March 4

[media presentation below]

GospelThink

Wednesday, March 4, LENT II

MATTHEW 20:17-28

Servant

Prayerthoughts

a. Jesus is speaking of his death and resurrection. Am I prepared for my death? What can I do to prepare myself a little more?

b. How would I feel if I were mocked and scourged for simply proclaiming something that I believed in?

c. My attitude toward prayer is often the selfish attitude of the mother of the Sons of Zwhatever God sends me in this life?

f. The apostles are indignant at James and John. Do I see any jealousy in my life right now?

g. Jesus gives a very straightforward explanation of people who want power in the world. In my thinking, do I spend too much time judging others as if I were more important than they are?

h. Again, Jesus is very straightforward with me concerning how I should be in this world: a servant, even a “slave” to others. Am I the servant to others that I should be?

i. My prayerthoughts….

Today I will read Jeremiah 18:18-20 and write an important thought from it.

Some Thoughts on the Liturgy

SERVICE TO OTHERS

+ The thought of the liturgy today, as it was yesterday, is the idea of serving others if we really want to be a Christian

- today it is said with a very human background

- a mother wanting the best for her sons, wanting her sons to glory in what Jesus was preaching and then, her sons agreeing with her

- it is especially human as we consider the whole context of the Gospel

- Jesus is predicting his own passion, death and resurrection

- that which was especially close to Jesus, what he was thinking about as he was approaching the place it was to happen, namely Jerusalem

- but the people were not listening to him

- the disciples were interested in their own welfare

- and jealous of what anyone might receive

- Jesus very patiently gives them what is arguably the primary moral directive of his ministry:

Whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant; whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave.

+ We already know that serving others can be very difficult at times

- an example of that is given from the Hebrew Scriptures and Jeremiah—when you try to serve others, especially if you have to do something that the people you are serving do not like, you will be attacked in some way

- people will always criticize, especially if they don’t understand

+ But it is the directive of Jesus that we serve anyway

- just as he—Jesus—served others especially by his passion, death and resurrection—redemption

- and so the message of the liturgy becomes very personal again

- what kind of service do we give to others?

- Jesus tells us today to serve

- it is good meditation material for us today—how am I showing the service to others that I should be showing?

+ I’m always struck by the force of some English translation of phrases in Scripture

- Jesus is talking of the way people want to have power over others, and he says:

It shall not be so among you.

- what shall be so, what you stand for as Christians is that you are a slave to others,

- that is difficult language and a difficult directive to accept.

MEDIA PRESENTATION

Song: "Black Widow" -- Iggy Azalea featuring Rita Ora

THE "BLACK WIDOW" WAY OF LOVE

The Gospel

Matthew 5:39-42

[Jesus said:] "When someone strikes you on your right cheek, turn the other one to him as well. If anyone wants to go to law with you over your tunic, hand him your cloak as well. Should anyone press you into service for one mile, go with him for two miles. Give to the one who asks of you, and do not turn your back on one who wants to borrow.”

Gospelthink: I tell you to treat everyone with the utmost respect. Are there some people that I do not treat this way?

"I’m gonna love ya until you hate me. And I’m gonna show ya what’s really crazy. You should’ve known better than to mess with me, honey. I’m gonna love ya like a black widow. You used to be thirsty for me, but now you wanna be set free. This is the web that you weave. So now rest in peace. It's all over with now."

Perhaps the most striking difference between Jesus's doctrine and the way human beings behave is in the area of revenge and hatred. Jesus is very clear, even resorting to exaggeration to get his point across. In his mind and therefore for his followers, "getting back" at someone is not an option. The way of the world is most of the time in direct opposition.

A case in point is a song from Iggy Azalea and Rita Ora, and their song "Black Widow." The person in the song wants to "get back" at a former love partner, and the way she proposes is to be like a black widow spider. The black widow spider is known for its venomous bite, especially the female. What the lady is saying is that the relationship is not only over, but it will be one that the other person will remember for a long time, and it will not be a pleasant memory, just as the bite of a Black Widow is never pleasant.

There is little doubt that one of the most difficult times in a young person's life is when a love relationship fails in some way. It happens when one of the partners decides that he/she wants to have the opportunity to search around a little more, or when one of them begins to sense that the relationship is not what it should be. Rejection, even when someone only thinks it is rejection, is not easy to take. In order to make the human being "feel better," there will be some desire to retaliate, to become the black widow, and to punish the other in some way.

Jesus's principles of living extend to every circumstance, and therefore to the situation of the breakup of a romantic relationship. Revenge and hatred have no place in a Christian's point of view, and therefore cannot be a part of a Christian's life, even in the most difficult of personal situations.

PRAYER

Good and gracious God, your Son gave us the difficult doctrine of love of others even in the most difficult of situations. As we work with romantic love situations in our lives, give us the grace to truly understand the Christian way. Be with us, we pray.

+++++

GUIDE FOR CLASSROOM PRESENTATION AND PERSONAL ENRICHMENT

Theme: Revenge and hatred is not the Christian way, even in a breakup of romantic love relationships.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. In the Gospel passage, Jesus is speaking in exaggeration. Why do you think Jesus used exaggeration in his speech?
2. In modern language, what does Jesus want to convey with this passage?
3. Text analysis: "press you into service." Roman soldiers had the right to requisition services and property from the native population. Jesus speaks of not only not being angry because of this law, but actually going further to uphold the law. He is speaking in exaggeration, of course, but shows the importance of giving to others. In general, do you think most Christians agree with such a thought? Yes or no and why?
4. Text analysis: "Love ya until you hate me." What is the meaning of the phrase?
5. Text analysis: "This is the web that you weave." What is the meaning of the sentence?
6. Analysis: "It's all over with now." What are the principal causes that should make a love relationship cease?
7. Give some examples from the world right now of people "getting back" at others.
8. Project: the presenter may want to make a presentation on "black widow" spiders.
9. In your opinion, do people often want to "get back" at a former love partner? Yes or no and why?
10. In your opinion, do young people often "retaliate" against others in high school? In college?
11. In your opinion, is there ever a time when revenge can be a good thing? Yes or no and why?
12. What does the song "Black Widow" teach young people?