"More Stories About Grace: The Way It Began and Begins"Dr.
James L. Mayfield
March 9, 2002
Text: Mark 1:9-15 The story we read today is Mark's version of the way Jesus began his ministry. And as we look into this story, I believe we can learn something of the way our life of faithfulness is to develop. As Jesus was coming out of the river after having been baptized by John, Mark described what Jesus saw: " ... the heavens torn apart and the Spirit of God descending like a dove upon him." In Jesus' day, the popular view of the universe was, that below the earth was the place of the dead; the earth was the land of the living; and above the blue sky, were the heavens. Many people imagined there to be several heavens, with the highest heaven being where God was. It was a way of thinking that was intended to point toward the holiness of God, and how much above us humans God is. At two key points in the Gospel of Mark, the writer uses the phrase "torn apart." Here in the story of Jesus' baptism he speaks of the heavens being torn apart, and when Jesus dies on the cross, he speaks of the curtain in the temple being torn apart from top to bottom. The curtain in the temple separated the area of the holy altar from the people. At the baptism of Jesus, Mark was telling us God tore open the heavens so that God's holiness shall not block our access to Him. And at the time of Jesus' death Mark was telling us God tore in two, the curtain that separates us unworthy sinners from the holiness of God. Part of the amazing mystery of God's love is that God refuses to allow either his holiness or our sin to block His relationship with us. There is a message in this for each of us. God so longs to be in relationship with his children, God has removed all the barriers to our being in relationship with Him. The door to that relationship is wide open; waiting for us to walk through it. As Jesus came out of the waters of baptism, he was aware of the Spirit of God, descending on him like a dove. It is not unusual for us live assuming God has not been at work in our lives because we have had no dramatic, thundering religious experience. Mark tells us that the way of the Spirit of God descended upon Jesus was not like a lightening bolt accompanied by frightening thunder, but that it was more like a gentle dove descending upon him. As I look back on my life, I see much more evidence of God's grace at work in my life with the gentleness of a dove than in dramatic, thunderbolt experiences. It was at this point, Mark tells us, that Jesus was aware of God saying: "You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased." What is being said here? Jesus had chosen to be baptized by John. Yet, John's baptism was a baptism of repentance. Why was Jesus baptized? We affirm Jesus was without sin. I think Jesus chose to be baptized as a way of being in fellowship with us. Whatever else baptism is, it is the celebration of someone coming into the community of faith, this community of the forgiven. Jesus could have stood apart, saying I am not like they are. But he did not. He became one of us; he entered into community, into communion, with us. And God said: "That's my boy, and I am proud of him." And it is when we humbly identify ourselves with those around us, for the sake of being able to serve them, that God is pleased with us. Our problem, or at least mine, is that we not only want to stand apart from others but we want to stand beyond and over them. Jesus chose to identify with the people he came to serve, and it pleased God. The next part of the story has a strange sound to it. The Spirit of God drove Jesus into the wilderness where there were all sorts of dangerous animals and for a long time he was tempted -- tempted to use all he has been given to serve himself, rather than God. But God did not leave him defenseless in the midst of danger and temptation. As Mark puts it: "... the angels waited on him." This is the way life is. No sooner are we blessed by the grace of God, than we find ourselves in the midst of some sort of wilderness situation where there are all sorts of dangers and temptations. But God does not abandon us. As the poet who wrote the 23rd Pslam knew, God provides what we need even in face of what might destroy us. "Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of my enemies." There are all sorts of ways God's grace provides for us to be taken care of as we go through our ordeals in life where we have to cope with danger and temptation. The next scene in this story took place sometime later, after John the Baptist had been arrested. Mark tell us Jesus was in Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God, preaching a three point sermon: (1) The kingdom of God has come near, (2) repent (3) and believe in the Gospel. . What did Jesus mean when he said, "the kingdom of God is near"? God's kingdom is wherever God reigns -- be it in this life or in life beyond death. And the very good news is, God's reign is near. And it is. It is as close as the next choice we make. Will that choice be in keeping with God's will or not? This is how close we are to living in the kingdom of God. It is as close as making the choices God wants us to make -- as close as our next decision. To live in the kingdom of God is for us to live the prayer Jesus taught us: "Thy will be done." But my problem is, I want my will to be done. I want God to serve me and my longings. I want God to serve my family, and I want God to serve my nation. All this makes it very difficult for me to enter the kingdom of God, that is, all this makes it very difficult for me to allow God to reign in my life. It is not easy for me to choose to serve the purposes of God rather than the purposes of Jim Mayfield. This is why the second point in Jesus' proclamation was "repent" -- not merely apologize but change behavior. I must repent, that is make changes in my values, my priorities, my outlook, and behavior. I must change from being centered on myself to being centered in God. I must repent. How can we ever make such changes? Or in the language of the Bible, how are we able to repent? Jesus said: "believe in the gospel -- the good news." And what is this Gospel, this good news we are to believe in -- not merely acknowledge with our heads as being true but actually believe in, put our trust in, allow to shape our living? It is that we are loved by God. These words are so familiar to most of us we hear only a familiar sound without focusing on what is being said. It is like listening to a song, and hearing only the familiar melody without grasping the meaning of the lyrics. But when we realize what the good news is ("God loves you") and we not merely believe it but believe in this gospel, this good news, our living is impacted. To believe in this good news of God loving us is for each of us to live trusting this to be true. If God loves each of us, each of us must be important to God. Think about this. You and I are important to God -- to the Awesome Mystery that created all that is, sustains all that is, and that holds all that is accountable. You and I are loved by this one and only God, and being loved by God means, among other things, that we are important to God. When we believe in this good news, we live trusting our living matters to God. Our living has purpose, and this purpose has to do with God's love which is the kind of love we see revealed in Jesus. To believe in this good news is for us to live trusting this is the way to live. This is the way we become persons who live their lives doing God's will, that is, living in the kingdom of God. We so believe in the good news of God's love and all the implications of this gospel that it changes our outlook, our values, our behavior. This morning I have been talking about Mark's version of the way Jesus began his ministry. I am convinced that in this story about Jesus choosing to be baptized, God's Spirit descending on Jesus, God blessing Jesus, the temptations of Jesus, and the sermon Jesus preached, can tell us a lot about the way our lives of faithfulness develop. God, enable each of us to learn what we need to learn from this story in the Gospel of Mark. Amen. Pastoral prayer: Let us thank God for the gifts and blessings we have received. We have come here with a variety of concerns and problems. Let us ask God for guidance and help. God, we are grateful for the gifts of grace that bring joy into our lives, the gifts of grace that make us aware of changes we need to make in our living, the gifts of grace that enable us to make those changes, the gifts of grace that give us strength and courage in the hard times, the gifts of grace that enable us to seek your guidance. God, we need your guidance. Upper most in the minds of most of us is our deep desire to avoid war in the Middle East. We long for peace. We need your help. Enable those in power in Iraq to choose to disarm and to cooperate fully with the inspectors. Give courage to those in Iraq who can bring about constructive change. Give wisdom and patience to the leaders of the United Nations as they stand at a cross roads in history trying to discern which road will take us to the destination of long lasting peace with justice. Rescue them from naive thinking on the one hand and impatience on the other. Protect our President and his advisors from the temptations that come with frustration and fatigue. Enable them to be their best selves as they decide what action is to be taken. Help them and help each of us see as you see, so that they and we will do what you want done. Teach all of us to live the prayer Jesus taught us: "Our Father ...."
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