Year B
Mark 6:1-13
The Very Rev. Denise Vaughn
The Paradox of God’s Power
Quite naturally, on this Fourth of July, as we celebrate our nation’s freedom, our thoughts turn to our nation’s leadership and the role of the church in the public arena. We may ask: in what way can God’s purposes be fulfilled in and through the actions of the state? How and to what end is power to be exercised? And what is the role of faithful Christian followers in the political process? Good questions, with not so clear answers or solutions provided in the scriptures to our modern day problems. The texts today illustrate the struggle and contradictions in which the Old and New Testament often stand with regard to such matters. The conclusion is that people can sometimes work in favor of God’s purposes and sometimes against. And hence we see the paradox of church and state and their respective power.
The text from 2 Samuel today celebrates David’s acceptance by the whole nation as the shepherd-king, thereby expressing the covenant relationship between God and Israel. David had bid his time, refusing to lift up his hand against God’s anointed King Saul even though he knew himself to be anointed also, and then at last becomes king in a second anointing. The text today is the conclusion of a lengthy narrative which began in 1 Samuel chapter 16, of which we have been reading selections from the past few weeks, and in which it traces David’s long and difficult rise from Shepherd boy to royal king.
Theologian and author Walter Bruggemann calls it the story of “a genuine nobody to whom power was given.” David had already been anointed as king by God but it was not until Saul, Jonathan, Abner, and Ishbosheth the other potential leaders were dead that the people were ready to accept him as their king uniting all the tribes of Israel, north and south. David reigned as king for 40 years. He gives his kingship a fresh start by conquering and relocating to a new city: Jerusalem which was later renamed and became known as the City of David. He had a huge impact on Israel, God commissioned him to serve God’s purposes which were to make sure the people lived in covenant with God.
This text may be one more example among many in the scripture where people discover the truth that there is no point in fighting against God’s plan. Not even David’s enormous weaknesses can take away the Lord’s faithfulness to the people. As the wise writer of Proverbs observed, “The human mind may devise many plans, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will be established.” David will live up to the promises of the Lord and will, thereby, not only lead his people to greatness, but will himself lead a life confirming that the purposes of the Lord are true. The passage ends on a note of great promise and hope as Israel enters into their golden age.
Over and against the great promises of Israel’s political structure and success comes the text from 2 Corinthians where we learn of Paul’s thorn in the flesh and the clear word that God’s true power comes to fulfillment in weakness and not in the wordly events that might validate a mighty God-victories and successes. God’s power is defined by the cross. God uses Paul’s thorn in the flesh to bring about God’s purposes among the congregation and the world. In this text today, Paul is addressing the critics who are claiming that their visions set them apart so that their version of the gospel therefore, is superior to those who don’t share in these visions. Certainly this rings true for some Christians today who claim their superiority over the experiences of other Christians. We also see this happen in the political arena where there are those who think that if you don’t believe as they do then you are wrong.
Paul is refusing to go along with the Corinthian’s desire that he should be the kind of powerful apostle they had in mind. A leader like David would have suited them just fine. Paul had discovered that real power was seen precisely in weakness which validates the gospel. He had discovered that when he lived a Christ like life, the power of the risen Christ came through as well, and he was not only able to work healings but also able to work as an effective servant-leader in the communities founded through his preaching and teaching.
Paul is assuring us that it is our afflictions- our weaknesses- that reveal God’s strength in our lives. It is what defined David in his rough road to kingship, the rejection of Jesus by his hometown and ultimately his betrayal by a friend and his rejection in Jerusalem. Therefore, “Paul writes, “I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities for the sake of Christ; for whenever I am weak, then I am strong.” By walking the way of the cross, Paul tells us we are able to discern God’s presence and power in our lives.
The gospel text today confirms the criteria for discerning God’s presence, redefined by the cross. We see this redefining, in the rejection of Jesus by his own hometown people and in the twelve sent out for mission who will also face rejection. Neither Jesus nor the twelve can expect help or support from the political authorities, nor do they seek it. Sometimes the state can be an agent of God’s purposes and sometimes not. This story, where Jesus encounters resistance and unbelief from his own people, is especially bitter for him. It comes following a demonstration of his power over both illness, in the healing of the hemorrhaging women, and death, in Jairus’ daughter.
His hometown people move from astonishment to disbelief, asking a series of five questions that distance them from wonder, attempting to reduce Jesus to whoever he was when he lived among them. Jesus decided enough is enough. He leaves and goes on to the other villages teaching and commissioning his apostles; sending them out with one purpose and one goal,-to preach repentance and to minister to the sick. They are to be ready whenever the Spirit sends them to a new place. They become an extension of his ministry in the world with God giving them the power and gifts needed to fulfil this call not in power but in weakness.
Hidden in the rejection and weakness of Jesus in his hometown is the revelation of the cross. Hidden in the power that Jesus has to heal the sick we encounter the resurrection. We encounter God in strength and weakness; calling us to faith; inviting us to believe and be bearers of God’s truth. Hence the paradox of God’s power and promises, seen in each of our lessons today, through David, Paul, Jesus, and the disciples, we see that walking in God’s ways and seeking to live in accordance with God’s commandments will bring blessings untold. This is the logical consequence of our actions. We may not always get it right and the world will see weakness but our role in this world as Christians is to choose to live as people of God, boldly and faithfully, going out relaying on the power of God to show the weakness of Christ with us. And when needed, shaking the dust off our feet and moving on, then the promises of God will be fulfilled.