Dangerous Safety - Luke 21:5-36

Josh Broward
November 14, 2010

    You have all heard the story of “The Tortoise and the Hare,” but have you heard the sequel - “The Tortoise and the Bees”?  After winning the dramatic, ever-so-slow victory over the Hare, the Tortoise decided that it was time to lay her eggs.  Yes, the Tortoise was a girl.  But don’t blame old Aesop for that mistake; it’s very hard to tell with turtles! 
    So the Tortoise made the slow journey back to her ancestral breeding ground.  She found the same sandy field where she was born and the same tree where she had been laying her eggs for many years.  It was perfect.  There was plenty of water.  There was plenty of soft green plants nearby.  It was not too sunny but not too cold.  It was perfect -except for one thing.  This year, there was a beehive in the tree. 
    The bees were not happy about the arrival of the Tortoise.  They buzzed about her head and told her to scram.  She quietly said, “You can sting me, but you can’t kill me.  This is my home, and I must produce life.”  She quietly went about her work, moving the sand and preparing her nest.  The bees began to sting her.  They stung her head, her legs, her tail.  They lost their stingers in her shell.  She continued preparing her nest.  “You can sting me, but you can’t kill me.  This is my home, and I must produce life.” 
    Slowly, slowly, slowly, the Tortoise prepared her nest.  Slowly, slowly, slowly, she laid her eggs.  Slowly, slowly, slowly, the tiny tortoise babies developed inside their eggs.  Slowly, slowly, slowly, the attacks from the bees began to wane as more and more bees lost their stingers in her shell.  No matter what the bees buzzed as they stung her, no matter how much it hurt when they stung, she always quietly replied: “You can sting me, but you can’t kill me.  This is my home, and I must produce life.”
    Finally, after many long months of waiting and patience and endurance, her eggs began to move.  The baby tortoises began to poke through their shells and emerge into the fresh clean air.  When all of the babies were out and free, the momma Tortoise prepared her babies for the annual journey to the watering place.  As they were about to leave the nest, she said, “Never mind the bees.  They can sting you, but they can’t kill you.  This is our home, and we must produce life.”

    This world is full of bees.  Bees of all kinds buzz about us and try to distract us from our calling.  Sometimes they attack and sting.  Other times they just do one flyby after another, trying to get us off course, trying to cause us to lose focus and to lose faith.  In our passage today, Jesus calls us to be like the Tortoise: quietly faithful and unafraid.
    Let’s read Luke 21:5-36.

    Passages like this are always hard for us modern or post-modern people.  These stories about the end of time are difficult for us for several reasons.
    First, we are unfamiliar with the background perspective of this kind of literature.  This comes from a rather special kind of theology called apocalypse.  Apocalyptic literature was primarily written by suffering people who were looking to God as their only hope.  Their world situation was so bad that the only way out was a total divine shake-up.  However, most of us aren’t so desperate.  Most of us feel pretty good about our situation in life.  It may not be perfect, but it’s good enough.
    Second, we have lived with far too many people saying, “I am the Messiah” or “The time has come.”  I remember our pastor talking about 88 Reasons Why the Rapture Will Be in 1988 (a famous book in which Edgar Whisenant “guaranteed” that Jesus would come again in 1988).  I remember sitting around church potlucks or family gatherings year after year, with people debating and discussing the various “signs of the times” and whether they revealed that Jesus would return within the next few years.  A few years ago, when I preached on the book of Revelation, I was a little surprised to learn that these kind of Second Coming predictions have been proclaimed in every generation for the past 2000 years. 
    When people start talking about Jesus’ second coming, many of us kind of shut down.  Our eyes glaze over.  Our minds go numb.  Maybe we’ve heard it all before.  Maybe we don’t want to be disappointed again.  Maybe we just don’t believe it works like that anymore. 
    But perhaps the biggest reason why an apocalyptic passage like this is so difficult for us is that ... we ... are ... not ... patient.  We live in the now culture.  We speak fast.  We eat fast.  We text fast.  We drive fast.  We read fast.  We pray fast.  We live fast.  We want everything to be fast.  We want everything our way right away.  We ... are ... not ... patient.
    And patience is what this text is all about.  Patience is tough.  But this isn’t really the kind of patience we normally think of.  This isn’t the patience of not getting angry because we’re waiting in line.  This isn’t the patience of calmly answering the 1000 questions of your 5 year old.  This is more like the patience of cutting down a tree with a butter knife.  This is more like the patience of digging a swimming pool with a spoon.  This is an active patience. 
    Listen again to Jesus’ pattern in this text: Bad stuff is going to happen ... but be patiently faithful. 
When you hear of wars and insurrections, don’t panic.
You will be dragged into synagogs and prisons ... but this will be your opportunity to tell them about me, so don’t worry.
Your parents, brothers, relatives, and friends will betray you.  They will even kill some of you.  Everyone will hate you.  But not a hair of your head will perish!  By standing firm, you will win your souls. 
Jerusalem will be surrounded and defeated.  The sky and the sea will be in chaos.  People will be terrified.  But then, everyone will see me coming on the clouds.  So when life falls apart, stand and look up, for your salvation is near!
When you see all of these bad things happening, you can know the Kingdom of God is near.
Be careful.  Don’t let your hearts be dulled by the parties and worries of this life.  Stay alert.  Pray that you will stay strong and be able to stand.

