i'm a fool in a fetter
One of my pet-peeves is when people of faith look down their nose at the first disciples.
Those of us who have the comfort of hearing about their foibles, 2,000 years later and in the comfort of our own Bible study, ought to be a little more hesitant to cast aspersions on these first disciples, who indeed did leave everything to follow Jesus.
Those of us who have tried to follow this same Jesus; and know personally about the need for forgiveness in much smaller stakes; should be at least a little more sympathetic when we hear about the shortcomings of these disciples.
Like we’re want to do today…
“Oh, don’t James and John get it yet,” we groan to ourselves, when we hear about their request to sit and Jesus’ left and right hand…
Honestly, the appeal of these Brothers’ Zebedee, is a perfectly reasonable one. These two are just doing what each one of us does every day; trying to get a choice spot in the pecking order…
Let’s just admit it, our entire lives are measured.
Our place in this life is never quite certain; and so we too spend our entire life trying to hustle the best spot we can eek out for ourselves. Now this isn’t an entirely bad trait, either. It’s normal to want to know where we fit, to be sure that we belong.
So now; when we hear about James and John, worrying about the same kind of thing we worry about; up to the same kind of tricks we’ve all tried, we sit back and shake our head; and if that’s all we do we miss the rub of today’s Gospel.
After all, the way Jesus handles the request of these two is the way he will handle ours…
Which gives me pause. Weren’t you listening as I read today’s Gospel?! Doesn’t it give you at least a little pause???
James and John come to Jesus with a request we all have; to sit with him; but then Jesus shirks his responsibility; and even worse, he does this right when it matters most!
“But as to awarding the places of honor,” Jesus replies to the Zebedee brothers, “that’s not my business.”
Right when James and John finally work up the gall to ask Jesus to include them, when they finally work up the nerve to admit they want to be with Jesus; Jesus just shrugs them off!
Apparently Jesus can’t see past the end of his own nose.
As far as Jesus is concerned, granting James and John a place with him, isn’t any of his concern…
If they won’t ask, and you won’t ask, either; than I will: Whose business is it?
Honestly, whosoever business it is to grant a place next to Jesus, that’s the person we need to talk to, the one we need to hear from today.
Because if Jesus came, lived, died, and even rose after three days; what does it matter if when it comes to granting a place with him; he just shrugs and says, “not my problem?”
How can we ever be sure? How can we be certain that we belong, that there is a place for us? How can we ever quit this rat-race and trust that Jesus’ life, dearth and resurrection is enough for us?
What difference does his life death and resurrection even make, if when we come to him, asking to be with him, he just shrugs and says “That’s not my business. Hashtag: sorry-not-sorry?”
I’m sorry, folks; but James and John are the ones being reasonable; and Jesus is the one being unreasonable!
Not his business?
I don’t think so!
Not his business?
I don’t think so!
Although I hate to say it, I have to; we have another problem on this fourth week of Lent because Jesus was just being honest with James and John - granting a place with Jesus is none of his business.
Jesus’ business is defeating Satan; plundering Satan’s storehouse.
Once Jesus has completed that; finally defeating death after three days by rising from the dead; Jesus completed everything he was sent to do. There’s nothing else for him to do, not even arranging the table assignments for the great heavenly banquet - a responsibility Amanda and I shirked from ourselves…
Indeed, although the request of James and John, duplicitous though it may be, is a concern we’ve all had; Jesus is just being honest when he says it isn’t for him to grant a place next to him in his glory…
The thing, though, is Jesus’ honesty should not create doubt or consternation for us.
The fact is; Jesus’ honesty is just one more example of the business he came to do. Even with James’ and John’s request, faced with the temptation of assuming some glory for himself and assigning seats at the great heavenly banquet; Jesus stays focused - nothing will deter Jesus from his business, defeating those forces that defy God!
And because Jesus did; you need not worry about your place; but rather give thanks!
As Jesus is busy defeating the forces that defy God; the Holy Spirit, certain that Jesus will stay faithful to his mission, gets to work and grants the request of James and John; assigning seats for the great roll-call.
In fact, the Holy Spirit gets to work right now, as I proclaim to you, by the authority of Jesus Christ, + that all your sins are forgiven.
The truth is, like James and John, we’ve all worried about our place in the pecking order. We’ve all tried to carve out a little space for ourselves.
Jesus’ retort, “that’s none of my business,” isn’t him shirking from his responsibilities, but rather him being steadfast - and therefore giving us reason to be certain that there is a place for us.
Jesus doesn’t give two whits about glory, it’s none of his business; he’s too busy in the trenches freeing you and I from all those things that keep us from God; all those things that cause us to doubt our place at the great heavenly banquet.
Jesus has stayed true to his business, and the Holy Spirit has stayed true to her’s. We no longer need to worry about our place, it’s none of our business, the Holy Spirit has it taken care of, not even the devil can change that.
As St. Paul writes in Ephesians, (you are) “raised up with Jesus and seated with him in the heavenly places.” This is not your own doing, it is by grace; and it comes as the promise that God has commissioned is spoken today; “By grace you are saved.”
There is a place for you in the great Heavenly Party; you don’t have to worry about that, you don’t have to try and connive your way in; Jesus has stayed faithful; that’s all you need to worry about.
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