The Right Time

Pentecost 4 C  6/27/10

Luke 9:51-62

Grace and peace to you from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Words of wisdom…

A friend in need is a friend indeed.

Life begins at forty. (oh, there’s a revision—fifty)

If you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen.

There’s no such thing as bad publicity. (Yeah, tell that to BP)

And this relatively unknown gem…

A man with one watch knows what time it is. A man with two watches is never sure.

Doesn’t that one ring of truth, though? I don’t know about your house, but at mine there’s a clock in just about every room—sometimes two or three! Seems like every appliance and gadget has a digital clock. And no matter how much Lisa tries to get them all in sync, they are invariably quite variable. The wind up clock in the living room chimes the hour first, as if it were competing in a race against time. And then the rest of the clocks follow suit—the cuckoo in the downstairs bath, the various watches and timers, the beeps and blats of ring-toned phones—all displaying their own opinion of the correct time coordinates. That is, the ones not flashing do. The computers claim the temporal high ground, reminding us that their time is according to the Atomic Clock. But I read somewhere that even that clock loses a microsecond every once in a while. So what’s the right time?

This is a question to which we seek an answer, both analytically, so that we might plan and work and keep appointments without being late or mismanaging our time, and metaphorically, so that we might discover the optimal conditions for launching new endeavors. In the first, “time” is the highly precise system for measurement of the sequence of events and the space between them, and is also integral in determining the motion of objects. We won’t be discussing that type of time this morning. Which is good, because this is Messiah Lutheran Church, where people are early if they’re ten minutes late.

No, today we’ll be talking about the “right time” as a metaphor for our reaction to Christ’s call to follow him. When is the right time? It’s said that the Emperor Constantine, who made Christianity the religion of the realm, was only baptized on his deathbed. He was afraid of the consequences of sinning after being baptized. How would he be re-forgiven? So for Constantine it wasn’t the right time to commit to Christ until he was almost dead. Was he correct in determining the right time? He wasn’t the only one to follow that practice. So… no he was mistaken.

When is the right time for anything? For the most part, the answer has to do with certain conditions having been met before an event can happen. The “right” time has less to do with time and more to do with preparedness—“getting all of our ducks in a row,” as the old saying goes (and Constantine would agree!). Only then will we make an attempt at something, and if we are successful—then that was the right time. If we fail—must not have been the right time.

This kind of thinking is common to most people, I think. Although there are some who dash off into the events of their lives, without any noticeable preparation, making it up as they go along. Curiously enough though, these spontaneous-looking folk still line up their ducks. They just do it differently. They rely on past experience and their ability to process information quickly. They still have criteria as to what time is right. It’s just that for them—just about any time is right.

Here’s some examples of waiting for the right time:

The interest rate for your proposed mortgage refinance is 5.45%. Since your present loan carries a rate of 6.75%, and you’re staying in your home for the foreseeable future, and closing costs are minimal, and you trust your lender, then it is the right time for refinancing.  (The preceding was an example used for religious purposes and does not represent expert financial advice by any stretch of the imagination.)

Or,  your kids are grown up and out of the house, doing well on their own, your spouse’s income is secure and more than enough for you to live on, and a college opens a satellite program right in your town. Suddenly it’s the right time to go back and finish your degree, or go for that masters.

Well now, suppose in either of the two examples, some key element was missing, or a hither to fore unknown but key factor interjects itself. Like say, your house didn’t appraise for the amount you had left on your old mortgage! Or, as to the second example,  suddenly you find out you’re pregnant! Your plans will likely change and this will no longer be the right time.

Those scenarios seem to speak positively for waiting for the right time, but what about these?

One day while you’re plowing your fields, the great prophet Elijah happens by and selects you to be his disciple. You ask him if it’s okay for you to stop at home to kiss mama goodbye. Elijah answers acerbically in the negative. Obviously his idea of the right time and yours differ some.

Or, you’re hanging with your Samaritan countryfolk, when an advance team representing Jesus, comes to your village and tries to work out the details for a stop there on his way to Jerusalem. Since Jesus’ people and yours are not neighborly to each other historically, you all send those messengers packing. Definitely not the right time.

