Loving God, we find it so easy to fall back into fear, even though you lead us into faith.  Make us aware this day, not only of your power, but also of your love; through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

           If there were a theme song to go with this sermon, it might be You Can’t Always Get What You Want by the Rolling Stones.  While everything in the song might not fit, the title certainly does.  In today’s gospel from Mark, three or maybe four different times people beg Jesus to do something for them.  Only once do they get what they ask for.

         The first time somebody is begging Jesus to do something, it is in the middle of an exorcism.  The demons who have been tormenting this man beg Jesus “not to send them out of the country” – or perhaps, not to send them into the abyss (Mk. 5:10).  Then, they follow up this request by begging Jesus to send them into the swine that are on the hillside.

         This time, Jesus appears to grant their request, but in doing so he actually tricks the demons.  The whole herd of pigs rushes down the hill and into the sea, and since the pigs drown, the demons do, in fact, end up in the abyss, or the chaos, that is suggested by the sea.

         Another person in the story who begs Jesus for something is the man who has been healed.  We are never told the man’s name other than “Legion” when the demons speak for him.  This man had been tormented for years, living among the tombs, bruising himself with stones, howling night and day, and refusing to wear clothes (a detail that we find in Luke 8:27).  The townspeople had apparently tried to chain him up, but he broke any shackles or chains that they tried to put on him.  Some might say that he was possessed (as the gospels do), and some might say that he had multiple personality disorder or some other form of mental illness.

         Whatever you choose to believe about his condition, this is not a life that most of us would ever want.  And so, Jesus orders the unclean spirits to come out of the man.  By the end of today’s gospel, the man is “clothed and in his right mind”, and those who see him are afraid (Mk. 5:15).  One has to wonder what kind of a life he would be able to go back to, if any.  And so, he begs Jesus “that he might be with him” (Mk. 5:18).

         It seems like a pretty reasonable request, but Jesus refuses.  Instead, Jesus sends him off to tell everybody how much God has done for him.  This is the first opportunity, it seems, for those living in Gentile territory to hear about what Jesus can do.  Jesus also says that the man should tell his friends what God has done for him – possibly the same friends who have begged Jesus to leave.

         Unlike in many of the other healing stories, these people do not praise God, or even wonder who Jesus is.  In fact, they don’t seem to be thankful at all that this man who has suffered so long has been healed.  Instead, they are afraid.  And so, they “beg Jesus to leave their neighborhood” (Mk. 5:17).  This is the one time in today’s gospel when the people get what they ask for.  Jesus does not stay where he is not wanted and does not coerce people to believe.  Instead, he gets in the boat and leaves.

         From our perspective, what a missed opportunity for these people!  The Saviour of the world was right there with them, and they begged him to go away.  One has to wonder if we would ever feel so threatened by Jesus that we would push him away.  There is the fear factor, of course, which we are told in the gospel.  Perhaps they were afraid of a man who seemed to have such great power over the demons.  However, it is even more likely that they were afraid of further financial losses.

         Somebody owned all of those pigs that drowned, and they would not be too pleased with Jesus after what had happened.  This, of course, leads us into a question that gets right to the heart of the matter.  Imagine that you have a neighbour who has suffered for many years with a debilitating illness.  One day, you find out that they can be healed, but only if you suffer some financial hardship.  Would you say, “Go ahead.  Heal her,” or would you tell the healer to go away because you do not want to lose a good chunk of your livelihood?

         While this is a hypothetical question, there are places, including in today’s gospel, where hanging out with Jesus might involve a financial setback.  One example that comes to mind is the experience of pastors in Estonia under Soviet rule.  While the Soviets allowed people to be pastors, they were charged more taxes than anybody else and could be sent off to Siberia if they were deemed to be a threat to the state.  Would you follow Jesus under these conditions?

         Most of us prefer a nice mild, easy-going Jesus who doesn’t demand too much of us.  It’s nice to be able to follow when convenient and have Jesus in our back pocket when we need help.  However, as we discovered earlier, you can’t always get what you want.  Yes – Jesus overflows with love and compassion.  Yes – Jesus has power over evil and power to heal.  Yes – Jesus brings forgiveness, salvation and eternal life.  But sometimes – in fact, quite often – there is a cost involved in following him.

         However, lest we be entirely scared off, Jesus paid the heaviest price for our salvation and opened the way to God for us.  And even though Jesus says “no” when people beg him for things that are not part of God’s plan, when we humble ourselves and allow Jesus to take the lead, God’s answer is always “yes.”  Thanks be to God! Amen.

Epiphany 3 (NL 2)                            Mark 5:1-20

January 26, 2020

St. Luke’s Zion Lutheran Church

Pastor Lynne Hutchison

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