zechariah
9:9-12 Psalm 145:8-15 Romans 7:15-25
Matthew 11: 16-19, 25-30
When Jesus says, "to what can I compare this generation?," He uses the same verb (homoioo) which introduces numerous parables. Jesus points to the everyday reality to uncover the symbolic meaning of life and the patterns which reveal God’s Kingdom.
In a small, impoverished village, funerals and weddings were grand events, so
children’s games would imitate the adults. Jesus says that the people of His
time are like difficult children who cannot be satisfied. They reject John the
Baptist and his ascetical lifestyle (the funeral) calling him possessed, in our
time it would be called ‘crazy.’ But neither do they like the celebrative approach
of Jesus, who describes the Kingdom as a wedding feast. How can Jesus be holy
when is a drunkard and a glutton? As a result, that generation failed to
recognize its visitation.
How could this happen? In Classical spirituality, there is a
spirit called "acedia+." It is the passion of
discontentment and dissatisfaction. Jesus' contemporaries had hard hearts
because they were unmotivated to seek and embrace the things of God. This malady
is the voice in your head asking “What’s the point?” When confronted with a
prophet, or even the Messiah, it has us shrug and mumble “whatever…” Rather
than repent and rejoice, the contemporaries of Jesus choose to find fault.
Their murmuring kills their souls.
Jesus models the antidote for acedia. Rather than become
disheartened and give up, Jesus turns to His Father and proclaims thanks and
praise. The Apostle Paul famously said, “knowledge puffs up.” (I Corinthians
8:1) Jesus
Reinforces that idea with his claim that God has hidden from the
wise what He has revealed to His little ones. This is no advocacy of
intellectual laziness nor is it blessing ignorance. But it is a reminder that
our riches are a barrier to the Kingdom of God and the arrogance of the self identified
learned and wise is a huge barrier. Too often we remain sophomores our whole
life (Sophia WISE and Morons Fools) Our highly educated elite are too often proudly
atheistic, embacing science and disdaining faith.
Jesus has come to reveal the Father to us. It is His choice. We must fight the urges
of acedia and battle the boredom and disinterest. We must also be loving,
humble servants. Keenly aware that we are a little one and avoid the arrogance
of the wise.
Jesus is Here with us now. Offering us the Father. Let us rejoice
in the kingdom wedding feast in ourt hearts
+ see below for insights
http://www.centerforbaptistrenewal.com/blog/2020/3/6/the-desert-fathers-on-dissatisfaction-and-sorrow
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