May the mumbling commence!
Am I willing to risk my reputation for the sake of Jesus? It is a question we all should ask ourselves. The answer can appear to be simple and easy, but the follow through is frightening. I drive school bus for a living, and I transport mostly high school kids. Reputation is paramount for teenagers. I have known young people who would treat me rudely around their friends only to treat me with respect once their friends left the bus.
We hope that we leave the insecure days of adolescence behind when we graduate from high school and/or college, but reality tells us another story. It is hard to be different in any substantial way. I invite you to read these passages from the gospels of John and Mark:
Later, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus. Now Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jews. With Pilate's permission, he came and took the body away. He was accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who earlier had visited Jesus at night. Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds. Taking Jesus' body, the two of them wrapped it, with the spices, in strips of linen. This was in accordance with Jewish burial customs. At the place where Jesus was crucified, there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb, in which no one had ever been laid. Because it was the Jewish day of Preparation and since the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there. (Jn. 19:38-42)
Here are two prominent men who hid their connection with Jesus because they feared the retaliation they would suffer for associating and (gulp!) and even becoming a closet follower of Jesus. Yet, when Jesus had fallen in his death on the cross – when all seemed to be lost to Jesus’ closest followers – Joseph and Nicodemus came out of hiding so that they could ensure a proper burial for Jesus. They realized that Jesus was still worth the risk.
Following Jesus is still worth the risk – the risk of standing for an unpopular stance, the risk of befriending those who may hurt us, the risk of making revolutionary change in our lives. Jesus is still worth the risk so that we can create a little taste of the coming reign of God for the communities where we live. We know these things because we know that our Savior lives. Because Jesus lives we can face tomorrow and the trials that it will bring. Is it easier for us than Joseph and Nicodemus? At first glance, I want to say a hearty, “YES.” But reality tells another story. The follow through is still quite difficult.
Read the rocky and likely original ending to the gospel of Mark:
When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go to anoint Jesus' body. Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they were on their way to the tomb and they asked each other, "Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?"
But when they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away. As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed.
"Don't be alarmed," he said. "You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter, 'He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.'"
Trembling and bewildered, the women went out and fled from the tomb. They said nothing to anyone, because they were afraid. (16:1-8)
How silly the women were to worry about such a small thing as a stone! If they would have just looked, they would have seen God had already answered their prayers. Then, when faced with fright, the women said nothing to anyone. What were they afraid of – no one believing them (they probably had a hard time believing the news that they heard directly from this mysterious man). Were they afraid that this was some kind of sick joke that would embarrass them when Jesus was still dead?
It is a dissonant ending that poses a question for all of us. What will we do with our knowledge and relationship with Jesus? Do we keep quiet and safe? Or do we risk all to tell others and show others the way to Jesus? Jesus is still worth the risk!
Enough mumbling for now…
Peace Out
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