The Mega Millions lottery on Friday was
worth well over a billion and a half dollars.
That is a lot of money. I was
tempted to purchase a ticket . . . but I wasn’t quite convinced my chances at a
little over one in a little over 300 million were real good. Yet, I did allow myself the thrill of
dreaming for a few minutes . . . dreaming how a billion dollars would change my
life . . . of moving me up into that top one percent . . . of living the rich
life . . . of having it all. Then I
thought, 300 million to one . . . naw!
Jesus’ disciples were doing a little
dreaming as they were still attempting to understand everything that was
happening around them. Though they were
constantly with Jesus . . . hearing his words, seeing his miracles, and doing
his ministry, they still were not certain exactly what they were getting into
as they followed their teacher. One
thing they did understand is that Jesus was the king they had been waiting for. In their understanding of what a king was
like . . . the good life . . . they allowed themselves to dream.
Especially the brothers, James and
John. In their minds they saw that there
was some prime real estate to be had as Jesus ascended to the throne. They saw all the trimmings that come with
being a king . . . after all kings reign in glory, they are honored, and wield
great power. James and John saw
themselves as good and faithful followers; therefore, in their minds, shouldn’t
they be entitled to bask in some of the glory, too?
With this in mind, the two ask Jesus for
a favor . . . “Let one of us sit at your right and the other at your left in your
glory.”
Of course, this did not make the other
disciples happy. Jesus, on the other
hand, is a little intrigued by the request.
He tells the two that they do not understand what it is that they are
asking. He asks them if they think that
they can do as he is doing . . . to “drink the cup” he is drinking or to
be “baptized
in the baptism” that he has been baptized with. With no hesitation the two affirm that they
can. This only confirms for Jesus that
the two still do not understand . . . that they do not understand what it is
Jesus is attempting to teach and show them about following and emulating him.
Jesus tells them that if they truly
follow him . . . live like him, they will “drink the cup I drink and be baptized with
the baptism I am baptized with . . .”; and yet, at the same time they
need to understand that it is not the silver spoon club they are joining, but
the “suffer club”. There is a huge
difference. A huge difference between
the kingdom that they dream of and the kingdom that God calls all to join. Once again, he explains that the kingdom of
God is not like the kingdom of humanity.
No, in the kingdom of God it is to serve that is better than to be
served . . . and, in that service there would be suffering. Jesus invites them to the “suffer club”.
You can just hear the air leaking out as
Jesus pokes their balloons once again.
This is not what the two were dreaming of when they popped their request
on Jesus . . . they were expecting to serve, they were going to be served . . .
and, they sure were not thinking about suffering. Yet, that is what Jesus is calling his
disciples and us to.
The Reverend Sharon Blezard puts it this
way: “. . . Jesus invites us to join the ‘suffer’ club as part of faithful and
radical discipleship, to realize that in following him and in being part of the
reign of God here and now, we open our eyes, our minds, and our hearts to the
realities of this beautiful yet broken world. No one gets out of life on earth
alive, and suffering is a part of the fabric of life.”
Jesus is right. We live in a beautiful but broken world. That is where we live. We need to open our eyes, minds, and hearts
to this reality . . . we live in a beautiful world, but there is much that is
broken. You don’t get one without the
other; yet, we are not much for suffering these days. We have life pretty easy. We have the ability to turn away from that
which is ugly . . . that which shows suffering . . . that which is violent . .
. unjust . . . and evil. We have the
ability to ignore it or relegate it to someone.
We can change the channel, turn it off . . . we can send money to
support missionaries who are on the front line doing the dirty work . . . and,
we don’t even have to leave the conform of our own homes. Despite our denial, the suffering will always
be there in the midst of the beauty. Like
death, there is no escaping it.
Thus, it is that Jesus calls for his
followers to open their eyes, minds, and hearts to this reality. It is a call to service . . . a call to join
the “suffer club”. It is a call that even Jesus himself cannot ignore. He tells his disciples: “For the Son of Man did not come
to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” If you are going to follow Jesus, you are
going to experience suffering. In the
suffering there is beauty, joy, and hope in serving others.
The late Leonard Cohen, from his Jewish
roots, understood that in the suffering the light shines in. In his song, Anthem, he sings:
Ring the bells that still can ring
Forget your perfect offering
There is a crack, a crack in everything
That’s how the light gets in.
The fact is that we live in a beautiful
world that is broken. Into the
brokenness we are called to live our lives in order to discover that there is
beauty, joy, and hope in serving others.
And when we suffer, or suffer with others, we learn what it means to be
fully dependent upon Jesus who shows us the perfect way.
Jesus invites us to join the “suffer
club”. Invites us to discover the
beauty, joy, and hope in serving others . . . to allow the light to shine
through the cracks. We are not the first
to be invited. No, in joining the club
we discover that this moves us into a community that spans across time, place,
and context with others who bear the name of Christ. It is not an exclusive club. It is a big club, with a vast table and good
company, where there is always room for one more.
It may not be the lottery, but it is a
lot better. Amen.
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