SUnday 15th Feb Sermon

What about Me?
Today’s readings feature the theme of healing quite strongly, but whilst I will be talking somewhat about healing today, it perhaps wont be quite the obvious physical healing that tends to dominate our thoughts as we read from both kings and Mark.
Both stories centre around healing of leprosy so it is probably best to explore that a little. Now leprosy isn’t a disease we see much of nowadays, firstly it isn’t easily contagious, you usually need to spend long periods of time in physical contact with a contagious sufferer and secondly it is easily treatable. But in the time of today’s readings it was incurable and because of the physical symptoms such as swelling, hardening of the facial skin along with a scale like rash and loss of fingers and toes, the disease was feared and sufferers shunned. It was a particularly horrible disease not only because of the physical symptoms, but also because of the social exclusion that followed. Sufferers would be excluded from their families, ejected from their villages and isolated from other people. No one was permitted to talk to and certainly not touch them, in fact they weren’t allowed within a specified distance without making themselves ‘unclean’. A leper had t o carry a bell and announce themselves with loud ringing and shouts of unclean. So the life of a leper was a pretty lonely one. But a little more about that later.
If we look at both of today’s readings we will see they have something other than the healing of leprosy on common. Lets start with the easy one, our reading from Kings. It is quite obvious from this reading that Naaman was not a happy man. Firstly he has this terrible affliction, him a great man of status why would this happen to him? Secondly he thinks he is being treated poorly, being asked to do things below his status, listen again to the passage in 2 Kings
“ But Naaman became angry and went away, saying, “I thought that for me he would surely come out, and stand and call on the name of the LORD his God, and would wave his hand over the spot, and cure the leprosy!£ 12Are not Abana£ and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them, and be clean?” He turned and went away in a rage.”
Naaman thought he was worthy of a bit or ceremony, surely God couldn’t want me to do something so simple. Whilst not the subject of my sermon I think it is worth pointing out the parallels with modern Christianity here. How often do we ignore the simple in favour of the complex – we forget sometimes that God doesn’t need trumpets and ceremony to accomplish his task, some of the most profound works happen in the quiet places or the simple activities. Are we as guilty as Naaman of expecting a bit of pomp and ceremony?
But I digress, if we now look at the reading from Mark we will be able to draw out some parallels. This story again references the healing of a leper who, as we have explored, led a pretty miserable life! It must have taken a great deal for him to risk stoning and ridicule to venture into the crowds to approach Jesus. What really strikes me is the confrontational tone of his address to Jesus
40A leper£ came to him begging him, and kneeling£ he said to him, “If you choose, you can make me clean.”
He doesn’t doubt his power, or question his authority he simply approaches Jesus and says if you choose to you can heal me.
Let’s put together what we know about leprosy and how it was regarded in that time, and try to imagine how this gentleman would be feeling. Leprosy was a disease that was caught from contact with others, and judging by his faith in God and knowledge of who Jesus was this man had had at least some religious teaching. WE can therefore assume that he contracted leprosy later in his life, he may have had a family, he could have had a position of power or respect, much like Naaman in our Old testament reading, Whatever his background, it is without doubt that he had lost much. So I can picture this man before Jesus trying to show proper respect but at the same time seething with anger at the position he is in and Gods seeming distance during his suffering. When I try to visualise this scene I can see the man forcing himself to kneel and show proper respect whilst looking up at Jesus, his jaw firmly set issuing a challenge. I know you, I know your power, but what are you going to do about me, what are you going to do for my suffering? I could do and be so much more if you just choose to do something in my life!
How dare he? What right does he have to question what Jesus will or wont do, after all Jesus is the Son of God, he deserves our love and our lives not our anger and challenge! But how does Jesus respond to this? Does he rebuke the man and send him on his way, or does he call down lightning to teach him and all around a lesson in his power and authority? No, he reaches out in compassion and heals the man. That alone speaks volumes to me about how personal our relationship with God really is, that this man could petition Jesus for a better life is one thing but to be allowed to show anger and challenge shows a real depth of love and Grace on his part.
This whole area of being angry with God and confronting him at times is something we just don’t seem to talk about in Church these days, along with sex and money it seems to be one of the forbidden topics. But I beg to differ, it is an area of our lives that is so everyday, so much a part of our nature that to ignore it would be like trying to hide part of ourselves from God, and He loves us so much that he wants a relationship with all of us, which means all the good stuff along with all the bad.
How often in our lives do we have things happen which make us ask why me? Or what are you going to do about it God? I would suggest it is more often than we would care to admit, and I would also challenge us all to let go of the stigma and guilt that surrounds those feelings of rage. After all is it wrong for the cancer patient to wonder why me? Or the Mother in Africa who has been abused by armed men to ask God why he didn’t intervene? I would suggest no, because doing so it taking away a part of that person and shutting it away from God, he is big enough and caring enough to cope with our doubts our questions and even our accusations.
I recall a couple of events close to my life which illustrate this human need to ask why with great anger and to challenge God to do something about it. The first is with some friends of mine. Early last year they found out that their 21 year old son had a serious heart condition a big blow but a challenge as a family they rose to magnificently. Treatment went well, and around mid year he proposed to his girlfriend and they planned a wedding for later in the year. Then suddenly two weeks before his wedding his heart failed and he died. Understandably my friends were distraught, and whilst they aren’t committed Christians they spent a long time asking God why, being angry at him even blaming him. They are still a long way from recovery, but just having someone to shake a fist at, blame and ask questions of is helping them along the healing process.
The second incident is one that I went through around two years ago now. I was in a place in my faith and service where I felt God calling me to a more involved ministry. I was , and still am, a voluntary youth worker at my Church, and I had a defiant sense that God had plans for me. The two routes I was considering at that time were that of full time Church youth work, and local preaching – neither of which are mutually exclusive so the plan was to test the waters and see where God was calling me to be. But almost at the same time I made that decision I fell foul of a fairly common problem for youth workers, I had an accusation of assault levied against me. It was of course untrue, as the police investigation eventually proved, but for a while it turned my life, my families lives and my plans completely upside down. This was a difficult time for me faith wise also, I found myself really tested. I would ask God why me? What did I do to deserve such treatment. Then I got angry with God. Hadn’t I been a faithful servant, was I not willing to give up everything to pursue my calling, why was God allowing this to happen to me of all people? And then I petitioned God. If he had plans for me he was going to have to do something about it. But my overall feeling here was that of guilt. I shouldn’t be talking to god like this, issuing ultimatums and raging. The turning point for me emotionally and In my faith was when I realised that these reactions were normal and God wants a full relationship with me, to share in my good times and be there in the bad.
So much like theses stories, the leper in Mark went through a healing, but which was the greater? The life changing physical? Or the realisation that God is still compassionate, still willing to meet with and touch us even when we question His choices, shake our fist or issues challenges. Its ok to be angry with God, even natural, and often going through that process strengthens our relationship as we learn to give all we are not just what we think God wants. What about me isn’t a selfish question, it’s a natural one and one God wants to help us answer.
Amen