Games Jesus Would Not Play
Amos 8:1-12; Luke 10:38-42
NO 07/22/07

The Scene

This is such a familiar Gospel passage that it is really difficult not to just automatically think of its meaning passed down over the years.  These are the passages that I have most difficulty with because of their familiarity and the tendency to say what others have said.  However, as I read all the Lectionary passages for this week, a different way of hearing Luke’s story about Jesus, Martha and Mary came to me.

The usual is that Martha was too caught up in “doing” while Mary was “doing” the will of God by listening to Jesus.  I’ve preached about “Martha, the Doer” and “Mary, the Be-er” and that seems to be the general consensus of the meaning of this passage.  Certainly, that is a good message but it leaves Jesus out of the picture.

This Gospel Lesson gives us a very powerful and wonderful understanding of our Lord.  As Terry Bentley reminded us a couple of weeks ago, “You can trust Jesus!”  This is a great passage for learning we can trust Jesus.

            Transactional Analysis

Back in the 60s Dr. Eric Berne developed a model for personality called Transactional Analysis or TA.  This was a very clear explanation of the development of personality and how parents, siblings, friends, people of authority, and oneself is involved in growing a person.  TA also spoke to various dynamics of relating to one another.

Without going into any detail one of the ways that we relate is through games.  He demonstrated many different games that people play, entitled a book, Games People Play, and named the games to describe the particular dynamics.  Dr. Berne could have used this Gospel passage as an example of one of the games we use called the Drama Triangle.

The Drama Triangle

This is a way of relating so everyone can stay stuck and powerless. 

            Persecutor – Mary is the persecutor because she is with Jesus and not helping Martha. 
            Rescuer – Jesus is the rescuer.  He is the one that can make everything okay as far as Martha is concerned.  All he has to do is tell Mary to help.  This is the way we use God many times, perhaps most of the time, when we say, “God make that person be the way I want them to be.”
            Victim – You know who that is.  The victim is Martha.  If only Mary would help we could get this done in no time.  Plus, this is my house and she certainly is not appreciating that I’ve invited Lazarus and her to live with me.

Remember, the Drama Triangle is a game that is played in relationships where the outcome is to gain negative strokes.  Let’s suppose this scene differently.

Jesus tells Mary to go help Martha. 
            Persecutor – Jesus is now the persecutor because Mary cannot stay and listen to him.
            Victim – Mary is the victim because all she wanted to do is hear what is essential.
            Rescuer – Martha is now the rescuer but will become the persecutor when Mary joins her in the kitchen.  This would make Jesus the victim because he no longer has a listener.  The Drama Triangle is a manner of relating so that you just switch roles and stay powerless.

Jesus Did Not Play These Games

When you study the scriptures you find that Jesus didn’t play these games and he gives us a way to avoid playing them ourselves: Matthew 5:37f, “You only make things worse when you lay down a smoke screen of pious talk, saying, 'I'll pray for you,' and never doing it, or saying, 'God be with you,' and not meaning it. You don't make your words true by embellishing them with religious lace. In making your speech sound more religious, it becomes less true. ..  Just say 'yes' and 'no.' When you manipulate words to get your own way, you go wrong. ”  (The Message, Eugene Peterson)

One of the many reasons we can trust Jesus is that he said what he gleaned from God and he didn’t hem-haw attempting to make what he had to say be more acceptable to others.  Jesus provided for us the intimacy of God’s love.  This is real intimacy!

            The Price of His Intimacy

Dr. Eric Berne was correct when he wrote about our yearning and craving intimacy but only experiencing it in very small doses if at all.  The little boy or girl in us is frightened by intimacy and so we pull away from each other and we push even those we love away when they get too close.  As a member of Bible Study stated, “Jesus didn’t play the games and they crucified him for not playing.”  I think that’s accurate.

This Lets Us Know That Jesus Does No Play Games With Us!

