Going with the Flowing! April 3, 2022
Isaiah 43:16-21
Philippians 3:4(b)-14
John 12:1-11
Last month, when I first looked at today’s passages, the image of the desert or wilderness in Isaiah grabbed my attention. Not because the 40 days of Lent are often associated with Jesus’ time of temptation in the wilderness, but because the last many months have often felt like a desolate wasteland. Most folk I know are feeling dry, forlorn, lost and weary. It’s not been a time of overwhelming joy and fruitfulness.
So, I found myself challenged by this compelling portrayal of hope – “I am making a way in the wilderness, and streams in the wasteland.” I looked in to my dry being and glanced around at a hollowed-out society and a war-ravaged world and heard Jesus’ question to Martha, as he too proclaimed a vision of newness – “Do you believe this”. My ‘Yes’ was not immediate. What about you? Do you believe this?

Do you believe that the arrogant rulers of the world can be prevented from inflicting more horror on human civilization? Do you believe that vaccines, masks and restricted freedom can prevent another destructive virus from eviscerating joyful living? Do you believe the tides of woke-ism, me-ism, tribalism, naïve optimism can be stopped from eroding unity, respect and care for others and hope? Do you believe the unbridled economic forces that impoverish the majority to enrich a shrinking few can be stymied? Do you believe that somehow the promise of God to flood restoration and renewal into the lives of his beleaguered chosen like a torrent of fresh water in a desert waste can and will happen? That, my friends is the question Isaiah brought to the forefront of my being as I read today’s lessons.
A common image for the people of God or the Church is a sailing ship. Imagine then, if you are able, this promise as a boat moving through the barren land buoyed on the waters of God’s presence and power. This morning I want to explore this hope, first by noting some anchors that prevent such a promise from being experienced; and then by exploring what can be done to make this hope a reality in our lives.
I use the image of an anchor because even if the stream has a strong current, the boat won’t move if it is held firmly in place. Anchors prevent the promise from making any impact.
One of the possible anchors is the very context into which this promise is given – we live in a desert! In many ways society is badly broken, our culture is hostile to the gospel claim that Jesus Christ alone is the Way and the world is spinning in a downward, death spiral. Wilderness can evoke fear and despair. Such inner responses can freeze us in place. Desperate and difficult times can enervate and cause one to seek the security and isolation of a hideaway cave to avoid the threat of the desert. Setting sail into the unknown, driven along by the stream’s current is just too perilous to contemplate. We dare not get on board. The sheer power of the surrounding desolation acts like an anchor.
Judas reveals another potential anchor. It seems that he had a besetting sin - you know, one of those DNA-like flaws that dog our heels day in and day out. Greed appears to be a persistent temptation. He pilfered funds from the treasury. Isn’t it interesting that it was this weakness that made Judas vulnerable to the act of betrayal. Jesus invited Judas to get on board and set sail, but ‘love of money’ held sway and he died tethered to a tree in a desolate place.
Then there’s Mary. Once again, she’s not helping with the food. This time however, she’s not sitting passively at Jesus’ feet listening. This time she is anointing his feet with some very expensive perfume and wiping them dry with her hair. There are so many wonderful themes in this one act, but let me note only a few in passing. This is over the top from many angles. Mr. Moneybags is flabbergasted by the extravagance - my goodness a drop of that stuff would have been sufficient! 500 mls!! And she unpinned her hair in public!! Only a certain brazen professional lady of the night did that!! And his feet not his head! Taking care of feet was work for the lowest servant, not a friend and hostess!
Mary was willing to be and act like a fool to serve, honour and celebrate Jesus. Human pride can keep the ship firmly anchored to its spot in the desert. My friends, we all have it. Some of us, encounter it regularly through whispering, tempting lies – ‘What will she think?’, ‘Oh, they’ll label you a ‘wild-eyed dreamer!’, ‘Do you have no dignity, man?!’, ‘You are highly educated, you could hardly associate with those people!’, ‘If you were really mature, you would come along with us.’ And the buzz goes on and all who listen, who disdain the possibility of appearing foolish, stay land-locked in the desert.
