Matthew 9:32-34
After they had gone away, a demoniac who was mute was brought to him. And when the demon had been cast out, the one who had been mute spoke; and the crowds were amazed and said, “Never has anything like this been seen in Israel.” But the Pharisees said, “By the ruler of the demons he casts out the demons.”
I sometimes wonder if wonder and cynicism are, ultimately, the two primary emotions available to us when we encounter the unknown.
The crowd demonstrates the first as they are amazed by Jesus’ acts of healing, culminating most recently in casting out a demon that restored speech, health, and community to the one possessed. The Pharisees, on the other hand, react with cynicism. Unable to explain Jesus’ healing power and unwilling to acknowledge his relationship to God, they not only dismiss his miracle but even accuse him of conspiring with the prince of demons.
But maybe it’s not cynicism, at least not at first. Maybe that’s a secondary reaction that masks a primary one. Maybe, instead, they are just afraid. They also have not seen such power before, and while they don’t know from where it comes, they do know that they cannot control it. And so they are afraid, afraid of what they don’t understand and cannot control, and so respond not with wonder, but with cynicism.
How often, I wonder, are we faced with a similar situation? Confronted by something we don’t understand and cannot control, do we respond with wonder, curiosity, and gratitude that we have witnessed such a thing, or are we afraid, dismissive, and cynical? It may not be something as dramatic as what Matthew describes here – perhaps it’s witnessing a child take strides of independence, or a recent scientific discovery, or a new person with whom we work.
The heart of the matter, I think, turns on how secure we are in our life and how confident we are of God’s grace. The need to control, in my experience, stems from a lack of trust – in ourselves, in those around us, and in God. The funny – or perhaps tragic – thing is, however, that the more we try to control, the more captive we are to fear and cynicism. But when we let go in confidence and trust, so much more is suddenly available to us, including the gift of holy wonder.
Prayer: Dear God, bless us with confidence in your grace and trust in the world and those around us that we may regularly be surprised and delighted by your wondrous creation. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
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