Facing Stubbornness: Isaiah 55: 1-9; Luke 13: 6-9
In school we were required to read the book The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. The book explored the struggle of a man named Dr. Jekyll who created a serum which transformed him into this horrible person, Mr. Hyde, who was fueled only by his carnal desires and meanness. The great discovery in the book is that it is not two people, but one who changes back and forth from the good to the bad. The book has even spawned a saying where we call someone a “Jekyll and Hyde” to say they have an unpredictably dual nature—outwardly good, but sometimes shockingly evil.
Stubbornness is much this same way. It’s dual in nature. There are times stubbornness can cause us real and severe problems. But there’s sometimes that we can be just stubborn enough to be saved from times of trial and trouble. In its bad form, stubbornness leads us down a road to hardheartedness. But in its good and useful form, stubbornness leads us to strong resilience. The question is who’s driving the stubborn bus that we’re on, us or God?
When we are stubborn, we can sometimes become hardhearted. Stubbornness may be defined as a determined refusal to change one’s position even if good arguments are presented to us. We read in our Gospel lesson that Jesus told a parable to the people. In this parable, he is giving them a talking to. He told them about a fig tree which was a constant disappointment. Year after year, it stubbornly refused to produce anything. After three years of enduring stubbornness by the tree, the man has decided it’s time for it to go. It will be cut down and done away with.
Jesus was tired of the stubbornness of the people who continued to be spiritually immature. Just prior to this parable, there was some conversation that if bad things happen to people, it’s because of their sin. Jesus says no to this stubborn old, and sometimes cruel, belief. It is time to put this old, stubborn, and hardhearted notion to rest once and for all. If someone endures suffering in this life, it does not mean they are a sinner and being punished. You don’t tell a lie and get a hurricane. You don’t cheat on your taxes and cause a pandemic. God does not send a boil on your bum for each swear word you say. That’s petty; that’s not God.
Instead, we have to live with the consequences which stem from our willful refusal to follow God, our stubbornness in this life. God may not orchestrate a sickness upon us, but if we don’t practice safety, we will get sick and maybe face dire outcomes. God may not send the boil, but if you don’t treat it, you get sepsis. In the same way, a stubborn refusal to seek and follow Christ will lead us to a hardhearted place where we find the Mr. Hyde of the story. Stubbornness is expensive, and it costs us whatever joy, hope, or salvation is found in the good news we reject. Think of the suffering Pharaoh and his people endured only because he was stubborn and hardened his heart to God. Stubbornness which leads us down the hardhearted road will surely lead us to produce no good fruit and leave us following paths that lead us away from God’s grace.
But there is some good which can come from being a bit stubborn, and that is found when we use our stubbornness to create strength and resilience. In Isaiah, God is calling the people through the prophet to return to God’s wisdom. Verse 2 says, “Listen to me, and you will eat what is good. You will enjoy the finest food.” If the people but turn their hearts to God, then God will make an everlasting covenant just as existed with King David. However, God says the people must listen to God’s wise counsel.
Our fig tree is much the same. The gardener intervened into the destructive intent of the owner. He offers to give the fig tree special attention and nurture it with plenty of fertilizer. The hope is that the tree can be turned from barren waste to a tree full of strong resilience and good fruit. When I think of a good sense of stubbornness I’m think immediately to the Ukrainian people and President Zelenskyy, all of whom have stayed in the country and vowed to fight the evil stubbornness and devastation which has been unleashed upon them.
God needs stubborn people—people who know how to be strong in hard times, who have the courage to speak truth, love with compassion, and live in God’s justice and mercy. I often say stubbornness is what saved this church years ago. There was a small handful of people in 2007 who resolutely said that this church would not close though times were tough. And now, for almost 15 years since, we have grown, changed, and ministered mightily in this church and in this community.
The trouble with stubbornness is it must always be nurtured for good. For Dr. Jekyll, the fascination with being the wicked and indulgent Mr. Hyde got the better of him. He lost control and began changing into the evil persona even when he didn’t want to do so. Eventually, Mr. Hyde won out and Dr. Jekyll was lost. The way to build stubbornness into resilience and strength which dos good work and produces good fruit is through nurture, wisdom, and lots of good fertilizer on our own fig trees. That sense of strength and goodness, that deep rooted grace within us, must be constantly tended to, so that our roots grow even deeper, and our lives produce much good fruit for God.
The question for us, then, is will we be a stubborn people like Israel wandering in the desert, or will we be a stubborn people like Paul who followed God and preached the Good News no matter what? Are we willing to let God work on or person and character to make something good and beautiful, and Christlike out of it? As the hymn says, “Softly and tenderly Jesus is calling…” Why tarry stubbornly when Jesus is pleading? Why linger stubbornly and ignore God’s loving mercy?
If Jesus told a parable about each of us as a fig tree, what would he say? How deep would Jesus say our roots go? How much time have we spent being nurtured and tended to by our holy gardener? And most important in our daily walk with Christ—what kind of good fruit are we producing?
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