How It Is
Commentary
Sooner or later, we see life as it really is. Job sees clearly that the universe is greater than he can imagine. It’s not all about him. Something great and wonderful is going on, and though he has suffered tremendous loss, he is to reject dust and ashes and live authentically. He is free to be alive.
The author of Hebrews makes it clear that we don’t have to jump through anyone’s hoops anymore. We have the perfect priest and the perfect sacrifice and as a result we have perfect access to God, unfiltered, unimpeded. That’s how it is.
Even the blind man can see clearly what others fail to see — Jesus is the Son of David, the king who is promised who will reign forever, who can save, who can redeem, who can deliver! And we have access to that king. That’s how it is!
Job 42:1-6, 10-17
Before I forget — first things first. You might add verses 7-9 to this reading and point out that after everything’s said and done, God defends Job to his detractors. All those busybodies, erstwhile friends, who insisted Job must have done something or all this stuff wouldn’t have happened to him, they get their comeuppance. Just as God boasted about Job in the heavenly council at the beginning of the book, now God boasts about Job in this worldly council.
Now back to this crucial, and crucially mistranslated passage. Most people assume God’s answer to Job, showing him the depth and breadth of the universe is meant to cow Job’s resistance, leading him, now broken, to repent, abjectly saying “...therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes (42:6).”
But when the verse is properly translated, Job repents from dust and ashes. He changes his mind about the way he looks at the world. Remember, he was already on the dust and ashes from way back in the beginning of the book. Now he’s ready to walk away from them. Job will never replace the loved ones, but he will go on, starting a new family. Life is still hard, but now that he is validated, he finds a way to continue.
Notice that the mysteries of this story are not resolved for Job. Sometimes people say, “Someday we will understand all this.” Job never comes to an understanding about the hardships he and his wife have endured, but they have more kids, accumulate more wealth, and do more than just endure — they triumph. We are just as wounded. We never fully stop mourning the losses that matter to us, but we laugh as well. There’s this big universe going on out there and we are a part of it. For worse and for better, that’s how it is. None of us rides free. None of us are unscathed. But most of us continue to bless God, sometimes grudgingly, sometimes wholeheartedly, through it all.
Hebrews 7:23-28
There are times when the turgid prose of the author of Hebrews seems to get bogged down in stuff that doesn’t matter to me. What do I care about the temple, or high priests, or sacrifices? Those are things I don’t take part in, so why should it matter to me? I have access to God through the sacrifice of Jesus. I know that. Who doesn’t?
Then it occurs to me that some people don’t realize they don’t have to jump through all these hoops to gain access to the awesome and awe-inspiring Creator. We just do. But these people need to be told.
Then it occurs to me that maybe I’m taking this extraordinary access for granted, and I need to be reminded of how complicated it could be and how simple it is. I open my heart and my thoughts to God in prayer. Why should I ever take such a mystery for granted? So, through this letter I am once again reminded of how it isn’t and how it is!
Mark 10:46-52
Some people just don’t get it. In this passage, the blind man sees clearly while others don’t have a clue. Maybe I should say the blind man can’t see, but he perceives.
This is the last miracle of healing in Mark’s Gospel and it’s also the last significant act before the fateful week in Jerusalem. Bartimaeus plants himself outside of Jericho, where people must pass by and try to see past him as he calls out for alms. His cloak is spread out around himself, and people are supposed to throw coins on the cloak so he can collect them more easily. But when Bartimaeus is told that Jesus is calling him, he responds with abandon, rising, leaving behind his cloak and no doubt scattering his coins in all directions. His lifeline to survival takes a backseat to the possibility of new life in Jesus. And note that while others are confused about people around, he shouts, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”
When we listen to a story, we often put ourselves in the character of the hero. The challenge of the Good News of Jesus Christ is to discover we’ve been the antagonists! That opens the door to change. How have we responded when someone is loud, boisterous, and even annoying in life — and in church? Mark writes: “Many sternly ordered him to be quiet, but he created out even more loudly, ‘Son of David, have mercy on me!’” (10:48) Saying shush doesn’t quiet the children, calm those suffering with PTSDs, or silence the differently abled.
Thank heavens Bartimaeus didn’t quiet down. And ultimately, he was rewarded with this words: “Take heart; get up, he is calling you.”
Take heart. Get up. Jesus is calling you. The Son of David, the one who reigns forever, who changes lives, upturns our expectations, and heals us of our illusions, is calling us. Bartimaeus addressed the Lord of Life as “Rabbouni,” just as Mary of Magdala does when she meets the risen Jesus in the garden, and he is healed.
This is how it is. We want people to behave. We want everything to stay put in what we imagine is a proper place. But the Spirit of God is ready to burst out in all directions because those who seek the Lord joyfully aren’t worried about propriety. This is how it is. Church is for those who are emotional, those who are broken, those who are suffering, those who are ready to call aloud to Jesus. Church must be accessible to all.
