Sermon CNR 1064 Mk 6:14-29
1 DANCING AND SUDDEN DEATH
1.1 Returning to Crows Nest
It’s been 31 years since I last stood in this part of Crows Nest Church
with its long memories of my in-laws
who were part of this people of faith for at least three generations.
This was also the first Uniting Church place of worship I attended in NSW
and it was on my honeymoon some years before that.
1.2 Dying and Dancing before the Ark (2 Sam 6:1-5,12b-19)
I was looking through the lectionary passages.
I read through the OT passage only to find
the story of some faithful subject of King David being struck dead
for touching the Ark, held to be a sacred object, so I shall be very careful.
Even though it also tells the story of King David dancing before the Ark,
I decided to leave this passage alone.
Besides, I was raised a Methodist with two left feet,
and my knees are starting to object to too much strenuous activity.
1.3 Losing one’s head over women (Mk 6:22-25)
Surely, the Gospel reading has something different.
It has.
This time it is a young princess who is dancing before Herod very much before mature audiences only.
This time the sudden death comes after the dancing.
It is John the Baptist, and it has been told to me
that he is the patron saint of all those men
who have lost their head over a woman.
2 THE EXECUTION OF JOHN THE BAPTIST (Mk 6:14-29)
2.1 Murder most foul
Yes, it is indeed “murder most foul”,
those words first uttered by the ghost of Hamlet’s father.
Even as a boy, then looking for the boyish bits in the Bible stories,
I thought it so grossly unfair that an honest prophet,
albeit not always tactful,
should be executed for telling someone,
despite their being royalty, a few home truths.
2.2 Victims of self-justified murders
From this gruesome story one cannot escape the feeling
that such self-justified murders have not only gone on in history
but they still do so right now.
Many of us have been horrified at a woman being lynched in Afghanistan
this past week, not just for adultery, but because she was a woman.
It may have reminded us of that passage in John chapter 8
where Jesus was brought a woman “taken in adultery” ready for lynching.
He wrote something in the sand which I have suggested were the words, “Where’s the bloke?”
We can become so selective in our indignation
and use our outrage as an excuse for violence.
There are countless stories of victims of others, who use any excuse,
or even none, to commit murder.
This is not necessarily a good topic for morning tea afterwards,
but as we watch the nightly news, this must surely come to mind.
2.3 Kangaroo Court to come
Even though this particular Gospel passage has Jesus only in the background not in this actual narrative, unique in Mark’s Gospel,
one cannot escape the foreboding atmosphere
that Jesus himself will meet a similar unfair fate.
The kangaroo court is still to come.
Out of determined spite, without logical reasoning, the writing is on the wall, written in by those who want their way at others’ cost.
3 GOOD NEWS FROM EPHESIANS (Eph 1:3-14)
3.1 Guiding us where to go from here
Which is just as well the Epistle for the day comes with good news
out of all this ominous foreshadowing.
Many of our Epistle readings are good at taking the narratives
we find in the Old Testament and Gospel readings
and guide us where to go from there.
I’m sure this congregation is finding its way
after the closure of a previous ministry as to where to go next.
3.2 Chosen for integrity (Eph 1:4)
This particular passage from Ephesians was one I remember reading
on the first Sunday of our new millennium.
Despite its long sentences,
the original passage in Greek said to be one long continuous sentence,
too much for translation into English, this is where we start again.
This same Jesus, unjustly tried, unjustly convicted, and unjustly crucified
before the most notorious kangaroo court in history,
is the same one of whom it is now written,
“He chose us in him before the foundation of the world,
that we should live with integrity before him” (v4)
Jesus’ sacrifice for us has opened the door for hope.
Despite the continual uncertainties we face, either together or alone,
this is something we hang on to and climb up from there.
3.3 Purpose for unity (Eph 1:9f)
We read in another long sentence that,
“he has made known to us in all wisdom and insight the mystery of his will, according to his purpose which he set forth in Christ
as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him,
things in heaven and things on earth.” (vv9f)
Here we are still given purpose whatever has been happening about us
to still steadfastly go on into an unknown future
knowing that God’s ultimate plan is to unite everything together.
Yes, these long sentences are catching, but even when we reflect upon the physical fact that we are stardust before we began and after we finish, we remain part of God’s purpose to bring it all together.
So, we are not wandering around lost in space where no one can hear us scream, but we remain part of the biggest project of all time, that of God bringing all his creation into unity.
We need never forget that.
3.4 The home truths of good news (Eph 1:13-14)
Life keeps evolving around us and before our eyes.
Even this congregation is different since the last time I preached here
a whole generation ago when Doug Cole demitted the charge.
This whole passage describes how, as the people called by Jesus Christ,
we keep having the home truths of good news,
with the faithful companionship of his Spirit within us and among us (v13).
Our future relationship is guaranteed with him (v14).
That should see us over the hurdles yet to come
within a world which we cannot similarly guarantee to be just.
Unlike John the Baptist, let’s never lose our heads but face the challenging future with the hope that Jesus Christ has passed on to us.
