Last week we got angry Jesus. In this week’s gospel (Mark 3:20-35) we get crazy Jesus. People are saying, “He’s gone out of his mind.” They’re calling him insane.

Have you ever thought Jesus was crazy? Have you ever said he was out of his mind? I don’t think I have but more and more I’m starting to wonder. I can understand why they said that. 

Listen to some of what he says. 

• Do not store up for yourself treasures on earth. “He’s gone out of his mind.” 
• Don’t build bigger barns to hold more stuff. “He’s gone out of his mind.”
• Sell your stuff and give the money to the poor. “He’s gone out of his mind.”
• Welcome the stranger. “He’s gone out of his mind.”
• Turn the other cheek. “He’s gone out of his mind.”
• Love your enemy. “He’s gone out of his mind.”
• Put away your sword. “He’s gone out of his mind.”
• Forgive seventy-seven times. “He’s gone out of his mind.”
• Don’t make yourself great but be last and servant of all. “He’s gone out of his mind.”
• Deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow me. “He’s gone out of his mind.”

That’s pretty crazy stuff and there’s more where that came from. Most of the time, however, that’s not the life we’re living, the conversations we’re having, the values we’re teaching our kids, or the priorities we’re keeping. 

I wish I were as crazy as Jesus but I don’t think I am. Are you? Most of the world probably isn’t either. But what if we were? What if we were crazy like Jesus?

The thing that strikes me about the things I listed and a thousand others like them is that all of them are about living an undivided life. And if there is anything that describes our world, our country, our town, and our lives today it is division. 

We are living the truth of Jesus’ words: 

“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.” 

(Mark 3:24-25)

We’ve lost our footing and we’re falling down. We’re stumbling over our divisions. We’re tripping each other with our divisions. We’re not able to stand as the people we want to be or as the people God calls us to be. 

I think that’s what we see happening in today’s Old Testament reading (1 Samuel 8:4-20; 11:14-15). Israel wants a king. They are dividing their life between their politics and their faith. Sounds sort of familiar, doesn’t it? 

Whether we are Israel or America, Republican or Democrat, isn’t God supposed to be our king? Isn’t that why every Sunday we pray, “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done”? Isn’t Jesus’ gospel supposed to inform and shape our politics and relationships rather than the other way around?

And yet, we continue to live divided lives. A divided world chooses between Israel and Palestine instead of choosing peace. A divided nation results in vitriolic politics, hatred, mistrust, and insurrection instead of being and becoming “one nation under God.” 

A divided economy yields a widening gap between rich and poor instead of “striving for justice and peace among all people.” A divided community justifies individualism, indifference, prejudice, and violence instead of “respecting the dignity of every human being.” A divided relationship breaks hearts, betrays trust, and turns away instead of “seeking and serving Christ in all persons.”

So let me ask you this. In what ways are you divided today? What is dividing your life today? 

What are the different parts of yourself that you’re dealing with? What are the contradictions and inconsistencies within you? How are grief, anger, fear, guilt, or resentment dividing your life? 

Do you act one way with some people and another way with others? Do your values and priorities change depending on the circumstances? What parts of yourself do you like and what parts do you reject? What parts of yourself do you share with others and what parts do you hide? What relationships need healing and reconciliation? 

Name the ways in which your life is divided today. Let that be a diagnosis and a starting point. Every divided life holds the potential to become an undivided life. What would it look like and take to live an undivided life? 

An undivided life isn’t a goal to be achieved or a task to be accomplished. It’s a way of living, engaging the world, and relating to one another and ourselves. It’s a daily practice. 

Wherever and in whatever ways you feel division in your life, Uvalde, America, or the world today I want you to know this. Jesus is just crazy enough to believe that he can make a difference, bring about wholeness, and do what others say can’t be done. Jesus is just crazy enough to draw the circle of his family larger than our religious and political beliefs, larger than nationality and citizenship, and larger than blood relatives. Jesus is just crazy enough to believe that you and I really can live an undivided life. 

For Jesus that undivided life means doing the will of his Father. If you want to know what that looks like go back to the things I listed at the beginning of this sermon. It’s just a starting point but you’ll know you are on the right track when you say to yourself, “What am I doing? This is crazy.” You’ll know you are on the right track when others say to you, “You’ve gone out of your mind. Why would you forgive her, reach out to him, open yourself to them? Don’t you want to be the greatest, have the most, be the winner? If you don’t look out for number one, no one else will.” That’s when you’ll know you’re crazy like Jesus. 

What would it take for you to be crazy like Jesus? How might you begin moving toward an undivided life today? How might you help another move toward her or his undivided life ?

I want to be crazy like Jesus for your sake and the sake of those I love and care about. I want to be crazy like Jesus for the sake of Uvalde and all who are hurting and in need. I want to be crazy like Jesus for the sake of our country’s future and those who will come after us. I want to be crazy like Jesus for the sake of world and bring about the kingdom “on earth as it is in heaven.” 

I want to be crazy like Jesus, don’t you? 

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Image Credit: Photo by Myriam Zilles on Unsplash.