Jim Gill July 9, 2006
“Wallets”
Luke 6:1-13
INTRODUCTION
What is it that Rodney Dangerfield never got and Aretha Franklin wants just a little of? R E S P E C T. It was one of Aretha’s biggest hits. It’s what comedian Rodney Dangerfield made a career out of not getting. His bug eyed, collar pulling, deprecating humor made him star of comedy clubs and Caddyshack but as such, one who…got no respect. (“Caddyshack” wasn’t exactly “Ben Hur.”) One of Rodney’s favorite lines was, "I tell ya, I don't get no respect. My father carries around the picture of the kid who came with his wallet."
Well, in that respect…..Rodney is like Jesus. I bet you never thought you would hear a preacher compare Jesus to Rodney Dangerfield!
Even though Jesus has been building quite a resume of miracles that would make you care less if Superman returned or Captain Jack Sparrow will return next summer with his inspiration Keith Richards in tow. After Jesus’ first tour of Galilee Jesus returned …yet, like Rodney, he too got… no respect.
As a preacher, this is without a doubt one of my favorite passages. …Cause if Jesus himself couldn’t get through…it makes me not feel so discouraged when I have “one of those Sundays.”
Chapter six opens with Jesus coming to Nazareth and teaching in the synagogue and the people being amazed. There was some amazement, but there was ….no respect. Hear the word of the Lord from Mark 6:1-13.
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Let us pray. Lord, thank you for this, your word. Open our eyes to see, our minds to understand, our hearts to receive and our lives to respond to your word through the power of your Holy Spirit. In Jesus name we pray. Amen.
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Jesus was enjoying unparalleled success all around Galilee. Large crowds were coming to hear him teach and to experience his healing power. But that can be draining. As we saw last week, when the woman reached out and touched the hem of his robe he “felt” the power of God surge out from him.” It had to be draining. That’s must have been how Jesus could have slept in a boat in a storm… He was wiped out.
So, when it was time for a little Rest and Relaxation, Jesus did what many of us do. He headed for home. He wasn’t heading home from work. He was heading home to the place where he grew up—Nazareth. When the Sabbath came, he went to the synagogue and began to teach and many who heard him were amazed. "Where did this man get this knowledge?” they asked. "What's this wisdom that has been given him that he even does miracles? Isn't this the carpenter? They even took inventory of his siblings. Isn't this Mary's son and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas and Simon? Aren't his sisters here with us?"
Finish this sentence, “Familiarity breeds ________”. Mark tells us that "they took offense at him." They were amazed but not phased. And Jesus was amazed….at their unbelief.
It was Thomas Wolfe who said, "You can't go home again"? Wolfe grew up in Asheville North Carolina and he wrote about those years in a novel which he called Look Homeward, Angel. So frank and realistic were his reminiscences that his book was banned from Asheville's public library for over seven years. Today he is a favorite son, but for many years he was an embarrassment to many of the residents of that lovely, Southern city.
I’ve been thinking of writing the story of my growing up called, Between the Bayou and Hollywood Cemetery, but Houston has had enough challenges lately with no run support for the Rocket so I decided to save her libraries at least that trouble. Besides, the home I grew up in burned down about 3 years ago so I REALLY can’t go home again. Even the church I grew up in also burned down about 5 years ago so I can’t even go back to my home church and preach.
Jesus was not only an enigma to his hometown, but he was an embarrassment to his own family. Earlier in Mark's Gospel we read these mystifying words, "Then Jesus entered a house, and again a crowd gathered, so that he and his disciples were not even able to eat. When his family heard about this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, 'He is out of his mind.'" (3:20-21)
Think your family doesn't appreciate you? Welcome to the club. Jesus’ own family thought he was out of his mind. After his death and resurrection we know that one of Jesus’ brothers, James became a leader in the church at Jerusalem, and that his mother was always a part of that small band of followers, but when Jesus first began his ministry, they were not what you would term "supportive."
Maybe you don't feel appreciated either. Maybe you don't feel appreciated at home. People there don't treat you with much respect. Or, maybe it's at school that you feel you don't get much respect, or at work, or maybe even sometimes at church.
In his sermon at the hometown synagogue in Nazareth, Jesus preached to the hometown folks -- family and friends and they not only was he not respected, he was rejected.
