Can You Drink the Cup?

 Can You Drink the Cup?

Mark 10:32-45[1]

I think we as a people have a hard time with suffering these days. For decades, we have tried to keep suffering “at arm’s length.” And to some extent we’ve tried to remove it from our experience of life altogether. But suffering remains a part of life, and trying to avoid it only makes it worse. Other societies recognize this and accept suffering as a “normal” part of life. When it comes, they grieve as we all do, but they don’t make it into a “catastrophe” that “should” not have happened. In a very real sense, our efforts to distance ourselves from suffering only make it worse when it comes knocking on our door.

There was a time when things were very different. Our ancestors who settled this land lived with hardships that even the strongest of us cannot fathom. My great-grandfather’s family consisted of nine siblings originally. Four of them died as children. That was simply one of the aspects of life for many families in that day. But they were proud to make the sacrifices they did because they knew that they were building a better future for their children and their children’s children. And we used to celebrate the sufferings they endured and honor them for the sacrifices they made. It’s hard to do that when we think that what’s “normal” is to avoid suffering in life.

In our Gospel lesson for today, Jesus tries to tell his disciples for the third time that he is going to undergo great suffering. And for the third time, their response reveals that they really don’t understand at all. This time it’s James and John, two of Jesus’ “inner circle” of disciples. They asked Jesus to do for them “whatever we ask of you” (Mk. 10:35)! Their request is truly astounding. They ask for the privilege of sitting at his right and left hand when he came in his “glory.” James and John, like the rest of the disciples, still thought that Jesus had come to restore the glory of David’s kingdom in all its might, wealth, and prestige. Even though Jesus had just warned them again that he was going to be condemned and beaten and killed, they simply could not hear that.

Jesus answers their request with a question of his own: “Are you able to drink the cup that I drink?” (Mk 10:38). He knows that he means the “cup” of suffering that he is soon going to undergo. They rather casually say, “We are able” (Mk 10:39)! In response, Jesus makes a rather ominous statement: “The cup that I drink you will drink”! They don’t realize it, but he’s trying to tell them again that if they want to follow him on the path that will lead him to the cross, they too must expect to suffer. In fact, Mark’s Gospel reminds us later that the ones who wound up on Jesus’ “right and left” were the two “bandits” who were crucified with him (Mk 15: 27)!

Although their request for “places of honor” was inconsistent with Jesus’ life and completely out of place in God’s kingdom, Jesus tries again to teach them. He had already taught them that if they wanted to follow him they must “deny themselves” (Mk. 8:34) and “lose their lives” for his sake (Mk. 8:35). He had also already taught them that “Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all” (Mk. 9:35). Now he tries to teach them again that “whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all” (Mk 10:43-44). If they want to follow Jesus, they must be prepared to give themselves away as servants and even “slaves” of all (Mk. 10:44). More than that, they had to be prepared to “drink the cup” of suffering as he would.

And to reinforce the lesson, he once again pointed to his own destiny, that “the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many” (Mk 10:45). As the scripture lesson from Hebrews reminds us, Jesus “learned obedience through what he suffered” (Heb 5:8), that is, by giving his life on the cross for the sake of us all. Following him would entail no less for them. It would mean giving themselves away for others. It would mean being willing to “drink the cup” by sacrificing themselves and even suffering for the benefit of others.

We used to believe in that in our society. In fact, we had a saying for it: “From everyone to whom much has been given, much will be required.”[3] There was a time when we believed that the more you had, the more advantages you could count, the more you were expected to serve. The more opportunities you were handed, the more you were expected to give yourself away for the benefit of others. That seems to have gone by the wayside these days. It seems we’re more concerned about what’s in our own best interest rather than making sacrifices for others.

But maybe it’s time we try to recover the commitment to serve others sacrificially, following Jesus’ example.[3] Jesus suffered and died for us, so that we might have new life now, and a hope for a future. And he calls us to drink the same “cup” of suffering and sacrifice that he did. I guess the question we all have to face is “can you drink the cup”? Are we willing to “learn obedience” by what we suffer for the sake of others just as Jesus did? That’s the path Jesus walked, and he calls every one of us to that same path. He calls us all to drink the cup of suffering and sacrifice for the benefit of others. Being willing to do so as Jesus did is what it means to follow him.[4]

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[1] © Alan Brehm. A sermon delivered by Rev. Alan Brehm, Ph. D., on 10/17/2021 for Hickman Presbyterian Church, Hickman, NE.

[2] Although President John F. Kennedy was famous for quoting this verse, it originated with Jesus (cf. Lk. 12:48)! See Mark Liberman, “The Tangled History of a Mangled Maxim,” http://itre.cis.upenn.edu/~myl/languagelog/archives /004100.html. 

[3] Henri Nouwen, Here and Now, 101, calls it, “the way of downward mobility, the descending way of Jesus. It is the way toward the poor, the suffering, the marginal, the prisoners, the refugees, the lonely, the hungry, the dying, the tortured, the homeless.” 

