“God Forbid”

"God forbid it, Lord!  This must never happen to you."   Jesus turned and said to Peter, "Get behind me, Satan!  You are a stumbling block to me; for you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things."  Then Jesus told his disciples, "If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.”

Peter knew that if Jesus was willing to go where he said he was going to go, then it would be ok for Jesus to ask his disciples to do it also. Don’t you just hate it when people lead by example. It is so hard to refuse. Some years ago I was invited to run for a diocesan office. I didn’t want to run and certainly did not want to serve. I asked my friends not to vote for me. But I did agree to run. Why? Because the nominator was willing to serve herself. She had done all the nasty jobs that need doing and has every right and some responsibility to ask me to do the same. She tells me it is the sacrifice thing.

Not all of us are called to the same things, but all of us are called to follow Jesus where he leads the way. Some of us are hardened enough so that we can accept someone doing it for us. Others of us try to remain invisible when the passes to cross-picking-up are handed out. We are sure that the cost of discipleship will be too high.

Humankind has always been willing to do some kinds of death defying tricks. The answer to why they do it is usually: “Because it was there.” Bungee jumpers tell us it is the rush. So do sky divers. Most of us watch people defy death in various kinds of ways. Stock car racing is a good example. I watched Evil Kneivel Jr.’s jump over the narrow end of the Grand Canyon. It may have been narrow, but it wasn’t shallow.

Knievel did 250 feet across-to avoid a 2000 foot drop. Sounds like poor odds to me. And if he had failed some of us would have wondered if all the hype to watch a guy go splat isn’t kind of, well, a waste.

Sometimes we can see our ministry coming and try to dodge. I did it for several years with a group I have had some continuing responsibility for. I tried to get out of what was manifestly my job, to accept the leadership at the head. I figured my job was to nominate someone else. Bingo, I got it done. He fumbled the work so badly that now that I am the head I have twice as much to do in repair work as I would have had in the beginning. It is a form of justice I suppose. Mostly it was avoiding the cross. It was avoiding a cross that Jesus mounted for me. I didn’t have to go to his cross, just my own, the place of service and sacrifice God has opened at least 250 feet wide for me.

Peter was wrong. God will not forbid. No! God invites us to take up our crosses, not so that we can suffer, but so that Jesus who bore his cross for us can be glorified.