Desperate Needs
Dr. Jim Wilson, September 6, 2009 Have you ever been desperate? I mean really desperate, at the end of your rope, helpless, powerless? I would guess you have. I know I have and on more than one occasion. One such occasion comes immediately to mind. My son, Mike, was about four years old when a large lump suddenly appeared on his neck. The pediatrician examined him and told us, “The lump may be nothing more that a swollen gland. On the other hand, it might be much more---lymphoma. The only way to know is to do a biopsy. It will take about three days to get the results. My first reaction was shock. Then I became desperate, three agonizing days to wait for news!!! I realized there was nothing I could do to fix the situation. I was powerless. I prayed. I talked with my pastor, colleagues, and family members. I was truly desperate. By the grace of God, the lump proved to be a swollen gland. The experience, however, proved to be a life-changing experience for me. Prior to it, my faith was of the “nod and glance variety,” church on Sunday and not much more. But now I saw life different. Now something happened and grace had touched my life, and faith was born. I saw my children as a gift. I saw life itself as a gift. I was a changed person. For me, a desperate need had given birth to new life. And what was even more significant, the more I studied the Scriptures, the more I realized that such is the norm. When people encounter Jesus, their lives are changed. Certainly, this is the case in the two healing stories Mark tells us this morning. Seeking to get away from the crowds and their demands, Jesus retreats to the region of Tyre northeast of Galilee, along the Mediterranean coast in an area known as Phoencia. Geographically speaking, Jesus is definitely in Gentile territory. Here he is confronted by a Syrophoencian woman who is in desperate need. I mean she is beside herself. Her daughter is vexed by a demon. Driven by her desperate need, she pushes her way to Jesus, falls at his feet, and pleads with Jesus to cast out the demon and heal her daughter. Now this woman does not have much going for her. She is a woman, and a Gentile woman at that, has no social standing, is distraught and absolutely powerless. But she is a mom with a sick child. So she makes her plea. Jesus’ response is nothing short of shocking to our ears. It is cold, harsh, even cruel. He says to her, “Let the children (that is the Jews) be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children’s food (salvation) and give it to the dogs (the Gentiles).” That does not sound like Jesus, does it? It seems so out of character. In short, he is saying to her, “Israel must come first in God’s work, so it would not be right for me to be distracted by your needs. I don’t have time to be concerned about your daughter.” Keep in mind to call someone a “dog” is the supreme insult. For a Jew, a dog is not the cute and cuddly house pet of our day, but a scavenger that lived on the streets eating garbage. This woman may not have much going for her, but she is tenacious and she is quick-witted. She counters Jesus’ harsh words, saying, “OK, Jesus, treat me as a dog by allowing me to gather the crumbs the children drop from the table.” Frankly, I chuckle each time I read her reply. She has turned the term of contempt to her advantage and dare I say, outwitted Jesus? Jesus gets it. He looks at her and, I have to believe smiles, and says, “For saying that you may go, the demon has left your daughter.” The plea is heard, compassion is extended, a little girl is healed, a mother is at peace----and lives are forever changed. So it is with Jesus. The second healing also takes place in Gentile territory. Friends bring to Jesus a man who has difficulty speaking, an impediment says Mark, and is deaf. They too plead with Jesus to heal the man. Both the man and his friends are desperate, at the end of their ropes. Jesus, Mark tells us, takes the man aside, away from the crowd, puts his fingers in the man’s ears, spits (spittle was thought to have curative powers), touches the man’s tongue, looks up to heaven, sighs, and cries out, “Ephphata!” which means “Be opened.” A rather interesting methodology, wouldn’t you agree? Not the usual manner that Jesus uses. In fact, this procedure is more common to the healers and magicians of Jesus’ day. Be that as it may, the man’s ears are opened and his tongue loosened. Once again, desperate need brought to Jesus, trusting in his gracious power to heal, leads to a changed life, a life made whole. Mark tells us that Jesus ordered those who witnessed this healing to tell no one. And the witnesses promptly tell everyone, proclaiming, “He does everything