The Gospel of Mark
This Lent we will follow Jesus’
steps in Mark’s eyes (in the Year B lectionary cycle). It is believed that the
Gospel of Mark was written for the gentile believers. It was written first
among the four Gospels. The Gospel of Mark is an action-packed, fast-paced book,
consisting of 16 chapters. In this week’s lectionary, within seven verses, we go
from hearing God’s voice at Jesus’ baptism to the wilderness where Jesus is
tempted by Satan to Jesus beginning his earthly ministry.
So who is Jesus according to Mark? Throughout the book Mark proclaims again and again that Jesus is the Son of God, the Messiah. In particular, Mark portrays Jesus the Messiah as God’s suffering servant or God’s wounded healer.
Jesus’ Baptism
At that time, all Israelites were
expectantly waiting for their Messiah. A charismatic king, or an invincible
general. That was their image of the Messiah. But God’s Messiah came as a totally
unexpected figure. God saved his people in a completely unexpected way. God’s Messiah
brings his healing and salvation by taking up our pain and carrying our
suffering for us and with us.
When John the Baptist saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look! The Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” Then Jesus, who had no sin, received the baptism of repentance by John. Pastor Gordon MacDonald invites us to imagine the scene of Jesus’ baptism if it took place in the twenty-first century. Gordon was a well-known, promising, beloved pastor at Grace Chapel in Lexington, MA for 12 years. In 1987 he admitted to an adulterous affair. He publicly repented. He experienced forgiveness of sin in a very personal way. In that context Gordon asks us to imagine John’s baptism occurs in our lifetimes, so we all go out to be baptized by John. Imagine someone decided to get organized, so they set up a registration table, handing out nametags for each person who wants to be baptized by John. When a person registered for baptism, the person working the registration would ask, "What’s your name? And what sins do you need to repent of?" You’d say, "My name is Gordon and I’m an adulterer." So each person to be baptized would have a nametag with their name and their sin written on it. My nametag would say, "Victor" and then underneath would be words like “judgmental spirit" or “unforgiving spirit.”
Then comes Jesus who doesn’t need a
nametag, and he asks each of us to take off our nametags. As Jesus prepares for
his baptism, he puts all our nametags on himself, mine and yours, my name and
your name, my sins and your sins. And then Jesus goes into the waters of
baptism, identifying himself with our sins. That’s what was happening here. That’s
why Jesus was baptized by John. Jesus became our sin, and we became his
righteousness (2 Co 5:21). By his wounds we are healed. Jesus is the wounded
healer.
Jesus’ Testing
From the Jordan River, Jesus is now led
by the Spirit into the wilderness. The first Adam was tempted by Satan in a
bountiful garden and miserably failed. The second Adam, Jesus, is now tempted by
Satan in a desolate wilderness and wins. It is necessary for Jesus to be there
in the wilderness because that’s the very place where Adam failed. That’s the
very place where we failed. In the wilderness, Jesus was tempted like Adam, but
did not sin (Heb 4:15). The Bible says, “Because he himself suffered when he
was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.” (Heb 2:18, NIV).
Jesus is the wounded healer.
Year 1527, in intense turmoil Martin Luther wrote his greatest hymn, “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God.” That was one of the most trying years of Luther’s Life. He was forced to stop preaching in the middle of his sermon. And for 10 years, since publishing his 95 Theses against the abuse of indulgences, his life had been in danger. He also had to suffer from depression and illness. To make it matters worse, that year in August, the plague had erupted in his town. His son became ill. The battle with Satan was so fierce. During that horrific year, Luther noted the deeper meaning of his trials: “The only comfort against raging Satan is that we have God’s Word to save the souls of believers.” Sometime that year, he expanded that thought into the hymn he is most famous for: “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God.”[1] And particularly verse 2 beautifully and powerfully proclaims Jesus as the second Adam who wins the battle by his suffering and death and resurrection.
Did
we in our own strength confide,
Our
striving would be losing;
Were
not the right Man on our side,
The
Man of God’s own choosing.
Dost
ask who that may be?
Christ
Jesus, it is He;
Lord
Sabaoth is His name,
From
age to age the same,
And
He must win the battle!
Jesus, the Wounded Healer
Jesus is the Man of God’s own
choosing, the Wounded Healer. In one of the Talmud stories, Rabbi Yoshua ben
Levi came upon Elijah the prophet… He asked Elijah, “When will the Messiah
come?” Elijah replied, “Go and ask him yourself.” “Where is he?” “Sitting at
the gates of the city.” “How shall I know him?” “He is sitting among the poor
covered with wounds. The others unbind all their wounds at the same time and
then bind them up again. But he unbinds one at a time and binds it up again,
saying to himself, ‘Perhaps I shall be needed: if so I must always be ready so
as not to delay for a moment.’[2]
In this story the Messiah, the Wounded Healer, is sitting among the poor, binding his wounds one at a time, so he can look after his own pain and suffering, and at the same time, he can be prepared to heal the wounds of others, while the others are preoccupied with their own wounds and problems. Jesus is God’s wounded healer. By his wounds we are healed. Jesus’ suffering and death brought joy and life. His rejection brought a new beloved community, the church.
Life as a Wounded Healer
As followers of Jesus we are called
to be wounded healers. If we only see our wounds, we will burden others with
our pain. But when we bind our wounds one at a time, we will see our own
brokenness and stay humble, and with that humility we can allow our wounds to
bring healing to others.
Henri Nouwen beautifully said this way, “Nobody escapes being wounded. We all are wounded people, whether physically, emotionally, mentally, or spiritually. The main question is not “How can we hide our wounds?” so we don’t have to be embarrassed, but “How can we put our woundedness in the service of others?” When our wounds cease to be a source of shame and become a source of healing, we have become wounded healers.”
There is a world of difference between “open” wounds and “healed” wounds. Open wounds say, “Don’t worry because I suffer from the same depression, confusion, and anxiety as you do.” But it is of no help to anyone. Open wounds stink and do not heal. But healed wounds say, “I have been there. And I still see my pain and suffering from deep within today. But God has been gracious to me. I feel your pain.”
When we share our healed wounds with others, they become a source of healing. But, when we share our wounds with others, it has to be done out of humility. It has to be beggar to beggar, patient to patient. In order to cultivate humility, we need to have a constant willingness to face our own pain and brokenness. This past week Joyce had a follow-up appointment after her surgery and heard disappointing news that she would need more tests – bloodwork, MRI, Ultrasound, etc. Sitting in the hospital waiting room, hearing test results from a doctor, comparing the pricing of MRI and Ultrasound, and all this help Joyce and me to see our own wounds and stay humble. My unexpected hearing problem, though it’s painful and frustrating, is a great constant reminder that I don’t hear well spiritually as well as physically. That makes me humble and fully rely on God. All our sufferings and wounds can be great opportunities to be a little closer to our Wounded Healer.
We cannot save anyone. We cannot heal anyone. Our life, as a wounded healer, is simply to invite people to the Light where their wounds can be seen and healed. Our calling is to guide wounded people to the Healer as we humbly share our pain, our brokenness, our hope with them.
The time of God’s healing is always here and now. Today is the day of healing. Today is the day of salvation. Whatever you are going through, wherever you are, today is the day of liberation. The Messiah is near. The Wounded Healer is here with us today. Come to Jesus. Come, let us be healed and help others heal. Amen.
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