Geneva Presbyterian Church

Weekly Sermon

November 19, 2000 - "Building a Life on Lincoln Logs and Brio Train Sets"

Reverend Anne Benefield
Geneva Presbyterian Church, November 19, 2000

Psalm 122; Mark 13:1-8

Mark 13:1-8 1) As Jesus came out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him, "Look, Teacher, what large stones and what large buildings!" 2) Then Jesus asked him, "Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down." 3) When he was sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter, James, John, and Andrew asked him privately, 4) "Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign that all these things are about to be accomplished?" 5) Then Jesus began to say to them, "Beware that no one leads you astray. 6) Many will come in my name and say, 'I am he!' and they will lead many astray. 7) When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed; this must take place, but the end is still to come. 8) 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 birthpangs." Prayer: God of all creation, may the words of Holy Scripture that we explore today transform us and strengthen our relationships with you, each other, and the neighbors that you place in our care. Amen. Every time I hear this scripture, I remember something that happened probably thirty years ago. My sister Jean was about 15 and I was about 17. For some reason, we went to New York City together. As we rode through the city in a taxi cab, my sister Jean exclaimed, "Look at these buildings! It is incredible! Look at that…and that…and that!" Being much older, two years, and more sophisticated, I was terribly embarrassed. I tried to hush her, rationalizing that she should be quiet because she was making clear to the taxi driver that we were hicks and could be cheated. The fact is that we were hicks, but the taxi driver didn't cheat us. He probably got a kick out of her gushing and hushing. My sister and I were a lot like Jesus' disciples when they first saw Jerusalem and the temple. They were impressed. We live in an age where we are seldom so impressed as the disciples were. There is a huge disconnect between their world and ours, but perhaps we share more with them than we might think. Like the disciples, we want an orderly world where things are pretty much under control. Like the disciples, we often entrust our security to bricks and mortar, powerful leaders, raw military power, and/or various forms of insurance protection against natural catastrophes. And like the disciples, on a big day at church-Thanksgiving Sunday-we are surprised when Jesus says all these things are passing. History put an exclamation point on Jesus' prediction that Herod's great temple would be brought down stone by stone because it was utterly destroyed by the Romans in 70 A.D. We try to control everything, but we can't. In Operating Instructions, Anne Lamott writes: "I heard this old man speak…someone who had been sober for fifty years, a very prominent doctor. He said that he'd finally figured out a few years ago that this profound sense of control, in the world and over his life, is another addiction and a total illusion. He said that when he sees little kids sitting in the back seat of cars, in those car seats that have steering wheels, with grim expressions of concentration on their faces, clearly convinced that their efforts are causing the car to do whatever it is doing, he thinks of himself and his relationship with God: God who drives along silently, gently amused, in the real driver's seat." [Anne Lamott, Operating Instructions: A Journal of My Son's First Year, (Pantheon Books: New York, 1993), p.113] The message today is that no matter how big and sturdy we think we build the walls that we hope will protect us, those walls will eventually come down. Unless we build our lives with God as the foundation, our walls won't stand. Building our lives without God at the center is like trying to build our lives with Lincoln logs and Brio train sets. It won't work. Only God can hold us together in life and in death. After Jesus tells the disciples the temple will be destroyed, the disciples want to know when and how this will happen. Jesus explains to the disciples that there will be false prophets, wars, and natural catastrophes, but those events should not alarm or distract them. The disciples need to stay focused on the task of living faithfully. They are not to waste time trying to figure out when the end time is coming. We, too, are not supposed to use our energy making predictions of the future. We are called to stayed focused on our faith in the present. In preparation for living faithfully, Jesus tells the disciples to be wary of leaders who try to usurp his authority. There will always be charismatic, inspiring leaders who will try to call us away from the gospel. Those leaders may be very powerful, but when your attention is draw away from God onto the leader, there is danger. Some years ago, a movie came out that I thought was excellent. It was called "Leap of Faith" and it featured Steve Martin as an evangelist faith healer. He was a fraud with an elaborate set up that allowed him to know the names and illnesses of the people who came forward for healing. It was all a scam, but God can make good out of evil. In the movie a young man who is lame comes to be healed. The Holy Spirit works through the Steve Martin character and the boy is healed. For the charlatan the healing prompts a crisis of faith, because he had never considered healing from God possible. After having experienced God's power working through him, the dishonest preacher couldn't or wouldn't allow himself to be used by God again. He chooses not to be the servant of God, and so he becomes another tragic figure unable