Jesus saw his rejection as a sign of what was to come -- his suffering, death, and resurrection. When he was gone, others would have to carry on the work of salvation by offering healing, casting out demons, and preaching the gospel. So Jesus began to put in motion the next stage of his ministry, sending out the disciples two by two. He sent them out to do what he had been doing: to heal the sick, cast out demons, and preach about repentance and forgiveness.
Notice the order of his orders. First they were to deal with people’s physical problems. Then they were to deal with their spiritual illnesses. Then they were to deal with their souls. They would need to know their sickness, their struggle against demonic forces, and their sin before they would accept salvation from the Savior.
Some people see healing as limited to the body. They are aware of physical pain and suffering, and see doctors, nurses, and hospitals as the only means of dealing with their maladies. Some people are not aware of the mental and spiritual sides of healing, and some are not aware of the fact that faith can play a major role in healing. I remember counseling with a person who was going through a divorce who was reluctant to seek the help of a professional counselor. For her, to go to a counselor would have been tantamount to admitting that there was something wrong with her mentally. I said, “If you broke your leg would you hesitate to go to the emergency room?” Why are you so reluctant to seek help with a broken heart?
Disease literally means "not at ease." Disease is disharmony, disturbance, dysfunction, derangement, or disunity in the parts of the whole person. Healing involves putting a person “at” ease, restoring the unity of the body, the mind, and the spirit. A “dis”ease which seems bodily may be mental at root. A “dis”ease which seems mental may be spiritual. A “dis”ease which may seems individual may be social at the same time. The human spirit must be reunited with the God's divine Spirit for wholeness to be restored. That's why repentance is mentioned with healing in this text.
For a medical doctor to take out a stomach ulcer, but to neglect the condition which gave rise to the ulcer -- whether it is spiritual, psychological, or sociological -- is far less than the healing for which Jesus calls.
Jesus was a Jew. Hebrew thinking says that man is a whole -- body, mind, and spirit. You cannot heal one part without factoring in the dimensions of the other parts. It is hard to heal those who are sick, especially if they don't believe that they are.
Healing is a ministry of God. Jesus commanded that we bring healing to one another by his power and that is not limited to professionals. Like the first 12 disciples that Jesus sent out, we too are being sent out to bring healing to the body, mind, and spirit. God is the one who heals. He brings healing to us and then sends us forth that it might touch others through us.
Jesus also charges his disciples to go and cast out demons.
In our baptismal service parents are asked as they present their children for the sacrament and individuals who present themselves for baptism to “renounce the devil and all his ways," because we recognize that there is a power of evil within us and around us which is stronger than we are. There is a lot which we don't know about the powers of evil. One thing we do know: demons divide. Division is a sign that demons are at work. Wholeness is a sign of the Holy Spirit at work.
Resentment divides. Resentment is internalized anger. If we have resentment for a short time, after something unjust or unfair happens to us or a loved one, that is natural. But if we cling to a resentment for months or years, we do serious damage to our health.
Revenge divides. Revenge can take possession of us, can runs our lives, can drive us and control us! "We have a right to it," we protest. "Look at what so-and-so" did to me." Revenge gets a foothold, encourages us to hold onto it, grows in stature and control, begins to take possession of our life, and eventually says, "You are mine; you belong to me."
Lust divides. Starting naturally as a desire, it can take over the mind of a person, gaining control, making everything stand behind it in importance and ruining many a life. Martin Luther said: "You can't keep the birds of temptation from flying over your head; but you can keep them from building a nest in your head." He was talking about the kinds of temptations which can become lust. When we don't stop temptations early, they make their home in our minds and take control of our lives.
Jesus charged his disciples to go and cast out the demons. As Jesus promised to work through his disciples, He promises to do the same through us. Many times he does through us as a community. That is why Jesus sent the disciples out in twos, so that they could do together what they could not do alone.
I try to play racquetball twice a week. I do it for my heart. Lord knows I don’t do it for my knees. I usually play cutthroat, which the server plays against two opponents. It’s not as strenuous as singles, so it’s good for my heart, but not great for my heart. This last Thursday I missed my morning game and went to First Baptist to play with some friends. After a couple of cutthroat games, my last game was doubles. Doubles was wonderful! I had a partner. My partner could cover for my mistakes. My partner covered my errors. If the ball got past me, my partner could still get it.
