130210 Jesus the Greater

“Sin is a culpable disturbance of shalom.” – Cornelius Plantinga

Recovery Jane. She really didn’t have anything to lose by joining the crowd that day. Really. Nothing to lose. She had nothing. Less than nothing, actually. She had given herself away in so many ways so many times that she wasn’t sure who she was anymore. She stopped valuing herself long ago. She was joining the crown because the crowd offered the possibility of food. She had a better shot begging for bread with a few thousand people around than she did sitting alone in her encampment. What did she think God thought of her? Jane who? And this was the greatest sin that entrapped her – that she forgot that she was a beloved child of God.

John Q. John was like most that day. He was waiting for God to show up and do something big. There was something in the air – everybody could sense it. He had seen Jesus before, and was really beginning to believe that maybe this was the one everyone was waiting for. John the Baptist was amazing. But he was gone. It seemed that ever since John was imprisoned, Jesus really stepped up his game. Not only was his teaching more bold, it seemed that the Spirit of God was on him. Full of expectation, John couldn’t wait to hear more and see more and feel more from Jesus. John’s sin was that he was a “presence junkie” – he was always looking for the next moment of ecstasy, the next showcase displaying God’s majesty and power, when the Presence was there all along. This incessant desire became a “shalom block.”

Atom Jack. He knew Jane. Biblically. And not by the means his rabbi would require. He had what she didn’t. He got what he wanted from her. She got what she could. Jack was used to taking advantage of situations to strengthen his position. He joined the crowd that day for one reason alone: himself. He didn’t care about whatever this Jesus guy was talking about. As far as he was concerned, Jesus was just another political activist whining about Rome, the religious elite, and how we need to be God’s country again. Blah, blah, blah. He was hoping to increase his fortune that day. Maybe broker a deal or two. Or call in a loan. What did he think about God? God who? And that, of course, created a serious disturbance is shalom. There was none for Jack, and it was killing him as he was killing it for others.

Emily Divine. Em was a child of the synagogue. She knew the Jewish Law like the back of her hand thanks to her dad who was a local rabbi. She was there that day purely out of curiosity. This Jesus figure was growing in popularity in part due to his take on the scriptures. Since John the Baptist died, she wondered if Jesus was going to take up the mantle. Confident that faith was about living out the Law, she wondered what Jesus could possible add to her belief. God loved her, and loved that she loved the Law. But the Law hadn’t really provided the shalom she expected, because it simply couldn’t.

Sally Science. Skeptic. Google it and up comes a picture of Sally. She was with the masses that day, sowing seeds of doubt wherever she could. She had heard of some of Jesus’ tricks and was certain he was a phony. Miracles don’t happen. They don’t make sense. Why would God favor some while neglecting so many others? Jesus is just another huckster. It will only be a matter of time before he starts asking for money before he does another “miracle.” God may exist, but this isn’t Him. Sally’s sin was simply that her desire for proof on limited terms made it impossible for her to ever find it. It wasn’t for lack of evidence that she couldn’t, but rather her refusal to recognize the evidence in places she was not willing to acknowledge.

Ava Green. There was an ethos about Jesus that simply wooed Ava. He was different that the others. He was definitely Jewish, of course, but he seemed to color outside the lines. It was as if by his teaching and actions he was implying that God was bigger than the religious doctrines that tried to define Him. Ava was impressed with the grace Jesus had shown the woman who had been bleeding for so many years. She had heard of his ministry on the other side of the lake where he dared to help the demoniac. She wanted to hear more. She believed that people were more the same than different, and that if everybody cared for each other, a lot of the world’s problems would simply fade away. Ava’s shalom needed realism. While her heart was beautiful and good, what she didn’t realize is that while it is wonderful to respect and love everyone and their perspective, there also comes a time when beliefs require roots and commitment. In her effort to be all embracing, she really didn’t embrace much at all, especially not shalom.

Read Mark 6:30-44.

Jesus the Greater. When Jesus came ashore he saw the crowds, saw their hope, saw their need. And he had compassion on them. That included Jane. In his presence, words, and generosity, she discovered that God knew her name, and that sparked a new identity in her that would help her overcome her past and embrace a worthwhile future. When the bread was dispersed that day, most of the people saw a miracle before their eyes and were all the more convinced that God had shown up powerfully that day on the shore of Galilee. Atom Jack was especially affected. In Jesus he saw a power that made him realized just how small he had been. His world changed because that day he realized there was a very big Other in the world. He left that day changed in ways others couldn’t believe. Emily couldn’t believe what she was experiencing. Not since Elisha had anything liked this happened, and even then, not so overwhelmingly abundant. She left that day having seen God color outside the lines. Her faith grew beyond the box of the dogma she knew so well. Sally wasn’t quite sure what she was seeing. A miracle happened, no doubt. Was it a manna from heaven sort of thing, or a people sharing their resources sort of thing? She wasn’t sure. But either way, it was miraculous. Ms. Green saw her dream coming true as everybody broke bread together. Community loving community to the point where everyone had more than enough.

Everybody came that day for different reasons. Everybody came with a shalom disturbance in their bones. And everybody left with more than they came for. Jesus was greater than they anticipated. Somehow while speaking to them all they all felt as though he was speaking just to them. Somehow he touched them where they entered the story, not just where some were.

How do you enter this story? As you move toward this mysterious Jesus, what are you coming for? What are you hearing from the Spirit as you listen? What sin is disturbing the shalom that longs to grow in you? How has your encounter with this Jesus changed the way you’ll spend your next day?