| March 11, 2007
You are invited to reflect on this message
Toward the end of his ministry, Jesus went “up to Jerusalem” to test the readiness of the temple to transcend its heritage, nationality and religious tradition. When he got there, he discovered what I suspect he already knew -- that the temple wasn't ready for that. No temple ever is. Luke makes his point that Jesus didn't have much use for religious buildings. But his people came to believe that they couldn't worship without one. And here I am in the most historic church in America and hold a lot of pride in our place.
Our text is part of Jesus’ final discourse before he was crucified. It appears to be one o’ those speeches about “the end of the world.” But it's not. It’s just a description of what seems like the end of the world! And how it hurts to let go of our dream of having the world go our way. Jesus was warning about the dangers of being a “religious doofus,” by putting our trust in things not worthy of it. Appearances are deceiving. But they’re still appearances. And when it bumps up against reality, it guarantees unforeseen reversals. That’s why the world of religion is full of surprises, two of which I find in our scripture lesson for today.
The first one being, some things look like they’re substantial and are going to last forever. But in fact they’re only fragile and temporary. Luke begins his story allowing us to listen in on the musings of unidentified speakers, enthralled at the temple in Jerusalem. They don't seem to be talking to anybody in particular; just out loud, as they take in the spectacular sight of their noble shrine. Whatever respect and sense of the holy any congregation might attach to itself as a sacred place, these folks in Jerusalem attributed to their facility in the extreme. This majestic structure had become the focal point of their world. And the mere existence of it was a sign to them that God favored their nation. This was the place where prayers were offered and offerings rendered; where throngs crowded into its courts on high, holy days.
I’ve stood at the base of King Solomon’s Western Wall, built 6 centuries before Christ, still segregated. But who cares? It’s a spot so sanctified, that the devout squeeze prayers written on tiny paper scraps into the crevices. The reverence is so real, they bob their heads in earnest petition and even back away from it, so as not to appear disrespectful. So Luke portrays the Jews awestruck in admiration and pride. “Would you look at that? What noble stones!” With Moses in the wilderness, a golden calf would do. But in Jerusalem, there’s nothing like the temple. And I mean nothing!
I want to make this clear. They’re not simply admiring the architecture. Far more than that. They’re making a confession of faith. “What noble stones!” This man-made structure had become the consecrated cornerstone of Judaism; a place that provided stability in a world of uncertainty. People over there’ll kill for that. That’s what causes us to ask silly questions like: “Which God do you kill for?” Kings and empires rise and fall, killing off one another. Alexander and all the “greats,” came and went. Now it’s the Romans. Or Americans! It’s always somebody wanting something somebody else has. Generations are born and die off. Time takes its toll. But neither time nor anything else could destroy this sanctuary! Because in their eyes, it housed the very presence of God Almighty! “What noble stones!”
And Jesus? Well he could take it or leave it. He said, “Noble stones? Every noble stone that you now see, will be thrown down to the ground.” You can bet your britches, they didn’t cotton to that. Jesus prefers reality over appearances. And that kept him in a heap o’ trouble. He taught the lesson of the “wine and the skins.” To him, the wine of faith was far more relevant than the goat skins that housed it. And yeah, the temple sure seems to be eternal. But the day’s coming when “not one of these noble stones will be left on top of the next.” It will be razed to the ground...but God will still be in business. And that day came 40 years later, when the Roman General Titus did a number on Herod's 2nd temple. Till all that was left for nearly two millennia was a pile of rubble -- branded as a “wailing wall.” So the question becomes, once your faith is based on a religious structure and that building is destroyed, what happens to faith? Luke’s message is: Faith doesn’t need a temple or any other religious relic.
Jesus was making a theological/pastoral statement: surely we can do better than just cry because it’s gone! He wasn't only predicting the number that’s going to be done on their sacred space. He was depicting the way the Jews viewed their world. Idolatry still is a serious sin of the religious. Their faith was such that, if the temple were shaken, so was their religion. If the temple goes, their theology dies. And it’s the end of their world. Because there are some things we think we just can't live without. Jesus was honest about it. It feels like cutting off your hand!
But Jesus couldn't be more clear: “Not one stone will be left standing.” Faith has to do with the wine not the skins! This is Luke's theological surprise - he’s pointing out the provisional character of all human enterprises. We can all live without more than we think. No building, no political program, no empire, no spouse, no thousand year reich, no sacred institution, or a denomination, is immune from change, decay or collapse -- if adjustments aren’t made. That’s because time guarantees it. And because that’s what happens to skins! All are products of human hands. And they, like us, will all pass away. Nothing in human history is permanent. Yet we keep putting our trust in things that “moth and rust doth corrupt.” It’s a common sin of church-people: trusting our institutions instead of the Instigator.