The same thing holds true for the Christian life. We need one another to do the work we are called to do. Jesus' plan calls for partnerships.
We are called to do the same. Jesus’ plan was that his followers should go out together in pairs. Why go together? Couldn't more territory be covered if they went out alone? Yes, but they were sent two by two because the plan of salvation includes community. In fact, the reality is that those to whom we go need us. They need to welcome us, because in welcoming those who come to them they are opening their lives to the possibilities that God brings through those he sends.
That’s why Jesus told them to not take a wallet no matter whose picture was in it. They weren’t to take any luggage, any food, any money. They were to leave home without IT. They would have to depend on the hospitality of strangers to whom they were sent. They would have to depend on what even Jesus couldn’t get in his hometown. They would have to rely on RESPECT.
In 1989, former televangelist Jim Bakker of PTL Club fame lost all respect. Bakker was sentenced to 45 years in prison for fraud and conspiracy. While Jim was in prison, his wife Tammy Faye divorced him and married a man who was on his Board of Directors. (from what little I know of Tammy Faye that may have been a blessing).
Later on appeal, his sentence was reduced to 18 years and after serving 5 years he was paroled for good behavior. Jim writes of events that occurred immediately after his release. Jim wrote,
“When I was transferred to my last prison, Franklin Graham said he wanted to help me out when I got out-with a job, a house to live in, and a car. It was my fifth Christmas in prison. I thought it over and said, "Franklin, you can't do this. It will hurt you. The Grahams don't need my baggage." He looked at me and he said, "Jim, you were my friend in the past and you are my friend now. If anyone doesn't like it, I'm looking for a fight."
So when I got out of prison the Grahams sponsored me and paid for a house for me to live in and gave me a car to drive. But before any of that happened, the first Sunday I was out, Ruth Graham called the halfway house I was living in at the Salvation Army and asked permission for me to go to the Montreat Presbyterian Church with her that Sunday morning. When I got there, the pastor welcomed me and sat me with the Graham family. The organ began playing and the place was full except for a seat next to me. Then the doors opened and in walked Ruth Graham. She walked down that aisle and sat next to inmate 07407-058. I had only been out of prison 48 hours, but she told the world that morning that Jim Bakker was her friend.
Afterwards, she had me up to their cabin for dinner. When she asked me for some addresses, I pulled this envelope out of my pocket to look for them. You see, in prison you're not allowed to have a wallet, so you just carry an envelope. She asked, "Don't you have a wallet?" And I said, "Well, yeah, this is my wallet." After five years of brainwashing in prison you think an envelope is a wallet. She walked into the other room and came back and said, "Here's one of Billy's wallets. He doesn't need it. You can have it." ( "The Re-education of Jim Bakker," Christianity Today (12-7-98)
Rodney Dangerfield’s dad carries the picture of the kid who came with the wallet.
Jim Bakker carries the wallet that came with his friend.
“What’s in your wallet?” Or should I say, “Who’s?”
Jesus sent his disciples out to learn to depend on being welcomed and respected SO That when it came their turn they would know how to welcome and respect those that came to them. Billy Graham is one of the best at going out…but the story of Jim Bakker tells us that Billy learned how to welcome folks in as well.
Do you respect Jesus enough to do what he has asked you to do? Are you willing to receive folks into your circle of friends and show them the hospitality that Jesus expected his disciples to receive as they went on their first 2x2 journey? Are you willing to pair off and go to those who need to have their “dis”eases healed, their spirit’s cleansed and their souls saved? Are you ready to give and get some of what Jesus couldn’t get in his home town? And what Aretha wants just a little of… R E S P E C T?
Let’s pray. Lord, help us to capture the sense of enthusiasm and joy which the disciples felt as they stepped out onto the mission field! Fill us with that kind of boldness, that kind of sharing, that kind of stretching to serve Jesus that really shakes us up! Inspire us with the same kind of boldness and zeal and risk-taking which was so contagious in the early community of faith. Do not allow us to act as if we are immunized against the effects of the Spirit! Fortify us with your power. Bring into our prayers a sense of honesty and seriousness, depth and enthusiasm. Lord, pour out your great grace upon us as you have promised, for we are ready to be bold for the sake of the kingdom. Amen.
