Church of the Incarnation

Many of Jesus disciples' said, "This teaching is difficult; who can accept it?"

Jesus' teachings are difficult, because Jesus' teachings aren't just teachings, they aren't just intellectual or spiritual concepts. Jesus' teachings are difficult because they're concrete, they involve our making changes, focussing on others rather than on ourselves and working against injustice. Jesus' teachings take us out of our comfortable pews and into the uncomfortable world.

About ten years ago there was a Christian missionary physician serving a community in Ecuador. Exhausted from his years of toil in that difficult place, he and his family decided to return to the United States for three months of sabbatical. Another physician was sent to serve during his absence, a devout Jewish man, who brought his whole family with him. Naturally, they stayed in the home of the Christian doctor while they were in Ecuador.

As devout Jews, the new family celebrated the Passover each Friday night. They carefully prepared the home and the meal, lit the candles, and gathered around the table. They followed the traditions precisely, so they brought an extra chair to the table and they celebrated the meal with the door open. The open door was to welcome the prophet Elijah, the greatest of all the prophets, the one who brings hope to those in despair, and the one they believed would return one day and bring the Messiah with him. So they left an empty seat at the table for Elijah, and they opened the door to welcome him.

On their first Friday evening in Ecuador, the Jewish doctor and his family solemnly began their Passover celebration. And as they recalled the ways God had delivered them out of slavery in Egypt, a tiny fist knocked on their open door. The entire family turned to see a small native boy clutching at his empty belly. There was an awkward pause as the child stared at the family and the family stared at the child. He then pointed to their table, to the platter piled high with tender brisket and the bowl of crispy roasted potatoes, and then he clutched his belly in a gesture of hunger and need. The Jewish doctor leapt to his feet and ushered the child in, helping him into Elijah's chair and filling the nearest plate with a heaping portion of the delicious meal. Because the boy spoke no English and the family spoke no Spanish, they all ate the Passover meal in silence, marvelling at their guest. And when the meal was over, the child nodded to the family, slid down from his chair, and disappeared into the night as the family continued with their prayers.

All week the family kept their eyes peeled, hoping to see their small guest again in the streets of the city or in the alley behind the hospital. But he seemed to have vanished.

The next Friday, the family again gathered for the Passover meal, with the door open and the place set for Elijah. And again their celebration was interrupted by a tiny fist rapping at their door. But this time the little boy had brought his brother and sister with him. The family jumped up to bring chairs and set more places at the table, filling the plates of the hungry children and taking less for themselves. Again the meal passed without a word, and again the children slithered off into the night, their bellies full.

Each Friday that the Jewish family spent in Ecuador they welcomed these needy children at their Passover celebration. And each week the number of hungry children at their doorway grew.

When the three months of sabbatical were up, the Christian doctor and his family returned to Ecuador renewed and ready for ministry. Before the Jewish doctor returned to America, he sat down with the Christian doctor to update him on events at the hospital. After discussing the different patients and procedures, the Jewish doctor hesitantly said, "There's one more matter I think I should tell you about, something that transpired in your home." He then shared everything that had happened with the hungry children, and told the Christian doctor that they were feeding thirty to forty children each week. Not wishing to press the Christian doctor, the Jewish doctor simply said, "So this Friday evening there will be a tiny knock at your door. What happens next is up to you."

This is what Jesus' followers found troubling. His teachings are hard because they come with flesh on. In Jesus, God is no longer an abstract concept off in the heavens somewhere. In Jesus, God is here and now, active and living, and requiring us to be the same. This is hard. And many do turn away. But, like Peter, I have to say, "Lord, your teachings are hard. You ask me to do things I don't want to do, to get involved in the mess of other people's lives and to set aside my own needs to take care of theirs. I don't always want to do what you ask. But I don't really have a choice. I know that you are God. So there isn't anywhere else for me to go. Your way is hard, but your way is the way of truth and life. So I have to follow you. I can't do otherwise."

I'm sure you're wondering what happened in Ecuador the first Friday after the Christian family's return. Well, I'm not completely sure. But I can tell you that today there's a ministry there called Carmen Bajo which feeds over 200 hungry children. The children receive three hot, nourishing meals per week as well as scholarships that send them to school. And as long as the children stay in school, their entire families are provided with free medical care at the hospital where the Christian doctor works.

Jesus' teachings are hard. They call us out of our comfortable pews and into the lives of others. It may be the kid in school whose shoes don't fit, or the man in the Wal-Mart parking lot with the hood of his car up. It would be so much easier to walk on past. But remember the words of the Jewish doctor, which were very like the words of a Jewish carpenter before him: "What happens next is up to you."

Amen.