5th Sunday of Lent

 March 21, 2010

Deep, deep in the season of Lent, five weeks into the time Christians set aside for purposeful reflection and repentance, we come upon this challenging passage from the gospel of John.  At first glance, its appearance seems routine as it follows the sequential narrative of Jesus’ activity just prior to the crucifixion.  Six days before Passover, six days before Jesus enters Jerusalem to celebrate the great Jewish feast, the high, holy day marking God’s favor and abiding protection of the Hebrew people, six days before arriving at the capital city gates amid cheers and hosannas, six days before praying alone in a garden, Jesus is relaxing with friends.  Away from pressing crowds, away from needling Pharisees, Jesus lounges on cushions, drinks wine, savors fresh dates and enjoys a pleasant evening with the people he likes best. 

Earlier in John’s account, we’ve been introduced to Lazarus and his two sisters Mary and Martha.  This Mary is the third Mary in Jesus’ life.  She is not Mary his mother.  She is not Mary Magdalene, the single female disciple who follows Jesus all the way to the cross.  No, this Mary is the one who we know always in the context of her family.  Whenever we encounter this Mary, she is in the company of her sister Martha, and she is referenced by her relationship with Lazarus her brother.

So, here they are.  Jesus and the 12 disciples have made their way out of Ephraim, a town on the edge of the wilderness where they’ve been staying to avoid the angry chief priests.  With Passover coming, they’ve walked to Bethany, a town two miles to the east of Jerusalem.  Lazarus, so pleased to see his good friend, opens his home, opens his pantry, provides food and drink, easy conversation and much needed respite for his important guest and his other assorted companions. 

At this dinner, we get a glimpse of Jesus at rest, unguarded, off the clock.  We see some of his first followers in their most natural state.  Judas, always on edge, always wanting more, always pushing his own agenda, complains and offers an alternative plan.  Martha, the doer, the person brimful of the spiritual gift of hospitality, sets the table, brings out the dishes, serves the food, offers seconds, refills the wine glasses, clears the table.  Mary, the intent, reflective sister, the one who sits at Jesus’ feet asking questions, listening to his lessons, is again at his feet.  She approaches him with reverence and purpose.  Mary takes a jar of nard, a thick paste infused with fragrant oils imported and transported into Palestine from the Himalayas.  She takes the paste and rubs it gently, tirelessly into Jesus’ weary, rough, calloused feet.  Mary tends to Jesus’ physical shell just like our altar guild tends the physical shell of our body of Christ: with a humble spirit, with awe and wonder and reverence.  She rubs the holy feet.  On Saturdays, you find our guild rubbing the brass, anointing the altar, working oil into the rail.  In this activity, there is an appreciation of the sacred.  There is a recognition of the Holy.  In this action there is prayer and contemplation.  The anointing and the drying is a spiritual acknowledgement.

Into this calm, congenial scene, contention is injected.  Judas makes accusation.  Rather than caring for, tending, focusing and elevating the holy one, the sacred vessel, he argues for serving others, for taking care of the less fortunate.  Judas exhorts for outreach.  He provides pointed opposition.  Martha, the ever busy hostess, provides more subtle contrast.  We remember her dismay in an earlier encounter when guests have again arrived for dinner and she is all about meal preparation.  Then as now, sister Mary waited at the feet of Jesus, listening, attending, adoring.  In this present intimate moment, in this break from scripted preaching and temple debate, an important lesson is being taught.

As a follower of Jesus Christ, we will always walk a tight, narrow line.  As a follower of the Risen Lord, we will carefully balance two equally important obligations.  In one hand, we carry the charge to know and honor the Son of God.  We are called to study his word, understand his message, respect and honor his name.  We are to make time for prayer and reflection.  We are to create sacred, beautiful space so our souls may engage deeply with the essence of God made manifest in the Son.  We are to be a Mary.  Worship, attention to the sacred vessel, study, these are central to our faith life.

