"Hoping Skills"
Mark 13:1-8
There will be wars and rumors of wars. There will be earthquakes in various places, and famines.
Just
a few days ago, I was wondering what I would do with this passage on a Sunday
when we consecrate our stewardship commitments and take some time for faithful
imagination about the future of the church.
Then we studied it at the beginning of Evangelism committee meeting, and
I started to see some possibilities.
Then
it happened-- again. Just this week: Terrorist attacks in Beirut. Baghdad.
Paris.
The thirteenth chapter of Mark has
traditionally been called “the little apocalypse.”
This passage, along with the other
apocalyptic writings in the Bible, has been what Lamar Williamson calls “a
happy hunting ground for persons fascinated by the end of the world. It
figures prominently in books by doomsayers and in sermons by evangelists more
interested in the next world than in this one.”[1]
“Apocalypse” can mean the uncovering
or revealing of things that are to come: like the wars and earthquakes and desolation
of Mark 13. But perhaps in a deeper
sense it’s about how the vision of devastation transforms our vision of the
things that are.
What is revealed is the true nature of the
reality in which we live: its transitory, provisional character. And so, it can be a kind of reality check.
As Jesus was coming out of the
temple, one of his disciples says to him, “Look Teacher, what large stones and
what large buildings!” Herod the Great
had reconstructed the Jerusalem temple at immense expense, and it was one of
the wonders of the ancient world.”[2] It was
designed to be the crowning glory of King Herod’s ambitious architectural
program. Herod probably didn’t want to be
remembered for his legendary brutality, so these imposing structures
were to be his lasting legacy.
“Look,
Teacher, what large stones and what large buildings!”
Jesus asked the disciples, “Do you
see these great buildings? Not one stone
will be left here upon another. All will
be thrown down.”
“Tell us, when will this be,
Jesus? What will be the sign?”
We want to know what the future will
be. We want to know what’s going to
happen… and when it will happen. We worry.
Instead of giving them direct
answers to their questions, Jesus warns them against false Messiahs who may
try to take advantage of excitement and anxiety about the end-times: “Beware
that no one leads you astray.... When
you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed; this must take place,
but the end is still to come. For nation
will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places;
there will be famines. This is but the beginning
of the birth
pangs.” Later, Jesus tells them
it isn’t for us to know when the end will come.
As one of my colleagues points out,
“Worrying is a human pass time. “It’s a
way to cope with the reality that evil is in the world. It is a tool that can be overused to the point
where we worry too much and forget to live.”[3]
I’m convinced that God doesn’t want us to worry or be afraid. God wants us to live into hope. Every time an angel shows up with a word from God, what do they say? “Fear not.” “Don’t be afraid.”
I’m convinced that God doesn’t want us to worry or be afraid. God wants us to live into hope. Every time an angel shows up with a word from God, what do they say? “Fear not.” “Don’t be afraid.”
But that’s hard. It’s hard when attacks occur around the
world. It’s hard when gun violence
continues. It’s hard when natural
disasters strike. It’s hard not to worry
about all the terrible things that could happen. It’s hard not to worry that we don’t have enough. It’s hard not to worry about the future of
the church.
Yes, there will be wars, and rumors
of wars. There will be death…and
disaster. There will be all manner of
things in this life to rattle our souls.
There will be terrorism…injustice…racism… and hatred.
Don’t be alarmed. Don’t be afraid.
When we’re anxious or afraid, we
make bad decisions. I think that’s why
we hear again and again in the scriptures that we should only fear God, and
that we need to hope and trust in what God is doing.
We need to trust in Jesus: “Wars and rumors of war will not have the
last word. The storm clouds of war are
not the last word. There are people who
are trampled down because of their race or their gender or their religious
beliefs—but that trampling does not have the last word. God has the last word.
It is futile to try to put a time
frame on when the end is going to come or trying to describe it in detail. But as Christians, we are called to believe
that we are headed toward peace and justice and the rule of love. We are called to live into that hope.
When we show up on Sunday
mornings-- which is a strange thing to
do in our culture-- we are living our belief that the world is headed in a
direction of God’s reign. When we
commit our lives to Christ and his way of love, we are invited into a way that
can bring out goodness in us. When we
fill out our financial commitment card, we are living into hope for this
congregation and for Christ’s mission of love and justice beyond this
congregation. When we witness as a
congregation to Christ’s way of peace and justice and love, we are staking our
lives on a path that goes counter to the direction of the popular culture.
Jesus tells us, “The end is yet to come. Don’t be afraid. This is not how the world ends.” The world will end with peace—not violence. And
that is the end of the world we can look forward to.
Jesus says, “Nation will rise
against nation… there will be earthquakes and famines. This is but the beginning of the birth pangs.”
These are the signs we need to watch for, these “birth pangs.”
In his letter to the church in Rome,
the apostle Paul wrote, “We know that the whole creation has been groaning in
labor pains....”[4]
In other words, God is at work where
something new and good is being born, where new life is becoming possible.
We look forward in longing to the
end of violence in the world and the birth of a more peaceful world… the end of
poverty, and the birth of a more just world…the end of hate, and the birthing
of a world ruled by love.
As Christians, we expect trouble in
this broken world. But we can be
confident that nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ
Jesus. No one who calls upon God’s name
needs to be hopeless. We can trust the
promise we hear through the prophet Jeremiah:
“Surely I know the plans I have for you, says the LORD, plans for your
welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope.”[5]
We are called to witness to God’s
love and justice and peace in the world.
Part of our witness is to let the world see us out-hoping our troubles… and living into hope.
We can’t do this alone. But—with God’s help-- we can practice living
into hope and faith and love. We can
help and encourage each other. That’s
why we need to be in community together.
Even in the midst of suffering and
turmoil, we can trust that God’s ways are rebirth and hope. God is in charge. Goodness is stronger than evil.
Whenever we live in courage,
whenever we trust in God’s promises as we make decisions, we are witnessing to
God’s transforming love in the world and how God is birthing new life.
So let us keep practicing being
faithful. Let us live into hope.
Amen!
Rev. Fran Hayes,
Pastor
Littlefield
Presbyterian Church
Dearborn, Michigan
Nov. 15, 2015
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