Mark 13:1-10

The Rev. Todd R. Goddard

Mark 13:1-10 (http://bible.oremus.org/?ql=409206313)

As he came out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him, “Look, Teacher, what large stones and what large buildings!” Then Jesus asked him, “Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down.”

When he was sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter, James, John, and Andrew asked him privately, “Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign that all these things are about to be accomplished?”

Then Jesus began to say to them, “Beware that no one leads you astray. Many will come in my name and say, ‘I am he!’ and they will lead many astray. When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed; this must take place, but the end is still to come. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. This is but the beginning of the birthpangs.

“As for yourselves, beware; for they will hand you over to councils; and you will be beaten in synagogues; and you will stand before governors and kings because of me, as a testimony to them. And the good news must first be proclaimed to all nations.

| Centering Prayer |

Cynthia and I went to the rare movie this past week.

We saw “Conclave”,

A drama about the death of a Pope

And the election of his replacement.

I highly recommend it.

The hundred plus Cardinals of the Church gather

From the far points of the globe,

In Rome,

Cloistered in the Sistine Chapel.

They represent diversity,

Culture,

Language,

Race,

Beliefs.

For many of those in the running,

The sky is falling,

The Temple is about to crumble,

The very future of the Church is in peril.  

—

For some of us

For many of us

This might feel like we are living in the end times.

The result of division into partisanship is fear.

If you like it, keep doing it.

There is another way.

Look at our great nation.

Like the grand Temple where Jesus and his disciples met.

Certainly, this great nation will never fall.

Or might it?

Those at either extreme

Appear to be most alarmed,

Fearful that these are the end of times,

That the only future is one that hurts, harms, or kills.

Anxiety is real, and for some debilitating.

“I can’t breath.”

—

Those at the left or right are not alone in trembling before a doomed edifice.

Consider the black, male driver of a car pulled over by the police.

Consider the closeted gay man, knowing he is one breath away from destruction, family, career, calling.

Consider the individual this morning placed on hospice.

Consider the student who failed their final exam in their major.

Yes, the end is at hand, and is well neigh.

Many of us choose to hunker down,

Fly low, hoping to keep under the radar.

The United Methodist Church hemorrhage near fatal wounds

And now lies weak, sick, and in intensive care.

Twenty percent of the churches in our conference,

Over thirty percent worldwide chose to leave,

Leaving us with budgets and programs on life support.

Destruction feels near at hand.

The Temple, like Babel, is

Like a house of cards,

Ready to collapse.

—

Context is the key to understanding.

First, some historical context:

Nobody likes ever rising taxes.

The result was protests and attacks on government officials.

In the decades after the resurrection and ascension of Jesus,

Governor Florus over-played his hand:

He had the Temple plundered and the treasury emptied.

This was the spark for the first of three wars between the Jews and Rome.

Wars the Jews could not win.

Wars our ancestors fought.

Lost before they began.

Desperate.

Hopeless.

To the end.

The Jewish rebels fought back against Roman heavy handed rule,

Leading the pro-Roman king, Agrippa, government officials, and soldiers to flee Jerusalem for their lives.

The rebellion was getting out of control.

Nero, the Emperor of Rome, had to act.

First, he sent Gallus to bring his legions of troops from Syria

To restore order and end the revolt.

6,000 troops were caught by Jewish rebels west of Jerusalem

In the Beth Horon pass.

All six-thousand Roman soldiers were slaughtered.

The Jewish victory attained great support throughout the land

And won over the hearts of the people.

Volunteers poured into rebel recruiting stations

Offering to fight Rome.

Passion and patriotism surged with youthful vigor.

Hold on there, dearly impassioned Jews.

Victory was short lived.

Nero wouldn’t be embarrassed again.

The more experienced general, Vespasian,

was handpicked to crush the rebellion in Judaea.

Avoiding a direct attack on the heavily reinforced City of Jerusalem,

Four legions of troops landed in Galilee in 67 AD.

For three years, the legions advanced, led by Vespasian’s son, Titus,

Who served as second in command.

Rebel strongholds were eradicated, the fields were salted, and the population was punished.

February, 70 AD found the Roman legions knocking at the gates of the City of Jerusalem.

The Jewish rebels held out against the siege for 7 months.

All food supplies inside the walls were exhausted.

Time was on the side of Rome.