Or say you and some friends (you’re Jews now) you listen to Jesus and decide to follow him. To one of your friends Jesus says, “I have no home, if you come with me, you won’t either.” Not exactly high on the list of good recruitment practices! Another of your friends answers Jesus call to follow with a caveat that he be allowed to tend to his father’s funeral first. Jesus says, “Let the dead bury the dead, you preach the gospel.” You exclaim that you’ll follow Jesus, you just need to say goodbye to the family. Then the time will be right. Jesus tells you if you look back, you won’t be on track.

Those all seemed like perfectly good excuses, and some were certainly reasonable given the circumstances. What’s wrong with saying goodbye to your mom and dad—doesn’t the Law say “Honor your father and mother”? And, what’s this? Jesus advocates skipping your father’s funeral? How insensitive is that? How un-Jesus-like. All you were saying is that the time wasn’t right.

But what Jesus is saying is that the time is never “right.” And yet, it’s always right.

Imagine if you were seeking to join Messiah Lutheran Church, and I said you would have to leave friends and family behind, forsake all material goods, and give yourself totally to God in order to do so. What would you think? That’s crazy! Sounds like a cult. What would you say? “Uh, I don’t feel that it’s the right time to make such a commitment.”

Now imagine you are seeking to join MLC and I say that as followers of Christ, you are expected to give generously, participate in Christian education, gather for worship every Sunday, share your faith with others, bring your children faithfully to Sunday School, and be involved in the church’s mission and ministry both within and outside her walls. What would you think—what would you say to that? Would it be the right time for you?

As partners in ministry, or members (if you prefer that language), we know in our hearts that these things are expected of us. And yet we find plenty of good logical circumstances that must be met before it’s the right time to do them. “I’ll teach Sunday School just as soon as my schedule calms down some.” “I can’t serve on that ministry team because I have my tango class on Thursday nights. But if they ever change nights…” “We often have company on Sunday mornings. It would be rude to leave them at the house while we worship!” “I’ve got too much going on, the kids have jai alai practice, I’m not familiar enough with the bible, I’m no good with other people, all the pieces would have to fall in place, I can’t afford to give much right now, when I’m not as busy, when I’m not as tired, when I’m really really needed, when pigs fly.” Then. Then it’ll be the right time.

But, not that I’m trying to make you feel guilty or anything. (But are you? Just a little bit? Good.) Because now I’m going to really lay it on you! Not only is Jesus calling us through the church to actively participate in her mission and ministry, and not only does he discourage us from waiting for just the right moment to follow him, but he wraps all that up in modeling a life of obedience to God, service to all, and suffering the consequences of sharing a new and radical way for people to relate to God. His face is set on Jerusalem, we are told right from the beginning of this gospel passage, and he bids us orient ourselves to the cross as well.

Now how can Jesus expect so much from us? Don’t all these expectations become LAW to us—driving us to despair of it ever being the right time for God to love and accept me? What about that freedom that Paul spoke of in the second reading? Aren’t we sliding back into the yoke of slavery to earning God’s favor? Jesus said that if we wait for the “right time” we’re not fit for the kingdom of God.

But notice that in the gospel, Jesus never says get lost to those who set preconditions on their readiness to follow. He never says they’re damned. He even tells the boys to cool out when they want to nuke the Samaritan village for deciding this wasn’t the right time for Jesus to visit. But we never hear that  these ones are banned from the kingdom of God—they’re just not fit. It isn’t the right time for them, or for us.

Thankfully as I said already, for God, now is the right time. The right time to free us from sin and nourish us at his table so that we might grow ever closer to the kind of us that God envisions. With God the wrong time is exactly the right time to rescue us from the meaninglessness of self-centered living. There’s never a wrong time for God to love us. Imagine God singing, “If loving you is wrong, I don’t wanna be right.” Except of course he is. Right.

Knowing that, letting it envelop you with its grace, letting it inform your outlook on life and your priorities in it—can you see—that there is no right time for you to claim your birthright as one of the baptized. There is no perfect scenario. Instead, there’s faith. Faith in God to provide you with what you need to live and work in his kingdom. It takes a leap of faith to start, and you’re in luck—because if you lack the nerve, the Holy Spirit will gladly give you a push. Into relationship with God, ministry to the world, and growth in Christ.  

And now this is the right time to say, “AMEN”