St. Mark 7:1-13
Dearly beloved, We now turn our attention to the gospel of St. Mark for a few weeks. Having focused so heavily on the Bread of Life discourse the last several weeks, the church now ponders confrontation and conflict between the Pharisees and Jesus. This gospel focuses on the ceremonial nature of hand-washing, which is not easy to understand. The disciples fail to do the ceremonial washing before they eat. This failure to act in the ways of the Jews and the Pharisees prompts a strong rebuke by the Jewish teachers of the Law. Jesus responds by quoting the Old Testament scriptures, particularly the prophet Isaiah. The topic that is swirling in this account between Jesus and the Pharisees is the question of the heart. This deserves our attention today. The prophet Isaiah spoke words that would not have been well accepted in our culture today. They weren’t very well accepted in his day, either. But Isaiah highlights a dimension of sin that can take over people and often does. Isaiah says that the eyes of the prophets and teachers have been closed. They entered a spirit of deep sleep. Even in Isaiah’s day the prophets and teachers of the law were unable to understand the Holy Scriptures. We are told in the Old Testament lection for today that when they try to read the Old Testament, they say they cannot for it is sealed. In other words, they read the words and they cannot understand what they read. They do not “get” what God is trying to say. This is because the teachers had become more interested in what they were accustomed to and less interested in what God was trying to teach. They sold out the Holy Spirit for their own contentment. It is hard to know for sure what was really getting to the Pharisees. Were they so blinded by what they were used to that they could not really see that the Old Testament speaks and prophecies of Jesus Christ? Indeed. The Pharisees, by clinging to their practices and their comfortable ways, were holding on to job security. But when this man, Jesus, comes with some raggedy fishermen and they don’t tow the old line, then the disciples are bad. More than that, Jesus taught with power. This, too, threatened “job security.” So, how fitting that Jesus would quote from Isaiah 29. The reason it is fitting that Jesus would quote from there has to do with the fact that Isaiah is prophesying that the teachers of the Law would be replaced by the most unsuspecting of characters. Isaiah says, “And the Lord said: because this people draw near with their mouth and honor me with their lips, while their hearts are far from me, and their fear of me is a commandment of men learned by rote; therefore, behold, I will again do marvelous things with this people, wonderful and marvelous; “and the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the discernment of their discerning men shall be hidden.” Isaiah is saying that in the future the so called wise men will be utterly ignorant. There will be a seal on the interpretation of the Scriptures. But this book will be opened by the most unsuspecting of people. A very important verse comes out in Isaiah. “In that day the deaf shall hear the words of a book, and out of their gloom and darkness the eyes of the blind shall see. The meek shall obtain fresh joy in the Lord, and the poor among men shall exult in the Holy One of Israel.” This is prophecy of the days of Jesus. Those who did not understand will come to understand. Lowly fishermen will preach God’s word with power. The Pharisees and the Scribes must have looked at the disciples with disdain. These men were nothing to look at. It just so happened that the hearts of the disciples were open to learning and seeking God. They were willing to be surprised by what was taught to them. The Pharisees were not willing to learn; they were not willing to be surprised and accept what they heard. There are a few very important points for us to ponder for our own Christian existence. First, we must always be ready to be surprised. If we desire to be comfortable, we will also become complacent. We will stop growing spiritually and then hold on for dear life to the things that have made us comfortable. This can be a roadblock to our growth and maturing as Christians. Second, Jesus uses people that we would not expect to further His work of the kingdom. Jesus wants to use the meek and the humble. The reason Jesus does this is so that His heavenly Father’s name will be glorified and not the person. If Jesus had chosen great, worldly, savvy men for the apostolic ministry, then men would attribute wonders and success to those savvy men. But, if Jesus uses tax collectors and fishermen, then people will marvel at God’s work. This is all why Isaiah prophesies that in the future, “the meek shall obtain fresh joy in the Lord, and the poor among men shall exult in the Holy One of Israel.” This is fulfilled in the disciples who sit there with unwashed hands. Applying this to ourselves, then, we must be careful that we do not become to conceited in what we think we know. For if we think we have all things figured out and then condemn those who do differently, we stifle the Holy Spirit. We do not leave ourselves open to unsuspected blessings from the Lord. We must repent of all sins, including sins in this regard. We must seek the Lord’s will for His church, not our will for His church. Christ aims to bestow great blessings on His people through the word and sacraments. He, in fact, has done it on the cross. Your sins have been washed away and you have been redeemed from the condemnation of the Law. You have been set free by the Spirit of God and you walk as His holy children. The blessings shall abound if we but let the Lord do His work in His church, His beloved Bride. The goodness of God is made known to us and the seal of the Scriptures has been broken open by the teaching of Christ and carried on by His apostles. His love is in your midst, and His truth envelopes you with the proclamation of everlasting life and holiness through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. -- Rev. Chad Kendall www.frchadius.blogspot.com Trinity Lutheran Church Lowell, Indiana www.trinitylowell.org