Jerusalem fell on September 7th in the year 70.

The Temple was destroyed, timbers burned, every stone above the foundation was thrown down and smashed.

The fire was so hot you can see the burn stains on the rubble to this day.

Rome found its revenge.

Josephus, the famed Jewish historian,

claims 1.1 million people were killed during the siege, and 97,000 prisoners were taken into Roman slavery.

The few surviving Jews fled,

Diaspora-ed under cover of night to the four corners of the world.

Among the traumatized, surviving Jews

Were a small band of disciples

Who, as luck would have it, witnessed Christ’s ascension

a mere 38 years earlier.

By the light of the burning Temple,

St. Mark and his band of new Christians,

Began to convert memories to word,

Put pen to paper

and begin a first draft of their Gospel.

(Historical references from:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Jewish%E2%80%93Roman_War

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Jerusalem_(70_CE)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gospel_of_Mark )

—

Context is the key to understanding.

Some theological context:

“Remember when Jesus made his final visit to the Temple?”

Mark and his small band of brothers probably opined.

“Jesus told us,

‘Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down.’” (13:2)

Not one stone.

The thirteenth chapter of Mark

Is called by some scholars

“The Little Apocalypse”

Written in the form and style of Jewish writers of old.

Apocalypse, as found in the book of Daniel, Isaiah 35, Jeremiah 33, and Ezekiel,

Is a revelation of cosmic mysteries or the future.

Combined with concerns and expectation of the present age,

We see here in Mark 13

Jesus lifting the veil,

Providing for his disciples and the Early Church

Insight to the end of time with the promise

Of God’s judgment and salvation.

…

What does this mean for us today?

Yes, for the faithful,

The end is always near;

As near as the next breath or heartbeat.

The Temple is pulverized by chest pains or stroke,

Destroyed by death or probate,

Shattered by temptation or evil.

Judgment and salvation are at hand.

Jesus doesn’t simply build a sandcastle on the beach

And foretell of its destruction.

Frankly, any visitor to the beach knows that,

If patient, all tides rise.

All that is made of sand,

Will soon be swept away.

Rather, Jesus takes his disciples,

Peter, James, John, and Andrew

privately to the Mount of Olives

where he teaches them what we are to learn today.

Listen to what Jesus has to say.

First, beware.

There will be those who try to take advantage of the fear, anxiety, hysteria.

Beware they do not lead you astray.

They may impersonate Jesus,

Falsely boasting salvation with no hope of making good.

They will lie, planting false rumors, and spin out of thin air wacked out conspiracy theories.

Impersonators and liars should be avoided at all costs.

Run-away bravely!

Second, be strong.

Wars and rumors of wars will take place.

Wars. Violent. Deadly.

They tear out the heart and soul of community, whose destruction continues from generation to generation.

Be strong enough of faith to outlast their insidious impact.

Endurance and strength is what we need.

Seek from the Lord, that you may be found.

Third, watch.

Watch for signs of new birth.

Earthquakes? God is making all things new.

Famines? God is using adversity to communicate to us

That the end of these former days is upon us, and

The beginning of God’s new creation is about to break forth.

Lastly, be assured.

Expect strife and persecution.

It isn’t pleasant or without pain.

Know full well that suffering is a witness,

A testimony to all nations

That Christ is King and

Jesus is Lord.  

Be the witness!

—

I’ve got good news and bad news.

The bad news:

The end is near.

The good news:

The end is near.

We are teetering on the edge of God’s new creation.

The stain of the cross and grave

Are soon replaced by the presence and promise of the resurrected Lord.

This old, worn out body, will be replaced.

Hatred, racism, antisemitism, structural discrimination will soon pass away.

What has happened to the United Methodist church is done,

What is emerging is something that God is making brand new.

Apocalyptic breads danger and fear,

Yet, Jesus brings calm and assurance.

This is God’s kingdom.

These are God’s terms.

We are God’s people.

Beware.

Be strong.

Watch.

Be assured; Christ will come to save you.

Amen.

(I’m taking a pause writing my memoirs, because I’ve been called to fill in for a colleague on medical leave, for the foreseeable future, I’ll be posting my Sunday sermons. Thanks for following my blog Breaking (present tense) Yokes (plural), dot, org.)