But the inward spiritual journey is not our only duty.  In the other hand, we carry the charge to serve the world.  Jesus said, they will know you are my followers by your love.  My message is one of hope and mercy for all people.  If you are one of mine, you will go outward as you go deeper.  You will open your eyes to see the needs of others.  You will open your hearts to be touched by their concerns.  You will open your hands and coffers to bring them ease.

Jesus was so wise.  He was so deeply connected to his human side that he understood our mortal natures so well.  We are "either / or" beings.  We like to distill all truth, every dilemma, each condition into its simplest root.  Black/white, good/bad, on/off, faith/works, belief/deeds, worship/service, Mary/Martha.  Jesus knows us so well and while he understands our preference for simplicity, he knows the better way for us.  Made in the image of God, we are not "either / or" beings.  We are "both / and" people.  God Almighty is complex.  We are his own, therefore, we too are complex.  We may default to single mindedness, we may have an innate preference, but we are wired for higher level functioning.  We can walk the line.  We can maintain balance and carry two charges.  We are built with strength and flexibility.

We can be both Mary and Martha.  We can dedicate ourselves to being fully formed followers of Christ.  With intention, we can create a spiritual life.  We can make a prayer schedule.  We can commit so many minutes a day to speaking with God.  Every one of us can mark a calendar and say on this afternoon I will think about my prayer life.  I’ll get a book, I’ll google types of prayer.  I’ll get my kids to Sunday School where they’re studying the prayer essentials this very season.  Each one of us can commit to some level of study.  Seriously, Jesus didn’t say everyone quit your jobs and go to graduate school, get a degree in comparison religion.  But, before he began his 3 years in public ministry, Jesus worked and he read scripture.  The disciples he called, all of them worked.  They had families and friends and hobbies and obligations and still, they knew scripture.  To be a faithful person, to be engaged and connected to one’s faith, one does have to put some effort into the endeavor.  Prayer, study, worship, putting oneself into a sacred space, allocating sacred time is essential.  The inward spiritual journey is required.

Going deeper is one dimension of our faith, going broader is the other.  Through our prayer and our study we are prepared and compelled to move out of our internal ruminations.  We are called out, called to meet and serve others.  We are charged to bear witness.  Dear friends, the original expectation given to the 12 disciples stands before us today.  Followers of Jesus Christ are witnesses.  We are evangelists.  We may cringe and shrug, but that doesn’t change the reality.  Peter, James and John, Andrew, Philip, Matthew, Simon, the other James, Thomas, Mathias, Bartholomew, and Thaddaeus weren’t just good people who lived kind lives hoping their example would encourage others to adopt their Christian beliefs.  The original 12, the next 500, the next 5,000 were people who found a way to say aloud and often, “I have experience with the Risen Lord.”  I know him through prayer and scripture and I know him through his movement in my life.  My experience of Jesus Christ is meaningful to me and like fresh water in the desert,  I’d like to share that experience with you.  The disciples, all authentic Christians, prepare themselves through their inward journey, and then they bear witness.  They serve their Lord with both words and actions.  They articulate their faith, actually saying the words, literally offering invitation into the way of abundant life.  They serve their Lord by offering more than just words.  True followers, real Christians, see and respond to the poor, the lonely, the generally unseen.  Those who trust the word of Jesus, act as Martha in the world.  They go and give.  They work hard for the well-being of others, others needing some care and tenderness. 

Faith/deeds, deeper/wider, prayers/service, study/witness, we have a personal preference.  We have greater ease, stronger skills one place over the other.  As we walk the longer, harder days of Lent, traveling with our Lord the way to the cross, let us consider our preference and commit to expanding those inborn gifts.  Let us also recognize our charge to work the weaker muscles.

Mary/Martha.  We are not only one.  To follow Jesus is to be a "both / and" person.  We are believers and doers.  Let us contemplate and engage our complex nature so that when the Resurrection arrives, we are ready to be the joyful full-bodied witnesses Christ calls us to be.