"Mission"

“Mission”
Luke 12:49-56
August 14-16, 2010
Todd Buegler
Lord of Life

Grace and Peace to you, from God our Creator, and from Jesus Christ, the Word of God who guides our way.

Maria is an amazing young woman who was a part of our sr. high AWOL mission trip team to Montrose, Colorado that was on the road in June. The team traveled there to work with Habitat for Humanity for a week, working on building homes for several families in need in that community. Maria has a physical disability that makes mobility something of a challenge for her. Maria walks, but both her speed and endurance are limited. Sometimes she uses a wheelchair. Sometimes she hops onto the back of one of her friends and hitches a ride to her destination.

After our week of working in Montrose, our team drove to the town of Ouray, Colorado for 3 days and 2 nights of camping. Ouray is a town in a box canyon, surrounded on all sides by mountains. The national park campground sits halfway up one of the mountains, overlooking the town, facing west. When the sun sinks behind the mountains at night and the lights of the town come up below, it is breathtaking.

Of course, our team was pretty committed to hiking while we were in Ouray. There was a trailhead just a couple of hundred yards from our campsite. The trail only ran 1.7 miles to the destination, a beautiful waterfall. Our group said “1.7 miles? What’s the big deal about that?” Well, we discovered that 1.7 miles is not a big deal, unless the trail is steep, narrow and full of switchbacks, twists and turns. Then, it’s a big deal. Before the group started out I pulled Maria aside and said “If you want to hang out here at the campsite, you’re welcome to do that…or if you want to go until the trail becomes steep, and then walk back, I’d be glad to come back with you. What would you like to do?” Maria thought about it and said “let’s just see how it goes.”

It was a beautiful thing to behold. After we had filled water bottles and applied sunscreen, Megan walked over to Maria and turned her back to her. Maria hopped up and the group took off. Maria’s physical limitations were never an issue. It was never spoken about, discussed, or even questioned. When Megan got tired, Maria hopped onto Jenna’s back. Then Amy’s back. Then Frank the Tank. From one person to the next. The trail turned very steep…very narrow… winding…difficult. That “short little” 1.7 mile hike up to the falls took 2 ½ hours. Maria kept asking people “is this ok? Is it too much work? I could get down and wait here for you to come back down.” Finally, Josh looked at Maria and said “Look, do you want to go to the top or not?” “Well yeah, but not at the expense of everyone else’s energy.” “We’re all going to the top”, said Josh. The group never doubted or wondered that they were all going to make it. It was non-negotiable. This, was a group on a mission.

I learned something really important that day: The antidote to challenge is mission. When we face something difficult…a challenge…a problem…the solution is to focus on the mission you are trying to accomplish.

I was reminded of Maria’s story when I read Gospel lesson for today. This is a really difficult piece of scripture. At first glance, there seems to be a direct contradiction between the Jesus we know best…in all honesty, the Jesus that we like to know…the gentle Jesus with the children sitting on his lap, or the Jesus who reaches out and heals with a touch, and the Jesus in this text. Today Jesus sounds feisty. He asks: “do you think that I have come to bring peace to the earth? No, I tell you: division…families will be divided, father against son…mother against daughter…” I can only imagine the reaction of the disciples: “Wow Jesus, I’m so glad we had this little talk. Thanks for the emotional lift.”

But we have to be careful in how we read this scripture. Jesus is not saying that he comes with the intent to bring pain; rather, he is making an important observation here: For the disciple who follows Jesus, life is not going to be easy. The journey can be difficult…even rugged. And if we think for one moment that because we are people of faith, life will be somehow easier, that God will solve all of our problems, well…we probably need to adjust our expectations a bit.

As a matter of fact, isn’t it often the case that our faith can make our life more difficult? Our Christian faith can create conflict. In our families, faith can sometimes become a point of division instead of a point of unity. In my family, there is an unwritten rule at holiday gatherings: No discussing politics or religion (unless I really want to get under my brother’s skin).

I have met with couples before their wedding where they grew up in different faith traditions. For some, this has caused great heartache in the family. Parents might feel that their son or daughter marrying someone of a different faith is akin to turning their back on their own family and its values. It can lead to painful conflict.

