Mark 10:32-52
Christian Herter was
running hard for reelection as governor of Massachusetts, and one day he
arrived late at a barbecue. He’d had no
breakfast or lunch, and he was famished.
As he moved down the serving line, he held out his plate and received
one piece of chicken. The governor said
to the serving lady, “Excuse me, do you mind if I get another piece of
chicken. I’m very hungry.” The woman replied, “Sorry, I’m supposed to
give one piece to each person.” He
repeated, “But I’m starved,” and again she said: “Only one to a customer.” Herter was normally a modest man, but he
decided this was the time to use the weight of his office and said, “Madam, do
you know how I am? I am the governor of
this state.” She answered, “Do you know
who I am? I’m the lady in charge of
chicken. Move along, mister.”
What happens in
today’s story? In that time and place,
the disciples believed as did the other Jewish people at the time that the
Messiah was going to come concretely to earth and rule in a physical and
concrete way. We’re not talking about
heaven here. James and John are asking
to be the generals, ruling alongside Jesus, being in charge, ushering in the
new era. That is what they are asking
Jesus if they can do. What do you think
about James and John after hearing this story?
Or maybe a better question, how do you feel towards James and John after
hearing this story?
Do you have big
dreams? Do you have hopes and dreams for
yourself of success? I think many of us,
perhaps most of us, at one point or another had dreams of being great. Maybe we just had these dreams as children
but most of us at some point in our lives, have had hopes of succeeding, really
succeed at something. Many children hope
to be movie stars, rock stars, models, famous for their acting, their music,
their beauty, known by the world as wonderful, successful. What are some of the things you hoped to be
as you grew up? Hoped to do that would
be famous and successful as you grew? I
had a huge goal as a little kid. It was
none less than to save the world. In
particular, I hoped to save the world from hunger. And in my six-year-old mind, that looked like
going to India and teaching people to farm. Because in my six year old mind, the world
really was that simple, that easy, and I really could very easily fit into a
heroic place in that image.
Bu as we grow we
usually get some jolts of reality along the way that tell us that we will not
be a world famous ballerina, the first woman on the moon, the President of the
United States, the next Julia Roberts, or in my case, I realized that the
problem with hunger was not that people didn’t know how to farm, but rather it
had a lot more to do with complicated politics and economics, large
corporations buying up arable land, those corporations having the money to buy
government support as well, and that the only thing that could really stop
world hunger would be lots of money thrown into political work. And then I realized that politics, economics
and fund-raising: these were areas I really had no interest, or skills,
in. It can take a long time for us to
outgrow our own dreams of potential greatness.
And for some, those images are met, exceeded even. There are people who do become famous or who
do make a difference in the world that is huge, tangible, and recognized. But I think for most of us our childhood or
even teenage dreams must be modified in some way. Instead of seeing ourselves as the next Dr. Phil,
we become satisfied to become a well-paid, but not so famous,
psychologist. Instead of seeing ourselves
as the next Julia Roberts, we become satisfied being a star in local theater
productions. Instead of seeing ourselves
as the personal catalyst that will change the education system and grow
healthy, educated, happy kids forever, we realize the gifts in being a local
school teacher and making a difference in the lives of those children we can
teach in our classrooms. Instead of
seeing ourselves as the best parent in the world, we accept the fact that we
are parents striving as all parents do to be the best we can be, knowing we are
flawed and less than perfect but enough none the less.
Even with these
concessions, though, most of us still have dreams. In the case of James and John in today’s
story, their dreams of grandeur may have changed some but none the less still
thrived. Some might say that their
dreams of grandeur didn’t just change but actually grew. And obviously, looking at the reaction of the
other disciples, some of them were also sharing in these dreams of grandeur and
were upset at James and John for trying to claim a higher position than
themselves. While when we read this
story we may have judgements or even some outrage, like the other disciples
did, at James and John (I mean, really, who do they think they are that they
can go to Jesus, over all the rest of the other disciples and ask to be seated
in charge of all Israel, next to Jesus?!!)), none the less, at some level I
think we can relate to having those dreams.
We may not be able to relate to having the courage or audacity really to
ask for those things for ourselves, none the less in our hearts we can
understand the hope.
Having those
dreams is not a bad thing. It is good to
dream for better things for our lives.
It is good to dream of succeeding in what we do. It is often those dreams that do push us,
ultimately, to take on a job that might otherwise seem a little risky or
outside our comfort zone. It is those
dreams that push us to go back to school, to reach for something better,
higher, to work harder at our jobs, to work harder at our relationships, to
learn something or try something new.
At the University
of Florida in the early 1960's one of the football linemen, Jack Katz was the
fastest lineman on the team. One day he
asked if he might run sprints with the faster backs. Every day he ran with them he finished
last. No-one was surprised and the coach
asked if he wouldn’t rather be a winner with the linemen than a loser with the
backs. But Katz responded, “I’m not out
here to outrun the linemen. I already
know I can do that. I’m here to learn
how to run faster, and if you’ve noticed, I’m losing by a little less every
day.” Dreams can push us to do better.