Paul also exposes another strong anchor – past achievements and status. He lists his credentials – who he is and what he has done. They are impressive. They are also Paul contends an anchor. Rest on your laurels, bask in past glories and you will be like the tree planted by, not like the sailing ship riding on, the waters. How powerful is this! Much of the past is good, but Paul is determined not to let it keep him from moving on to the best. So, he unceremoniously dumps it all in the waste bin, in order to sail out of the wasteland.
These are some anchors touched on in these passages. There are more. They are strong. They are almost impossible to budge. When the waters come flowing into wilderness, the only way for the ship to course down the river, is to cut the ropes, sever the chains that connect the anchors to the ship.
Today’s lessons offer some strong cutting tools. Let’s consider how we can free ourselves to ride the tide. Severing tool number one – Recall. “This is what the Lord says— he who made a way through the sea, a path through the mighty waters, who drew out the chariots and horses, the army and reinforcements together, and they lay there, never to rise again, extinguished, snuffed out like a wick:”
Those images recall God’s deliverance of the Israelites from Egypt at the Red Sea. If we were on TV, the warning about graphic violence would now be spread on the screen. {retell} Before making a new promise, the prophet recalls this Exodus event of similar incredible divine deliverance.
What deserts, what wildernesses do we face today, that remotely compare with Pharoah’s army thundering down on a rag tag group of fleeing slaves trapped on the shores of the Red Sea? We recall these stories for two reasons. One is to lift up our beleaguered spirits with affirmations that nothing is impossible with God, even ships sailing through the desert! And two, to remind ourselves, the purpose of the past isn’t to anchor us to some former time when God’s people had swaggering success, but to give us courage to cut the moorings and launch out boldly into God’s future for us.
Let me continue to look at the past as we sever all that might anchor us in the wasteland. When one recalls, one also uses the memory as an invitation to Refocus and/or Reframe the past. Paul ticked off various achievements and wonderful experiences, not to bury himself in fond recollections, but to sift out what was of lasting value and put it in a context that encourages faith and boldness.
Often a visit to the optometrist involves finding that correct lens so that what was fuzzy takes on sharp clarity. Sometimes the lens is merely put into another frame to produce a different look. This alteration of visual appearance also severs anchors rooted in former things. Not only do past experiences recall recollections of God’s awesome activity, they provide raw material from which valuable and abiding truths can be mined. These treasures become precious cargo to put on board. The past also needs to be framed, not as the final destination, but as a series of steps that helped get us to the place, where our ship of faith can be launched on the waters flowing through the wilderness.
Paul has mined these prized truths from his journey – there is nothing of any greatness that surpasses his relationship with Christ Jesus, the righteousness that comes from faith in him and the power of his resurrection. There is lots of other precious stuff in his past, but that is the framework from which he views it all and that is the clarity that drives him to press on to the prize of heavenly glory.
A third anchor cutter is Risk. I’ve already alluded to risky elements in these passages. The whole of the Philippians’ reading is about letting go, refusing to accept the status quo, pursuing full out greater experiences of God’s presence and power. I have met very few bona fide adventurers in my life. Most of us seem to be hard wired to embrace the familiar, to trust in the tried and the true. Cutting loose is just not in our DNA. Pressing on as Paul portrays it, invites risk.
Mary, as I noted, risked being misunderstood in order to honour her Lord. Even today people read this story and speculate about the kind of intimacy being demonstrated, the great passion being expressed and the prodigal sacrifice on display. It is clear Mary had eyes and heart only for Jesus. She therefore was willing to risk – to risk slander, to risk possessions, to risk isolation. Either intuitively or intentionally, Mary grasped - following Jesus is a risky undertaking. Playing it safe is not normative.
Then, there is her brother Lazarus. Experiencing resurrection, receiving new life in Jesus, has made him a persona non grata, a prime target for destruction by the forces who oppose Jesus. Saying ‘Yes’ to Jesus’ gift of salvation is risky, not just because you will find yourself challenged to live a radical kingdom life, but your very existence is an affront to the death promoting powers of this world.
And lastly heading out on the waters without an anchor is a de facto risk. The only security are the skills of the captain and the navigator to keep the ship on course and off the rocks. Fortunately, Jesus and the Holy Spirit are more than able to do just that. Are you ready to cut loose and go with the flow?

Amen