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Gospel: Mark 3: 22-30
The scribes who had come from Jerusalem said of Jesus,
“He is possessed by Beelzebul,” and
“By the prince of demons he drives out demons.”
Summoning them, he began to speak to them in parables,
“How can Satan drive out Satan?
If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.
And if a house is divided against itself,
that house will not be able to stand.
And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided,
he cannot stand;
that is the end of him.
But no one can enter a strong man’s house to plunder his property
unless he first ties up the strong man.
Then he can plunder his house.
Amen, I say to you, all sins and all blasphemies
that people utter will be forgiven them.
But whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit
will never have forgiveness,
but is guilty of an everlasting sin.”
For they had said, “He has an unclean spirit.”
The Gospel of the Lord.
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If we venture into our kitchens this morning and do a “head-count” of all our dishes, we may find we have a few imperfect sets.
7 dinner plates, 5 saucers, 9 glasses, 3 soup bowls. But why?
Incomplete sets are the mark of a “lived-in” kitchen. Many of us have children or grandchildren running around, for example. I myself am clumsy from time to time.
Maybe a bowl fell off the counter last week; a glass broke in the dishwasher; a wet plate slid from our hands.
What do we do when a dish breaks?
We sweep it into the garbage.
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That’s how we deal with most things when they’re broken.
That space heater that fizzled out this winter; that wobbly wooden chair; that old couch the kids jumped on just one too many times.
Toss it. Drag it out to the curb. Throw it in the dumpster.
But what about a broken heart? A weak marriage? A person burdened by regret? A crumbling relationship God?
Are we to be disposed of like a broken bowl?
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The Japanese have a fascinating custom called Kintsugi.
When a bowl is broken, they don’t throw it away; rather, they piece it back together using glue and gold.
They say that breakage and repair are all part of the history of that object. The focus is not on how the object broke, but that it was restored.
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Haven’t we all been broken like a bowl at some point in our lives?
We’ve been diagnosed with cancer; we’ve struggled with addiction; we’ve lost our job, our home, our marriage, or even a child – born or unborn.
Life has a way of breaking us.
But broken hearts – and by extension, broken lives – can be put back together. That’s what our faith – and forgiveness – is all about.
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Throughout the Gospels, Jesus seeks out the sinful, the sorrowful, the possessed – and he heals them.
“For I did not come to call the righteous,” he says, “but sinners.” The broken ones.
Ask any of those healed, Jesus has a way of filling those cracks and chips in our lives with the golden glue of his mercy.
In that sense, the Lord is the ultimate Kintsugi artist. He can piece anyone back together, no matter how much damage has occurred.
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We gather this morning all too aware of the anniversary of Roe v. Wade – and the political, social, and religious rhetoric associated with it.
Instead of pointing fingers, enflaming an already accusatory culture, or heaping blame on this person or that, perhaps we all need to admit that we are – or have been – broken within for one reason or another. It’s part of living with freedom in an imperfect world.
The way for us to move forward together in authentic peace is to model our lives after Jesus, who, “came to seek and to save the lost,” which, in the end, includes all who’ve called this world home (Luke 19:10).
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In what ways is the Lord inviting me to follow him more closely? How can I put the needs of others – and the will of God – ahead of my own?
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For all who’ve gone to the Lord, especially those whom we remember today – born and unborn, we pray:
Eternal rest grant unto them, O LORD, and let perpetual light shine upon them. May their souls and the souls of all the faithful departed through the mercy of God rest in peace.
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Image credits: (1) (2) Kintsugi, Architectural Digest (3) Devotional Reading Plan, YouVersion Bible, Bible.com