Certainly by this late June date the ceremonial cadences of “Pomp and Circumstance” have faded into memory. My seminary held its festivities in late May. Local high school commencement ceremonies were a week ago. The scene of graduates tossing caps in the air is a joyous one, releasing the pent up energy contained while enduring long valedictory and guest speakers. These latter urged the graduating classes to aspire to greatness with all their skill regardless of the tempering effects of the current job market or the mounting costs of more advanced education.
For some, when the band packed up their instruments, a summer freed from academia is a welcome change before immersing themselves once again in further study. For others whose degree work is completed, putting their education to work has just begun. These will resonate with Luke’s readers who sense the abrupt shift in this gospel from Jesus’ Galilean ministry to the beginning of what is called the travel narrative.
During the Galilean ministry Jesus gathered disciples and trained them. It was a period of discovery for the disciples. They witnessed their rabbi’s surprising gifts and skills of healing, teaching, and working wonders. He amazed everyone with his care for women and children, his compassion for the sick, and welcome for the outcast. Then the scene suddenly changes. Luke introduces a new phase in the “orderly account” he is writing to the one he called “most excellent Theophilus”: When the days drew near for Jesus to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem (Lk 9:51). A dramatic shift is evident. The disciples’ training ground will no longer be the familiar sights and sounds of Galilee. On the road to Jerusalem the disciples will practice their kingdom building skills. Jesus told them his destiny awaits him in Jerusalem, though exactly what that means is hidden from them now. The strange phrase for Jesus to be taken up is a mystery that troubled the disciples and the hearts and minds of Luke’s readers. At the least we know it has to do with the way Jesus will establish God’s kingdom on earth.
The sages among us say what we have to learn is not completed when our diploma or degree is placed in our hands. Instead that is our stepping off point. All the years of academic work is foundational, the basic structure upon which to build a life. Learning advances as we reflect on our experiences while touching base with those early resources. And much learning is by trial and error.
The strategy Jesus employed for the journey entailed sending disciples on ahead to villages and towns to prepare for his coming. Traveling south from Galilee, his road went through Samaritan territory. Luke says that Jesus was rejected by the locals because his face was set toward Jerusalem. We’re familiar with the parable Jesus told that involved a Samaritan who took pity on a Jewish trader who was robbed and beaten on the road and left for dead (Lk 10:25-37). From that we know that Jews and Samaritans, though neighbors, treated one another with contempt and suspicion. That arose partly from the historical competition over which temple God preferred. Jesus’ Jerusalem bound entourage would not be welcome among rivals loyal to another shrine.
It might strike us odd that James and John turn so quickly to violence toward those who refused to welcome them. Was it from loyalty to their rabbi and messiah? Or genuine ethnic hatred? Perhaps they recalled the great prophet Elijah calling down fire from heaven to consume representatives of King Ahaziah of Samaria (successor to King Ahab) for consulting false gods (2 Kgs 1:1-16). The precedence fits well enough! But Jesus rebuked his disciples. He did not condone divine violence as the way to build the kingdom of God.
Not finding a welcome either for teaching or for rest, Jesus and the disciples continued on the road. On the road they encountered a trio of would-be followers each with preconditions. The first is put off by Jesus’ reference to the lack of provisions for refuge and shelter wild creatures expect to find. The second learns that following Jesus takes precedence over everything. Burying one’s parent was a cardinal rule in keeping the commandments, but Jesus demanded a loyalty above the norm for the work of the kingdom. And the third would-be follower asked to say goodbye first to his loved ones, a grace Elijah granted Elisha (1 Kgs 19:19-20). Jesus offers a final proverb to stress the urgency for kingdom building -- a farmer’s proverb about plowing declares “eyes forward” is imperative. Concentration on the kingdom’s task alone is required to avoid mishaps and the sorrow when a soul is lost.
Isn’t it odd that Jesus would be so unbending? The narrow ethical behavior he demands on the road to Jerusalem seems contrary to the compassion and mercy he showed so many while in Galilee. But conditions are different and in these circumstances a greater focus is required. When soldiers are in camp discipline can be relaxed, but once committed to the field they must concentrate on their mission. The same is true of student athletes. In the off season they are expected to stay in training, though their regimen is relaxed. But when season training begins a player will be cut from the team for shirking the rules of training. No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God (Lk 9:62).
The Christian life places demands on every follower of Jesus Christ. Just reread the affirmations candidates make at the time of baptism to acknowledge the absolute loyalty asked of us (BCP pp 302-305). The candidate is required to renounce any loyalty that makes our relationship with God in Christ less than essential to one’s being, and to affirm that Jesus alone has the exclusive power to save from sin and that he is worthy to direct our lives. The Baptismal Covenant that follows these initial promises summarizing how we shall live in relationship to God and with all people. It includes strengthening our faith through prayer, study, and fellowship; avoiding sin which damages our ability to be the image of God in the world, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, serving Christ in all persons, promoting justice and peace, and respecting the dignity of every human being. These are non-negotiable. The Christian life is cruciform. It has its vertical element committed to God through Jesus Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit. It has its horizontal element that acknowledges that building the kingdom and maintaining the quality of its life are essential to honoring God.
Following Jesus requires radical action. We know he is going to his death. So we must be willing to take up the cross as well, setting aside our own inclinations and projects to fulfill the work God has for us. It entails trusting Jesus to lead us to places, people and ways where God’s grace will blossom and flourish.
Paul’s Letter to the Galatians offers further insights about the life of the baptized. In today’s reading he declares that Christ’s purpose in saving humanity from sin is for freedom. Sin is slavery. Christ’s redeeming work makes us free to be all that God created us to be. Paul argues against allowing ourselves to be drawn back into the slavery of keeping rules or counting beans. Such might be used to a holy purpose, but going through the motions of religion is almost as bad as no religion. Putting one’s faith in Jesus and following him alone as he served others gives form to the kingdom and the holy life of Jesus’ followers. That is looking toward the greater glory of God.
Paul identified the sorts of behavior that defeats God’s kingdom purpose, calling them works of the flesh. The lengthy list represents behaviors that dishonor God and our neighbor. On the contrary, the fruit of the Spirit nourishes and builds up ourselves and others and reflects the values of the kingdom of God. This is the way of beatitude Christians are to strive to live by. By them God’s purpose is accomplished.
On the road the disciples learned by doing as they journeyed with Jesus to Jerusalem. The basic, textbook knowledge they had gained in Galilee was tested on the road. At first they didn’t understand, but as they observed Jesus and followed him to his death they discovered that life in the kingdom is sacrificial, humble, filled with love and joy. Today the Spirit of God keeps moving among Jesus’ followers filling the church with all truth, in all truth with all peace, purifying, directing, reforming, strengthening, uniting it. May God increase our devotion and deepen our faith so we are open to perceive how we are called to follow and serve.
