March 13 – Lent 2

LUKE 13:31-35

When I was a young girl, a long, long time ago, I would spend time with my grandmother and grandfather Deiter who lived up Sheaffer’s Valley.  I vividly remember many nights that the chickens would start clucking and raising cane, and my grandfather would grab his riffle and head for the chicken coop to chase out a fox who had gotten in somehow.  So, it’s easy to see what Jesus meant when He called Herod a fox and referred to Himself as a hen protecting His chicks.  You don’t have to be a farmer to understand how that story might end.

Foxes in general are thought to be sly and smart.  Always looking for ways to sneak in and get their prey.  If they get into the chicken coop, violence occurs and they leave a bloody mess.  Perhaps the use of these barnyard images is meant to make us think about this dark time, the time of violence and abuse of Jesus as He moves toward Jerusalem, Good Friday and the crucifixion.

We all remember Herod who married his brother’s wife, and whose stepdaughter later danced for him at his birthday celebration, then asked for John the Baptist’s head on a platter as her reward.  In my opinion, Herod himself is not sly like a fox, but is controlled by the foxes around him.  Herod was an insecure political leader, and so was inclined to listen to the advice of those he trusted.  Unfortunately, he trusted the wrong people.  He was what we might refer to as a “wild card.” Yet, because of this, he was a power to be reckoned with and to feared.

Which brings us to the question of why the Pharisees would warn Jesus about Herod.  After all, the Pharisees were not particularly known for their great love of Jesus. Although there are a few instances of Jesus being invited to eat at a Pharisees home, most of Jesus encounters with them were unpleasant.  Since Jesus brought a message that was counter cultural, it threatened the status quo, and went against all that the Pharisees believed.   So, obviously, Jesus was not one of their favorite people.  Their warning to Jesus doesn’t make much sense, does it?  Perhaps they were hoping to “spook” Jesus, since Jesus should be afraid of Herod, so that He would go elsewhere and not be a visible threat to their way of life.  They attempted to manipulate Jesus into doing what they wanted Him to do.

My guess is that they were very surprised when Jesus did not act with fear and continued on with His plans.  Jesus refused to run and hide, nor would He give up the mission His Father had set for Him.  His response speaks clearly of Jesus’ courage and determination.  Jesus made it perfectly clear that He was busy caring for those who are in need, and He sent a message back to Herod through the Pharisees, “You go tell that fox, that untrustworthy and corrupt one, that I’m busy doing my work of healing and when I finish, then I will go to Jerusalem.”

We are also challenged to emulate the example that Jesus has set for us as His disciples.  To stand up to the difficulties of life with similar courage, and resolve to do the right thing.  It challenges us to not remain hidden in the shadows but to step forth into the bright light where we can be seen and our voices heard, and stand up for what is right and just for all people regardless of race, economic status, or sexual orientation.

After all, Jesus’ message is a message of love.  Not just love for His disciples, but for all mankind.  We are to remember that when we look at the face of an addict, of a murderer, of someone poor and dirty, we are to see the face of someone that Jesus loves just as much as He loves us.   We are to put away the fear we might have of someone very different from ourselves, and minister to those who are most in need as our Lord Jesus did.

If we let fear rule our lives, it steals our joy of living.  Our life becomes very limited, and we keep ourselves from feeling pleasure because we fear that if we do, something bad will happen.  We operate on the premise that if we never venture out of our own little circle, we will not be hurt physically or emotionally. Most of you that we host a  “Grief Share” support group here at Christ Lutheran that I help to facilitate.   Everyone sitting around the table on Thursday evenings is feeling the pain and grief that losing a loved one brings.  Yet, if we strive to avoid this type of pain, it would mean that we never would have experienced love.   It is only through overcoming our fear and feeling the emotions of pleasure and hurt, that we grow spiritually, and it is clear that fear can keep us from doing the very things that we most desire in our lives.

According to the Webster dictionary, courage can be defined as, “The quality or power of dealing with or facing danger, fear, pain and so forth, or the confidence to act in accordance with one’s belief.”  Jesus is our role model for having courage.  He had the courage to continue on His mission regardless of the threats to His physical wellbeing, and the courage to continue on to Jerusalem and the cross.

As we leave here this morning, to continue our walk through the darkness of Lent, let us ask ourselves what type of fear is in our lives that is attempting to control us and suck the joy out of our lives.   Do we have the courage to stand up to those fears and the confidence to act in accordance with our beliefs?   Let us resolve to have the courage to stand firm in our faith and for what we know is true in our hearts and in the Scripture.   Let us remember Jesus’ courage as He approached the cross, and what He did for each one of us so that we might have ever lasting life.  Stand firm, have courage and remember where your citizenship really belongs, in the Kingdom of God.

Amen