October 26, 2003
|
|
|
|
This
morning we have heard the stories of two men in search of healing and
redemption. One sits by the side of the road. The other is still on his city’s
ash heap. Do you relate to Bartimaeus at all? At the entrance to Jericho,
Bartimaeus has no one and nothing except an old coat that he begs people to
throw a few coins into as they go from one place to another. I doubt that there
are any beggars here, but I suspect there are a few here who have known
loneliness, who have come to the end of their rope and who believe their choices
are limited to a few and all of them are bad. Having
heard that Jesus was passing by, Bartimaeus prays in an increasingly loud voice.
Bartimaeus shouted because he wanted to make sure he would be heard above the
noise of the city. “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me”! Since
Bartimaeus asks to see again, we know he was not born blind. But something has
taken his sight away. Maybe we can relate to Bartimaeus as we long to see again
some things gone from our sight. As life goes on, have we grown blind to hope?
Do we fail to see the joy and gladness God has laid before us? Has life made us
so tired that we cannot see a future full of good things? Bartimaeus
sits by the side of the road praying despite the efforts of people to stop him.
He will be heard. We
know that Job has been demanding a hearing with God. Job has tried his best to
turn his ash heap into a courtroom where he can summon God to testify to Job’s
goodness and the unfairness of his circumstance. I know we relate to Job.
We’ve done all we can to be faithful. We’ve done everything right and life
turns out all wrong anyway. Still somehow though tested, we hold on to our faith
and trust in God. Job’s
wife has given up. His three buddies blame him for all that has happened to him.
Then another friend, Elihu takes his turn blaming Job. “You are not contrite
enough. You are not sorry enough. Look Job, you know that God, ‘the Almighty
– we cannot find him, [but we know] he is great in power and justice, and
abundant righteousness he will not violate’ (37.23). God doesn’t punish
people on a whim. You must have done something.” Job
knows he is innocent, and he continues to protest and say that if indeed he has
been dishonest, if he has been unfaithful to his wife, if he treated his slaves
unkindly or not given to the needs of the poor – God has the right to punish
him. “If”, he says, “I chased money too much, if I bragged about my wealth
too much, if I was thrilled when my adversaries were ruined financially, I
deserve all that has come to me. If I can’t be in right relationships with
these people, then I have punishment coming to me. But I am innocent and God
knows it.” Then
God speaks in a way that lets Job and us know who is really in control of
things. It is not Job, it is not his friends, it is God alone. “Job, where
were you when I sent water running from the mountains on its way to the sea? Did
you help me create the natural wonders you find so pleasant, or the friends you
have left? Job, who set the sun and the moon in the sky? Was it you? Trust me
Job, I was there at the beginning, I am here now. I am God” (chapter 38). Job
has had a revelation. He has heard about God, now he has seen God up close and
personal. His response to God can be summed up in this way. “When I asked you
to meet me in court, O God, I simply did not know what I was talking about. But
things are clearer to me now. I no longer wish to challenge you; I only wish to
learn from your wisdom. I will be quiet while you answer my questions” (Texts
for Preaching, - Year B. Louisville: Westminster/John Knox Press
p.558). The
New Revised Standard Bible has Job saying, “I despise myself and will repent
in dust and ashes”. Understand Job does not really hate himself and we are not
called to hate ourselves. A better translation of Job’s words is “I yield”
(Texts for Preaching, p. 558).
I submit myself to your wisdom. Job
is not filled with self-loathing. In fact, the whole point of Job’s story is
that he loves himself enough to demand answers to his questions. He rejects that
cliché that says, “never put a question mark where God has put a period”.
Asking God questions is not an act of unfaithfulness – it is an a
request for clarity and understanding. We can ask God the hard questions when
life gets hard. There
is a woman in Florida whose parents and siblings, and whose husband and the governor
and people who do not know her are arguing. The issue is whether she should live
or die. Somebody is surely asking God why and how could such a thing happen and
what is the right thing to do? Our
questions may be about life and death too. Should I buy this more expensive
medicine and take half the dosage to make it go further? Shall I enter an
intimate physical relationship? My body says yes, but my mind say, this
doesn’t feel quite right. God will you show me the right thing to do? It
is likely that by the end of 2003, more than 100 men, women, and children will
have died by violent means in the city of Columbus – that is a tragedy as are
the tragedies of violence in communities large or small, urban, rural, or
suburban. We cry out God, what is going on that a gun or a knife is seen as the
best way to settle a dispute. “How long, O Lord, how long?” (Psalm 13.1).