The author of Hebrews makes it clear that we don’t have to jump through anyone’s hoops anymore. We have the perfect priest and the perfect sacrifice and as a result we have perfect access to God, unfiltered, unimpeded. That’s how it is.
Even the blind man can see clearly what others fail to see — Jesus is the Son of David, the king who is promised who will reign forever, who can save, who can redeem, who can deliver! And we have access to that king. That’s how it is!
Job 42:1-6, 10-17
Before I forget — first things first. You might add verses 7-9 to this reading and point out that after everything’s said and done, God defends Job to his detractors. All those busybodies, erstwhile friends, who insisted Job must have done something or all this stuff wouldn’t have happened to him, they get their comeuppance. Just as God boasted about Job in the heavenly council at the beginning of the book, now God boasts about Job in this worldly council.
Now back to this crucial, and crucially mistranslated passage. Most people assume God’s answer to Job, showing him the depth and breadth of the universe is meant to cow Job’s resistance, leading him, now broken, to repent, abjectly saying “...therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes (42:6).”
But when the verse is properly translated, Job repents from dust and ashes. He changes his mind about the way he looks at the world. Remember, he was already on the dust and ashes from way back in the beginning of the book. Now he’s ready to walk away from them. Job will never replace the loved ones, but he will go on, starting a new family. Life is still hard, but now that he is validated, he finds a way to continue.
Notice that the mysteries of this story are not resolved for Job. Sometimes people say, “Someday we will understand all this.” Job never comes to an understanding about the hardships he and his wife have endured, but they have more kids, accumulate more wealth, and do more than just endure — they triumph. We are just as wounded. We never fully stop mourning the losses that matter to us, but we laugh as well. There’s this big universe going on out there and we are a part of it. For worse and for better, that’s how it is. None of us rides free. None of us are unscathed. But most of us continue to bless God, sometimes grudgingly, sometimes wholeheartedly, through it all.
Hebrews 7:23-28
There are times when the turgid prose of the author of Hebrews seems to get bogged down in stuff that doesn’t matter to me. What do I care about the temple, or high priests, or sacrifices? Those are things I don’t take part in, so why should it matter to me? I have access to God through the sacrifice of Jesus. I know that. Who doesn’t?
Then it occurs to me that some people don’t realize they don’t have to jump through all these hoops to gain access to the awesome and awe-inspiring Creator. We just do. But these people need to be told.
Then it occurs to me that maybe I’m taking this extraordinary access for granted, and I need to be reminded of how complicated it could be and how simple it is. I open my heart and my thoughts to God in prayer. Why should I ever take such a mystery for granted? So, through this letter I am once again reminded of how it isn’t and how it is!
Mark 10:46-52
Some people just don’t get it. In this passage, the blind man sees clearly while others don’t have a clue. Maybe I should say the blind man can’t see, but he perceives.
This is the last miracle of healing in Mark’s Gospel and it’s also the last significant act before the fateful week in Jerusalem. Bartimaeus plants himself outside of Jericho, where people must pass by and try to see past him as he calls out for alms. His cloak is spread out around himself, and people are supposed to throw coins on the cloak so he can collect them more easily. But when Bartimaeus is told that Jesus is calling him, he responds with abandon, rising, leaving behind his cloak and no doubt scattering his coins in all directions. His lifeline to survival takes a backseat to the possibility of new life in Jesus. And note that while others are confused about people around, he shouts, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”
When we listen to a story, we often put ourselves in the character of the hero. The challenge of the Good News of Jesus Christ is to discover we’ve been the antagonists! That opens the door to change. How have we responded when someone is loud, boisterous, and even annoying in life — and in church? Mark writes: “Many sternly ordered him to be quiet, but he created out even more loudly, ‘Son of David, have mercy on me!’” (10:48) Saying shush doesn’t quiet the children, calm those suffering with PTSDs, or silence the differently abled.
Thank heavens Bartimaeus didn’t quiet down. And ultimately, he was rewarded with this words: “Take heart; get up, he is calling you.”
Take heart. Get up. Jesus is calling you. The Son of David, the one who reigns forever, who changes lives, upturns our expectations, and heals us of our illusions, is calling us. Bartimaeus addressed the Lord of Life as “Rabbouni,” just as Mary of Magdala does when she meets the risen Jesus in the garden, and he is healed.
This is how it is. We want people to behave. We want everything to stay put in what we imagine is a proper place. But the Spirit of God is ready to burst out in all directions because those who seek the Lord joyfully aren’t worried about propriety. This is how it is. Church is for those who are emotional, those who are broken, those who are suffering, those who are ready to call aloud to Jesus. Church must be accessible to all.