    In other words, Jesus seems to be saying: “Lots of bad stuff is going to happen in this life, but be patiently faithful.  The bad stuff can sting you, but it can’t kill you.  Continue with the plan.  Keep living as my representatives in this world.  Keep loving.  Keep giving.  Keep serving.  Keep believing in me and my way.”

    But how?  How can we be patient when everything seems to be falling apart?  How can we be faithful when everyone else seems to be going the other way?  In a success oriented culture, how can we endure danger and ridicule and the potential of outward failure?
    I think the real key here comes in the strange combination of two ideas.  Look again at verses 16-17, “Even those closest to you - your parents, brothers, relatives, and friends - will betray you.  They will even kill some of you.  And everyone will hate you because of my followers.” 
    OK, great!  Is anyone ready to become a Christian today?  Sign up here and get ready for your execution.  At least Jesus is honest.  He knew that trouble was coming.  He knew it would be hard.  He knew that most of his closest followers would die violent deaths because of their faithfulness to him. 
    Following Jesus is not easy.  Sometimes it’s really, really hard.  Sometimes it takes every ounce of courage and strength that we have.  Sometimes it takes more courage and strength than we have, and only some extra help from the Holy Spirit can get us through.  Don’t let anyone fool you into thinking being a Christian will solve all your problems.  It will solve some problems, but it will also make new problems.  Even your family will sometimes be against you.  That’s just how it works. 
    This is the first part of the key:  “There will be lots of problems, and they’ll even kill some of you.”

    Here’s the second part of the key: “But not a hair of your head will perish!  By standing firm, you will win your souls” (21:18-19).  There is a safety that is beyond danger. 
    During World War I, an English poet named Rupert Brooke explained this beautifully in his faith-filled poem titled “Safety”:
        Dear! of all happy in the hour, most blest
        He who has found our hid security,
        Assured in the dark tides of the world at rest,
        And heard our word, 'Who is so safe as we?'
        We have found safety with all things undying,
        The winds, and morning, tears of men and mirth,
        The deep night, and birds singing, and clouds flying,
        And sleep, and freedom, and the autumnal earth.
        We have built a house that is not for Time's throwing.
        We have gained a peace unshaken by pain for ever.
        War knows no power. Safe shall be my going,
        Secretly armed against all death's endeavour;
        Safe though all safety's lost; safe where men fall;
        And if these poor limbs die, safest of all.

    For us, as Christians, we have a hidden security.  We have house that this world cannot destroy.  We have gained a peace that surpasses both understanding and pain.  Even war cannot stop us.  For Christ has died.  Christ has risen.  And Christ is coming again.  “Death is swallowed up in victory.  O death, where is your victory?  O death, where is your sting?” (1 Corinthians 15:54-55). 
    But there are other stings.  There are other bees.  Other temptations and worries and siren calls haunt our world. 
Success is a nasty beast that buzzes about our souls calling for our loyalty and total sacrifice.  Work harder.  Work longer.  Pray less.  Sleep less.  Worship less.  Serve less.  Love less.  Work, work, work.  Success is everything.
Escapism buzzes gently and persistently, “Come away.  Come away with me.  Leave that work.  Leave those problems.  Leave those people.  Come away and be numb with me.” 
However, fear is perhaps the most frequent and most dangerous bee in our world.  We are afraid.  We live with fear as our constant companion.  We are afraid of failure.  We are afraid of rejection.  We are afraid that we will not be good enough.  We are afraid that our kids will not measure up.  We are afraid of falling behind.  We are afraid of not being cool.  We are afraid of not having enough money.  We are afraid of losing control. 