The importance of this passage has little to do with Mary’s listening and Martha’s busyness even though that is generally the focus.  What it has to do with is to let us know something that is crucial in our relationship with Jesus – JESUS DOES NOT PLAY GAMES WITH US!  We can trust Jesus when he makes statements about the Kingdom of God and how his purpose is to bring us into God’s Kingdom even though we very well may not qualify.  We can trust him.

            The Kingdom Is Here

We can believe that the Kingdom is already here and we don’t have to be put in a grave before we can enter the Kingdom.  It is now, today!  If we listen to Jesus he brings us into the Kingdom at this very moment.

            A House Prepared for Each of Us

Most everyone has seen pictures of a donkey or mule pulling a wagon and there is a carrot hanging a little out of its reach.  Well, Jesus is not hanging a carrot out there in order to get us to be like he desires.  Jesus pays the price for us so that we can enter into the house built for us not built with human hands.

The Mission Team is on its way to build a house.  It will be a well built house because that’s the kind of job the Team does.  The Team is helping someone who needs help.  Jesus said that God has built a house for each of us and there is no question that the house not built with human hands will be what is needed.

I’ve always thought of that house being in heaven after one dies but I’ve come to believe that while that may be the case, it seems that the house can be right here on this earth.  Our parsonage is a house not built with human hands because God’s Spirit continues to transform Carol and me.  As I visit families of this church family there is a reality that these are houses are built by the Spirit of God as well.  Folks, we are in the Kingdom already.

            Came To Save Sinners

You know, I don’t begin to understand our reluctance to claim our sinfulness.  It is a mystery to me why we try to keep our sinfulness a secret from one another and the world.  All that does is get us deeper in spiritual debt. 

Jesus is not turned off by our sinfulness.  He is not fearful of any sin he sees among us.  When Jesus was accused to spending too much time with sinners his response was that he came to save sinners.  Because of today’s Gospel Lesson we can know Jesus means that he came to save us sinners because he does not play games with us.

Some Games Jesus Refused to Play

We begin with the Drama Triangle in the lesson for today.  He would not play because he desired intimacy with Mary, Martha and Lazarus.  He was straight forward with them.

            “I Have the Answer”

Notice how often Jesus tells the disciples to keep quiet about who he is.  Not only had his time not come, he did not want people relating with him for self-benefit only.  He wanted people to relate to him and to one another honestly.

When Jesus was asked when the end of the age would come he stated that he did not know only God knows.  Today, we are being pulled here and pushed there because we are being told that the end is near and terror is going to reign.  Jesus is the Lord.  If our focus is on Jesus we know even if the end is here terror will not reign – God will reign.

            “I’m Just Teasing You”

When Jesus tells us that we will do greater things than he has done as a result of his giving God’s Spirit to be with us we treat this as a joke.  Jesus was not teasing his original disciples and he is not teasing us today.  Jesus is offering the same power that he experienced in his human form here on earth.  The more we focus on God through Jesus the more authority we will recognize and use for the redemption of this world.

Conclusion

Jesus means that we are to listen to him and pay close attention.  We are to focus on God and how God desires us to live in our world.  The issue continues to be how we are going to bring God into our world so that those around us will recognize the difference.

Our scriptures from the Hebrew Bible today remind us that we are not going to fool God one iota.  God is with us.  God lives with us.  God was right here in this sanctuary waiting our arrival this morning.  The Spirit is holding us in God’s Light and calling us to be who God created us to be – each of us individually and collectively.  Remember, our prayer each day is, “God give us Your vision for this church.”

Whether we are sitting at the feet of Jesus or busy with our worldly callings we can keep in mind Jesus’ response to Martha as Eugene Peterson interprets his words, “One thing only is essential, and Mary has chosen it – it’s the main course, and won’t be taken from her.”  That “main course” is an environment that we take with us wherever we go.  We can trust Jesus means this because he gave his life rather than play games with us.