Taste and See

Kate Thoresen August 15, 2010

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Mark 10.46-52

Gospel Lesson

⁴⁶ They came to Jericho. As Jesus and his disciples and a large crowd were leaving Jericho, Bartimaeus son of Timaeus, a blind beggar, was sitting by the roadside. When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout out and say, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!" ⁴⁸ Many sternly ordered him to be quiet, but he cried out even more loudly, "Son of David, have mercy on me!" ⁴⁹ Jesus stood still and said, "Call him here."

And they called the blind man, saying to him, "Take heart; get up, he is calling you." ⁵⁰ So throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. ⁵¹ Then Jesus said to him, "What do you want me to do for you?" The blind man said to him, "My teacher, let me see again."
⁵² Jesus said to him, "Go; your faith has made you well." Immediately he regained his sight and followed him on the way.

This is the Gospel of the Lord. Praise to You, O Christ.

Have you ever learned a great lesson from someone - but neither one of you realized it at the time?

An older woman, Jenny Bone, gave me such a gift when we shared in the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper. She was in a nursing home in Southfield. There she was, in her hospital bed in a room shared with others. All of her earthly possessions were stored in a metal locker nearby. She lay on her side and her right hand grasped the hospital bed railing. Her medium length white hair swirled around her on the pillow. She was dozing. When she awoke she was glad to see a visitor. Her eyes sparkled as we shared a brief service of Holy Communion. She still lay on her side, not having the strength to sit up, but I could tell that she was fully present. This sacrament meant so much to her. As I served her a piece of bread dipped in the cup, a tear puddled in her eye. "Ah," she said in her fine Scottish accent, "God is good." A few weeks later I officiated for her funeral service and shared the story of the way she witnessed to me that "God is good."

Later I thought about Jenny and her simple, yet powerful statement of faith that she shared with me during communion. It struck me how Jenny had lost most of everything in her life - her friends and most family members were already gone. She now owned very few things or clothing. She had lost her health, her mobility, and her independence. And yet in spite of it all, she could see what was most important in this life. She could say, "God is good."

She helped me to see my own life in a new way. If Jenny Bone could exclaim in her situation that God is good, surely I need to do the same in whatever circumstances I find myself.

Jenny Bone opened my eyes to see beyond the physical and material level to the deeper, more connecting, and more timeless spiritual level. She became living proof that when a person's heart and soul are open to God, that something profound takes place. Her faith shone out in the darkness of her circumstances. She knew God as her helper and saw God's gifts that could transform her darkness into light, her weakness strengthened by God's everlasting power, her sin to Christ's salvation, her danger to a Greater security; and her poverty to the Spirit's plenty. Her love of God, her love of the tradition of Holy Communion, and the way that God's grace flowed through her will continue to open my eyes to the depths and power of this sacrament.

Our Gospel reading from Mark tells the story of blind Bartimaeus who begged Jesus to heal his blindness, and Jesus did. Many commentators suggest that the physical blindness of Bartimaeus also reveals the spiritual blindness of the disciples. Perhaps they were so close to him that they could not quite see who he really was. But Bartimaeus had faith that Jesus of Nazareth could help him. He cried out, even though many around him insisted that he stop making such a ruckus. People ordered him to be quiet, but his faith and persistence paid off. He shouted even more, asking Jesus to notice him and to have pity on him. Jesus heard his plea and stopped. He told people to call Bartimaeus to him. And then Bartimaeus heard the words that echo through the years - and apply to each of us today: "Take heart. Get up. He is calling you!" And blind Bartimaeus did receive his sight - both physically and spiritually. He became a follower of Jesus.

Today, as we prepare for Holy Communion, let me ask you, "In what ways is Jesus inviting you to 'Take heart.' Get up. Hear how He is calling you?" When you come to this Communion Table, what will you taste and see today?

For some of you, you might see all the blessings that God gives you. Your heart might fill with praise for the amazing gifts of life itself and the fact that you are living and breathing and alive. Some of you would see Jesus, your Lord and Savior. He is the One who can give you the peace that passes understanding, even when all around you seems to be falling apart. He is the anchor in the storms of life who gives you hope and confidence to go ahead, get up and take it one step at a time. Some of you will be filled with such gratitude for the way that Jesus Christ took your sins and sufferings with him on the Cross, so that you may have eternal life. Some call this sacrament "The Eucharist," meaning "Thanksgiving." You taste and see the gifts that God freely gives and you are filled with gratitude and awe.

Perhaps some of you come to see Jesus a bit better. To draw closer to him as the host of The Lord's Supper. You ask for the spiritual insights to better understand how our Living Lord invites you, calls you, and empowers you with his spirit of compassion, forgiveness and New Life. In the Lord's Supper you are reminded of his last meal with his disciples and his prediction of his coming suffering and death on the Cross. This Supper reminds us of the triumph of Jesus Christ, and his victory over sin, death and suffering on that bright Easter morning.

You see this Table as His promise of his coming again to fully bring in the Kingdom of God, and that this Table is only an appetizer to the Great Banquet God prepares for all eternity. In The Lord's Supper you relinquish and put to death all that separates you from God and others. You receive these tangible signs of God's grace. At the Lord's Supper you taste that resurrection power that fills you with the Life giving Spirit of Christ.

And then some of you may come to this Table and feel more connected with the people you see who will be standing around you or seated within this sanctuary. Your eyes will be opened to see each of them as a beloved son or daughter of God. You may see your connection with others who come to this Table with their own faith stories, their own struggles, and God's call in their lives.

You may also see the many others with whom you have shared this Sacrament in the past: how in the mystery of Holy Communion you are made one with all the people of God - past, present and future. You get a glimpse of the Communion of Saints here at this thin place in which heaven and earth almost meet. Your soul might see loved ones from your childhood, like that great cloud of witnesses or someone especially dear to you. You become filled with that assurance of those things we can only see with eyes of faith - that there IS so much more to life here as we know it. You get to taste a sample of Eternal life in this simple, yet profound Bread and Cup. You become filled with that assurance of God's Eternal Presence that can be seen only with eyes of faith.

Friends in Christ, this is the Sacrament that is called The Eucharist, The Lord's Supper and Holy Communion. At this Table we come to give thanks, to draw closer to Jesus Christ and others, and to receive His spirit to follow in his way. May we each hear God's call to us today, "Take heart. Get up. The Lord is calling you." (Mark 10:30) And as you respond, may you "Taste and truly see how good the Lord is. Happy are those who take refuge in God." (Psalm 34: 8)

Thanks be to God in whom we live and move and have our being.

Amen.

©Kate Thoresen 2010