Stick to the Wall

Mark 15:2-5

      If you throw enough mud, some is certain to stick. That is a popular strategy for defeating an opponent. It happens on playgrounds and political campaigns around the world every day. You call names, make up stories, bring up past mistakes all in the name of gaining the upper hand. We put the other person down in order to lift ourselves up. They become a stepping stone for our upward rise.

      The one problem with this strategy is that we are now standing on our opponents. Not the most solid of foundations!

      The most powerful government official of that area of the world was holding court that day. Pilate had been governor for at least four years by the time of Jesus’ trial. He would have been familiar with the customs of the Jews, since he would have had to understood their beliefs in order to maintain peace. I am sure this is not the first trial that involved particular aspect of Jewish theology. There had been a long line of rebellions against Roman rule starting in this part of the Roman Empire. This history would have been part of Pilate’s initial briefing when he took office.

      The Jews come to present evidence against Jesus. They want Him convicted of something that would merit death. They have developed a long list of things Jesus has supposedly done. They throw the whole list at Him. This sounds like what many prosecutors do today. They charge you with as many things as possible, hoping to be able to prove one of them. The more things thrown at Jesus, the worse He sounds.

      But Pilate isn’t buying what they are selling. He asks Jesus directly if He is “King of the Jews,” a title that would have certainly put Him at odds with Caesar, the Emperor of Rome. Only one king could exist in the Roman Empire, and that seat was filled.

      So if Jesus had answered and said, “You’re absolutely right about that. And my reign isn’t just over Rome, but over the whole universe. Caesar is nothing to me.” Jesus would have been in big trouble. That would have been a direct threat to Rome itself. But Jesus didn’t have an army, or any real followers at this point. They had all run for cover. They were cowering in the shadows. Rome had nothing to fear from Jesus’ military force. He had none.

      And Jesus doesn’t defend Himself against these obvious false charges. This is what amazes Pilate. Even he can see mud when it is thrown. He can hear the flimsy nature of the charges. He might even want to be the defense attorney, just to see the prosecution squirm on cross examination. But Jesus keeps silent.

      I can bet that many have been accused before Pilate and have given strong defensive arguments against the charges leveled at them. Pilate must have been used to the back and forth of charge and rebuttal. This was a normal part of what happened. Charges were brought and then answers were given.

      But Jesus makes no defense. He says nothing to reject the false charges. He says nothing to address the silliness of the charges.

      What do you do when someone charges you falsely? How do you handle heightened emotional energy leveled your direction? Do you react with equal emotion and vigor? Do you counter sue with charges of your own? Do you bring up their past and throw it in their face?

Disagree

Mark 5:30-31

      Crime scene investigations have become very popular television programs. They come in many different shapes and sizes, but the bottom line is figuring out “whodunit.” Some explore what is would have been like before DNA testing and laser spectrometry (Inspector Moorse). Some even look back to the days before fingerprint were used as identifying markers (Cadfael). Some even push into the future inventing technology that doesn’t exist (Doctor Who). Some specialize in particular types of crimes (SVU).

      No matter what particular twist is taken in these shows they all feed on our human desire to solve mysteries. We start asking questions as toddlers in order to fill in the blanks in our world. We want to know why the sky is blue and when we find out have more questions. This is a primary way that we learn. We ask questions. Maybe not out loud, or to other people, but we often ask questions to ourselves and then seek answers.

      The woman in our text has just touched Jesus clothes and been healed. She is trying to slip back into the crowd that is gathered in order to make her escape. That was her plan. Silent and unnoticed. In and out. But Jesus has other plans

      Jesus notices that someone has received healing be believing touching Him will bring that healing. This person has faith in Him, but not a mature faith. It is a magical faith. Jesus wants to bring a fullness to that belief that will free her from more than just the bleeding. Jesus wants to restore her to fullness of life and relationship.

      So when He asks “who touched me?” He is doing it to complete her restoration. Jesus knows who she is. Remember, He is God. He asks to bring her closer, not to solve a mystery.

      But Jesus’ disciples question Jesus’ experience. They think Jesus is just being overly sensitive. Lots of people are touching Him. We are in a crowd, after all.

