SERMONS FROM THE HEIGHTS

Transcription

1 Psalm 27:1-14; Luke 13:31-35 SERMONS FROM THE HEIGHTS by Randy L. Hyde, D. Min. Senior Pastor Pulaski Heights Baptist Church Little Rock, AR February 21, 2016 Second Sunday in Lent AIN T GOT TIME FOR THAT Four years ago a woman in Oklahoma, who was known in the neighborhood simply by the name of Sweet, became an overnight internet sensation when she was interviewed on local television following an apartment complex fire. She said she had gone out for a pop that s what she called it: a pop and when she smelled the fire thought at first that someone was barbecuing. When she realized the place was on fire (or far as she referred it), she told the reporter she didn t even go back to get a pair of shoes. Ain t nobody got time for that! she said. Ain t nobody got time for that. Her interview went viral, largely because of her personality and the way she came across on camera. It spawned a song that received millions of hits. She became so popular she was hired to do commercials for local businesses, went on the televison program The View, and appeared in a Tyler Perry movie. That one television interview morphed into a career. She might even tell you that the fire was the best thing to ever happen to her. Ain t nobody got time for that! That is essentially what Jesus said to the Pharisees yes, the Pharisees, interestingly enough who came and told him that Herod was after him. The wily Herod had taken the life of John the Baptist and now he was, if you will excuse the pun, headed in Jesus direction. 1

2 In truth, Jesus was headed toward Herod. Jesus could have avoided Herodian territory, but he didn t. And there is the distinct possibility that he ventured into Herod s backyard intentionally, if for no other reason than to convey to the king, that while Herod may have thought he was in charge of that part of the world, he most decidedly was not. The gospel of Luke emphasizes, more than the others, that Jesus made only one trip to Jerusalem. It is Luke that provides the rather well-known statement that Jesus set his face toward the Holy City. Stephanie Paulsell uses it in another context, but it fits so perfectly here. She refers to... a blend of humility and fearlessness, 1 That s Jesus, isn t it? He takes his traveling show on the road for the inevitable showdown at Calvary in humility and fearlessness, and he s not going to let anyone, not even Herod especially Herod get in his way. Was Jesus worried? Apparently, not in the least. Go and tell that fox for me, Listen, I am casting out demons and performing cures today and tomorrow, and on the third day I finish my work. Yet today, tomorrow, and the next day (an obvious reference to his resurrection) I must be on my way... Jesus is too busy to worry about Herod. Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you, they tell Jesus. And Jesus says, Sorry, my calendar is full, I have plans, and things to do. Ain t nobody got time for that. Considering this story from Luke s gospel always reminds me of Hugh Latimer. Latimer was a sixteenth-century Protestant preacher in England who was burned at the stake on the order of Queen Mary. She accused him of heresy, but back in those days heresy usually meant you didn t do what the queen wanted you to do or say what she wanted you to say. There was a rather loose definition of the word heresy, whatever the royal establishment wanted it to mean. Before he died, however, Latimer managed to get in a few licks of his own. He was once preaching in Westminster Abbey when the king was in attendance. During his sermon he said, Latimer! Latimer! Latimer! Be careful what you say. The king of England is here! Then he went on, Latimer! Latimer! Latimer! Be careful what you say. The King of kings is here. 2

