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The 15th Sunday after Pentecost (A)
[Pr. 17] In the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. One of the most significant books that I have ever read is The Road Less Traveled by Dr. M. Scott Peck. In this book Dr. Peck explores how confronting and learning from problems is an absolutely necessary part of both mental and spiritual growth. Listen to some excerpts from the first couple of pages of this book… Peck begins his book with three memorable words: “Life is difficult.” Let me say this again: “Life is difficult.” Peck says, “This is a great truth, one of the greatest truths. It is a great truth because once we truly see this truth, we transcend it… Because once it is accepted, the fact that life is difficult no longer matters.” Peck goes on to write: “Life is a series of problems… What makes life difficult is that the process of confronting and solving problems is a painful one. Problems, depending upon their nature, evoke in us frustration or grief or sadness or loneliness or guilt or regret or anger or fear or anxiety or anguish or despair. These are uncomfortable feelings…often as painful as any kind of physical pain. Indeed, it is because of the pain the events or conflicts engender in us all that we call them problems. And since life poses an endless series of problems, life is always difficult and is full of pain as well as joy.” “Yet it is in this whole process of meeting and solving problems that life has its meaning”, Peck writes. “It is only because of problems that we grow mentally and spiritually… It is through the pain of confronting and resolving problems that we learn…. (And) it is for this reason that wise people learn not to dread but actually to welcome problems and actually to welcome the pain of problems.” And then Peck comes to the major point that I think relates to the theme of today’s gospel. He writes: “Most of us are not so wise. Fearing the pain involved, almost all of us, to a greater or lesser degree, attempt to avoid problems. We procrastinate, hoping that they will go away. We ignore them, forget them, pretend they do not exist. We even take drugs to assist us in ignoring them, so that by deadening ourselves to the pain we can forget the problems that cause the pain. We attempt to skirt around problems rather than meet them head on. We attempt to get out of them rather than to suffer through them.” (M. Scott Peck, The Road Less Traveled, pages 15, 16) This is what was happening with Simon Peter in today’s gospel text. As we heard: “From that time on, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and undergo great suffering at the hands of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “God forbid it, Lord! This must never happen to you.” Peter’s words as translated do not really convey the essence of what he was saying to Jesus. Peter was actually saying something like, “God be merciful to you, Lord! Surely it won’t be that bad – everything is going to be fine.” How many of us try to comfort someone who has just received some bad news by telling him or her something very similar to what Peter was saying to Jesus? “It’s going to be OK – surely it is not as bad as it seems.” And then, not knowing what to say, we then tend to avoid discussing it and instead steer our conversation to other areas. We do this instinctively in our relationships with each other, and we also do it for ourselves. In other words, we are trying to deny or avoid the problem rather than facing it head on. And that is exactly what Peter was doing in today’s gospel. Indeed, many people understand religion as being like this – that it is a “cop-out” from having to face the reality of suffering in life. Karl Marx, the founder of communism, once said that “religion is the opiate of the people.” This certainly was NOT what Jesus taught, but it is true that most Christians probably do tend to see their faith as being a “sanctuary” – as something that should help shelter them from problems rather than as being something that enables them to face and DEAL with their problems. Getting back to our gospel, Jesus in reply to Peter says, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; for you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.” We need to understand what Jesus is saying here. I don’t believe that Jesus is angry with Peter – and I am sure that his words were spoken in a loving way. But it is clear that Jesus understands that Peter’s attempt to comfort him is ultimately a temptation from Satan to get him to avoid facing the path of suffering – the same kind of temptation that he faced in the wilderness before starting his ministry. Just before this, Jesus had called Peter a ROCK – but now Jesus instead calls him a STUMBLING BLOCK that is trying to keep him from doing what God has called him to do. It is human nature to avoid taking risks that may lead to suffering, and that is what Jesus means when he tells Peter that he