to accept the true miracles of God that he had tried to fake earlier. He joins the great group of fallen heroes. Our culture seems to be so hungry for heroes, celebrities who will live out our fantasies, but Jesus calls us to look for a less visible and showy leader who is faithful to the humility of servanthood to Christ's word. Most of us would probably prefer a leader who helps us to succeed in this world. Over the years, I have heard some preachers and motivational speakers say that there is nothing in the gospel that speaks against accumulating wealth. Their message is one that many people what to hear. Unfortunately, what they are saying isn't true. Jesus regularly cautioned his followers against storing up treasure here on earth where moths and rust can destroy it. In this passage, Jesus cautions us against leaders who insert comforting messages in place of the often unsettling messages of Jesus. The question we face is, "Will we serve Jesus even when it means turning away from leaders who promise material wealth?" Jesus also tells the disciples not to worry about interpreting wars and rumors of wars as the sign that the end is imminent. Jesus wants them to stay focused on living in faith, but as often as not, we would rather participate in the power struggle of wars. We believe that might makes right, so we like relying on our strength to get our way. We think of war as so much the norm than we can forget that Jesus calls us to look at war differently. We seem to like the use of power to guarantee our safety and security, but Jesus repudiates that approach when he tells us to pray for our enemies. In the end, aggression can never win out. In the end, God's love will prevail, despite our expectations. One of the most powerful statements of faith ever made was written on a ragged piece of paper found at Ravensbruck death camp where 92,000 women and children died. Scrawled on the paper was this prayer: "Lord, remember not only the men and women of good will but also those of ill will. But do not only remember the suffering they have inflicted on us; remember the fruits we have brought, thanks to this suffering-our comradeship, our loyalty, our humility, the courage, the generosity, the greatness of heart which has grown out of all this, and when they come to judgment, let all the fruits we have borne be their forgiveness." War and hatred will never have the last word. The love of God in Jesus Christ will always prevail. There is one more thing that Jesus tells us we will face: natural catastrophes, earthquakes, floods, and famines. Our faith will not keep those things from happening to us or others. What unites us as Christians is our response to those events and our kindness to those who have been hurt by disaster. Today is Thanksgiving Sunday. It is good to remember the story we tell of the first Thanksgiving. The Pilgrims were just holding on to life in the new world. Without the help of the Indians, they would have starved. The Indians showed them how to plant corn and to hunt for turkeys. The first Thanksgiving was a harvest feast of celebration which the Pilgrims and the Indians shared together. A few years ago, my sister Maisie was asked to give the children's message at her church on Thanksgiving Sunday. She came up with an idea that she liked so much she shared it with me. Here is what she did: She called the children up to the chancel and got them all to sit down. Then she pulled out a large bag of popcorn. As she began eating the popcorn she asked the children what they were planning to do for Thanksgiving. Then she asked the children why we celebrate Thanksgiving. They told her all about how the Indians had shared with the Pilgrims on the first Thanksgiving. All the while, Maisie was eating her popcorn. Finally, one of the children said, "Can we have some of your popcorn?" Maisie said, "Oh, no. I'm celebrating Thanksgiving with this popcorn." The children were confused until Maisie explained that she was doing what most of us do on Thanksgiving: we celebrate by eating a huge meal, not by sharing as they did at the first Thanksgiving. Of course, Maisie eventually shared her popcorn, but the message is one worth remembering. The question we face is, "Are we sharing what we have?" I have some dear friends, the Muelders. After a lifetime of ministry, they retired. Not long after retiring, Ed Muelder traveled out to the mid-west to help the victims of a huge flood. He found the experience very fulfilling. Inspired by his actions, I signed up for a continuing education course on how clergy can help in catastrophes. A few days before the course was to start, the continuing education center called to tell me that the course had been cancelled due to a lack of interest. As it happens, I was the only person who signed up. I guess all the other people on the mailing list felt sure they wouldn't find themselves in the midst of a catastrophe. The way I read Jesus' words to the disciples, sooner or later we will face earthquakes or famines or floods or fires. Jesus asks, "Are we ready to help each other and share what we have when catastrophe strikes?" The Lord said that we would see many things before he would come again. We would see the Temple of Jerusalem destroyed, charismatic leaders claim his authority, wars and rumors of wars, and earthquakes and famines. In the midst of all these things, we are called to be faithful to our Savior. We are called to choose leaders who point us toward God's will for us. We are called to pray for our enemies and seek peace. We are called to share in the face of natural disasters. The Lord has some high expectations for us, but he also promises grace. If we will just try to love in his name, he will always cover us with grace. Amen.