Actions Speak Louder
9-6-15 (Proper 18 / Ordinary 23 B, Semi-Continuous)
James 2:1-17; Mark 7:24-37
Take a second and think about a lot of the movies that you’ve seen in theaters, watched previews for, or heard news about. How many of these movies are action packed adventures of some sort? This last year alone, we’ve had movies like The Fast and the Furious, The Avengers, Mad Max, Jurassic World, Terminator, Ant Man, and Mission: Impossible, and there are still more exciting movies coming up this year, particularly the new Star Wars movie. We like our movies to have some excitement to them - even our comedies have begun to take on elements of action-adventure. Put too much dialogue in a movie and people tend to get bored too easily. It seems like gone are the days of such iconic films as Casablanca and Gone With the Wind.
Luckily for us action fans out there, our lectionary is all about the action this week. As we continue through Mark’s gospel, we see a very active, very physical Jesus. He’s a Jesus on the run, trying to avoid notice but still being found wherever he is. One such person to find Jesus despite his best efforts is this Syrophoenician woman, whose daughter is possessed. She begs Jesus to heal her daughter from her affliction. Jesus’ response is baffling - “Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.” Is Jesus seriously saying no to someone in need? Why is Jesus giving preferential treatment to the Jewish people - wasn’t Jesus sent to all the world?
Apparently, the Syrophoenician woman has similar questions to our own. This woman puts her own faith into action and responds to Jesus, “Sir, even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.” Some commentators see this passage as Jesus issuing this woman a test of faith, or as a reminder from Mark to his audience that though Jesus primarily kept his focus in ministry on the Jews, that ministry was to eventually extend to the Gentiles. But one interesting take on this passage is that seeing this woman’s faith in action actually redirects Jesus’ own actions; Jesus has a change of heart toward this Gentile woman. There’s almost a pause as we see Mark’s Jesus, the most human of all the saviors portrayed in the gospels, realize the wisdom in this woman’s words and, dare we even say it, the mistake that he came close to making in his own. Jesus, even though he was the son of God, was still a product of his time. Jesus knew he was sent to the Jews first, to fulfill the promises of God, but it would appear that in the heat of the moment, the bustle of being chased down by followers, he momentarily forgot that he was sent also to the Gentiles. It’s understandable - he was under a lot of pressure. He didn’t want to be found at that moment, and this woman’s interruption, let alone the fact that she was a Gentile woman, was the last thing that he needed.
I don’t know about you, but I find it both a wonder and a comfort to see such a human Christ in the gospels. It’s easy to take up a preferential mentality, especially when it comes to church. We want more people to take part in the life and work of our congregation, but we sometimes raise our eyebrows at the people that come in our doors. We want younger people and families to get involved in the church, but we forget that those youngsters bring spills, accidents, and interruptions along with them sometimes.
James warns his congregation about the dangers of these kinds of attitudes. In fact, he plainly chastises them for the way in which they exercise favoritism in their acts of generosity within the church. For James, it was hypocritical of the church to preferentially treat those who oppress them and drag them into court while treating the poor with disdain. James saw this as breaking the law of Christ and an act of extreme unfaithfulness to their calling as Christians. He reminds the church that God has chosen “The poor in the world to be rich with faith and to be heirs of the kingdom that he has promised to those who love him.” James makes a distinct difference between those who simply know the right words to say and those who fully live into their faith, letting the grace of Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit guide them into faithful and grateful response. James encourages his congregation to go beyond the simple words of “Go in peace; keep warm, and eat your fill” - but to go out and actively meet the needs of their community.
When we hear it from the pulpit, it sounds so obvious - of course we should go out and do that. What else would we do? But I know that more often than not, I don’t even speak to some of the people that I see in need each day. I tell the beggar on the street corner that I don’t have money even though I know I have at least a dollar in my wallet. I avoid making eye contact with the man at the stop light who holds the sign saying “Hungry - need money for food” because I don’t want him to know that I know he’s there. I see the man standing beside his car with the hood up on the highway and I drive past because I’m in a rush, or because the man could have devilish motives that I’m unaware of. People ask me to pray for them about something that concerns them, and I do - but sometimes that’s as far as it goes for me. And every time I do, there’s a part of me that says to me - “You know you could have helped.”
There’s a paradox that happens here - we hear the voice of scripture in our heads, telling us to help those in need: the poor, the penniless, the widow. And we then hear the voice of reason telling us we can’t give money to every homeless person on the street, that some of them are taking our money to use on things that are harmful to them, that some people on roadsides are looking to take advantage of the good Samaritan that stops to help. And I’m sorry to say I don’t have the perfect answer to this conundrum. But I trust that God, who knows and hears every need of every person, will grant me the discernment to be able to help where God is calling me to help. Because our faith isn’t simply one of words, but of actions. And that is the encouragement we should take from James and from Jesus: as we find ourselves confronted with the grace and love of our Lord Jesus Christ, our response should pour out in acts of grateful obedience. We are inspired to go out and change the world because Christ changes us. Otherwise, like James asks his audience - what’s the point?
Some people really do need an extra dollar or two to catch the bus or to have a meal for the day. I pray that God gives us the eyes to see them and to reach out in compassion. Some people need the church to help them in an hour of desperation. May God let us see them plainly and know their needs. Some people will come into the church that we would never expect, with issues that we are not immediately prepared to handle, with needs that demand to be met - may God give us the grace, the wisdom, the courage, and the means to take them in and serve them with love. After all, isn’t that what God has done with every one of us? To God be all glory. Amen.
