Birth Pangs - 26th Sunday after Pentecost
Author: Pastor Scott Schul
November 17, 2024
A few weeks ago, a female member of
our congregation called me to update me on the health of her husband. Before giving me the details, she hesitated
for a moment and then said, “Pastor, no offense, but you men are the WORST
patients.” Well how could I take offense
at that? It’s true! And so I smiled and said, “Yep, you’re
right. It’s evidence of God’s great
wisdom that women are entrusted with giving birth. Because if it were up to us men, the
human race would’ve been extinct long ago.”
So I’ll be the first to say that as
a man, no one is less qualified to preach about a Gospel mentioning birth pangs
or labor pains than me. But let’s not
let the literal meaning of birth pangs or labor pains sidetrack us from the
message Jesus delivered to his disciples then, and to us now. Jesus is using a metaphor to address an issue we all know something about, something everyone has
experienced. The chaos and suffering of
life can easily leave us afraid, overwhelmed, and on the brink of despair.
This is where Jesus’s disciples
would soon find themselves. Their
teacher, their leader, the one who proclaimed himself the Son of God would soon
be betrayed, arrested, interrogated, humiliated, tortured, and publicly
executed. Jesus had dropped many hints
to prepare them for what was to come, but none of it seemed to register with
them. Jesus knew that very soon the
coming storms would cause his disciples to turn inward, give up, lose faith, and
surrender to hopelessness.
So he shifted their attention to
the temple, and prophesied that every stone of that massive building would be
destroyed. That had to be an almost
inconceivable notion to the disciples. It’s God’s house! The very seat
of the most powerful force in the cosmos! And yet, the temple had been destroyed once before, so perhaps it could
happen again. And so the disciples
started peppering Jesus with questions. “When
will this happen, Jesus? And how will we
know when it’s about to start?”
For reasons known only to Jesus, he
refused to give them a concrete answer. I presume he could’ve told them with some exactness when this would happen,
and all the warning signs that would signal the coming destruction. But he didn’t. Instead, he essentially said that the
temple’s destruction is just a small piece of the chaos that will reign. People will try to lead you astray. The world is going to be filled with conflict
and suffering. Brace yourself: there’s
more to come.
Sounds familiar, doesn’t it? Our world remains full of false prophets,
liars, cheats, warfare, injustice, and chaos. We see and experience suffering and turmoil globally, locally, and
personally. There’s not a soul hearing
the words of this sermon who isn’t wrestling with a problem, burdened with
worry, grieving, or feeling at least a little overwhelmed.
And so right about now, you’re reacting
to Jesus like I suspect the disciples did that day on the Mount of Olives. “Um, Jesus, how exactly is this supposed to
make us feel better?” But what Jesus
said next was full of holy assurance and healing balm for anxious hearts. “Do not be alarmed,” he said. We might rephrase this as “Do not be afraid.” But why? Because according to Jesus, it has to be this way. It’s part of the plan. This isn’t suffering without a purpose. These are birth pangs. By God’s grace and Christ’s sacrifice,
something new and beautiful will be born from all of this.
This raises all sorts of questions
I cannot answer. I don’t know why the
temple had to be destroyed or why false prophets and wars continue to plague
our world. Certainly human sin has a lot
to do with it. But questions concerning why
evil is permitted and why bad things happen to innocent people have been around
forever. I’m not going to solve that
puzzle today.
But what I do know is that life
today feels eerily similar to what the disciples were experiencing. We live in a swirl of conflict, confusion,
anxiety, suffering, and grief. There are
wars across the globe. We’ve just come
out of a very contentious election season and our politics will remain divisive
for the foreseeable future. People are
frayed with worries about the economy, health, aging, jobs, you name it. Relationships have become disposable. Institutions like the church are impacted by
the chaos too. Church attendance everywhere
is diminishing. People are less apt to
volunteer their time or get involved. For
many, church is just one more transaction. You put your money down and you expect something in return. If you don’t get what you want, you go
shopping elsewhere.
Again, I don’t have all the answers
to these disruptions, worries, and conflicts. I wish I did. But what I can say, as a conviction of my faith in Jesus, is that his words in today’s Gospel apply
to us as much as they did to his disciples. None of this is a surprise to God. It was always going to play out this way. So don’t be consumed with worry and
anxiety. Don’t be afraid or turn inward. Christ is bringing to life something new and
holy.
Don’t forget how this played out
with the disciples. When Jesus was
crucified, they wavered, ran, and hid. But empowered by the Holy Spirit, they stepped back from the abyss of
their despair. They recalled Jesus’s
counsel, overcame their fears, and got back to the business of being the Church
by loving God and loving and serving their neighbors. Now it’s our turn. Ever since COVID, things haven’t been quite
right, and the chaos in our world is only increasing. I know the temptation is great right now to
hide out in a cave. But the world needs
Christian love now more than ever before. So it’s time for Christ’s Church to get back in the game. That’s a tough task if our own lives feel
unwound. If we are awash with worry
about things in our lives, we won’t be of much use to anyone else. It’s like the safety demonstration on an
airplane. You have to put your oxygen
mask on first before you can safely and effectively help someone else.
So imagine Jesus is speaking
directly to you, person-to-person. Close
your eyes if it helps. “Hey, I know the
world is a mess. But none of this is unexpected. I’m in this with you. So don’t be afraid. In my time, in my wisdom, I’m going to bring
to life something new. It’s going to be
OK. Don’t surrender to despair. It’s time for us to get to work.”
I’ll conclude with an image to help
you trust in Jesus’s words. Put yourself
in the place of Mary, Jesus’s mother. As
the sun was setting on Good Friday, she watched the men place her son in a tomb
and roll the stone shut. What was she
thinking? She knew Jesus wasn’t a
criminal or an imposter. She’d heard it
straight from angels. She knew better
than anyone else that Jesus was the Son of God. But here she was, heartbroken, mourning her son’s death. Yet the flame of hope in Mary persisted. She trusted that in time, all of God’s
promises would be fulfilled.
Friends, that’s where we are. We stand with Mary on Holy Saturday, in the
middle of the fear and confusion of Good Friday on the one hand, when all seems
lost, and the promise of Easter Sunday, when Jesus will emerge from the tomb,
victorious over sin, death, and evil. While we wait for the full realization of that
victory in our lives, we can easily become scared and hopeless. We might be tempted to hide away, check out,
or disengage. Don’t be afraid. These are but the birth pangs. In Christ, something new in your life and in our world is being born, and Jesus is calling us to dust
ourselves off, take our place, and play our part. Grace Lutheran, it’s time to roll up our
sleeves and get to work, loving God and loving our neighbor. Amen.
Copyright Rev. Scott E. Schul, 2024 All rights reserved. May not be reproduced in whole or in part without written permission.
Gospel
Text: Mark 13:1-8
1 As [Jesus] 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.”
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.”
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