Saturday of the Fourth Week of Lent Years 1 and 2 2024

Peter H. Davids

Lent • Sermon • Submitted 2 months ago • Presented a month ago

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Both Jeremiah anticipating Jesus and Jesus himself encountered opposition and persecution. Both entrusted their case to God the just, all-knowing judge. Neither attacked back or plotted against their accusers. In the case of Jesus we see this situation as a response to hie presenting himself as Ezekiel’s temple with the running water flowing out of it, which for Jesus was the Spirit. And both Jesus and Jeremiah had some quiet disciples who stayed loyal. We are to turn our persecution and condemnation over to Jesus. Then we will be more like him and this is the goal of our lives.

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Transcript

Title

Living with Rejection; Living with Jesus

Outline

In a world of the cancel culture and call out culture rejection is inevitable

Jeremiah lived with rejection and even with plots to literally cancel him. He did not know about the plans or the criticism at first, so he says in prayer “I knew it because the Lord informed me: at that time you showed me theirs doings.”

He could have chosen to fight or plot back, but instead he is a prototype of Jesus, “I was like a trusting lamb led to the slaughter.”

And while unlike Jesus Jeremiah wanted to “witness the vengeance you take on them” - Jesus leaves that to the last day for “today” is the day of mercy - in the end he says, “Lord of hosts, just Judge . . . to you I have entrusted my cause!” Here we hear the repeated mantras of today, “Jesus, I trust in you” or “Jesus, king of love, I put my trust in your merciful goodness.” We do not want to “destroy” the opponent but to love them because we have committed the issue (aphiemi) to Jesus. That takes practice and perseverance in handing over the matter to Jesus and seek from God how we can do good to the other.

Jesus likewise experienced rejection more than commitment

The sending of the officers to arrest Jesus (verse 32) and their return awestruck and empty handed (verse 45) bracket Jesus’ proclamation, “If anyone thirst, let him come to me, and let him drink who believes in me.” This is grounded in the portrayal of Jesus as Ezekiel’s eschatological temple, out of which flowed water, water that healed: “Out of his heart shall flow rivers of living water.” This had been said on the festival when water was drawn from the pool of Siloam and ceremonially poured out on the altar as a prayer for rain.

The responses varied: “the Prophet” or “Messiah” with others countering that scripture said the Messiah would come from Bethlehem, not Galilee. Some want to arrest him and others were for him.

The Pharisees respond to their awestruck guards with an accusation of deception and the incorrect statement, “Have any of the authorities or the Pharisees believed in him?” Their conclusion: “This crowd, which does not know the law, is accursed.” They do not counter with evidence, but with condemnation - “accursed”.

Nicodemus tries to be a reasonable voice: they need a proper investigation or trial. He, of course, did believe in Jesus. But the others were not read for reason, giving the incorrect statement, “No prophet arises from Galilee.” (Several OT prophets and “judges” did come from Galilee)

Notice the irrationality of the Pharisees and the confusion of the crowd, neither of which actually talk to Jesus. But Jesus is not troubled by any of this.

Sisters, this is for us as followers of Jesus

People will misunderstand us and condemn us, both in society and in the Church. We saw that in the film Cabrini and we also see it in the lives of many saints.

Misunderstanding and condemnation may be verbal or they may be more consequential. I think of Andre Duloc being prohibited from publishing for at least a decade or Padre Pio being prohibited for celebrating mass in public for a decade. Both were opposed by their own order which must have hurt more. But neither complained. They had the inner sense that they were following God and the outer stance of quiet obedience. They simply entrusted their cause to God knowing that in his time God would vindicate them in his presence.

When we face opposition and misunderstanding we first make sure we are not part of the reason (I can think of some mistakes in my life in how I handled abusive actions) and then we entrust it to God without behind the back covert action or other forms of resistance.

We then hand it over to Jesus, entrust it to him, often with repeated prayer, so that he can use it to draw us closer to his heart.

After all, he constantly entrusted his case to God right up to and through his death on the cross.