What’s it going to take to get it right? What’s left if our noble stones are reduced to rubble? A wall where we wail? Jesus thought we can beat that! He’s talking about an experience that happens to each of us sooner or later. And what life does to us, depends on what it finds in us to withstand it. We better have some faith in us for “the living of these days.”
A temple isn’t always a building. It can be any structure we erect in our minds, that wins over our hearts. Like a certain way of doing church, or doing anything -- politics, medicine, education, vocation or family. A treasured relationship can be a temple. Anything or anybody we can’t let go of. Nationalistic pride is definitely a temple. Flag worship. Regionalism. Capitalism. All these have become our “temple in Jerusalem.” Anything we can’t laugh about is our temple!
Did you notice that none of the things are bad? Temples are subtle like that. A house of worship and inspiration, holds a special place in our hearts because it’s where important, life-changing events occur, that gives us a sense of meaning. And as long as it stands, so stands our faith. But when a temple usurps the place of God, it becomes a mis-location of religion and its “noble stones” can do nothing to save anybody. Jesus warned us about that sin of the spiritual. Originally built to honor God, temples have a way of replacing God. So what do we do when our world unravels, our twin towers fall? The most pathetic response is when we try to reclaim and rebuild the past. Going back to the way it was. When the Jews were taken captive into Babylon, they had no temple. The Psalms speak of their anguish. “How can we sing the Lord’s song in a strange land?” No temple, no worship. No “noble stones,” no God. Do you see how dangerous it is to faith when we put our trust in our places? Jesus was serious about it.
Some of the more creative and realistic Jews gave up on the temple and invented the synagogue. One of the finest things to come out of the exile. But the orthodox are still holding out. They fully intend to rebuild the temple on the very spot where Abraham offered Isaac on Mt. Moriah. Only problem is, there's an Islamic mosque with a golden dome on it! And therein lies the root of the tension in the middle east today. One faith is based on acquisition; rebuilding a temple on the same spot that’s already occupied. And both believe it belongs to their God! Where are the visionaries who recognize that when a temple falls, a new and hopeful world can be born from it? The old one can never be restored the way it was. But these folks couldn’t laugh about their temple.
And here's the second surprise in our text: when our world comes to an end, it’s not the end of the world. Temples fall all around us. Depending upon the meaning we attach to a place, it feels like the world’s coming to an end. As aging takes it toll, we lose our health and our independence, and somebody has to take care of us. When the noble stones that give our lives meaning crumble, we think the jigs up! Because that’s what it feels like. No wonder they cried, “Teacher, when will this be? Give us a sign!” So we can be prepared. Some things can’t be prepared-for. So Jesus doesn't say, “Yep, this is the big kahuna right here folks. You might as well fold up your hymnals and put on your white robes. This is it!”
Rather, what he said was “Don't let appearances fool you!” Transitory things always come to an end. Temples rise and fall. Nations totter. And in every period there will be those who cry, “O my God, this is it!” “Don't be deceived and don't go after them. Don't be afraid.” “No, when a temple falls,” here's what Jesus said to do, “roll up your sleeves and serve somebody.” “When a temple falls, it’s an occasion to bear testimony that our faith is based where it oughta be, in the Creator, not a creation. God is gonna inaugurate the kingdom in God's good time. Our calling is to bless somebody every day that we still have breath in our lungs. When a temple falls, you look ahead and make a new start.
The Good News is: Even if our temples fall, there is meaningful life available to those with the courage to claim it. Adversity is an occasion for the church to care for those who are trying to make peace with their losses and help them start over again. That's all anybody can do. Because until we’re ready to admit that any part of our world can come to an end at any moment, we’re like the noble stones crowd, admiring a wineskin! Spilling the wine or wailing at a wall. But God needs no noble stones to redeem us. Only our steady faith in him. That’s what endures. “Do this and you will live” said Jesus. It’s not about what we own, or how we look, or whether we believe. Courage comes by enduring what cannot be avoided. “By your endurance you will gain your lives.”
PRAYER:
Enable your church to find a cause to live for, but always be able to discover the grace to laugh about it as well as ourselves. And maybe in the process, we'll discover a self we can live with and a God we can die with, even Christ our Lord, in whose name we have gathered to worship. Amen. Back |
