Pentecost 16C
Sept. 4, 2016
Deuteronomy 30:15-20
Luke 14:25-33
When Michael
and I go to a restaurant, we usually follow the same routine: he picks up the
menu and 30 seconds later he puts it down, having decided what he wants.
Meanwhile, I look through the menu for several minutes, considering things like
my mood, whether or not I want to bring home leftovers, what food groups I need
more of this day, and how much each dish costs. I weigh pros and cons until the
waiter or waitress comes, and then I ask them what they would order, and then finally,
finally make a decision.
Now, Michael
rolls his eyes at me when I do this (lovingly, I’m sure), but really, am I not
just doing what Jesus tells us to do? I’m counting the cost, considering
carefully all the angles before making my decision. I’m only being a good
Christian. …
Ok, so maybe Jesus didn’t say these
difficult words about the costs of discipleship in reference to ordering food
at a restaurant. But he did say them, and, challenging as they are, his words
to us today are to be considered in all the choices we make, as we strive to be
Christians in this complicated world. Today we hear one of the toughest
teachings of Jesus, a teaching that rubs against what many of us consider our
most cherished values: “Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and
mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and even life itself,
cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not carry the cross and follow me cannot be
my disciple.” Yowzah! It’s amazing Jesus had any disciples at all! Why would he
give the crowd – and us! – such a demanding list of costs to following him?
Doesn’t he want people to follow him?
Why would he scare us away?
His purpose
becomes clearer in the analogies or parables that follow: it is about counting
the cost. A builder doesn’t start building until he knows he has the funds to
finish the project. A king won’t go to war unless he really thinks he’s got a
shot at winning. In more contemporary terms, you don’t sign your kid up for the
traveling hockey team unless you are willing to travel every weekend, missing
church and any number of other activities. You don’t retire until you know you
will be able to afford health insurance. You count the cost before you make big
decisions.
In short,
Jesus is telling us: being a disciple is not a cakewalk. There are costs. There
are things to consider. Yes, I’m here to bring life and salvation, and this
comes as a gift, as pure grace, but when you receive that gift, when you become
a true follower of Christ, there are going to be some things in your life that
can’t be the same as they were before. Your life will change. And some of those
changes won’t come very easily for you.
Demands like
this might sound strange to our 21st century American ears, because
for us, being a Christian seems pretty easy! As Christians we can worship when,
where, and how we please, our lives are not in danger for our beliefs, and we
can generally go to church, put some money in the offering plate, volunteer
when we feel up to it, and enjoy a potluck and some fellowship now and then. We
can engage however much or little we want in this thing called, “being a
Christian.” But texts like these show us that there is something more to the
Christian life than that.
What is that
something more, practically speaking? Jesus talks a big game about taking up
our cross, and giving away everything and turning away from the people dearest
to us… but what does any of that actually look like? Today’s text from
Deuteronomy sheds some light. After a discussion on the ways God has put before
God’s people the option of life and prosperity, or death and adversity, the
author implores us, “Choose life, so that you and your descendants may live!”
Well, when you put it that way, it seems like such an obvious choice! Choose
life and prosperity or death and adversity? Uh, no brainer! I’ll choose life!
But what if we phrased it a little
differently: “Choose what is life-giving.” Suddenly, we are compelled to
consider: what is life-giving? What
choices do I make during the course of the day that are life-giving, for me,
and for the people around me? Are there choices I make that are life-giving for
me, but bring death to someone else?
There’s an Ignatian spirituality
practice that asks this question at the end of each day: what did I do today
that made me feel full of life, and what did I do that made me feel that life
was draining out of me? It’s a hard question to ask, because if you ask it
seriously, and reflect on it deeply, you may find that some of the things you
do that are automatic, or that are coping mechanisms for your stress, are in
fact the very things that drain the life out of you: working too much, eating junk,
drinking or smoking too much. Maybe even, watching mindless TV or YouTube
videos, or getting sucked into Facebook or Pinterest or Instagram, or buying
more stuff. Anyone guilty?
I’ve done this exercise, and was
surprised to find that some of the things that are most difficult for me to do,
like getting up to go for a walk in the morning, are actually, when I think
back, my most life-giving activities, and things I default to, like looking
through Facebook, make me feel tired and wasted. Choosing life, choosing what
is life-giving, is not always such an easy choice, because you know, scrolling
through Facebook is a lot easier than going for a meditative walk, or reading
the Bible, or praying, or speaking up for the poor, or fighting for justice, or
any number of things Jesus calls us to. But as Jesus tells us, choosing his
way, the way of life, comes with costs.
This becomes especially difficult
when we apply it back to Jesus’ tough words today, the ones about hating father
and mother, spouse, siblings, and children. For many of us, these people are
the very thing that brings life to us! Scholars have worked so hard to come to
terms with this – surely Jesus didn’t mean hate
in the way we mean that word. Jesus is about love! The most helpful way I have
come across to understand this is: hate is not so much a feeling, as an action.
To hate something, in Semitic, Jewish, understanding, is to turn away from it, and turn toward the kingdom of God. It might be
that turning toward the kingdom of God is
turning toward your family, that tending to those important relationships is
your most important kingdom job. My grandmother would have said that her most
important vocation – and she did some impressive work for the Church in her day
– was to care for her aging mother. I think my mom would say the same about
when she cared for my grandma, all the way until the moment she left this world
and entered eternal life.
But sometimes, our prioritizing even
these blessed relationships can turn us away from God’s will. I read one
reflection this week from a female pastor, who grew up in a household in which
women speaking in church at all was prohibited. Women should remain silent, and
certainly shouldn’t be pastors! But this woman felt so strongly the call to
serve God in this role. So she had to turn away, to “hate” her parents, to
fulfill God’s will for her. Of course, she still loves them, and spends time
with them, even though they disagree on this point. Like we talked about last
week, letting mutual love continue sometimes requires us to accept our
differences and find a way to embrace each other nonetheless. But this pastor
had to put the will of God ahead of the will of her parents. In Jesus’ words,
she had to hate them.
It’s a high price to pay. We sometimes
have to make tough calls like that in our lives of faith, to make decisions
that best serve the whole Body of Christ, even when they are difficult for us
or for our loved ones. It’s good that Jesus warns us that this life of
dedication to seeking God’s will and following Christ might require some difficult
choices.
But you know what’s even better?
Though Jesus asks us to make some difficult sacrifices, he doesn’t ask that
without offering it himself. And when Jesus makes his ultimate sacrifice, the
result is not just resurrected life for him. It is new life for us. It is the
promise of life and grace and forgiveness, so we know that when we fall short
of the demands of discipleship, when we are confused or overwhelmed by all the
choices before us and aren’t sure which way is the life-giving way, even when
we make the wrong choice: God continues to offer us life. God continues to love
us and forgive us, and place before us again the option of choosing life. That
is the true gift of God’s grace and unconditional love: thanks be to God!
Let us pray… Life-giving God, you bid us to “choose life,” but sometimes this isn’t
as easy for us as it sounds. Grant us the courage to make choices that lead to
life, not only for us, but for all your children, and for our neighbors near
and far. In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
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