I’d like to tell you the story of Seth and his
most unusual experience, so sit back and relax and listen to the story. Like
most people Seth was curious; he liked to have new experiences, and heaven knows
new experiences didn’t happen often in the hill country of Galilee. But one
day there was a rumor that an itinerant rabbi was coming to town. Meeting someone
new and hearing what he had to say seemed more exciting than anything else he
had to do that day, so Seth set off to find this teacher.It wasn’t long before he came upon a whole crowd of people milling around. He knew he was at the right spot. Then he saw the rabbi at the top of the hill. Since Seth was such a people-watcher he began to look around at those who, like him, had gathered for the day’s entertainment. What a motley crew! There were people of every size and shape--young people, old people, healthy people, and sick people. It seemed to Seth that there were an awfully lot of sick people. "How odd," thought Seth to himself.
All of a sudden a great hush fell over the crowd. Seth knew it was because the rabbi was about to speak. Still it seemed peculiar how quickly the silence descended. "This man must really be good," he thought as he settled back to listen to what he hoped would be an interesting discourse. Seth wasn’t disappointed. In fact, he sat rapt barely realizing the hours that had passed as he listened to the teacher’s stories. It wasn’t until the man finished speaking and Seth figured he was getting ready to leave that the crowd seemed to descend upon him in mass. "Teacher, heal my son." "Heal my daughter." "Cure my friend." Shouts came from every direction; they were all clamoring for his attention.
Just when Seth had thought the show was over he discovered it had only just begun. After the session really was finished he thought about what a truly enjoyable, if not profitable, day it had been for him. It was now late and the sun sank low in the sky. Everyone packed up their belongings and left, even those who had been healed. Seth, too, headed towards his home, his mind filled with the events of the day. (He didn’t even think about his new bride, which was probably a first, since his recent marriage.) He wondered who this man was and whether he would have the opportunity to hear him again.
Over the months Seth did hear the rabbi many times; he always invited others to come and hear this amazing teacher. Sometimes he took Rebekah along. Together they had even eaten a meal for thousands drawn from a small boy’s lunch, but it was not so much the miracles he witnessed that kept Seth so entranced as it was the way the teacher spoke and how he looked at Seth with those deep, penetrating eyes. It was as though he’d known Seth all his life and could peer deep into his soul. Seth was convinced there was something special about this rabbi. He might have even entertained the idea that this teacher could be the Messiah.
He would have to give it much more thought, but there was no time for that now. There were too many preparations to be made for the trip to Jerusalem for the Passover. They would leave the next day. "A whole week in Jerusalem!" Seth was so excited! He always enjoyed those trips, but this year with a wife of his own it was even more exciting. He would have someone to share his favorite places. It would be the best trip of his life.
They made the trip very quickly. Seth and his bride were so anxious they left their home before the sun even came up, so they beat the crowds to the gates of the Holy City. As the crowd began to gather there was electricity in the air. Jerusalem was usually an awesome place, but this year there was an even greater level of expectancy. The crowds were astir. The king was coming. Now Seth understood the significance of his feelings every time he heard Jesus speak. He really was God’s anointed one! It wasn’t just a feeling Seth had and he and Rebekah would be there to witness his coronation. "This will be a great story to tell our children and grandchildren." God has acted to save his people and it was in our lifetime. Blessed be his name!"
The week was filled with sights and sounds of celebration and anticipation. The young couple shared favorite memories and places. They prepared for the family getting together to observe the Passover meal, but early on the day the lamb was to be slaughtered there was a feeling of unrest. Seth didn’t quite explain the feeling of uneasiness he had. He decided to go for a walk. There seemed to be a commotion at the palace, so Seth went to check it out.
Pilate was wanting to release a prisoner as was the custom. Seth couldn’t understand what the big deal was. Then he heard the name of the prisoner and looked into those eyes. It was their king! Next he heard the shout of the crowd, "Crucify him, crucify him!" "What are they saying?" Seth wondered. "He’s the king," Seth tried to cry out, but no sound came. He began to weep at the sight of this man, his king, crowned with thorns, blood dripping down his body, naked except for a purple robe and linen loin cloth.
He could bear it no more. Seth ran to Rebekah and told her what had happened. She, too, was devastated. "What a man of sorrows!" Seth declared. "We hoped he would be the one to redeem Israel. I would have sworn allegiance to this king; I would have proclaimed his name around the country, even laid down my life in his service, and now the dream is all coming to an end. This will be a Passover to remember, but not the kind I thought. It is a dark day for the people of Israel." The two of them wept uncontrollably.
Well, friends, Seth’s story, at least this portion, ends on a kind of low note. We leave him in an unredeemed state. How sad. He had it right, but he read it all wrong. He didn’t suspect what we all know was coming. But what he said at the end is intriguing, ‘I would have sworn allegiance to this king; I would have proclaimed his name around the country, even laid down my life in his service..." Do we who do know the rest of the story, who claim the name of Christ feel that way?
Our 50-Day Adventure theme for today is to "Delight in introducing him to others." Have you ever shared your faith with an unbeliever? If you have, is it something in which you take delight?
The fact is we all act on our convictions. If we were truly convinced that Christ is really present here, we couldn’t help but want to bring others to meet him. Throughout these last 7 weeks we have been focusing on seeing the unseen Christ. Is your vision any clearer seeing Jesus than it was when we started? I hope so. I also hope you have been praying for your unchurched friends and neighbors, and for opportunities to witness to them. I pray that you will see this week as a prime opportunity to invite people you know to come and experience Christ through our remembrance of his life, death, and finally next Sunday his glorious resurrection.
We know the rest of the story unlike Seth. We know that the king had to die as part of God’s plan for our salvation. We know that this was not the end, but only the beginning of the end. Next week we will celebrate God’s victory, as we have been doing for around 2000 years. We also know that Christ died for all and that God’s desire is for all people to know and worship him as it says in Philippians 2:10-11, "...so that at the name of Jesus every knee shall bend; In heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."
We are called to bear this Good News to others. Since many of us grew up Lutheran we probably haven’t learned how to witness to others, unless we sat on an evangelism committee at some point, and even then, we may not have actually gone out and shared our faith face to face. So, how do we begin?
We begin, as with anything else in Kingdom work, with prayer. Ask God to open you to identify people who need to hear the Gospel. Pray that God would make them receptive and give you the opportunity and the right words to say to them. Now you must do your homework. Think about what God has meant in your life. Why is it important for you to have faith? What is the content of your faith? How do you think they might benefit? Be sure not to make this last piece sound like judgment--"You’re such a mess, you need God to help you," or "You’re so bad, God needs to straighten you out." While those things may indeed be true, what will open people up to hear the Gospel is that is exactly what it is--Good News. Most people hear enough bad news. They know they don’t measure up. They want to hear that someone cares. Now there are those who need to hear the law, but if we come off as condemning, we will have effectively shut off any further communication with the person and therefore any opportunity to witness to them as well. So we must allow God to show them their sin. All we need do is to extend the invitation to come and get to know our best friend, then we allow the Holy Spirit to do the work.
So I challenge you this week to take a risk. Pray for someone, then go and invite them to Tuesday Scripture reading, the Seder and Maundy Thursday worship, the Good Friday worship, and/or Easter Sunday celebration of resurrection. I’m looking forward to seeing what miracles God will do this week through this congregation to reveal to us the unseen Christ.