Psalms 75; 76
1 Maccabees 4:37-61
Matthew 10:1-15
The Great Evangelical Adventure
I had been reminded of an adventure series recently, and I wonder if you remember it from your own childhood – Deltora Quest. It was a big deal for Australian children of the 90s and 00s, and apparently it even broke overseas a little bit. Deltora Quest was the classic dark fantasy adventure, set in a world completely overcome by evil, and the only hope for restoration being a young child with absolutely no discernible skills suitable for the task.
I bring this up because it is difficult to read the Bible and not see the seed of all adventure stories buried within its pages. And so perhaps we could contrast the story of Judas Maccabeus, the great Jewish saviour against the evil Greek Seleucids, to that of the apostles, and their task set by their Master and ours, the Lord Jesus.
The Maccabean revolt sits in a funny place thematically. It blends a couple of different ideas about honour and duty, which is apposite for the Apocrypha – books that are not inspired by the Holy Spirit, and yet helpful for our Christian formation. On the one hand, you have quite obviously pagan ideals of honour, in that there is a great and commendable zeal by the protagonists for the freedom of their people. The Maccabees are the family who led the Jewish uprising against their Greek oppressors. Mixed into this is the ancient Jewish religion, which we inherit as Christians, and you can see it in their great devotion to Almighty God, and their willingness to die as martyrs rather than apostatise and live. It is a jolly good adventure, made even better by being real historical fact, and it is perhaps a great pity that Christopher Nolan chose the Odyssey rather than the Maccabean revolt to turn into a movie.
Contrast this with what I am calling “The Great Evangelical Adventure” of the apostles, which we heard in our second lesson.
You have the somewhat mystical great leader, Jesus, calling twelve men to himself. It is almost frustrating when this happens in the fictional adventures – if there is a mighty power of good behind all things, why does he not just step in and take over? But if he did, where would be the adventure? It would not be a very good story.
Fortunately for us, the Lord Jesus does not sit back and let us try and struggle through on our own. To be a Christian is to know Christ, and to be with him constantly in prayer and deed. He is living, and he is living in us in his Spirit. So while there is a sense that he is “up there”, sending us “over there”, there is also the sense that he is pointing to the destination, and then taking us by the hand and leading us.
He then gives the adventurers a gift, or a tool, to take with them on their quest: “authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and every affliction”. It feels maybe a little frustrating, like in The Lord Of The Rings, when Frodo is given a star in a bottle by the Elf Queen. Considering the number of Orcs between him and his goal, maybe a machine gun might have been more helpful? But death is not Frodo’s quest; and so he is given light. Our quest too is not a quest of death to the enemy, but life to the world. And so our tools are not great skills at public speaking, or physical attractiveness, or anything else that might appeal to the flesh. Christ gives us the power of the Holy Spirit to overcome sin and lies, and to repent and be healed. Frustrating at first as it may be, it is much better overall and in the long-term, and we can be thankful that our Lord is much wiser than us in these matters.
From here we get a list of specific names. And while lists of names in the Bible might appear dreary, let us take two notes from this: first, it defines this moment as historical fact. These are real men, given real authority, sent to do real things. Our Great Evangelical Adventure is not made “up in the mind”; it is out here in the real world, with real people, with real challenges that we overcome with real victories.
We also get a sense of tension in the last name listed: “Judas, who betrayed him”. No adventure story would be worth telling without a sense of tension. But, like I say to my four year old son when we watch a movie and he gets worried about the outcome, “the good guys always win”. If we were to flick to the end of the book, we would discover what the outcome of Judas’ betrayal would be: the salvation of the world when Jesus hung on the cross, and his victory over the grave when he rose from the dead. Let us also remember this truism in our own moments of tension: the good guys always win. Or, in the words of St Paul, “we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28)
Having been called, gifted and named, they are sent out with a mission, and look at the words used: proclaim, heal, raise, cleanse, and cast out. Proclaim the gospel, heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, and cast out demons. There is no overthrow of unjust systems; there is no revolt against Seleucids, or Romans, or anything like that; the only thing that even comes close is the casting out of demons. This is all about individual people and their relationship with God. Let us take this to heart: for how much brain-space do we allow to be taken up with the problems of the world over which we have no control? And we have no control over them because we have not been given the authority. But look at what we have been given authority over: the salvation of human souls from sin, death, and the powers of the demonic.
I have referenced Tolkien; perhaps it is worth pointing out something that both he and his fellow story-writer C. S. Lewis did often in their books. During moments of peace and joy, the scenes were always happily domestic. There was a roaring fireplace, a cup of hot cocoa, and hot, plain, food like roast beef, fresh bread and butter, and pudding. Both men were Christians, and I believe it was their reading of the Bible that led to this being their view of heaven on earth. Let us conform our view to the same: we are not looking for bright lights and the big city, worldly fame, or success in the eyes of men; we are looking for the blessed domestic. The Lord Jesus did the same: he was always in people’s homes in small villages, sharing meals, and having such a good time while doing so he was accused of being a glutton and a drunkard.
I have spoken long enough now on what I believe is “The Great Evangelical Adventure”. We heard tonight the original template, the sending of the twelve by our Lord. And we have committed to a life of following Jesus, which means this is the template for our lives, too. We have the great leader and source of all good, not just working behind the scenes, but alongside us. We have the gifts and tools necessary for success on our adventure. It is an adventure that is “real life”; indeed, our life is made real because it is this type of adventure. We know that the good guys always win, and in moments of tension and crisis we remember the blessed words that “God works for the good of those who love him”. And our task is not nearly as impossible as we would think, and while not as glamorous as some would like, far more fulfilling: it is the blessing and restoration of a happy life lived with family and friends in the bonds of divine peace and love.
So I task you, beloved, with the task our Lord has given us all: go with Christ, proclaiming, healing, raising, cleansing, and casting out. Seek the kingdom of God in all things. And live peaceably with all, in the love of Christ that binds us all together in all joy and peace in believing.