      Jesus’ question is about restoration of the woman, not solving a mystery. He knows that before she is whole, she must identify herself. Her healing involves more than the cessation of bleeding. She needs to be restored to the community.

      Jesus’ disciples are again one step behind. They think Jesus is just getting overly sensitive about being in crowds. You’re in a crowd. What do you expect? Everyone is getting touched. It’s no big deal. Let it go. At that point they are way behind the power curve. Jesus wants to give the woman an opportunity for relationship with Him.

      Disagreeing with Jesus is not a good thing when it dulls your relationship with Him. The disciples think they have figured out what is going on in that moment. But they were wrong. When something doesn’t seem right, and we begin disagreeing with the LORD, trying to put Him in His place, passing on all our wisdom to the LORD, then we are in a bad place. Anytime we disagree with God, we are in the wrong.

Silence Isn’t Always Golden

Mark 3:4

      Silence. Sometimes it is the perfect antidote for the busyness of life. Sometimes it is the worst of indictments. There are times we need to speak up. There are times when we need to stay silent. It can be difficult in those moments of decision to know when and how to speak up. At least it is for me!

      Jesus confronts some religious leaders of His day. He does it in a synagogue on the Sabbath. They are there to try to catch Him in the act of doing a miracle in order to bring charges against Him. To them, Jesus is a threat. He has power and authority which they want. And from their perspective, the only way they can get it is to kill Jesus, eliminating the competition. Sounds like our political environment, doesn’t it! Lies and deception. Not much has changed.

      Jesus invites the man with the shriveled hand to stand before them and then He asks them what appears to be a simple question. But the question is anything but simple. Jesus puts their interpretation of the Law on trial. They believed that the Law, and keeping of every minute detail of their prescriptive code drawn from the Law made a person right with God. If they kept all the rules, they would end up on God’s “Nice” list, rather than the “Naughty” list.

      Because they had flipped the Law on its head, making it something to be served, rather than something that served them and their spiritual growth, they had lost all touch with the reality of the LORD’s presence and grace. Jesus pushes them to make a decision that the very crux of this dilemma. He asks them to take a stand and choose the good, even if it meant that they would break one of their superimposed regulations.

      Their silence speaks volumes. They should have answered by agreeing with Jesus, that doing good and saving lives is what is important. But instead, they recognize that Jesus has trapped them. Or perhaps that they have trapped themselves. They know they are caught, so they stay silent.

      Have there been times when you were caught, and you knew it, and you could have declared your error and come clean, but instead you remained silent or went into attack mode?

Be Thought Wise

Proverbs 17:27-28

       It is amazing that silence is often more powerful than any argument. That is because silence in the face of accusation or challenge is very difficult to do. We must fight our God given tendency to defend ourselves. When words are the weapon of choice against us, it can be hard to not return fire with words of our own.

      My wife told me jokingly just a minute ago that she has used silence for years to seem smarter. Maybe she is much smarter than everyone thought. I knew she was on the ball. But she is a quieter person than I am. Her natural personality is quieter. It would be pretty hard to be noisier than I was!

      I have learned in recent years to slow down when the heat of a discussion turns up. When pointed accusations start to fly, I purposefully try to slow down my reaction. So often my first reaction to outsiders seemingly attacking me is dead wrong. If I give preference to my first reaction, I would be in trouble.

      So I hold back my words. I wait until I have a better picture of what is happening before responding. I don’t give my temper upper place. I try to use my temper only when needed, which should be a rare occasion. I mean, how often does my anger really line up with God’s plan?

      When someone else is venting, letting their anger get expressed in my direction, I am often not really the object of their anger. They had a bad night’s sleep. They are hungry. They are frustrated with their workload and have little say in their professional life. They are living beyond what their income can sustain and the pressure is getting to them. They feel like no one really understands them. They feel isolated and alone. And I happen to be an easy target, a safe target. I won’t fire back.

      As a counselor, the greatest skill is learning to be silent, asking only a few questions to keep the client exploring their experience, clarifying in order for the client to discover what is really driving their reaction. If someone really listens to us, we often feel so much better, understood and cared for, valuable and more at peace. We all need someone to listen to us.