    Jesus says again and again, “Don’t panic.  Don’t worry.  Don’t be afraid.”  Christ has died.  Christ is risen.  Christ is coming again.  Jesus said, “I have told you all of this so that you may have peace in me.  Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows.  But take heart, because I have overcome the world” (John 16:33).  Christ has died.  Christ is risen.  Christ is coming again.
    Here is the Gospel.  God has given us an unshakable security in Jesus Christ.  Because of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection, our sins can be forgiven, and we can participate in his resurrection life.  Christ’s resurrection life in us gives us immunity to death and to all the other bees. 
Where O Death is your victory?  Where O Death is your sting? 
Where, O Success, is your victory?  You will fade away like the grass in the fields.  If I do not bow down to you, you cannot kill me.  You cannot really hurt me.
Where, O Pleasure, is your power?  Christ has made a new life well up inside us like an eternal spring.  We can participate in the healing of the world.  What can you offer to compare with that?
Where, O Fear, is your threat?  “Nothing can ever separate us from God’s love.  Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow - not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love.  No power in the sky above or in the earth below - indeed , nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38-30).

    The things of this world which buzz in our ears and sting our hands - they are passing troubles, fading worries.  Because of Jesus’ life, death, resurrection, and return, we can stick to the plan.  Like the Tortoise and her nest, the progress may be slow, painfully slow.  Sometimes, we might not even be able to see the progress.  But stick to the plan.  Hold on to Christ.  Be patient.  Never mind the bees.  They can sting us, but they can’t kill us.  God’s Kingdom is our home, and we must produce life.  Stick to the plan.  Hold on to Christ.  Love faithfully.  Give faithfully.  Serve faithfully.  Pray faithfully.  Celebrate faithfully.  Live faithfully.  Hold on to Christ.

    Oscar Romero was a great Latin American reformer.  As an archbishop in the Catholic church, he worked tirelessly for justice, democracy, and peace in El Salvador.  Listen to how he explains the slow march of faithfulness:
    It helps, now and then, to step back and take the long view.  The kingdom is not only beyond our efforts, it is beyond our vision.  We accomplish in our lifetime only a tiny fraction of the magnificent enterprise that is God’s work  Nothing we do is complete, which is another way of saying that the kingdom lies always beyond us.
    No statement says all that could be said.  No prayer fully expresses our faith.  No confession brings perfection.  No pastoral visit brings wholeness.  No program accomplishes the Church’s mission.  No set of goals and objectives includes everything.
    This is what we are about: we plant seeds that one day will grow.  We water seeds already planted, knowing that they hold future promise.  We lay foundations that need further development.  We provide yeast that produces effects beyond our capabilities.
    We cannot do everything, and there is a sense of liberation in realizing that.  This enables us to do something, and to do it very well.  It may be incomplete, but it is a beginning, a step along the way, an opportunity for God’s grace to enter and do the rest.  We may never see the end results, but that is the difference between the master builder and the worker.  We are workers, not master builders, ministers, not messiahs.  We are prophets of a future not our own.
    On March 23, 1980, Oscar Romero asked El Salvador’s soldiers to stop obeying the government’s orders for repression and violence against the innocent.  The next day, he was celebrating Mass at a hospital chapel.  While he was holding up the cup, representing Christ’s blood, he was shot and killed.  He fell over the altar, and his blood mixed with the wine from the cup.

    This is the difficult calling of all who follow Christ - to allow our blood to be mixed with his.  We stand with the Christ who has died - enduring any suffering necessary - knowing that they can sting us but they can’t kill us.  We stand with the Christ who is rise - enjoying his resurrection life, and knowing that we will be raised with him in the end.  We stand with the Christ who is coming again - working toward his coming, producing life, with grace and love and patience. 


    Christ has died.  Christ is risen, and Christ is coming again.  Therefore, stand firm.  Be alert.  Do not let your hearts be dulled by the parties and worries of this life.  Pray that God will make you strong so that you can stand firm until the end.