If No One is Offended by You, You're Probably Not Doing Your Job

Second Sunday after Pentecost (B)
June 7, 2015
II Corinthians 4:5-12; Mark 2:23-3:6

Introduction

The Rev. Dr. Billy Graham once said, “Our society strives to avoid any possibility of offending anyone—except God.” Last May 22, the Republic of Ireland voted in a referendum (62% yes) to allow same-sex marriages—the first nation in the world to do so. (In the United States, same-sex marriage is allowed only in certain states but not allowed in others.) The President of the Methodist Church in Ireland, the Rev. Peter Murray issued a statement on the referendum. He said:

I strongly urge Methodist families, small groups and larger fellowships to be safe places where LGBT [lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender] people feel accepted and loved, be able to share their stories freely and be involved in the life of the church.

At the same time the referendum result is not compatible with what the Methodist Church in Ireland recognizes as the basis of Christian marriage. Our understanding is that marriage is between a man and a woman and so in the context of weddings with Methodist churches our practice remains that no minister has the authority to conduct the marriage of same-sex partners.

Rev. Murray further stated that while the Irish parliament passes the referendum into law, the government should “ensure that church and other faith bodies will not be compelled by law to act contrary to their definition of marriage”.

The Methodist Church in Ireland could have said, “All right, since 62% of all Irish people believe in same-sex marriage, maybe we should too.” While its president called on “the people called Methodist” not to discriminate against LGBT people, Rev. Murray remained firm on the stand of the church regarding same-sex marriage. (Sadly, it’s a different story in many parts of the UMC in the United States.)

It seems nowadays we are emphasizing on “being nice” and avoiding to offend other people. But I say: If no one is offended at you, you’re probably not doing your job. I’m not telling you to be lazy so that your parents will get angry at your for being lazy. I’m not telling you that it’s your job to offend people. What I’m saying is that if you’re too busy at “being nice”, you’re probably not doing your job.

I. Treasure in Clay Jars (II Corinthians 4:5-12)

In his second epistle to the Corinthians, St. Paul the Apostle describes himself and his associates (including St. Timothy, 1:1) as “earthen vessels” that contain spiritual treasure, “that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us” (4:7).

We are hard pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair. Persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed….

(II Corinthians 4:8-9, New King James Version)

The Orthodox Study Bible says, “This is victorious, but not trouble-free, Christianity. These trials ‘show both the power of God and, more, disclose His Grace’ (St. John Chrysostom)” (note on 2 Corinthians 4:8-12).

II. Jesus and His Disciples Pluck Grain on the Sabbath (Mark 2:23-27)

In the first part of our Gospel reading (Mark 2:23-27), Our Lord and His disciples passed through a field on the Sabbath and “as they went His disciples began to pluck the heads of grain” (v. 23). (According to St. Luke, this happened “on the second Sabbath after the first” [6:1]; i.e., the Sabbath after the Passover.) In the Torah, the people of Israel were told not to harvest the edges of their vineyards and fields in order for poor people to “glean” on them (Leviticus 19:10 and Deuteronomy 24:21). This is what apparently what the disciples did.

When the Pharisees saw this, they said that what the disciples did was “not lawful on the Sabbath” (v. 24) because apparently, gleaning falls under the same category as harvesting, which is work and forbidden on the Sabbath. (In addition, St. Luke adds that the disciples rubbed the grain in their hands, which is the same as grinding them, and is also work forbidden on the Sabbath.)

The Lord answered them with the story of how Abiathar the High Priest (actually his father, Ahimelech; Abiathar would later become High Priest during the reign of King David) gave David and his men, who were starving, gave “showbread” from the Tabernacle to eat (I Samuel 21:1-6). According to the Torah, the showbread are twelve loaves of bread that are placed in a table in the Tabernacle (and later in the Temple) for seven days, and replaced with fresh bread every Sabbath (Exodus 25:30, 39:36). Only priests were allowed to eat the showbread that was taken out of the Tabernacle. David and his men were fleeing for their lives from King Saul, so they were very hungry. So Ahimelech gave David and his men the showbread that had just been taken out of the Tabernacle.

Jesus showed the Pharisees that they cared more about the letter of the Law than it’s spirit; i.e., that it was written for the good of people. That is why He said, “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath” (v. 27).

III. Jesus Heals the Man with a Withered Hand (Mark 3:1-6)

In the second part of our Gospel reading (Mark 3:1-6), Jesus healed a man with a withered hand in the synagogue during the Sabbath. Again, the Pharisees “watched Him closely…so that they might accuse Him (v. 2). So Jesus asked,

Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?

(Mark 3:4)

In Jewish Law, all of the commandments can be broken only by the commandment to save a life. “Whoever destroys a soul, it is considered as if he destroyed an entire world. And whoever saves a life, it is considered as if he saved an entire world” (Mishnah, Tractate Sanhedrin 4:9; Babylonian Talmud, Tractate Sanhedrin 37a). When Jesus asked, “Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill,” the Pharisees knew the answer—they just don’t like it. So “they kept silent” (v. 4). Jesus broke the law of the Sabbath to save a life—by healing a man’s withered hand. He cared more about doing good than not offending other people’s hypocritical religious sensibilities.

Conclusion

If no one is offended by you, you’re probably not doing your job. Our job is not to “be nice”. Our job is not to please people, but God.