“We
are beggars. This is true.” Martin Luther scratched- out those words on a
scrap of paper just before his death on February
18, 1546. “We are beggars. This is true.”
are beggars. This is true.” Martin Luther scratched- out those words on a
scrap of paper just before his death on February
18, 1546. “We are beggars. This is true.”
Most
of us aren’t like the beggars, the panhandlers, we will meet on the streets of
downtown. We aren’t, as far as anyone
can tell, as far down or as far out, as they are; we not on the bottom and the
margin. In fact, when compared to them, we’re
way up and way in. It has been a long
time, if ever, since most of us were hungry and couldn’t figure-out where the
next meal was coming from. We have, not just
the clothes on our backs, but closets bulging with clothes we never wear. We’re connected, not marginalized; we have family,
friends, colleagues, coworkers, and classmates.
We’re either taking care of ourselves or someone else is responsibly and
reliably taking care of us. On the
surface, most of us don’t seem like beggars.
of us aren’t like the beggars, the panhandlers, we will meet on the streets of
downtown. We aren’t, as far as anyone
can tell, as far down or as far out, as they are; we not on the bottom and the
margin. In fact, when compared to them, we’re
way up and way in. It has been a long
time, if ever, since most of us were hungry and couldn’t figure-out where the
next meal was coming from. We have, not just
the clothes on our backs, but closets bulging with clothes we never wear. We’re connected, not marginalized; we have family,
friends, colleagues, coworkers, and classmates.
We’re either taking care of ourselves or someone else is responsibly and
reliably taking care of us. On the
surface, most of us don’t seem like beggars.
Beneath
the surface, though, in those places in our minds and hearts hidden from others
and sometimes from ourselves, we’re beggars, too. Maybe we are, as Carlyle Marney once called
us, “beggars in velvet,” but beggars nonetheless. We’re beggars especially for mercy. The characteristic prayer of Lent is our
constant prayer: “Jesus, have mercy on me.
Jesus, have mercy.”
the surface, though, in those places in our minds and hearts hidden from others
and sometimes from ourselves, we’re beggars, too. Maybe we are, as Carlyle Marney once called
us, “beggars in velvet,” but beggars nonetheless. We’re beggars especially for mercy. The characteristic prayer of Lent is our
constant prayer: “Jesus, have mercy on me.
Jesus, have mercy.”
We’re
all amalgams of brokenness and wholeness, tragedy and triumph, despair and
delight, grief and gladness. You know
what causes you to cry bitter, hurting tears when no one is around. You know what inspires you to give thanks and
to shout for joy. You know what drives
you relentlessly through your days and nights, and what allows you to slow
down, be still and know that God is God and you are not.
all amalgams of brokenness and wholeness, tragedy and triumph, despair and
delight, grief and gladness. You know
what causes you to cry bitter, hurting tears when no one is around. You know what inspires you to give thanks and
to shout for joy. You know what drives
you relentlessly through your days and nights, and what allows you to slow
down, be still and know that God is God and you are not.
Your
life may be full and rich and good, but there is in you something that makes
you anxious or afraid or guilty or ashamed. It’s part of being human. Everyone struggles or suffers or worries over
something, which means everyone needs mercy.
life may be full and rich and good, but there is in you something that makes
you anxious or afraid or guilty or ashamed. It’s part of being human. Everyone struggles or suffers or worries over
something, which means everyone needs mercy.
Jesus
is God’s mercy in flesh and blood, muscle and bone, word and deed. Jesus is mercy made clear and brought
near. As you know, the New Testament is
written in Greek, but Aramaic was the language Jesus and his first followers spoke. In Aramaic, the word for mercy or compassion,
comes from the same family of words as does the word womb. God’s mercy, Jesus
says and shows, in womblike; it is mother-like.
Mercy makes room in herself for the vulnerable, and shelters and
protects them until they are strong enough to survive. Mercy bleeds and labors to give life and
energy. Mercy cries aloud in pain and
joy for the wonder of the children we always are and for the people we are always
becoming. God’s mercy connects God to us
as a mother is tied to her children: God
feels along with us, weeps and laughs with us, crawls, walks, runs and dances
along with us.
is God’s mercy in flesh and blood, muscle and bone, word and deed. Jesus is mercy made clear and brought
near. As you know, the New Testament is
written in Greek, but Aramaic was the language Jesus and his first followers spoke. In Aramaic, the word for mercy or compassion,
comes from the same family of words as does the word womb. God’s mercy, Jesus
says and shows, in womblike; it is mother-like.
Mercy makes room in herself for the vulnerable, and shelters and
protects them until they are strong enough to survive. Mercy bleeds and labors to give life and
energy. Mercy cries aloud in pain and
joy for the wonder of the children we always are and for the people we are always
becoming. God’s mercy connects God to us
as a mother is tied to her children: God
feels along with us, weeps and laughs with us, crawls, walks, runs and dances
along with us.
We
live with two unconscious but always pressing questions: (1) Does anyone see
me, hear me, and know me for who I am?
(2) if someone sees me, hears me, and knows me, can he or she still love
me?
live with two unconscious but always pressing questions: (1) Does anyone see
me, hear me, and know me for who I am?
(2) if someone sees me, hears me, and knows me, can he or she still love
me?
Does
anybody know me? Does the person who
really knows me love me?
anybody know me? Does the person who
really knows me love me?
The
mercy of God in Jesus answers those crucial questions with “yes.” In Jesus, God says: “I know you,
completely. I love you without condition
or reservation.”
mercy of God in Jesus answers those crucial questions with “yes.” In Jesus, God says: “I know you,
completely. I love you without condition
or reservation.”
It’s mercy we need, and mercy for which we
beg. And mercy, sweet saving mercy, is
what Jesus gives.
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