19 July 2025 - withdrawal symptoms

Today's Readings
(Audio)

The Pharisees went out and took counsel against Jesus
to put him to death.
When Jesus realized this, he withdrew from that place.

Jesus withdrew when the Pharisees took counsel to put him to death. No doubt they saw his withdrawal as an admission of weakness and therefore a defeat. It seemed to be a sign vindicating them as a force to be reckoned and revealing Jesus as out of his depth. At the very least they seemed to strike a blow at the popularity of the Kingdom movement that had been swelling around Jesus until then. And this popularity at least seemed to be an essential part of his goal. Thus, they may have reasoned, they had at least thwarted him to a degree. Yet it was not so for Jesus. The Pharisees could not understand it, but he did not depend on popular approval or endorsement by the masses. It seemed that way to the Pharisees because they saw him only through the lens of their own understanding. 

Many people followed him, and he cured them all,
but he warned them not to make him known.

Even if Jesus was no longer trending in the popular zeitgeist those who needed him were nevertheless still able to find him. There was something humanly satisfying about ever increasing crowds and a constant buzz of conversation surrounding Jesus. But it was not essential for his outreach. It was probably more interesting for those on the fringes who wanted to be part of something bigger than themselves without particular concern for what. But even during times when the Kingdom seemed to be enduring persecution and shrinking to consist only of a faithful remnant Jesus was still able to cure all who sought him sincerely. Today too, whether the Church is in a period of growth or a period of decline, Jesus always remains at the center able to make his healing power available to those in need.

Behold, my servant whom I have chosen,
my beloved in whom I delight;
I shall place my Spirit upon him,
and he will proclaim justice to the Gentiles.

Jesus did not need to be validated by the crowds as the Pharisees did because he was secure in the love of his Father, who, at his baptism, had referred to him as his beloved Son in whom he delighted and was well pleased. It was then that the Spirit came upon him in visible form like a dove and his mission began. He started with the lost sheep of the house of Israel, but would conclude with his justice being proclaimed to all nations. And yet he would succeed in this without the need to engage in the traditional arts of propaganda. It was not necessary to his message that it succeed because it was the only thing one could hear, or even because it was necessarily the loudest of the claims being made. It could be spoken quietly and its truth would be all the more compelling for the sense of surety that conveyed. It did not need to be forced on others. Once they got a taste of the message it would be impossible to keep them away.

A bruised reed he will not break,
a smoldering wick he will not quench,
until he brings justice to victory.

In our current discourse of extremes there is no regard for those who are fragile or weak. The constant shouting of verbal aggression will snap bruised reeds in half before it wins them over to one side or the other. It considers those who can't take the intensity as unworthy of participation. And those who have all but run out of fuel in the fight for justice will be quenched much more quickly than nurtured. Individual humans in their unique specificity are obscured and lost in a battle of groups and ideals. It is particularly the value of those who seem weak to those in power that is disregarded. The powerful reason that if they can't or won't be useful they might as well be broken and extinguished. But Jesus was not like this. He saw the value in every bruised reed and the potential in every smoldering wick. He wouldn't trample them merely for the sake of popularity or prestige. He didn't shun them because they were unable to provide him any obvious benefit.

And in his name the Gentiles will hope.

The nations would eventually learn to hope in Jesus, and in the fact that his approach alone could bring justice to victory. Even those others who claimed to hold justice in high regard did not seem able to pursue it without compromise. Only the meekness and nonviolence of Jesus were potent enough to accomplish this. Only he was utterly consistent with the message his proclaimed.

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good,
for his mercy endures forever;

 

Relient K - For The Moments I Feel Faint