Banter for the ages

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/070218.cfm
Amos 2:6-10, 13-16
Matthew 8:18-22

The words of Jesus consistently remind us that he is not an ordinary man. In both severe and normal human moments he reveals his placement in creation and time as God always on duty. Jesus’ responsibilities to his followers does not cease. Everything he does, both big and small, reverberates through eons. 

The five verses we hear today in Matthew are an interlude between several amazing healings and the dramatic miracle on the stormy sea. Wedged betwixt the two, reads an out of band story — an over eager follower and a reticent disciple. Their conversations with Jesus follow an exhausting rush of healings that began late in the day and must have lasted deep into the night, and they precede a severe storm where Jesus had fallen asleep in a rocky boat due to his weariness. Physically spent by hordes of ill people, Jesus remains needed. He must get on a boat where he plans to rest, but instead rebukes the winds and the sea to protect and calm the frightened men who follow him.

The entire eighth chapter of Matthew deals with cleansing of lepers, healings, cures, and driving out of spirits. This is a remarkable display of fervent repair. If someone today were to travel through the towns and cities along Highway 24 doing the same things that Jesus did the crowds would be huge. Youtube, Instagram, and news services would be recording his every move. Folks would gather around to hear speeches and to get a peek at the person performing miracle after miracle. This is what Jesus and his followers were dealing with in his time. 

Matthew describes in brief, but precise detail the draining of Jesus’ energy from the growing exhaustion of constant healings and the ardors of travel to perform his miracles everywhere he must go. The lead in to the seeming mundane interlude of Matthew 8:18-22 boggles the mind. Over a long day or run of days, we’re not fully sure, Jesus walks from one place to another and attends to everyone who needs him. Each scene is epic. At the end of a series of historic events, the sick and possessed continue to arrive in droves, and further fatigue depletes Jesus in the waning hours of the day.

When it was evening, they brought him many who were possessed by demons, and he drove out the spirits by a word and cured all the sick, to fulfill what had been said by Isaiah the prophet: “He took away our infirmities and bore our diseases.”

These healings are more than a man going to a Church meeting on a Wednesday evening after a hard day’s work. Jesus performs serious hands on restoration. After that is done, rather than stop, Jesus tells the disciples that they’ve got to hop in a boat and head off to the other side of the Sea of Galilee. There’s a whole set of new towns to blast through. We can see that Jesus is going to use the boat trip to rest and recharge his spent body. But on that trip, where Jesus tries to nap, his rest is interrupted by a severe storm.

They came and woke him, saying, “Lord, save us! We are perishing!” He said to them, “Why are you terrified, O you of little faith?” Then he got up, rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was great calm.

Holy cow. His almost harsh words are understandable, and indeed, accurate. We know that now, though they surely could not imagine the power of the Holy Spirit working in ordinary men then. The harangue of weather and fearful men in the face of his exhaustion is still not too much to bear. Rushed awake, Jesus still teaches, reveals, and leaves us all with insight for recorded history.

We know this is who Jesus is. Steady, ready, determined, and successful. So, why between these two amazing historic reports of his divinity and humanity fused into our redeemer do we get the verses for today?

A scribe approached and said to him, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.” Jesus answered him, “Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man* has nowhere to rest his head.” Another of [his] disciples said to him, “Lord, let me go first and bury my father.” But Jesus answered him, “Follow me, and let the dead bury their dead.”

Almost as an afterthought, or some sort of odd documentary relief, Matthew drops in-between healings and miracles the tale of a fawning follower and a hesitant Jew. Matthew cannot forget this scene, and he places it right here for us to stop for a minute and listen to Jesus’ strange interchange between a leader and his men. 

The scene takes place after Jesus has ordered his retinue of disciples to push off across the sea. As they board, two men have something to say. The first man is practically hyperventilating over the amazing accomplishments of Jesus. “I will follow you wherever you go. You are so amazing Jesus.” You can see him bounding into the boat, exhilarated that he’s with Jesus. “Let’s get this show on the road, fellas!” The second man, however, is worried about getting home in time for the burial of his father. “Would you look at the time, Jesus! Oh my. Lord, let me go first and bury my father. I’ll catch up with you guys later.”

