Year B Proper 24 21 October 2012
Job 38: 1-7, (34-41) Psalm 104: 1-9, 24, 35c Hebrews 5: 1-10 Mark 10: 35-45
Ever been somewhat ‘ticked off’ with God and let him know all about it?
I sure hope I’m not the only one. The experience usually sees me getting so cranky and telling God that I hate everything and that everything is unfair and why won’t he fix it... probably because he hates me... etc... AND THEN... somehow things settle down and rationality returns, and then I feel really silly because I know that God knows and understands things way beyond what we can and so I then feel guilty, apologize to God, and just feel somewhat ridiculous.
Well, if you haven’t ever experienced anything like this, I’m going to be feeling pretty silly for confessing my ridiculous childish traits, but I will take heart in the fact that Job would understand my ranting.
When rationality returns to me, I remember who God is, but Job ranted so much that God needed to audibly communicate with him to remind him. He answers Job in these words:
Job 38:1-5 “Then the LORD spoke to Job out of the storm. He said “Who is this that obscures my plans with words without knowledge? Brace yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer me. “Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation? Tell me, if you understand. Who marked off its dimensions? Surely you know! Who stretched a measuring line across it?”
It seems that Job needed a lesson in humility.
Do you note God’s sarcasm, when He says, “Surely you know!”? Truly, the more you get to know the Bible the more gems you find like this! Here is God being sarcastic and reminding Job about a few facts of God’s nature, in answer to Job who has been moaning about his hated life. And the bit that I love the most is that even though Job moaned, cried and was in bitter despair, he was still who God chose as the one to intercede and offer up sacrifices for others.
There are some people who are my facebook friends who are taking on the 30 day gratitude challenge. They are finding something to be grateful for each day. It’s a wonderful thing, but I suspect if Job were invited to take part he’d decline. When you are hurting, you are hurting and that is that.
Job was a man who used to offer up sacrifices on behalf of others. At the beginning of the book of Job we find that he offered up sacrifices for himself and then also for his children just in case they happened to sin. He was a man approved by God, so much so that he was appointed to suffer. His unrelenting relationship with God was a testimony to all.... even though he told God what he thought about the situation.
We discover that this relationship that Job had with God is very similar to that of the high priest. In our Hebrews’ reading we discover that the High priest would offer sacrifices for himself and also for others. The high priest was an intercessory for others and a representative for God.
Hebrews 5:1-4 “Every high priest is selected from among the people and is appointed to represent the people in matters related to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins. He is able to deal gently with those who are ignorant and are going astray, since he himself is subject to weakness. This is why he has to offer sacrifices for his own sins, as well as for the sins of the people. And no one takes this honour on himself, but he receives it when called by God, just as Aaron was.”
This describes what we know about Job and the way that he interacted with others prior to his being tested. No one takes this honour on himself, but he receives it when called by God. It doesn’t say that Job was a priest, but certainly he was a leader in his community and by his actions and by the command of God to intercede for others, we can assume that he fulfilled this role in the same way that many others did, such as Abraham, even before the Levitical Priesthood was formed.
But this reading from Hebrews goes on to talk of a very special kind of priesthood; in the order of Melchizedek
Hebrews 5:8-10 “Son though he was, he learned obedience from what he suffered and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him and was designated by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek.”
This passage tells us about Jesus being our high priest who doesn’t need to offer sacrifices for himself and then for us, but he has completed the “once and for all” sacrifice.
Throughout the Old Testament there are prophetic writings about the Messiah who would be a priest forever in the order of Melchizedek, but this character, Melchizedek appears first in the book of Genesis chapter 14. Hebrews 7:1-3 tells us more about Melchizedek, “This Melchizedek was king of Salem and priest of God Most High. He met Abraham returning from the defeat of the kings and blessed him, and Abraham gave him a tenth of everything. First, the name Melchizedek means “king of righteousness”; then also, “king of Salem” means “king of peace.” Without father or mother, without genealogy, without beginning of days or end of life, resembling the Son of God, he remains a priest forever.”
Abraham had just returned from rescuing the people of Sodom, including his nephew Lot who was living there. Suddenly this character, described as priest of God most high appears with bread and wine. Melchizedek then blesses Abraham and Abraham gives him a tenth of everything.
Hebrews tells us that Jesus did not take on himself the glory of becoming high priest, but it was appointed him by God the father, and it was a fact that came about through his suffering.
In the Gospel reading we see that there are two men, James and John, who have no idea of this concept of servant leadership.
Mark 10:37,38 “They replied, “Let one of us sit at your right and the other at your left in your glory.”
“You don’t know what you are asking,” Jesus said. “Can you drink the cup I drink or be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with?”
How awesome! Although the other disciples were pretty unhappy with James and John, this gives Jesus the perfect opportunity for lesson 101 in being an apostle.
Mark 10:41- 45“When the ten heard about this, they became indignant with James and John. Jesus called them together and said, “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
These crazy men are those hand picked by Jesus. They didn’t understand that it is God who chooses us for special positions in his kingdom and those special positions are positions of serving others. Jesus was the greatest of all and he gave the greatest sacrifice of all. Job, a man of righteousness, was chosen to prove his faithfulness as a testimony to all including both the physical and the spiritual realm, proved to be faithful through great suffering.
There are three sides to our message for this week. Firstly, it is God who choses us.
Secondly, that being chosen by God to have a special position in the kingdom of God means serving others and this will often include trials, suffering and persecution. (But take heart because these are not random, but have a divine purpose even if we can’t see it.)
Thirdly, and what I think is most important, God does not reject us when we cry out in despair, or when we get it wrong and try to claim the position. God understands that our vision is sometimes limited and he chooses us for reasons that only he can know, but when he does none of our stuff ups will interfere with his plan.
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