well; he even makes he deaf to hear and the mute to speak.” It’s hard to keep life-changing experiences quiet! So what do we hear, you and I? Certainly, we hear that Jesus heals, and his healing work is a significant aspect of his ministry as reported by the Gospel writers. It is not just coincidental that the Greek word used in the NT for “salvation” literally means “to heal” or “make whole.” That is what Jesus is about---making people whole. While not denying the significance of Jesus’ healings, I would like to shift our attention about ten degrees and focus on how an encounter with Jesus changes a person’s life. When the desperate come to Jesus, trusting in his gracious love, their lives are changed, healing takes place, sometime in body, sometimes in spirit, sometimes in both. That is the consistent message in the New Testament, first in ministry of Jesus, then in Acts and in the work of the apostles. The Christian faith, received in the message and mission of the Church, is about changing lives. You cannot come into a relationship with Christ Jesus and remain as you are. It is impossible. Grace transforms people. A few years ago, a colleague decided it was time to talk directly with his eight year old son about being a Christian disciple. “Jack,” he said quietly one evening, “would you like to have Jesus in your heart?” Jack thought for a few moments and then said, “No, dad, I don’t think I want that responsibility.” I wonder how many of us want to keep some distance from Jesus, realizing it is risky to get too close. Yet, in our desperate moments we reach out to God, look to Jesus for healing or deliverance or comfort. It’s dangerous to do so. Grace does not leave us where we are. Changing lives is not only the primary work of Jesus; I believe it is the primary mission of the church. We are in the life-changing business, so to speak. Yet, all too often we either are downsizing our business or have a very poor marketing plan. We simply do not tell anyone what we are doing. Maybe we are just too obedient to Jesus! Remember after the second healing in our text, Jesus tells the crowd not to tell anyone about what they witnessed. Maybe we are being too obedient. If God in Christ is at work in people’s lives, we tend to keep it a secret. I don’t think that is what we are called to do. There are many desperate people out there. They need to know abut the life-changing grace of Christ Jesus. It is our mission to tell them. Dr. Clif Christopher was the presenter at the Stewardship Seminar we hosted for the UM Foundation a week ago last Saturday. During his presentation, Clif told a story about why we need to be clear about what business we are in as the church. At a meeting of major philanthropists, Christopher met a young attorney who was the keynote speaker for the event. This young man had recently given $1.5 million to a local youth center. Impressed with his speech, particularly his spiritual convictions, Christopher called the young man for an appointment. When they met, he asked the attorney why he would make such a gift. The attorney told a story of a young inner-city boy from a broken home who had become involved in the youth center and had his life turned completely around. Now the boy was no his way to college with wonderful plans to return to the neighborhood and make a difference in the lives of others. The attorney said he asked the director of the center what could be done to create more stories like this one. The director told him he needed a new center but that would cost about $1.5 million. So, I wrote him a check, said the attorney. Christopher asked the young attorney about his church involvement. The attorney told him that he was active in his local church. Then Christopher asked if the attorney would consider a gift like the one he gave to the youth center for his church. Christopher writes, “He stared right at me and said, ‘Lord, no, they wouldn’t know what t do with it!” How sad. We, Jesus’ disciples have been given a message and a ministry about Good News, about a grace that changes lives and all too often people do not know it. Why are we keeping it a secret? There are many desperate people out there---People without hope, broken by life, scared, at the end of their rope. We are in the life-changing business, the business of sharing the gracious liberating, healing love of Jesus Christ. We do many good things here at BUMC to connect desperate needs with Christ Jesus’ gracious love. I would challenge us to speak about it, to expand our business, and to become a place where lives are changed and new life is experienced. That is what it is all about---this being the church of Jesus Christ. Thanks be to God! Amen! |