These two rather lame outbursts are as familiar to us as words we hear in traffic at the grocery store. Why plop these two fellas in here now? Right in the middle of this fascinating documentary coverage of Jesus’ travails on land and sea we hear common back story quips from two unnamed disciples. One is excited to be near Jesus, and the other has duties back home to attend to. Luke includes the same scene in his gospel, adding another fellow who mentions his worries over leaving behind his farm.

Nothing in scripture, we know, is filler, extra words to pump up the volume or provide relief. The banter between Jesus and these men clearly is off script, but extremely important for us to hear. The demeanor of Jesus seems to border on brutal. Because we imagine Jesus responding differently than he did. We think, perhaps, that the authors just want to clarify how worn out Jesus really was. We’d expect Jesus to be nicer.

“Thanks for all your support, Disciple A. So glad you’re with me. Why don’t you take a seat in the boat and make sure our provisions don’t get wet. That’d be just great.” That sounds more like what a compassionate leader would say to an over-eager disciple. “You know, I like your energy Disciple A. Good on you.”

And we certainly imagine a different response to the guy who got bad news from home. “That’s the worst news. Sorry to hear about your dad, Disciple B. Hey, Disciple A, can you rustle up a sandwich and some water for this fella? He’s gotta get home. The poor man’s got a coffin to size, estate stuff to deal with, and mourners to feed. We’ll be thinking of you, Disciple B. Oh, and Judas, can we spare a dinar or two to upgrade him to business class? Get him a horse. That mule of his has seen better days. Don’t worry about us, Disciple B. You just take care of you and yours.”

Nope, that’s not what happens. And why? Because Jesus isn’t the president of the United States dropping into stadiums all over the country to give speeches. He doesn’t dress to impress or work a room full of people to curry favor. He doesn’t fly in a jumbo jet napping quietly between gigs. He doesn’t have a crew monitoring his every move and parting the crowds as he wanders around. Jesus doesn’t look at his entourage as pawns on a chessboard, replaceable minions. Jesus’ followers eat on the run, hob knob with the diseased, and live lives of expectancy. Each person has a place and a purpose and is fully loved by Jesus. 

Jesus speaks to these two common men and influenced Luke and Matthew to report about it. Here we are, two millennia later, listening in. We might imagine the takeaway with the first disciple is that whatever the Holy Spirit has in mind may surely be exciting and remarkable, but it’s going to require difficulties that will test your mettle. So, stay the course. 

And, for the second disciple, we can conclude that  Jesus hand picks each person who joins him for a specific purpose. He calls us individually in ways that we each will grasp. 

I believe the two messages go deeper than pastoral messaging. When we respond positively or negatively to Jesus he molds us and speaks to our hearts, every single time. Once we’re on board with him the work flows like a deep river, and he guides us at every turn. 

Jesus asks for constant intimacy rather than convenient attendance. The patterned life of the secular world has no permanence, no real consistency. Necessity quite often is not necessary at all. All is important, though, to Jesus.

These two conversations aren't really for us to study Jesus' personal admonitions and behavior modifications of his followers. They are recorded in scripture to confirm the intensely personal relationship Jesus has with everyone, even two non-essential personnel. Exhausted from his seeming endless hands on ministry and still doggedly focused on the disciples next task, Jesus impossibly yet pointedly takes time to communicate intimately with each of his followers. 

Both Matthew and Luke couldn’t let these seemingly harsh conversations slip away. They weren't tempted to toss them off as rare bad form on Jesus’ part. They also didn’t include them to apologetically assure us that even Jesus gets tired and says rude things. No, Jesus speaks the truth and personally attends to everyone that engages him. That's why these verses sit here in the midst of historically important missionary acts. Jesus has designs on our lives with him. In the midst of everything going on, Jesus spoke to the hearts of two men that sought his approval. His words to them tell us that Jesus is always on point, even in idle chatter.

“Pay attention,” he tells us. “I am paying attention to you. I know who you are. You know who I am. Listen to what I am telling each of you. I am always with you. Keep your eyes, ears, and heart focused on me.”