Today's Scripture Reading (December 21, 2023): Luke 7
Sometimes,
the easiest purpose question to ask is what do you see? How does the world look
to you from your perspective? It is an interesting question, and the idea that
we all don't view the world in the same way is something that we sometimes
struggle to comprehend.
It is an idea
that William Booth explored in a dream. In his vision, he was on a ship in the
middle of the storm. In fact, Booth dreamed that he was on a rescue boat. Booth
wasn't the Captain, but he was an officer on the rescue boat. And on the rough
seas, the inevitable happened. A ship floundered and then started to sink. The
alarm bells were raised, coordinates were given, and the rescue boat began to
move toward the area where the ship was going down. When the rescue boat
arrived, the sinking ship was still afloat, but people were in the water. If
something didn't happen soon, the result would be inevitable. It was time to get the rescue boats
into the water.
Except in
Booth's dream, nothing was happening. The crew was standing and watching the
other ship as it started to sink. And yet none of the boats were being launched;
none of the crews were getting ready for the rescue mission. In his dream, Booth says he went to the
Captain and asked, "Why are we not launching our boats?" The Captain
replied that the seas were too rough and the boats and equipment were too
valuable to risk under these conditions.
There was a
problem between Booth and his Captain with what was seen. For the Captain, what
captivated his vision was the size of the waves. For Booth, it was the people drowning
because of the storm. Booth said, "Captain if we are
not going to launch our rescue craft, if we are not going to fulfill our
purpose, what are we doing here? If we are not going to fulfill our purpose,
why aren't we home in bed where it is warm and safe?
And then he
heard the fateful crack as the ship in trouble began to break up. As the ship sank, a few men climbed on
top of some broken wood planks. Even fewer could get close enough to the rescue
ship as it stood outside the danger area. A few survived, but most died.
Booth says he
went to his birth and wept over the losses.
But then news of another ship arrived, and the rescue ship moved into the
area where another ship had floundered, and the process started over again. But
there was a difference; this time, Booth wasn't willing to stand around and
wait. This time, Booth began to issue orders and get the men moving, which
brought him into conflict with his commanding officer.
Jesus asks, what
did you go into the desert to see? What was your purpose? You didn't go to see
royalty; they are in the palace. What did you go to see? Is that not exactly
what you found? A prophet in the wilderness speaking of something that is
coming. John was never supposed to serve the purpose of a king; he was a prophet.
Part of our
problem today isn't all that different from the issue in the day of Jesus. Because
we crave purpose, we will serve a purpose. It just might not be the right one, and
those who came to see John wanted an alternative to the answers issued by the
King. For the Captain in Booth's
dream, the answer the Captain had arrived at to the question was that his
purpose was to keep the equipment clean and in working order. We can't afford
new rescue boats, so we must keep the ones we have in order.
But Booth saw
the people, people who needed to be saved. What do you see? Equipment? A church
building? Do you see the outward attributes of those who gather? Or people in
need of rescue? Is it worth the sacrifice of things to save people? William
Booth thought so. And so did John. The people needed to be saved; nothing else
mattered. And it is the reason that we celebrate this time of year. Jesus
stepped down from his throne to live with us and eventually die in our place.
He did it because we are essential in his eyes. And when God looks down on the
earth, he doesn't see our things; he sees us.
Do we see
him?
Tomorrow's Scripture
Reading: Matthew 13
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