2137AFC091021 – Unbearable?
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Mark 8:29 – 29 He asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered him, “You are the Messiah.”
Mark 8:32-33 – 32 He said all this quite openly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. 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.”
Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us from God the Father and from our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father’s Son, in truth and love. Folks, the readings for this Sunday are heavy stuff! Isaiah’s poetry gives us a mental image of what we recall about Jesus’ so-called trial during his Passion. Here’s a brief sample:
Isaiah 50:6 – 6 I gave my back to those who struck me, and my cheeks to those who pulled out the beard; I did not hide my face from insult and spitting. In the next verse he says, “I have set my face like flint and I know that I shall not be put to shame.
Isaiah continues to describe the fate of the Suffering Servant in the very familiar passage of Isaiah 53 (Sometime this week I hope you will come back, click on this link for Isaiah 53, and reread it.) When we have compassion, sorrow, even empathy with Jesus’ suffering, we sometimes gain new insights into our own suffering. “Aw, shucks! It ain’t so bad! Long as I’m on this side of the grass everything’s good.” We might strike that pose of bravado in front of others, but inwardly we often hear our own voice say, “I’ve had enough of this! I don’t even know how to pray any longer! I’m sick and tired of being sick and tired. It just wears me out, it’s so-o-o unbearable.” And yet, what does Jesus say to his Disciples about a cross? He says, as recorded here in Mark 8:34-35 – 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. 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. (Please see 1725AFC062317 – What do you say? for important information on the Greek for “deny.”)
Oh my word, that’s a whopping-big requirement – those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the Gospel, will save it. Everyone listening knew what a cross was, and they knew it was part of the Roman’s way of disgracing a person condemned to die to carry the implement of their death to the place of their death. I sometimes imagine people sat there shaking their heads and wondering how much crazier this new Prophet could get. Even today, with 2,000 years of work and study on this passage, the content and import of it is immense. Does he literally mean “Grab a cross and carry it beside me to Calvary.”? Honestly, when I think about that, about the suffering he endured for ME, my heart turns and my stomach churns. I could never do that. It would be unbearable; still, I am to bear my cross, and give up my life for the Gospel. Alright, then, where is this cross that I must take up? The answer really surprised me. It validated that old adage, “Be careful what you ask for.” Where is my cross? I am my cross.
I have to put up with me. I have to pay the temporal cost for my sins – those consequences that accompany every action I make – are mine to deal with. Jesus took care of the Eternal consequences, but I still am accountable for the temporal, in-my-own-little-world consequences. If you don’t believe me, try telling a law enforcement officer or a Judge, “No worries guv! Jesus has got my sins all paid for. It’s been covered.” Nice thoughts, but – if you are deserving – you’re still going to jail. We bear the consequences for all the smart and stupid things we do. That’s how it works. Now I want to throw something in here that’s sort of a light-hearted interruption. I want to use it for two reasons. [1] It’s kind of a funny story, and [2] it uses the word “unbearable.” Here we go:
The Pregnant Wife
A man from Bolivia was meeting with some officials from The Bureau of Consular Affairs about getting visas for him and his wife. He was having some difficulty because his command of English was limited. The official asked if he would be bringing any children along as well. The man replied, “Ah, no, Señor, my wife is unbearable.” The puzzled look on the official’s face indicated he hadn’t understood. “Ah, Señor, what I mean to say is that she is, ahhh, inconceivable.” The puzzled look on the other man’s face changed to surprise. The Bolivian man decided to try one more time. “You see, Señor,” … he then whispered, “she is impregnable.” The official’s face lit up with understanding, and he wrote on the application, “NO CHILDREN.”
When we say unbearable we mean that something is not tolerable, it is unable to be endured, it is something our capabilities cannot manage. It would be overwhelming, massively painful or destructive; it might even kill us. Are we really¸ really ready to die as a martyr while testifying about Jesus? Let me go back to “I am my cross” and try to answer that question about martyrdom.
If “I am my cross” is true, then when I “deny my self and take up my cross” to follow Jesus, that is very much like my day-to-day life consequences. If there is some simple thing I’d like to do that really isn’t good for me or that doesn’t really show love for God or neighbor, what happens if I go ahead and do it anyway? Well, of course, I have sinned! Now, if I deny that impulse, then I – in a manner of speaking – put it to death, and I do not sin. There are other ways we become, and deal with, being our cross. One which most of us associate with Jesus’ suffering is PAIN. We all know pain – physical pain, emotional pain, even spiritual pain – and honestly none of us like it. Let’s just think about physical pain for a moment. We know people with cancer or other chronic illnesses have plenty of pain. We know that innocents from fetuses to old-timers are tortured to death. Some of us have injuries that plague us for years.
