Body of comfort [Trinity 4; St. Luke 6:36-42]

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Jesus speaks to you today in the Gospel, saying,

“Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap.”

The joke goes: I used to think the greatest organ in the body was the brain. Then I realized who it was telling me this. For some of us, the brain is the most wonderful. It can think, it can rationalize, it can do wonders. Mind over matter, for example.

For most of us, the opposite is true and we find the mind to be one hidden trap after another. Leading us towards the inevitable dementia, Alzheimer’s, or any number of other mental diseases that would disqualify us from owning a gun.

There are four words that no one wants to hear, especially from their own brain: “please let me die”. We don’t want to hear them because they are a sure sign that the person uttering them has given up. They are confessing that the struggle is too much for them, battle has drawn on too long. 

We don’t want to hear them because they hurt us, especially if its from our own mind. “Us” who are still able to move around and do things. “Us” who are still energetic enough to work and drive and sit comfortably for more than five minutes at a time. For us who are able, giving up is not an option.

We would rather that they are having trouble not judging others or not condemning others or forgiving others. This is because we can recommend a book for each one. There is a class for learning how not to judge. There are feelings to be sought out in not condemning others and there are Bible lessons on how to forgive. 

Are you blind? Just as good! We can get you a seeing eye dog, a cane, and make it so that you can safely walk around the city with noise-making crosswalk signs. I can see so I can help you. Life will be grand with both of us and everything will be ok. The seeing will lead the blind and we will not fall into a pit.

But the words “please let me die” do not have any manual, or class, or sympathy to recommend fixing the problem. No amount of not-judging, or not-condemning, or forgiving, or being able to see will solve the problem that these 4 words present.

When our Lord commands us in His Gospel heard today, our response is immediately: “Point me towards my judgement, Lord, that I may eradicate it” or “where do I condemn and not forgive enough, that I remedy such error on my part” or “just tell me how to see again and I will do whatever you ask”. 

We rush to the sector we think is bringing down our Lord’s judgement upon us and start shoring up the defense. Jesus says, “here” and we move there. “Here” “Here” “Here”. We’re tiring but Jesus doesn’t slow down. “Here” “Here” “Here”. If we could just take a break. Here here here. Just a second to catch our breath. Here here here here here here.

Instead, Jesus shifts into higher gears: “Blessed are the poor”, Jesus says. That doesn’t make any sense. I’m not poor. I thought I was doing ok. Blessed are the hungry. Blessed are those who mourn. Blessed are the hated. Just when we think we are getting ahead of Jesus’ commands, He turns a corner and demands that instead of accomplishing, we should be languishing and regretting even thinking that our hard work could stave off dying.

“For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions” (2 Tim. 4:3). Our own itching ears don’t want to hear that our bodies will eventually betray us and disable us. They don’t want to hear that no amount of “not judging” will get us out free, neither do we want to hear that Jesus is the One who judges.

Church history teaches us this lesson. For, in our study of the first 500 years of the church, the bishop’s have done nothing but battle over the two natures of Christ and how they relate to us. The fight was over whether or not Jesus was God, man, a mix, or something different.

It turns out that our beloved Nicene Creed was the thing to save us. For in it we learn that Jesus is of the same substance with the Father and yet was made man. No mixing or mingling, just the mystery of the God-man, Jesus Christ.

This is important because God has a body just like ours, but without sin. And He made our bodies for us, not so they could fall into sin, decay, and death, but so that they could live with Him forever.  

By becoming man, He takes all our sin upon Himself, even the sin we feel there is no escape from or even sin that we think is unforgivable. For it is these bodies that will be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye. The mortal shall become immortal. The perishable, imperishable. 

Thus, the main idea in today’s Gospel is mercy and forgiveness, but since we cannot even restrain our judgement, this mercy and forgiveness must come from somewhere apart from our failure. For what is the measure we want to be measured with when we come in front of the Judge? Not ourselves, but The cross.

It is the suffering and dying of Jesus that shows us what true mercy is: forgiveness. It is the judgement of Jesus in front of the world that shows us what true judgement is: forgiveness. You get the picture. We want the cross and nothing else to judge our deeds.

Jesus shows us this is two instances. The first is Mary Magdalene washing Jesus’ feet with her tears and her hair. The Pharisees are grumbling and denying Jesus’ divinity, but Jesus turns to St/ Peter and says: “A certain moneylender had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. When they could not pay, he cancelled the debt of both. Now which of them will love him more?” (Lk. 7:41-42) 

It is in life where, when we examine ourselves according to God’s Word, we find an enormous ineptitude in following Him. And since that ineptitude is so enormous, it is that exact proportion with which we love our Redeemer in return. Our debt piles up, but our moneylender in heaven is full of forgiveness. 

Thus even if our minds betray us and lie to us, forgiveness is greater than that lie. Even if our life is failure at doing good and success at doing evil, there is forgiveness for that. Life is a series of events in which we become like our teacher, who is Jesus. 

And that Teacher suffered, but was brought into glory; everlasting glory. That compared with temporal suffering is insignificant. For, “...not only does creation groan, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.” (Rom 8:23) We wait, but we wait in hope. The hope that our groaning will only last a short while.

But we must wait with Jesus, Who shares our humanity. We must bear our cross to be found a good and faithful servant. And we must bear it in these bodies that get tired, get hungry, and get worn out. Though our bodies betray us, our Savior does not. He keeps His promises and His Word is true. 

So even though the devil, the world, and our sinful nature mean nothing but evil for us in our bodies, God means it for our good. He will provide for us and our little ones, in His Church, that many will be saved and brought to new life.