WHO IS FIRST, THE PERSON OR THE SYSTEM?
Text : Luke 13: 10-17
“A daughter complained to her father about how hard things were for her. "As soon as I solve one problem," she said, "another one comes up. I’m tired of struggling."
Her father, a chef, took her to the kitchen where he filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire. Soon the pots came to a boil. In one he placed carrots; in the second, eggs; and in the last, ground coffee beans. He let them sit and boil, without saying a word.
The daughter impatiently waited, wondering what he was doing. After a while, he went over and turned off the burners. He fished out the carrots and placed them in a bowl. He pulled the eggs out and placed them in a bowl. He poured the coffee into a bowl. Turning to her he asked, "Darling, what do you see?"
"Carrots, eggs, and coffee," she replied.
He brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft. He then asked her to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard-boiled egg. Finally, he asked her to sip the coffee. She smiled, as she tasted its rich flavor.
She asked, "What does it mean, Father?" He explained that each of them had faced the same adversity--boiling water--but each reacted differently. The carrot went in strong, hard, and unrelenting, but after being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak.
The egg was fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior, but after sitting through the boiling water, its inside hardened.
The ground coffee beans were unique, however. By being in the boiling water, they changed the water.
He asked his daughter, "When adversity knocks on your door, which are you?"” David P. Barrett. ed. More Perfect Illustrations For Every Topic And Occasion. Eric Reed. “Adversity And The Lesson Of The Coffee Bean”. Wheaton: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. 2003, p. 8). The woman who had been bent over for eighteen years had experienced eighteen years of adversity.
Perhaps the woman who had been bent over for eighteen years in Luke 13:7-10 started out with the sternness of a carrot, only to find that she had been softened by time with the fading hope of a solution to her problem. Better still, perhaps she was like the uncooked egg representing a character quality that resembles meekness only to end up over the course of those eighteen years in her heart like the character of the boiled egg---hardened. In any event, she needed someone to come along and help her fix her problem---someone who would change the atmosphere much like coffee changed the water. Jesus changed people everywhere He went. He always reached out to those on the outside and loved them.
STANDING ON THE OUTSIDE?
We are the keepers of our brothers and sisters. We are the keepers of our brothers and sisters. We are accountable for how we treat those whom we come in contact with. By our actions we can bring changes for better or worse. Are we like the carrot or an egg? By our actions we can change the hearts of the hard-hearted and make them soft or the soft-hearted or just the opposite, we can make the meek hardened in heart and attitude. Like Jesus we need to change the atmosphere around us by being the salt of the earth and the light of the world so that those standing on the outside can find a haven---a refuge. Until Jesus healed this woman, she was a refugee in need of refuge.
We need to remember the Golden Rule. Now we all know what the Golden Rule is. The chances are that we have heard it all of our lives. “So whatever you wish that men would do to you, do so to them; for this is the law and the prophets” (Matthew 7:12 RSV). “And as you wish that men would do to you, do so to them” (Luke 6:31 RSV). When the synagogue ruler challenged Jesus, Jesus exposed the hypocritical attitude and revealed how animals were receiving better treatment than this lady who had been bent over for eighteen years. Consider Luke 13:14-16: “But the ruler of the synagogue, indignant because Jesus had healed on the sabbath, said to the people, "There are six days on which work ought to be done; come on those days and be healed, and not on the sabbath day." Then the Lord answered him, "You hypocrites! Does not each of you on the sabbath untie his ox or his ass from the manger, and lead it away to water it? And ought not this woman, a daughter of Abraham whom Satan bound for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the sabbath day?" (RSV). Humans were created to be over the animals---to have dominion over them (Genesis 1:26) and yet Jesus points out what is wrong with the picture and those who were wrong were ashamed.
Is it loving to keep people in need standing on the outside? As someone (William Barclay) has pointed out “The president of the synagogue and those like him were people who loved systems more than people”. (William Barclay. The Daily Study Bible Series: The Gospel Of Luke. Revised Edition. Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1975, 177). As someone (David Mosser) else has noted, “Government and the religious establishment are too often in collusion when violence against the poor occurs. Whether Nazi Germany or a local community, when the church does not speak for justice, people suffer”. (David N. Mosser ed. The Abingdon Preaching Annual 2004. David Mosser. . “Reflections: August”. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2003, p. 260). How can people love only those who are just like them (Matthew 5:46). Consider Matthew 5:46-47: “For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you salute only your brethren, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? (RSV). How can we honestly say we honor the Biblical mandate to “love our neighbor as we love ourselves” (Luke 10:27) if we are passing by “on the other side” (Luke 10:31,32) of their pain? Is it loving to keep people who are in need standing on the outside?
OUR MISSION
We need to be more like Jesus. Jesus included everyone in His mission. Jesus included those who were considered sinners and outcasts. But if the truth be told, we are all sinners who hunger for the love that God so freely offers to everyone. Yet, not everyone accepts God’s offer of unconditional love and forgiveness. "What class of people does God love?" was the question asked by a teacher, of his class of boys. Ten hands went up, in schoolboy fashion, ready to answer. "Good people, sir," was the reply, "There is none that doeth good, no, not one." "Then you see, lads, God has nobody to love, if only ’good people’ are loved by Him." The boys seemed thunderstruck. "Will the next boy read Rom. 5:8," said the teacher, and the lad read, "But God commendeth His love towards us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." "Whom does God love?" "Sinners," was the quick answers. Yes, and that name includes you”. (John Ritchie. 500 Gospel Sermon Illustrations. Grand Rapids: Kregel Publications, 1987, p. 24). We need to be more like Jesus, in our actions as well as in our words.
We need to be loving like Jesus. What good does it do for us to love only those that are just like us? How will that change anything? We need to be loving like Jesus in our actions. Anyone can say that they love somebody. Jesus told us that others will know that we are His disciples by the way that we love one another as He loved us. The way that Jesus loved and loves us is unconditional.
“An anonymous soul has expressed it well:
Love is the spark that kindles the fires of compassion.
Compassion is the fire that flames the candle of service.
Service is the candle that ignites the torch of hope. Hope is the torch that lights the beacon of faith.
Faith is the beacon that reflects the power of God.
God is the power that creates the miracle of love.
(G. Curtis Jones. 1000 Illustrations For Preaching And Teaching. Nashville: Broadman Press, 1986, p. 223).
The kind of love Jesus demonstrated made a difference and makes a difference. The kind of love that Jesus demonstrated made and makes a difference because it has the power to change the hearts of people. When love is unconditional and has the power to change the hearts of people, it can help to make changes that are contagious. “The early Latin writer, Tertullian of Carthage, declared that the one thing that converted him to Christianity was not the arguments they gave him, because he could find a counterpoint for every argument they would present. “But they demonstrated something I didn’t have. The thing that converted me to Christianity was the way that they loved each other.” (G. Curtis Jones. 1000 Illustrations For Preaching And Teaching. Nashville: Broadman Press, 1986, p. 220). In Luke 13:10-17, Jesus teaches us that “love comes first, not the system”!
