This week's texts force us to look at Jesus and ourselves in a different light. In Mark 8:27-38, Jesus asks his disciples as to his identity. In Proverbs 1:20-33, lady Wisdom speaks words of warning as a parent would to a child. James 3:1-12 warns us against a "loose tongue" for it destroys community.
All of these texts have one thing in common. They speak to us about the nature of our own identity as Christians. Many times we understand our faith in terms of what we know, in terms of our "wisdom." The texts for this week remind us not to rely on our wisdom but to tap into God's wisdom.
The identity of Jesus is one of a suffering servant, not a military conqueror. When Peter denies this description and rebukes Jesus, Peter shows his reliance on his own understanding and wisdom and not on God's. Jesus in turn rebukes Peter and clarifies where our understanding needs to come from.
In our own time we misunderstand Jesus' identity. We sometimes believe that our faith is about knowing Jesus or knowing about him. Jesus came in order to show us the Father, to give us an example of what it meant to be agents of God's kingdom on earth and to empower us to live a life led by God's Spirit. This understanding has serious implications. Our lives cannot be lived in the same way in we take Jesus seriously. Here the wisdom of God cries out to us and tells us how we are to live. Living the Christian life means that we do not see anything in the same way. It means that we have a new set of eyes to see the world.
The Christian understanding of the world is communal. The whole created order is connected. Our faith is not individual and yet it is personal. We have an encounter with Jesus where he asks us, who do you say that I am? If we say that he is the Messiah, we are saying that we are no longer alone we are part of God's gracious community. What we believe is believed in community. How we act affects the community. Our faith cannot be lived outside of community. Wisdom cries out, trying to get our attention. It's not about you! God is the center of our life.
Here we have a difficult challenge. We will struggle with it in class, in sermon, and at the table. I look forward to seeing all of you Sunday.
Peace, Juan
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