a weapon of salvation that can bring new life to both others and
yourself.
Third, Jesus tells us that it will not be easy to be a follower of Jesus .
Challenges from others will not
cause us to cave in, break down, buckle under, lose our courage and deny Jesus
Christ (v. 38).
38
Those who are ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful
generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in the
glory of his Father with the holy angels.”
It is not easy to stand up for our beliefs, especially in a
culture that is suspicious of all religion.
We may take
some hits when we stand up for Jesus .
In his letter to the Ephesians, Paul
recommends the “whole armor of God”: the belt of truth, the breastplate of
righteousness, the shield of faith and the helmet of salvation (6:13 -17). These four are some
super-strong weapons — truth, righteousness, faith, salvation — and together
they can serve as pieces of armor when you take your stand for what you
believe.
Conclusion
Maybe the
way of Jesus is a way of creative
insecurity.
We do not
need what the world considers security – not even something as extreme as a
fully armored SUV. All you need is the cross, a willingness to lose your life,
and the strength to stand up for Jesus
regardless of the cost. These are what enable you to travel through life as a
disciple and achieve unexpected victories in rather unconventional ways.
On the
other hand, we find true security when Jesus the Christ enters the glory of
Almighty God, bringing those of us who have chosen the way of the cross, the
way of losing our lives, and the way of standing up for Jesus (v. 38).
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