[4] Cf. Adela Yarbro Collins, Mark, 498: “servanthood and the cross are linked in the life and death of Jesus” and therefore also in the lives of those who follow him.

Who in the World can be Saved?

 Who in the World Can Be Saved?

Mark 10:17-27[2]

Sometimes it seems like people either take salvation too seriously or too lightly. There are those who think that what it’s all about is securing your eternal destiny, and you just have to say the right words or go through the motions of the right rituals. As long as you get your “weekly dose” of God, you’re good to go. Then there are those who seem to think of salvation as an “impossible dream” or an “unreachable star.” No matter what they do, they seem to think that salvation is a goal that they can never attain. As with most things in life, I would say the truth lies somewhere between those two extremes.

If you’ve been following the last few weeks’ sermons, you may be wondering who could ever live up to the challenge of following Jesus in the life of the kingdom of God. Jesus has called us to “take up our cross” and “lose” our lives for his sake (Mk 8:34-35). If we want to follow him, we are to become “last of all and servant of all” (Mk 9:35). Jesus warns us in the strongest terms against causing others to stumble in faith or stumbling into sin ourselves. He has made it clear that following him means taking seriously our relationships. And this week, Jesus confronts the challenge that wealth poses to faith. We may well be wondering, “Who in the world can be saved?”

Our lesson from the Gospel of Mark is a familiar one: a wealthy man comes to Jesus and asks him “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus’ answer probably seems strange to us: “You know the commandments: ‘You shall not murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; You shall not defraud; Honor your father and mother’” (Mk 10:19). Those of us with ears more attuned to St. Paul and who have “cut our teeth” on the Reformed version of the Christian faith would find it difficult to think that you “inherit eternal life” by keeping the “commandments.”

I think what we have to understand is that Jesus’ answer is framed in a particular way of viewing obedience to God. Everything Jesus says about obeying God has to be interpreted through the “two great commandments”: “you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart” and “You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Deut 6:5; Lev 19:18). Of course, I’m not sure that makes things easier for us. I’ve always said that it’s much harder to love God and love others—truly—than to keep a list of rules that relate to our external behaviors. But the idea that we are called to love God and love others may help us make sense of Jesus’ answer. I believe his point is that when we do so, it will show up in the way we live our lives.

But that’s only part of the problem with our lesson for today. The other part is that this man responded to Jesus by saying “Teacher, I have kept all these since my youth” (Mk 10:20)! We might be tempted to think this guy was only fooling himself, but Mark’s Gospel tells us that “Jesus, looking at him, loved him” (Mk 10:21). I think this man was sincere in what he had asked and in his response to Jesus, and Jesus saw that. But we all have our “blind spots,” and unfortunately this man’s blind spot was the fact that he “owned much property” (Mk 10:22, NASB).

I don’t think it was an “accident” that Jesus told him to sell all he had and give the proceeds to the poor. You may have noticed that Jesus included the commandment “you shall not defraud” along with the others from the Ten Commandments. In the Bible, hoarding wealth at the expense of the poor constituted “defrauding” them. And the fact that this man owned “much property” directly violated Scripture. In that day, no land was to be permanently sold; every fifty years, in the “Jubilee” year, it was to return to the family that owned it originally. But in Jesus’ day, all the land was owned by wealthy people like this man. That meant that there were many families who had been “defrauded” of their property. This was the “blind spot” in this man’s profession of obedience to God.

We might think this was just a matter of this man’s relationship to his wealth. But Jesus goes on to say, “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God” (Mk 10:25)! This seems to apply more broadly than just one man’s attachment to his property. Throughout the Gospels, Jesus makes it clear that wealth is a serious obstacle to “loving God with all your heart.” There’s something about our possessions that can “possess” us. If we aren’t careful, wealth has a way of taking over our heart and our life.[2] But selling all that we have and giving it away isn’t a very practical option for us. That’s why disciplines like hospitality, generosity, stewardship, and simplicity have always been part of the Christian life. The best way to ensure that your possessions don’t possess you is to give away enough of them that you notice it.

With all that we’ve heard from Jesus, our lesson for today might lead you to ask with Jesus’ disciples, “Then who in the world can be saved?” (Mk 10:26, NLT). I think it’s a natural response to Jesus’ deeply challenging statements about what it means to truly follow him. And we might really despair, wondering if anyone can ever live up to all that Jesus demands of us. But Jesus’ words to his disciples apply to us as well: “For mortals it is impossible, but not for God; for God all things are possible” (Mk 10:27). If we’re trying to “inherit” eternal life by our own efforts, we will always fall short. But as we seek—however imperfectly—to love God with all our hearts and love our neighbors as ourselves, we have the assurance that “for God all things are possible.” God can do surprising things in our lives and through our efforts.

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[1] © 2021 Alan Brehm. A sermon delivered by Rev. Alan Brehm, Ph. D. on 10/10/2021 for Hickman Presbyterian Church, Hickman, NE.

[2] Cf. Joel Green, Theology of the Gospel of Luke, 148: “Wealth becomes a master if it is not mastered.”