3 Jesus is not beholden to king Herod any more than Hugh Latimer was beholden to the king of England. His obligation is to his Heavenly Father, the eternal King. Herod will not get Jesus. Jesus will not die out of season, and he will not die outside Jerusalem. As far as Jesus is concerned, the sly, cunning, evil, and worthless Herod Herod the fox is a non-issue. So what is the issue? Jerusalem. The city that kills its own prophets, and stones those who are sent to it, is the issue. It is in Jerusalem that Jesus time will come, and he, more than anyone else, knows that. In the meantime, he has work to do. Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you. Ain t nobody got time for that. Strange, isn t it? Jesus calls Herod a fox. From what we know, it was a perfect description of him... absolutely dead-on. You would think that he would then depict himself as an animal which is the natural enemy of the fox something bigger, quicker, stronger, and smarter than a fox. But he doesn t. Instead, he refers to himself as a vulnerable hen guarding and protecting her brood. What is more powerless than a hen? When a hen is confronted by a fox, the fox wins hands down. But not this time. Not this time. Ain t nobody got time for that. Besides, Jesus focus is obviously on Jerusalem. When we hear the name Jerusalem, it may mean nothing more to us than the major city of Israel, both ancient and modern. These days, Jerusalem manages to make the news, especially in light of the conflict between Israel and Palestine, a struggle that seems to have little or no resolution. But it was, in Jesus day and even now, more than just their most important city... at least to the Jews. It symbolized the heart the beating heart of their religious faith and experience. It stood as a beacon of their unique relationship to the one true God, a privileged relationship that belonged only to the Jews. It was the place of the temple where God had his abode, where God s presence was celebrated and sacrifices were given to the One who had led them through all the difficult times in their history as a people. Regardless of the direction from which you approached the city, when you went to Jerusalem you always went up to Jerusalem. Jerusalem was that holy to them. It was much more than just a city. It was their spiritual home, and they would do 3

4 anything to protect it, even slaying, if necessary, those who would claim to be their prophets. Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! Do you hear the pain, the pathos, in Jesus voice? There is no greater agony than offering yourself completely and totally to someone in love, only to be rejected and scorned. Jesus didn t go to Jerusalem right away. Even though we re past that point in Luke s gospel where we are told that he has set his face toward Jerusalem, he circles and meanders around, teaching here, teaching there, healing folk, casting out demons... wandering around in Herod s backyard, just irritating the life out of the old fox. Jesus will get to Jerusalem in his own time. In the meantime, Herod can threaten all he wants, but Jesus has no intention of giving him any regard whatsoever. Ain t nobody got time for that. The odd thing about all this is that Herod isn t the enemy. Despite what he did to cousin John, Jesus is aware that Herod, in the final order of things, just doesn t matter. As vile and disgusting as he is, he s not the threat. Neither are the Pharisees, nor the Sanhedrin, not even Pilate or the High Priest. Jesus is battling against evil, those collective forces that stand in opposition to the will and purpose of God. Perhaps that is why, when he tells the Pharisees to report to Herod and give him a description of his activities, they particularly include the casting out of demons and the healing of illnesses. These realities represent the evil in the world that opposes the holy in the world. That s where Jesus real enemy lies. If the Pharisees think Jesus is in trouble with Herod in Galilee, they haven t seen anything yet. What is waiting for Jesus in Jerusalem is far more ominous than what he is experiencing here. Herod a threat? Nah. It is Jerusalem that is on Jesus mind. 4

5 So he s going to run to Jerusalem and conquer it like a rampaging Rambo? No, that s not the point either. Suddenly and without notice, Jesus shifts from his direct challenge to the authority of Herod to the soft and tender language of a mother. Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings... Softly and tenderly Jesus is calling. The hymn has it right, doesn t it? But perhaps we have the image in our minds, when we consider that song, of a nail-scarred Jesus reaching out with loving arms to receive those who would come to him. It is true, to be sure. But here, in this account from Luke, Jesus has yet to have the nails thrust through his hands and feet. What does that mean? I think it means that while the cross was God s final act of redemption and grace, whereby he reaches into the heart of every one of his human creation, it did not take the cross for God to love God s children. It did not require Jesus sacrifice for him to mourn over those who rejected the purpose and will of his heavenly Father. It was his very nature to want to protect and love God s children, for that is the nature and purpose of God... to love us and care for us, for you and me, and to save us no matter what. And Jesus, my friends, always has time for that. Lord, we thank you for Jesus humility and fearlessness. May we find it in us to be the same because he has given himself for us. And as he does for us, may you find us always having time for him. Through Christ our Lord we pray, Amen. Notes 1 Fluent in God s Work, Christian Century, January 20, 2016, p