This
is my final post on this read of Luke’s Gospel.
The previous two posts can be found here and here.
On
this post I turn my attention to chapter ten and break it down in detail.
I think chapter ten in
Luke is another remarkable chapter. It
starts off with Christ sending off seventy (or seventy-two in some versions)
disciples to preach and convert. Let's
look at His send off in more detail.
1 After this the Lord
appointed seventy [-two] others whom he sent ahead of him in pairs to every
town and place he intended to visit. 2 He said to them, "The harvest is
abundant but the laborers are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out
laborers for his harvest. 3 Go on your way; behold, I am sending you like lambs
among wolves. 4 Carry no money bag, no sack, no sandals; and greet no one along
the way.
Why is He sending them
like lambs to wolves? Why no money or
sack or sandals? I guess it builds a
trust in the Lord. But why "greet no
one along the way?" That I find
puzzling, especially since further down they are to go into houses of people.
5 Into whatever house you
enter, first say, 'Peace to this household.' 6 If a peaceful person lives
there, your peace will rest on him; but if not, it will return to you. 7 Stay
in the same house and eat and drink what is offered to you, for the laborer
deserves his payment. Do not move about from one house to another.
Obviously the disciples
are very active in this ministry, apparently working as well as preaching. The word "peace" here carries more
than the definition allows. It carries a
spiritual connectation, like a blessing.
[Side note: I love signing off notes with "peace." It's almost like I'm blessing the person I'm
writing to. But I never thought about
that peace returning to me if it doesn't settle on that person.]
And then Jesus comes to
what I think is significant:
8 Whatever town you enter
and they welcome you, eat what is set before you, 9 cure the sick in it and say
to them, 'The kingdom of God is at hand for you.'
So the ministry is to
work to help the community, preach, and cure the sick. This is bringing "The Kingdom of
God" here to Earth. Luke more than
any of the other Gospels seems to be concerned with the Kingdom of God on
Earth. Look at all the references: Luke
4:43, Luke 6:20, Luke 9:62, Luke 13:18-19, Luke 13:28, Luke 14:15, Luke 17:21,
Luke 18:17, Luke 18:24-25, Luke 19:11, Luke 21:31. Yes, the kingdom is also in heaven, but
17:20-21 makes clear:
20 Asked by the Pharisees
when the kingdom of God would come, he said in reply, "The coming of the
kingdom of God cannot be observed, 21 and no one will announce, 'Look, here it
is,' or, 'There it is.' For behold, the kingdom of God is among you."
Yes, there is a
metaphysical element to it, but our work here on Earth is bringing the kingdom
of God to fruition. Now back to chapter
ten, Jesus gets perturbed with the unrepentant.
10 Whatever town you
enter and they do not receive you, go out into the streets and say, 11 'The
dust of your town that clings to our feet, even that we shake off against you.'
Yet know this: the kingdom of God is at hand.
The next passage in the
chapter (verses 13-16) Jesus continues on the unrepentant motif, but the
passage after that the disciples come back with joy.
17 The seventy [-two]
returned rejoicing, and said, "Lord, even the demons are subject to us
because of your name." 18 Jesus said, "I have observed Satan fall
like lightning from the sky. 19 Behold, I have given you the power 'to tread
upon serpents' and scorpions and upon the full force of the enemy and nothing
will harm you. 20 Nevertheless, do not rejoice because the spirits are subject
to you, but rejoice because your names are written in heaven."
Their success is like
casting Satan out of heaven. Their success
in bringing the kingdom of heaven to Earth brings them to heaven. The next passage Jesus rejoices,
21 At that very moment he
rejoiced [in] the holy Spirit and said, "I give you praise, Father, Lord
of heaven and Earth, for although you have hidden these things from the wise
and the learned you have revealed them to the childlike. Yes, Father, such has
been your gracious will.
And further:
23 Turning to the
disciples in private he said, "Blessed are the eyes that see what you see.
24 For I say to you, many prophets and kings desired to see what you see, but
did not see it, and to hear what you hear, but did not hear it."
The disciples have seen
the Kingdom by working to bring it to Earth, and they have been blessed for
it. And then Jesus recounts to a lawyer
the Parable of the Good Samaritan, which I don't need to quote. It is a dramatization of what the Kingdom of
God should look like on Earth. It is the
neighbor working to help the other, showing mercy to all. And Jesus concludes that with "Go and do
likewise." Go and do likewise is a
commandment to actively create the kingdom of God here on Earth. This Protestant notion of "by faith
alone" is nowhere substantiated in the Gospels.
And then Luke completely
blows me away by concluding chapter ten with Jesus' visit to Mary and Martha,
the famous dichotomy between the active and contemplative life. Notice that Jesus enters a house just like he
had his disciples enter at the beginning of the chapter. Martha is caught up with serving the guests
and complains that Mary is a slacker because she just sits listening to
Jesus. And Jesus seems to be rebuking
Martha while upholding Mary. So after
this entire chapter of raising the active work of bringing the Kingdom to
Earth, does Luke undermine his own argument with the opposite theme?
Meister Eckhart, the
great German, Dominican mystic, had a different take on this scene. Remember Dominicans have the calling to be
both active and contemplative, breathing with two lungs. Eckhart believed that Jesus wasn't so much
praising Mary, but acknowledging her limitations. This was the best that Mary could do. But Martha has the ability to do both. Eckhart's reading seems like a bit of a
stretch, and it's not one you will typically get in a homily. But look carefully. Christ is not rebuking Martha for being
active. He is rebuking her for being
anxious and upset. Martha is not at
peace. She doesn't have the
"peace" that is mentioned earlier in the chapter, that the disciples
are supposed to cast on those they minister.
I
don’t know if I’d make a good theologian—I only play one on the internet—but I
think this was one of my better readings.
Feel free to disagree. :)
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