James 2:1-17; Mark 7:24-37
Actions Speak Louder
Take a second and think about a lot of the movies that you’ve seen in theaters, watched previews for, or heard news about. How many of these movies are action packed adventures of some sort? This last year alone, we’ve had movies like The Fast and the Furious, The Avengers, Mad Max, Jurassic World, Terminator, Ant Man, and Mission: Impossible, and there are still more exciting movies coming up this year, particularly the new Star Wars movie. We like our movies to have some excitement to them - even our comedies have begun to take on elements of action-adventure. Put too much dialogue in a movie and people tend to get bored too easily. It seems like gone are the days of such iconic films as Casablanca and Gone With the Wind.
Luckily for us action fans out there, our lectionary is all about the action this week. As we continue through Mark’s gospel, we see a very active, very physical Jesus. He’s a Jesus on the run, trying to avoid notice but still being found wherever he is. One such person to find Jesus despite his best efforts is this Syrophoenician woman, whose daughter is possessed. She begs Jesus to heal her daughter from her affliction. Jesus’ response is baffling - “Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.” Is Jesus seriously saying no to someone in need? Why is Jesus giving preferential treatment to the Jewish people - wasn’t Jesus sent to all the world?
Apparently, the Syrophoenician woman has similar questions to our own. This woman puts her own faith into action and responds to Jesus, “Sir, even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.” Some commentators see this passage as Jesus issuing this woman a test of faith, or as a reminder from Mark to his audience that though Jesus primarily kept his focus in ministry on the Jews, that ministry was to eventually extend to the Gentiles. But one interesting take on this passage is that seeing this woman’s faith in action actually redirects Jesus’ own actions; Jesus has a change of heart toward this Gentile woman. There’s almost a pause as we see Mark’s Jesus, the most human of all the saviors portrayed in the gospels, realize the wisdom in this woman’s words and, dare we even say it, the mistake that he came close to making in his own. Jesus, even though he was the son of God, was still a product of his time. Jesus knew he was sent to the Jews first, to fulfill the promises of God, but it would appear that in the heat of the moment, the bustle of being chased down by followers, he momentarily forgot that he was sent also to the Gentiles. It’s understandable - he was under a lot of pressure. He didn’t want to be found at that moment, and this woman’s interruption, let alone the fact that she was a Gentile woman, was the last thing that he needed.
I don’t know about you, but I find it both a wonder and a comfort to see such a human Christ in the gospels. It’s easy to take up a preferential mentality, especially when it comes to church. We want more people to take part in the life and work of our congregation, but we sometimes raise our eyebrows at the people that come in our doors. We want younger people and families to get involved in the church, but we forget that those youngsters bring spills, accidents, and interruptions along with them sometimes.
James warns his congregation about the dangers of these kinds of attitudes. In fact, he plainly chastises them for the way in which they exercise favoritism in their acts of generosity within the church. For James, it was hypocritical of the church to preferentially treat those who oppress them and drag them into court while treating the poor with disdain. James saw this as breaking the law of Christ and an act of extreme unfaithfulness to their calling as Christians. He reminds the church that God has chosen “The poor in the world to be rich with faith and to be heirs of the kingdom that he has promised to those who love him.” James makes a distinct difference between those who simply know the right words to say and those who fully live into their faith, letting the grace of Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit guide them into faithful and grateful response. James encourages his congregation to go beyond the simple words of “Go in peace; keep warm, and eat your fill” - but to go out and actively meet the needs of their community.
When we hear it from the pulpit, it sounds so obvious - of course we should go out and do that. What else would we do? But I know that more often than not, I don’t even speak to some of the people that I see in need each day. I tell the beggar on the street corner that I don’t have money even though I know I have at least a dollar in my wallet. I avoid making eye contact with the man at the stop light who holds the sign saying “Hungry - need money for food” because I don’t want him to know that I know he’s there. I see the man standing beside his car with the hood up on the highway and I drive past because I’m in a rush, or because the man could have devilish motives that I’m unaware of. People ask me to pray for them about something that concerns them, and I do - but sometimes that’s as far as it goes for me. And every time I do, there’s a part of me that says to me - “You know you could have helped.”
There’s a paradox that happens here - we hear the voice of scripture in our heads, telling us to help those in need: the poor, the penniless, the widow. And we then hear the voice of reason telling us we can’t give money to every homeless person on the street, that some of them are taking our money to use on things that are harmful to them, that some people on roadsides are looking to take advantage of the good Samaritan that stops to help. And I’m sorry to say I don’t have the perfect answer to this conundrum. But I trust that God, who knows and hears every need of every person, will grant me the discernment to be able to help where God is calling me to help. Because our faith isn’t simply one of words, but of actions. And that is the encouragement we should take from James and from Jesus: as we find ourselves confronted with the grace and love of our Lord Jesus Christ, our response should pour out in acts of grateful obedience. We are inspired to go out and change the world because Christ changes us. Otherwise, like James asks his audience - what’s the point?
Some people really do need an extra dollar or two to catch the bus or to have a meal for the day. I pray that God gives us the eyes to see them and to reach out in compassion. Some people need the church to help them in an hour of desperation. May God let us see them plainly and know their needs. Some people will come into the church that we would never expect, with issues that we are not immediately prepared to handle, with needs that demand to be met - may God give us the grace, the wisdom, the courage, and the means to take them in and serve them with love. After all, isn’t that what God has done with every one of us? To God be all glory. Amen.
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