Moving on

As we enter the month of November, our year-long journey with the Gospel of Mark is coming to an end. We have observed before that our church uses The Revised Common Lectionary (RCL) to help order its worship life. A lectionary is a table of prescribed readings for each Sunday of the year. It normally lists an Old Testament reading, a Psalm, an epistle reading, and a lesson from one of the gospels for each week. There are many lectionaries that churches or groups within the church have used over the years. The RCL is a document that much of the modern-day church employs for worship, for study and for devotions.

The RCL contains lessons over a three-year period. The first year – Year A – begins with the first Sunday of Advent and runs through The Feast of Christ the King. This year’s gospel lessons come primarily from the Gospel of Matthew. Year B – in which we find ourselves involved currently – spends a year focusing on the book of Mark. Year C – which begins November 28 of this year – has the gospel of Luke as its focus.

The use of a lectionary brings a sense of order to the liturgical life of the church. It observes the Christian Liturgical Year and so moves through recognition of the anticipation of Jesus’ birth, the celebration of the coming itself, a time of thanksgiving for Christ’s salvation of all people, a season of penitence and self-reflection prior to observing the Passion of Jesus, fifty days of observing a festival dedicated to the Resurrection of Christ, and finally a season of concentrating not so much on the events of Jesus’ life as on his instruction to the church.  Lectionary readings that pursue these topics in an orderly fashion move us through much of what a given gospel says about the entire life and mission of Jesus.

The use of a lectionary allows for long-range planning for preachers, teachers, musicians, and for people who use the lectionary as a devotional tool. The church does not mandate lectionary use for its congregations. And there are other legitimate models for the church to utilize. But this is one approach to the addressing of scripture that has born fruit for the church over the years.

As I say, our time with Mark’s gospel is coming to a close. We have talked about Mark’s being the first gospel composition. As such it serves as source material for Matthew and Luke. Mark spends a lot of time describing the works of Jesus. There is far less dialog in this gospel than we find in the other three. Mark speaks with a great sense of urgency – the phrase “and immediately” appears fifty-two times in this short work. And all of Mark moves toward the Cross and Christ’s atoning act. There is virtually no Easter story in this book. All eyes look to the sacrifice of Jesus.

So, we soon take our leave of Mark. There is plenty to get excited about in year C and its examination of St. Luke. But it is with a little bit of regret that we turn the page on the Second Gospel for a while.

I’ve got a secret

 In the Revised Common Lectionary (RCL), this year concentrates its attention on the gospel readings from the Book of Mark.  There are several themes and devices that we find in Mark more than in any other gospel.  For example, the word “immediately” occurs in this gospel 41 times.  There is a sense of urgency as Jesus moves from place to place.

 Another idea unique to this gospel is how Jesus will perform a mighty act or issue some marvelous revelation and then caution those who are present not to tell anyone about it.  That seems counter to what we think about in terms of witnessing or testimony.  You would think that as Jesus moves about and does these marvelous things that he would want the report – the good news – to be spread to as many people as possible.  But Jesus taught counter to this.  In biblical studies scholars call this idea “the Messianic Secret.”  The concept has evolved since it was first put forth in 1901.  But at its core the concept carries with it the notion that Jesus does not want news about him to spread because he is a miracle-worker.  He rejects the idea that everyone will think of him as a sideshow or as a short-cut to healing and feeding.    Jesus ever desires that people come to him not in search of personal gain, but in a quest for spiritual truth and the knowledge of God.

 Sadly, some who have not spent a lot of time with this gospel try to explain Jesus’ attitude as a kind of “reverse psychology.”  Their position is that if Jesus tells them not to do something, their human nature dictates that they go and do it.  There are certainly instances of this behavior occurring – Mark 7:36 and 8:30 being examples.  But there is never a report of this psychological mumbo-jumbo being at the heart of Christ’s motivation.  Jesus’ miracle-workings grow out of his being the Christ of God.  But miracle-worker is not who Jesus is.  Jesus’ task is never to serve the desires of people.  It is to point the way to God.

 Two thousand years later some folks still haven’t learned this lesson.  They view Jesus as a leveler of scores and a provider of wants.  They speak of Jesus as a nationalistic Christ who favors one nation over another, or who elevates a particular ideology over the rest.  “Personal Lord and Savior” gets corrupted into “supporter of what I think.”

 Mark’s Gospel concerns itself with answering the question, “Who is Jesus?”  Is he the Christ?  Yes.  Is he the Son of God?  Yes.  Is he the deliverer of humankind?  You bet.  Is Jesus one whose mission is to be exclusive and to favor only a few of those whom God created?

 Not so much.