Schmuck

Luke 19:40 ESV

He answered, “I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out.”

Inevitable. I, as a fool hardy American, rarely give much credence to, apart from Manifest Destiny of course. Trained from early on, by cartoons, comics, and Disney that there is always away for the good guys to win. Even looking back at all those failures that haunt me I persist in examining them thinking that “there had to be a way”. If I had only done this better, or said this instead, or… Yet, what if something is truly inevitable? If something is certain to happen and unavoidable it is inevitable. Thinking of fate and destiny has us contemplating this concept often. Even as we mortals like to argue about God’s Sovereignty and Man’s Free Will, inherent in that conversation is the idea of inevitability.

As Jesus is coming into the city of David, the city of Kings, the seat of the house of God, his disciples are overwhelmed by the momentous occasion that they are allowed to participate in. The homecoming of the King. The moment that the nation has been praying for, looking for, and dreaming of has come to them, and they breakout giving praises to God and declaring to all what they know to be true, that the moment has arrived, THE prophet has come, THE son of David is on the cold, THE Messiah was here and his coronation was NOW.

Thinking he would recognize the immensity of the blaspheme, or at least the need to be discreet in front of the Romans, they request Jesus to quiet his disciples. To this Jesus responds that his praise is “inevitable”. No matter what happens, Christ will be praised. If all humanity were to be quiet and refuse to own their “chief end” then the very Ground would cry out, why? Because Christ will be praised. His glory and honor will be proclaimed above all else. More certain than “death and taxes”, or even another Marvel movie, is the reality that Christ will be praised. After all, Elijah and Enoch escaped death, and I don’t believe Cesar paid taxes (“It’s good to be king”).

Maybe I am alone in doing things I don’t want to do. I see the need, I know it needs done, I don’t want to, so I wait hoping someone else will do it. When no one else does, I eventually break down and do “it”. In the end I don’t want to be the schmuck that made the rocks cry out. Will churches require preachers, teachers, and song leaders? Yes. Will some of those that are most able, capable, and passionate about these things, continue to abstain from worship, rejecting the opportunity to Glorify God in this way? Yes. What about the rest of us? How many men choose not to sing, allowing the worship to continue, but robbing worship of the POWER of a strong base? Tempting the rocks. Yet, the alto’s step in and try, never quite as good though.

When something is inevitable the question is really, are you the schmuck that made the inferior creation do your job? God’s people will be led in worship. God’s people will be taught. The question is, how many schmucks are there?

Coram deo