But the point that
Jesus makes in this story is that the problem with James and John here is the
reason WHY the disciples are reaching for this new goal. Are they striving to do something better for
the world or are they wanting to be famous and wealthy? Are they striving to be the best people God
wants them to be, or are they wanting the kudos and the respect of other
people? Are they wanting to help a
specific cause or are they wanting the power that comes from running the
world? If what you really want is world
success, well we know that many people get this in not so godly ways. Many movie stars must prostitute themselves
to the top. Most truly successful people
step on other people to get to the top.
How many of you have seen the
movie, “The devil wears prada?” How
about “Working Girl?” There are tons of
movies as well as the real life stories out there that show us again and again that
there is much truth to the proverb that says people buy their way to the top,
and get there usually by cruelly stepping on the heads of the little
people.
This is not what Jesus
is offering. This is not what God is
offering. Jesus’ life ended in
death. And he tells the disciples that
if they really want to succeed in God’s way, if they really want to follow
Jesus in what he is accomplishing, if they want to be part of changing the
world in a way that may not be obvious right away, that won’t involve a
military coup, that won’t look like leading as a dictator does from his high
position but will, none the less, change how people see one another and who
people care for, they need to be willing to give it all up: all of it:
everything: even their very lives. If
the goal is caring for the world, if the goal is following God’s call, if the
goal is to be great in God’s eyes, you can do this. But it probably won’t be pretty. It won’t look like riding into Jerusalem on a
white horse and being seated on a throne to rule in power and be served feasts
and riches. It’s not going to look like
fame and fortune. It’s not going to look
like earthly power and prestige.
Instead, it looks like riding into Jerusalem on a donkey, the sign of
humility and perhaps even humiliation, and of hearing people shout curses at
you, throw stones at you, ask for your crucifixion. It will look like pain, and even
martyrdom. But in the end, you will have
succeeded in God’s terms, in the end you will have helped human-kind, in the
end you will be a part of ushering in the very kingdom of God, raising the oppressed,
bringing down the mighty, changing the world.
This morning I
read to the children the Dr. Seuss book, “Yertle the Turtle”. I think about which turtle succeeded in human
terms vs. which turtle succeeded in God’s terms. As you heard Yertle was going for worldly
fame and fortune, power and prestige.
And he didn’t really care who he stepped on, literally, to get it. And he did succeed in getting it. Yertle the
Turtle is the one whose name gets put on the title of the book. He was the one who saw the world over from a
great height. He was the one who was
king of the world. But in the end, he
ends up in the mud. The ordinary turtle
named Mack was not about making himself big.
He was about helping himself and everyone else out of a terrible
position. But he was the hero in God’s
eyes. And he made life better for the other turtles.
Most heroes, most real
heroes, go unnoticed. The people who
really do God’s will and are heroes in God’s eyes usually are not the ones who
are famous. Of course, there are noted
exceptions: Ghandi, Mother Theresa, Martin Luther King, Jr., Mr. Rogers. In our own area, perhaps Glenda Hope we
developed Network Ministries in San Francisco.
But often the real heroes don’t get mentioned, don’t get noticed. They are the people who visit those in
prison, who teach special needs kids.
They are the people who spend a life-time searching for a cure for some
disease and then have their names forgotten though the cure lives on. They are the people who care for the orphans
and those forgotten in nursing homes, the lonely and the disabled. We personally know some of these heroes. When you go to the hospital, who spends the
most time with you? While it is the
names of the doctor’s we remember, it is in most cases the nurses who make the
difference in how you feel, and whether or not you can really heal, at the
hospital. They are the ones who listen
to you, care for you, sit with you on a daily basis. They are the ones who come in with a smile
(or not) and make a difference in your stay at the hospital. Often we leave without knowing their
names. But the nurses are the unsung
heroes. Who made the biggest differences
in our lives as children? It’s not
really the movie or television stars we saw on TV and aspired to be. It was our parents, but also the teachers and
other caregivers who took the time to teach us, to hear us, to talk with
us. Who makes the biggest difference in
the lives of the homeless? People like our
mission folk who actually go and spend time with them and serve them on Sunday
afternoons. Who makes the biggest
difference in the lives of the women at the shelter? Those who make them meals whose names they
may not know but without whom they might not eat. These are the heroes of our times. What other heroes do you know? Who are people who have been heroes in your
lives or in other lives whose praises are not usually sung?
These are the
people who have succeeded. These are the
people who are successful in God’s eyes.
These are the people who may find themselves seated next to Christ at
some point in their lives or after this life.
And even if they don’t, these are the people God smiles on and
celebrates. Let’s hold fast to our
dreams. But ground them not in personal
fame, fortune, power or prestige. Ground
them instead in caring for your neighbor.
Ground your dreams instead in serving God. For that is our call.
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