Marks of the Jesus
Community
- Restoration to wholeness
sermon: walk through
text
verse by verse
came to Jericho—on
the way to J
geographic
notation
know
where you are on the journey
be
here now but know when to keep
moving
forward
leaving:
on the move
disciples and
crowd:every J community
has
those serious about their relationship
with
Jesus and hangers on
BBB
named,someone's child, sightless, outcast, life determined by his
limitations,
and
knows them
handicap
not nec a neg today, but always
an
opportunity for God to work
sitting stuck
in place, passive,
no
motivation to move
knows
where the best chances are
hearing it was
Jesus, how did he know?
Have
you told someone lately where that
Jesus
is near?
began to shout
touch of hope, not so
passive,
Jesus son of David
have mercy on me
knowing
his own need he acts on the
word
of hope
Shush
the noisemakers, the boatrockers,
those
who won't stay in their place
Tries again
now he has hope he's
determined
against those who normally
are
his 'betters'
Jesus stops, listens
I love it! Jesus stops
in
the face of need. And when he stops,
the
J comm stops—don't we?
instructs him to be
brought J expects his community
to be participants in his work—help the helpless, he says
crowd goes to him,
get up perhaps the
most
significant phrase in the story: encouraging:
a change of attitude for the hangers on
when
did I last tell someone Jesus was
waiting
for them?
Cloak:
cast off the stuff that identifies you
as
the old you
sprang up: hope
brings eagerness.
When
we know our limits and find a
possible
helper, lets spring up
what
do you want as last week, we
need
to
listen to those in need name their deepest desire, not assume we know
what's best for them—and we need to be able to name our own desire
and take it to Jesus
what's
your soul crying out for—God wants
to
know.
Jesus
gives Bartimaeus and us
the
opportunity to speak or back down
it
is always possible to pay no heed to the voice of invitation, to stay
in our half life instead of the deep full life Jesus offers.
This
joining the Jesus community is risky stuff. “No doubt it
was hard for some of the people whom Jesus set free to accept their
freedom...to relinguish an accustomed way of life as a blind begger”
(Daniel Rees quoted in De Waal)
De Waal goes on “we
may feel safer clinging to our prison bars, where at least we know
where we are.”
But
this man has no such apprehensions.
Teacher
acknowledging Jesus as a teacher
signifies humility
make me see
knows and admits his weakness, his limitations—what is my
blindness? What blindness does our congregation have?
Go...faith...well
wholeness is a participatory
experience—God's power and our willingness to change
immediately—very
markan
followed:
not back to old life, not back to previous social position (Life of
Brian) but forward to Jesus
on the
way: bracket of movement; are we
deflected by stuff, or ready to stay on course
“the
way”
This
whole story is a great summary of the spiritual life, both of an
individual and of the J community:
Jesus
comm keep moving forward with purpose
yet
stops to listen to the cries it hears
it
sends emissaries to bring others in
asks
about need, not assuming it knows
and
above all restores people to wholeness.
The
Jesus community commits itself not just to refreshment for the
insiders, whether disciples or hangers on, but to restoration of
all....insiders and outsiders..through encounters with the Divine.
So,
today, where are we in the story, on the journey?
will
we leave here challenged to change, as the hangers on were, simply
refreshed as insiders, or restored to wholeness to join the journey
forward with Jesus to a vision of a world
restored, healed and at
peace?
Jesus is calling for
you. Get up, and come.
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