What about when the behaviors of an employer come into direct conflict with the faith and morals of an employee? I have a friend on the east coast who worked for one of the banks involved in issuing sub-prime loans, and who then needed a bailout last year. She struggled mightily with the ethics of the corporate decisions because of her faith.

Our faith can create conflict: in our relationships…in our hearts.
There are many who want to believe that if we are faithful, we will be rewarded. There is a whole religious school of thought that operates that way. It is most often referred to as the “Prosperity Gospel.” Proponents of this point of view argue that when someone enters into a relationship with God, God will reward them. If faithful, they will be rewarded with an abundance of whatever they could hope for. Money…comfort…possessions…

But clearly, the prosperity Gospel is a false Gospel. Jesus does not promise comfort, wealth or reward. In our Gospel, Jesus is saying, “no, because of our faith, the journey may be more challenging, not less.” Following Jesus brings conflict…it brings ethical dilemmas. Jesus calls us to be uncomfortable with our moral compromises, to be wrenched by our neighbor’s need and to show compassion for the helpless. Jesus comes to disturb the comfortable and to comfort those who are disturbed. The Gospel can bring disruption to our way of life.

So…thanks for coming! Have a good day! Amen.

No. I’m just kidding. If that were the end of the story, well in all honesty, there wouldn’t be a lot of reason to go on. The challenge would seem just way too difficult; we would look at our life’s journey…steep and rocky, and we would say “no thanks. I’ll stay here, in camp.”

But Jesus is not calling us to safety. He isn’t asking us to stay in camp. Jesus is asking us to step out, to take risks, to take on the challenges, and to do so by staying focused on our mission. What is this mission? Jesus is quite clear in scripture. It is to love God with all your heart, all your soul and all of your mind, and to love your neighbor as yourself. This is the first and greatest commandment on which Jesus asks us to focus.

I have to admit, I sometimes struggle with focus. I can be easily distracted. Sometimes I feel like the dogs in the movie “Up”. Remember the Disney/Pixar animated story? Everytime the dogs come close to fulfilling their mission one of them will point and shout “squirrel!” and they completely lose track. “Squirrel” can feel something like a spiritual theme for me: I, like many of us, can become distracted; distracted by the difficulty of the journey…distracted by the things we observe along the way…distracted by those we disagree with…distracted by the things that divide us instead of the faith that unites us.

In our Gospel today, Jesus reminds us: the antidote to challenge is mission.
Jesus is calling his disciples to be fully committed to and focused on His mission. Jesus calls us to step out fully in faith…Jesus didn’t say to love God with just a part of your heart, soul and mind; Jesus said to love with all of your heart, soul and mind. He does this because the stakes are too high: There are too many hungry…too many homeless…too many suffering…too many that need the Word of hope.

And so we step out onto the path and we follow. We remember that Jesus followed the same path. The road on which Jesus walked was difficult, full of its own twists and turns. And that road, it led to the cross. But Jesus had a mission…a clear purpose. Jesus’ mission: it is you. Jesus walked that path because his mission is to fulfill the promises that each of you receive: Eternal life…forgiveness of sins…a relationship… a community… Jesus’ mission is to bring those things to you. That is why he took that journey.

God’s grace does not depend on your willingness to step into the challenges, the difficulty and sometimes the pain that can be the Christian journey. God’s grace comes to us no matter what. But Jesus calls us onto that journey because He knows that this is how we grow…this is how we serve. Growth and service are rarely comfortable. But we step onto that difficult path because Jesus asks us to…and because we are grateful for God’s grace.

And Jesus promises that we are not alone in the journey. He promises to be with us. God gives us the Word to guide us…it is a lamp to our feet, and a community to encourage us. God promises that when necessary we can even climb onto his back and be carried.

Our journey…it can be a challenge, and we don’t even know where it will take us. But Jesus calls us to let go of our fear…of our need to control…and to trust. And the good news for each of you is that Jesus is faithful, and walks with you each and every step. The antidote to our fear and anxiety…to the challenge of the journey…it is focusing on God’s mission to the world.

Amen.