From the Beginning

From the Beginning

Mark 10:1-12[1]

Human relationships are wonderful and complicated, mainly because we humans are wonderful and complicated. This applies to marriage, if for no other reason than it involves two human beings trying to live together. We bring all that we are into a marriage, and that can lead to a wonderful union. But because a marriage involves two flawed and broken people, that’s not always how it turns out. Some think of this in terms of what’s “right” and what’s “wrong,” as if these things are clear-cut. I’ve found it more helpful to look at human relationships, including marriage, from the perspective of what’s “healthy.”[2] The fact is that there is a wide spectrum between what’s “healthy” and “unhealthy,” with a lot of room in between.

 There simply is no “one size fits all” approach to human relationships, and that applies to marriage. In our setting, we believe that marriage is about love. That’s not always been the case historically. From ancient times, marriage constituted a contract between two families that involved property and wealth. In other cases, marriage was primarily about having children and extending the family name. The meaning of marriage has changed and developed throughout history. And, for better or for worse, it is still changing and developing today.

In our Gospel lesson for today, Jesus responds to a challenge from “some Pharisees” who were trying to “test” him. More likely, they were trying to trip him up and catch him saying something they could use against him! We should understand that their question about divorce was not a sincere one! They rather casually assumed they had the right to divorce their wives. And they cited Moses as “allowing” them to do so, quoting from the book of Deuteronomy. But Jesus attributed this to the “hardness” of their hearts, or their stubborn insistence on going their own way rather than obeying God. I think we should notice that while the Pharisees assumed they were shining examples of moral purity, Jesus reminded them of their own sin!

But more than that, Jesus challenged them to go beyond what Moses “permitted.” He pointed them back to God’s original intention for marriage “from the beginning of creation” as expressed in the book of Genesis: “a man shall … be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh” (Gen. 2:24). Jesus concludes, “So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together let no one separate” (Mk 10:8-99). Here Jesus makes the biblical ideal clear: marriage is intended to be a permanent relationship that lasts for a lifetime.

The Pharisees appealed to Moses, so in order to reinforce what he was trying to say to them he went to the Ten Commandments. Jesus applied the commandment against adultery to the issue of marriage and divorce. I think what we must understand here is that Jesus wasn’t addressing every possible situation involving divorce. He was confronting a situation in which men casually assumed they had a right to divorce their wives without any concern for their well-being. He challenged them to take marriage and divorce much more seriously. More than that, Jesus made both husbands and wives accountable to each other, which was groundbreaking in that day. Even Jesus’ disciples assumed they had the “right” to divorce their wives.

We have our own assumptions that may make it difficult for us to hear what Jesus was trying to say. Many have taken what Jesus says about remarriage after divorce and used it as a “club” against hurting people. But the reality is that we all fall short of the ideals set for us in the Bible. That’s true whether we remain married or have been divorced! No one perfectly maintains an ideal relationship![3] Again, it seems clear: divorce and remarriage is not what God intended “from the beginning,” but that doesn’t mean every situation involving divorce and remarriage is “sinful.”[4] We can already see an effort to address the complexities surrounding divorce and remarriage in the New Testament. Jesus himself mentioned infidelity as a basis for remarriage after divorce (Mt 5:32). And Paul allowed believers from Corinth to remarry if an unbelieving spouse wanted to divorce them (1 Cor 7:15). Neither of these situations were the ideal, but that doesn’t make them “sinful.”

In this day when the meaning of marriage is changing dramatically, it’s especially important for us to uphold God’s intention for marriage “from the beginning”: a life-long relationship of mutual respect, friendship, and care. But not every marriage turns out like that and sometimes divorce happens. Divorce is not an “unforgivable sin,” and it doesn’t mean that God is finished with you. We believe that God can bring good out of all kinds of things in this life, and we should not think of divorce as an exception. While we uphold God’s intention for marriage, we must also recognize that we all fall short, and therefore it’s just as important that we apply the biblical ideal with compassion, particularly toward those in our family of faith who may have to endure the heartbreak of divorce.

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[1] © 2021 Alan Brehm. A sermon delivered by Rev. Alan Brehm, Ph. D. on 10/3/2021 for Hickman Presbyterian Church, Hickman, NE.

[2] Cf. The Book of Order 2019-2021 W-4.0601, p. 106: “Marriage is a gift God has given to all humankind for the well-being of the entire human family.”

[3] Cf. “The Westminster Confession of Faith,” ch. XXVIin The Book of Confessions, p. 178, where it is acknowledged that due to the “weaknesses” of married partners it can happen that “the marriage dies at the heart and the union becomes intolerable.” 

[4] Cf. Shelby Spong, Living Commandments, 80: “there is a very large area between what we would call ideal and what we would call immoral.” Cf. also John Calvin, Commentary on a Harmony of the Evangelists Matthew, Mark, and Luke, vol. 2, p. 384. Although Calvin only grants divorce on the grounds of infidelity, he does recognize that “though Christ condemns as an adulterer the man who shall marry a wife that has been divorced, this is undoubtedly restricted to unlawful and frivolous divorces.”