Estes Park 11.3.24 - Mark
Notes
Transcript
“Clinging to Christ in Chaos”
Have any of you watched the Harry Potter movies? Or read the books? In the first movie, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, there’s a scene where Harry, Ron, and Hermione fall into this big pit of moving and strangling vines, called, ironically, Devil’s snare. Hermione is quick to catch onto the challenge and assesses that in order to survive, you must be very still and allow the snare to lower you to the floor below. So, she does, and she quickly disappears from the scene. Harry follows suit, and Hermione shouts back up to Ron, who is panicking: “You have to relax. If you don’t, it’ll only kill you faster.” Ron sarcastically replies: “Kill us faster. Oh, now I can really relax!” And he continues to move around and cling to the devil’s snare.
Well, eventually all three make it through that challenge, but there’s a valuable lesson for the watchers: don’t panic! Don’t be alarmed! And cling to what matters.
It makes me think of our reading today, and how in the midst of chaos, how important it is to cling to Christ.
Let’s begin in verse 1.
13 As he came out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him, “Look, Teacher, what large stones and what large buildings!” 2 Then Jesus asked him, “Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down.”
This morning, we read about the foretelling of the destruction of the temple.
Now, this temple, the Second Temple stood as a pivotal symbol of Jewish identity and was central to Second Temple Judaism. It was the chief place of worship, ritual sacrifice, and communal gathering for Jews.
After the first temple, or Solomon’s Temple, had been destroyed alongside the Kingdom of Judah nearly 600 years before, the completion of the Second Temple signified a time of renewed Jewish hope and religious revival.
And, originally, it was a relatively modest structure, but in the 1st century BCE, the Second Temple was refurbished and expanded under the reign of Herod, coining the name Herod’s Temple. The renovation resulted in this imposing structure and courtyard with large edifices and facades. To put this into perspective, the Second Temple was about 26 football fields!
So, the disciples are wondering probably, how this massive temple could be overthrown. There were stones forty cubits long and pillars that were twenty-five cubits high, all of one stone, and that of the whitest marble.
If you can just picture this remodeled temple with these huge porches, stones, marble, it would be pretty remarkable to think about it being overthrown!
AND, we just came from the story of Jesus warning the disciples to not be taken in by appearances of wealth: the disciples are awed by the massive Herodian masonry and the extensive buildings that were part of the Temple complex.
While this temple was such an important piece of their culture, Jesus is warning them to not cling to the things of this world, the perceived places of sanctuary, the huge marble porches and stones. So if impending destruction is coming, what or WHO should they cling to?
3 When he was sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter, James, John, and Andrew asked him privately, 4 “Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign that all these things are about to be accomplished?”
5 Then Jesus began to say to them, “Beware that no one leads you astray. 6 Many will come in my name and say, ‘I am he!’ and they will lead many astray. 7 When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed; this must take place, but the end is still to come. 8 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. This is but the beginning of the birth pangs.
So….Mercedes, does this scripture here mean that the end times are coming? Aren’t there claims of people trying to deliver us from foes? Leading us astray in 2024?
Maybe…..and not necessarily. What is important here about what Jesus shares with the disciples is yes, chaos will come, AND more importantly, how the disciples should respond to these chaotic times is key. Do not be alarmed. And if we read on in Mark 13:9 and 10:
9 “As for yourselves, beware; for they will hand you over to councils; and you will be beaten in synagogues; and you will stand before governors and kings because of me, as a testimony to them. 10 And the good news must first be proclaimed to all nations.
Jesus is telling them: times will get tough, even painful, as followers of him. And through it all, what should they do? They must proclaim the good news to all nations. They should continue to bear witness!
And what’s wild that for these disciples, chaos DID come. This is scary stuff, and for the first century readers of Mark, this is an account of what HAS happened.
Already in this time, there were outbreaks against the Jews in Alexandria, at Seleucia (Seh-loosha) thousands and thousands Jews died, and at Jamnia…and many other places…chaos was prevalent. Caligula (kuh-li-gyuh-luh), Claudius (claw-dee-uhs), and Nero (Nee-ro) threatened war before it finally came. There were military leaders with royal aspirations appearing during the Jewish war with Rome in the late 60s CE claiming to be the messiah of Israel.
There was even history of an earthquake in Crete in AD 46, Rome in AD 51, Phrygia (fri-jee-uh) in AD 60, and Campania (Kuhm-paa-nyah) in AD 63. There were also four famines during the reign of Claudius. One of them was in Judea (joo-dee-uh) in AD 44.
And in AD 70, the city and the Second Temple did fall at the hands of Titus.
Jesus was spot on. And Jesus was spot on not just for the disciples here. But also for the disciples of today…for us. Chaos will come. And in the midst of it, we want to grasp at things, cling to things, wonder where God is. It is so tempting to cling to anything that promises a foothold at times when we feel everything is out of control. But we must cling to Christ.
As some of you may know, my mother is a veterinarian, and having a mixed animal practice, my brother and I grew up in the back of the diesel pickup, going from one farm call to the next. And a certain 7.3 powerstroke Ford was the vet’s vehicle for many of my childhood years, and we called it Bessie.
Well, Bessie, like many vehicles…had it’s quirks…especially as it rapidly approached 200,000 miles. I remember, late one night in downtown Denver, we had just finished up a dinner at a veterinary conference. We walked outside to where we parked the pickup, and quickly realized, that Bessie wouldn’t start.
The clutch had gone out. In downtown Denver. By the grace of God, we were parked on the top of a hill and it was late enough there was no traffic. So they put Bessie into first gear and used the momentum of the hill to get it started.
Now, many of you probably know that once you start a pickup and get it in gear without a clutch, you. Can’t. Stop. Downtown Denver. And we lived about 2 hours to the east.
I really hope there’s no law enforcement in the room. My parents made a choice that night. They had a choice of panicking, and a different choice which was this:
I remember Mom turning to us in the backseat and saying, Kids, say a prayer to Jesus that we don’t hit any red lights on the way out of Denver.
Now, of course, If we would’ve hit a red light, we would have stopped and called a tow truck, but again, by the Grace of God, we let go of our panic in those moments of chaos, clung to Christ, and he got us home, safe and sound. And we still have Bessie - she still has her quirks, and we don’t take her to Denver very often anymore.
Friends, I am sure we can all think of instances where we have been in chaos, and we are grasping at things to cling to. Maybe we’re in that chaos right now.
Remember to let go of the devil’s snare or to even pop the clutch and have peace because Jesus counsels both hope and patience. We should cling to only him, the risen Jesus - the one who has the power and authority to truly deliver us. And then we go out and share the good news of Christ to all nations.
Please pray with me:
Prayer of the day: Almighty God, your sovereign purpose brings salvation to birth. Give us faith to be steadfast amid the chaos of this world, trusting that your kingdom comes and your will is done through your Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