I’ll share something with you: I have a stasis ulcer on my right ankle that’s been surgically debrided every week since January and wakes me up at night. Both rotator cuffs have significant, inoperable tears. There is osteoarthritis in practically every movable joint in my body. Pretty much every move, every step, every breath, every blink is a moment of pain. I tell you sincerely, I have no use for it; so every day I give it to God so he can do with it as he pleases. Do you remember how the Apostle Paul described that? Take a look: Colossians 1:24 – 24 I am now rejoicing in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am completing what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church. Doing that doesn’t diminish what my senses are telling me, but it does make my sensations sensible. Maybe someone on my IPL could get the benefit, or even someone I know nothing about. It’s just one of those things that makes my days better. Now, let’s talk about the head-snapper in today’s Key Verses.
Jesus asks the Disciples, “Who do you say that I AM?” The Apostle Peter comes back with the correct response – You are the Christ. You are the Messiah. Again Jesus tells all of them not to tell anyone else – yet. His revelation as Messiah is set for the time of his Passion, and it’s just days away, but it is not that day. Jesus tells them openly, frankly, and factually that he is going to die a terrible death. Next thing you know, The Apostle Peter is so pleased with himself for getting the right answer that he feels he can take Jesus aside and say, “Look Master, you can’t talk like that! Nothing that bad is going to …” Jesus breaks in with “Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.” Now usually in my mind’s little movie theater, Jesus says that angrily, but actually I think he probably said it with sadness.
As in the wilderness when tempted by Satan, The Apostle Peter was taking the role of opposing what is God’s will essentially saying that course of action he deemed unnecessary. Jesus the Christ knew that it was his divinely-appointed purpose to suffer and die. The Apostle Peter was saying “There gotta be a better way.” Although he said it out of love and respect for his friend and Master, it was still wrong! It must have really stung his sensibilities, because The Apostle Peter wasn’t thinking of Jesus the same way God was thinking of Jesus. Here’s why it is so important to understand the difference. We do not want to pen God up in a pretty little box!
Belovéd, he is the God of the impossible! What did Gabriel tell Mary? “for with God all things are possible.” What did Abraham decide about sacrificing Isaac. “God can restore his life if he chooses to.” We have a tendency to measure what God can do by using our yardstick. Boy! Is that dumb! I can only do what is humanly possible, and there’s not much of that that I can do any more, so my busted yardstick is certainly no match for God’s awesome power.
We would all love to see miracles, wouldn’t we? When I look out my window, I see several – and they are all from God! Who can make a flower? (↔ Music Link) As nearly I can tell, it’s a Wonderful World (↔ Music Link) out there. Have you ever thought about how great a miracle it is to plant one kernel of corn and get 500 back? We have such low expectations of our God. There’s nothing at all wrong with asking him to tackle the big stuff. After all, look at all the little stuff he manages. Ask him for the big stuff! If he doesn’t change your illness or pain, at least you get credit for asking in faith.
Here’s the deal: I Expect A miracle! (↔ Music Link) Like Iz, says “You gotta just make you kuleana pono.” (Kuleana = caring responsibility. Pono = done with careful correctness in harmony with all things and persons.) We have to make whatever we do be worthwhile and doable; we need to “do t’ings for God’s way not for my way.” The Apostle Peter learned that eventually and that enabled him to be the Rock upon which the Church was built. You know, I don’t mind at all being a little stone in the floor of that edifice. That’s because I have solid faith in what The Apostle Peter himself told us in 1 Peter 2:4-5 – 4 Come to him, a living stone, though rejected by mortals yet chosen and precious in God’s sight, and 5 like living stones, let yourselves be built into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. My little life is no bargain, believe me; but, if I put it where it belongs – in God’s hands – if I invest it, clothe it with Love, and give every living moment to him for you and to you for him, then nothing in my life will ever be unbearable. I’m going to close with something from 2020 (↔ Click Link) because the point made by what follows can be life-changing:
We want to acknowledge and thank Turn Back to God and Jesus Christ Cartoons for this wonderful object lesson on The Cross We Carry. Used with permission from the author at http://www.turnbacktogod.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/Jesus-Christ-Cartoon-02.jpg
Please use this link to see the image full-size at that location.
Whatever, whenever, wherever, whoever, however, if ever, forever —
at your service, Belovéd!
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Unless otherwise indicated, all scripture passages are from the New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE) New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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