Mark 12:38-44

As he taught, he said, ‘Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes, and to be greeted with respect in the market-places, and to have the best seats in the synagogues and places of honor at banquets! They devour widows’ houses and for the sake of appearance say long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation.’

He sat down opposite the treasury, and watched the crowd putting money into the treasury. Many rich people put in large sums. A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which are worth a penny. Then he called his disciples and said to them, ‘Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the treasury. For all of them have contributed out of their abundance; but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.’

| Prayer |

Lord, please don’t let Jesus paint me into a corner and force me to identify myself with this poor widow.

She lost everything.

Her husband.

Her house was devoured by the legal power of organized religion.

Her independence. No money. No pension. Nothing.

Her last two small copper coins, she brought to give.

Not that it would make any difference.

In forty years, the large stones and magnificence of the Temple would become a smoking crater.

Her two coins wouldn’t make a difference.

Lord, please don’t allow my hubris and privilege identify me with the scribes, who walk around in long robes,

To be treated with respect in the marketplace,

To be seated in places of honor.

Money is power.

Money is freedom.

To come and go as I please,

To contemplate and decide for myself,

To live wholly independent of others.

Taking from widows is easy money.

Imposing taxes and employing usuary is smart business sense.

That’s what MBAs are made from.

From a position of privilege

I renounce my privilege,

But … not completely. 

Let’s not go overboard.

As Walter Brueggemann said in his book, Prayers for a Privileged People,

“We are tenured in our privilege.”

“We are half ready to join the choir of hope,

half afraid things might change,

     and in a third half of our faith turning to you,

     and your outpouring love

     that works justice and

     that binds us each and all to one another.

So we pray amidst jeering protesters

     and soaring jets.

   Come by here and make new,

     even at some risk to our entitlements.”

(Prayers for a Privileged People, Abingdon, 2008, p.21-22)

The third half of faith isn’t

A Weight Watchers portion of apple pie.

So, Lord, allow me to identify with the disciples of Jesus.

They appear to be the safest bet.

Yes, most dropped their nets,

Walked out on their families, or

gave it all away to come and follow,

But they aren’t widow-poor;

Neither are they uber rich.

Be careful for what you wish for.

Two such disciples of Jesus

Cynthia and I were privileged to know came

From serving the church in Palmyra.

Otto was a modest bench chemist.

Bernice was a stay-at-home mom,

Raising one son.

They were a family of simple means,

Drove secondhand beaters,

Never spend much on themselves.

Cynthia recalled Bernice telling how their church tithe was paid first,

Before taxes,

Before bills,

Before groceries,

Before everything else.

Because, why?

Bernice and Otto had learned to be wholly dependent upon God’s grace and love.

They tithed, not for what they could do for the church.

They tithed for what dependence upon God did for them.

I buried Otto in 1993 and

Bernice in 1997,

Side by side in the Town of Huron cemetery,

Truly saints of the kingdom.  

Giving transformed their lives

From living in this world,

Filled with elections, politics, and power,

Filled with wars and threats of war,

Filled with anxiety, death, and unexpected disability,

Into living in God’s kingdom,

Fulling embracing the life that God had to offer.

The gift Jesus seeks

Is one that transforms the giver.

Five quick take aways for you to further ponder:

1. First, honor and wealth gained at the expense of the poor results in condemnation.

“How might this impact me today?” you may ask.

Perhaps we need to be a bit more knowledgeable and responsible in the use of our money… and

make sure it isn’t used at the expense or detriment of another.

2. Secondly, Jesus is telling us that giving is not an option.

If you are going to follow Jesus, you must give your money.

Like it or not, it’s that straight forward.

Return to God

That which God has given to you.

3. Thirdly, Jesus tells us that giving to God must be sacrificial.

Q: What does this mean?

A: If it doesn’t hurt, you haven’t given enough.

It’s not enough to give out of your abundance.

Give up that which would make you hurt.

Give such that it transforms your life.

4. Fourthly, Jesus tells us that giving to God means

Being transformed from independence

To absolute dependence upon God.

5. I would lastly add, joy comes when you can relate

your own sacrifice with the sacrifice Christ made for you.

Jesus gave everything for you and for me.

He gave up his dignity, his life, his very being for our behalf.

Jesus sacrificed everything!

So what do we do in return? What can we do?

We can take what we have

And give it away.

We can allow ourselves to be completely transformed

By God’s grace and love.