Good and Bad Trouble: Daniel 12: 1-3; Mark 13: 1-8
A friend of mine says she has two siblings, and the three of them have all assumed a unique role in the family. One is the troublemaker, one is the instigator, and the final one is usually the innocent. And for their entire lives, this is how things have worked out. One gets in trouble constantly. The other one never gets in trouble but is always causing the trouble, and the last one steers clear of all the trouble from the get-go. Now, for today, we’re going to leave to the side the idea of one being innocent because we all know what that means, and frankly, troublemakers are a lot more fun to talk about than people who are perpetually obedient.
That leaves us the troublemaker and the instigator. It is easy to assume that both are generally bad. And, in fact, usually when someone makes trouble, it’s not a good thing for those around. That’s not always necessarily true, though, for it was the late John Lewis who taught about “good trouble” which challenges things which are sinful, unjust, or cruel in society. Likewise, we all want to blame the instigator for trouble. There’s an old saying that “those who stir the pot ought to lick the spoon,” and usually what’s in the pot in the saying is none too appetizing. However, again, an instigator is not always bad, for Jesus instigated trouble for the cleansing of the temple, when challenged by the pharisees, and at other times when he saw that human made rules caused cruelty and suffering.
So, what good can come from being an instigator of trouble? Does something in the scripture give us this answer? I think it is safe to say that at times Jesus could be a bit of an instigator. His words and teaching ruffled the feathers of those around him. Here the disciples are praising the beauty and majesty of the Temple. Jesus could have simply agreed, saying, “Yep, they are nice.” Instead, he pushes and challenges his disciples by saying that the buildings are nice, BUT “they will be completely demolished. Not one stone will be left on top of another,” in verse 2. Certainly, this was not what the disciples were expecting.
But it’s not the only time Jesus was provocative with his words and actions. Each time he is questioned by the Pharisees, Jesus tells a parable or asks a question which humiliates them. On the Sabbath, Jesus breaks the law to heal folks in need and practically dares the leaders to say something about it. Jesus instigated not for the sake of causing trouble but to challenge what was sinful in the world around him. By contrast he warns the disciples that many will come in his name claiming to be the Messiah, and many will be victims of this religious swindling.
Those who come to teach false doctrine, to redefine who Jesus is in terms of a personal or economic agenda, those who remake Jesus in a form or fashion he is not—they are instigating pure trouble. It was John Hagee, in fact, who said that Jesus will not come back as a white, Southern Baptist preacher in a grey suit. And yet many of our churches still confuse nationalism and Christianity, politics and power with faith, and human society with the Kingdom of God. Jesus instigated trouble to challenge us to stop thinking in terms of what is around us, and instead, to think in terms of God’s purpose and God’s kingdom.
As we’ve heard, trouble can also be good or bad. I’m sure all of us are well-acquainted with what bad trouble looks like. And I’m absolutely certain I have no troublemakers at all in this congregation. I tease, but it is the truth. As a pastor I’m extremely blessed with you all. But I’ve seen other churches where troublemakers toiled endlessly to bring chaos and selfishness into a place intended to be holy. Many of you have lived that same awful experience with houses of worship that felt more like the Temple filled with pharisees than a church filled with people supposedly following Christ. It’s unfortunate and only serves to run people away from a faith which is meant to bring wholeness and a loving embrace from God and God’s people.
But there are times where trouble is good. If we think back to Jesus at the Temple in the Gospel of John, he arrives to see money changers, animal sales, practically a full farmers market of religious stuff. People were supposed to come for worship bringing their best sacrifice to God, not bartering for something somewhat suitable at the half-done ancient Wal-Mart in the Temple courtyard. Jesus makes a whip and drives people from this place calling it a den of thieves and decrying the desecration of a place intended to be holy. Truthfully, Jesus was causing trouble—big trouble in the Temple. But it was good trouble because it pushed away the sinful actions of the people and called on them to live more for God instead.
Jesus describes all manner of trouble to the disciples including the destruction of the Temple, wars, threats of wars, earthquakes, and famines, all bringing trouble and tribulation on the earth, but the ending is not a nightmare of trouble. Jesus adds, “This is only the first of the birth pains, with more to come.” Birth pains? Trouble can lead to something good, or something new? Well, Daniel also seems to echo this idea. Daniel’s prophecy talks about a time of great anguish, but Daniel also talks about great rescue and of new life for those who live in faith.
Trouble can lead to a new and often better way of doing things by changing up bad habits and old ways of being that lead to a sinful staleness in our faith and turmoil in our lives. A friend of mine was the organist at a church. For years, the church had been neglecting maintenance of their pipe organ, and for years my friend had been fixing it as best he could while begging for some money to repair and maintain it. Those pleas fell on deaf ears until one Sunday he made a little trouble.
Right in the middle of service the organ had a cipher. Now a cipher means a smaller pipe has gotten dislodged or stuck open somehow causing the wind to be pumped into it constantly. Imagine a high-pitched flute, wide open, with an endless air supply squealing constantly through the middle of service. The pastor turns and asks my friend, the organist to fix it. He decides it’s time for some trouble, so he makes a big scene of climbing up into the chamber where the pipes are and clanging and banging around for 10 minutes making the worst racket possible. Finally, the squeaking stops. The next day, the church leadership voted in an emergency meeting to fully fund an organ repair. What they didn’t know is that to fix a cipher, you only have to pop the loose pipe back into place and all is well…takes about 5 seconds.
In our lives there will be instigators and troublemakers. Some of them come to make life difficult, painful, and burdensome. But there are some wise troublemakers and instigators in our world who see that in the example of Jesus, sometimes we have to rock the boat a bit to push society towards what is just and holy. Sometimes it is that very act of causing a bit of trouble that can lead to the birth pains of a new and better way of living—a temple more attuned to God, a society more just in its treatment of God’s children, a people less selfish and more focused on Jesus as the Savior and holy example for us here. If we follow Jesus and never challenge the world in which we live, what, exactly, are we doing with our faith and God’s call? May we follow the example of Jesus and make a bit of good trouble in this world, but may we also follow that trouble with the Good News of God’s love and peace.
Worship Video: https://www.facebook.com/fccmacon/videos/1087427975422265