March 4, 2007
Luke 13
Let us Pray; may the words of my mouth and the meditation of all our hearts be acceptable unto you. Amen.
Since working here at Advent I have learned a couple of things, so don’t worry you are spending your money wisely. First, Sunday naps are an amazing gift for us to enjoy weekly. Two, wear a helmet when you are playing broomball with the Senior High. Three, whatever you think you are going to get done on a particular day is never really what happens. The ideas of what you have for the day can often be filled with interruption and distractions no matter what you have planned to accomplish, even if it is some great ministry task. Sometimes we will even wait for the better “option” to walk into our lives. We will kind of makes plans for a Friday night with one groups of friends, but keep our responses very loose just in case something better comes along. Or maybe we will even allow for distractions to come into our daily tasks so that we may be interrupted. We could even procrastinate, even though I am sure none of you have ever procrastinated on anything.
In today’s text we hear the story of Jesus doing ministry outside of Jerusalem for three days. Then Pharisees approach Jesus informing him that King Herod wants to kill him. And Jesus says to them, “LISTEN.” Not “May I have your attention” or “Please kindly lend your ear to me”. No, Jesus tells them to LISTEN. To listen carefully to what he is about to say. To actually stop what they are doing to listen to what he has to say to them. This isn’t a fun loving Jesus kindly speaking to them. Instead he is telling them very point blank to listen to what he has to stay. You may even say this is crabby Jesus. This story of Jesus is of him on a mission from God.
Jesus knows his time is limited, yet he still has many tasks he needs to complete. Jesus still has this mission that cannot and should not be interrupted. No matter what the Pharisees are trying to tell him or what they are trying to convince him of, his is focused on one main mission, one main idea, one main goal. Jesus was not concerned with the distractions the Pharisees are presenting to him. The Pharisees are trying to be helpful; they are trying to look out for Jesus, yet Jesus is presenting this somewhat crabby attitude. Jesus is telling them that he does not have time for Herod and whatever Herod wants to do to him. Jesus has more important things on his plate then Herod wanting him killed. Jesus continues on his journey, unstoppable from any distractions, even if they are matters of life and death.
Throughout one of Jesus’ last journeys to Jerusalem before his own death and resurrection he is focused on the mission God has called him to. Jesus is focused in on how he is supposed to bring the love of God into the place he in the later verses laments over. Jesus cries out to his city of Jerusalem, making a plea for them to see whom he is and what God is calling them to do. This lament of Jesus is one of focus and remembrance. A plea to focus people on the life and mission God has called them to do. It also is one of remembrance so the people of Jerusalem will remember all God has done for them and how God has continued to love them, even when someone else has disrupted them or they themselves have place those disruptions in their lives.
We are all on our own uniquely individual journeys striving to be focused in our relationship with God and how we can be the best workers of the kingdom of God. We attempt to stay focused on the mission God has called us to do and not to be distracted by the people who are around us or even by our own distractions that we add into our lives. I sometimes like to call it religious ADD. We know what are suppose to do or what we are called to do, yet we put our focus on something or someone else. It is easy in today’s society to look at what society calls as good and normal and put our focus on those things regardless of whether or not they are what we are called to do as Christians. Society tells us that those who are pretty, rich, look a certain way, dress a certain way, do a certain thing, and live a certain way are the ones we often should pattern our lives and behaviors after. We grow to admire the popular kids, we buy the magazines they are on the covers of, we watch their shows, we aspire to be like them in our companies, at our schools, or in our daily lives. We sometimes want to be seen as being the best of having the best in life by the people around us regardless of whether or not it distracts us from being in relationship with God. Jesus is continuing on this journey to Jerusalem, not looking towards what was the popular thing to do. Instead, he put his focus onto his ministry before heading into the city of Jerusalem. Jesus knows what is in store for him in Jerusalem, and yet he continues with passion and fervor performing healing and casting out demons.
We know how we are to live as Christians in today’s world. We know we are to strive for justice and peace in this world. We know we are to love one another even our enemies. We are to love God with our whole heart, mind, and soul. We are to worship the one true God with great praise, educating ourselves in the faith, and to walk humbly with our God. Even though we know all of this and it has been ingrained into some of our brains since we were very little, we still can get Religious ADD. We get too focused on things in our lives that separate us from our relationship with God. We know what we are suppose to do, we get that we just don’t do that. It is easier and more favorable to do other things. It is more favorable to go to sleep in then go to church early on a Sunday morning.
We sometimes want to do the easier thing because it is just that, easier. It takes less thought, less concentration, less commitment or less whatever. Sometimes though we aren’t called to do that. We aren’t called to go and follow any distractions that come our way. We aren’t always called to have religious ADD. We aren’t always called to listen to everyone around us; we are called to listen to what God is saying to us. We are called to live out the mission we have from God.
This Lenten season we have the opportunity to gather as a community supporting one another in our own unique callings in life. We are to continue working for kingdom of God removing those distractions, which often keep us from doing what God has called us to do. Jesus met with these Pharisees heard what they had to say, and then reminded them he was too busy doing what God has told him to do. Jesus was too busy casting out the demons and doing healings to worry about what Herod had to say even if it was a matter of life and death. This season of Lent is our chance to live out our journeys distraction free. It is a season to remove the distractions from our lives. It is time to look deep within us for those places and people we often get distracted by so we can continue on our journey. We are to continue on the journey God has called each of us to do, regardless of the distractions we often have in our lives. We are called to live a different way in this world, it is not always easy, but it doesn’t mean our task is impossible. We just have to put on our big person undies and tell those around and those distractions in our lives, “Listen we are too busy. We are too busy for whatever you are about to tell me, for whatever you want me to do.” I am going to be busy today, tomorrow, and the next day. When I am done with my mission in this world we can talk. But as for now, I am doing what God has sent me here to do.
Amen.