is “setting his mind on human things.” Faith, however, causes us to take risks that may cause us to “step beyond our comfort zones.” For example, faith may lead us to invite someone to our “Bring a Friend” Sunday on September 11 – even at the “risk” that our invitation will not be accepted. Or, looking ahead to our Consecration Sunday stewardship emphasis in November, faith may lead us to “step beyond our comfort zone” and decide to grow in our giving for the coming year. And I could go on and on. The point is that Christian faith is NOT something that causes things to remain the same, but is rather always risking and being open to new things (even things that may cause us some discomfort at first), because we know that THIS is what causes us to learn and to grow in our life with God. What areas of YOUR lives may God be calling you to risk taking a new direction? Each and every one of us, I know, has a problem or two (or more!) that may be causing us some anxiety or distress. But I would hope that we would see every problem and difficulty that we may be facing (and we are all facing some!) as being an opportunity for learning and for personal and spiritual growth. As Christian disciples, our faith does not call us to shy away from and avoid difficult situations and decisions but rather to boldly and confidently face them as Jesus did when deciding to go to Jerusalem. We can do so because we know that Jesus is with us and will give us the strength and wisdom that we need to see it through. Our gospel shows us that when facing these situations and decisions, however, we need to know where our proper place is – that we are to follow behind Jesus rather than to get in “front” of him. My wife Carol in her former career as a health care consultant often heard it said that “If you’re not the lead dog, the view never changes.” – with the implication that we are called to be leaders in charting new directions rather than merely followers. That may be a business view, but it is certainly not a Christian view! Peter in today’s gospel was trying to be the “lead dog” and chart the course for Jesus’ ministry. He may have had the best of intentions in doing this – of trying to protect Jesus from having to face suffering – but he was nevertheless wrong. That is why Jesus told Peter to “get behind him” – that is, to follow him rather than try to do things his own way. It is when we get in front of Jesus that we become “stumbling blocks” to him and to others. Christians, no matter who they are (even if they are pastors or other leaders in the church – indeed, especially if they are such persons) are first and foremost called to be followers of Jesus. Many of us have heard of the phrase “What would Jesus do?” – and Christian disciples (if they are truly disciples) always ask that question in some way, shape, or form when trying to decide how to deal with any problem or situation that they face in life. Christian disciples let Jesus be the “lead dog” rather than trying to do things their own way, for it is only when we know our proper place of being behind Jesus (or, as he later puts it, of denying ourselves) that we can experience real life with God! Finally, I would like to make one last point that we need to always keep in mind. Because we are sinful human beings, we often do not know exactly what we should do in a given situation. Even if we face a difficult problem head on rather than avoiding it – and even if seek Jesus’ guidance for dealing with that problem through scripture reading, prayer, and conversation with other Christians – sometimes we still will not know exactly what is the right decision. (This wasn’t Peter’s problem in today’s gospel, but it is one that we all face from time to time.) In those cases in which our judgment and understanding seems to be hopelessly clouded, I offer a saying that Martin Luther once supposedly said – that we should “sin boldly, and then trust in God.” That is, do what seems to be best in accordance with God’s guidance (even if that guidance isn’t absolutely and clearly discerned) – and then trust that God through Jesus Christ will continue to forgive and lead us. Yes “Life is difficult.” Life is full of problems. But through Jesus Christ, we can face and deal with those problems – seeing them not as things to avoid but rather as things to learn and grow from. Jesus assures us that we are not alone as we face life’s problems – he promises to be with us and invites us to follow him and let him be our guide. And finally, Jesus promises to love and forgive us come what may – even when we sometimes may say or do the wrong thing as Peter did in today’s gospel. Life is indeed difficult, but through Jesus Christ we know that we will not fail but will be made fit for the kingdom of heaven, and we will share in his glory. Thanks be to God! Amen! -------------------- George R. Karres, Pella Lutheran Church 418 W. Main Street Sidney, MT 59270
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