People
have worked a lifetime, raised their children, built their homes, established
themselves in a community only to see jobs lost, their hopes dashed, and their
neighborhoods fragment. What is happening here God? Job
helps us to realize that God holds everything in divine hands and Job gives
himself completely and totally to God. We are too modern and too free and
independent to believe in submission, but Job knows that he must yield his power
to the power of God. Everything we do reflects our faith and trust in God. So we
participate in God’s world, we read God’s word, we operate out of our
strengths, and we do all we can by God’s grace to strengthen our weak places. Job
yields to God’s wisdom and gets it all back. All he has lost is restored to
him. Friends and family help out with cash and jewelry. He builds another home,
acquires even more cattle and sheep than he lost and has ten more children. His
daughters are beautiful we are told, and in what was an unheard of act at the
time, he writes them into his will so that they are heirs along with their
brothers of Job’s restored household. But,
they have to wait awhile because Job lived a long, long time. God we are told
has blessed him, in his latter days far more than his beginning” (v.12). Everything
is restored to Job, but I am left with a few questions. Restoration has come at
a high price – Job was it worth the cost? You got it all back but can new
children ever really replace children who were lost? Did your wife regain her
faith? Did Bildad, Eliphaz, and Zophar and Elihu come over and hang out with
you? Was it worth it? Is it worth holding on to our sense of
ourselves as faithful people of whatever age when life turns sour and nasty? Is
it worth it? Yes, it was worth it. It
is absolutely worth the high cost of holding on when we give ourselves to God
and let bitterness give way to a better understanding of God’s presence. We
see God’s presence in our desire to renew our lives and this congregation. We
see it in the birth of children and in the long lives of loved ones. We see it
in the world of nature and in the gift of creativity and insight that comes to
us as a gift. It
is worth it when tragedy leads us to think not why me – but after a time of
healing and reflection, what can I learn from this situation? The predicament in
Florida has gotten a lot of people thinking about living wills so that their
wishes in case of incapacity will be made known. The loss of a loved one can
help families rise above their petty squabbles and come together like a family
again. It
is worth the cost if we hold on to the promise of restoration. There are former
gang members in Los Angeles who thanks to the work of mentors at All Peoples
Christian Center have claimed a vision of restored lives and now they make and
sell soap instead of selling dope and using violence to terrorize their
community. It is absolutely worth it if it brings us into a renewed relationship
with ourselves that calls up the best in us and brings us to a closer
relationship with God who has always been near to us. How
doe we make our tough times redemptive? How do we find restoration for our own
broken lives? We can know whom to call. Job had his conversations with God and
his friends. We can and should talk to our friends in trust and confidence and
we talk to God when we pray. But we can also call on Jesus. That is what
Bartimaeus did. Like
Bartimaeus, we know the name of our healer. We know his heritage as the Son of
David, son of God, and risen Lord. We know he leads and guides, teaches, heals,
and saves. Bartimaeus has taken a risk in calling on Jesus, and Jesus responds
with healing and as they interact Bartimaeus finds a community. “Your faith
has saved you” Jesus means that he has been restored body and soul. Jesus
has done it before. One commentator describes it this way. “Bartimaeus is an
outsider, who resembles the unnamed woman who touched the hem of Jesus’
garment (5.25-34). Neither had friends to assist them; both are pushed to the
edge of society; both take bold initiatives; and both are commended by Jesus
with the same words your faith has made you well” (Texts
for Preaching, 565). Loss
hurts. It causes us to grieve and it can leave us feeling empty and lost. In
those times try to hear Jesus asking, “what do you want me to do for you?”
Then tell him what you want. Bartimaeus asked to see again. We can be that
specific too. We can also ask for hope, joy, and peace of mind. Ask for
relationships to be restored. Ask for what you need and trust God to do the
rest. When we don’t give up on
God, when we cry out to Jesus Christ who hears and responds to us on behalf of
God, “your faith has made you well”. Dr.
LaTaunya M. Bynum |
|
Broad
Street Christian Church
|
